Yay! Theres an Astronomy Class on Elective Hall

Professor McFarlan

April 22, 2007 7:53 PM

First and Second Year Class by Professor McFarlan

Kathleen McFarlan smiled at the all but barren classroom. The First and Second year class would begin soon and she'd done nothing to personalize the space allotted to her. Oh, there were a couple of Muggle star charts and the book shelves were filled with reference material, but really, that was it and in Kathleen's eyes it was more than adequate.

Surveying the classroom as she set the heavy case she lugged from her office on her desk, the new professor decided she'd have to do something about the seating arrangements. A sweeping motion of her wand and the desks that were lined neatly in rows moved this way and that to form a large circle.

Yes, that was much better. Kathleen walked over and touched the desks one by one with her wand while muttering the appropriate spell. Each student desk transformed into a cushy recliner. After all, when one looked up, proper head and spine alignment was needed to avoid that annoying crick in the neck.

With just minutes to go before the students would be arriving, she hurried back to her desk, opened the case and pulled back the soft material that protected the very large crystal contained within. Reverently, she lifted into its proper position. There were only two like it in the entire world. The other crystal resided with her brothers in Ireland. Gently, she touched her wand to just the right spot and it began to glow softly as the room dissolved away.

Instead of a classroom, Kathleen stood in outer space. Below her the earth rotated on its axis, looking like a beautiful blue opal. To the left and a bit closer, the moon made its guardian trek around the fragile planet. All around, planets and their satellites, stars, and comets, asteroids and distant galaxies shone with breathtaking beauty. In the distance, a large, yellow star know to the inhabitants of the watery planet below as Sol, stood guard. Kathleen had grown up working and playing a place that looked exactly like this, but it never ceased to take her breath away. At least this crystalline image would be put to more productive use other than decorating a posh nightclub.

Hearing footsteps outside, she combed her fingers through her shoulder length auburn hair. Satisfied the waves neatly curled up at her shoulders, she commanded the door to open. Her emerald eyes sparkled with silent laughter at the astonished faces of her charges who had their first look at their new Astronomy professor standing, apparently, on nothing but space.

"Come in," she walked over making a welcoming gesture. "The floor is still quite solid. That's right, find a chair and make yourselves comfortable. Don't worry, gravity still applies."

She gave the students a few moments to adjust to their unusual surroundings and get seated. She could only imagine what was going through their heads. She found herself wishing her Muggle university students could have experienced this. Well, time to begin.

"Hello. My name is Kathleen McFarlan and I have the happy privilege of being your new Astronomy Professor. Please respect the usual classroom etiquette. From his notes and your work, I realize that Professor Chatterjee is a hard act to follow, but I'll do my best. He prepared you well on the basics and I believe you are ready learn how all this," Kathleen made a sweeping gesture, "pertains to you."

"All of the Cosmos is interdependent and everything in it affects us. We may not see it or feel it, but all of this affects our world, nature, and magic. This class is more than just memorizing the names of planets and stars. I hope to teach you how what is happening out here affects every single aspect of magic, from charms to potions and everything in between.

"Nothing demonstrates this more than our closest neighbor, the moon." Professor McFarlan's touched the crystal again and the view changed. Above a huge three dimensional moon filled the ceiling. "Its gravitational pull dictates the tides and it works on us in numerous physical and magical ways.

"Like language, Magic is not gender neutral. The moon's magical resonance is female. That's not a man in the moon, its a lady. The monthly cycle of the moon affects us in different ways. The new moon is a good time to begin projects, long brewing potions, and plant root crops like mandrakes. Love potions and charms are particularly effective during the first quarter. During the full moon, a woman's magic is at her peak. Gentleman, never duel with an angry witch three days before and after a full moon, you'll loose. There is also a rise in crime, births, and accidents during a full moon.

"Now that's enough from me for the time being. I want to know what you know about the moon's powers. You can talk about what you know or have observed in nature, the Muggle world, and the Wizarding world. If you know any historical lore or superstition, feel free to impress me. Please raise your hands and I'll call on you." Kathleen looked around the class in the dim light for the first hand.

OOC: Feel free to Google away or use your brilliant imaginations! Keep it believable and have fun!

\n

Subthreads:

Meh by Paul Tarwater with Brett Hodges, Professor McFarlan, Paul

Why did we have to combine classes? by Hyana Kamiya with Echo Elms, Hyana, Professor McFarlan

Re: First and Second Year Class by Eavan Valentine with Elly Eriksson, Eavan, Professor McFarlan

Tripping the light fantastic . . . literally by Gwyneth with Professor McFarlan

Superstition by Ebony with Professor McFarlan, Oliver Abbott

Yay! Theres an Astronomy Class by Hikaru Kasuragi with Professor McFarlan

COOL! Look ma, no floor! by Josiah with Irene Liddowe, Professor McFarlan

Feeling a bit out of place... by Beth Fisher with Talitha Cumni, Camren Christianson

Woah, coolio! by Derek Samonns with Professo McFarlan, Derek

Using soaps as an educational medium... by Amber Carey with Professor McFarlan, Amber

0 Professor McFarlan First and Second Year Class 1467 Professor McFarlan 1 5

Paul Tarwater

April 23, 2007 5:41 AM

Meh by Paul Tarwater

Why did teachers enjoy having the first and second years in the same class? Paul knew that first and second years were by far the most different in educational skills. When you were a first year you knew nothing and are constantly learning new things, and second years already went through their wonderment stage and came in all egotistical and thinking they knew everything about magic and...
Okay, so while all that was true, the real reason Paul hated classes like that was the pure reason that his sister was a first year. One with the second year mindset that she knew everything. Except she actually hurt people rather than laugh when they were wrong.

Something Paul knew very well, though she hadn't come after him since she got back from Midterm. Not that Paul was one to complain. Though he did still have a faint bruise from where she'd hit him in the face, that didn't throb and only hurt when pressed down. But still, Paul had a feeling that being in the same class would remind her that she... well... hated him quite a bit. And Paul wasn't one to enjoy that feeling of being looked at with smirks and glares. Merlin, if Cissy even calmed down enough to get married, Paul had a feeling that she would be an abusive wife. Not that Cissy was one to settle down and get married. She pretty much hated everyone.

Paul turned into the Astronomy room, only to be taken aback as he walked straight into vast space, and immediately stepped out of the room. Woah was that different or what. The boy's blue eyes were widened with shock and it took a second to think of the sort of spell that could do this.
It just looked so real. It was odd for Paul to shake off his initial shock and actually step into the space. Despite growing up a pureblood and therefore being taught to trust magic, Paul still treaded carefully as if unsure the gound really was solid. Sitting down in a seat in the back (of course) Paul laid his head on the table and tuned into what the new teacher was saying.

Yes, Paul understood the Cosmos affected them, but did this woman really have to make the room look like the Cosmos then go on about the moon? And... oh Merlin... menstrual cycles!? Paul's head shot up for a second in a bt of a disgusted manner as a blush colored his cheeks. This woman was in a room of boys. Young boys. Eleven, twelve, thirteen year olds. Therefore boys who had no idea what the cycle was or boys that knew and were completely disgusted by it and liked to crack jokes about it. Of course Paul (with a sister and mother who had told him more than he needed to know) was not the joke cracking type, so he was simply disgusted for now.

Why did it seem all female (and male) teachers were so... Paul didn't want to say sexist because that wasn't it. Just... they tended to talk about their own gender way too much, trying to prove that women were just as strong as men. Paul surely didn't doubt that, he didn't need to know the moon position to know whether or not he would lose in a duel against his little sister. It was just...teachers were supposed to be all equality. Or at least act like it. Not go on about the superiority of their own gender. So excuse Paul if he wondered when men were strongest so he knew what was the best time to confront his sister. If he ever decided to be that stupid.

"The moon causes tide changes," Paul stated in a bored tone when he saw others weren't speaking. Even if this woman was a bit of a weirdo Paul wasn't one to like a quiet class when people should talk. He found it stupid that people could blab their mouths off about stupid gossip only too shut their mouths at last once the voices were really wanted.

Paul had too much time on his hands over Midterm and nearly read every book (okay that was a lie) in the library. Some information was on the moon, and he thanked that he knew a lot that could be explained in a short few sentances to just get the others talking without drawing too much attention to himself. "High tide, low tide. It's because of every piece of gravity, no matter how small, affects the bodies around it. The moon's gravitational pull brings all the water on opposite points on the earth while draining their adjacent sides, causing high and low tide." Paul yawned again and set his head back down. "Oh yeah, and we wobble. The planets also make the sun wobble. Gravity," he added, equally bored as he turned his head to see if Cissy noticed. That was the last thing Paul wanted, and he probably wouldn't even had spoken up had she not been so down lately.

Oddly enough, she seemed angry. Well, that wasn't odd really, but she was visibly angry. Paul didn't think he was the reason, thankfully, in fact he doubted she even was listening. He wondered what was wrong a split second before someone tapped him on the back. "Hm?" he turned to the person.

0 Paul Tarwater Meh 0 Paul Tarwater 0 5

Brett Hodges

April 23, 2007 4:25 PM

Dude, raise your hand by Brett Hodges

Brett stared off into space as McFarlane went on. What was cool was that the stupid cliche expression actually meant something here. He was sitting next to one of the second years who's name he didn't know and when he started talking it suddenly peeved him for like no reason. It was such a Echo-comment, all muggle sciencey and stuff, but dude did he have to go on for so long? Show off, man. Show. Off. He didn't even wait to be called on or anything. What the heck?

"Dude," he tapped him on the shoulder pointedly, "Gotta raise your hand. Teach said." He was ready to fight about it. It was stupid. He knew it was stupid. But man, he was just itching for something.

Policing classroom behavior was not normal. Across the room Echo -- he still hadn't forgiven Echo really, or maybe he did, he forgot what they were fighting about -- raised an eyebrow at him from behind his new specs and glanced at the new teacher. Kid probably thought Brett was trying to push her buttons, see what he could get away with in the new teacher's class. So wrong.

Brett sighed and leaned back, arms crossed. "Forget it."

0 Brett Hodges Dude, raise your hand 0 Brett Hodges 0 5

Hyana Kamiya

April 23, 2007 6:22 PM

Why did we have to combine classes? by Hyana Kamiya

A new class, a new professor, a new fear. That's all Hyana really knew about Astronomy. And the fact that the first and second years were in class together. She had to stay away from Caedence. Until her bruises would heal, she'd have to stay away from the professors too. Hyana blended in the crowd that was walking into the classroom, and was just as amazed as everyone.

She was in outer space, was that even possible? Well, this was Sonora after all. And she was a witch. The Astronomy professor had to be a witch too. Feeling stupid, Hyana got a seat as far back as possible. She let her long black hair drape over her face as she tried to blend in to her spacy surroundings. No one should see her now...right?

The professor, McFarlan, introduced herself, and Hyana was slightly curious. McFarlan seemed nice. And Professor K was gone...maybe she could talk to McFarlan sometimes? No, she didn't want to bug the professor already. Hyana definatly came out of her thoughts when a huge three dimensional moon appeared in front of the class. It was interesting to learn that the moon was a woman, and how all of these things happened at certain times of the moon's cycle.

Then the professor asked people if they wanted to share stuff that they know about the moon. Hyana did know a japanese legend...she started to raise her hand into the air, but felt her sleeve start to slide down her arm. She quickly put her arm back down. It wasn't like the professor could see her anyway. She turned to the person next to her, and asked, "Do you know anything about the moon?" Maybe it was someone who didn't know her...then they could ignore her like everyone else. But if it turned out to be Caedence...that would be a different story.

0 Hyana Kamiya Why did we have to combine classes? 0 Hyana Kamiya 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 23, 2007 7:59 PM

Now Did I Once Mention the "M" word? by Professor McFarlan

OOC:Please note that you are not sitting at desks in rows, but in recliners in a circle. Of course, they may be so comfy you really are just sleepy.

Professor McFarlan was about to call on the first student that raised her hand when she heard a young man drawl in a bored voice, “The moon causes tide changes,“ and then go on to explain gravitational relationships simply but rather accurately. Her initial irritation at his talking out of turn lessened somewhat when her surprised her by going on to mention how the members of the solar system “wobbles”. This was a relatively new discovery and rarely discussed in Wizarding circles as it was still considered “Muggle science”.

Kathleen studied him for a moment before responding. Speaking up without raising one’s hand was rude, but could be excused as enthusiasm had it not been for the boy’s tone of voice and body language. There was obviously great intelligence in those cold, blue eyes. Was the bored, tired voice a passive-aggressive ploy? Or was he really so advanced intellectually that this lesson truly was truly beneath him?

There was also something about the energy she received from him. Very dark. Not evil, but dark. His demeanor suggested bitterness, disillusionment, and yes sadness. What in the world happened to a soul to make someone so young so jaded? She regarded him not with pity, he would distain any show of pity, but with a bit of understanding.

He had glanced twice at someone in the opposite side of the circle. Covertly, Professor McFarlan tried to discern whom he was glancing at. In the general area she spotted a young girl, a first year possibly. There seemed to be a family resemblance--sibling? Cousin?-- staring daggers at nothing in particular. She too had a dark look, but in a very different, very malevolent way. She had the appearance of a spoiled brat who was not allowed her way. Alright then, light a fire under him and douse her.

Giving the boy who poked and whispered that he should have raised his hand to the one who spoken up a “I will handle this myself,” look, she addressed her first volunteer.

“Very good, the tides are affected by the gravitational pull of the moon and earth. Both examples you sighted are what is know as ‘hard science‘, meaning it is regarded as truth in both the Wizarding and the Muggle world,” she said. “But please remember to raise your hand next time. Can you elaborate on the ‘wobble effect’? Such as when and how it was discovered, Mr.-?”

\n

0 Professor McFarlan Now Did I Once Mention the "M" word? 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Echo Elms

April 23, 2007 8:49 PM

Because it's fun? by Echo Elms

Echo lingered behind and waited for everyone else to choose their seats. Only when the rush was over did he hop into the circle, wave to Elly and Meredith, and take the free recliner next to Hyana. He hadn't really met her before, but he knew who she was. Brett had pointed her out in Cascade Hall after he met her that first week, and, plus, he'd seen her hanging around with Caedence.

The classroom as space thing was cool. He listened to the new professor attentively, sometimes glancing at his friends to see if they were as into it as he was. Space was way visual with this new teacher, and as the lecture went on, he stopped missing Professor Chatterjee. Sitting crosslegged on a recliner with notebook in your lap would do that.

Professor McFarlan posed a question to the class, and Echo was surprised the Hyana leaned over and asked him if he knew anything about the moon.

"It's dusty," he whispered back, "and it has craters. Look," he added, pointing subtly to the model. He'd always thought the craters were cool. Paul Tarwater explained about tides -- Echo wished he'd thought of that -- and Brett gave him a hard time. Echo gave him a look, trying to mentally send Brett instructions to chill. Brett leaned back with attitude. Great way to make an impression on a teacher, Brett. Good job.

Not that Echo hadn't done worse in elementary school. Then the roles were switched and Brett was telling him to chill. Echo had his only friendship falling apart at the time, what was Brett's excuse? Echo made a note to approach him later.

As McFarlan asked Paul to elaborate on the wobbles, Echo jotted, "Did you ever see the video of the moon landing?" in his notebook and showed it to Hyana.

21 Echo Elms Because it's fun? 93 Echo Elms 0 5

Eavan Valentine

April 24, 2007 1:11 AM

Re: First and Second Year Class by Eavan Valentine

A string of expletives ran through Eavan's mind, but unlike her brother, she held them in. With her mouth open like a dead fish, she walked into the Astronomy classroom and sat down at the nearest open...recliner? she could find and gazed at the cosmic expanse around her. She was brought back down to Earth - metaphorically - when the universe vanished around her and was replaced by a 3-d view of the moon.

And then the new Professor...McFarlan began her lesson. At first it was incredibly interesting, but something McFarlan mentioned made a rosy blush rise to her freckled cheeks and her body clench. This stupid giant moon and this stupid speech on 'female powers' just brought back bad memories of what her father had embarrassingly referred to as 'becoming a woman'. Eavan had never wanted her mother more than she had wanted her at that moment.

As she sat uncomfortably in the comfortable chair, she heard the professor ask questions. She knew a few things about the moon. It traveled around the Earth, did something with the tides - apparently the kid who first spoke knew quite a bit about it - and Neil Armstrong landing on the moon etc etc...but she didn't really feel like speaking up in class at the moment. Eavan sighed, and stared back up into the heavens, remembering something from a long time ago...something to do with the moon. A song that her mother used to sing to her...

"Moon River, wider than a mile:
I'm crossin' you in style someday.
Old dream maker, you heart-breaker,
Wherever you're goin', I'm goin' your way..."

Eavan looked back at the class. How loudly was she singing the song? She bit her lip and chanced a glance at the two people on wither side of her. One seemed not to notice, but the other...

"Um...sorry 'bout that." She said the person hoping that she hadn't disrupted anyone's lesson.

0 Eavan Valentine Re: First and Second Year Class 86 Eavan Valentine 0 5

Elly Eriksson

April 24, 2007 11:54 AM

Staring into space by Elly Eriksson

Astronomy without Professor Deck just didn’t seem right. Still, Elly had liked all of the teachers Sonora had thrown at her so far, so she entered the class prepared to give this new one as much effort as she would in every class – which wasn’t very much, but whatever.

But whoa – the classroom was… well it wasn’t a classroom. It was like being in outer space! Grinning like a Cheshire Cat, Elly slumped down one of the funky chairs and got comfortable. She returned Echo's wave and smiled at him from across the classroom while Professor McFarlan introduced herself. Everything she said sounded interesting and worth hearing – Elly liked her immensely. For the first time she could ever remember, Elly actually listened intently to every word the teacher was saying. It was an unusual experience, being so enthralled in a lesson. By astronomy, no less. Though by the time the professor came to the end of her speech, Elly had the same problem that she’d had in her first astronomy lesson last year – she really didn’t know anything about the solar system.

Elly tried desperately to think of something. The Moon. Well it… was round? Sighing lightly, Elly glanced around the room for inspiration. She became distracted quite quickly, though, as the girl who’s taken the seat next to her started to sing softly. Elly recognised the tune, and she looked at her classmate, who didn’t seem to be aware they were singing aloud… until she looked round. “Um… sorry ’bout that,” she said.

Elly smiled. “It’s okay,” she whispered back, trying not to interrupt the lesson. “It’s Eavan, right?” The girls had been sharing lessons for over a year and Elly didn’t think they’d ever spoken properly before. “I love that song,” she said.

0 Elly Eriksson Staring into space 92 Elly Eriksson 0 5

Paul

April 24, 2007 4:51 PM

... Meh or Moon? by Paul

The boy who'd poked Paul had called Paul dude. Merlin, how Paul hated Muggle slang of any kind. "Dude" and "Yo" and all those others. He had thought Muggle schools taught proper grammar, but apparently all the students here from Muggle schools had those ridiculous sayings that Paul just wanted to tear violently from their mouths.
Unfortuantly for him, other than the fact you couldn't tear words from a mouth, Paul was fairly weak. He looked like any normal boy his age (only paler), but his body didn't last long under a load of physical pressure. Instead, biting comments and cold remarks were the things that he used.

"Excuse me for not paying attention to anything other than the actual lesson," he told the first year coldly, not breaking the eye contact he made. It wasn't a sarcastic statement, but it wasn't sincere either. It was more of a 'don't you dare talk to me' tone. "And excuse you for skipping out on your grammar lessons. I am not a 'dude', and I would rather not be called one. Muggle slang doesn't interest me at all, more of it demeans me and all around you." Making his point, Paul looked up at the teacher who started on about his statement. Only stopping to point out the speaking out of turn thing for a mild second before asking about the 'wobble'."

She seemed very interested in that statement. And wait, that last one was Muggle information? But... he'd found the books in the library. Which was certainly not a place for Muggle books to go. "Tarwater," Paul finished off. "And the book on wobble, it was in the Libaray at school. I read it over Midterm, I might still have it." His voice, while still cold and bored, had a trace of confusion in it. "But I do believe that it was discovered soon after discovering Pluto, which made Neptune wobble."

Cissy had finally looked up at him, her biting eyes glaring towards him. Paul noticed and fell silent, but wasn't afraid this time around. Normally in public, Cissy would only give him a secretive grin, the glares were set to private. She would probably whisper something rude to him, or maybe an empty threat, on the way out of class. But other than that, Paul had a feeling no severe pain would add more scars to him today.
Thinking of scars made Paul touch the indents left on his wrist all Midterm. They were fading but still red from the broken blood vessels under. He looked at them, and then at Cissy whose nails caused the marks

Paul knew he had worse than that from her under his shirt, but he wasn't stupid enough to touch his chest in public. Not only was it weird, but it was also a bit suspicious. Paul looked up at the teacher again and shrugged. He wouldn't risk more bleeding for speaking to a person he barely knew out loud in class.

0 Paul ... Meh or Moon? 0 Paul 0 5

Eavan

April 24, 2007 5:55 PM

Sitting in space by Eavan

She looked familiar. In the same year, maybe. Eavan grinned. Luckily, the girl didn't seem to mind.

"Yeah, I love it too. I didn't know it was so popular, though. My mom used to sing it to me." Eavan thought for a moment. Maybe she should ask the girl her name.

"Umm...this is bad since you know my name name, but I really don't know yours. What is it?" By this time she was completely ignoring the lecture which was rather sad because she had found it fairly interesting. She'll regret not paying attention later.

0 Eavan Sitting in space 0 Eavan 0 5

Hyana

April 24, 2007 5:55 PM

I guess you could say that by Hyana

So the person sitting next to her was Echo Elms. She didn't know much about him, except that she saw him and Brett hanging out together. He also hung around Elly sometimes. She tried to remember if he hung out with Caedence...but she wasn't too sure. Ah well, didn't matter. He was answering her question. He had to be okay. She nodded at his response, and turned her gaze back at the model.

Brett said something aloud, but Hyana didn't really pay attention. He was just scolding Paul, who didn't like her too much to begin with. She started scanning the room again, trying to figure how far away she was from Caedence, and pulled her legs closer to her. Since she was so small, doing that in a recliner was not difficult at all. It made her seem smaller anyway. Starting to turn her gaze back to the professor, she spotted Echo jotting something in his notebook, then he showed it to her.

"Did you ever see the video of the moon landing?"

Hyana shook her head. She didn't have much at home, except for books. She'd usually just walk the streets (running into the muggle jerks), or read in her room. There was nothing better to do. Again, Hyana considered raising her hand. She started raising the left one, the not injured one, but pulled it back down when the professor started talking to Paul. She ended up staring at the floor. That didn't scare her, as long as she remembered that gravity still applied.

0 Hyana I guess you could say that 0 Hyana 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 24, 2007 7:15 PM

It Makes You Think, "Mmmmm" by Professor McFarlan

“Thank you, Mr. Tarwater.” Professor McFarlan smiled slightly. She took note of, but chose not to make mention of his perfectly Pureblood retort to the miniature “campus policeman” sitting next to him. Actually, that small insight of his heritage gave her a great opening to perhaps crack a fissure in the bigoted ichor that was beginning to encrust many of her small students’ brains. But she had to move carefully. If she humiliated the dark haired young man in the process, she could kill any passion for learning he might possess.

“You are correct. Hence the latest debate about whether or not Pluto is a true planet.” She turned to address the entire class. “ The wobble effect is caused by the gravitational ’tug of war’ between moon and the sun with the earth in the middle, so to speak. The earth resists this pulling with its own gravitational field. It’s this ‘fighting back’ that causes the wobbling and actually aids in keeping its rotational speed and orbital path fairly constant.

“It was only recently discovered in a three month study by Sebastien Lambert of the Royal Observatory of Belgium between November of 1995 and February of 1996 that this wobble affects the position of the angle of the poles to such a degree that the true North Star alternates between Polarus (what we know today as our North Star) and Vega every 26,000 thousand years or so. It will shift back to Vega in approximately 14,000 years. He also discovered that tides and weather cause ’mini wobbles’. Dr. Lambert discovered this using a Muggle device called a Global Position System or GPS for short.

“Because of their innate curiosity and need to compensate for lack of magic, Muggles are pulling ahead of Wizarding scientists by leaps and bounds,” the Professor gave the class a moment to allow this to sink in. “Now being Pureblood myself, it felt like heresy to admit that at first, but the truth is, we are relying more and more on Muggles to make discoveries we could have, should have discovered decades, even centuries ago. We need new blood in the sciences, passionate minds to clean out the cobwebs and make the progress move far more rapidly than it is today.”

She turned and looked meaningfully at Mr. Tarwater, was he the one to set the ball rolling? “Excellent beginning, thank you again, Mr. Tarwater. Now, who’s next?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan It Makes You Think, "Mmmmm" 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 24, 2007 11:08 PM

I Have Excellent Peripheral Vision by Professor McFarlan

The chatter in the room was getting out of hand. Professor McFarlan hadn’t minded the few whispers here and there, but this was just too much. Perhaps next lesson she should change her tack and come up with a project that would give them the option to work in teams like many of the other professors did. For now, she needed to get things in control.

“Ladies and Gentlemen.” she announced in a controlled voice that didn’t sound angry yet allowed no arguments. “Please have the common courtesy to pay attention to what your fellow students are saying. I don’t mind occasional whispered discussions, but honestly, you’re being a bit rude.

“Remember, I am very interested in what you might know. It doesn’t have to be scientific. More and more we are learning that old wives tales are actually based in very real ancient magic that we’ve somehow forgotten, cultural legends have traces of genuine history, Muggle history is tied into our own, and there is very frequently fact hidden in fables.

She turned to one of the chatting couples that seemed to be staying on target in their conversation. The tiny Asian girl who was speaking to a lad in glasses seemed to almost raised her hand twice then timidly change her mind. The be-speckled boy seemed to be kindly encouraging her.

Professor McFarlan mentally crossed her fingers, hoping she was right in her assessment of their conversation and instead of singling her shy student out completely, she smiled warmly and addressed both children together.

“May I please have your names and could you share with the rest of us what you’ve been discussing?”\n

0 Professor McFarlan I Have Excellent Peripheral Vision 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Elly

April 25, 2007 12:54 PM

Whispering in space by Elly

Elly got her name right; it was Eavan. Though, despite having shared classes for a year and a bit, Eavan apparently didn’t know who Elly was. Head in the clouds, maybe? “I’m Elly,” she said, grinning her trademark manic smile. She pushed her hair behind her ear to stop it falling in front of her face and obscuring her view of her classmate as they talked. “Pecari,” she added, just in case it was relevant. A lot of people thought it was, so it was often best to add it just to be sure.

It was just then that the Professor zoned in on Echo and Hyana for talking. Elly felt bad for them. She sincerely hoped that at least one of her friends knew more about the moon than she did, otherwise they were in serious trouble. It then occurred to her that if she didn’t come up with something on topic then she just might get in trouble. Hurriedly, she turned back to Eavan and whispered, “Do you know anything about the moon? I’m totally dumb about astronomy,” she admitted pulling a face. Everything she knew about the moon had just been gleaned from Professor McFarlan’s opening speech. Though she supposed sitting in a comfy chair in outer space would probably make up for any trouble she got into by being ignorant.

0 Elly Whispering in space 0 Elly 0 5

Gwyneth

April 26, 2007 6:03 PM

Tripping the light fantastic . . . literally by Gwyneth

Gwyneth was excited about the first astronomy class. It was one area of science she really liked. Lots of summer nights were spent out on a blanket in the backyard looking up at the night sky. While she could never remember the constellations that her father had faithfully pointed out time and time again, she really loved looking for them. She hoped that, if she REALLY paid attention in class, perhaps this summer she could impress her dad by pointing out some the constellations she learned.

When she walked through the classroom door, she couldn't believe what she saw over the heads of the students ahead of her. Professor McFarlan has literally transformed the classroom into outer space! Gwyneth was looking up at the ceiling, or at least where the ceiling should be, admiring the view and looking to see if she recognized any star patterns from summers past. She was so busy looking up that she didn't notice the rest of the room.

It was when Professor McFarlan began to talk and Gwyneth brought her gaze down from the ceiling to the teacher, that she suddenly noticed the floor. Or rather the apparent lack of one! Afraid of heights, Gwyneth instantly began to feel a little anxious and a bit light-headed. Don't be silly! she told herself. The professor must be standing on something solid. She even said the floor is solid. Ohh, please don't do anything embarassing like faint! Gwyneth willed herself to think calmly and rationally and to realize that just because it looked like she was standing on nothing, a millions miles from nowhere, she was just in a transfigured classroom.

Trying to reach one of the recliners before she became completely disoriented and fell down, Gwyneth stumbled over a couple of students, mumbling vague apologies. Reaching the relative security of a chair, she flopped down and had to close her eyes against the sight of all that space. In a few minutes, the dizziness began to fade and Gwyneth slowly opened her eyes and tuned back in to what the teacher was saying. She still felt about as green as the tee shirt she was wearing under her robes. She hoped she hadn't trampled anyone in her blind dash to find a seat.

0 Gwyneth Tripping the light fantastic . . . literally 0 Gwyneth 0 5

Hyana

April 26, 2007 7:51 PM

That you do by Hyana

Hyana almost fell out of her chair from surprise when the professor started scolding the class. Luckily, it was a recliner. And recliners are big. Very big. At least they are when you compare them to a very small girl like Hyana forcing herself to be smaller so she wouldn't be noticed. Of course, that never really worked out the way she wanted it to. Especially when Professor McFarlan addressed both her and Echo.

She squeaked slightly as she felt (or imagined) eyes on her. She took a deep breath to calm herself and waited for Echo to speak. He still hadn't said anything, and Hyana just couldn't stand the stares. Pointing at the three dimensional moon, she whispered, "Th-there's a bunny...on the moon..." Now that she said something, maybe the professor would leave her alone. But she doubted that.

0 Hyana That you do 0 Hyana 0 5

Echo Elms

April 26, 2007 9:20 PM

Uh-huh by Echo Elms

Busted. This was why Echo didn't try stuff in class. He never got away with anything, not even a little note passing when the teacher was facing the other way and everyone else was whispering too. No way. It all went back to elementary school. His rap sheet was miles long and whether or not it transferred from muggle school to wizarding school, and whether or not it even still existed because it was like 3rd grade, teachers could smell things like that. They just knew: this one is a troublemaker. They knew.

At least, that was his theory.

Echo had learned from careful observation that the best thing to do when you got caught was to just stop doing whatever it was you were doing. A little half-voiced, "Sorry," didn't hurt anything either, as long as you didn't try to argue. He tried this strategy and it seemed to go alright except that she decided to focus on him and Hyana. She asked Hyana what they'd been talking about. At least, it seemed like she was asking her and not him. Maybe it was addressed to both of them. He couldn't decide and he was starting to think Hyana wanted him to say something instead because she was looking at him like she didn't know why he wasn't talking. So maybe she thought Professor McFarlan was talking to him?

"Th-there's a bunny... on the moon..." Hyana said before Echo had decided to break that weird awkward gap. Somehow, Echo didn't remember anything about a bunny.

"Yeah," he agreed anyway, "Like, in the craters. One of them looks sort of like a rabbit," he pointed, "There's the ears. See it?" He, honestly, didn't really see it either, but he saw something that he could argue was shaped like a bunny. He glanced a Hyana, hoping he was on the right track with his bunny comment. He completely forgot to answer the question about his name. "And I was asking Hyana if she saw the video of the moon landing. My dad has a video that says that some people tried to prove it was faked, but it wasn't."

21 Echo Elms Uh-huh 93 Echo Elms 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 2:04 AM

Are You Okay? by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan noticed the young girl who tripped on the was to her chair. She appeared a bit nauseous. Giving her time to become acclimated, McFarlan gave her introductory lecture. The young lady still appeared rather shaken. Well, this was to be expected. Once in a while, someone did experience more severe vertigo than usual.

“Excuse me one moment. You can think about your answers while you wait.” the professor said to the class and moved to kneel by the girl’s chair.

“It’s alright,” she told the girl gently and quietly. “Just focus on the image of the moon or on me and don’t look down. Breath slowly in through your nose… hold it a moment…and slowly out through the mouth. Keep it up. Close your eyes if you have to. You may relax here until you feel well enough to participate, alright? I‘m sorry this happened to you. I truly want everyone to enjoy the beauty in space. Just let me know if you feel worse and I’ll end the spell long enough for you to be excused, Miss_?”

\n

0 Professor McFarlan Are You Okay? 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Ebony

April 27, 2007 5:47 AM

Superstition by Ebony

Ebony was a bit worried about going to the Astonomy lesson. She hadn't been coping very well for the first half of the school year and had faded out of existence to most people. This was the first lesson she had had since coming back from the mid term break and she was determined she wasn't going to fade into the background again.

As Ebony stepped over the threshold into the Astronomy classroom she became amazed at the sight before her. She was standing on the floor except it looked like she was floating in space. Amazed, Ebony barely followed Professor McFarlan's directions to take a seat. Once seated Ebony couldn't help another look this time focusing on looking for earth.

Before Ebony could discover their planet Professor McFarlan started her lesson about the moon. Ebony listened closely as her new determination to work harder came to mind. At the end of the small lecture Profesor McFarlan asked if anybody knew any superstitions about the moon and Ebony shot her hand up. Her mother had told her one as a young girl that her mother had passed onto her.

0 Ebony Superstition 0 Ebony 0 5

Hikaru Kasuragi

April 27, 2007 12:37 PM

Yay! Theres an Astronomy Class by Hikaru Kasuragi

Hikaru sighed as he wandered around in the Hallway close to the Astronomy Room, it was almost 10:30 and he was about ready to go back to the tower and sleep. He glanced at the small, crank operated pocket watch he had recieved for Christmas and groaned as it was only 10:24! He wasn't supposed to be here for at least another twenty minutes! He rolled his neck around and sat down on the ground near the classroom while pulling out a book from his bag.

It was entitled 'The Kite Runner'; a spectacular book that he had been waiting to read ever since it came out. It was about some of the events going on in the Muggle world around them that he had previously no experience with. He had gotten through at least twenty pages before their new Professor stepped out to see them. He was indeed looking forward to this class, and the Professor seemed nice.

As he walked into the classroom, he almost tripped; the floor was outer space for Petes sake! He stood up and glanced around at all the stars before he walked over to the recliner to begin the lesson.

0 Hikaru Kasuragi Yay! Theres an Astronomy Class 0 Hikaru Kasuragi 0 5

Gwyneth

April 27, 2007 12:57 PM

blushes will be in a moment by Gwyneth

As Gwyneth refocused on the room she was embarassed to see that her weakness had not gone unnoticed as she had hoped. But rather than have to explain why she had trampled a fellow student, she was going to have to apologize to Professor McFarlan, who was kneeling by her chair! But rather than being angry at the disruption Gwyneth must have caused, the teacher was kindly helping her to calm down and quiet the whirling feeling in her brain and stomach.

"Aquillon, Gwyneth Aquillon. Professor McFarlan, I am really sorry for interrupting your class," Gwyneth began in response to the teacher's query about her health and name. "I should be alright, now that I'm seated. Your room is so wonderful! But just very . . . REAL looking." She didn't want Professor McFarlan to think that her transfiguration work was unappreciated. "It just took me by surprise to see it all around me, not just on the ceiling like the observatory at the school where my father teaches." Then Gwyneth dropped her voice even softer, "I guess I am just a big baby, but sometimes I'm bothered by heights." In a more determined voice, she looked up at the "ceiling" and added, "But I'll be fine now. The night sky is one of my favorite views. It took Dad all summer but he finally taught me how to pick out Orion and Ursa Major." Fitting action to words, Gwyneth pointed to those constellations.

0 Gwyneth *blushes* will be in a moment 0 Gwyneth 0 5

Josiah

April 27, 2007 1:12 PM

COOL! Look ma, no floor! by Josiah

Josiah wasn’t too awful eager to come to Astronomy class. This professor had replaced his head of house! No one could replace Deck! No one! He was bound and determined to not like this woman. He was a bit late, so he was stuck at the back of the group, unable to see inside the classroom. A woman’s voice called them all in.

"Come in, The floor is still quite solid. That's right, find a chair and make yourselves comfortable. Don't worry, gravity still applies."

Gravity still applies? What was that, some kind of stupid pun? Josiah shook his head before following the group in.

He gasped in shock, finding himself in outer space. He touched his head, knowing from his tutors what happens to people in outer space. He jumped up and down a few times, landing as hard as possible on the floor to make sure it existed. Then, the fake macho-man he was, he strutted across the floor, showing that he wasn’t afraid. He spotted Hyana, but she was surrounded on both sides, so he couldn’t get to her. Drat!

He selected another recliner and turned his attention to the professor. His mouth dropped open. Man! This lady was a fox! He felt a blush creep across his face and was glad for the dim light that was offered, which helped cover it up. All resentment forgotten, he payed attention to every word that cascaded from her mouth.

He watched as first Paul, then Hyana, then Echo spoke. He wanted to share something, but could find nothing in his brain except for cobwebs and tumbleweed. Man, he should’ve paid more attention to his tutors! He glanced over at Ebony’s hand that shot into the air. He sighed, more opportunity to think, at least.

Turning to whoever was seated by him, he said, “So, are you completely unsure of any facts to share like me?” he joked. \n

0 Josiah COOL! Look ma, no floor! 0 Josiah 0 5

Irene Liddowe

April 27, 2007 4:18 PM

Give the person who designed <i>that</i> a promotion! by Irene Liddowe

Irene entered the room with the other first and second years, not thrilled about nor dreading the upcoming class. In fact, she didn't know all too much about Astronomy. She had missed the two years of school before coming to Sonora, after all. How was she suppose to know? Her third grade teacher didn't touch too much on anything farther than Asia.

Irene looked around for the, so far as she knew, new Professor. This task didn't last too long, however. Her attention, as well as many others, had been caught by the amazing view she was now faced with. Her blue-green eyes widened. She was uneasy about stepping on the floor, afraid she may start floating away or something else completely ridiculous.

"Come in, The floor is still quite solid. That's right, find a chair and make yourselves comfortable. Don't worry, gravity still applies."

Aha! Found the Professor! Irene decided she looked like a nice person. Feeling reassured about the gravity issue, Irene headed to any empty chair. She was definitely liking this class already.

Professor McFarlan told them some background on the moon, most of which was slightly new to her. Irene knew she had been born on the full moon. Her mother had chosen her middle name, Selina, because of the full moon that night.

Many people were raising their hands to share a bit of info. Irene pulled a strand of brown hair away from her face and she though. Irene racked her memory for any small bit of information that she could remember. It seemed the boy next her was thinking along the same lines.

“So, are you completely unsure of any facts to share like me?”

"Seems we're in the same boat here," Irene said smiling. Staring ahead at the wall picturing the moon, Irene wondered out loud, "The moon... Well, let's see... It's either wicked hot or freezing cold, I can't decide. I'm going to take a wild random guess and say that no one lives there, so population: zero," Irene paused. "Well, I'm out. Your turn," She said, turning back to the boy.

0 Irene Liddowe Give the person who designed <i>that</i> a promotion! 106 Irene Liddowe 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 8:16 PM

Thanks For Not Urping On My Stars by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan’s smile reached her eyes and made them dance. Relieved that her charge was feeling better, she replied, “It’s good to meet you Miss Aquillion.”

Suddenly, the quiet, ill looking waif blossomed into a wonder-filled, happy child talking her hear off. Professor McFarlan laughed and patted her arm appreciatively when she spoke of how she loved the place. She was definitely taken aback when Gwyneth mentioned her father taught at an observatory and correctly pointed out the constellations with such passion.

“Your father is an Astronomer? Well, then I guess I’ll have to keep on my toes.” she smiled. “And, no, you are not a baby. We all have fears we have to face. Some people just hide them better than others. Never be ashamed of your fears, think of them as challenges to overcome.” McFarlan winked at Gwyneth conspiratorially. “I suppose I’d better continue with class. Just raise your hand if you feel comfortable enough to contribtute.”\n

0 Professor McFarlan Thanks For Not Urping On My Stars 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 8:53 PM

Fluffy Bunnies and Lunar Modules by Professor McFarlan

Now this kid was trouble. At least trouble for a professor who had a hard time keeping a straight face when it was time to put on a stern teacher face. When the young man ’innocently’ stuck up for his companion by trying to declare he actually triedto convince her he knew what the oriental girl was talking about, she had to bite the inside of her cheeks hard and turn her back as if thought to keep it together.

Fortunately, what he said next was something she could use. And I was asking Hyana if she saw the video of the moon landing. My dad has a video that says that some people tried to prove it was faked, but it wasn't. Taking a centering breath to get back into teacher’s mode she turned back to the young man.

“Oh, you’re correct, it wasn’t faked. It was one of the most monumental events in Muggle history. Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin ‘Buzz’ Aldrin were officially the first human beings to walk on the moon. July 7, 1969 ended the Space Race to put a man on the moon between the USA and the former Soviet Union. A fantastic feat.

“Do you remember what Neil Armstrong’s famous quote when he placed his foot on the moon for the first time, Mr.___? I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your name.”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Fluffy Bunnies and Lunar Modules 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 9:26 PM

Don't Hop Away Just Yet by Professor McFarlan

Oka-ay, another child to tread softly with. Professor McFarlan thought. But this time the child she had to deal with was fragile instead of arrogant. She had a strange urge to scoop the tiny girl and run to the nearest rocking chair and rock until everything was all better.

“You're very correct,” McFarlan answered as softly as she could and still be heard by everyone. “Japanese and Chinese children don’t see a man in the moon, they see a rabbit. There is an ancient fable in connection to the Moon Rabbit.”

Still getting the impression that the girl was actually a Pooka that would change herself into frightened rabbit at any moment, she took a chance any try to draw the child out of herself. This little lady needed to learn that this classroom and its professor were safe.

“Could you briefly tell us the story of Moon Rabbit, Miss___?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Don't Hop Away Just Yet 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 11:06 PM

Could You Hum a Few Bars? by Professor McFarlan

“Yes, ladies, the mysterious moon and its ever changing, gentle light has inspired quite a few romantic songs.” Professor McFarlan turned to the next pair of chatterers. Assessing the relaxed, happy expressions on their faces, she thought they could take a bit of good natured teasing.

The girl with red hair especially looked as if she had a great sense of humor and could be counted on to go with the moment. She wasn't quite sure about the other, but she seemed good natured. Oh, Kat, someday, your devilish idea of fun will be your undoing

After some nerve wracking encounters with “little angels with issues,” it would be a relief to get her point across, but in a light hearted way. Would they be up to the challenge?

“I tell you what,” Professor McFarlan crossed her fingers behind her back. “You can introduce yourselves to me and either give the class a bit of information about what you know about the moon…or… since its already been demonstrated here that culture and science sometimes go hand in hand…you can stand and sing a song you know about the moon. The choice is yours.”

OOC: Honest girls, play it safe or have fun according to your characters’ natures. No worries either way, You choose.
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Could You Hum a Few Bars? 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 27, 2007 11:48 PM

I Didn't Plan To Ignore You by Professor McFarlan

The young man sitting next to Mr. Tarwater still glowered. Perhaps she should have reprimanded the older for being equally as rude to the younger, instead of jumping into a sermon. From the boy’s perspective, it probably didn’t seem fair. Maybe it wasn’t.

Professor McFarlan didn’t want to inspire hard feelings in any student the first day of classes. After all, she’d allowed all the others that disrupted the first few minutes of class were allowed to contribute but him and he had seemed to be enjoying the view until his neighbor spoke out.

Crossing over to stand next to him, she caught his eye. Giving him a small smile as a greeting, she searched for the words that would sooth things over without dredging up the two boys’ unpleasant encounter.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t intentionally ignore you. I was momentarily distracted. I meant to ask you earlier, do you have something to contribute to the discussion?” she asked hopefully. It looked as though you were going to raise your before things got noisy, Mr.__?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan I Didn't Plan To Ignore You 0 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 28, 2007 12:26 AM

Someone Raised Their Hand!!! Yipee!!! by Professor McFarlan

Now, this was a girl after Professor McFarlan’s heart. She entered quietly, in awe. It was almost as if a novitiate where entering a cathedral for the first time. Well, still waters can run very deep. It was like that for her the first time she observed the real planets and stars through a huge telescope.

Before, Kathleen just thought she wanted to make astrological research her career. Afterwards, she was inspired to share what wonders she’d beheld to every one. Hence her call to teach rather than simply explore. Passing on what she’d learned became her hearts desire. Was she privileged to witness such a moment for this young girl? Probably not, but wouldn’t it be great if it was!

Then miracles of miracles, once the chatterers were taken care of, she actually raised her hand! Alright! Good job. Someone listened and followed instructions. Goddess be praised!

Quickly acknowledging her proper etiquette, Professor nodded to her with approval. “Yes, Ma’am, could you tell me your name and what you have to share with us?”

\n

0 Professor McFarlan Someone Raised Their Hand!!! Yipee!!! 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Ebony

April 28, 2007 5:06 AM

answering the professor by Ebony

After Ebony had raised her hand it seemed to take a while for the Professor to talk to her, she had a look in her eyes that showed she was partly in her memoires and partly in the room.

"Yes ma'am, could you tell me your name and what you have to share with us?" Ebony smiled.

"I'm Ebony. Ebony Green." Ebony blushed pushing a stray lock of her black hair back out of her face. "My mum told me that if you looked at a new moon over your left shoulder it would give you bad luck." Ebony started to twist the sleeve of her robe in her fingers. "I did it once and she made me then look over my right shoulder at the moon to cancel out the bad luck."

Ebony smiled hoping that her answer was enough to satisfy her new teacher.

0 Ebony answering the professor 0 Ebony 0 5

Echo Elms

April 28, 2007 10:44 AM

What about loony fluffballs? by Echo Elms

"Elms," Echo filled in. Was this a last name teacher? He'd seen teachers on tv who called everyone Mr this and Ms that. That would be sort of cool. Old school cool. But it seemed sort of weird to not give his first name so he added, "Echo." And then worried that she would think he was Elms Echo, not Echo Elms. But he refused to do the James Bond thing in front of the whole class so he left it alone.

He liked that muggles were the first people in space. Echo was totally going to be scientist, like his mom. He had assumed he was going to have to go back to the muggle world to be a scientist, but from what McFarlan said, it sounded like maybe Wizards had them too. That would be awesome. Mugs were cool and all, and he knew Brett wanted to go back, but if Echo had a choice, he'd rather keep being a wizard.

"He said, 'One small step for man... one giant leap for mankind,'" Echo replied dutifully. He had seen it on the documentary debunking the rumor of it being fake, at a museum in Chicago, and other places too. It was easy to remember. "And he had this crazy white spacesuit and his voice sounded all wacked out staticky cause, like, it was on a radio, and radios used to sound all funky weird."

He definitely would have worded that different if Paul Tarwater hadn't just insulted the mug-speak. You just don't do that, especially not around Brett, who's entire world revolved around his talk. War was ON. Echo and Brett exchanged a look of solidarity.\r\n\r\n

21 Echo Elms What about loony fluffballs? 93 Echo Elms 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 28, 2007 1:42 PM

Glad You Like the Decore by Professor McFarlan

When Professor McFarlan opened the door to allow the students in, she noticed at the head of the line there was a boy sitting cross legged on the floor engrossed in a novel. A literate student who enjoyed reading, always a good sign. It was nice to think that a few of her students might have more than a couple of thoughts to bump together inside their heads.

As he walked into the room, she noticed the huge smile spread over his face and how his almond eyes began to dance once the initial momentary shock was over. The enthralled expression never left as he looked around, waiting for the others to settle down so class could begin. Well, this was a good sign too. McFarlan hoped that he continued to be as involved with his studies.

Professor walked over next to the lad, figuring she had a moment to meet him. While keeping an eye on the rest of the “mob”, she addressed him.

“You look like you are enjoying the view.” She smiled down at him a moment before returning to making sure there were no problems with the others. One girl seemed to have particular difficulty with the effects. She sighed, the students the young lady tripped over didn‘t look as if she’d harmed them. Once in her seat, the student turned a very distinctive shade of green. Well, so much for socializing. “I think I’d better begin. Could you tell me your name so I’ll know it when I call on you later?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Glad You Like the Decore 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Hikaru Kasuragi

April 28, 2007 4:24 PM

It is bloody brilliant! by Hikaru Kasuragi

Hikaru quickly reviewed what he knew about Astronomy in his head, going over the names of planets and constelations he knew. He looked around for one in particular, and saw the brother constellations; Sirius the dog and his brother Regalus. They were, sitting infront of him almost, staring at him. Hikaru smiled at them and glanced at the pocket watch that was attached to his belt, and noted that it was now 10:45; a time he normally would have gotten up at. He sighed as he looked for a familiar face, somewhere, anywhere!

He lost his incoming train of thought when their Professor spoke to him, him in particular. "Yes, I enjoy the view alot..." He spoke with a foxy grin, he had seen alot of stars that past month, his bed was right next to the window. Hikaru looked suprised as she asked for his name, a rare occurance as he usually introduced himself first.

"My name is Hikaru Kasuragi...and I hope you don't have a bad impression if you've heard some of the stuff that I've done las term. I kinda want to put it behind me..." Hikaru grinned mischeviously as he sat back in the chair, reaching for a notebook and pencil.

0 Hikaru Kasuragi It is bloody brilliant! 0 Hikaru Kasuragi 0 5

Oliver Abbott

April 28, 2007 4:34 PM

answering Ebony by Oliver Abbott

Oliver wasn’t sure how he felt about astronomy. On the one hand he liked to look up at the stars and pick out patterns. On the other, he wasn’t sure he cared an awful lot about what they did, why they were there, or what any other planets were like. He supposed that if there were connections between magic and astronomy it might be a subject worth learning. His magic so far had been pretty good. He wasn’t the best in the class by any means, but he certainly wasn’t the worst. As far as Oliver had understood it, his parents hadn’t been particularly proficient in their magical capabilities, and that was part of the reason they decided to live as Muggles and open a hotel. Julian, Oliver knew, was convinced that he didn’t have very strong magic abilities, either, and that was part of the reason he hadn’t even bothered to attend Sonora in the first place. Oliver liked to think he was different; he was in every other way so why not? He liked to think that just because his parents didn’t make a good witch and wizard, that didn’t mean he wouldn’t, either. After all, his Uncle Raymond was a very proficient wizard, who’d opened his own apothecary’s several years ago, and now did some work with potions.

Either way, Oliver couldn’t help but be impressed when he entered Professor McFarlan’s classroom for the first time. Feeling slightly uneasy walking on what his eyes were telling him was thin air, Oliver sat down next to a small girl with black hair – the opposite of Oliver’s white-blond. He listened to the teacher’s speech and comments from the other students with interest, though none of the information really excited him. The girl next to Oliver put her hand up, too, to offer her personal insight.

“My mum told me that if you looked at a new moon over your left shoulder it would give you bad luck,” the girl – Ebony Green – said.

Oliver blinked. He had thought that was some stupid superstition his own mother had made up – he didn’t know that other people had heard of it, too. “Yeah, my Mom said the same thing,” he said. Then he blushed and sank back down in his recliner; he didn’t mean to speak out loud and out of turn. Looking sheepishly up at his professor, he added, “but she also told me the Moon’s made of green cheese, so I didn’t believe her.”

0 Oliver Abbott answering Ebony 99 Oliver Abbott 0 5

Brett Hodges

April 28, 2007 10:51 PM

But you let him get away with saying that! by Brett Hodges

That Paul Tarwater kid did not just say that. Brett was already in a mood whe he walked into class. He didn't want to be here. Forget, Sonora. Forget wizards and magic. His parents left this world because they were squibs wanting a better life. His dad went back to help in the push for better educational opportunities for squibs but muggle life turned out to be perfectly okay for his mom. And, after hearing about his family history over midterms, it was pretty obvious that Brett's future offspring were probably going to be squibs. His parents were, his aunt was, and his cousin was. His question was, what was the point of integrating in the wizarding world if he was just going to have to turn around and reintergrate into the muggle one when he had a family? And after half a year at Sonora and not really connecting with anyone (Echo was from his hometown and didn't count), Brett had tried to convince his mom to let him go back to Crooke County Middle School with his mugs.

It was a no-go. His mom said he had to make it through at least his second year. If he still wanted to go back to muggle school for high school and try out for the high school soccer team like he'd always dreamed of, then that would be his choice.

So it was a waiting game. And in the meantime, all his friends were in classes together, playing soccer, and changing without him. They had new phrases this midterm. New phrases was his department. He was like the approval man for stuff like that. He carried around a freakin dictionary. And now he was out-of-date.

And then Paul Tarwater goes an insults the talk, like the mug-speak is some nasty thing mugs can't help cause their all low. That is so wizard-like, going and classing mug-speak as a uniform thing. Take Jae. Jae's talk was so mad different than his, it was like woah. Even Echo wasn't totally the same. That's just how it was. Paul didn't know anything. That was the problem with wizards: No style. No verve. That's right, he said it: No verve. He bet Paul didn't even know what that meant.

He wasn't paying any attention at all to the lecture. He listened to what Echo said, just cause he was Echo, and nodded approval at Echo's blatant slang.

Mugs here were just expected forget they were ever muggles. They were supposed to be ashamed of it. Brett wasn't going to be ashamed. No way. He had the mad mug pride. He wasn't muggleborn, he was a muggle. That's right. A mug-gle. Going to Sonora didn't change that. Having magic didn't change it either. It was time the magical community had some respect for muggles.

The teacher came over then and started talking. She said she was sorry, but she wasn't. Or maybe she was, she had made a point to say good stuff about muggles. What would make him happy Paul taking his comment back -- or at least, that's what would make his day go back to where it was when he set foot in the classroom earlier. But that wasn't going to happen. Brett was going to have get that out of him himself. And he would... somehow.

It looked as though you were going to raise your before things got noisy, Mr.__?

"Hodges," he filled in. Where did she get the impression he was going to say something? He just hadn't liked Paul being such an elitist show off. He searched his brain for something he could say about the moon and hoped no one else had said it. "The moon is what eclipses the sun," he said shortly. He had no intention at all of elaborating.

0 Brett Hodges But you let him get away with saying that! 0 Brett Hodges 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 29, 2007 3:17 AM

Oh, I Think He's Getting the Point by Professor McFarlan

Well, she wasn’t forgiven completely, but he did give her a bit of slack. Mr. Hodges could have hunkered down and said he had no comment. From the look in his eye, Professor McFarlan had the distinct impression that he had the backbone to smart off if he thought it necessary. Instead he chose to contribute, granted the answer was short and he was glaring fiercely at her, but he did contribute. Now it was her turn to give.

“Yes, thank you Mr. Hodges.” McFarlan smiled, pretending not to see the glare. “The moon indeed, passing between the sun and earth, is what causes solar eclipses. Conversely, the earth passing between the moon and sun cause lunar eclipses. The interesting thing about these phenomena is that the only reason it happens is that the moon is the perfect size and at the perfect distance. Any change in these variables would mean no more total eclipses.”

The professor stepped closer to the center of the room to address the rest of the class and give some respect to Mr. Hodges’ personal space.

“This is a another good example of how the solar system is set up to keep life on this little watery planet sustainable. Creation set the perfect balance. By not respecting nature, by doing things to create global warming, pollution etc. we throw Mother Earth out of that perfect balance.

“And don’t go blaming it all on Muggle technology. We in the Wizarding community are just as much to blame. We consume natural resources, we create waste, and we experiment and use potions that are harmful to the environment everyday. If we don’t all work together to heal the harm done and create ways of preventing further harm, we may cause such damage that the sun, moon and all the stars won’t be able to help counter balance it.

“Thank you again, Mr. Hodges.” She turned back to him, beaming a great smile. Okay, Kat, time to hopefully put some icing on the peace cake “Way cool answer. If you think of any others, just raise your hand.”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Oh, I Think He's Getting the Point 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 29, 2007 3:52 AM

Why Thank You by Professor McFarlan

So this was Hikaru. Oh, yes, Professor McFarlan did distinctly remember a certain notation in Professor Chatterjee’s missives that warned the incoming Astronomy teacher to keep a watchful eye on one Mr. Kasuragi. There was also a few comments thrown out, not unkindly about the lad. So, ye’ve got a wee bit o’ the Devil in ye, do you? But still, with that enthusiasm and a bit of intelligence, if his resolve to repent of his wicked ways was genuine, they would get along just fine. That is, as long as she kept him on a very short leash.

She really needed to begin the class. She definitely had to help the girl at the other side of the room. A moment more wouldn’t hurt. Just before taking her leave of the infamous Mr. Hikaru Kasuragi, she looked down at him and winked.

“I can’t say I haven’t heard a thing or two, Mr. Kasuragi.” Professor McFarlan admitted with just as a mischievous look as his. “But let’s just say I like to form my own opinions. I will be keeping my eye on you, though. Let’s just prove them wrong about you this term. Okay?”

With that, Professor McFarlan walked back to the front of her desk and signaled for the class pay attention to her maiden lecture.
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Why Thank You 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Ebony

April 29, 2007 3:53 AM

boy sitting next to me by Ebony

Ebony was startled when somebody spoke from besdie her. To be perfectly honest, she hadn't paid attention to anything other then the new room, the professor and answering the question.

A voice behind her agreed with her answer. A quick turn and she was faced with a male, about her age (but she wasn't very good at guessing ages anyway)and his hair was the complete opposite of her own. White. Ebony tilted her head and let her green eyes look closer.

'Yup it was defintely white and it suited him.' Ebony blushed for staring for too long and after smiling turned back to the professor.

The next part of his answer shocked Ebony and then made her smile. Her dad had told her the same thing about the moon being made of cheese. It must be a parent thing. Noticing that his red cheeks were starting to clash with his hair colour Ebony quickly leaned forward and whispered a reply.

"Yeah, my dad told me that too." Ebony said quickly hoping it would help the boy to overcome his embarrasement, before she sat back up straight quickly and turned back to the Professor hoping she hadn't been spotted speaking out of turn.

0 Ebony boy sitting next to me 0 Ebony 0 5

Hikaru Kasuragi

April 29, 2007 11:22 AM

But Of course, of Professor most Magical... by Hikaru Kasuragi

Hikaru watched as she examined him carefully. Well, maybe she won't take me as a troublemaker quite this soon. Hikaru thought to himself as the rest of his classmates took their seats. Hikaru was hoping that he would have a new Professor to impress, as the other ones weren't exactly; thrilled at his antics of mischief. I can't help it! They're fun! Hikaru bit down on his tounge so he wouldn't burst out laughing at his last remark.

"Well, I'll try my hardest to make sure that my reputation is untarnished with you..." Hikaru winked back at the charming Professor. She really did seem nice and maybe if he was lucky he wouldn't get a detention with her! Now Hikaru, you better not go blasting hexes in her room, he thought as she strolled back up to her desk. But that was fun! Hikaru had a wild side and he admitted it, sometimes it was much more vocal then he normally was. I don't care if it was fun! I am not going to give myself another person to be eternally annoyed with me. Hikaru ground his teeth as he figured out what he was doing. He took out one of his notebooks and began scrawling down the Professors instructions. Just why am I having a conversation with myself?

0 Hikaru Kasuragi But Of course, of Professor most Magical... 0 Hikaru Kasuragi 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 29, 2007 1:58 PM

History Lesson and Bed Time Stories by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan had to remind herself that these were kids and not college students. At least they were enthusiastic. Definitely need to give them some free time next class so they can study as they prefer and burn off some energy before formal discussion. For now, as long as it wasn’t too disruptive and everyone was on task, she’d go with the flow. At least Miss Green tried to follow instructions. Professor McFarlan decided to respond to her and the fair haired boy in turn.

“Yes, Miss Green, that is a very common superstition with a very old past.” McFarlan began. “You see, in the ancient past, when wizards and witches didn’t know a lot about how the world worked, they held certain beliefs to cope with their lack of knowledge.

“They had deduced that the moon had a powerful effect on magic. They also believed that certain energies worked in certain ways. Negetive energy, demons and harmful fae approached from the left and positive energy, angels and beneficial fae approached from the right. So looking at such a powerful source of magic over your left shoulder was inviting disaster. Good job, Miss Green.”

Professor McFarlan turned her attention to the young man. “The myth about the green cheese comes from an old folk tale parents used to entertain their children. It was told that the stars in the heavens were the Creator’s seeds that he planted. The problem was there was also a great mouse that would sneak around and eat the seeds.

“So the Creator made a huge wheel of green cheese. Well, since the mouse preferred the cheese to the seeds, he ate that. So when ever the moon wanes, it is the mouse eating the cheese and when it waxes, the Creator is making a new wheel so that the mouse will leave the seeds alone. Not a lot to do with reality, but great fun for little ones to hear. Thank you, Mr.__?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan History Lesson and Bed Time Stories 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 29, 2007 2:32 PM

What About Dust Bunnies Under the Bed? by Professor McFarlan

“Correct, Mr. Elms! Very good.” Professor McFarlan was delighted he knew. For these kids, the moon landing was ancient history. Not for me, I was four when it happened McFarlan thought wincing. Sometimes being over thirty wasn’t all that fun.

Echo really seemed to enjoy the subject, she wondered what else the young man knew. “For those of you who don’t know, radios are a some of the many devices that Muggles use to communicate over long distances.

“This was a very important step in scientific history. Space travel and research led to an explosion of discoveries in the hard sciences that benefited all disciplines in both worlds.

"Tell me, Mr. Elms, can you name the US organization where most of the country’s space exploration and technology is centered? And for a bonus point, can you name the command module and lunar module that carried the astronauts to their first adventure on the moon?”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan What About Dust Bunnies Under the Bed? 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Gwyneth

April 29, 2007 2:58 PM

I'm more thankful than you! by Gwyneth

Gwyneth thought that Professor McFarlan was the nicest teacher she had met yet at Sonora. She hadn't yelled about the entrance Gwyneth made and had even come over just to check on her and make her feel better. Already fascinated by space, her kindness went a long way towards cementing Gwyneth's enjoyment of the this subject.

As she listened to the other students' responses to the teacher, she wished she could think of something to add. She really didn't have a lot of scientific knowledge of the moon. She knew some odd facts, or maybe they were not facts but just stuff she had heard. She hesitated to share something she didn't know to be factual.

She tentatively raised her hand to ask Professor McFarlan a question. When called on, she said, "Professor, you've mentioned how the moon affects magic. Does it affect people, too? I ask because my Mom and Dad are both teachers and I've heard them say that 'it must be a full moon, their students were acting wild.' Any truth in that?"

0 Gwyneth I'm more thankful than you! 0 Gwyneth 0 5

Beth Fisher

April 29, 2007 4:51 PM

Feeling a bit out of place... by Beth Fisher

Upon entering the Astronomy classroom, Beth felt a sense of awe wash over her. The room- it wasn't a room at all, but a whirling cosmos of planets, and blackness, and- it was all a bit overwhelming. She had become acquianted with magic since first stepping foot in her old school last semester, but the wide variety of different magical possibilites still amazed Beth. Everything about the universe that once was relagated off as "science" was overturned by the idea of magic, and she was still getting used to it.

Beth had to admit, she didn't know too much about the moon. Her Muggle primary education had given her a pretty vague over-view of the role of the moon in the waves of the ocean, but little else. It seemed as though everyone else in the class knew tons about the planet, however, and that only intimidated Beth further. She was naturally shy, and her petite frame allowed her to hide rather successfully in uncomfortable situations. This class was beginning to feel like one of those.

Sitting in the cushy recliner, Beth took a deep breath. Every moment that passed, Beth felt increasingly nervous. What if the teacher called on her, and she didn't have anything to say? It was frightening. So Beth sat, almost frozen with anticipation of being called on, or worse, making a fool of herself.

0 Beth Fisher Feeling a bit out of place... 0 Beth Fisher 0 5

Eavan

April 30, 2007 3:01 AM

Thinking in space by Eavan

Eavan flinched as two other people were chastised for talking during class and promptly stopped talking. And then Elly asked her about the moon. Sher didn't want to get in trouble for talking, but they were talking about the moon. You couldn't get in trouble for that...right? Eavan assumed so, so she leaned over to Elly and whispered.

"Everything I know, people have already talked about." Eavan frowned and bit her lip. Astronomy was hard. She thought for a bit and got an idea.

"Maybe if we look in the book, it'll help," Eavan suggested. She smiled at Elly and pulled out her book, flipping to the proper page.

"Well, it says here that it affects werewolves," Eavan said. "We could ask about that."

0 Eavan Thinking in space 0 Eavan 0 5

Echo Elms

April 30, 2007 1:29 PM

They abhor a vacuum. by Echo Elms

The organization was easy. \r\n

"It was NASA," he told Professor McFarlan. It stood for the National Air and Space Association or maybe the North American Space Academy. He wasn't sure he ever really knew and hoped the lack would slip away unnoticed if he moved right along. "And the," what the whats-it was a command module?, "I don't know, but I think the ship was Apollo 11. Or maybe that was the mission or... what you said: the command module."

Echo's memory was a little fuzzy on the details. There was something he was missing here and he wasn't sure what it was. The other big quote was 'The Eagle has landed' but he didn't remember what that was all about. That must have been the ship then, if it landed on the moon, right? But then where did Apollo 11 fit in? Maybe Professor McFarlan could clear it up, even if he didn't get the bonus points. He didn't think he'd need bonus points anyway.

"I don't remember," he admitted, "I think there was an Eagle somewhere too, cause of that guy saying 'The Eagle has landed.' Or maybe that was from a different thing."\r\n\r\n

21 Echo Elms They abhor a vacuum. 93 Echo Elms 0 5

Talitha Cumni

April 30, 2007 4:26 PM

Not out of place...Out in space! by Talitha Cumni

Talitha refused to be grouchy. This day was too exciting. She looked forward to this first day of classes ever since midterm started. Who cares if some of the Crotalus girls were stuck up? Most of them were in the upper classes anyway. It was just the way Lila disrespected her Native American roots and the community she lived in that irritated her so. So what if her parents didn’t belong to any of the “proper” social circles didn’t mean they weren’t as good as hers. Well, she had to work on getting over it otherwise she would be as big a hypocrite as Lila. Besides, it wasn’t in her nature to care about what kind of family a person was born into, but what the person was like. Daddy always said that everyone was a potential friend.

Her thoughts were totally interrupted as she stepped into the Astronomy classroom. Wow! Like Wow! This was way more than she could have expected. She was literally walking out in the middle of space! Okay, her feet were still walking on a floor, not floating, but it still felt like she was in the middle of a dream journey. Cool! She found an empty seat next to the new girl in her house. Even though they were now roommates, she hadn’t had the chance to say hi to her yet.

The teacher seemed nice. She had a friendly smile for everyone and her green eyes danced as though they held a fun secret that she was just bursting to tell. She never was much for the sciences. She only paid attention in class because her parents would be disappointed in her if she got bad grades. Professor McFarlan said she wanted to know what stories, facts, and other things about the moon. Well, her grandmother had told her lots of stories about the sun being a prince and the moon was the princess he loved, so her kept chasing her. Mother taught her how to predict the next day’s weather by the appearance of the moon. What should she tell? Which would sound smarter?

She leaned over to whisper to the new Crotalus girl. “Hi! I’m sorry I didn’t get a chance to talk to you sooner, but we’re roomies. I’m Talitha Cumni. Do you know something to say?”
\n

0 Talitha Cumni Not out of place...Out in space! 102 Talitha Cumni 0 5

Elly

April 30, 2007 5:22 PM

Tum-ti-tum di-dah by Elly

Eavan didn’t know anything either. Elly inwardly groaned. It wasn’t fair that the teachers just got you to say what you already knew – what was the point of that? The teachers were supposed to teach. That was what they were there for. Elly realised that she was just feeling grumpy because she felt bad about not actually knowing anything, but a small part of her knew she was right.

“Maybe if we look in the book it’ll help,” Eavan said, smiling.

Elly smiled back and tried to inconspicuously peer at the book Eavan brought forth. Perhaps she wasn’t subtle enough, though, as moments after Eavan mentioned werewolves, Professor McFarlan swooped down on them. Elly slowly titled her head up and looked the Professor in the eye. Luckily she didn’t seem to be too disgruntled by their talking in class.

“… either give the class a bit of information about what you know about the moon… or… you can stand and sing a song you know about the moon. The choice is yours.”

Elly’s eyes widened. She could feel her mouth hanging open a little and hastily snapped it shut. Good gracious, now what was she supposed to do? For Heaven’s sake. She didn’t know anything about the moon that she hadn’t learned from the first part of the lesson. Eavan had just mentioned something about werewolves, but she didn’t know anything, either, and since it was Eavan who’d had the good sense to look in the book Elly didn’t think it would be right of her to just take over her lead like that.

So the other option was… no. No way. For a start Elly’s singing voice was highly reminiscent of a chorus of cats being drowned. Plus, you know – singing in front of the entire class? Yeah. Not a chance.

“Erm, I’m Elly Eriksson and this is Eavan… er,” oh no, what was her surname? Never mind. “And er, I don’t know anything else that hasn’t been said,” Elly said, making it sound like she had at least known something, but that others had gotten there first. “And I don’t know the words to any songs,” she lied. Only a white lie – she probably didn’t know all the words to any moon-related songs, but she could probably sing a few bars if she put her mind to it.

Wondering what exactly the teacher would think up as a punishment, a sudden thought struck Elly like a bludger directed by a Craven. “Ooh!” she practically shouted, almost fidgeting her way out of her recliner. “The Moon is a satellite! That’s got to count as information, right?” she said, her eyes sparkling, though her mind was wondering vaguely whether someone had mentioned that already.

0 Elly Tum-ti-tum di-dah 0 Elly 0 5

Josiah

April 30, 2007 5:28 PM

Whoever made that nightclub she mentioned by Josiah

Josiah grinned. This girl he recognized from the Pecari quidditch team. While he couldn't play the sport himself, it wasn't like he didn't care about those who did. He, too, stared at the moon. It was pretty. Hearing Hyana talking, he zoned in. There's a bunny on the moon She had said. Josiah tilted his head, trying to find the bunny, but having no success.

He turned back to the girl, who was now the one talking.

"Seems we're in the same boat here. The moon... Well, let's see... It's either wicked hot or freezing cold, I can't decide. I'm going to take a wild random guess and say that no one lives there, so population: zero. Well, I'm out. Your turn.

"Well... let's see... I know that we can't live on it without a space suit..." He mused. With another grin he said, "Where did my manners go? I didn't even introduce myself! The name is Josiah Ashwood of the Noble House of Ashwood, son of Evaan and...I mean Josiah..." He blushed, realising that he had gotten back into the habit of saying his full title. Stupid mother making him announce himself to all the Christmas guests! "Sorry, I guess my blood's showing. Do forgive me, Miss-?" He paused, giving her room to give up her first name.

After pausing for a name, he said, "I think I have a fact to share. Two, actually, want one? I know the craters are formed by meteors crashing into the moon 'cause it doesn't have an ozone." He frowned. What was that other stupid fact? He had just had it. "umm...umm... Well I heard a tale once, that the moon predicts weather." His face lit, remembering, "Yeah, it's something like if the moon is crescent and the points point up, there's gonna be a drought, but if they point down it'll rain. Should we share that?"

0 Josiah Whoever made that nightclub she mentioned 0 Josiah 0 5

Professor McFarlan

April 30, 2007 6:04 PM

We Just Both Count Our Blessing...1,2,3,.... by Professor McFarlan

Professor Mcfarlan was relieved that Gwen was feeling so much better. "Yes, Miss Aquillion, I believe it does. I have to say I believe it does because studies about the effect of a full moon on people fail to show any statistical evidence that it has any direct effect. But then, magic can be an illusive thing when you try to pin it down."

The professor laughed merrily. "But I don't know one doctor or Healer, policeman or Auror, OB nurse or Midwife or even teachers that won't swear on all that is holy that the new moon does strange things to people. So yes, I fully believe it does. What do you think?"

0 Professor McFarlan We Just Both Count Our Blessing...1,2,3,.... 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Gwyneth

May 01, 2007 2:20 PM

Getting Enthused about Astronomy by Gwyneth

Although she was not sure if the professor's final question What do you think? was meant for her alone or for the whole class to contemplate, Gwyneth nodded her head in agreement. While she had never posed the question to a doctor, policeman or such, she "knew" that if her parents said it, it must be true! When Professor McFarlan included Auror in her list, Gwyneth perked up her ears. Ever since learning that her Grams had been an Auror, she was trying to learn more about that job and piece together some family history. But this wasn't the time or place for that. Here she could simply lean back and enjoy the sights the Professor had provided.

She listened as Professor McFarlan responded to other students' comments and queries. The teacher's low key attitude reminded her of her father's teaching style. She thought of another tidbit she knew about the moon. She really didn't want to be one of those annoying students who tried to monopolize the teacher's time, but this was one class she felt at home in. All of her previous education had been in Muggle schools and she was usually good at those more "traditional" subjects. However, here at Sonora, she felt she was generally only just getting by in classes like Potions, DADA and Charms. And she wasn't very happy about the last CoMC class she attended. But here Gwyneth had finally found a class where she didn't feel like a fish out of water.

Gwyneth raised her hand again and waited until there was a lull in the conversations and Professor McFarlan called on her. "I've heard, or read somewhere, that there really is such a thing as a Blue Moon. I think it is the second full moon in a month. It must be pretty rare, because back home we have the saying, 'That happens only once in a Blue Moon.' I just wondered how rare it was for a Blue Moon to occur? And why do they call it a Blue Moon?"

0 Gwyneth Getting Enthused about Astronomy 0 Gwyneth 0 5

Oliver Abbott

May 01, 2007 3:50 PM

I thought this was astronomy? by Oliver Abbott

"Abbott," Oliver replied to the professor's query. He didn't feel like submitting his first name - he presumed the teacher could look it up if she had a severely burning desire. He didn't really care for her explanations of the silly stories his parents had told him. Seriously, did people actually ever believe there was a big cat or mouse or whatever in space? That was really, really dumb. A lot of the stuff Professor McFarlan had said at the start of the lesson had sounded vaguely interesting, but this was ridiculous.

Sadly, Oliver had an unquenchable thirst to prove himself, especially to his didn't-believe-he-would-make-a-good-wizard family. So as bizarre as the lesson was becoming, Oliver nevertheless paid hard attention and didn't even sigh in exasperation, as he would normally. He did push his hair back from his face and rearrange his glasses, though, both of which were nervous habits, but could easily be mistaken for an effort to pay attention.

0 Oliver Abbott I thought this was astronomy? 99 Oliver Abbott 0 5

Ebony

May 01, 2007 4:41 PM

friends? by Ebony

'Abbott.'

'Abbott', Ebony thought. 'So he does have a name.' Ebony made a mental note to ask his first name when the Professor wasn't looking. She didn't want to get in trouble for talking if she was supposed to be listening to a lecture.

The story of the mouse and the cheese was quite a cool story in a wierd way. Her mother tended to tell her these as she was growing up and had thought it was a muggle thing, but apparently witches and wizards knew it too. Ebony made another mental note to mention this in her tri-weekly letter home to her parents. She had never wanted to write home that often but after her mini break down over midterm, her parents wanted to make sure she was still okay and coping with school.

Abbott next to her pushed his glasses up his nose and messed with his hair making him look more studious. Nervously Ebony twitched the edge of her robes before turning to Abbott and talking quietly.

"Hello. My name is Ebony Green and I am in Aladren. It is a pleasure to meet you." Ebony recited the phrase she had had hounded in her by her grandmother in an effort to bring her pureblood ancestry to the forefront, and bury any muggle tendencies she might have picked up from her mother's side.

0 Ebony friends? 0 Ebony 0 5

Hyana

May 01, 2007 6:15 PM

You haven't given me much of a choice ma'am by Hyana

Hyana let out a sigh of relief. It was nice that the new professor seemed to understand what the heck she was talking about. She started making herself small again when the professor turned to her once more and said “Could you briefly tell us the story of Moon Rabbit, Miss___?” Hyana gulped and nodded her head. Of course she could, but that didn’t mean she wanted to. But it wasn’t like this new professor wasn’t giving her much of a choice.

“Hyana Kamiya.” She filled in the blank shyly. It was kind of new for her. Adults usually didn’t have much interest in her. “W-well, a long time ago there was a bunny, a fox, a monkey and a coot who became hermits.” She gulped again. She had to be louder, she couldn’t even hear herself! “They swore that they would never kill anything, so the god Sakkria decided to try their faith. He took up the form of a Brahmin and went to the monkey, begging for alms.” Hyana took another shaky breath after her voice broke off and began again, but stronger this time.

“The monkey immediately brought him a bunch of mangoes. The pretend Brahmin left the monkey and went to the coot, asking for the same thing. The coot brought out a whole row of fish that he had found on a riverbank. The coot said that they were left by a fisherman. Then the Brahmin went to the fox, who went out searching for food and came back with milk and liguan, which he had found in the plains. He said that it was left by a herdsman.” Hyana continued, becoming louder and stronger with each word.

“At last, the Brahmin went to the bunny, and begged for alms. The bunny told him that he only ate grass, and it wouldn’t be any use to the Brahmin. Then the Brahmin said that if the bunny was a real hermit, he would offer his own flesh in hope of future happiness. The bunny agreed and the Brahmin kindled a fire at the foot of a rock, instructing the bunny to jump in. The bunny agreed, and jumped off the rock. But before the bunny reached the fire, it was extinguished.”

“The Brahmin changed into his real form, the god Sakkria, and took the bunny into his arms. He drew the bunny’s figure in the moon, so every living thing in the world could see it.” Hyana smiled at the professor. “Is there anything else you would like me to share ma’am?”

0 Hyana You haven't given me much of a choice ma'am 0 Hyana 0 5

Derek Samonns

May 01, 2007 8:24 PM

Woah, coolio! by Derek Samonns

Derek had been glad on stepping into the Astronomy room and seeing space all around him. It was just so awesome and Derek couldn't wait to see what they were learning today in this huge circle. The best part was, oh gee this probably meant no homework. Meaning no anti-social Derek staying cooped up in his room all evening while all the other Pecaris played. Not that he was going to do that! His new years resolution stated simply, make friends instead of fah-mazing grades.

Derek hopped into one of the chairs with a smile. Moons, they were learning about moons. No, pardon him, the moon. Earth's moon. Derek pouted, well that was pretty boring. He liked the other moons better, they were far more interesting than his. Like Europa's water thing. And that volcano on another! Yeah, those were cooler. So much better than their moon. Derek knew enough about that, that was fifth grade stuff.

Moon revolved around Earth, check. Moon caused tide change, check. Man on the moon, check check check. Diana as the goddess, Moon revolved at the same time it spun, making the day on a moon same time as it's year. Yes, yes, that was Derek's favorite. By the time you did three-hundred-sixty-five days (an earth year) you would not only be that many days old, but that many years too. And, oo, it wasn't a check.

Derek raised his hand quickly with a grin, hoping that participating would make him known to his peers. That way he wouldn't be "Super-Study Derek" but actually make a couple friends in this stupid school! He wasn't a Pecari for nothing, after all.

0 Derek Samonns Woah, coolio! 0 Derek Samonns 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 02, 2007 12:16 AM

Close Enough by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan raised an eyebrow. This young man was impressive. Definitely some one to keep an eye on. He seemed to know a lot for a boy his age. Better yet, he seemed excited about it. She made a mental note to nurture that spark, the Wizarding world needed more scientists.

“You’re right,” she answered Echo. “The organization was called NASA. You’re also right about the quote, the lunar module was called, ‘Eagle’. The only thing you missed was the name of the command module, vehicle that took the Eagle and Muggle astronauts to the moon. Its name was ‘Columbia’.

More hands were now in the air as the other students fell into the rhythm of the class and wanted to contribute to the discussion. “Excellent job, Mr. Elms, if you think of anything else, please feel free to raise your hand.”\n

0 Professor McFarlan Close Enough 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 02, 2007 1:04 AM

Re: You haven't given me much choice by Professor McFarlan

“Very well done, Miss Kamiya.” Professor McFarlan was pleased to see that Hyana brighten as she warmed to her subject. She’d even gained enough courage to add a bit of cheek toward the end. She nodded at the girl with approval. “I’m actually surprised that you knew that myth. It is not commonly know this side of the Pacific.

“In the forties, during World War II, Japanese children in this country, Wizard and Muggle alike, were severely punished if they said they saw a rabbit. American children were supposed to see a man in the moon and the parents were terrified that the wrong person would overhear and they would lose custody of their children for not raising them to be ‘loyal citizens”. It was a very shameful chapter in this country’s history. Bigotry is always wrong, always evil and it is usually the innocent that suffer the most.”

Like the obsession about Pureblood, Halfblood, and Muggle born. Will we ever learn. Professor McFarlan shook her head a bit, realizing she’d drifted into her own thoughts.

“Very good job, Miss Kamiya,thank you,” McFarlan said, smiling again. “If you can think of anything you’d like to add to the discussion, please raise your hand.”
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Re: You haven't given me much choice 0 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professo McFarlan

May 02, 2007 1:49 AM

And Now You Have Your Chance by Professo McFarlan

Professor McFarlan returned the young boy’s grin. It was a relief to see that the class was beginning to settle down and start to raise their hands in turn. It was a joy to see that much of the class showed enthusiasm about the subject. For example the shining face of the eager student’s face she focused on next.

She allowed herself to think that she was actually succeeding a bit. Many of the class began to think ‘outside of the box.’ She hoped that it would carry over when they studied the drier, more facts and figures type chapters in the future. She moved closer to the boy’s side of the room and pointed to him to indicate it was his turn.

“What do you have to say, Mr. ___?” McFarlan dearly hoped that she would remember everybody’s name when class next met. Usually she was fairly good at names, but this was a very large class.

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0 Professo McFarlan And Now You Have Your Chance 1467 Professo McFarlan 0 5

Irene

May 02, 2007 4:04 PM

Nightclub? dances by Irene

Irene listened as a girl told Professor McFarlan something about looking at the moon over your left shoulder giving you bad luck. She made a mental note to refrain from doing that in the future. Bad luck is...well, bad.

"Where did my manners go? I didn't even introduce myself! The name is Josiah Ashwood of the Noble House of Ashwood, son of Evaan and...I mean Josiah..."

Irene blinked, smiling sympathetically as he blushed. "Sorry, I guess my blood's showing. Do forgive me, Miss-?"

"That's okay. I don't see anything," She said with a playful smile. "My name's Irene Liddowe."

"umm...umm... Well I heard a tale once, that the moon predicts weather. Yeah, it's something like if the moon is crescent and the points point up, there's gonna be a drought, but if they point down it'll rain. Should we share that?"

She had never heard of the moon predicting weather! Weird...

"Sounds like a plan," she said grinning. "You want the Ozone one or the rainy drought one?"

0 Irene Nightclub? *dances* 0 Irene 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 03, 2007 10:51 AM

Do, So, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan couldn’t help it, this time she laughed out loud. She was right about this one. Not only did she have a great sense of humor and she could think on her feet. McFarlan tried to place the accent. Not Liverpool…Not high brow London… Definitely not Cockney, still the refreshing non-American lilt made her just a bit homesick. She gave Elly a deep mock curtsy, admitting that this time the point was hers. She cleared her throat and struggled to step back into the role of Professor.

“I thought you could come up with something given the right incentives. “ she said, back into her teaching rhythm. “Yes, the moon is a satellite of Earth and Earth is a satellite of the sun. A satellite is defined as a body that orbits another object.

Four terms you can look forward to memorizing in your third year are related to this. Perigee, Apogee, Perihelion and Aphelion. Perigee and Apogee means that a satellite is in an orbital path around the earth. Perihelion and Aphelion is the description of an orbital path around the Sun. For instance, the earths perihelion is approximately 365 days and the moon’s perigee is approximately 27 days.

“Thank you , Miss Eriksson, your comment did count for a great deal.” Professor McFarlan turned to Eavan. “And now, it is your turn, Miss_?”
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0 Professor McFarlan Do, So, La, Ti, Do, Re, Do 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Oliver

May 03, 2007 1:13 PM

if you want. by Oliver

As soon as the teacher’s attention had been diverted elsewhere, the girl – Ebony Green – sitting next to Oliver caught his attention and introduced herself to him. “Yeah,” Oliver replied quietly, to avoid getting into trouble, “you just introduced yourself, remember?” Okay, so she hadn’t told the teacher that she was in Aladren, so that bit of information was new. It just so happened that Oliver didn’t really care what house she was in – it made very little difference to him. Still, she was obviously friendly enough, especially to introduce herself so eagerly to him having done so to the whole class just moments ago, so Oliver saw no harm in talking to her. He hadn’t made any fast friends yet, after all, and remaining grumpy about it certainly wouldn't improve the situation.

“Oliver Abbott,” he replied after a moment. “Crotalus,” he added, merely because Ebony had seen fit to state her house. It seemed a normal thing to do around here, like telling strangers your surname.

Ebony had said it was a pleasure to meet him. Oliver had always thought that was an odd expression – how could you be pleased to meet someone when you haven’t had a chance to get to know anything about them? He supposed it was different if you’d heard a lot about someone already and were perhaps looking forward to meeting said person, but otherwise it was a bit of a silly custom, so Oliver didn’t say he was pleased to meet Ebony. Instead he nodded towards the Earth replica slowly revolving around the room. “Makes you feel insignificant, doesn’t it?” he said. It might have been an unusual thing to say, but outer space tended to have the effect on Oliver of making him feel miniscule and superfluous compared to everything else in the universe. He merely wondered if he was alone in his interpretation or if another student felt the same way.

0 Oliver if you want. 0 Oliver 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 04, 2007 12:52 AM

Delighted To See It by Professor McFarlan

Enthusiasm among her younger students was something that Professor McFarlan had hoped for but didn’t really expect. After all, this was a required course with far fewer fun things to do like potions or charms. But it seemed as though the stars favored her. (pun intended) Those who seemed to really be enjoying the class far outweighed those who were merely warm bodies taking up space. A few seemed actually excited to be there.

Gwyneth was one of those students. The longer the discussion lasted, the more her face lit up. She obviously didn’t carry any baggage about Muggle astronomy being wedded to Wizarding astronomy either. Considering her condition when she entered class, it was almost a miraculous transformation which delighted the her new teacher.

“Yes, Miss Aquillion,” Professor McFarlan responded with a smile. “There really is such a thing as a Blue Moon. It is rare, but depending on the definition you use, it may or may not be all that rare.

“There are three definitions of a Blue Moon. The first and most rare is when ash from a distant erupting volcano or smoke from a forest fire dissipates into the atmosphere and diffuses the light reflected off of the full moon causing it to take on a blue appearance.

“The second is what you mentioned. When there is a second full moon in a calendar month. The next full moon by this definition will happen this year at the end of May in this hemisphere, the first day of June on the other.

“The third definition is what we use for magic. Usually, there are three full moons in a seasonal quarter. If a fourth full moon occurs at the end of a seasonal quarter, it is designated as a Blue Moon. Paradoxically, the magic that resonates during these occurrences seems to benefit those who seek truths and those who seek to deceive.

“True Seers, those who have the rare gift of the Sight, tend to have some of their most powerful insights into the future during this time. Legend has it that the Blue Moon actually speaks to them. On the other hand, Confundus charms cast during a Blue Moon tend to be very powerful, and can actually cause unintentional damage if the person casting it isn’t careful.”

“Very good, Miss Aquillion,” McFarlan praised her. “Keep those ideas coming.” Turning to the rest of the class, she added, “That goes for everyone, we have plenty of time; if you think of anything else, please feel free to contribute.”
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0 Professor McFarlan Delighted To See It 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Josiah

May 06, 2007 10:32 PM

Boogie Fever..gotta boogie down does disco by Josiah

That’s okay. I don’t see anything. My name’s Irene Liddowe. Josiah laughed and pretended to search himself. He quickly stopped the joke when Irene asked him which fact to say. He thought for a moment. Well… he could be the gentleman and let her have the coolest fact, that it predicts weather, or take it for himself. His thought process was cut short by that.

“I’ll talk about the craters. Someone already mentioned them, so you’ll sound so much more original if you tell about it predicting weather. Besides, it’ll be neat, telling about how the craters got there.” Josiah said. Smiling at her, he winked. He raised his hand into the air, waiting for the professor to call on him.\n

0 Josiah Boogie Fever..gotta boogie down *does disco* 0 Josiah 0 5

Irene

May 07, 2007 3:34 PM

Gotta love the 90's! dances to Baskstreet Boys ;D by Irene

“I’ll talk about the craters. Someone already mentioned them, so you’ll sound so much more original if you tell about it predicting weather. Besides, it’ll be neat, telling about how the craters got there.”

Irene nodded in agreement. "Okay, weather it is," she said, raising her hand as he did.

Her sleeve fell down a little giving her a glimpse of the watch strapped to her wrist. Class had only just begun and she already found herself itching to run to the dorm.

She still hadn't recieved a reply from the sorta-social-services people. They had had long enough, hadn't they? Really, what was there to think about? She could always count on Renaye to write back, though. Irene always laughed when she read her letters. Raye couldn't wait to come here! She had her application ready and was itching to send it in.

"So," Irene began turning to Josiah, "Where abouts are you from?"

0 Irene Gotta love the 90's! *dances to Baskstreet Boys* ;D 0 Irene 0 5

Ebony

May 11, 2007 4:48 AM

Earth by Ebony

"Makes you feel insignificant, doesn't it?"

Ebony was surprised when Oliver said this. Although as she looked at the earth spinning around and the other stars and planets around it she could see where he was coming from. To be one species amoungst millions on earth was unnerving but then looking at all of the other planets and imagining if they had planets with life on too....

Ebony's head was shocked as she thought about it. She had never really considered it before.

"I've never really thought about it." Ebony said. "I always believed that astronomy was all about recognising other stars, thier constellations and being able to find them in the sky. I never really thought about it actually involving us."

Now the closer Ebony looked at it, she wondered why she had never thought about it before.

"In the muggle world they only really concentrate on our Solar System. I mean they've been to the moon and back a dozen times so i've never had to think about us being involved in the galaxy. It's always been about our Solar System and exploring it." Ebony shrugged. Probably not the best thing to say to a pureblood but Ebony could never remembering anything about Wizards or Witches going to the moon yet.

0 Ebony Earth 0 Ebony 0 5

Beth Fisher

May 11, 2007 11:27 PM

Well, that too by Beth Fisher

Beth smiled when the other first year seated next to her introduced herself. Coming during midterm, Beth hadn't really gotten a chance to make friends with her roommates. Talitha, this other Crotalus girl, seemed really nice, too. Beth hadn't known what to think about Crotalus in the beginning- rumour had it that they were just a bunch of pureblooded snobs who went around terrorizing muggleborns. Beth didn't think she wanted to be a part of that kind of house. Her opinion, however, was improving.

"I don't really know all that much about astronomy," she replied softly, "But anyway, I'm Beth Fisher, and yes, I'm the new kid."

She paused momentarily, unsure of herself. Oh come on, Beth, put yourself out there! she heard a voice in the back of her head say. She had always been shy, always the wallflower of her family. Beth wanted to change; she often wished she had her younger brother's social confidence, or her older sister's charm. Sonora was a new beginning for Beth, she recognised, and with renewed resolve, she spoke again.

"So, what do you think of Sonora? Is it a good place? Do you have a lot of friends? What about Crotalus? Is it a good house?" Beth asked timidly, the words tumbling out of her mouth of their own volition.

0 Beth Fisher Well, that too 0 Beth Fisher 0 5

Amber Carey

May 12, 2007 10:21 PM

Using soaps as an educational medium... by Amber Carey

Amber stopped in the door and looked around the classroom, her eyes wide as she took in the circle of recliners and a less-than-conventional scene. It was in the same place her old Astronomy class had been, but the room and the lady up front - if you could call anywhere 'the front' with such a setup - both appeared new. After a moment of staring about her, she began to smile slowly. "I love magic," Amber said under her breath.

Realizing she had probably been standing there too long, she moved on to the recliners. This was the life - great decor and a comfortable seat. Astronomy had never been one of her best classes - she wasn't very good with straight memorization, and couldn't see any other way to tackle the material - and she didn't expect this to have much of an affect on that, but at least she'd have a new appreciation for it. It wasn't like she was very good at any of her classes except Care of Magical Creatures, the least academic class Sonora offered, anyway.

She had to sit up a little to take notes, but compared with the hard desks she sat in for all her other classes, it was still pretty comfortable. She hadn't known that some spells worked better for boys than girls and vice-versa...Her mama was right, then, about learning something new every day. In fact, she hadn't really heard much of this before. Maybe it would end eventually, but so far, she'd never been bored by Sonora.

She leaned back again as the discussion began, half her mind raking her memory for any tidbits she knew and had forgotten about and the other half listening to all her classmates were saying so she wouldn't repeat facts. It wouldn't look good, especially not during a first class with a professor. Finally, out of a blue sky, a line coming from one of the dumbest plots her mother's soap had ever aired came to mind. Normally, she wouldn't have stooped to using bits of Muggle soap operas in classes, but if other members of the class were talking about the moon being made of green cheese...She raised her hand and waited.

0 Amber Carey Using soaps as an educational medium... 84 Amber Carey 0 5

Oliver

May 13, 2007 9:38 AM

It's home. by Oliver

Ebony apparently hadn’t considered the galaxy in the same way that Oliver had. Every time he thought about what was beyond the Milky Way, then what was beyond that, and beyond that, and so it, it made his head spin. Maybe human beings weren’t supposed to know about space; maybe they were supposed to just stay put on their own planet. Oliver knew he would never run out of new experiences without ever heading off into space; he was more than content to stay on Earth.

But then Ebony started telling Oliver about the Muggle world. Had she just assumed he was pureblood because he was in Crotalus? And from that, had she just assumed that purebloods didn’t know anything about Muggles? Oliver was a bit offended by the insinuation. He was a pureblood, fair enough, but he had been raised as a Muggle, and before Sonora all his friends had been Muggles. He really didn’t need someone to teach him about how Muggles did things.

“Yeah, I know about Muggle stuff,” he said to her a little coolly. “Purebloods don’t just live in a bubble, you know. We live in the same towns as Muggles, we do notice stuff. I guess you must be Muggleborn?” he asked her. After all, why else would she have such weird views on purebloods?

0 Oliver It's home. 0 Oliver 0 5

Talitha

May 13, 2007 6:19 PM

Welcome! by Talitha

Talitha’s grin widened. Cool, someone who strings questions together, like me! Talitha always did that when she was nervous or excited. If they could become friends, she envisioned many late night chats with a lot or popcorn and giggling. Maybe Lutece might even relax and talk about things other than clothes and how much stuff she had at home. Talitha wondered, for a wicked moment if Beth liked pillow fights.

Glancing at the teacher to make sure she wasn’t listening, Talitha leaned toward Beth and whispered, “I love it here! The desert’s different. I grew up in the Cascade Mountains so Arizona is like, well like moving to a new planet.” She pointed to the enchanted moon on the ceiling. “The teachers are all great. Professor Drake is the grouchiest, but he knows his stuff.

“Our house is okay. Like everywhere else there are some people you get along with some you don’t. But, Professor Powell is really nice. I had some problems with homesickness last term, so I didn’t make many friends, but I’m making up for that. There are a lot of great kids here, so you won’t have to worry about making friends.”

Talitha took a breath. “I really hope you like it here. What do you think of it so far?”

\n

0 Talitha Welcome! 0 Talitha 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 13, 2007 6:37 PM

I Love the Night Life by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan smiled at the red haired young man who’s hand shot in the air. He’d been whispering to the young lady next to him, but from their expressions and hand movements, they seemed to be at least discussing the class topic. That is they seemed to keep most of their whispered conversation on topic. The boy was also doing his level best to hone his flirting skills. Someday, this young man would be trouble for the ladies. At least they were quiet enough not to disturb the discussion. Still whispering together was not listening to the others and McFarlan knew she had to put a stop to it.

Just as she was about to call them on their behavior, the red haired boy who had blushed so furiously when he’d first walked in shot his hand into the air. Just in time, young man Professor McFarlan pointed to his raised hand, “Yes, and what would you like to add, Mr.__?”

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0 Professor McFarlan I Love the Night Life 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 13, 2007 6:56 PM

I Want It That Way by Professor McFarlan

The young lady sitting next to the red haired boy raised her hand. Professor McFarlan was glad to see that everyone seemed to be getting into the spirit of the class. There were so many varied responses from pure science to fairy tales.

Hopefully the students were getting the point that everything was interconnected and to ignore one area of study in favor of another was, at best, intellectual conceit. If these kids were to use their magical skills to their full potential, they must learn to tap in what nature and the universe provided them. They must also drop their parents and grandparent elitist attitudes and embrace what the Muggles could teach them as well. If that could be accomplished by this generation, they would be the most powerful witches and wizards in several millennia.

“Thank you,” Professor McFarlan shook herself from her musings and indicated the girl’s raised hand. “What would you like to contribute,___?”
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0 Professor McFarlan I Want It That Way 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Camren Christianson

May 13, 2007 11:06 PM

A friend in space! by Camren Christianson

Camren walked into her first class at Sonora with wide eyes. She had walked into what looked like SPACE. Camren's chin hit the floor, and she could do nothing but breathe out. Camren didn't make it very far into the room until she was sure that she could walk on the floor, which looked, like the rest of the room, just like they were in space. Camren tested the floor with her foot, and finally moved into the room following others who had walked in ahead of her. Camren sat down in a recliner near some other students who looked like first years and listened to the professor introduce herself and talk about the cosmos. Camren had no idea what the professor was talking about... This showed her the furrows of her brow and her teeth biting her bottom lip once again. These are the things that she did when she was worried or nervous, and at this point, Camren was both. Camren hadn't had this class before, and was starting to feel like she was WAY behind the other first years... Camren's eyes started tearing up, and she looked around the room for someone she recognized, maybe Gwyneth or someone else from her house...

Camren didn't see Gwyneth, but who she did see was someone from her old school! It was BETH! Finally! Camren wasn't completely alone! Camren couldn't even listen to what the professor said as she watched Beth.

When the professor stopped talking she scooted her chair closer to Beth's who wasn't far from her choice perch. Camren tapped Beth on the shoulder, not realizing that she was talking to another girl. "Oops... I'm sorry... I interrupted..." Camren said softly so only Beth and the other girl could hear her. She didn't want any of them to get in trouble...

0 Camren Christianson A friend in space! 0 Camren Christianson 0 5

Ebony

May 14, 2007 4:12 AM

Muggles and Purebloods by Ebony

Ebony was a bit shocked when Oliver coolly informed her that he understood all about muggles.

"I guess you must be muggleborn?"

Ebony realised she was highly offended at the tone he had taken. She understood he might too be offended that she had assumed that as a pureblood he wouldn't understand anything about muggles. But after being in Sonora since the beginning of the year and seeing other purebloods, other then her family, she had noticed that the majority of the purebloods wouldn't know a muggle concept if it jumped up and down in front of them waving a flag.

"I'm not a muggleborn. I'm a pureblood." Ebony replied coolly back. She might seem pathetic, but insulting her was still not acceptable. "My fathers side are all purebloods back to the time of King Arthur, if they are to be believed, and think muggles are diseased. My father married my mother who is a muggleborn. My fathers family have hated my mother as she has insisted upon my going to a muggle primary school in England, where we lived until a few months before i recieved my acceptance letter here." Ebony takes a deep breath and forces herself to calm down.

"I apologise for making the assumption that as you are in Crotalus you are a pureblood and would not know anything about muggles." Ebony added before turning back to watch the Professor talking to some other students.

0 Ebony Muggles and Purebloods 0 Ebony 0 5

Irene Liddowe

May 14, 2007 6:16 AM

Larger than Life? by Irene Liddowe

“What would you like to contribute,___?”

"It's Irene Liddowe," Irene said with a smile. "I heard a sort of myth once that said the moon predicts weather. I don't remember all of it, but it was something like, if the cresents are pointing down then there will be rain, and if they point up there will be a drought."

Irene had to admit, it was a pretty funky sort of tale. What if you were in a different part of the country that was raining while Colorado or someplace was having drought? Don't they see the same moon? Irene wasn't too sure about the details on this, but hey, she was sharing something. Astronomy was never her best subject as Renaye liked to point out.

"Irene, honey, the one with the rings is Saturn not Neptune. How long did you say you were out of school? Irene had laughed and gave her cousin a deserving punch on the arm.

Irene was so excited that Renaye was applying to Sonora! She would finally be with her best friend again! But who was going to take care of her michevious uncle? Well, he'd have to find something. Irene hoped she could trust Josh and Elaina with that particular task...

0 Irene Liddowe Larger than Life? 106 Irene Liddowe 0 5

Oliver

May 14, 2007 3:41 PM

Feeling sheepish by Oliver

“I’m not a Muggleborn. I’m a pureblood.”

Oliver blinked. Then he blinked again. And yet once more for good measure. What an idiot he had just made of himself! He couldn’t blame Ebony for retorting the way she had, he probably would have done the same. “I’m sorry too,” he said quietly, blushing as he looked at the floor. He too watched the professor and the other students for a while, feeling a little sheepish. But then the silence that stretched between them started to feel uncomfortable.

Sighing, Oliver pushed his hair back from his face before turning back to Ebony. “Yeah, I’m sorry,” he repeated. “My parents have crazy pureblood families too,” he said, hoping he correctly interpreted the ‘crazy-pureblood’ vibes Ebony was sending. “But they - my mom and dad - they weren’t into all that. They run a Muggle hotel in Chicago,” he said, and the end of that sentence had him grinning. It was, after all, perfectly ridiculous. He and Ebony had both made stupid assumptions about each other and been completely wrong. He hoped they could laugh about it, rather than fight. Oliver hated confrontation. “Forgiven?” he asked, extending his hand for her to shake.

0 Oliver Feeling sheepish 0 Oliver 0 5

Ebony

May 15, 2007 3:48 AM

Crazy families by Ebony

"Forgiven?"

Ebony turned and looked at Oliver at that word. He was extending his hand and looked apologetic. Ebony beamed forgiving him instantly. She couldn't remember a single cousin had ever apologised when they had insulted her so Oliver definitely wasn't that kind of pureblood. Ebony shook the out stretched hand.

"Of course." Releasing Olivers hand Ebony shook her head smiling. "No wonder you would know about muggles if your parents run a muggle hotel. Did you go to a muggle school too or were you home schooled? I know my cousins were home schooled like the rest of my family is."

Ebony was interested in Olivers reply. She had four male cousins and each one spent a few hours every day with a pureblood tutor. Ebony could never figure out what was being taught though, they never seemed to understand the basics behind spell theory or the history of magic in England like she did. And Ebony had gone to a muggle school too as well as her lessons at home!

Thinking that the first question might be a bit personal and sound as though she was double checking his opinions on muggles she continued talking.

"Both my parents work in the wizarding world, but they try to balance wizarding and muggle lives."

Ebony grins remembering some of the visits they had taken to muggle monuments both in England and in America since they had arrived.

"You can tell my dads a pureblood though, no matter how many times we go out in the muggle world we still have to remind him to wear jeans and not his robes." Ebony smiles at Oliver.

0 Ebony Crazy families 0 Ebony 0 5

Derek

May 15, 2007 6:29 PM

Yes! by Derek

Derek liked this teacher, she was very friendly and open to the students. To Derek, this was the greatest quality a teacher could posses. You wouldn't want your teacher to be a mean old stink, or a quiet mousey person. Also, it reminded Derek of his dad. He always smiled at everyone no matter what. Derek almost never saw his dad glare. And he only seemed sad when other people were hurt.

Derek knew his dad was more of a Tepp than a Pecari, still being in Pecari was a bit of a tradition. Uh... a new one. That only started with dad. And Derek was second. But he was hoping to get his own kids (when he had them) in Pecari as well. He certainly wasn't moving out of Arizona. He liked the warmth too much here. So of course his own kids would go to Sonora like him and dad (mom was a Muggle, so that was out of the question).

"Mr. Derek Samonns," Derek stated with happiness. "Oh, yeah, and about the moon..." Derek paused to think. "Yeah, its revolution goes just as slow as it's... spinny thing!" He pressed his light hair away, knowing he needed a haircut (but not exactly wanting one). "So a year and a day on the moon are the same thing if a year meant the amount of time it took to spin 'round the Earth." Derek beamed proudly, wondering if anyone else knew that.

0 Derek Yes! 0 Derek 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 17, 2007 8:20 PM

Well,,, There Was One Called "As theWorld Turns" by Professor McFarlan

The vast majority of the First and Second years class seemed to really enjoy the crystal’s effects on the room. Professor McFarlan was happy that it seemed to be a big hit. Oh, there was the occasional child that needed reassurance and coaxing, but by and large, the illusion of stepping out in space delighted the students.

One girl in particular seemed to be especially enthralled. Stepping into the room, she seemed to be under a spell of awe and delight that hadn’t faded a bit throughout Professor McFarlan’s opening lecture and the discussion that followed. The girl’s eyes never stopped scanning the view that surrounded her. She sat quietly drinking it all in and listening to each student in turn. She was also one of the few students that didn’t use at least half of their class time to visit with their neighbors.

When the girl finally raised her hand, Professor McFarlan was more than willing to give the young lady her attention. Moving in her direction, she called on her, asking her name and what she wanted to say to the class.
\n

0 Professor McFarlan Well,,, There Was One Called "As theWorld Turns" 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Oliver

May 18, 2007 4:50 PM

There's more than enough of those to go around. by Oliver

Luckily, Ebony did forgive him, and shook his hand in what Oliver accepted as a moment of truce. In fact, she was even interested enough in Oliver to ask questions, which was a relatively infrequent experience for Oliver. He found that people would usually just stare (or pointedly not stare, which was just as bad) rather than ask questions. “Yeah, I went to a Muggle school,” he said, grinning at having someone interested in him. “My brother and sister go to Muggle school, too, but I’m hoping my sister will come here when she’s old enough,” he said, pushing his white blond hair out of his eyes.

Oliver returned Ebony’s smile when she talked about her Dad. “Yeah, I have an uncle like that,” Oliver sympathised. His Uncle Raymond rarely associated with Muggles, but he quite often had to be reminded not to use magic in front of them. As clever as he was, he did seem to lack common sense in everyday situations. “My parents aren’t like that at all – they’re practically Muggles,” Oliver admitted, though he would never repeat those words to anyone in his own House. He was a pureblood, and that’s all the other students in Crotalus needed to know.

“So do you have any brothers or sisters?” Oliver asked. Ebony hadn’t mentioned any siblings, when he had mentioned his, but he thought he would check anyway; that would be another thing he could talk about with Ebony.

0 Oliver There's more than enough of those to go around. 0 Oliver 0 5

Amber

May 18, 2007 11:37 PM

It's one of the better ones, if you ask me. by Amber

The hated question came: the professor wanted to know what her name was. Thank goodness her cousins weren't in this class; if she could act like a normal person, she had a chance of escaping association with them. She liked Gwen better than any of her other relatives, but Gwen in public was different from Gwen on her own; people who didn't know her personally instead of by reputation almost all thought there was something wrong with her. She and Morgaine...had issues.

"Amber Carey," she said, the pronunciation of the surname lacking the emphasis most of the family put on it. Half of it was habitual lack of concern with such things, and half was wanting to be disassociated with the Carey family. She had never said anything about it to anyone, mostly because she didn't want to make more problems for herself but also because she didn't want to hurt her father, but she didn't like the impersonal aspect of the family. Or its reputation.

She hurried on once she finished saying her name. "So, uh, I saw this on a TV show - not a very good one - so I'm not too sure how accurate it is, but...I remember hearing that when the moon looks sort of red, it's called something - I can't remember what - and that it means someone's going to die soon. It was during a serial killer storyline, though, so they might have just made that up." A thought hit her a little late. "Um...A TV show is something Muggles watch on special machines for fun. I'm not sure how to explain it."

0 Amber It's one of the better ones, if you ask me. 0 Amber 0 5

Ebony

May 19, 2007 2:26 PM

siblings by Ebony

"So do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No, I'm an only child. My Grandmother wanted my father to have more children so he could have his male heir, as he is the heir to my grandfather. But my father decided I was more then enough." Ebony grinned her green eyes glinting with amusement.

"As a child my mum said all I did was run around, talk a mile a minute, bounce in a chair when I sat down for meals and only slept for a few hours every night. After seeing what I was like, my dad decided he didn't want to push his luck and end up with another child just like me, so he and mom put off having anymore children."

Ebony could not imagine what it would be like to have a brother or a sister. She was very close to her parents and had never been lacking for friends.

"I have never wished for a borther or sister like some people do." Ebony explains. "I've had friends, and my parents always make time for me." Ebony shrugs. "I suppose I'm selfish. I prefer having them all to myself. Don't you ever find that your brother or sister get in the way?" Ebony was honestly interested. Oliver's brother and sister sounded like they were younger and Ebony thought that as the eldest Oliver might get left behind or made to set an example all of the time.

0 Ebony siblings 0 Ebony 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 20, 2007 12:16 AM

Actually, Neptune Has Rings by Professor McFarlan

“That is a very curious phenomena that has been observed thought the world, Miss Liddowe.” Professor McFarlan said not at all surprised that at least one student would come up with this piece of popular folk lore.

“The old myths and wives tales tell us that when the crescent moon appears as a cup that is tipped,” the Astronomy professor used the thumb and forefinger of her right hand to demonstrate. “It will rain within the next twenty four hours. If the cup’s lip is level, there will be no rain during the same time period.”

“When I was a graduate student, I remembered this old form of weather forecasting and found nothing to explain this particular piece of ancient weather forecasting. Still curious, though, I kept a journal and found it to be quite accurate. I’m sure it has to do with the atmospheric changes on Earth and how we view our heavenly neighbors through it.

“I’m glad you brought that out, Miss Liddowe.” Professor McFarlan smiled. “If you think of anything else, please raise your hand.”
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0 Professor McFarlan Actually, Neptune Has Rings 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 20, 2007 4:25 PM

You Betcha! by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan bit the inside of her cheeks hard. The delightful bubble of laughter that threatened to emerge subsided. Some children were diligent and tried to impress, some were trying on the patience, some were concerned with getting all the right answers, and some, like this sweet lad, were just so enthusiastic that they said what they knew even though they didn’t know how to say it. It was just too cute.

“Correct Mr. Samonns,” McFarlan said when she regained control of her professor personae. “A lunar revolution is completed at the same amount of time it takes to go around the earth. Hence the same side of our one natural satellite always faces us. Very good, Mr. Samonns. Can you do me a favor? Look on page ten of your test book and give us the name of the phenomena that describes the moon’s trip around the earth? It is the same word we use to describe the journey Earth has around the Sun.”

Professor smiled at Derek as those he presented her with a bouquet of roses, after all he’d given an excellent contribution, and she didn’t want to embarrass him but she did want him to learn the proper scientific terms.

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0 Professor McFarlan You Betcha! 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 21, 2007 3:10 AM

Like Sands Through the Hour Glass by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan nodded. She had heard this old superstition before. “It comes from the old folk saying that you may know some lines to. ‘Red at night, sailors delight. Red in the morning, sailors warning. Blood on the moon, a sailors doom….’ There is an old superstition that says that red blotches, resembling blood means the onlooker will see death before the new day is done.

“There is a seasonal phenomena called Blood Moon. It is the last full moon after the Harvest Equinox. The moon reflects the sun’s setting red colors because the days are growing shorter and there’s no time between sunset and moon rise. For the Native American and those who practice pagan religions, this is a very special time of year.

“The Indians used this last full moon before the winter set in to hunt deer and other game to increase their meat stores to last through the lean months. They believed that the animal spirits gave up their lives willingly so the tribe could survive. They also called this moon, a Hunter’s Moon.

“For those who are pagans, the Blood moon is a time near the time known as All Hallow’s Eve or Halloween. It is when the veil between those of this life and the next is the thinnest and the spirits of the dead roam the land of the living.

“Magically, we know that this time of year, certain fae are at there most active. Dementors breed, Pookas and Boggarts abound. Preservation charms and communication spells work extremely well this time of year too. This is also a good time if you want to learn to bake or cook anything magically.

“You see, Muggle soap operas can be educational, Miss Carey.” Professor McFarlan smiled at Amber. “Do you know any other facts, myths or legends you’d like to share?” It suddenly dawned on her that this seemingly happy, well adjusted girl was a Carey. A Carey who watched muggle TV? Either there was no relation to the Careys she’d heard more than one nasty rumor about, or the relationship was extremely distant.\n

0 Professor McFarlan Like Sands Through the Hour Glass 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Talitha

May 22, 2007 9:19 PM

Spacey friends are the best! by Talitha

Talitha smiled at the other new girl. She must have transferred from the same school as Beth. Even in the dim light of the starry/moony room, Talitha could see leftover tears in the girl’s eyes. Her heart went out to her. Until that wonderful night in Charm’s club, she’d known the feeling of tears unshed far too well. It was obvious by the look of relief and delight on her face, that the new girl must have been feeling awfully alone before she spotted Beth. Talitha resolved never to ignore students who seemed out of place or lonely again. It was a horrible feeling.

“You’re not interrupting,” Talitha whispered back. Then she smiled, her dimples deepening. “We were just getting acquainted. My name’s Talitha Cumni. I’m in Crotalus with Beth. What do you think of this room? Amazing, huh?”

She continued to grin at her two potentially new friends. If Josiah would ever get around to holding another Charms club meeting, she would invite these two to join. Everyone there was so nice and very supportive of each other, they were sure to make many new friends there.
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0 Talitha Spacey friends are the best! 0 Talitha 0 5

Camren

May 22, 2007 9:34 PM

They sure are! by Camren

The girl who had been talking to Beth smiled at Camren and Cam smiled back at her with the biggest smile she could muster up. Camren had felt so alone until she had seen Beth, now maybe they would both be okay...? Camren hoped that... Camren hoped to get to know Beth better than she had at their old school. Camren had been pretty preoccupied with herself and worry about Caden and her mother, and then her friends there had issues too that she was trying to deal with. Camren felt awful that she hadn't really paid much attention to Beth before, but she vowed to do it now.

“You’re not interrupting,” Talitha whispered back. Then she smiled, her dimples deepening. “We were just getting acquainted. My name’s Talitha Cumni. I’m in Crotalus with Beth."

Camren smiled at the girl. "Thanks Talitha. I'm Camren Christianson. I'm in Teppenpaw." Talitha had the most amazingly deep dimples that Camren had ever seen. Camren smiled a broader smile.

"What do you think of this room? Amazing, huh?”

Camren nodded and spoke quietly. "It sure is..." She let the last word drift off into space just like she felt. She was finally happy... Even if her father found her here she still had friends... She had Gwyneth, Hyana, Beth and Talitha. Camren felt like she could do ANYTHING!

0 Camren They sure are! 0 Camren 0 5

Amber

May 24, 2007 4:07 PM

So are the Days of Our Lives by Amber

Amber had never heard the rhyme the professor was reciting, but nodded anyway. Nodding, apparently, could mean a lot of things: that she knew what was going on, approved of it, or was maybe just interested in it. It all had something to do with facial expressions, or so Gwen said. She had tried for a while to teach Amber these things, but she'd found trying to explain how to do something she never had to think about doing too frustrating to carry on with. Amber had tried, in her turn, to mind, but that hadn't worked, either. What was the point in learning pureblooded social manners when there was no chance of getting to use them, or even wanting to?

Trying to copy down everything the professor was saying in a legible fashion in a recliner wasn't easy, but Amber got the gist of it well enough to answer most questions on the lecture, if she studied it for a while. She wasn't all too sure about what some of the things mentioned were - Demen-whats? - but she could look it up or something. Who in the world would have thought her mother's "stories" were worth a flip for anything besides escapism? Only in the magic world, she thought wryly.

Amber liked her name. It was a very plain, very common one that any number of girls in the country probably had - not like, say, Gwenhwyfar or Morgaine, which came from another era in another country. Professor McFarlan didn't give her any strange looks or use any odd tones of voice, which, to Amber, meant that the woman was in the dark about the link between Amber and The Careys. "Er - I think that there was a myth with a moon goddess named Cynthia, but I'm not sure about that one. That's about it, ma'am."

0 Amber So are the Days of Our Lives 0 Amber 0 5

Professor McFarlan

May 27, 2007 7:27 PM

Adn Now You're in a Class With All My Children by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan liked helping students learn that they knew more than they thought they did. She hoped in giving positive reinforcement to even a minute detail would encourage the contributor to learn more and become more confident about speaking up. Actually Amber already showed a great amount of nerve mentioning that her first thought was inspired from a muggle soap opera. Considering some of her classmates, it could open her up to ridicule. One had to admired courage where ever it was found.

“Cynthia is another name of the goddess, Artimes and she was sometimes worshipped as the goddess of the moon. Her twin brother, Apollo is the god of the sun. She is the goddess of the hunt and archery, maidens and child birth. She is sometimes known as Cynthia as her birthplace was on Mount Cynthus.” McFarlan elaborated. Seeing another student raise their hand across the room, she added. “Good job, Miss Carey. If there’s anything else you’d like to share, just raise your hand.”
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0 Professor McFarlan Adn Now You're in a Class With All My Children 1467 Professor McFarlan 0 5

Oliver

May 29, 2007 2:25 PM

I've got two. by Oliver

“In the way?” Oliver repeated. Ebony’s question was an interesting one; Oliver hadn’t ever thought of his siblings as being in the way. After all, they had as much right to be there as he did. He supposed he could understand Ebony’s ideas about having all the parental attention to herself, but really he felt like his parents had done a fairly good job of supporting all their children (this past year an exception, of course).

“Not in the way, no,” he answered after a short hesitation. “My brother, Julian, he gets a lot of attention ’cause he’s on the state swimming team. And Charlie gets a lot of attention ’cause she’s the youngest, and a girl,” he said, more thinking out loud than explaining to Ebony. “But I’m the only one at magic school, so far. I’m hoping Charlie will come, but I don’t know yet,” he said, shrugging. There was a part of him that knew the influence of the three eldest in the family was far greater than his own, and if his parents didn’t want Charlotte to be a witch then that would probably be that. Oliver was the only one who ever contradicted them, after all. And it wasn’t because he had bad parents – he knew they had their children’s best interest at heart. However, Oliver had suspected, and was quickly coming to understand, that his parents’ experiences were rather singular. As far as he had established in his short months at Sonora, everyone (with the exception of Lutece, who he decided to ignore) seemed to be rather keen on their magical abilities.

“It’s fun to have siblings,” Oliver said aloud, as much to keep his mind of his parents’ ideals than anything else. “We have competitions and play games and stuff all the time,” he explained to Ebony. “Of course we fight too – well actually, Julian and Charlie fight a lot, and I’m the peacekeeper,” Oliver said, smiling. He pushed his hair back from his face again. He couldn’t imagine living without siblings – it wouldn’t be so bad for him with the guests and their children around all the time, but in a regular household it would surely be rather lonely. “It must be pretty quiet at your house, with nobody except your Mom and Dad there.”

0 Oliver I've got two. 0 Oliver 0 5

Ebony

June 09, 2007 2:04 PM

Quiet? by Ebony

Ebony found herself thinking very hard on what Oliver had just said.

"It must be pretty quiet at your house, with nobody except your mum and dad there."

Now that she thought about it, it was pretty quiet during the day at home when her parents were out to work and she was left with monitoring spells to make sure she was okay. The quiet was most likely the main reason Ebony found herself loving to read. The library took up an entire room, and that was just a small amount of books that they had brought over to America with them from the Manor house they owned in England. The library in England had been Ebony's sanctuary for many years and she had come to love the peace and solitude that the room afforded her. Her parents had tried to make her make friends with either the muggle or wizarding children in the area and she had made a few but most of the time she did prefer her own company.

"It is quiet at home." Ebony told Oliver. "But I suppose if it has always been that way as you are growing up you don't realise that the noise is missing. I had a muggle friend who had five brothers and she was the only girl, they were always picking on her and making fun of her and she didn't seem to enjoy it that much."

Emma's brothers may have picked on her, Ebony thought. But when she really needed help they were all there surrounding her.

Ebony had always been envious of the way Emma's brothers had stuck up for her and Ebony had many a daydream where she had several brothers who discovered her grandmother insulting her and stuck up for her too.

"Is it hard to be the eldest?" Ebony asked. "Do you have to babysit your brother and sister occasionally?" Ebony had a vague memory of Emma's older brother babysitting them one day when they were five. "I suppose you are then one that gets in trouble if they are naughty."

At least I only get in trouble for things I do wrong not what anybody else does wrong too, Ebony thought.

0 Ebony Quiet? 0 Ebony 0 5

Professor McFarlan

First and Second Year Class by Professor McFarlan

Paul Tarwater

Meh by Paul Tarwater

Brett Hodges

Dude, raise your hand by Brett Hodges

Hyana Kamiya

Why did we have to combine classes? by Hyana Kamiya

Professor McFarlan

Now Did I Once Mention the "M" word? by Professor McFarlan

Echo Elms

Because it's fun? by Echo Elms

Eavan Valentine

Re: First and Second Year Class by Eavan Valentine

Elly Eriksson

Staring into space by Elly Eriksson

Paul

... Meh or Moon? by Paul

Eavan

Sitting in space by Eavan

Hyana

I guess you could say that by Hyana

Professor McFarlan

It Makes You Think, "Mmmmm" by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

I Have Excellent Peripheral Vision by Professor McFarlan

Elly

Whispering in space by Elly

Gwyneth

Tripping the light fantastic . . . literally by Gwyneth

Hyana

That you do by Hyana

Echo Elms

Uh-huh by Echo Elms

Professor McFarlan

Are You Okay? by Professor McFarlan

Ebony

Superstition by Ebony

Hikaru Kasuragi

Yay! Theres an Astronomy Class by Hikaru Kasuragi

Gwyneth

*blushes* will be in a moment by Gwyneth

Josiah

COOL! Look ma, no floor! by Josiah

Irene Liddowe

Give the person who designed <i>that</i> a promotion! by Irene Liddowe

Professor McFarlan

Thanks For Not Urping On My Stars by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

Fluffy Bunnies and Lunar Modules by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

Don't Hop Away Just Yet by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

Could You Hum a Few Bars? by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

I Didn't Plan To Ignore You by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

Someone Raised Their Hand!!! Yipee!!! by Professor McFarlan

Ebony

answering the professor by Ebony

Echo Elms

What about loony fluffballs? by Echo Elms

Professor McFarlan

Glad You Like the Decore by Professor McFarlan

Hikaru Kasuragi

It is bloody brilliant! by Hikaru Kasuragi

Oliver Abbott

answering Ebony by Oliver Abbott

Brett Hodges

But you let him get away with saying that! by Brett Hodges

Professor McFarlan

Oh, I Think He's Getting the Point by Professor McFarlan

Professor McFarlan

Why Thank You by Professor McFarlan

Ebony

boy sitting next to me by Ebony

Hikaru Kasuragi

But Of course, of Professor most Magical... by Hikaru Kasuragi

Professor McFarlan

History Lesson and Bed Time Stories by Professor McFarlan

blushes will be in a moment by Gwyneth