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Old 09-26-2021, 01:56 AM   #26 (permalink)
Waddles

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Join Date: Aug 2005
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Hogwarts RPG Name:
Sophia Svensson #556B2F
Fourth Year

Hogwarts RPG Name:
Kenneth Mills #666F26
Hufflepuff
Second Year
Games & Sports

Ministry RPG Name:
Gabriel Hawthorne-Melo #47316F
Law Enforcement
Default
Constant Vigilance! O_O AWAKE!

SPOILER!!: responses!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Chelliephone View Post
Oh? When Professor Paszek mentioned there was murtlap in the aquariums as well, he squinted a little bit harder to see if he could spot them among the sea anemones. He wasn't 100% sure, but there was certainly a few that looked like maybe they were moving. Which... he wasn't sure if there would be any current in these aquariums, so perhaps that was the murtlaps? At the question of what they already knew about this particular creature... Evan honestly didn't have much to say. The most he remembered about them was that they kind of sounded like a Pokemon name.

But there was one fact that came to mind, though. So he raised his hand, waiting for his turn before offering anything. "I heard a bite from a murtlap can cause unfortunate reactions. Sweating, twitching." And farting fire, but honestly he didn't think that needed to be said out loud. He would not put experimentation on that past Gryffindors.
“Yes, sometimes people react badly to murtlap bites! This is why we brought our gloves today,” she said, glad that right off the bat someone had mentioned reactions to bites. She definitely did not want anyone going to the hospital wing because they were having a bad reaction.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Lady of Light View Post
Murtlaps?? Aren't they - like - sea rats?? Wait, how did she not notice any? She tried to look inside the aquariums but couldn't spot one. Maybe they were hiding or sleeping - wait, did they even sleep?? Did marine animals sleep? Not that it had anything to do what the professor asked.

"I've heard of Murtlap essence, professor. it is used to treat bruises, right??"
The benefit of including such a wide array of creatures and plants in the aquariums was to allow the murtlaps their privacy, and plus, the sea anemones provided some camouflage to the creatures. “Yes, good point, Miss Nichols,” Mia said with a smile. “Murtlap essence is made from the tentacles of murtlaps and is used for healing.” She thought about the bruises comment for a moment, before adding. “Usually murtlap essence is used for healing cuts, so I’m not sure how helpful it would be for bruises.” But, she supposed it could be soothing if it was a painful bruise.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Kolyander View Post
Lia kept her warm smile and didn't at all hesitate to ask her next question once she had heard the creatures would all be around for until the end of the week. "I would be more than happy to with them should you need any assistance." With all of the time she already spent in the barns, pastures and in the bird garden helping out, of course she was going to offer up her time for these visitors too. Helping others was something she enjoyed anyhow but when it came to helping with creatures she loved that even more.

As the first question rolled around, Dahlia quietly took a mental note of what she seen in the aquariums once again. Certain creatures and aquatic plants grouped together by what they needed to survive. Grouped together like how they would be found out in the wild. Still watching the hermit crabs, she noted how those were really mentioned but before she could really question it the lesson was already moving on.

Murtlap. Basically naked water rats with floppy tentacle like things growing on its back. Which she knew to be some form of sea anemone. They were kinda cute actually. Finally turning away from the hermit crab tank for now, her attention moved towards the aquarium in mention to see if she could happen to spot a Murtlap. "If you pickle the growth on their back it can then be eaten but eating too much of it can cause you to grow purple ear hair. However it's supposed to improve one's resistance to jinxes," she answered with her hand raised in the air. If it worked, she truly did not know.
Dahlia was very helpful with caring for the creatures, and while she found these aquariums to be relatively low-maintenance, she appreciated the gesture of offering to help. She tried not to grimace at the mention of pickled murtlap tentacle. People should just get better at shield spells and counterjinxes, in her opinion, and leave the murtlaps out of it. Still...technically correct. “Yes, murtlap tentacles are sometimes pickled and eaten,” she said, nodding. “Thank you, Miss Donovan.”

Quote:
Originally Posted by Deezerz View Post
A murtlap is probably one of the weirdest things Serena has ever held. One time when she was still in the single digits, the entire Baltazar clan went on this adventure and along it, they encountered alllll kinds of creatures. Serena remembers her godfather placing a bet Serena would freak out at the touch of a murtlap. Her grandfather bet she'd hold it like a champ.

This is, Serena doesn't find many things gross. Not even mooncalf dung.

You know what was gross? Weakness and feelings.

Anyway, she raised her hand. Her fingers still remembered the feeling of the murtlap tentacles. "Murtlap are carnivorous and sometimes like to eat human toes."
Another...partially correct answer. “Correct, murtlaps are carnivorous,” she agreed. “They prefer other foods to human toes, but they aren’t afraid to bite if stepped on.” And really, what creature wouldn’t bite if stepped on?

Quote:
Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19 View Post
They were very important, those plants were. Claudine peered at them; indeed they were providing shelter for the fishes. Over all, aquatic life seemed to mostly hinge on the plants much like human life hinged on trees. Wait. What? Murtlaps? Claudine was disappointed in herself for not having noticed them, even if they were hiding away. Surely she should have seen something? A movement from their many tentacles perhaps?

Anyway.

“They’re classified triple X by the Ministry,” Claudine volunteered when called upon. “That means a competent witch or wizard should have no trouble with handling them.’’
Murtlaps were very good at hiding among the sea anemones and plants in these aquariums, as all the students would soon find out. And, yes, the ministry classification. Useful information, she supposed, in a classroom setting. She doubted anyone would remember that if they ever encountered a murtlap in the wild, though. “Yes, thank you Claudine,” she said, smiling slightly. “Hopefully by the end of this lesson you will all be competent at handling murtlaps yourselves.”



Answers in, Mia paused for any last minute thoughts. She was surprised, no one said they’d had to use the murtlap essence themselves. Maybe these students were much less accident-prone than some people she knew, including herself. Still, they had good answers. “Alright, so as we’ve heard, murtlaps aren’t particularly dangerous in handled properly, but they will bite, and bites can have some uncomfortable side effects which we want to avoid,” she said, with nods to Evan, Serena, and Claudine. “They are carnivorous, and they obviously live in the sea. And, murtlap tentacles can be very useful! They are used for healing, in murtlap essence, or pickled and eaten.” Though not eaten too much, else one would encounter the purple ear hair that Dahlia had mentioned.

Now, it was time for them to get started on the actual caring for murtlaps. This was the fun part, she hoped. “Now, we’re going to be feeding the murtlaps today,” she announced. “There are several murtlaps in each aquarium. I’d like you to pair or group up, or not, and catch yourselves a murtlap. They can breathe outside the water, so that’s how we’ll be feeding them today.” It was just easier if they didn’t have to hold the murtlaps in the aquariums to feed. It would be much easier to see them, too. “I recommend wearing your gloves, so you don’t get bitten by the murtlaps or stung by the anemones or pinched by the hermit crabs, but…” she shrugged. The gloves could be bulky underwater. She’d leave it up to them if they’d rather be protected or be more agile. Those murtlaps were fast and slippery, once they even found them.

“If there’s no questions, let’s go ahead and get started! Let’s catch some murtlaps.”



Ooc: Okay! Mini activity time!! You’ll have about 48 hours to do this before we move on, and your characters can work alone or in groups of 2-3. Dragonhide gloves are optional but recommended, for the reasons Professor Paszek mentioned. Feel free to ask any questions or have trouble, and you don’t have to do this all in one post.

Here’s the task…
  1. Group up (optional)
  2. Find a murtlap in the aquarium (as has been noted, they’re not easy to spot!)
  3. Catch the murtlap
  4. Admire its tentacles (optional)
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