 Charing Cross Rd. Mod
St. Mungo's Mod     Niffler
Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Narnia
Posts: 20,185
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Vashti Amstern
Graduated
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Edmund Edgecombe
Graduated
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Zephyr Amstern
Ravenclaw Sixth Year
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Nathaniel Hensley
Slytherin Seventh Year
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Felicity Aurorae
Gryffindor Seventh Year
  x7  x1
|  Baguette | there is no D in my name | TRAITORclaw | Queenie of Narnia
Text Cut: Replies Quote:
Originally Posted by FelineLethal13  Indeed that was a very distinctive statue, with its humped back and the manner in which it opened up to the secret passage. She wasn’t upset that it was sealed, however, as there was no desire to make a long hike to Honeydukes in secret; it was much easier going the regular route. Athena was also aware of the witch being featured on Chocolate Frog cards, having seen a few of the cards herself. She returned to making her notes, thinking about how much she’d like it if Gunhilda happened to be a topic that came up in the History NEWT exams.
Thena leaned forward in anticipation of the exploration that was to come as she admired the way the replica had been created, exactly like the real thing. But since there was a spell to practice, she then refocused her attention to add the details of it to her notes. The only time she paused in doing so was to watch Amstern’s demonstration. Colour her intrigued as she watched it all unfold.
Notes out of the way, the Ravenclaw got to work on the practical. “Speh-she-AHL-es punk-tum,’’ came the muttered words. “Speh-she-AHL-es punk-tum. Specialis Punctum. Specialis Punctum. Specialis Punctum.” Now, her wand was placed flat on her palm as she closed her eyes to concentrate on conjuring a mental picture of the inkwell that sat almost at the edge of her table. “Specialis Punctum.” The incantation was whispered; Thena sadly had trouble with non verbal spells. Practice was done as often as she could though! Just more out of class than during lessons for fear of wasting precious class time.
There was no spinning of the wand - Thena did not feel anything of such - so she tried again. “Specialis Punctum.” This time, even as her mind fastened on the image of the inkwell, the wand spun in a clockwise manner. When it stopped, she opened her eyes to find it pointing directly at the object she had pictured. Needless to say she was quite delighted! Vashti noted Ms. Laramore's diligent work in practicing the incantation before attempting the spell. It was a good effort, and it clearly paid off when the wand correctly pointed at the inkwell after a couple of tries.
"Excellent job, Ms. Laramore." She smiled at the Ravenclaw. Quote:
Originally Posted by sharplicoricesnap She may as well have been under the influence of a Daydream Charm, because the moment her thoughts landed on Fizzing Whizzbees, the third year had completely checked out of the lecture. Forget all the details about how extraordinary this witch was, or her revolutionary healing magic that saved countless lives and still mattered today... Calliope was too busy fantasizing about what might happen if she stuffed twenty or so Fizzing Whizzbees in her mouth and somehow amplified their levitation properties. Who cared about a dusty secret passage closed off by the headmaster when she could be soaring past smelly winged horses thanks to a broom and a pocketful of enchanted candy? In one ear and out the other went the instructions for their own secret passage exploration and the start of spell practice - she was too busy imagining winning the Quidditch World Cup and being announced as MVP of the tournament.
"...you may begin."
Cue the loud, internal, screech of a record
Huh? Begin what?
Calliope’s brain caught up half a beat too late. She was still half in her Quidditch victory when her hand shot up in reflex... not for a question, but in a celebratory wave with her other hand cradling her textbook against her chest like it was a trophy. She froze mid-motion, every muscle locked in mortified awareness for another couple painful beats before her arm lowered in slow defeat as she muttered something incoherent about stretching.
Her attention landed on the board where the incantation and wand movements for Specialis Punctum were scrawled neatly for all to follow. Relief washed over her as at least she wouldn't have to ask and admit defeat in the moment. She swung her wand flat in her palm and gave it a tentative spin just to see how it behaved without any magical interference. If spun all lopsided-like fell off and onto her desk, of course, but now at least she knew what to expect. "...speh-she-AHL-es punk-tum..."
What a mouth-full.
Vashti did notice the silence from Ms. Barrington, though she took it simply as the Slytherin preferring to listen rather than offer an answer. Nothing wrong with that.
Her attention was caught again at the abrupt raising of the girl's hand and the clinging to her textbook with the other. The equally quick lowering of her hand signaled that it probably wasn't for an answer or a question, though Vashti was curious.
Ms. Barrington did then set to practicing, beginning with the incantation and spinning her own wand. "Good pronunciation, Ms. Barrington," Vashti said with an encouraging smile. "Keep at it." Quote:
Originally Posted by Samia The professor had really lost her at Guuun-heel-da-de-Gursemooor. SO Marina chose to keep it to herself, much like the others. But there was no shame in that. What was the point of this class if they would know everything already???
However, Marina’s quill nearly rolled off the edge of her desk when the professor revealed the statue, and she barely caught it in time. “Merlin’s beard,” she whispered under her breath, eyes wide as the cloth vanished to reveal Guuun-heel-da-de-Gursemooor herself... well, almost. A replica, but still rather impressive.
Sshe straightened a little, trying to focus as the Professor explained the new spell. “Specialis Punctum,” she mouthed quietly, tapping her wand against her palm as if testing the feel of it. “Alright, let’s give this a try,” she murmured more to herself than anyone, though Cat had mmost probably heard her. She placed her wand flat in her palm, brow furrowing in concentration. “I’ll try it on my quill first, since it already tries to escape me half the time anyway.”
Clearing her throat, she said aloud: “Specialis Punctum,” Her wand spun once, twice ....then pointed straight toward Cat’s quill instead.
Marina blinked. “Er… well. It’s someone’s quill,” she said, sheepishly glancing at Cat. “Maybe mine just wanted a friend.” Ms. García Massey's silence was understandable, and she seemed to be paying attention, so Vashti didn't mind.
She observed the first year's practice and then the first attempt. On the one hand, it had successfully pointed at something! But not the correct object, it seemed. Regardless, it was a good way to start off.
"That's a promising start, Ms. García Massey," Vashti said, smiling. "Make sure to keep in mind any details that might differentiate your quill from Ms. Webb's." Hopefully, that might help. Quote:
Originally Posted by squidnie “Not a mummy, then,” Cat whispered to Marina once the thing under the cloth was revealed. It was just a statue. A replica, apparently, of one that Cat had actually come across in her exploration of the castle. She smiled a bit as Professor Amstern explained the secret passage and the activity for the class. Exciting.
They were now to the part of the lesson that Cat really disliked. The magic spellwork part. It had, in the past, been a disaster (if one were to consider failure a disaster, which Cat did). She’d been practicing her spell casting, but still felt skeptical with new spells. And this was a new spell.
One the professor gave the go-ahead, a frown began to form between Cat’s eyebrows as she considered the instructions. “Specialis Punctum. Speh-she-AHL-es punk-tum.” She repeated the incantation to herself a few times without even touching her wand. Then a few times more. Then once again for good measure. Then she finally picked up her wand. She glanced at Marina when she heard the other girl speak in a low voice, and immediately felt a bit more relaxed. At least she wasn’t the only one feeling insecure about this. She watched her friend perform the spell, giggling softly before she could stop herself when Marina’s wand pointed to her own quill. “Maybe my quill is better,” she said, beaming.
Now it was her turn, wasn’t it? The frown returned as Cat set her wand in the palm of her hand, imaging Marina’s quill just for the fun of it. She stared at the quill as if expecting it to attack, then very distinctly murmured, “Specialis Punctum.” Her wand wobbled a bit in her hand uncertainly before turning slightly toward Marina’s desk. Very, very slightly.
Cat sighed before glancing back at Marina. “At least yours moved.” Vashti observed Ms. Webb's diligent efforts in practicing the pronunciation multiple times. It was an excellent way to begin with an unfamiliar spell. Even if the first cast wasn't perfect in one go, it was still a good start.
"Your pronunciation is excellent, Ms. Webb," she said with a smile. "Remember to maintain focus on your object, letting your wand feel your will and determination to find it. Good effort so far." Quote:
Originally Posted by WhittleBitSpooky Aurora nodded at what the professor said and listened as the discussion of Gunhilda continued. Of course she had already known about the passage to Honeydukes having been sealed off. Something that she herself wasn’t bothered by, but she was sure that others would be disappointed to learn. She would just wait for Hogsmeade weekends if she wanted candy. Just to make sure she was on top of everything in case this came up in her OWL, she continued to take notes.
It wasn’t really a surprise when the cloth was removed and a statue of Gunhilda was revealed. Made sense with what the lesson was about. The main activity did sound like fun, and Aurora was ready to get to practicing. ”Speh-she-AHL-es punk-tum,” she repeated quietly until she thought that she had the hang of it. ”Specialis Punctum.”
Incantation out of the way, Aurora was ready to move on to the next part of the practice. Placing her wand in her palm, she focused on her quill in her mind, trying to get as much detail in her thoughts as possible. ”Specialis Punctum.”
Grinning, she watched as her wand spun in her hand until it pointed directly at her quill. Awesome. That had been easy. Taking notes was always a good sign that a student was paying attention, and so it was also no surprise to see Ms. Bay practicing the incantation with determination. Vashti observed the Hufflepuff's attempt at casting, and she was pleased to see her succeed.
"Great work, Ms. Bay," she said, smiling. A quick glance at the clock told Vashti that it was time to move on to the last part of the lesson. She wanted to ensure they had plenty of time to complete the next activity before it was time to wrap up and let them continue on with the rest of their schedules.
"Good work, everyone," Vashti said with a smile. "We need to continue on to our next activity, but don't worry if you don't feel comfortable with the spell yet. It will be helpful, but it isn't required to complete the challenge." She had ensured that this activity was a decent challenge, but not so complex that it couldn't be completed with or without the spell within the time frame they had left.
"So, once I give the password to the statue and the passage opens, you'll slide down and find yourself at the beginning of a maze. There are two entrances, and each one has its own route to the end of the maze." So there was no wrong choice in terms of whether to choose the right or left at the beginning. "Your goal is to reach 'Honeydukes' at the end of the maze - or, for our purposes, a bowl of sweets.
"That's where Specialis Punctum comes in." She waved her wand, and a hand-sized photo appeared on each of their desks. Pictured in the photo was a large bowl placed on a pedestal with an assortment of sweets inside the bowl - Chocolate Frogs, sugar quills, Fizzing Whizzbees, among others. "This is a photo of the bowl at the end, and you can utilize this to help you picture it and use Specialis Punctum to help guide you along the correct path." It wouldn't always perfectly direct them down a path, of course; it was entirely possible that they might come up on a split path to the right and left, and the spell might point the wand directly down the center of the wall. But it could help them choose a path then see if that led them to other pathways that got them closer to their goal based on what their wand indicated. "This spell is simply an extra tool to assist you. It is possible to get to the end without using it." Completing a maze also depended on their ability to remember what paths they had already taken as well.
"Once you reach the end, you may choose one of the sweets to take with you." A little reward for successful completion.
"You may work alone or with a partner to help navigate through the maze. And if you have any questions or need help while you're inside, just call my name and I'll be around to assist." She had her ways of overseeing everyone while they were in there, so they wouldn't be completely without supervision. "So, once you're ready, or once you and your partner are ready, come and queue up to enter the passage."
Turning to the statue, she gave it the same password the real one accepted. "Dissendium."
The hump on the statue lifted, and a few steps appeared on the side of the statue to allow for easier access. Once each student climbed the steps, they would go down the slide and land in a surprisingly well-lit underground area. The dirt floor was somewhat soft - not wet so that mud clung to anyone's shoes, but just enough to retain a footprint every so often. Curiously, if one were with a partner, one might notice at some point that they could only see their own footprints.
The solid stone walls of the maze stand several meters from the slide. There are two openings into the maze, one to the right and one to the left.
Make your choice, and begin your journey. ---
OOC: Great work thus far, everyone!  We're onto our main activity now. Whether your character is working solo or with a partner, you don't have to wait for your character's turn to go down the slide; you can just assume that it is and have your characters go down and enter the maze.
This activity will continue until around 10:00 PM EDT (GMT -4) on October 29th, and then we'll begin wrapping up the lesson.
__________________ if we fall, we will fall together; and when we rise, we will rise together__________________♥♥♥♥
together we are dangerous; together with our differences; together we are bolder, braver, stronger |