BouncebouncebouncebOUNCEBOUNCE.

You might be forgiven for thinking that Toby had turned up to the lesson on his pogo stick, what with how incredibly bouncy he was today, leaping through the corridor as though he had springs attached to his shoes. But nope, no pogo stick, just pure ENERGY.

He all but burst into the Arithmancy classroom, excitable and enthusiastic. It took him a moment to notice the message on the board, at which point he automatically attempted to tone down the... whatever THIS was. With a grin on his face, Toby SALUTED Professor Tanner with the hand that held his list of music pieces. He began to greet the professor CHEERFULLY, but, like... quietly, with a "Helloooooooo Profess- oh... sorry!" The note on the board. ACCIDENTALLY ALREADY FORGOT IT. But remembering it now and SHUTTING UP.

Then off he went to his regular desk, where he sat and immediately began bouncing in his seat, already eager to get up and moving again. He set the parchment on his desk.

That list... that list had caused him problems, being that he wasn't as into music as a lot of people seemed to be. Kid never really had the patience to STOP and LISTEN to things. BUT... eventually he'd thought of three. He'd also not been sure if Tanner had wanted actual classical compositions like the one playing right now, but if THAT had been the case then Toby would have been able to list precisely zero. Hopefully this would be cooooooooooool.



OKAY. SITTING BACK. EYES CLOSED. ENJOYING.

But fidgeting. Merlin. MERLIN. Could he, like, do some star jumps? Relaxing was not a Toby thing. He peeked his eyes back open and squinted around and drummed his fingers on his desk and tapped his feet rapidly under the desk. Fidgety. So fidgety. Okay, staring out the window instead. He would channel the caaaaaaaaalm. He could try.

Smiling, Lux walked into the Arithmancy classroom. She was about to greet the Professor when she realized that she was supposed to stay quiet. Right, hehe.

Smiling at Toby, she made her way to her seat before pulling out the list she had written up earlier. One of the selections was her theme song and the other two were from her favourite movie. Was there really any doubt over what she would have chosen? Happily, she hummed along to a song that she was playing in her head.

SPOILER!!: Lux's List

1. Happy - Pharrell Williams
2. Kiss the Girl - The Little Mermaid
3. Part of Your World - The Little Mermaid

Simon walked into the Arithmancy classroom with a bounce in every step. He was having a really, really good day today. He had finished his homework and studying for the day and had time to do some sudoku puzzles. It was a very good day. He slowed down as he walked further into the classroom and enjoyed the pleasant fresh smell of it. Ahh.. Then he stopped and read the board in the silent classroom.

Hmm... Alright, favourite songs? That shouldn't be too hard to do.

After nodding towards the Professor in a form of greeting, he made his way to the second row and grabbed his usual seat. Pulling out his notebook and pen, he readied himself for class. Now all he had to do was write his top three favourite songs.



Now this was going to be difficult.

Simon stared at the blank page in front of him and tried his hardest to think of songs to fill it, but nothing came to his mind. His mind was almost as blank as the piece of parchment in his notebook. Biting his lip, he tapped his pen softly on the paper. He scribbled down a song, paused, scribbled down another, and then paused. He had two songs down. Great, one to go.

BUT WHICH ONE WOULD HE CHOOSE?

He was aware that the exercise shouldn't be this hard, but he was already struggling with it. Biting his lip, Simon quickly wrote down a third song. Hopefully his third choice would work... He'd keep his fingers crossed on that one.

Time for another Arithmancy lesson. He was quite excited he was doing well in Arithmancy for once. He was loving the teacher and she easily explained things maybe this is why. As he entered the classroom, he saw the usual Toby and Lux was there. He gave his fellow puffs waves and his eyes went wide when he saw someone he hadn't seen in AGES! His heart leapt and he saw SIMON was there. He was baffled and would surely sit next to him. He hoped Ethan was here too. He would love to see his Watson here again. As he was excited about seeing Simon he couldn't help but notice the music in the room. He didn't realllyyy like it too much. He saw the Professor was listening to it deeply and he didn't wanna disturb her.

As he took his seat next to Simon and he nudged him. "Hey mate.." he said quietly. He looked up at the board he noticed that they needed to write three of their favorite songs to date. He clicked his tongue and got his quill and parchment out of the bag and decided on three. He stared at his parchment for a while and couldn't chose a song he liked!

THIS WAS IMPOSSIBLE!

He started humming songs that came up in his head and he decided to write them down.



There he kept some of his country music taste in there. He hoped his song choices worked.

Arithmancyyyyyyyyyy.

Sophie was especially interested in today's class because... what on Earth would they do with favorite songs? Was there some kind of... number component to it all that would apply to their songs? Were they going to do some kind of interpretations based on their choices? She had no idea, really, which was EXCITING. She was SO down for new things. It kept things exciting.

So, arriving at class with a big ol' smile on her face, Sophie entered the room and opened her mouth instinctively to greet the professor... until she saw the state of the woman. Eyes closed, jamming away to the music. Okay. That was... fine, Soph would just head over here and take her seat near Tobes, all right? And it wasn't until she took her seat that she read the writing on the board, and when she did, she let out a hum of understanding. Okay. Everything made sense now, yes. They were meant to be quiet and take in the music and reflect on it and what not. She could do that.

Setting her paper on the desk in front of her, she realized for the first time what they were listening to - yes, she knew this. She couldn't place the composer's name at the moment, but she was familiar with this piece. Hmmm.

Verrrryyy interesting.

Text Cut: Sophie's Choice(s)

1. Go the Distance - Hercules
2. I Got You Babe - Sonny and Cher
3. You Raise Me Up - Josh Groban

Another Arithmancy class.

Adi was READY, yo!

He seemed to be improving in the subject area... even though he had not been that bad at it before at least he was certainly better at it now. Or so he would like to think. Stepping into the classroom, Adi paused as he perked up. Was that... music? Sweet, calming music? Though rock music was more his type, he appreciated any kind.

Oohh. It was Tanner's music. Just look at her enjoying it. Adi could understand. When everyone left you, music would always be there. His eyes trailed to the board and he read the instructions. Oh yeah. That list. That was one of the MOST DIFFICULT things Adi had ever had to do... come up with that short list. Well, maybe except for the first song... that one reminded him of AJ so naturally it was one of his favourites.

He grinned at his friends before selecting a seat next to Simon and placing his list on his desk. "Heya, Simon.''

Norah opened her mouth to say a cheerful hello to Professor Tanner but closed it again quickly when she registered how...calm it was in there. Had she walked into the wrong room? Was this not the home of the second-confusingest subject in the entire world? But then reading was a thing, and it said Arithmancers on there and stuff on the board was always true. The fourteen year old smiled at Professor Tanner before taking a seat and extracting her materials from her bag as quietly as she could.

She placed her list of songs on top of her desk, then leaned back and closed her eyes to enjoy the music for a bit before her head exploded from all the maths stuff. It hadn't been as bad this term, though. Maybe being a real live teenager for a whole entire YEAR now was actually showing up somehow. Now it just had to spread to her height. Sigh.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Norah's List

1. Rollerblades - Eliza Doolittle
2. Secrets - Mary Lambert
3. Shake It Out - Florence and the Machine

The Gryffindor walked into the classroom without a smile on his face, but also without a frown? It was a neutral face, actually. Was that a thing? Because Zander Adair was going to make it a thing. He didn't feel particularly sulky today-- which was strange because ever since the forrest thing and ever since Kevin's expulsion... Anyways, he made his way into the classroom with a (yes) neutral expression on his face. As he passed by Professor Tanner's desk he didn't even notice the strange behavior when, "Hh--" Oh.

Ahem. You heard nothing. La la la running to a seat now because reading the board is apparently very imperative. The Gryffindor quickly slipped into a desk by Simon Holden, before realizing he had forgotten to make his list this morning before class???? UH. PANIC. Wait. No. He had time. Right. Before doing the sitting back, closing eyes, and enjoying thing, Zander quickly took out a spare sheet of parchment and began scribbling. Aheeeeem. La la la. He was a total master of this sneaky thing. No one would possibly know that he had just come up with all of these. Heh. So good, Adair. SO good.

SPOILER!!: he failed *sighhh*

Hogwarts School Song
Twinkle Twinkle Little Star
Superman Theme Song

.... So uh, they weren't exactly his top three favorite musical works... But they were three musical works? The only three musical works that Zander Adair could think of off the top of his head.

Sweet Merlin.

Angel walked into the lesson and smiled, she was about to say Hi to the Professor when suddenly she realised the Professor seemed out of it so instead she looked at the board, okay so this was strange, but she could figure out three songs right?

Angel had heard loads of songs but three stuck out in her mind, because she had been listening to them lately. Angel sat down and took out her quill and started to write on a parchment.



Angel loved these song and so she would use them, she wasn't changing them now.

Hady walked into the room quietly quickly looking around and noticing not one person was making a sound. Well alright then. As she made her way towards her usual desk she glimpsed a look towards the board. Ah okay not the quietness of the room made sense to her.

Arriving at her seat she slipped down into the chair placing her bag near her feet and removing her parchment that held her list of songs. It had actually be kinda hard for her to come up with them as well she wanted to make sure they would be okay and all that jazz. Anyhow in the end she managed three.

Quote:

Songs
Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton
Don't Stop Believing - Journey
Footloose - Blake Shelton

Setting the parchment towards the corner of her desk Hady leaned back in her seat closing her eyes and enjoying the music around her.

The last notes in the triumphant finale of Bach's Little Fugue in G Minor faded away and Tiara gave a relaxed sigh. The professor finally opened her eyes for good and looked around. Not very many students today, just as she had originally suspected. Perhaps they were all stealing some extra minutes outside with the first hints of spring in the air?

"Good morning, class. You have been serenaded by Johann Sebastian Bach's Little Fugue in G Minor today, which has long been a personal favorite of mine." Her parents had instilled a love of classical music in her from childhood. "I identify with this work because of its complexity, the intermingling of multiple voices coming together to form a cohesive whole. It brings peace to my mind, as I view it as an allegory for life in general: amidst the turmoil, hard work, and general chaos can emerge a wondrous result well worth the effort." She hadn't meant to wax eloquently, but it stirred something profound and deep within her.

So, now it was their turn. "Tell me... what do your own musical selections stir within you? It could be any range of emotions, and you certainly don't need to have a deep philosophical explanation."

The arrival of Zander to class made her smile. Sophie associated most classes with people in one way or another - Dot with Potions, Mo with DADA, and Tobes with virtually every other one... but Arithmancy was her class with Zander. After their dynamite chalk activity last term, she felt a strong connection with him in this room, and she always felt comforted when he was there. They were Arithmancy buddies. That's just the way it was.

As class began, Soph gave a hum of understanding at the revealing of the piece's name and composer. Yes, that made sense. And it was cute that the professor seemed so deeply moved by it - it even made the fifth year smile to see the woman so passionate about it. A nice transfer of energy there.

Oh, the power of music.

Raising a hand, Sophie offered up her explanations, though carefully did not say aloud which songs they were, "Mine... well, the first one makes me feel motivated and hopeful and confident for the future and like I can do anything I put my mind to if I don't give up. S'empowering. The second is..." Her eyes flickered involuntarily over to Tobes, "It makes me feel... adoration and love, and... safe and secure. Like I'll never be alone." Ahem. "And the last one..."

Oh, this one was hard to verbalize. Could she... check out of explaining it? Would anyone notice? No, everyone was looking at her, so she had to press on and tried to seem very calm about it, "Makes me feel comforted. Supported. Like... people believe in me and... I can count on them, and I know I wouldn't be who I am today without my people. S'very reassuring." There was a bit deeper meaning than that, but... vague was good. Very good.

As the door began to close signaling the start of the lesson, the Professor was still listening to the sound of her music. He kind of knew what she was listening to but not really. It did sound familiar though. She went into SO much detail about her music, he just stood there like opened mouth. He closed it and wondered how he could describe his music choices? Erm...yeah he was in deep trouble. Well maybe he could change his choices just a bitttt. As he looked down he did love his choices though. He shrugged and rolled with it.

"Professor the first song I choice Dead on Arrival, as bad as it sounds I just love the beat and the message of the song. It just brings my rock n roll side out and I can just jam and forget my problems." he grinned sheepishly and he didn't have much to go on for that song. Now onto the second song. "I chose Come with Me Now by the Kongos. It just has a cool beat and I like jamming to it. It is a good excercising song. Listen I know my explanations are horrible but I didn't know we had to do this sort of thing..." he hastily added to the Professor.

He wished he was more prepared but hey he was rolling it with it. Now onto the third song. "I picked Save a Horse Ride A Cowboy because I love sticking to my country music roots. I love the feel and rockish feel to this country song. This is also my father's favorite song so it gives me a connection to him." It was kind of deep but he hoped it helped with the assignment right now.

Start of the lesson!

Aha. So that was what that bit of music was about. Admittedly, Adi did not know much... no strike that... nothing at all about that genre. But still, he liked the sound of it. He let a few of his classmates volunteer their answers before he raised his own hand.

"My musical choices make me feel happy... well, happier but most of all it makes me feel calm and it can help me focus when there are lots of things going on at once around me.'' Yes, people. Rock music CAN make you feel calm, too. ''It makes me feel connected to the the persons who appreciate and like the same kind of music as I.'' Basically, rock music made him OVERJOYED, man.

Adi grinned over at Kace. He LOVED his friend's song choices. Dead on Arrival! APPROVED!

As more people entered the room, Lux waved at them and smiled. She was so ready for this lesson and to see what the importance of their song choices was as well as what they had to do with Arithmancy.

As the lesson started she raised her hand so that she could share her choices as well as her reasoning. "The first song I chose was Happy by Pharrell. That's my theme song because it's about being HAPPY all the time and I like to be happy. The second and third songs I chose were Kiss the Girl and Part of Your World because they are from my favourite movie and they relate to mermaids and I love mermaids and Ariel." Yeah, she was 15 and her favourite movie was The Little Mermaid. If anyone thought it was immature she didn't care.

There were other songs that Lux could have chosen as she really felt them, but she had decided not to. Those songs were related to her and Bay but she wanted to keep them private.

Norah reluctantly opened her eyes and sat up straight as Professor Tanner began to speak. She'd always thought classical music was probably really boring, so it was pretty weird to be sad about it ending. It did make her feel like taking a nap, though. That was definitely true. She stifled a yawn and opted instead for a smile as she looked back down at her parchment.

Why had she picked these? 'Cause they were the best ones EVER, duh. The fourteen year old waved her hand in the air, 'cause the beginning of class before maths were involved was always the best time to participate. "I picked 'em 'cause they're my favorites, and my favorites always make me feel happy and fluttery inside. The same kind of fluttery happy stuff that happens when hugs happen, or snuggles with fluffy cats 'n things." Norah put her hand down and kept smiling at Professor Tanner, 'cause just THINKING about music and hugs and snuggles was enough to make her smile all giant and dimple-y. Those were the bestest kinds of smiles.

.... Uh. They were going to explain their songs to the entire class? Uh. Zander didn't volunteer at first, letting others go first. Maybe someone else would have lame explanations like him, so if he went after he wouldn't have to feel as bad about it. Ahem. Well, that's what he got for forgetting to double check the notice board before arriving to classes. Geez. You'd think he'd learn since he was in Fifth Year now and everything.

Of course he listened very carefully to what Sophie Brown had to say. She was great at Arithmancy. Plus, Arithmancy was like their class, so this was important. But then again, everything she said was always important. That's what happens when you're that smart.

But of course no one else had lame explanations, so it was now or never. Right, Adair? He raised his hand slowly, and looked utterly embarrassed all the while. "Well first I have our Hogwarts School Song... The-erm-Hoggy Warty Hogwarts one?" His cheeks were most definitely glowing. "It's nice 'cause it's a reminder that I made it to this school and that I've got to work hard if I want to stay here." Uh. That was good for on the spot, right? "I also wrote the Superman Theme because Superman is real great and stuff. Like the best hero ever.".... "And uh--" The one remaining song on his list.

Twinkle, Twinkles Little Star.

How in Merlin's name was he supposed to come up with an explanation for this one? "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star because.... Well uh... These were really just the only songs I could think of off the top of my head." Oh Merlin. The shame. He was most certainly tomato-ing now. His whole face. Entirely red.

It was really hard to pick three favorite songs when AJ liked so many. She really went about it by randomly picking three. Her favorites changed so often that what she told you today most likely wouldn't be the same next week. Music was just too awesome.

As far as the professor's question... well, that was easy. Her hand was raised. "I picked these songs because they automatically put me in a good mood by listening to them." One of them in particular just made her want to get up and dance, and there was nothing wrong with that!

Hady should've known that they would have to talk about their chosen song choices. She really should've but she hadn't given it much thought when she wrote down her three picks and know she'd have to speak about them. Pulling her parchment towards her she looked over what she'd written there even though she already knew.

When it was her turn she raised her hand into the air slowly. "The first song just has a special meaning to me, it helps me remember good times I had when I was really small. The second strong makes me feel like anything is possible if I put my heart and mind into it and try my hardest. The last song brings me happiness and it makes me want to get up and move." That was good right? Nothing more was needed really, she'd answered the question the best she could.

Relaxing and stuff to the music had turned out to be completely impossible, and Toby had been occupying himself with scribbling away at his parchment, writing little notes and doodling and stuff but QUIETLY. He found it a lot easier to listen to the music when he kept his hands and mind otherwise occupied.

When Tanner spoke up and started the lesson, Toby looked up and immediately set his quill down, opting instead to start twiddling his thumbs. What did his musical selections stir within him? Uhhh... that was sorta tricky for reasons. Hm. Hmm hmm hmmmmm.

After a few others had given their answers, Toby stuck his own hand in the air.

"With mine, they're all for different reasons. My first one is just a SUPER happy song and makes ME happy and I associate it with all things CHEERful and I like it 'cause I like being happy," he began, pulling his list closer to get a better look at what he'd written. "My second one is one I can sorta relate to, because it's kinda fast and busy and doesn't always make a lot of sense and it's confusing and I relate to it 'cause of how that's what it can be like in my head. Aaaaaand I like my third one 'cause it's my Quidditch song and gets me motivated, and also reminds me of my first few years here... before a lot of my friends graduated and stuff." His old teammates and stuff. He missed them a whole lot, see. Ahem.

Yep yep yep. That was it, really.

.

.

Well, that was good to hear...because Gabriel's selections had been more about functionality than a greater sense of self. In fact, the only time he really listened to music was when he was at home...and siblings wouldn't leave him alone about one thing or another. Actually, this was true about Hogwarts, too. There was a constant buzzing of 'people'...everywhere.

After looking around for a moment...and listening to what everyone else had said, Gabe regarded his list again...Then, raised his hand.

"All of my songs are instrumental, without words...because that helps me study." Plain and simple.

So they were probably wondering how this related to Arithmancy. "Let me read something to you, since they phrase it quite well.." She cleared her throat and looked down at the book on the desk. "Your name can be viewed as a piece of music that vibrates in time. Your life, therefore, can be visualized as a musical score, with the individual letters making specific contributions at given points, just as notes in a musical piece are played at specific moments to give a piece of music its rhythm, character, and nuance. Each note or letter has a specific duration and influence over your life during a specific period of time." She put the book down and returned her attention to the class.

"Most of you chose your songs because they resonated deeply with some part of your life. The letters in your name act in a similar fashion. These will be what we use today to help us find our Transit Cycles." She figured most of them had at least seen the term whilst flipping through their textbook. "The Transit Cycles work in conjunction with the Essence Cycles, but we won't have time to get to those today. There are three transits: the physical, mental, and spiritual. Each is derived from your first, middle, and last name respectively. Together, they give an overall view of your life stages and how long each stage will last."

She turned and wrote TIARA on the board. "My first name is my physical cycle. Chapter 28 of your textbook has the meanings for each letter of my name. Since T has a value of 2 in the Pythagorean system, the interpretation for T lasts approximately 2 years." They remembered to find those values in chapter two, right? "Please look up the meaning for T, read it through, and suggest how in the world it could apply to my physical transit from birth to two years old. All ideas are welcome, inside or outside the box." Really, it would be a challenge for such a young age range.


OOC: 'Book' excerpt taken from here.

That would explain it. It surely would. Adi was thinking about what Professor Tanner said. His music preference was indeed a reflection of him. Always hyped up and haaaaaaappy. Yup. Was it possible to fall in love with rock music even more? Mhmmm, it was.

Alrightey. Time to focus on the lesson again. Aha. Transit Cycles, huh? And it dealt with first, middle and last names? Welllll, Adi had no middle name so he supposed his cycles would have to make use of his first and last names alone.

He flipped to the indicated page of his textbook and read. Oh looky! There was something there about those who had no middle names. "For those who do not have a middle name, the last name provides the Transit information for both the Mental and the Spiritual,'' he read. Cool!

Now to find out about the meaning of T. After reading carefully and pondering on his answer, the Hufflepuff stuck his hand up. "Even though you were that young, Professor, you wanted to learn... possibly from your parents. I think you realised you wanted to be like them so you possibly spent that time trying to copy their habits; they way they walked or talked and other physical aspects and was determined to do so.''

Er, did that make sense?!

Professor Tanner's comment made her happy. She was such a nice woman and Lux really liked her. There was no way that she could take out the evil book's actions on her favourite movie, Ariel, or mermaids in general; they had done nothing besides provide entertainment and be amazing.

The discussion moved to a comparison of musical scores to life. So that Was where the song lists came in. Made total sense. The Arithmancy stuff made sense too - up to an extent. Lux had read a little about the Transit Cycles so she knew what they were, but as she had never tried calculating them for herself she had no idea how accurate they were. Even if she was still young, she could gage how accurate they were up to her current age.

Arithmancy was a lot like Divination in more ways than the obvious - they were both hit or miss in her opinion.

Opening her textbook to the correct page, Lux read over what Professor Tanner's first letter meant before raising her hand. "There is a mention of wanting to find new activities, and babies love exploring and being stimulated. So I think that means you were a very curious baby that loved to play and be in different environments. It also mentions learning, and that could be things you picked up from your parents like words once you learned to talk and going from crawling to walking." Ugh, it was harder to do interpretations on babies.