So they had to talk about their favorite historical person or event. Janelle had a few of them, but if she had to choose one to talk about........she knew who it would be. When her turn came, Janelle explained her choice,

"Hermione Granger is someone I admire. She was brilliant and and used her smarts to solve the problems she faced. She helped Harry Potter to defeat Lord Voldemort. I like her because knowing all of the things she did at such a young age, makes me feel like I can accomplish anything." You know. Girl Power and all that.

Dot wiggled in her bean bag chair until she finally got comfortable, although she wished that she'd been clever enough to get a snack before sinking deep into this chair abyss. It was practically eating her alive, y'know?

It was nice to hear people's stories... did they know it told more about them than they realized? What they shared, what they chose to share, what they hid... it was interesting. A story of its own.

When it was her turn, Dot wiggled again before speaking. "When I was a little girl, my mum and I shared a chocolate frog and the card was Cliodna. She said that was me... Queen of the Banshees, on account of I was always being a little too noisy. But I kept that card, and I liked the idea of being Cliodna. She was an animagus and a Potions Mistress, and she was clever and famous in a time when women were... not very well thought of. I just like her, and I like thinking about how one person can be lots of different things."

Marigold scrunched her nose up as she thought of someone who inspired her or something along those lines. She knew like…a GAZILLION witches' and wizards' stories by heart by now, after studying so much, but….it was hard to find someone that SPOKE to her, y'know?

Finally she concentrated on a story that her dad constantly reminded her of as a kid, when she would beg to talk about Harry Potter and all the stuff he did after the war.

"Narcissa Malfoy was a pretty cool case because she worked for Voldemort but THEN she actually helped save Harry Potter, in a way. And I think that's important because it shows you that sometimes people are deeper than they appear."

BLEARGHEA:RHEL. Incoherent thoughts just came out of her mouth. Blargh.

Eden was tiiiiired. NEWT preparation was killing the seventh year, as was her intense desire to be home with her family. She was exhausted and it was very apparent; dark circles had painted themselves under her eyes.

Her hair was a mess.

What was this? A class? What?

Too drained, too tired for this nonsense. She saw Gabriel immediately and plonked her bum next to him, leaning forward and resting her head on the table.

Merlin.

She was dozing in just a few seconds.

Okay Zander had no idea who this Weird bloke was, but he took note of the name just so he could possibly try to figure it out later. Or not. On second thought, he'd just leave that for last minute NEWT studying. Seemed to work out well for OWLs. He was willing to risk it again to be honest. Maybe the same wouldn't work for Charms and DADA. But history, eh he could wing it. Probably.

As for a historical figure that he could talk about... His hand shot up with the first name racing to his mind being Neville Longbottom. But once that first girl mentioned his name, Zander quickly lowered his hand. Man. He needed to work on this getting called first thing. Always hard to answer a question when you literally only know one answer. Anyways.

Someone else mentioned a chocolate frog card, which definitely sparked an idea in his head. 'Cause Zander had loads of those and he knew just exactly what each of them said. When you pride yourself on being a collector, you've got to be at least somewhat of an expert on them, right? Well, somewhat. "Alberic Grunnion is a pretty cool bloke, he invented the dungbomb." Technically not Zander's favorite historical figure, but then again... Zander didn't have many of those. "He's pretty influential in my life 'cause without him, I'd probably never be able to get my brother's back." And cue the goofy smile.

Also Zander had about five of his cards. Just saying. If anyone is up for a trade. He'll be around all week.

SPOILER!!: Individual Replies

Quote:

Originally Posted by Anna Banana

Kate had an idea on this one! Raising her hand, she said, "Neville Longbottom stands out in my mind. During the last Battle of Hogwarts, he was one of the key people when it came to defeating Voldemort. I think his victory is extra special, because it just came out of nowhere. Nobody really expected Neville Longbottom to do anything that brave or heroic." It had been a story that always stuck out in her mind. It taught a really good lesson, too.

Oh, what a wonderful first choice. Nessa smiled widely at Kate and nodded. "Sometimes great things come from those we least expect. And sometimes it takes a defining moment to show who we really are inside. I think he was very brave and heroic myself." And that was not always an easy thing to be.

Quote:

Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19

When his turn came, the Hufflepuff raised his left hand, cookie still clutched in it which caused some crumbs to fall onto his head. Woops. Hehe. "My favourite historical figure is Newton Scamander.'' Any surprises there? NOPE! There shouldn't be. "His extensive work with magical creatures and research on them is what inspires me to be like him. Without his work, we would probably still be unaware about a lot of things about these creatures.'' Adi shook his still raised hand enthusiastically as he spoke of the man, causing more crumbs to tumble on him but he paid no attention to it right now. "Newt worked at the Ministry, got lots of promotions and authored books. He contributed a great deal to Magizoology.''

Hmm, that was an interesting choice and Nessa listened intently to Adi as he explained. "I think Newt Scamander is a wonderful person to be inspired by, especially if you are thinking about studying magizoology." Is that what Adi's intended field of study after Hogwarts was? It sounded vaguely familiar as if she should remember that. "He really was very accomplished and important in that area."

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hera

"Lord Voldemort."

Yeah. YEAH! Cause he was QUITE the historical figure, no?

"Not cause he killed a bunch of people and stuff, but because he was powerful enough to influence society for so long." Don't ask him how long, he didn't do dates! "And like, not only did he reign over everyone but after he fell, he made a return and that in itself is super impressive... perseverance and all." How did it influence him? He didn't feel he needed to say.

Oh? Nessa was rather surprised by that answer and remained silent as she listened to Zeke further explain. "He was quite the notorious figure," she murmured, still thinking over his answer. "Perseverance is always a very strong character trait, one to be admired.." But really, he couldn't find a more respectable figure to look up to who was also noted for their perseverance? "Though I'm not sure most of what he is known for is all that admirable." Kind of disturbing, really.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jessiqua

Zhenya had a think about a story she could share with the class, whilst continuing to nibble at her cookie. She knew the figure, he was in her mind, and she started to speak when it was her turn. "I admire, and am inspired by Damocles, who invented the Wolfsbane Potion. He was very smart and very dedicated to finding the correct formula to ease the suffering of the Werewolf, which is what I admire most. I hope that one day I can be as dedicated to finding a potion as helpful as that. But I also admire him for his contribution to society in general, by providing a tool to decrease the threat of werewolves."

She listened to Zhenya next as she contemplated taking another cookie for herself. Maybe once everyone had a turn to speak. "Well, I think that's wonderful, Zhenya, to want to contribute to society in such an impacting way," she said, giving her a bright smile. She wondered exactly what she hoped to achieve. "It seemed not only was he quite intelligent but also a great humanitarian to help the plight of the afflicted." Such admirable traits.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Govoni

"Paracelsus...who was an alchemist." Nervous page flip after nervous page flip. "He was a free thinker and made many discoveries that were for the betterment of our kind...and muggles, also...I think." Gabe paused and leaned back, resting his hands in his lap. "I plan to study the sciences and change the face of the world, too...Not because any one person did, like Paracelsus, but because of people like him...and knowing it's possible."

Nessa finished off the last of her hot chocolate and set the cup down on the floor before turning her eyes to Gabriel as he was the next to speak. "That sounds very inspiring, Gabriel," she smiled at him approvingly. "I think it's good to look up to someone that has done great things along the same lines you want to do, especially for knowing that it can be possible to do those same things."

Quote:

Originally Posted by SpiritWolfe Malfoy

However there was a problem. She had no clue which historical figure she wanted to speak of. There were TONS! Listening to those around her only Zeke's answer made her smirk a bit for she didn't expect anything else coming from him. Could they just skip over her please? At least until she was able to come up with something...

Her eyes next fell on Hady as she was next in the circle and Nessa waited for her to speak. And waited, as it seemed she wasn't going to offer anything at all. Nessa found this a bit unusual as they really could have named anyone at all throughout history, in fact she even said they could use their books. She would have an awfully hard time with the activity if she simply couldn't name anyone. Nessa frowned a bit before looking at the next student as he seemed to notice the awkward silence and spoke up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RandomRaven

Damn it, his tongue was burnt because of this very hot chocolate. "Sorry, Professor..." He said apologizing and then took his tumbler to gulp some water. Okay... "Personally I love Professor Dumbledore, the former Headmaster" He spoke up. "He's a great wizard and uh... Apparently he trusted that his students at the time were great in their own way, no judgement or things like that..."

[OOC - There are no desks, they are in beanbag chairs. =)]

Nessa smiled softly and shook her head. No need to apologize. Listening as the boy offered a description to his answer, she nodded a bit. "He was a very great wizard.. and I like your interpretation of him - trusting the greatness in others without judgement. Do you aspire to be like him or do you just appreciate that everyone has the potential for greatness inside of them as he knew to be true?" Because he didn't really say and she would like to know why and how they were inspired as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Felixir

"The first recorded Quidditch game," he said when it was his turn, still fiddling with the pages of his textbook. Not that he needed it for reference for this particular answer. "At Queerditch Marsh. 'Cause I love Quidditch and all, and if there hadn't been a first game then we wouldn't have it around as a sport and I personally might not know what I was doing with my life and stuff. 'Cause Quidditch inspires me. 'Cause it's fun. And happy." Yes. Quidditch. Nice and safe. Not a single risk of thinking about any of the less happy things. And another thing that Toby liked to focus on. Perfect.

Oh she knew Toby was all about Quidditch from getting to know him in class the past few years so his answer was not too surprising to Nessa. The sport still wasn't her thing no matter how hard she had tried to understand it, but she knew it was important to many and that was what mattered. "It's great to have something that you love to be very inspiring to you," she said, giving him a bright smile. "I'm sure the game has inspired many and they are thankful for the first game as well." Namely professional players, though she knew the game gave pleasure to many a spectator as well. And she couldn't help but to wonder if Toby had intentions on playing professionally when he was finished with school.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Symphora

Class was starting now and they were asked to recall prominent figures throughout the history. There were tons really...he couldn't pick one. Of course,one of them was definitely Harry Potter, the chosen one who defeated the powerful Dark Lord Voldermort at the age of seventeen. His friends and family were famous too for taking part in the battle of Hogwarts. Henric would love to answer the professor but he wasn't ready yet. He was still in his grieving mode...

Again another silent student. Nessa got that there really had been a lot going on lately, but that was the entire reason she decided on an easy, relaxing class today. But that did not mean that she was doing all the talking and there would be no student participation, or else she would have canceled class altogether. This really wasn't a difficult question at all. She'd have to say that she was a little disappointed that some of them simply refused.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Harry174

Angel looked at the Professor and raised her hand. "Professor, I think Merlin was cool." Angel now had to figure about things. "I think he was a special adviser to a king because he was so amazing, I watch loads of programmes about him, though obviously the muggles didn't know anything about him being a wizard, though they guest."

Nessa shifted her eyes towards Angel as her raised hand saved them from any further awkward silence. "Merlin was a great wizard, yes," she nodded. "But what about him did you think was cool or amazing?" The question wasn't simply meant for them to answer who they liked, but she wanted them to explore why and how they were influenced as well.

Quote:

Originally Posted by feeheeheeny

"I kinda have two notable historical figures, not just one - former Hogwarts Headmistress Rae-Branxton and her best friend and Deputy Headmistress Anjelica Lainey. They were, like, connected at the hip 'n my parents have told me how they were such good leaders TOGETHER because of just how close they were and they played off each other's strengths to keep Hogwarts safe and secure and they were, like, Aurors together, too, and they're just two super powerful, brilliant women who did a lot for this school 'n the wizarding world at large." She took a brief sip of her hot chocolate, then, but continued on, "They've influenced me 'cause they're like the defiNITION of 'girl power' and if they can be some of the greatest leaders of all time, then I can, too. I wanna be super cool and important and make a difference in a big way they way they did."

Nessa might have squealed just a tiny bit when Sophie gave her answer. She totes knew those two in person! "Mrs. Rae-Branxton was my Headmistress! And Professor Lainey was one of my teachers too!" Her History of Magic professor for a few years in fact, and she would very much agree that those two women were inspiring. "I think that's wonderful that you found such strong role models to look up to. They were great leaders together." Their friendship reminded her of her own friendship with Cassie, even if they did not fill the same roles.

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixStar

Oh. She had something. Perfect timing too because it was her turn. Okay. The last bit of cookie pieces had been swallowed and a quick throat clearing session happened. She was ready. "Godric Gryffindor. I guess really all of the founders. They were brilliant witches and wizards. I especially like how three of the founders stood up to Salazar for what they felt was the right thing. It's influential to me because it shows that you can do the right thing even if it means losing a friend or making somebody mad." That actually sounded kind of lame out loud. AJ wasn't the poster child for making the right choices.

Nessa listened to Aubrey's answer with a soft smile, nodding gently as she finished speaking. "Sometimes it is very difficult to stand up for what you believe in and to do the right thing. But often it is very important." She felt those kinds of people were really good role models.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Daydreamer11

"Hermione Granger is someone I admire. She was brilliant and and used her smarts to solve the problems she faced. She helped Harry Potter to defeat Lord Voldemort. I like her because knowing all of the things she did at such a young age, makes me feel like I can accomplish anything." You know. Girl Power and all that.

Nessa nodded a bit as Janelle spoke of the historical figure she most admired. "I think she is another great role model for young women, well for anyone really. I think she was very intelligent and resourceful as well as very brave." Admirable traits in anyone and that many people could inspire to be.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cassirin

When it was her turn, Dot wiggled again before speaking. "When I was a little girl, my mum and I shared a chocolate frog and the card was Cliodna. She said that was me... Queen of the Banshees, on account of I was always being a little too noisy. But I kept that card, and I liked the idea of being Cliodna. She was an animagus and a Potions Mistress, and she was clever and famous in a time when women were... not very well thought of. I just like her, and I like thinking about how one person can be lots of different things."

Nessa couldn't help but to smile at Charlotte's answer. Though she was sure her mother had been joking at the time or maybe had been a little stressed at the time that she said that, she found it interesting that it still resonated with the girl. "I like Cliodna," she said with a smile. "Some think that the birds she kept were fwoopers." And having one of her own, she could relate. "And I do very much like your thoughts about people being multi-faceted. We are often more than just what one person sees."

Quote:

Originally Posted by ScarletCharm104

"Narcissa Malfoy was a pretty cool case because she worked for Voldemort but THEN she actually helped save Harry Potter, in a way. And I think that's important because it shows you that sometimes people are deeper than they appear."

Hmm, Nessa wasn't completely sure that she would agree with Marigold's answer, but she supposed that was alright. People were allowed to have differences of opinion. "Sometimes it is very hard to go against someone very powerful to do what is right." But Nessa had thought that Mrs. Malfoy's motives were a little more selfish than that, though it did all work out in the end.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kayquilz

Eden was tiiiiired. NEWT preparation was killing the seventh year, as was her intense desire to be home with her family. She was exhausted and it was very apparent; dark circles had painted themselves under her eyes.

Her hair was a mess.

What was this? A class? What?

Too drained, too tired for this nonsense. She saw Gabriel immediately and plonked her bum next to him, leaning forward and resting her head on the table.

Merlin.

She was dozing in just a few seconds.

[OOC - There are no tables, they are in beanbag chairs. =)]

Nessa looked up as someone walked in as they were in the middle of class. Goodness, the girl looked to be a disoriented mess. She watched her with concern, then gave her a small smile. "Thank you for joining us, Miss McGee. We are discussing who inspires us from history. Take a minute to get a snack then I'd appreciate a contribution from you as well." She might do well with the hot chocolate as there was a little caffeine in it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ArianaBlack

Someone else mentioned a chocolate frog card, which definitely sparked an idea in his head. 'Cause Zander had loads of those and he knew just exactly what each of them said. When you pride yourself on being a collector, you've got to be at least somewhat of an expert on them, right? Well, somewhat. "Alberic Grunnion is a pretty cool bloke, he invented the dungbomb." Technically not Zander's favorite historical figure, but then again... Zander didn't have many of those. "He's pretty influential in my life 'cause without him, I'd probably never be able to get my brother's back." And cue the goofy smile.

Um, ok, that was interesting. Nessa wasn't sure if he was completely serious or just searching for an answer. "An inventor, and one whose products you enjoy, is not a bad influential figure. Perhaps it would inspire you to invent something someone finds useful one day?" But she was a little surprised he did not name someone a little more inspiring, especially after some of the other answers given.

Once everyone had a chance to speak, Nessa got up to get another cookie for herself before taking a seat in her beanbag chair again. "Those are some very interesting and influential figures and events. I really enjoyed hearing your stories. They were quite inspirational and I think they tell something about yourself to have chosen who or what you did to tell the class." And that always interested her to see a glimpse of unique personalities.

"One more time around the circle before we move on today," she said, her eyes moving around to each of them. "This time, I'd like you to think of a person in your life who is very inspirational to you. Perhaps someone you look up to, and tell us why. I hope you are all having a good time exploring your personal history for our term project and this relates a little back to that. This person might not be as famous as someone you mentioned earlier, but they are still every bit as important to your personal history, and in some cases maybe even more so.

"One of the people most influential in my life is my mother. She had such a love for the theater and the dramatic arts that she wanted a career in that field. She didn't always get the parts or jobs that she wanted, but she never gave up even if someone made her feel discouraged. She instilled a lot of perseverance in me and a strong work ethic. She taught me that even the supporting roles are important, without them the show cannot go on - and that can be meant in a figurative sense as well as a literal one." And now it was their turn. She looked to the student on her left and nodded for them to begin.

An inspirational person in HER life? Sophie Brown and EDEN AND GABE AND RUBY AND ZAHRA AND ASDFGHJKL. So MANY FRIENDS. So many. She was surprised she could actually remember all their names, she was so tired, to be honest. Her stream of consciousness was not making grammatical sense. Argh.

"Um, she used to go here…Elodie Robertser? She was the Hufflepuff female prefect before me…she gave me lots of advice. ALSO, all of THE DEAD KNEAZLES…because their songs mean a lot to me. And all my friends and peers, who are like my family."

A TDK song was stuck in her head now.

Giving Eden a curious look, since she didn't look (at all) like herself, Gabe leaned over and nudged her shoulder. A few times. He was sluggish himself, but that would never interfere with his studies...NEWTs WERE COMING.

/eye twitch

.

.

....Not for nothing, but this was starting to make Gabe feel uncomfortable. No, he didn't really understand why...but...yea, the discomfort was there. It just felt too personal to be talking about 'inspiration' in a room full of his peers, most of which he didn't know or trust...but he answered, anyway. The answer was, of course, accompanied by more fidgeting.

"Professor Culloden. I never thought I enjoyed Potions, as a study, until I sat in his lessons. I knew that I understood the ingredients and their properties, and what they could formulate together...but he's the reason I've considered taking further."

Dot was trying not to be judgy about who people chose as their inspiration. Merlin knew that some people were inspired by rocks and trees, while other people never got inspired at all (those people were very boring). She suspected that a load of people were going to say a parent, since the professor had, so she was fully prepared to judge THOSE people.

But then Gabe said a professor. Even Cool Guy Culloden was a professor, and that was a way more lame answer than a parent. He got a polite nose wrinkle for his trouble. Dude wasn't even HERE to give away points for that sucking up.

FINALLY it was her turn, and Dot did the settling wiggle again before speaking up. "I bet this super duper talented fashion designer called Pensacola Morgan-Bott, and she's got a really keen sense of color and lines and I think she's very interesting because she's built her own fashion line from scratch, basically. And anyway, when I met her, she admired something I did, and it made me feel..." She tilted her head back and forth. "Creative and BIG, like I could do anything I set myself up to do. I always remember when I think I'm rubbish at something that she said I was good."

Janelle nodded as Professor Glendower added her thoughts about Hermione Granger. They were definitely in agreement about Miss Granger's positive qualities. Janelle also enjoyed listening to what her classmates had to say. Their choices were varied and very interesting. Then it was time for another question. Thinking back to her personal history, Janelle knew exactly what she would say.

When it was her turn, Janelle began to speak. "Someone who is very inspirational to me is my sister Jasmine. She is everything I want to be. She is smart, kind, caring, a very hard worker and she always tries to do her best at everything she does. She sets a good example for me, even when she's not tying to." Yes, her big sister was a hard act to follow, but she inspired Janelle to be the best person she could possibly be. "She encourages me and makes me feel like i can do anything I set my mind to. I know she will always have my back."

"That's MY sister-in-law," in case anyone was wondering. Zahra puffed up proudly. "She keeps Pig for me a lot."

Zahra wasn't loving this sharing circle stuff. This WAS her favorite class though, and probably her last with her favorite professor, so Z was here.... bearing through it.

"Professor I want to say you, because you've let me be ME where lots of other professors around here just haven't. So you know... thanks for that. But I'm not picking you, just throwing that out there. That'd be a total suck-up thing to do. You let me be a seagull in a skit about a dragon and I'll never forget it is all I'm saying."

But right. Zahra was picking.... her dad? Mum? Brothers? Her Mikey?

"You're gonna think this is totes weird, but.... I mean, shout out to my family for being the bee's knees and all that junk, and I have Mikey Toussaint who beats all you twerps from here til Sunday forever. But I'm going with Ruby. She's taught me a lot of junk no one else could have, like about hemlines and shoes and looks and junk."

Ha, it was WAY cool that Glendower knew Rae-Branxton and Lainey and thought highly of them, TOO. Sophie was mega jealous that the professor actually got to know them for real, though, and the envy clearly shone in her chestnut eyes. SOOOO JEALOUS. "That's super cool, professor. I'm kinda sorta related to Rae-Branxton, 'cause my cousin is married to her daughter. I've never properly met her, though, 'cause I always get super nervous when I've gotten the opportunity. Luckily her son is one of my best friends in the whole world so when he gets married this summer I'm gonna be PREPARED this time and I'll get to tell her how inspirational she is. I'll tell her you said hi."

Super nice of her.

Settling back down into the bean bag chair, Sophie worked on finishing off her hot chocolate as others spoke and gave their answers, too. Hermione Granger was another good one, someone Soph was relieved someone else said because she was definitely worth noting, and Janelle got encouraging nods to her statement. VERY GOOD, JANELLE.

At the professor's next question... a few people came to mind instantly: her mum, Tobes, Culloden, Ira Banner, Flamsteed... but Ira Banner wasn't super actively in her life, and she didn't want to say her mum and copy the professor. That narrowed it down to Tobes and two professors, one of whom her co-prefect said. So... Culloden was out of the question. Flamsteed inspired her in many ways, but how super uncomfortable would he have been if he found out she talked about him in class like this? Probably a whole lot, and he'd probably laugh uncomfortably and make a lame joke about how sucking up wouldn't get her extra points or anything and reassure her that she didn't ever need to butter him up. Even though... that wasn't her intention at all.

So, clearly, the only route here was to embarrass Tobes right on the spot, and she BEAMED when it was her turn. "My best friend Tobes - Tobias Fuller-Thompson here," she patted her best friend's shoulder beside her, "- is someone in my life who's super inspirational to me. I mean, a LOT of people inspire me," she looked to boyfriend!Zander to let him know she meant him, too, "but Tobes has inspired me since the day I met him back in my second year. He's compassionate and smart and loves everyone and sees the best in everyone and he never has a bad word to say about anyone either. I look up to him 'cause he's got the best heart of anyone I know. He makes me wanna be better like him. Everyone should wanna be like him, really."

But they probably already realized that because EVERYONE knew how much of a gem Tobias Fuller-Thompson was. He was awful at hiding that golden heart of his.

So errrrr... It didn't seem like Glendower was too fond of his answer.

BUT PROFESSOR, HE DIDN'T WANT TO BE A REPEAT!!!!! OKAY!?!?!

Plus the inventor of the dungbomb was PLENTY inspirational. Not for what Professor Glendower said about inspiring Zander to be an inventor one day, but the kid just nodded 'cause hopefully that'd lower his Professor's concern levels. Which looked like they were flying through the roof at this point. So ahem. Sure. Sure Zander thought the guy was inspirational in the sense of being an inventor.... That's it.

Also Zahra's answer was so Zahra. Typical. Only a few more weeks. Just had to keep reminding himself. A few more weeks and he'd never have to hear her ridiculous answers ever again. Actually, wait no, this one was seminormal. Huh. Weird.

As for his next answer though. This one was TRICKY. And super deep. Merlin, Zander thought he was showing up to History of Magic today, not history of your mind and all the deepest secrets you hold dear to you. Actually no that would be a ridiculous name for a class. So history it is. Anyways.

He COULD talk about Sophie Brown, but that'd involve embarrassing himself in front of everyone and also Sophie Brown. So maybe not. Had she been absent though, a very strong possibility that she'd be brought up. His next thought went straight to Flammy. But speaking about a Professor that possibly hated him ever since tidal wives and stuff, that wasn't gonna happen. Not today at least. Then there was Professor Q who was pretty inspirational as a whole, but the guy was a downright jerk so no thank you.

Which left him with two. Well two plus Beautiful Bentley who for pride and dignity's sake, he would not mention outloud ever again. So back to the two. He couldn't just pick one inspirational person in his life. He could hardly even pick one thing to eat for breakfast! This is BLASPHEMY. So he was going to have to answers, okay?

"Well, I've got to say two names 'cause I can't just pick one person when I've been influenced by loads of them," was this allowed? Talking about two people? Because Zander was going to do it anyways. Quick someone award him with the 'Most likely to be sent to Azkaban' superlative because we've got a rebel sitting right here. YUP. Oooooh so much troublemaking. Much rebellious. Ahem. Moving on. Two people, that's where he's at.. Yeaaah. "Firstly Kevin Hirase 'cause he taught me loads about confidence and standing up for what is right... Well, for what you think is right," that boy had some questionable decisions in his past. Ahem. Clearly. "But also Lottie--Lotus Wisteria-- she graduated a few terms ago, but she always has the best advice. And whenever I'm freaking out about something or another, she's always the one I turn to for a voice of reason. I'd basically be a lost puppy without her," oh Zander, if only you knew that you are still very much a lost puppy. Sigh. Anyways.

That was a lot to write. And now we slump back and listen to everyone else because that is how the classroom thing goes. Yup. Ah, sixth year. What a routine.

Very interesting indeed. No surprise there that Gabe admired some brainy person. Hehe. Adi listened with interest to the remaining students then back to Professor Glendy. What an easy question the next one was! He had already written an entry in is Personal Journal thingy about this very one.

When it was his turn again, the sixth year raised his hand. This time he had no cookie clutched in it to drop crumbs anywhere. "My bestie Benny. He's inspirational because he's usually so level headed and calm...'' 'Normally' was used there because Adi was still remembering that little even very clearly where Benny had gotten all jealous of Henric. "He's a great friend, always there for me and his other friends. He's very hard working also with completing all his homework on time, studying for exams and what not.'' Quite unlike Adi who took a year to do anything involving books. ''If I ever need to talk about something, he's my go- to guy. Benny's just the best bestie a guy could ask for. '' Yep, yep.

That being said, Adi dropped his hand then went back to nomming on his cookies and keeping an eye on Henric.

Eden was jolted awake by Gabriel, whom she raised an eyebrow at in an annoyed way, but sat up nonetheless and yawned....she covered her mouth, of course, and tried to remain quiet. Loud yawns were supposedly rude...supposedly.

Inspirations.

She had no idea. Mph. But she raised her hand--

"My cousin's wife...she's my inspiration, because she's the Enviro head at the ministry and she had to work really hard to get where she is today and she's just the best and she's a genius at like...everything and I admire her ability to put up with men really well, because sometimes men, and my cousin, really suck."

Ahem.

Could Professor Glendower TELL Eden was suffering from some..."I am SO done with school" -itis?

The professor seemed to be looking at him strangely, as if she was expecting him to participate in the discussion but look disappointed when he did not. Henric sighed, it wasn't intentional. Maybe he should try and participate the next time she asked a question...

Someone inspirational? Definitely his adoptive parents who raised him up like their own son but he was a little reluctant to say this in front of the class. The professor would know soon about his life story after he handed in his history journal right? So it wouldn't be a secret no more. Besides he told Kace...he trusted the older Hufflepuff, he was the only one in the school he had told so far. Henric made an effort to raise up his hand when his turn came up,"Professor, my...dad...is an inspiration to me because he is a wonderful cook and a supportive father anybody could ask for. He is a hardworking man, always grateful with whatever we have, humble and a great listener to all. He is always out to help others with a heart of gold. He taught me many things about life which I'm grateful for. He is truly amazing. You can say that he is my hero,"his cheeks flushed a light pink when he said this about his dad.

Angel looked at the Professor as she spoke and asked her why she liked Merlin, she thought that she had said but maybe she had been mistaken. "Professor it's the way he was able to juggle being the kings special advisor and being a wizard without anyone guessing he was, that position was a very important position and in them days the muggles hated witches and wizards and so if he had been caught a lot of bad things would have happened to him but he went and got on with his duty even with the risks." Angel stopped there.

Angel took a few breaths whilst waiting for the next question, once she heard it she looked around the room, now she loved both her sisters and they both were amazing and inspired her and so did Benny, why was this question so hard but she wanted to be an explorer when she was older and her father was a tourist guide. "Professor my father inspires me, he's a tourist guide and when I'm older I want to be an explorer of plants and go all around the world exploring them." Angel smiled as she looked at the professor.

"Reemus Lupin," Sapphire thought to herself when Professor Glendower asked her first question. But she got too distracted by the yummy hot chocolate she was drinking to share her answer. She helped herself to another cup as she listened to the professor speak again.

This time, Phi raised her hand before taking a sip. "I'd choose my brother, professor," she said. "My parents are amazing of course. They inspire me so much, but I choose my brother Peridot - Peri - because he loves the oceans and the environment so much that he chose to study in both Wizard and Muggle universities. He wanted to gain perspective and knowledge from both sources, which I think requires a lot of energy and dedication and patience. I'm not a Ravenclaw like he was, but I'd like to find something I'm passionate about and work my best for it - just like he does. I think the Ministry is lucky to have him work there."

Do you aspire to be like him or do you just appreciate that everyone has the potential for greatness inside of them as he knew to be true?

Aspire to be like him? To be honest, he wasn't sure. Well, Dumbledore was a great wizard and a great headmaster while he... is Jackson and he just didn't have a passion to be a headmaster like him. "I uh.... I just admire him." The Korean guy responded to Glendower. Then he sipped his hot chocolate again, thankfully it's not that hot anymore. And now he tried to focus back on the lesson. An influential person? Hmmm... It's quite hard for him. "I had a piano tutor when I was young, her name is Lee Sora and I think she's one of the most influential person for me because she is very nice and humble though her piano skills is great. She was still a student when she tutored me and now she is very famous in Korea. I met her once last year and she still remembers me." Maybe not as cool as the others but.. Hey, his piano tutor was great.

SPOILER!!: Glendower

Her eyes next fell on Hady as she was next in the circle and Nessa waited for her to speak. And waited, as it seemed she wasn't going to offer anything at all. Nessa found this a bit unusual as they really could have named anyone at all throughout history, in fact she even said they could use their books. She would have an awfully hard time with the activity if she simply couldn't name anyone. Nessa frowned a bit before looking at the next student as he seemed to notice the awkward silence and spoke up.

Yeah she'd messed up. Hady knew she had the moment she didn't say anything. Professor Glendower's frown only served to further prove that point for her. What could she do though? Off of the top of her head she couldn't think of anyone and skimming through her textbook to select some random person didn't feel right to her. Therefore she quiet and waited for the next person to speak.

Sitting quietly while sipping her hot chocolate slowly Hady listened to everyone's answers. Some were quite good ones with decent reasons as well. Maybe she should've said something. Anything. Oh well, it was to late for that now.

SPOILER!!: Professor Glendower

"One more time around the circle before we move on today," she said, her eyes moving around to each of them. "This time, I'd like you to think of a person in your life who is very inspirational to you. Perhaps someone you look up to, and tell us why. I hope you are all having a good time exploring your personal history for our term project and this relates a little back to that. This person might not be as famous as someone you mentioned earlier, but they are still every bit as important to your personal history, and in some cases maybe even more so.

It was only moments before the next question was asked. This she had an answer for. And so it seemed the last few mates before her had the some thought she did. Well alright then. Nothing wrong with that really. When her turn came around once more she gave her answer, "It would have to be my father Professor. He's always honest with me even when he knows I won't like what he has to say. Everything I've learned up until I came here I learned from him. Most important though is no matter what life tosses his way he can always make things work and pushes through...I respect him for that. Plus he keeps his promises too which never hurts either." Mhmm her father was great. Both of them. Clearly she wasn't exact on which 'father' she was speaking of but no one needed to know and surely no one would ask because most didn't know he wasn't her real dad anyhow. So uh yeah... the next person could answer now.

....

She didn't seem thrilled with his response. OH WELL. He never said anything about Voldemort being 'admirable' in the traditional sense. He was more going for powerful and influential. The dude had a HUGE sphere of influence after all.

He only half listened as his peers gave their responses, and he noted that Hady remained silent on the matter.

Hhhmmm.

The second question was one that he answered before, he was sure it had been for this class, though he supposed it might have been for another. Either way, he had written about it for his project already, and there was no need to ponder such a thing anyway.

When his turn came he supplied his response. Like many others, his was family too.

"The biggest influence on me is my mum... my adopted mum that is. She accepted me for who I was and taught me to be myself, she defended and protected me and I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for her."

He didn't need to say anything more, it was a personal thing, something he didn't think everyone needed to know.

See, the problem was that as soon as Glendower told them to think about someone inspirational to them, Toby immediately thought of TWO people. And then another. And then a few more. And then LOADS more, until he realised that he couldn't possibly think of just ONE person to say without playing favourites, when really EVERYONE inspired him.

Even if he just stuck to the first few people that sprung to mind, there was no way he could really pick ONE. And if he said both or all three that just left out everyone else and that wasn't FAIR. Toby sat there thinking hard about how to answer as person after person gave their own input, trying to work out what he was gonna say, and then...

And THEN, SOPHIE BROWN happened.

As soon as Toby realised what she'd said, he sort of froze, staring straight at the textbook in his lap. Then just... caaaaasually started sinking down lower and lower in his beanbag chair. It wasn't that what she was saying wasn't true - honestly, a lot of it was, because he did see the good in people and tried his best never to talk bad about anyone but. It felt weird to hear it out loud, and he so wanted to talk over her and insist it wasn't true but that would be RUDE and they WERE in a classroom and he wasn't about to interrupt a classmate's answer. But... Merlin. No, nobody should want to be like him. Noooooooooo. Self esteem says nope.

Still... he appreciated the kind words from Soph, even though he wanted to outright deny them, and were it not for the fact that his turn was suddenly NEXT and Toby was all kinds of flustered about it, he might have flashed her a little smile. And a look that told her he was gonna get her back for that. Thank MERLIN he wasn't usually the type to blush.

Anyway, his go. Uhhh. UHHHH. UHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

"My, uh... my p-parents," Toby blurted out, glancing up at Glendower, 'cause he knew that she knew who they were and everything, Piers and Javy. "My dads, I mean. They, uh, they've done a lot for me, adopted me and everything. And, I dunno, I guess, they're sorta my... sortamywholeworldandstuff. My grandma too. I don't think I can really... well... put into, uh, well... words. Yeah." There was a pause, and then... "And also... ahh... actually, well... I think.... Well. Everyone, really. To be honest, y'know?" Flustered. Very flustered. And blaming YOU, SOPHIE BROWN. Even though it probably would have happened anyway, on account of him being so private and personal and all the things. "Everyone inspires me, really actually. Everyone I know or've met or whatever, there's... there's always, uh, something, y'know? Something inspiring. About, um... anyone. Everyone." Ahem. Yeah.

Oh, and Soph was getting side-eyed right now. Oh yes. She better be on her guard because there was a tickling charm with her name all over it.

Just as she was about to gush about her dad being an inspiration to her, Angel beat her to it. Erm. What? Since when? Yeah, she knew about the plant thing, but the whole dad thing was news to her. Well then. AJ couldn't exactly say the same thing. Well, she technically could but that would be lame. In fact she had even wrote about him in her journal. That's where it counted.

Who else? Who else?

There were tons of great people, but who really got to her? Who made her want to be a better person? Her dad. No. She couldn't use that. Hmm... Her mom was pretty cool too, but she felt like they were so different. Oh. She had it. "My grandpa, professor. He is who he is regardless of what anybody else thinks. He's never changed just to appease someone else." You gotta admire someone like that.

Just as she expected, the class named a lot of inspirational people in their lives. Many of them of course were family members or teachers as she figured they might be, though she didn't really expect her own name to be called out, even if she wasn't being specifically picked. Nessa did love Zahra's creativity in this class and she would certainly miss it.

"Those are all wonderfully inspiring people to have to look up to and I think it's great that they are a part of your lives. But do they know how inspirational or influential they are to you?" Many times people did not know they made as much of an impact on other people as they did. And sometimes it was just nice to know.

"Today, I'd like you to create a gesture for someone who is an inspiration to you. I have all the supplies to create cards for those special people, and I'd like you to write inside about what it is about them or what they have done that has either inspired you or influenced you. This can be purely symbolic in that you don't actually send it." Of course if it was someone famous from history, it would have to be that way if that person was no longer among the living. "Or you can actually give it to the person it was intended for, because everyone likes a little appreciation." At least she did.

Nessa got up from her beanbag chair and stretched a bit before making her way over to the snack table. "Help yourself to another snack and grab some supplies to get started." All of her craft supplies were conveniently located in boxes behind the snack table. See, nice and easy class to end their eventful term. She helped herself to a couple peanut butter cookies then allowed the class to get a few things from her supplies before she'd get any herself. She had a card to make as well.

OOC - I'm closing class Saturday morning EST, so you have about 36 hours to get at least three posts in - getting supplies, creating the card with details, and writing a note inside - thanks!

Did Jasmine know how inspirational and inflluential she was to Janelle? Janelle thought about that for a moment. She came to the conclusion that the answer was........probably not. Well this would be a good way to let her sister know how she felt, wouldn't it? Janelle was all in for the card making. Beside the fact that it was for her sister, she liked doing craftsy things. So this was a win-win project.

Starting to let the creative juices flow, Janelle went up to the boxes of supplies and began to look through them. She needed to come up with and idea.......a good one. Knowing her sister, she would appreciate anything that Janelle gave her. She wanted to make her card really nice though so she had to come up with something super special.

Janelle grabbed some markers and stickers and looked for just the right parchment to use. Digging deeper in the boxes, she found some other cool doodads to add to her card. When she figured that she had enough supplies, Janelle began to think about what she wanted her card to look like. She'd need just the right words too, to express how she felt about her sister. Heading back to her seat, she took a moment to let the ideas brew. Then, she would get to work.