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No greeting? Tsk. So hurtful, or whatever. Nem met Flamsteed's eye and noted the look they saw there. Unsurprising, that she was one of the disappointed ones. They kept seeing it - disappointment, hurt, betrayal, that kind of thing - and it was anyone's guess why everyone was taking this all so personally. It was sort of interesting to see who wasn't shying away, however, like Jenovick, and Cambridge, little Ez's little friend, who sat right next to them. Nem glanced her way, over to the flowers in question, then back again, and smiled. "Yeah. They're allowed." Flamsteed confirmation too, how nice. So. Whatever. Flowers. Nem, who had been planning to sit out the question and answer portion of the lesson, did actually have something to provide. "On the topic of chrysanthemums," they added, still with their head propped in one hand. "There are countries in Europe where some types are symbolic of death. Like in France." The Big Man had a French name, didn't he? A flower related one at that. All roads lead to Rosier. "So they're used for funerals, and laying on graves." Funny how these things worked out. |
Mamie was not particularly interested in flowers, but at least she wasn't as allergic as Noah clearly was. She peered at the flowers their professor had grown. They all looked vaguely familiar, but one looked like something her family had in their garden. The one Emmerson had pointed out, that would look nice in dark hair. Mamie had brown hair, maybe she could get some flowers to braid in after class. Probably not. She raised her hand. "Professor, is that yellow one related to garlic chives? It's kind of the same shape, but a different color." Unless she was confusing it with something else. Which was entirely possible. "You can eat garlic chive flowers. They taste like garlic." |
Rubbing her tired eyes, Ivy tried to think of something to say about the flowers. Fortunately, some of the others were faster than her, naming most of them or at least guessing at it. It made it easier for her to focus on whatever came to mind about them based on the names. Finally, her hand was raised. "A couple of these flowers, the iris and the hyacinth, were among the ones being gathered by Persephone before she was abducted by Hades in Greek mythology. It happened during the spring time, so...they grow around that time?" Yeah, that was...the best she had. Thank Merlin for Cooper and his myth story times. |
Louise's tired eyes looked over the flowers before resting on her favorite kind: Chrysanthemums. She loved Chrysanthemums. Her mum planted them, along with many others, in the garden at home. It was that time of year again, too. She wondered if her mum was tending to her garden like she normally did. Or if she was too busy worrying about her daughter, who she hadn't heard from in months. Louise was certainly worried about her. Her vision blurred for a moment and Louise blinked back a couple tears, pulling herself out of those thoughts. She sniffed and raised her hands. "Chrysanthemums, ma'am," she said, gesturing to the purple ones. "They're perennials, meaning they bloom every year for quite a few years. My mum has some in her garden too," she said, looking over at Morgan, who had also mentioned his mum. |
It still felt so so so so SO weird to be called Mr Flamsteed by Auntie June, but it was kind of nice feeling weirded out by something like that as opposed to...other things. Head down, for the most part, Atlas didn't really feel much like participating today and he was mostly keen on being outdoors and being in the presence of family. Flowers were an okay bonus, he supposed, too. Settled into his seat, and casting a fleeting glance at the Ravenclaw he was seated beside while offering her a small smile, the Gryffindor's attention shifted at the professor's request. As luck would have it, it COULD identify several of them so his hand went up and he spoke once called upon. "That's a cornflower," he pointed to the vibrant blueish purpleish looking one. "You can tell from the intense blue color and how the petals are in that...ray floret design on top of a disc floret coming out of the flowerhead." Was that how that phrasing went? He knew he had heard those terms before but it had always been a little wishy washy at retaining. All he REALLY knew was that the shape tended to remind him of an anemone. "And you can put it in tea...as a herbal remedy for fever and some other things." |
SPOILER!!: answers "Lovely" June smiled, genuinely this time - because as always it made really happy how smart these kids were. "You got them all. Except Miss Cambridge's yellow flower" she said, picking up the chalk and moving to the board, "they are called Fennel" she added and wrote it on the board herself. "I have been growing these for some time now. They are all a delight to have in anyone's garden. They also have one thing in common. Can you tell me what that is?" June asked, before bending down to pick up her working pair of gloves and putting them on. Quote:
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Oooh, they were naming flowers! Lia knew what each one was but so did her peers. Not wanting to repeat the same information they had all already given, she kept quiet for the moment until the next question was asked. The first year sat up a bit straighter on her stool. Flowers could have many different things in common. It really depended on what exactly Flamsteed wanted to know. Being at Hogwarts though Lia was hopeful that her answer was what the professor was looking for.. and even if it wasn't, well than oh well. "They all have magical properties," she answered once her hand was in the air and she had been called upon. Short, sweet and straight to the point. Was she supposed to give examples too? Cause' she most definitely could. |
Nem smiled. They could see, they were frankly certain that Flamsteed would not have responded quite like that if certain revelations not recently come to light. Much like her colleagues, and her students, she was letting her feelings get in the way of business. Nem couldn't exactly say they were disappointed, not if they'd never really expected anything else from these people to begin with. "I think your personal opinion just insulted the customs of several countries." In one breath, too. Who knew she had it in her. "Hope no one here was too offended by that." For the record, Nem was not the easily offended sort, and had merely passed along a fact, so they were good. Carry on. Having made their contribution for the day, Nem reverted back to their original approach to the lesson and sat in silence for the foreseeable. Yeah, yeah. You're welcome. |
Ah, fennel. That's what that yellow one was. She knew only a little of fennel, but she did know that it was often used in food and teas and things of the sort. Louise observed the flowers as Professor Flamsteed moved onto the next question. And then there was Nem. Louise let out an audible sigh when they talked back to the professor. She was annoyed, at this point. Annoyed by Nem's blatant betrayal to the rest of the school, annoyed by their quick tongue and their quick disregard for basically anyone else. Flowers. Think about flowers. Louise raised her hand. "Are they all perennials, ma'am? I think most of them are, but I'm not so sure about the Hawthorn." But she knew that almost all the others were. |
Those flowers all had something in common? What would it be...other than the obvious fact that they all had colorful petals? Dahlia had a good point—that they all had semi-magical properties and could be used in potions and what not. But Avalon couldn't really think of anything else. So she didn't raise her hand to answer this one, only scowling at Nem's rude response to Professor Flamsteed. She didn't know that it was possible to hate someone more than she hated Nem. Especially lately. Though she itched to grab her wand and send a langlock jinx their way (or something much worse), she knew that would only spell disaster for herself. So she settled for a retort instead. "My family is from France, and it didn't offend me," she said pointedly, sending the Slytherin a glare. Couldn't get in trouble by Nem's beloved Neo-Alliance for that, could she? She was simply making a comment. |
"Because of the space they are sharing right now - and the environment, they are a family, they have become one" Kinsay knew they weren't just talking about flowers anymore. It was bigger than that; so she nodded quietly, holding onto the words like they were all she had left. Even as the next question was posed, Kinsay couldn't quite take her mind off of these words spoken by her professor. She was trying though. She really was. Her eyes widened when Nemesis spoke, then again when Avalon pointedly replied. Worried, Kins quickly looked to Emmerson, to see what she thought. These things were important Sometimes she put her hand up and hoped an answer would come to her by the time she was called. It was a risky game and she didn't like it very much. But the alternative felt like an even bigger risk and... and she couldn't really have that either. "They're... all... um... they're nice to look at," she began, immediately feeling silly. "We have a window in our room, but its too tall and you can't see things - just black." Did Kinsay know where she was going with this? Not entirely. "Maybe if we could see the flowers... it wouldn't feel so sad." She didn't feel any less silly after .... "clarifying" though. |
Mamie was unsurprised that her answer was wrong. And equally unsurprised by Nemesis's sass to Professor Flamsteed. Obviously the Slytherin didn't respect professors anymore, that much was clear. She did not know a lot about flowers. They had colors? But then she stared at the list on the chalkboard. Wait. Wait, wait, wait. Things started clicking into her place in her brain. These flowers came from her family's kitchen, not their garden. Not flower related, she had thought, but apparently flower related. Who knew? She raised her hand eagerly. "Tea! You can make tea from them!" she said. |
"They smell sweet to me, too." She offered the professor the ghost of a smile and then looked down. It felt wrong to be looking at and smelling beautiful flowers when Kale was...well, he was gone. Just gone. It hurt her heart that he wasn't here for this. Nem's reply to the Professor, and then Avalon's response to them, made Cece uneasy and she waited to see if the older student's reply would inspire Nem to take any actions against her. They'd proven to everyone what side they'd taken and the fact that they had power to act against professors and students now worried the Gryffindor. Angered her too, though she did her best to keep that at bay. She'd made promises about keeping herself safe, after all. "It's their meaning, Professor. They can all be used to represent the same thing. ...Hope." |
Oh. She had actually been right. Good to know. Claudine made her notes, putting in a brief description of the flowers along with their names. Later on tonight, she’d do sketches of the flowers from memory. The sketches may come in handy for exam studies. In the meanwhile, she just glared at Nem. She thought they were so stuck up, hiding behind the so-called protection of the Alliance. Ugh. Claudine hated them so much right now. But she was now worried for Avalon. Oh no. I hope nothing bad happens to her,’’ she thought, biting her lip nervously. As for the next question… “Um. They can just be planted for beauty. To make some particular place look even better.’’ Her eyes darted to Avalon as though checking to ensure her friend hadn’t gone poof. |
Oh good the pretty flowers were allowed and she wasn't currently sitting in on an illegal class that was about to be crashed and Merlin knew what else. Without a doubt, she would throw Professor Flamsteed under the bus. Nothing personal, just...she was 12....and wasn't in charge of her own education. The little girl deflated some when her answer was all but dismissed, sure it'd made at least some sense--and it had to be the best by default if no one else had mentioned it. Losing when there were no other competitors, it was becoming the story of her life her at Hogwarts this term. Emm shrank a little in her seat, allowing the others around her to give their obviously better answers. She wasn't sure she'd attempt the second, considering she didn't....really know the answer and didn't even know what these flowers were called until maybe...2 minutes ago. But participation was likely not optional. "They...they're all used in potions to cure werewolf babies of werewolf baby disease." Never let it be said she never tried. |
No one tell her, but Atlas was pleased with the little bit of validation. Not that he ever NEEDED validation or anything. Nope. Totally and perfectly just fine and confident right over here on his own...said no one ever of Atlas Flamsteed but he was going to stick to that reality right now as the lesson moved along. Though...he really wasn't sure about...how...well...he was just going to hold his breath at any and all interactions with Nemesis Upstead AND keep his thoughts to himself. Living in fear was hard and the Gryffindor did not know what he would do if Auntie June were also taken away from him. So...could she just...not...please? And also could his chest and head stop being so confusing when it came to the older Slytherin...please? Half paying attention to what all was going on around him and the answers being provided, so he had no idea if what he was offering up had been said already or not. "...they can all be used in tea." Auntie June liked tea. Loved tea. Had mentioned some of the others were edible so therefore...all tea. They were going to make tea today. |
Flowers? Apollo appreciated Professor Flamsteed's efforts to maybe cheer them up with a lesson about flowers, but with the way this year was going Apollo wasn't sure much could be done in cheering them up unless it meant all the extra adults in the castle could maybe LEAVE them to their education?!? And all the older gryffindor kids come back to the common room. Please? What did the flowers have in common? Yes, what Dahlia said about the magic thing. Was Flamsteed trying to send some sort of message here. But technically muggleborn kids were capable of magic too. That's what he'd been trying to comfort Bernedette with in Muggle Studies class. He wasn't sure that knowledge had sunk in though. He also wasn't sure it was something that the neo-alliance agreed with. "They need water to survive and thrive." Was Apollo's answer however. Because it was something that wasn't stated and though it was an obvious answer and was one that was true of ALL plants, not just limited to the flowers present, it was still true of those six flowers. |
Violet had been sitting, listening to the other students' answers and Professor Flamsteed's responses. And there was Nemesis Upstead mouthing off again--they were growing more arrogant by the day now. Violet could not believe she'd ever thought them interesting and mysterious. Why, Nem was just a bully, with the confidence of having a big, bad gang backing them up, too blind to see that they were getting in over their head. Fennel, that was it! Violet knew she'd seen those little yellow flowers before--it was in her uncle's garden out back of the kitchen. How stupid of her not to remember it. And cornflower--what a funny, ordinary name for such an exotic looking flower! So now they had all six identified--what did they have in common? Violet thought and thought, and then a smile slowly came to her face as she raised her hand. "Hope," she said, "all those flowers stand for hope in flower-lore." That was something they could all use more of this year. Well, most of them, anyway. |
SPOILER!!: replies SPOILER!!: the correct ones June smiled. And it wasn't the smile she had been forcing all term long, it wasn't her usual smile - it was a smile that came straight from the heart. "Indeed, Miss Summers. Hope. It's what connects them all" she finally announced, giving Miss Blackthorne an appreciative nod as well - before turning back to the class, and addressing them all, "These flowers - all of them, have different meanings - but one meaning that represents them all is - hope" "And this reflects in the energy in the area they are planted in as well" A reason why she had been planting them for some time now, and though she couldn't exactly express it in words, the sentiment was very much visible on her face. Hopefully - they understood what she meant too. Because she couldn't say more. She just couldn't. "They are also known for their benefits when it comes to medicinal uses, as well as the positive energy they radiate when you are working with them - which is why today you will be getting your hands dirty and will be helping me collect their leaves, and roots" Bending down, she chose Iris for herself. "Pick a plant you like, and de-plant it from the ground, and collect as much as possible from them, " she explained, as she dug through and carefully pulled one out and moved it to a work station inside "Follow me" Once inside, she continued, "You have to be very careful with the roots, you may collect the dried parts of it - and leave the rest so we can replant it again" she said, as she demonstrated picking out the leaves before using her wand to snip off the dried roots. "Alright, lets start" OOC: Mini Activity is up, you guys. June will be moving around for any questions and struggles. Will be moving the class along 24/36 hours! |
This time around, Claudine wasn’t right in terms of her answer. That was okay. And was the meaning of the flowers being used in an attempt to lift their spirits? Well, except Upstead. This fifth year could really appreciate Flamsteed’s thoughtfulness if this was the case. Merlin knew they could all use said hope. But she was careful of how much hope to hold onto because… what if Rosier and his men never were defeated? Collecting roots and leaves sounded like a great activity. Claudine didn’t mind getting dirty in the soil and whatnot. She got to her feet to move carefully pry a hawthorne plant up and then to follow Flamsteed. Once at a workstation, the Snakette began plucking out the leaves. They were set to one side of the workstation. She worked in silence, almost robotically to get the task done. |
Okay, so her answer had been correct but it also hadn't been. No worries there. It wasn't a huge deal that her reply hadn't been what Flamsteed was looking for. These things happen from time to time and it was how she learned. So all the flowers sitting before them represented, Hope. Hope was something each and every one of them needed right now. The more the better. Lia was all for this lesson right now, so thank you Professor Flamsteed. Getting dirty was not a problem. She was known to wear dirty like it was the newest, hottest fashion trend. When told to get started, the Ravenclaw got to her feet and went directly over to where the Chrysanthemum were. Selecting one that was a lovely shade of pink. Carefully digging a circle in the dirt around her chosen plant, she then lifted it gently from it's home, roots and all. With the flower cradling in the palms of her cupped hands, she made her way into the greenhouse and an empty workstation. Setting the flower down, Dahlia got to work slowly removing each leaf in the most delicate manner possible. Once she had finished with that she went about carefully getting the dried up bits of roots off. |
At the mention of what the flowers symbolised, Fiona had to use all of her willpower in order to not make a disparaging remark or gesture such as a roll of her eyes. The cynic in her was not feeling any hope. The activity didn't sound too bad, thankfully. Fiona made her way over to where the irises were and chose the first one she saw, before deplanting it and carefully carrying the flower to a workstation. With the aid of her wand and a softly spoken Severing Charm, Fiona began the delicate process of removing the leaves from the iris. After finding the dried aspects of the iris' root system, the Snakette began removing them using the same charm she had used on the leaves. |
Incredibly wrong. Yikes. There really was no winning for the Gryffindor today. Luckily, this reply didn't sting nearly as much as the first...mostly because she'd known going in that it was wrong. Emm was well aware her answer was dead in the water and had only been trying to make sure no one said she wasn't participating. This was fine. Everything was fine. Emmerson got her little digging trowel and moved over to the patch of flowers. She'd pick the ones she'd gotten into a ramble about. The...fennel ones? Was that what Professor Flamsteed called them? Sure, they weren't her colour but she now felt she had a bond. While she worked, she was careful about the roots, mostly because she remembered the last time she was hacking away at plants to the dismay of the woman. |
Yeah, she didn't think she was quite right. But it was at least a good guess. Though she did find it odd that flowers could represent something as broad and intangible as hope. She didn't understand how that worked. How did a flower represent hope? It was just a flower. Who even decided that it DID represent hope? Probably the same guys who declared national donut day a holiday. Whatever. Eager to get her hands dirty, Louise followed the professor and mimicked her steps - but with a bunch of chrysanthemums, of course. She pulled the plant carefully from the ground, taking the time to make sure none of the roots were snagging or breaking, and then carried it to a work station. She didn't use magic. Even though she was stuck in The Room where she couldn't do magic all day, she preferred to work in the greenhouses with as little magic as possible. The feeling of the earth in her hands and under her fingernails really just... calmed her. It made her feel like she wasn't living in a constant nightmare. "Are we just pruning for now, ma'am?" Louise asked as she carefully plucked some dry leaves. |
Who knew the spokesperson for all of France - plus several other countries - was sitting right there in their midst. Good on Sinclair for not being another easily offended one, at least... though one look at the glare on the girl's face proved that that assessment was an inaccurate one. Nem let out a little laugh and looked back at Flamsteed, eyes glinting. "Oh, I'm not worried." Good one, though. ... Merlin alive, hope. Just when these professors could not have possibly seemed more pathetic, now they were calling in the flowers to help them. Was it not obvious by now that hope was pointless. Why hope for something when you had the option to do whatever it took to reach out and take it. Why rely on anyone, or anything, outside of yourself. Whatever. Nem wasn't going there with these people. They unfolded their legs and got up off the stool, followed Cambridge to the flower patch, and chose a chrysanthemum. Digging it out so it fit, roots and dirt, in the palm of one hand, they carried it inside. Clearly uninterested, more so than before now that the lesson was all about the actual caring for plants, Nem idly snipped away dried roots and the like with a non-verbal Flipnsnipwitit charm. |
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