Charms: A Very Good Place to Start

[etainmctiernan]

Etain smiled as she looked out over the tidy rows of desks in the Charms classroom. It was the same old thrill but it never got old. Teaching again and at her alma mater! Etain smiled. The older witch had dressed to impress this morning in a set of velvet dress robes in the same amethyst as her eyes. She had her Professor’s robe on over it, all the trim and braid that marked her as a Head of House and the Deputy Headmistress glinting in the lantern light against the black velvet. Etain had pulled her hair up into an elaborately braided bun thanks to the help of her personal house elf Kydwynn. The old house elf had been with her for years and Etain treated her well. Her own house elves were well treated unlike in some other Pureblood houses.

Cathbar and Vedryn, more of her assistants, had helped her by arranging the classroom and lighting all the lanterns. She’d used Unbreakable Charms and Hover Charms on all of them so that every desk was well lit for taking notes. The desks had been cleaned with simple Scouring charms so that they gleamed in the lamplight. Etain hummed a bit and was joined by her firebird Ivanova’s trilling from where the bird sat on the back of her chair. Etain laughed and spun in place, dancing a bit to the firebird’s song. “It’s going to be a lovely class, m’dear,” she said to her feathered friend. “I cannot wait to see the students.”

Etain busied herself with another Charm, making the chalk dance down the length of the blackboard, writing up the lesson for the day. “Practical Charms, or Yes, It’s Boring, But You’ll Likely Use This Someday.” Etain smiled. Her children had come up with that title, and it still rang true. This class would be a mix of upper and lower level students. Her ebony and rosewood wand rose and fell with the strokes of the chalk on the slate making sure the handwriting was neat. When that task was finished, Etain sat in the green upholstered chair at her desk and checked her books. All was in order. Etain grinned, tapping her foot impatiently. Just then, she heard the sound of footsteps out in the hall. Ah, at last! Etain stood and brushed a speck from her robes, looking forward to meeting her students.

[Kerridon Paradox]

Once again Kerridon was coming straight from the library for class, having had a free the previous lesson and having had some homework set by the lesson before. He wasn’t the type to leave homework till the last minute. He would do it as soon as he received it; a habit never broken from when he had been taught by his family. Even had he not had those punishments for not having the extra work done early, Kerridon would still probably be unlikely to leave it more than a day or two. As it was, he still wasn’t very happy with himself for having half an essay left to finish.

For another ‘once again’, he was apparently early to the class; so early that no one else had arrived yet. Charms was another subject where he found it unchallenging, but knew how useful the subject was so did still go to the lessons. [blue]”Good morning ((/afternoon)) professor,”[/blue] he greeted the new Head of Slytherin before heading as normal to the back of the classroom. He always tended to sit there now because he could watch the rest of the class; it wasn’t as though he had any trouble hearing or understanding what the professors were saying anyway. It also had the advantage that other people couldn’t watch him. He took in the title on the board and smirked a little to himself, but probably not enough that the professor would be able to see it from where she was. He had not really come across her before so didn't know what to make of her yet. This would be a good judge.

[Katherine Knightswood]

Katherine was on her way to Charms, having survived a morning full of classes. Arithmancy, Transfiguration and Care of Magical Creatures were all done. Katherine had grabbed some luncheon and was finishing up an apple on the way to class. She’d run upstairs and dumped her morning books in her dorm after lunch, swapping out her satchels. She kept one with her morning classes’ paraphernalia and another with her books and notes for the afternoon. It made the load a little lighter, even if it meant more work setting them up each night. Once again she thanked her cousin Abigail for the idea. Clever, that one!

Katherine crossed the threshold of the Charms classroom and smiled. Lantern light gleamed off every available surface, warm and inviting. The desks were lined up in the traditional pattern and their dark wood shone. Katherine looked up at the lanterns hovering overhead and smiled. Well, of course she Charmed them, she’s the Charms expert! Katherine chuckled at her thought, relaxing in the light and warmth. The room felt good, on more levels than one for Katherine. The young Ravenclaw nodded to her Housemate in the back and picked a seat up front, as always. Apparently, Kerridon liked to be able to see everything but Katherine wanted to see the board and the teacher more. Katherine noted the words on the board and giggled. The Professor obviously had a sense of humor.

Katherine got out her books, quills and ink and parchment. She had finished putting her things in order when a noise startled her. Merlin and Morgan, what was that?! The young woman looked up from her papers and her jaw dropped in astonishment. How pretty! A little jewel-colored bird the size of a dove was sitting on the back of the Professor’s chair. Oh, my! Was that bird what she thought it was? “Good morning, Professor McTiernan,” Katherine said politely. “Ma’am, if I may ask, is that really a Firebird? I’ve only seen one once before, at a diplomatic function my Family attended a few years ago.”

[Caitlin Collins]

Caitlin rolled suddenly off the armchair in the Hufflepuff common room, blinking rapidly to rid her eyes of the vision of Alessandro burning in the flames. It didn’t help much; although he was no longer in her vision, now the rest of the common room was burning. Shaking a little, she climbed back onto the armchair and curled her legs up, squeezing her eyes shut and resting her head on top of her knees so she wouldn’t have to see it any more. What was the matter with her? Sure, she’d been having nightmares for months now, but seeing things while she was awake?

In trepidation she inched her eyes open a few minutes later, relieved to see that the fire was no longer there. What she saw instead – a clock on the opposite wall – made her jump off the chair again, grab the bag dropped beside it earlier in the day before she’d fallen asleep and race out of the common room.

Luckily it seemed she had woken up at just the right moment, because the other students who’d had lessons were just beginning to come out of their classes and onto wherever else they had to go. She slowed a little, running one hand through her hair as she made her way onto Charms. Apparently the teacher was the new Head of Slytherin as well... she wondered if that meant she would be similar to Zee and Keaira. That thought made her shake her head at herself – she’d always hated judging people before she met them, and apparently even that ideal was getting corrupted recently. Entering the classroom she saw that only two people were there so far - Kerridon at the very back, and Katherine at the very font. Rather than join either of them, Caity sat at the far end of a row in the middle of the room, still trying not to think about that dream.

[Bryan Kelley]

Entering the classroom, Bryan felt tired. He wasn't sure why but he was. He had slept well enough the night before, despite everything that was now going on in the school and hence in his life. Raising a hand to his face, he covered a small yawn as he walked over to his normal seat. He seated himself down, paying little attention to the students already present in the room. Bryan wasn't someone who normally sought out companionship, but he did welcome it when people decided to interact with him. He was perfectly fine being on his own however.

Once seated, Bryan glanced briefly at the board, reading the writing that the Professor had chosen to place up on the board. His eyes trailed back down and away as he pulled out the material he would need for the on coming lesson. Once he was set, he pulled his sketch book out and just started to sketch whatever happened to be in front of him at the moment. He didn't have much of any original idea on things to draw so he decided to go with a still life, well rather, it wasn't so still since there was a fellow student seated a little in front of him, but the concept was similar enough.

He sketched quietly as he waited for the Professor to begin the lesson, trying to ignore his own thoughts on what had been happening in the last few months.

[Tommy Bryce]

Charms was one of Tommy’s favourite subjects, mostly because of just how useful it could be sometimes. It was the basics of magic; one of the few things that had continued the same for centuries. Astronomy had developed a lot as new telescopes and methods of seeing further were developed, but once a basic spell was created that worked well then there was little need to change it. Not to mention how all of these charms would be very useful for him when he returned home in the summer. He was aware that technically he wasn’t supposed to do magic out of school, but it would help a lot with getting things done, and they wouldn’t know it wasn’t his father doing the spells.

Heading to the classroom via a quieter but slightly longer route than what most people might take – Tommy still wasn’t a big fan of being around lots of people at once – he found he wasn’t the first person to get there. Some older students, and a Ravenclaw from his own year he recognised as Katherine. Deciding he wanted to be at the front anyway, so he wouldn’t have to worry about seeing over taller heads, he ventured closer towards her and placed himself in one of the seats just along from her. Sending a small smile her way, it widened when he saw the title on the board, knowing how appropriate it was to what he had been thinking just a short while ago.

[D'rorah Philosophy]

D'rorah had been loathe to put aside her search for Dylan for anything of late. But, having heard that the new Deputy Headmistress had taken over teaching Charms, and knowing that the woman would likely be closely watching all of the students at Caira's behest, she had been loathe to do anything which would draw too much attention to her. And certainly, for D'rorah Philosophy, missing class would draw attention. And so, replete with deep dark circles under her eyes from sleepless nights and her robes fitting rather loosely from her refusal to take time out for meals int he great hall, she made her way into the classroom, her satchel at her side and filled with her research tomes.

Quietly, she made her way to the front row of the classroom and took a seat, not acknowledging anyone else present. Her mind was aware of everyone who was there, but she found herself with no desire to address any of them. Of course, not having been a social person even under the best of circumstances, most would pay no notice to such a thing. Pushing a wisp of recently greyed hair that had worked itself loose from her tight coif, she resisted the urge to open her notebook and continue her research. One never knew who would be watching these days or what languages they might speak.

Instead, she focused her attention on a textbook, feeling for all the world as though the material was far too simple and somewhat of a waste of time that might be better spent searching for the missing piece of her soul.

[Niobe Blakes]

Niobe's line of thinking was totally shot.

There were various subjects that she was thinking of all at once, to a point where her mind was all jumbled up and she was walking, moving, but her mind was completely somewhere else. It didn't happen often, the young Ravenclaw was usually able to sort out ideas and thought processes into something a bit more orderly. Today, however, a mixture of subjects preoccupied her mind, jumbling up together into a large mush.

It probably had something to do with the fact that she had encountered problems sleeping last night. She had awakened every hour on the hour, sweating and frightened, but with her mind blank on what that something was. Niobe wasn't a girl who actually had dreams often, so the fact that she was having nightmares but could not remember them had been a bit disturbing.

The lack of sleep, however, left her mind wanting to run as it usually did during the day, but without sufficient enough time to rest to do so efficiently. Basically, Niobe was running on empty.

Charms class was her favorite class, as Charms was her favorite subject. She came from a family that specialized in such items, specifically protection charms, such as the pendant she wore. Niobe briefly debated trying to acquire something to jump start her brain, but she tried not to partake of caffeine or anything similar. She wondered if perhaps she could enchant her quill to take the notes down properly in case she fell asleep.

Ah yes, what a great way to make a good impression.

Mentally groaning, she entered the classroom. If anyone took a good look at her, they'd notice the fact that she was, indeed tired. Eyes drooping, posture a bit slack, uniform not as neat and straight as could be. Finding her seat, she began to take out the items she would need for the class and tried to mentally charge herself up for the class.

She would try to find ways to analyze her dreams later. Perhaps a notebook and pen at her bedside was in order.