Come Little Children | Dark Arts Lesson 1

He listened to the class and looked at the symbol on the grimoires he was given which he said " Thanks " when he was handed it. It was like a line with a little triangle of a flag at half mass.

He smiled as he noticed that Elias had put his supplies to the side and stopped making a stick fort when he glanced to the side. As he was sure someone was going to find a way to really injure themselves and he didn't want it to be his housemate - or himself. Sad for Gryffindor that Tulip lost the points. Though with how bad off the school was were the points being kept track of even?

He forced himself to pay attention to the lesson again as he looked between the grimoire he was given, his supplies, and the pocket watch that was in his hand. A pocket watch that quickly became being fiddled with by both his hands as the grimoire found itself in the pile with the supplies.

The mention of seasons caught his attention as they were an old increment of time.

With time being far more interesting to him than dark rituals especially ones that summoned things towards them. He could just imagine the trouble his classmates would summon. His goal would be to make an alter that kept all the things they summoned away from him. As he had little desire to deal with it - he was already stuck dealing with Hogwarts in the aftermath of there former headmaster.

Curiously he asked " Doesn't Thurisaz also represent defense so while it would be appropriate for keeping something at bay wouldn't another rune such as Berkana for the grimoire be better for those who want to summon something towards them. "

The rune of Berkana also fit into the theme of seduction rituals potentially due to it's association with fertility. However, he wasn't going to add that to a conversation that seemed to be going towards seduction rituals. Hopefully, with full access to the library his classmates hadn't found the recipe for a love potion or they'd all be doomed.

Accepting the book Rosie handed her, Maevie looked up and grinned a little. She liked the older girl quite a lot, she almost reminded her of her mum a bit. Obviously she was way too young and her mum looked completely different. But she too, always had a smile for her and the ability to make her feel safe.

Unlike Corbin who was all serious and strange about her question. Maevie's brows bunched a tiny bit, more in confusion than offense. "Why not?", she asked with genuine interest, unabashed. "I'm sure Professor Laurance could do it."

For now, she put her attention to the book they had all received, making a mental note to maybe talk to Corbin later. There was a symbol embossed onto the cover that held no meaning to her but Professor Laurance soon explained it. Maevie listened to her with avid curiosity.

Everything they had discussed thus far, she had found utterly fascinating. To learn about the darker side of things frankly was thrilling to say the least. And Professor Laurance was a woman Maevie couldn't help but look up to and admire. She seemed to hold an endless amount of knowledge and held herself so proud and high. To Maevie, she felt like a mystic creature, in the best way possible.

Today, she said, they'd be building an altar. So that was what all the funny stuff was for. Maevie regarded her pile for a moment, wondering what building an altar even meant. What did she have to do?

Other students were already raining down questions, things she hadn't even considered. She felt a brief pang of shame, feeling quite dumb for not knowing about any of the runes like her peers seemed to. Maybe she had to spend some more time in the library instead of exploring the castle and hanging about with her friends.

But she refused to feel intimidated and so she properly raised her hand and waited to be called upon. "What are the things we can summon or banish?", she asked once it was her turn. She really didn't know what to envision. Could she summon money? Toys? Emotions? Could she banish people? Bad luck? Emotions?!

Benji's eyes followed his cousin as she wandered about, dropping off books for each of them. When she came to him, he smirked and waved his hand at her, as if to say 'no thanks'. For his effort, Rosie smacked him in the shoulder with it, before tossing it down on his desk. She was no fun.

“Did you happen to drag my boyfriend along? And yeah, it’s getting easier. I actually limped around the greenhouse yesterday, but today my leg is protesting the exercise.”

"Haven't see him," Benji said, his expression dropping a bit. Did Matilda even have a boyfriend anymore? He wanted to ask her, but his eyes shifted just as Ren entered the room and plopped himself down without so much as a word to any of them. He shared a quick glance with Rae and then leaned back towards Matilda. "You need help getting around, you just say the word." His eyes moved back to Ren for a moment, before returning to his mum as she began to speak.

"As we've discussed over the past few weeks, the Wheel of the Year is ritual framework for magical alignment. Today you'll come to understand how..."

Blah, blah, blah. He adored Julia, but damn this was going to be another long lesson. The boy slouched further in his chair, taking his girlfriend with him. Benji wasn't unfamiliar with dark magic or even witnessing it - and not because of his new family, surprising enough. He wasn't afraid of it, at all, understanding as Julia indicated that dark and light were just two sides of the same coin and it was all about how it was wielded. It was also subjective - what one person might think was dark could be a normal family usage for another.

Spending the better part of two and a half years under the thumb of a man who believed pain strengthened, the boy had become rather numb to it all.

His eyes wandered around the classroom as others raised their hands and asked questions until -

"Professor, if I wanted more information on these seduction rituals, is there a book you would recommend?"

The boy's nose wrinkled immediately, his mouth falling open slightly. Why?! Why did she have to ask his mother about...this wasn't that sort of class. And why would his mother know about it anyway? Oh God. The image that flashed through his head was more than Benji cared to entertain and he immediately shook his head to rid himself of it. "Shut up Ging," Benji hissed, praying his mum would just ignore the question.

"Real ones that work even on boys who'd prefer to have breakfast than snog you?"

Now Rae was joining on, and sullying his reputation in front of the entire class! "People have to eat, Rae. More than just faces," he grumbled, withdrawing his arm and crossing it over his chest with his other. He huffed, more than annoyed that somehow he was not only being offended but apparently about to be the subject of a seduction ritual. He knew that girl was the damn devil.

He raised his own hand. "Could I ask you not to answer those?" Benji said dryly, rolling his eyes. The skeleton was griping at them already, and the boy was ready to move onto the practical.

"Bold of you to assume Kate will accept meals from you if you aren't already her usual server."

She gave a little snort, flipping open her grimoire to begin taking notes, her free hand dropping to his knee. Kate was an interesting little girl. For being Benji's sister, Rosie had expected the little blonde to be similar to him - loud, boisterous, never far from a spat of trouble. Instead she was silent, staring and observant. Always watching, as though she were waiting for something to happen. Rosie wanted to say she liked her, but how could she like someone - even a little girl - she'd never had a real conversation with?

The girl listened attentively, familiar with ritual altars, having watched both Julia and Edith utilize them many times. The last time had been in Syria, during Julia's wedding when...

Absently, Rosie's eyes fell to her hand where there was the smallest white line of a scar on her palm. A shudder went through her, and she pushed the images out of her mind. Glad to be able to utilize her own altar, she instead focused on the things she could use it for. Strengthening her magic yes, but also weakening others if she so deemed it. Rosalie knew from experience that summoning and banishing wasn't just about things or entities or whatever else the other were probably conjuring in their minds.

On the other side of the classroom, Matilda and Rae had both jumped on the word 'seduction', and Rosie grinned, rolling her eyes at the way Benji withered in front of all of them. Figure Julia to mention seduction rituals in a classroom full of snarky students. She squeezed Cassian's knee, catching his dark eyes with her light, a small smirk playing at the corner of her lips.

No words were needed.

When Dubthach sprung to life, she laughed a little, leaning closer to Cassian to catch his words. "I'm sure you'll believe it, but he lived in her rooms prior to her bringing him here. She argues with him more than anyone else." She agreed, Kathryn probably would love Dubthach. He was sassy and a bit of gossip monger for a skeleton. Kate would probably love to sit and just have him jabber away at her for hours without having the expectation of engagement on her end.

Rosie raised her hand and waited for her cousin to call on her. "Obviously, Beltane and Samhain are only two days out of the entire year. So it makes sense that most ritual magic be done on those days if possible. But what about the rest? Is ritual magic just less effective on any random day?"

As the questions began to pour in, Julia sat herself on the edge of her desk, pleased as punch to have a group of engaged, interested students. When she'd first learned she would have to take on a class in addition to her library duties, she'd felt the dread of it all creep over her. She enjoyed teaching, very much, but had always preferred a one-on-one basis so she could focus on her pupil and their individual strengths and weaknesses. An entire class of rowdy teenagers hadn't leant to the same atmosphere, but...comfort zones and all that.

This, was a pleasant surprise. She really should have given them more credit.

She turned first to Vinnie, ready to answer, when Dubthach piped up first. She nodded to the skeleton, allowing him to take the lead. A good little lecturer he was. Sassy too. Eyes glowing red and his neck bones cracking as he turned to Vinnie, his voice croaked.

"Your grimoire is not just for notes, child. This is your personal record of power. It holds your rituals, sigils, your intentions, your altar constructions. You know the important things. But by all means, treat it like your Herbology notebook. Just don't come crying when a wraith's gnawing on you because you forgot the salt circle." Dubthach paused for a moment, before clacking his teeth in what could be construed as a grin. "Well, try to cry anyway. It's hard without a larynx."

Julia pressed her lips together in amusement as she nodded to Corbin. A good question - why Thurisaz and not another, such as Ansuz? She glanced to her helper, who was already twitching to answer. "Go ahead Dubthach," she encouraged him.

"Ooh Mister Donahue's a rune snob," the skeleton barked with a laugh and Julia opened her mouth to stop him, thinking maybe this wasn't a great idea, but off he was anyway. "Thurisaz is not just aggression. It is protection. Awareness. It is the moment before the bite - the thorn on the rose. Learning the Dark Arts isn't passive. It's dangerous, reactive, alive. In this case, what you need isn't a sweet whisper from the gods, but a vicious spike in the chest." Well, that wasn't exactly the way Julia would have explained it, but it got the point across all the same. "So yes, you could use Ansuz. If you want your grimoire to protest politely before being posessed."

Then, from the back, the Gryffindor girl with a chip on her shoulder who'd thought drawing on her table and playing with her supplies like they were lincoln logs would be a good idea. Julia's chin dipped slightly at Tulip, unimpressed with her tone, but was content to let Dubthach handle it. “Oh, darling girl. What a positively modern opinion.” The skeleton swivled his skull slowly in the girl's direction. "Your wand is a channel. It casts, it assists, it obeys. Altars are anchoring points. They are invitations. It is the drawing room where your intentions wait to be heard. You are dabbling in ancient forces who frankly don't care what century you're in. Magic may evolve, Miss Tulip, but power is traditional, and it expects to be greeted with manners."

And then came Matilda and Rae. Figure those two to land on the one word that Julia had absolutely no interest in expanding on. An eyebrow flicked upwards at the two girls, the way Benji was trying to melt into his chair, also not going unnoticed. “Now those are questions worthy of extra credit.” The skeleton clapped his hands, but Julia immediately swished her wand at him, silencing him, even as his animated form jabbered on, just without a voice. The clacking of teeth and bones filled the room, as the skeleton seemed to have no awareness he'd been muted. "Girls, see me after class," Julia said lightly, the smallest flicker of amusement playing on her lips. She would certainly not be giving the tips. Instead she'd direct them to the Paddock, where Professor Barlowe would certainly have many opportunities to show them the workings of the...birds and the bees.

Oilibhéar was next with another question about the runes. Seeing as Dubthach was still clacking silently about seduction rituals, waving his arms wildly and making rude gestures with his hands, Julia would take this one until he calmed down. "Berkana is lovely," she said easily, "Very in-tune with Beltane, spring equinox, fertility and new life. If you're trying to attract a sprite of some sort, or maybe nurture a seedling, or invoke a fresh persepective upon a situation, then yes, Berkana is definitely for you." She stood from the desk and paced a bit. "But we are not writing affirmations of light here. These grimoires are theresholds. You're not just summoning. You're conjuring, channeling and shaping power. That means danger." She didn't want to spend all day on runes, as they had a practical to get to, but she did want to emphasize a last bit. "Thurisaz is about intentional defense and focused calling. Think of it like a doorknob that only turns for you, and obliterates anything else that tries. Your grimoire's rune acts like the front gate to the power it holds."

Her eyes drifted to Rosalie, knowing her younger cousin understood the material well already, just from exposure over the years, but the question was valid in any case. "Not less effective," she answered simply, "Just needing a little more oomph. More sacrifices, more intention, more ingredients, more want and determination. The thinning of the veil just makes these a little easier and powerful with less effort."

She called on Maevie next, as Dubthach finally settled down again, and she flicked her wand once more, unmuting him, but taking the question for herself. "Good question, Maevie," Julia said, appreciating they were finally moving away from the fascination of runes. "The short answer is, almost anything, but in this class we're going to be focusing on your own strength and alignment, not necessarily creatures. Which is the perfect lead-in to our practical."

---

The woman swished her wand once more, the last pile of supplies hovering in the air to form a a ritual altar in demonstration. A square of blackthorn twigs bordered a chalk pentagram. On all four corners of the square sat a symbol drawn in obsidian dust. A crescent moon signifying cycles, growth, pulling inward, a balance of night and day. A circle signifying wholeness, infinity, unity as well as the void. An s, aligned to the cardinal directions, anchoring fire in power and transformation. A sun signifying the outward push or banishment, clarity and energy. At top sat the rune Thurisaz again, representing its duality of destruction and protection.

With another flick of her wand, a pile of small square wooden boards rose up from behind her desk and shot out across the classroom, landing quietly in front of each student. "Step one, begin with your frame. Blackthorn is associated with protection and the boundary between worlds. Set them up in a square, break the twigs slightly if you need to even the length." She walked between the desks, tapping on Elias's board with her wand. "Here, on this board that's already been laid with a protection charm for you." She watched as they all assembled their squares.

"Step two, inscribe your pentagram. Boundary first. Draw your circle, then your star within. Precision matters. A careless hand now will spell chaos later." She strolled slowly to the next group of desks, peering down at the their work and correcting angles with a tap of her wand. "Your circle represents wholeness and the veil itself. It's a boundary but also an amplifier in ritualistic magic. The pentagram has five points for the elements intersecting in balance."

"Step three, outline the symbols with your obsidian dust. It's important you use your fingers for this. It's a natural transference of your energy into what will become your altar, and give the symbols that much more of your essence. NO BENJI, not like that." Julia immediately flicked her wand at her boy who was carelessly dropping the dust into a half-assed crescent moon, snatching him up by the ear. "Five points from Hufflepuff. Do it right, or you'll catch yourself with an extra library shift during dinner." She glanced out at the rest of her students. "This is not the time for laziness or cutting corners. Obsidian grounds shadow-work and remembers intent. Treat it with respect."

She stopped when she was at the front of the class again. "When you're satisfied with your work, hold your wand over the altar and use the binding charm 'Expoximise'. This will ensure all your ingredients are permanently rendered to the board, making it unnecessary for you to construct an altar every class. This is a third year charm, so wave your hand if you don't know it, and I'll come by to assist."

Small ceramic bowls levitated next, clinking as they landed at the center of each board. "Step four, the heart of your altar. Anchor the bowl in the center with another binding charm. This will hold any offerings, candles, or ash you're using in your rituals. Make sure it's bound firmly. If your bowl rattles loose, so will your spells."

She paused, clasping her hands in front of her. Finally, embellishment. "Today we have salt and herbs for you to use as your embellishment. Embellishments state your intention. Will you call or ban? If you're summoning, you'll typically choose items like herbs, blood, candles, or additional sigils of invitation written on parchment. If you're banning, you'll use salt, bone, thread, sometimes iron shavings. These can be changed out each time and are not permanent."

With her final words, the classroom went dark, save for Dubthach's glowing eyes and one candle that rose from her desk and floated over the classroom. The room went silent as she stood stoicly. "Choose either the salt or herbs and embellish the bowl with your intention. You are invoking the energies of your own magic today, whether to summon a strengthening of them, or perhaps weakening someone else's through a banishment." A small grin played on her lips, though it was lost in the dark.

"When you've embellished, hover your hands above the bowls and concentrate on what you're asking of your altar. Put everything else out of your mind. Picture the energy flowing from your chest, out through your arms and down to your fingertips into the board."

"Begin now."

---

*OOC: *FAINTS*

Okay, hi. Yes. Huge. I get it, but I needed to make sure it was all there. Whew. The first half of this post is just responding to questions. No need to read every single answer if you're not interested.

The second half is the practical. Follow the instructions (carefully!) and construct your altar. When you're done, you'll choose your embellishment - herbs for strengthening your own magic or salt for lessening someone else's. If you're unable to do the binding charm, just assume Julia did it for you. No need to react to what happens from here, that will be in my next update. Make sure you're interacting, spelling out how your character is feeling, their thoughts, etc!

Class will update again on 9/20.

Catherine watched as the woman described the construction of the altar, her own eyes wide with unbridled enthusiasm. The woman's instructions were precise, a set of careful steps, but Catherine's mind already raced ahead. She'd never thought of the concepts of "light" or "dark" magic as anything other than absurdly human conventions. Magic, to her, had no morality; it was simply a feral, capricious energy. A storm or a wildfire, it just was. It had no agenda, no purpose, but power waiting to be formed. The chaos was not within the magic itself but in the intentions of those who wielded it. And that, she mused, was the fun.

She listened, but not actively. Her hands were already moving, fast and sure, as she set up her blackthorn frame. She did not even bother with the circle first. That seemed so… limiting. The woman's words echoed in her mind, "A careless hand now will bring chaos later." Catherine smiled. Chaos was the goal, wasn't it? She painted her pentagram first, a little asymmetrical, maybe, but she liked it that way. It looked more alive, less a perfect, pristine symbol and more a savage, serrated bolt of energy ready to be unleashed.

When the obsidian dust arrived, she circumvented the woman's recommendation to draw it on with her fingers. That was too intimate, too messy. She'd put her energy into the work differently. She employed a twig from her blackthorn framework instead, delicately (and then not-so-delicately) rendering the crescent moon and the other glyphs. She wasn't worried about the energy transfer. Hers was already a live wire, humming with potential. And when she saw the woman taking Benji by the ear, she felt a wince of reprimand. He was a kindred spirit of disorder, evidently, and she loved his lack of precision. Precision was for people who wanted to get predictable outcomes. She had no such desire.

The final instructions about the flourishes sent a thrill down her spine. Summoning or banishment was a false dichotomy in her mind. Why choose one or the other when you could do both? Her altar wasn't going to be for empowering or weakening; it was going to be for unraveling. She chose the herbs, a vivid, wild snarl of green in the black dirt. She didn't lay them out carefully; she dropped them in a loose pile, a beautiful mess of scent and potential. While the woman told them to close their eyes and imagine the energy circulating, Catherine did the exact opposite. She kept her eyes wide open, staring at her messy masterpiece, a small, wicked smile playing on her lips. She imagined the energy not departing from her but entering the bowl from the air, the walls, and the very essence of the chaos that she was embracing. It was a beautiful, unholy mess, and she couldn't wait to see what happened.

There was a change in the air. Perhaps it was the intensity of the words, or merely the glowing-eyed skeleton who spoke, but Vinnie could feel the weight of them like a physical thing. Even if he didn’t fully understand what it meant to put his intentions and altar to the grimoire, it was impossible to tear his gaze away from Dubthach. For one fleeting moment, his attention was all there.

Vinnie didn’t know anything about runes, only that they carried significance to some witches and wizards. As the other students went on about Ansuz and Berkana, he began to lose the thread again. Ancient Runes was a class well beyond his own as a first year, and he wasn’t the sort to study it independently. He preferred to spend his free time on his feet.

Mavie’s question caught his interest. He imagined summoning a shiny new broomstick, a dragon, a key that could unlock any door. Could they truly summon almost anything? “…we’re going to be focusing on your own strength and alignment, not necessarily creatures.” Oh. That was a disappointment, but Vinnie still turned to the supplies in front of him, eager to begin.

He started by setting up his blackthorn twigs in a square. The one at the top was several centimeters longer. Vinnie snapped it, and it became nearly a centimeter shorter than the rest, but close enough that he could now arrange the four in a fairly even square.

Next came the pentagram. A steady hand had never been Vinnie’s best trait. He tried to keep his lines as precise as possible. To his surprise, the star turned out nicely, and the circle not at all oval-ish like he had expected. When he dipped two fingers into the obsidian dust and began to trace shapes, however, things got a little messier. His crescent moon was squished thin in the middle, and his sun had markedly uneven rays that made it look nothing like Professor Laurence’s example.

Vinnie stood up, wiping away the obsidian dust from those two corners as best he could. There were still smears of it on the top left as he traced on a new moon, this one much more precise than the last. The sun he struggled with more, and had to do a few times over before he deemed it passable. It was still slightly sloppier than the others, but looked about as good as he was likely to get it.

“Professor, I’m ready for the binding spell!” Vinnie called out. He waited for Professor Laurence to come over and cast one on the altar, and another on the ceramic bowl in the center.

Then it was time to choose: herbs, or salt. Herbs, Vinnie decided, wondering why someone would want to weaken another student. Having stronger magic, on the other hand, sounded like a lot of fun.

To ‘embellish’ the bowl confused him. “Are we just supposed to put herbs in the bowl, or sprinkle them around the outside too?” he asked Professor Laurence.

When he had finished with his herbs, Vinnie put his hands over the bowl and closed his eyes to think. Why did he want stronger magic? His first thought was he might need it to fight against Dark creatures and wizards one day.

His second thought was less drastic, yet stronger in his mind. He remembered being a kid, standing next to his little brother Henry as both of them watched in awe when their father transfigured a pincushion into a porcupine. “Do hat to rabbit!” Vinnie had begged, and both of them had burst into uncontrollable laughter when their father pointed a wand at his hat and turned it into a rabbit, right on top of his own head. That was what Vinnie wanted. To have magic strong enough to give other people that same feeling.

Then another memory, more confusing - his Muggle friends looking back at him with blank stares when he spoke of the day before, after Vinnie’s accidental magic had necessitated obliviation. He had hated the eeriness of it. Hated that they were missing a day in their lives now because of him. He knew it had been the right thing to do, knew letting Muggles remember incidents of magic could destroy the wizarding world as it was. And yet childishly, there was a part of him that thought, I want to be strong enough to give my friends back their memories.

It was those two moments that swirled in his mind as he held out his hands over the bowl. His father transfiguring a hat. His friends’ empty-eyed stares. Silently asking the altar to strengthen his magic, Vinnie imagined that magic pulsing from his heart into his veins like blood, flowing down into his fingertips, and pushed.

The older girls started asking about seduction rituals, and Elias pulled a face. Gross. Why would anyone want to learn about that? He looked away and focused on his supplies instead.

Dubthach's mean comments to the other students made him bite his lip to keep from giggling out loud. The skeleton was rude, and it was brilliant.

By the time Professor Laurence asked for questions, other students had raised their hands. Elias thought about asking how the altars worked - was it like his parents' shop magic or something different? - but the moment passed.

Professor Laurence tapped his board with her wand, and Elias felt a warm tingle run through the wood. Heat crept up his neck. She was treating him like a little kid.

Following her instructions, he began arranging his blackthorn twigs into a square frame. One twig was longer than the others, so he snapped it, wincing when it broke shorter than he'd wanted. It would have to do.

The pentagram came next. Elias drew his circle first, keeping the line steady. His pricked thumb left tiny red smears on the chalk, and when he started the star inside, the blood mixed with the white lines. Five points, one at the top. His hand shook on the longer lines, but it looked like a proper pentagram.

The obsidian dust felt strange between his fingers, fine and heavy. He traced the crescent moon first, then the circle, the wavy S-shape, and finally the sun. The dark powder stuck to the dried blood on his thumb, turning it black. The dust clung to the chalk lines, leaving dark smudges on his fingertips.

Elias sat back and looked at his work. The symbols looked right - matching what Professor Laurence had shown them. Red streaks ran through the white chalk lines, and the obsidian dust had turned dark red-black where it mixed with his blood. He shrugged. Close enough.

He pointed his wand at the altar and tried to remember the incantation. "Expox... Expoxi..." The spell fizzled out with a weak spark. Third-year spells were way beyond him.

Professor Laurence had said to wave his hand if he didn't know the binding charm. Elias raised his hand, his face burning.

Once his altar was bound properly and the ceramic bowl sat in the center, Professor Laurence explained about embel... whatever she'd called it. The decorating bit with herbs or salt.

Elias stared at the two choices. Summoning sounded exciting. He chose the herbs, sprinkling them around the bowl's edge. Maybe he could summon something interesting. A friendly creature, or maybe some luck for his classes.

Following Professor Laurence's final instructions, Elias held his hands above the bowl and tried to picture energy flowing from his chest down to his fingers.

Dubthach's dismissive response to his rune question made his jaw clench. The skeleton had called him a "rune snob" and suggested his grimoire would "protest politely before being possessed" if he chose Ansuz. A necromantic servant creature daring to lecture him like some ignorant first-year was insulting enough, but the condescending tone was worse.

Corbin's fingers twitched toward his wand. A bone-shattering hex he'd read about might work to reduce the thing to a pile of calcium powder. Let Professor Laurence reanimate the dust and see how sarcastic it felt then.

He forced his hand to remain still. Getting expelled wasn't worth the satisfaction.

Professor Laurence's follow-up explanation about doorknobs that only turn for you made sense, but Corbin still disagreed with the entire approach. Why settle for a magical lock when you could be strong enough that nothing would dare try to break in?

As the practical lesson began, Corbin opened his notebook to a new page and carefully recorded each step.

Personal Altar Construction - Boring "safety first" Version

Step 1: Blackthorn frame

Guessing this is to keep tyhe thing inside the ritual framework. Makes sense. (thorns included for "authenticity" - how considerate)

He set down his quill and picked up the blackthorn twigs. The wood was darker than he'd expected, with sharp thorns that caught on his sleeves as he arranged them into a square. One twig was slightly shorter than the others - he removed it, and carefully replacedd it with another, better fitting stick. Could never be too careful with actual dark magic.

The step complete, he returned to his notebook, quill tapping idly.

Step 2: Pentagram and ritual circle

Standard circle and five pointed star. Other circles might be interesting, but makes sense (standard protective array, this is beginner stuff...)

Drawing the circle came first. Corbin kept his hand steady as the chalk scraped against the wooden board. The pentagram followed - five points, lines connecting each one. The white lines were neat and careful, as precise as he could make them.

It was... Acceptable. Barely. He rubbed the chalk off from his fingers on his robe and picked his quill back up again.

Step 3: Obsidiasn dust symbols and Expoximise binding

Interesting choice of symbols. Why these ones? Sun and crescent moon, sure... But seems arbitrary
Expoximise binds the circle. Yeah, duh. Logical enough. (finally, actual spellwork)

He traced the crescent moon first, then the circle, the wavy line, and finally the sun. Dark powder clung to the board in neat patterns. It was fine and silky against his finger.

The binding charm came next. Corbin raised his wand and pointed it at his altar. "Expoximise."

He got the words out correctly. It was still new magic to him as a third year, and he hoped that it had worked as intended. No way would he beg for help from Professor Laurence.

Step 4: Bowl placement and intention selection

Herbs = summoning (might get a fairy. Nope.)
Salt = banishing (of rude skeletons, perhaps?)

Corbin barely hesitated with his choice. He chose the salt and sprinkled it around the bowl's edge, before turning back to his notes.

Trying to summon something was insane. He knew better.

Final step: Concentration on goal

Note: Apparently, best to keep this simple and specific. Because of course, we get treated like incompetent little kids.

He mulled over what he might try to banish. His gaze settled on the overly rude skeleton. Now that could be interesting. He closed his eyes and concentrated.

As he listened to Dubthach more he wondered what the skeleton was. Based on the knowledge it had he doubted it was random. Or perhaps it didn't have the knowledge and was some sort of
ventriloquism. Was Julia a ventriloquist? Either way Dubthach was an unusual way to teach a lesson.

Though perhaps this was an experiment to see if it was possible. Were the professors really spread that thin now?

What he got most from Dubthach was this lesson was about setting up an altar with a mix of power and control. Regretably, while some of his classmates earned an eye roll for there seduction questions, the useful words of Dubthach seemed to be muted. He had a feeling those responses would have been entertaining. The gestures were entertaining. Perhaps someone should teach Dubthach sign-language.

Sign language might be worth learning and teaching Dubthach if he didn't think that once Julia picked up on it the skeleton would be petrified as it was silenced.

He nodded at the answer to his own question and said " Thank you. Thurisaz makes more sense now. " Then he proceeded to write notes on it all in his notebook, the one he brought to class not the one that was just given to him.

Then the practical part of the lesson began and with careful movements he made his altar just as described. This was not a moment for creativity when he was sure at least one of his classmates would do something wrong and then purposefully try to summon some sort of nightmare. He just hoped his classmates forgot the chaos of cupid existed with there seduction talk.

Third year charm. All he could think was not happening as he gave up trying in charms before he even hit third year as he was just rubbish at them. He raised his hand and said " My wand doesn't even try to be charming let along casting those things. " Thankfully, it appeared that either Professor Laurence or someone else had cast the needed charm so he could continue. He hoped it was Professor Laurence as he certainly didn't trust his classmates magic on his altar.

Out of a mixture of caution and self protection he chose the salt for his final embellishment. He put his hand over the bowl and concentrated on a vision of if it worked somehow getting a circle around him that nothing unworldly could enter. Was that the right interpretation of the assignment? He had no idea. However, he simply wanted nothing his classmates foolishly summoned coming near him.

"People have to eat, Rae. More than just faces."

"No, they don't, Benji," she retorted, never sparing so much as a glance over at the boy who chronically put food and sleep above her. She may as well have been chopped liver. Hell, if garnished right and well-seasoned, even chopped liver would've had a better chance catching and keeping Benji Laurence's attention during meal times and snack times and whenever his stomach started to grumble times.

Growing boy, her ass. WHO EVEN ASKED HIM TO?? Who looked that boy in the face and said, 'Please piss your girlfriend off by being tall enough to use her head like an armrest?? Who? Fucking who??

At least she was tall enough to be an uncomfortable arm rest.

Homph!

"Could I ask you not to answer those?"

"Oi!" She reached over to shove the boy who'd removed his arm from her. "Knock it off before she changes her mind." These were crucial rituals that were likely part of their growing up. If he didn't want to willingly separate himself from his stomach, she had no choice but to do it for him. "And give this back." She reached for Benji's arm, wrapped it around her shoulder again. Didn't wanna be seduced and didn't wanna have his arm around him. Tsk tsk. He was pulling away again. They'd need an intervention. She didn't make the rules; she only followed them vehemently.

Maybe she'd make them a picnic. Rather, have Toddles put together a picnic they could enjoy, then she'd get to the bottom of this. They'd have pastries and meats--a sundae she'd insist they share--butterbeer, the wor--

"Step one, begin with your frame."

Right. Class. They still had that. Rae was already pleased as punch that the professor wanted to see them after, even excitedly tapping Tilly on the shoulder when she'd heard. Now it was time to settle and uh...do a frame.

She laid the twigs down, forming as close to a perfect square as she could. Never having been a perfectionist, it didn't bother her that the top left corner seemed a little higher than the others. What mattered was that she had a square and could do her drawing and move on. Of course, she concentrated, not wanting to have the sloppiest alter, but she knew students whose own would bring hers to shame.

Pulling her sleeve back just enough to uncover her fingers, Rae moved on to the next step. She paused abruptly at Julia's reprimand of her boyfriend, smirking over at him for his rebuke. Of all the classes, he should've known better than to half-ass his mothers. Even she knew.

It was always unfortunate when Rae still encountered spells she couldn't do. Expoximise was one of them. Raising her hand, she signalled the professor over and had her make quick work of it all. When it was over, she pretended she hadn't needed to in the first place. There, bowl anchored. Good to go.

Last, embellishment. Herbs. As much as banishing could be fun, Rae preferred to focus on her own summoning of strength. That one benefited her far more.

Cassian had been paying about as much attention to their younger friends as Rosie was. This was made evident with the light squeeze at his knee when the girls went off about the one part of the lecture he was sure Miss Laurence was trying to gloss over.

While he was no expert on the woman, the Ravenclaw was confident in his understanding that this wasn't the sort of talk she'd been looking to have. Even with Ruth's newfound excitement at the obviously foreboding "see me after class", Cass knew better than to have any hopes for the girls. They weren't in for the pep talk they imagined.

His lips quirked upward with amusement as he caught the look in those deep blue orbs. It wasn't a plight he had ever faced, one he didn't think his friend considered a plight at all, but he knew the younger girl. That Slytherin wildfire was a storm of her own creation, not easily contained and usually more than a little ridiculous. It was hard to say what to expect or whether this was another of those moments when she was truly...uh...being Ruth Elliot.

For his part, Cassian couldn't relate and was glad he didn't have a crazy girlfriend willing to enchant him for his affection.

"I'm sure you'll believe it, but he lived in her rooms prior to her bringing him here. She argues with him more than anyone else."

"That checks out." Cassian watched the skeleton take on several of the students, sassing them like it'd been training for this special sort of Olympics its entire life. It praised the girls for their sordid questions and snarked several students with questions. Without a doubt, Cassian could clearly, see this thing going head to head with Miss Laurence, no matter the issue.

"What were they usually arguing about?"

That would be equally interesting to know.

As the lesson calmed down and the professor set them to work, Cassian took on a more serious disposition. He was able to appreciate the complexity of what they were doing in a manner he didn't think many of his classmates bothered to consider. There wasn't much in the way of a margin for error, and even if there were, the boy liked to do a thorough job.

He set his frame with the twigs, then gave his full concentration to both symbol and pentagram. For a moment, he paused, scrutinizing his work before choosing to continue. The spell would sort of lock it all into place, which meant the time for checking was before allowing the professor to bind it all together.

He chose salt for his embellishment, having an idea in his head that justified the choice. It was probably better to get his practice here.

"Shut up Ging," Matilda snickered loudly. Not able to help it.

"Real ones that work even on boys who'd prefer to have breakfast than snog you?" The fact that Rae chimed in made this all the more fun. “Yes, please. All the info on those specifically. And maybe some on ones for boys that are constantly working on potions.” Matilda said, looking at the boy in question that popped into the seat next to her while she wasn’t looking. Smiling widely. "Hello Ren."

"People have to eat, Rae. More than just faces. Could I ask you not to answer those?" Seeing Benji three shades of uncomfortable made this all the more amusing.

“Now those are questions worthy of extra credit.” Matilda, without saying a word, flung her hand out towards the skeleton, as if to say. SEE! Smile even wider. This was all very enjoyable.

"Girls, see me after class," with a giggle, sad that she didn’t have the answers she really wanted, started listening to the actual lesson. Maybe there would be more information about seduction rituals peppered in. Must Pay Attention!

Step one: the frame. Easy enough. Matilda took the twigs of blackthorn provided and made a square frame, only having to break off a small section to even out the lengths. Assembling the frame on the board, she waited for the next step.

Step two: The circle and pentagram were made carefully, as Julia had said. Her hand shaking slightly, wanting it to be right. Thankfully, so far she hadn’t been told it was wrong.

Step three: For some reason this one made her the most nervous. The obsidian dust bringing with it a strange feeling.

“NO BENJI, not like that. Five points from Hufflepuff. Do it right, or you'll catch yourself with an extra library shift during dinner." Matilda’s smile kicked up. Threatening food with Benji Marie was potentially the worst form of punishment she could give.

Matilda carefully outlined the required areas with the obsidian dust with her fingers. For some reason, feeling like this was an important step, one to not mess around with. Looking at her work, then at those around her, she felt that everything was in order. Raising her wand she did the required, “Expoximise.” to bind everything together. Then, with step four, another binding spell to attach the bowl.

When it came to embellishment, as no one would be shocked, her hand went straight for the herbs. She then also grabbed a candle, but left the blood. After the summer she had, blood made her stomach roll. Taking the herbs, she spent the rest of her time embellishing her bowl, then writing on parchment what she desired. No, she didn’t go the seduction route. That could come later. Her intentions were more for her general wellbeing. Health, strength, stamina, healing.

"When you've embellished, hover your hands above the bowls and concentrate on what you're asking of your altar. Put everything else out of your mind. Picture the energy flowing from your chest, out through your arms and down to your fingertips into the board."

Matilda took a deep breath and did just that. She saw her leg healing, the pain ebbing, her weakened limb growing stronger, no more limp, walking and running. She didn’t think about the scar healing, the green going away, at this point she wore the green scar as a badge of pride for what she had survived, now, she just wanted to heal.

So the incredibly bizarre and strange puppet show continued. It seemed the professor had opted to teach them through a puppet this term, one that looked like a skelenton but it seemed that would be answering the questions. It reminded her of puppet shows she'd seen as a younger child, you always had the straight laced front man or woman and the sarcastic 'help' or pet which was usally a puppet. Clearly that was what was going on here, the professor thouht of them as much younger children. Bet she spent a lot of time in the childrens stories section of the school library.

Your wand is a channel. It casts, it assists, it obeys. Altars are anchoring points. They are invitations. It is the drawing room where your intentions wait to be heard. You are dabbling in ancient forces who frankly don't care what century you're in. Magic may evolve, Miss Tulip, but power is traditional, and it expects to be greeted with manners."

She looked at the skeleton, she could have answered the professor but this was clearly the game today. "Yeah that's great and all, but I'm not sure if you're aware but a wand is portable" she looked at the bits in front of her, "You can't just whip this out every time you need to cast a spell. Things evolve for a reason. There's a great muggle book about this, it explains why we're not monkeys anymore." she pointed at the pile of stuff, "Not portable, and at someone elses wand on their desk "Portable. What's next casting incendio with a flint and some rocks" Tulip respected magic had history, she just wasn't a fan of repeating it or trying it, magic changed for a reason. To make things easier, heck even muggles understood that.

Tulip had argued with enough adults over the years to know it was futile so she just sat back and listened to how to build an alter. It felt like some hideious arts and crafts project. Where you had to be careful and precise, two things she wasn't. She tried laying out the bits as she was meant to and if at the end she kinda had what was in the example if a bit scruffy looking. "And this is why wands are so much better." she muttered to herself. She watched as Benji got an ear ful and it seemed it wasn'y only Gryffindors loosing points today.

Choose either the salt or herbs and embellish the bowl with your intention. You are invoking the energies of your own magic today, whether to summon a strengthening of them, or perhaps weakening someone else's through a banishment.

Tulip had used the Expoximise spell to stick down things on the board but did write that spell down, sticking charms were always useful when used not with their original purpose in mind. But did she want to summon or banish. Well she'd summon of course. However as she was feeling bored and mischievous the only thing she could summon with intent was Chaos. So focused on pure chaos.

There was a lot of yammering in this class.

It was unsurprising. Julia was a lecturer of the highest order. His mum loved to talk when it came to the subjects she was interested in, and apparently all of his classmates loved to yammer along with her. Benji was of the mind to not ask questions and let things play out as they would. Julia would eventually quiet down, they could get to the practical, and then leave.

That couldn't happen if his best friend and girlfriend kept asking embarrassing questions!

"Knock it off before she changes her mind."

Benji rolled his eyes, even as Rae took his arm and draped it back over her shoulders. Next class, he was sitting with McCormick. Rosie would get over it. Benji pulled a face at Ging as she grinned at him, his eyebrows perking up slightly, "Principal's office for you, Ging. Now you've gone and done it." If either girl thought that his mum wanted to see them after class to share the information they wanted, they obviously didn't know Julia Laurence well.

Still. He gave his girlfriend's shoulder a light squeeze.

It was humorous, the way the skeleton silently continued his demonstration, making interesting gestures with his arms and hands. And while Benji had no interest in hearing his mum discuss the subject of seduction or its rituals, he might have been at least a little intrigued to know what words went with...that movement. His lips quirked upwards in a smirk, glancing back at the two girls to see if they were seeing this as well.

Practical was finally starting after all the nerds asked their endless questions. The boy sat up, arranging his twigs on the board, following quickly with the chalk. He etched out the star first, encircling it after, careful to make sure even the simplest of his drawings were done well. Next the obsidian dust. No sooner had he started his crescent moon, Julia snatched his ear, yelling at him in front of everyone.

"Owwwww," Benji said, struggling against the invisible ear. "I was gonna straighten it!" He protested, yanking his head when he was finally released, and rubbing it gingerly. Merlin. Another smirk from both Rae and Matilda. Yep, definitely sitting with Cassian next class. Rosie could fight him if she wanted to.

Fixing his dust, Benji flicked his wand. "Expoximise," he muttered, sealing his bowl and the rest to the board, before picking salt. He glanced up at his mum, catching her eye as he embellished the bowl with it. An amused smile perked up on her lips, mirroring the one on his. So they had an understanding then.

Closing his eyes, Benji focused on the image of magical energy soaring through his arms and draining from his hands onto the board. He was interested to see if this really worked the way she said.

Rosie tapped her quill absently on her parchment as Dubthach effectively told off one student after another. She wasn't exactly sure what Dubthach was - whether he was just a fun enchantment or something much darker - but as long as she could remember, Julia had had him around and his personality had never changed. Snarky, sassy, but well-versed in the subject at hand, just like her cousin.

"What were they usually arguing about?"

Rosie smiled and shrugged her shoulders a little. "Anything and everything. The way she arranged her furniture. The things she studied. He even had opinions about her marriage," Rosie giggled a little, "He was right about that one, I guess." As was...pretty much everyone in her family. James was the only one who hadn't opposed it, and even he had been reluctant. Her smile fell a little, and she turned her attention back to the parchment.

It was a welcome change of subject when the practical started, Rosie eager to work quietly. Where her younger classmate seemed hellbent on arguing about how wands were better than altars, Rosalie was fine to tune it all out and just do what she was told. The girl liked being at the top of her classes, and moreso liked having the respect of her professors, even if it was Julia. She'd always done well with her tutors and didn't understand others who didn't seem to care.

When her board was set with the twigs and chalk, she was careful, taking her time to outline the symbols with her finger, the dust now coating her index finger. When she was satisfied that it all looked the way it was supposed to, she raised her hand, waiting for Julia to seal Cassian's board before her own. She noticed Cassian choosing salt - to banish or lessen someone or something else's powers. Her brow furrowed for a moment, wondering what he was focusing on, but left him to it, choosing herbs for her own.

She figured, if she could always be the strongest version of herself, it didn't matter what anyone else did. Sprinkling her herbs, Rosie closed her eyes, hovering her hands above the bowl, imagining visions of red abstracts as she focused.

A quick glance over her students told Julia that perhaps some of them were still too immature to handle such a serious subject. The darker arts weren't something to take lightly or play with, and while Julia had the mind that magic was just that, she also had a healthy respect for the power they all wielded.

The first reprimand came for Catherine, who apparently had taken no heed of her instructions and thought it was all a silly game that she could wield the way she wanted to.

Not in Julia's class. The professor stood back, watching Catherine carefully from the other side of the class, allowing the eleven-year-old to make a mess of the entire project. When it came time to concentrate, Julia gave a quick flick of her wand, summoning Catherine's board from beneath her gaze to her free hand. Julia turned and sat it quietly on her own desk, before turning back to the class.

"If instructions can't be followed, then the ability to participate will be removed. Five points from Ravenclaw. Detention this Saturday after breakfast. My office in the library." Simple and to the point, with no further clarification coming. Catherine could sit quietly in her chair the rest of class.

The second came for Tulip. She let the girl go on her rant, the Gryffindor clearly not understanding that a wand and altar were two very different tools and not used for the same things. Instead of giving the girl the attention she so desperately wanted, Julia merely smiled, "I think you'll find when you give new avenues a chance, the world opens up to you in a bigger way." There, enough said. They could move on. Dubthach was gearing up to lecture again, and she snapped her fingers at him, causing the skeleton to quiet immediately with a slight grumble.

The rest of them had done well, following instructions as closely as they could. "In the bowl, darling," Julia said with a slight nod to Vinnie. And then, something curious with Elias. Her eyes drifted to the candle as it hovered above him while he drew out his symbols, the flame flickering brief shades of red and black. Blood. Interesting. She'd let it be.

As they all held their hands over their bowls, the room darkened further, the candle that floated above snuffed out. There was a buzzing that sounded through the room, soft at first and then louder, reverberating off the walls. The desks shook, the legs clattering against the stone floor of the classroom. A small smile played on Julia's lips as Dubthach began chuckling lightly to himself.

Vinnie, Ruth, Matilda, Tulip and Rosalie would feel the energy they'd poured into their altars suddenly surge beneath their hands encircling their hands with a warmth that would grow in intensity until it felt similar to holding their hands under hot water. If they could manage to push through the discomfort, they'd feel, just at the peak of their ability to withstand, the energy suddenly shoot back into their hands like a shockwave and spread like wildfire throughout their arms and chest before dissipating. They would feel something similar to the lingering hum of adrenaline after a near-miss, every sense suddenly sharper, every vein alive with heat. For a fleeting moment their magic roared louder than it ever had, their very cores vibrating with a strength that was entirely their own.

Elias would feel the same energy at first, warmth encircling his hands, growing in intensity, but his shockwave would spread further, up through his face and down his abdomen through his legs and to the bottom of his feet. For a moment, he'd feel his entire body vibrating with the surge of power that flowed through him, lingering slightly longer than his peers. Blood was an incredible amplifier after all.

Cassian, Oilibhéar, Corbin and Benji, would all feel a pulsing beneath their hands as the salt drained the energy from them. It pulled, absorbing, the pulse growing stronger and almost thundering with vibrations against their palms, causing them to shake, before suddenly shooting from their altars in several directions. Energy from Cassian and Oilibhéar raced across the room - Cassian's shooting upwards through the ceiling and disappearing to wherever he'd sent it, Oilibhéar's circling the room like lightning, jutting through every one of his classmates with a sharp jolt of cold air before dissipating just before it reached him again. Corbin's energy launched itself in a streak directly towards Dubthach, hitting the skeleton directly in the chest, rattling the pile of bones and draining him of all energy, his eyes going dark as the red vanished from its sockets. Benji's shot forward, directly for the professor, aiming for her chest. Julia smirked just holding her arms out slightly to her side as her boy's energy hit her, with an equally cold, sharp jolt. She took a sharp breath as ice filled her chest, feeling her own strength falter.

"Well done!" she praised all of them, flicking her wand to reignite the candles and fairy lights above all of them. "What you have just done is wielded your own energy for the purpose of strength or weakening. While this is basic in the idea of using an altar, you have just experienced what it is to truly take control of your own magic and harness it. Those of you that summoned just amplified your own power. If you were to cast now, you'd find the intensity of your charms, divinations, or transfigurations increased slightly. As you grow in your knowledge of magic, you'll find that your ability in summoning your own magical strength will grow as well."

She smiled, "But Mister Ó Coigligh counteracted that. When he banished, you saw his energy race through the room, felt it jolt through every single one of you."

She turned her gaze to Dubthach and then back to Corbin. "Well done, Mister Donahue, incredibly impressive. This is the perfect example of the energy banishing that can be wielded when your focus and determination is combined with intention. Ten points to Slytherin." Dubthach would have plenty of complaining to do when she woke him later, but for now, he could enjoy his nap.

"Now, to explain a little more in depth. Celts and Nords used altars similar to these in their practices when they were imploring their gods and earthly energies for interception in their daily lives. For strength, for wellness, fertility, healthy crops, abundancy. But also for banishing curses, hexes, illnesses and weakening their enemies. These are important practices that will only enhance your spellcasting as you find new ways to use it. Summoning and banishing strength is only the beginning of what you can do."

She indicated to the class. "I want to hear from each of you. What did you experience as you summoned or banished? If you summoned, what were you feeling as the energy returned to you? If you banished, how do you feel now? Drained? Or empowered? Safe? And all of you were jolted by Mister Ó Coigligh's banishment. What were the sensations? Could you feel his energy entangling with yours?"

She waited, eager to hear what they had to say.

---

*OOC: Yaaaay! Look at yall! This was so fun to write. So pretty straightforward. You'll want to give your character's reactions to his update - all the sensations, feelings, emotions. How did Bear's zap affect you (hint - his zap would have lessened powers slightly)? How did your summoning if you did it affect you? How did your banishment if you did it feel?

This is the final update before the closing post on 9/25. Next class will focus on Binding Rites/Ancestral Magic.

Benji was a grumpy boy. He hadn't always been, but the life of a Hogwarts student had gotten to him and had whittled him down over time. Now he grumbled about needing food at all the worst times and shrank with embarrassment over perfectly reasonable questions that could only help them, while muttering that they shouldn't be asking them in the first place. Silly, that's what he was, and Rae had long since learned to ignore most of his protests.

The girl had seen him when he didn't agree with something--genuinely and with his whole chest. If the boy had actually meant the things he protested, everyone would know. No one would be happy; at least the two of them would be in detention. It shouldn't have come as any surprise then that her entire reaction to the Hufflepuff was an affectionate pat on his cheek before she returned to her work.

He was adorable when he pretended not to have fun, and Rae could convince herself about 98.32% of the time that he was clearly pretending.

Just as she'd caught up to the instructions, Rae saw someone's board being summoned to the front of the room. Roaming eyes landed on the little Ravenclaw first year who'd gotten points taken from her house. The Fourth Year was neither here nor there about such hang-ups, thinking no one owed their house points of any kind. Her only confusion came with Catherine's decision to make a mockery of the dark arts as if she didn't know it was as easy for a demon to pop out and pull her into some unknown plane of existence.

Some people liked to tempt fate, she guessed.

Tulip was another who liked tempting and pushing limits. She wasn't at all surprised by her friend's remarks, used to the girl's defiance by now. It took on a different shade than Rae's, often more chaotic and less reasoned than the Slytherin tended to be with her own acts of rebellion.

Must've been a Gryffindor thing.

She settled her mind on her altar again, waiting for whatever would happen next. There was nothing at first, leading Rae to believe she'd done something wrong, but soon enough, she could feel the surging energy. It was little more than a tingle to start, as it enveloped her hands; a niggle, a spot of warmth, an indication of its presence. Then it grew. The heat that invaded her hands almost saw the girl pulling away before she remembered this was likely part of the ritual. If there was one thing she knew about this sort of magic, it was that you had to commit, even when it felt like your skin was being boiled off.

It was a little like holding her hands over a burning cauldron, but just when she thought she'd had enough and would have to surrender, the scorching energy shot back into her hands, shooting through her limbs with purpose before mercifully fizzling out in her chest. Rae exhaled deeply, finally letting out the breath she'd been holding throughout the ordeal. Where before there was intensity, there was now a more familiar hum flowing through her body and something else...something stronger.

Before she could relish in her hard work, a cold jolt of energy suddenly darted through her, chilling her to her bones. Rae shivered against the sudden assault, immediately looking around for what might have caused it when Julia explained.

"But Mister Ó Coigligh counteracted that. When he banished, you saw his energy race through the room, felt it jolt through every single one of you."

Rae groaned loudly.

"Thanks a lot, Bear."

All the power now unlocked and at her fingertips, and the boy had managed to drain it before she could cast even one impressive spell. It wasn't fair. She'd suffered the heat of her ritual for nothing, robbed by an overzealous Ravenclaw who couldn't keep his magic to himself. It was just her luck.

"What were the sensations?"

"I felt a great sensation of injustice, professor," Rae said, slumping forward onto her desk with her elbow propped and her jaw resting in the palm of her hand. "A grave injustice."

"Anything and everything. The way she arranged her furniture. The things she studied. He even had opinions about her marriage. He was right about that one, I guess."

"...Yeah." Cassian couldn't really argue with that one. When Rosie had first told him about the engagement, he remembered she hadn't been particularly thrilled. The whole thing had gone by in a flash, and before he'd known it, the woman had had a new name and an...er...intense man constantly hovering over her shoulder, seeming to find new things to mope about. Everyone was entitled to what they liked, of course, and the boy was hardly one to mock anyone's tastes, but it had started to feel like...no one thought they were a good match. There were even a few times he'd heard other professors make comments in passing when they thought no one could hear.

"I suppose it's good she got out while she could. Heard he fucked off back to wherever he'd come from, and it doesn't sound like she'd have had a good time going with him."

Should they have been discussing the professor's failed marriage in the middle of her class? Probably not. Cassian had a fair bit of reasoning that said he shouldn't, but the pair of them were doing their best to whisper. They certainly weren't encouraging anyone else in on the conversation either.

Cass hadn't been paying much attention to things outside of his altar and the chat he exchanged with his girlfriend. Despite his concentration, he'd still managed to be taken aback by the sudden pull of energy. He hadn't expected the thundering intensity of the pounding but knew well enough to maintain his composure and concentration until the moment it shot forth and...uh...through the ceiling? The boy followed the path it had taken until it disappeared without any warning on where it might have been heading or who it might have affected.

Hopefully, that wouldn't be a problem.

Then he felt it. A chill shot through him, sending a violent shiver down his spine. That was...unpleasant. Cassian straightened in his seat, trying to shake what remained of that cold and draining energy while the professor went on with explanations.

"I reckon I was feeling pretty okay until I got zapped by Bear's energy, professor." It was unfortunate for him to have his power drained without having ever buffed it to begin with.

"This won't last long, yeah?"

His nervousness turned to trepidation as he listened to his classmates. Mostly, as he was rather certain that if his classmates would try to summon something that the professor would let them. A simple fact that made him nervous considering that he knew his classmates would do just that - and not just chaotic Gryffindors like Tulip.

He let himself take a breath as he focused on his own altar. He took another breath noticing he was much more focused on his work than his classmates were on there’s. Even if many could cast the charm he was unable to.

With his hands over his altar he felt energy draining from him. A feeling that scared him and made him want to pull his hands away immediately. The knowledge of the fact that his classmates were probably summoning something chaotic kept his hands in place and his focus set. He had a clear focus and intent as he breathed slowly as he focused on protecting himself and keeping anything his classmates summoned away from him.

At his core Bear was selfish and only looking out for his own safety.

He felt energy go out from his altar and even saw lighting appear around the room in his periphery vision as he looked down at his altar with focus. He didn’t look up to see what else happened around him.

Then it seemed the exercise was over and he let out a breath he’d been holding in. He’d made it. Looking around his whole class made it without more chaos being let loose in the school - or so he hoped.

"But Mister Ó Coigligh counteracted that. When he banished, you saw his energy race through the room, felt it jolt through every single one of you.”

He blinked. He what?

There was no way he counteracted all his classmates with his magic. Surprised he looked up at the professor with a confused expression on his face wanting to question it. However, at the same time he had little desire to admit how rubbish he was at magic. Admitting the simple fact he couldn’t even cast Scourgify as a fourth year was enough to keep him quiet.

So he kept his mouth shut and listened.

He blinked again as it was repeated that he’d really managed to zap all his classmates. He said “ Your welcome “ with a look towards Ruth, more than happy he might have stopped whatever chaos she’d of brought to the class.

Then he looked up at Julia and said “ Was I supposed to feel anything. I mostly just felt a peaceful focus like I do when I work on my clocks. “

It went unsaid that he was definitely interested in this area of magic for future research as it wasn’t often that he found something practical magic wise he was good at. The last thing he found was conjuring and it was pretty much all he studied minus some interests in divination due to the interleaving with time.