Post by Professor Laryssa Miller on Feb 3, 2008 23:02:46 GMT
((I know this isn't until tomorrow but I wanted to get it going before I became far too busy.. 
You can post now or wait until tomorrow.))
Laryssa looked up into the big glass dome of the Astronomy tower. The dark inkiness of the sky loomed over her with the stars barely twinkling. The lights of her classroom were on fully, giving the classroom the look of a pristine hospital. The desks, which were more like long tables, were lined perfectly in four rows. Each desk had three chairs at it and suspended above as if by an invisible lift or shelf were golden coloured telescopes. In the front of the room was Laryssa's black oak desk. On it was a single lamp and there were papers strewn everywhere. Her glasses were resting gently on top of a stack of papers, a quill was positioned nicely in its holder. Everything looked so elegant but in reality it was just a mess of disorganisation. The lights that lined the circular classroom were bright and white, and they left no room for shadows. Laryssa, secretly, hated shadows but she, oddly enough, loved the dark. With a sigh exuded from Laryssa and a swish from her midnight blue robes, she walked back over to her desk and picked up her glasses, setting them on her nose gently. She sank into the comfortable chair and picked up her quill, dipped it into the red ink pot to her left, and began reading over a paper from a NEWT she had just received. It was two weeks late and although Laryssa was partially grateful for not having to grade it with the rest of them, she was slightly peeved that the paper was two weeks late. Her quill scratched on the parchment as she corrected it and then put the final grade at the top; "Acceptable – but do keep in mind, I do not usually accept late papers and next time you might not be so lucky, L.T.M." She crossed her T and then set the paper aside to dry just as the first group of Beginner students filed in.
Her blue eyes flickered as they took their seats and chattered amongst themselves. She watched them for a moment, and smiled to herself. She loved first years because they never knew quite what to expect. Sure, all they could hear were rumours, but rumours weren't the real thing. Laryssa sat back in her chair, her right leg crossed over her left at the knee. Once the class was full and the chatter was getting obnoxiously loud, Laryssa stood from her desk and walked leisurely over to a desk in the middle of the room and perched herself on it, much to the dismay of the second year sitting in it. The class immediately quieted because of her odd behaviour, "Mmm, good, you all do know how to quiet down. Now, let's see if we can keep it that way without me having to sit on a desk, shall we?" The class just looked at her, beady little eyes locking on her – some filled with hatred, some with fear, and most with confusion. She stood from the desk and took her glasses off, setting them on her desk before turning to look at the class in a magnificent swoop. Her robes billowed around her, her wand glinted in her hand, and then the room was plunged into darkness. Without the bright lights to illuminate the circular room, the glass dome held no inhibitions of letting every single star shine brightly down into the room. She smiled and looked around at the students. She could see each face perfectly, considering the moon was bright enough to illuminate for important purposes. "Welcome, to Beginners' Astronomy. I'm Professor Miller and you've guessed it, I'm your teacher." All eyes were on her as she spoke to them, her tone resounding around the room.
"For those of you who have had me before, glad to see you back, and for those who haven't – well, hopefully you'll be back in the following years, past your fifth year that is. This class is not an easy one. It's probably the most difficult you'll ever experience," she crossed her arms over her chest and looked up at the sky before continuing, "Now, I won't play naïve, I know I've been called the female version of Professor Snape, but that's alright –" she smirked and looked at them again, "I think he's one of the better teachers at this school. The truth is, my class is hard. If you don't like hard, I suggest you get out. The door's over there," a few students started to rise, "But I will tell you this, my class is a beneficial one. You might not become a famous astronomer, but you will learn something in this class, something interesting. So, you can leave my classroom and sign up for Divination because it's a bird course, or you can stay and learn something new." She waited patiently and the few students who had risen sat back down, looking hesitant. "Good," she smiled at them, "in that case – let's get on with the basics. Now, I know it's boring," Laryssa moved across the front of the class, sliding her wand barely over the front desks. Stacks of papers appeared, each stamped with a name of the student it was for. She stopped at the opposite end and began, "My class is about the stars and planets, thus it is primarily taught at night, in the dark. If you have seeing problems, let me know and I'll make special arrangements with your head of house, other than that I don't want to see or hear the following things," Laryssa flicked her wand and bright golden words showed in the air, hovering over her desk, she read them off as they appeared; "Snoring, talking, whispering, sleeping, eating, and drinking. Just because it's dark doesn't mean I can't see. I'm nearly an owl, I see everything.
"Those aren't the only rules, though," there were some groans and Laryssa raised an eyebrow, "I've tried to ban that one, but there's no way around it – every student here has a built in groan machine, but no, they aren't the only rules." More words flashed and Laryssa read them off from memory, "Respect me, those dazzling telescopes above your head, and each other. As Professor Snape would say, 'there will be no foolish wand waving in my class.' This is Astronomy, not Duelling, let's keep it that way. We all need both eyes to do this class. No speaking out without raising your hand, as long as you have one – I'll expect you to use it. Don't be surprised if I completely ignore you if you talk without your hand having been raised. Never be late. My motto is "to be on time is to be late, to be early is to be on time." Some of you were late today, but since it's the first day, no points will be deducted. Turning in your homework late is unacceptable, I grade harsher if it's late. Keep that in mind, hmm?" Laryssa waved her wand and the words disappeared, "One more thing; chances are if you hate being here, I hate being here, too. So, don't give me attitude about being here. You can always leave. If you do, you probably won't be welcomed back and your grade will suffer. I don't waste my time. Now," Laryssa offered them a sweet smile that was like seeing a smile on a piranha, "I'm done talking. Your assignment is on the board. Turn it in when you are finished. Once everyone has finished, I'll begin teaching. Good luck." Laryssa took one last look at her new class and then waved her wand. Illuminated words in chalk appeared on the black board as Laryssa sank into her seat to continue grading papers.
((Now, this needs to be completed before I will post the next part of class. Sorry if I scared anyone. 
She's a tough teacher. But trust me when I say she does get better, she just doesn't mess around. Please don't let it scare you off from posting in this class, the class will get better the more we get into it. 
)
You can post now or wait until tomorrow.))Laryssa looked up into the big glass dome of the Astronomy tower. The dark inkiness of the sky loomed over her with the stars barely twinkling. The lights of her classroom were on fully, giving the classroom the look of a pristine hospital. The desks, which were more like long tables, were lined perfectly in four rows. Each desk had three chairs at it and suspended above as if by an invisible lift or shelf were golden coloured telescopes. In the front of the room was Laryssa's black oak desk. On it was a single lamp and there were papers strewn everywhere. Her glasses were resting gently on top of a stack of papers, a quill was positioned nicely in its holder. Everything looked so elegant but in reality it was just a mess of disorganisation. The lights that lined the circular classroom were bright and white, and they left no room for shadows. Laryssa, secretly, hated shadows but she, oddly enough, loved the dark. With a sigh exuded from Laryssa and a swish from her midnight blue robes, she walked back over to her desk and picked up her glasses, setting them on her nose gently. She sank into the comfortable chair and picked up her quill, dipped it into the red ink pot to her left, and began reading over a paper from a NEWT she had just received. It was two weeks late and although Laryssa was partially grateful for not having to grade it with the rest of them, she was slightly peeved that the paper was two weeks late. Her quill scratched on the parchment as she corrected it and then put the final grade at the top; "Acceptable – but do keep in mind, I do not usually accept late papers and next time you might not be so lucky, L.T.M." She crossed her T and then set the paper aside to dry just as the first group of Beginner students filed in.
Her blue eyes flickered as they took their seats and chattered amongst themselves. She watched them for a moment, and smiled to herself. She loved first years because they never knew quite what to expect. Sure, all they could hear were rumours, but rumours weren't the real thing. Laryssa sat back in her chair, her right leg crossed over her left at the knee. Once the class was full and the chatter was getting obnoxiously loud, Laryssa stood from her desk and walked leisurely over to a desk in the middle of the room and perched herself on it, much to the dismay of the second year sitting in it. The class immediately quieted because of her odd behaviour, "Mmm, good, you all do know how to quiet down. Now, let's see if we can keep it that way without me having to sit on a desk, shall we?" The class just looked at her, beady little eyes locking on her – some filled with hatred, some with fear, and most with confusion. She stood from the desk and took her glasses off, setting them on her desk before turning to look at the class in a magnificent swoop. Her robes billowed around her, her wand glinted in her hand, and then the room was plunged into darkness. Without the bright lights to illuminate the circular room, the glass dome held no inhibitions of letting every single star shine brightly down into the room. She smiled and looked around at the students. She could see each face perfectly, considering the moon was bright enough to illuminate for important purposes. "Welcome, to Beginners' Astronomy. I'm Professor Miller and you've guessed it, I'm your teacher." All eyes were on her as she spoke to them, her tone resounding around the room.
"For those of you who have had me before, glad to see you back, and for those who haven't – well, hopefully you'll be back in the following years, past your fifth year that is. This class is not an easy one. It's probably the most difficult you'll ever experience," she crossed her arms over her chest and looked up at the sky before continuing, "Now, I won't play naïve, I know I've been called the female version of Professor Snape, but that's alright –" she smirked and looked at them again, "I think he's one of the better teachers at this school. The truth is, my class is hard. If you don't like hard, I suggest you get out. The door's over there," a few students started to rise, "But I will tell you this, my class is a beneficial one. You might not become a famous astronomer, but you will learn something in this class, something interesting. So, you can leave my classroom and sign up for Divination because it's a bird course, or you can stay and learn something new." She waited patiently and the few students who had risen sat back down, looking hesitant. "Good," she smiled at them, "in that case – let's get on with the basics. Now, I know it's boring," Laryssa moved across the front of the class, sliding her wand barely over the front desks. Stacks of papers appeared, each stamped with a name of the student it was for. She stopped at the opposite end and began, "My class is about the stars and planets, thus it is primarily taught at night, in the dark. If you have seeing problems, let me know and I'll make special arrangements with your head of house, other than that I don't want to see or hear the following things," Laryssa flicked her wand and bright golden words showed in the air, hovering over her desk, she read them off as they appeared; "Snoring, talking, whispering, sleeping, eating, and drinking. Just because it's dark doesn't mean I can't see. I'm nearly an owl, I see everything.
"Those aren't the only rules, though," there were some groans and Laryssa raised an eyebrow, "I've tried to ban that one, but there's no way around it – every student here has a built in groan machine, but no, they aren't the only rules." More words flashed and Laryssa read them off from memory, "Respect me, those dazzling telescopes above your head, and each other. As Professor Snape would say, 'there will be no foolish wand waving in my class.' This is Astronomy, not Duelling, let's keep it that way. We all need both eyes to do this class. No speaking out without raising your hand, as long as you have one – I'll expect you to use it. Don't be surprised if I completely ignore you if you talk without your hand having been raised. Never be late. My motto is "to be on time is to be late, to be early is to be on time." Some of you were late today, but since it's the first day, no points will be deducted. Turning in your homework late is unacceptable, I grade harsher if it's late. Keep that in mind, hmm?" Laryssa waved her wand and the words disappeared, "One more thing; chances are if you hate being here, I hate being here, too. So, don't give me attitude about being here. You can always leave. If you do, you probably won't be welcomed back and your grade will suffer. I don't waste my time. Now," Laryssa offered them a sweet smile that was like seeing a smile on a piranha, "I'm done talking. Your assignment is on the board. Turn it in when you are finished. Once everyone has finished, I'll begin teaching. Good luck." Laryssa took one last look at her new class and then waved her wand. Illuminated words in chalk appeared on the black board as Laryssa sank into her seat to continue grading papers.
((Now, this needs to be completed before I will post the next part of class.
Sorry if I scared anyone. 
She's a tough teacher. But trust me when I say she does get better, she just doesn't mess around. Please don't let it scare you off from posting in this class, the class will get better the more we get into it. 
)
