Hmm, there are a lot of characters that I've used that would be interested in things beneath the dust....
Beneath the dust "Love-lies-bleeding," said Malcolm Moodswing, who was insisting that the class break with the venerable tradition of referring to the teacher as 'Sir' or 'Madam' and call him 'Moods' instead, "is typically found... where?" He spun around, nimble as the leprechaun he had a strong resemblance to, and pointed his wand at the students. All of whom ducked reflexively. "Ah, sorry," said Moods lowering his wand. "I keep forgetting. Anyway, you, kid in the third row who looks like a toad sucking on a lemon. Where do we pick Love-lies-bleeding from?" "Me?" squeaked Dean Morrissey who had wanted to be a footballer when he was younger and was starting to deeply regret giving up on that ambition. "Er, it's, er...." A hand to the left of him shot up, and Moods glanced at its owner. "Give him a chance to answer," he said, sounding just a touch indulgent. "Er... graveyards?" said Dean. "It's a grave-flower isn't it?" "That's a good start," said Moods, smiling. His shock of ginger hair bobbed as he nodded his head as well. "A good start. Can you be a little more precise though?" "You pick it after dark?" "You wouldn't be able to see it then," said Hermy, the owner of the raised hand who could no longer help herself. "That is true," said Moods, "but that's enough helping him. Let him get there himself." "Um, then you pick it at dusk," said Dean, as memories of reading a textbook started to filter through the panic clouding his brain. "Uh, you pick it at dusk, and... oh! It grows inside tombs, on the walls, and resembles bloodstains." "Much better," said Moods, his grin as wide as his face. "Now Hermione, would you like to fill in the missing details?" "It's usually found beneath undisturbed bones and shrouds," said Hermy quickly. "It prefers to grow beneath the grave dust until it's ready to bloom, and then it throws out long, viciously pointed thorns on tendrils to catch and drain the blood from the grave-mites, worms and any mourners stupid enough to be nearby and paying no attention." "Wormy Hermy," came a whisper from the back of the class. "I heard that, Jobbie," said Hermy without pausing. "Then it produces blood-red flowers that spread over the walls and floors looking like puddles of blood, and if left like that eventually shrivel up to look like bloodstains." "My name's Robbie," muttered the whisperer at the back. "Very good Dean, and very good Hermione," said Moods. "Now, this morning a student was found in the Forbidden Graveyard at the rear of the school property, and they appeared to have been attempting to harvest Love-lies-bleeding. Would any of you like to share any information you have about this, hmm?" Hermione quietly pushed her potions bag, with fresh Love-lies-bleeding petals in it, under her seat.
Greg - I kinda thought you might want to continue with Dr. S, but this works too!
Always a treat to visit your version of Hogwarts. And I quite like this teacher! He seems both capable and kind, though I am admittedly wary of using that second descriptor in your world...
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Hmm, there are a lot of characters that I've used that would be interested in things beneath the dust....
Beneath the dust
"Love-lies-bleeding," said Malcolm Moodswing, who was insisting that the class break with the venerable tradition of referring to the teacher as 'Sir' or 'Madam' and call him 'Moods' instead, "is typically found... where?" He spun around, nimble as the leprechaun he had a strong resemblance to, and pointed his wand at the students. All of whom ducked reflexively.
"Ah, sorry," said Moods lowering his wand. "I keep forgetting. Anyway, you, kid in the third row who looks like a toad sucking on a lemon. Where do we pick Love-lies-bleeding from?"
"Me?" squeaked Dean Morrissey who had wanted to be a footballer when he was younger and was starting to deeply regret giving up on that ambition. "Er, it's, er...."
A hand to the left of him shot up, and Moods glanced at its owner. "Give him a chance to answer," he said, sounding just a touch indulgent.
"Er... graveyards?" said Dean. "It's a grave-flower isn't it?"
"That's a good start," said Moods, smiling. His shock of ginger hair bobbed as he nodded his head as well. "A good start. Can you be a little more precise though?"
"You pick it after dark?"
"You wouldn't be able to see it then," said Hermy, the owner of the raised hand who could no longer help herself.
"That is true," said Moods, "but that's enough helping him. Let him get there himself."
"Um, then you pick it at dusk," said Dean, as memories of reading a textbook started to filter through the panic clouding his brain. "Uh, you pick it at dusk, and... oh! It grows inside tombs, on the walls, and resembles bloodstains."
"Much better," said Moods, his grin as wide as his face. "Now Hermione, would you like to fill in the missing details?"
"It's usually found beneath undisturbed bones and shrouds," said Hermy quickly. "It prefers to grow beneath the grave dust until it's ready to bloom, and then it throws out long, viciously pointed thorns on tendrils to catch and drain the blood from the grave-mites, worms and any mourners stupid enough to be nearby and paying no attention."
"Wormy Hermy," came a whisper from the back of the class.
"I heard that, Jobbie," said Hermy without pausing. "Then it produces blood-red flowers that spread over the walls and floors looking like puddles of blood, and if left like that eventually shrivel up to look like bloodstains."
"My name's Robbie," muttered the whisperer at the back.
"Very good Dean, and very good Hermione," said Moods. "Now, this morning a student was found in the Forbidden Graveyard at the rear of the school property, and they appeared to have been attempting to harvest Love-lies-bleeding. Would any of you like to share any information you have about this, hmm?"
Hermione quietly pushed her potions bag, with fresh Love-lies-bleeding petals in it, under her seat.
Greg - I kinda thought you might want to continue with Dr. S, but this works too!
Always a treat to visit your version of Hogwarts. And I quite like this teacher! He seems both capable and kind, though I am admittedly wary of using that second descriptor in your world...
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