Hex The Sneezing Hex, First Year

Backdated to first year

The fact that they sometimes learned spells in History of Magic really confused Lucia Fox. Wasn't it supposed to be, well, history? And yet, for the third time this year, the classroom had been temporarily turned into that of a Charms lesson - or maybe a Defence Against The Dark Arts lesson, seeing as it turned out that the first years were today learning a hex.

A sneezing hex, to be specific.

Now, that just confused Lucia even more. What was the point of making someone sneeze, other than to make them annoyed at you? Why? After demonstrating the spell, though (as Lucia winced in sympathy for the poor boy who'd been picked out as test subject) the History of Magic professor explained that, in fact, making someone sneeze could have its uses. In duelling?! When did people do duels at Hogwarts? Lucia was fairly convinced that it was a barbaric sport, and was pleased that it wasn't a thing at Hogwarts. Yet.

Once they were all sent off to practise, Lucia decided to try and get the pronunciation right before actually casting - and the wand movement as well. Wand movements were annoying, because the slightest difference in the swish or flick could completely change the spell. Was that how people created new spells? They just waved their wands about in random patterns until something came out? Lucia inspected her wand for a moment, and then realised that everyone else was already practising the spell on their partners. "STÉ-lee-us," she murmured to her desk. "STÉ-lee-us, STÉ-lee-us."

She looked up to find someone watching her. "Um." They coughed. "Partner?"
Lucia let out a sigh of relief that she wouldn't have to find anyone to ask. "Yes. Thanks. Okay. Thank you. Do you want to-"
The other first year had begun the wand movement before Lucia had even finished the sentence, and she didn't have time to react as - "Steleus!" - Lucia suddenly found herself doubled over.
"Merlin's- beard-" she gasped out once it was finally over, still bent in her chair, feeling as though her nose was certainly thoroughly cleared. She then realised that there was snot all over her hands from when she'd held them up to cover her nose and squealed. "Oh Merlin oh Merlin oh Merlin do you have a tissue oh Merlin eww!" The other student wordlessly handed her a box of tissues which Lucia tore into gratefully, scrubbing her hands until they were clean. "Ew."

Now it was her turn, and she had to suppress the urge to get her partner back for their own spell. She took a deep breath and aimed her wand. "Steleus." Nothing happened. Lucia glared at her wand, feeling anger rising up from somewhere inside her that she couldn't get this little thing right, and then her partner coughed again.
"Um, you forgot the wand movement. It's-"
"I know what it is," Lucia interrupted, scowling, although mostly at herself. The wand movement. Such a stupid thing to forget, she told herself, and then took another deep breath. Calm...

"STÉ-lee-us." Lucia quickly moved her wand downwards and outwards and her partner succumbed to a sneezing fit which probably couldn't be contained by the single tissue they were holding.

Professor Edit: It seemed that Miss Fox fell into the nervous category when it came to casting, as she not only messed up the wand movement but seemed to have forgotten it completely. However, Zahid did not have to interfere as a reminder by her partner seemed to suffice. "Well done, you two."

Steleus learned

Yawning was sounded out of the boy. Cody was tired, he couldn't deny that. Then again, who could? Its not that history was bad, and truth be told, Professor Zalid was truly a remarkable teacher, and for him to host such extraordinary spells for extracurricular activities, Cody was delighted. The Professor truly found a way to immerse Cody in the world of History... with spells. Well, this wasn't exactly learning about the Goblin Revolutions and all, but it was something that everyone would enjoy. Now, they just learned a lesson as to how to cast Steleus, or the Sneezing Hex.

A chortle out of nowhere was what made the boy pay attention to the wand movement and pronunciation. He had to practice the wand movement at least three times before he could cast a spell. Of course, he eyed a girl and waved her over. She smiled brightly as to be picked, for a target anyways. Without saying anything, he made a quick downward movement, them moved the wand outwards to the girl. Repeating this several times seemed to save him. He was able to commit this by memory. The girl did the same, but struggled to recall how quickly she had to move the wand downwards and to point it towards your opponent.

Now, to make sure they could speak the spells as effectively as they could, they grinned in unison. Cody decided to let the girl attempt to say the spell incantation properly first, then he took the wheel, so to speak. "STÉ-lee-us. STÉ-lee-us. STÉ-lee-us." Cody said, emphasizing on the STE part of Steleus.

Was it time for Cody to cast the Sneezing Hex on the girl? Yes. He threw a box of tissues at her, perhaps causing her to look away as the boy cast the Sneezing Hex on her. "STÉ-lee-us!" Cody said, making a downward motion as quickly as he could and then pointed the wand outwards towards the girl. She began sneezing uncontrollably. Well, the boy was loving this spell. He repeated it quite a few times, a mischievous glint in his eyes. "STÉ-lee-us!" Again making a quick downward swipe with his wand and pointed it outwards towards the girl.

Once again, he swiped his wand downwards and out towards the girl, "STE-lee-us!" Was all he said. He did this repeatedly to the girl, watching her sneeze all over the place. The boy smirked at the professor. "I think I did rather good. Now, to continue." For reasons unbeknownst to Cody, he seemed to love the sneeizing hex. His wand went downwards and then he outstretched his wand arm to the girl, smirking as he said the incantation again. "STE-lee-us!"

Word Count: 445

Professor Edit: Zahid wondered what it was about this hex that made students want to repeatedly attack their partners instead of taking turns. "While I appreciate your enthusiasm, this is a practice lesson not a duel, Mr. Stevenson. Give your partner a chance to take her turn."

Steleus learned

Juniper was many things, but a bad-grade student was NOT one of them. Nor would it ever, ever be. Especially when it came to casting charms because she understood how important defending herself was. In fact, her mam was really paranoid on that matter. She had made it clear, very clear, that Juni was to know how to defend herself. The way her man spoke, you would think someone would jump out of nowhere and kidnap Juni. But the reason for this was because Juni was a part-goblin. Juni didn't understand why this mattered, but her mother had been stern.

She walked into the classroom, looking for the professor. Other students were there before her, and she shoved past students to get a sit right in the middle. BEing at the front meant people would watch her spell casting. Being at the back meant less of a chance the professor would see her. The middle was a perfect alternative. She hopped in her seat, waiting for the professor to enter.

Finally, he entered and introduced himself. Juni swung her legs, listening and hanging on to every word he said during the lesson. They were learning a hex. Amazing! She widened her eyes when the teacher demonstrated. Ah! So it really did work! She tilted her head, amazed. She would get to do that? It would be so useful when making bullies pay! She rested her head on her hands, watching the professor do the movement. "Down and outward." She whispered to herself.

She took her wand from her pocket, eager to try as the teacher instructed. " So it;s down, fast then outward..." She muttered, practicing as she did so. Down, out. She felt as if she might accidentally poke someone's eye out if they got too close. Now, the pronunciation. "Er.. it's ste-lee-us... but the emphasis on the e... he said... STÉ-lee-us She cleared her throat. s-s-STÉ-lee-us!! She bit her lip.

"STÉ-l-lee-us.." She shook her head. "STÉ-lee-us!" She was sure that sounded right. Then she rolled her wand in her hands, hopping from her seat. Partners? Oh joy! She looked around and paired with a Hufflepuff girl with a nice face. "Hey, of course this will be fun! You can go first, if you want..." Juniper beamed.

She stepped away, and cleared her throat. "STÉ-lee-us!" She made a downward motion, then pointed her wand to the girl. Nothing. "try again!"

Juniper sighed. She could do this. "STÉ-lee-us!" She made the movement, and the dark-skinned Hufflepuff doubled over, sneezing. Juniper reached for a tissue box, and handed them to the girl. "I'm sorry! But... wow! I cant believe I did that!"

She turned around, and let the girl wipe her nose. She watched the girl try the spell a few times, 3 times until it hit her. Juniper felt that tickle on her nose and sneezed. But she sneezed again, and again! She didn't like it, not one bit. Finally, finally it stopped. "Sorry, haha..." Juniper grabbed tissues. "No problemo! I still HATED thatm though!!!"

Professor Edit: Making his way over to the Ravenclaw-Hufflepuff pair, Zahid noted that they both seemed to have slight trouble casting the hex, but in the end they both managed to cast it successfully. "Well done, you two."

Steleus learned

Rachel entered the History of Magic classroom and was surprised to see an open space there. The chairs and desks were stacked up and the only two remaining desks were taken up by some tissues... Tissues? Rachel looked left and right and glanced around the classroom, hoping to see some kind of clue what the heck they were doing. Obviously, they were going to learn a spell but what kind? What kind of spell includes tissues? Guess this is the result of not checking her syllabus. As Professor Zahid entered the classroom, which Rachel didn't notice that he was the last to enter, he explained that they were doing or attempting the sneezing hex. Hearing that, Rachel was in a mix of relief, shock, excitement, and worries.

She was relieved that the spell wasn't going to be too dangerous or something, heck the only thing that will happen is to make the target of the hex have a sneezing fit so it's not that dangerous. And was a shock, the professor said it himself, it can be used in a duel. She thought it can be used as a harmless little prank or an annoyance to someone but then again, expect the unexpected right? Well, this was surely a surprise for a dueling opponent.

But she then got worried. What if she cast the hex wrong and her partner will have to deal with the consequences or effects of the wrong spell? What if her partner dies?? Many what-ifs clouded her mind, she couldn't help it alright? If she practices with a test dummy, the one that wasn't alive, she would be fine but a literal human? Not a good thing for her. But taking the worrying thoughts aside, she was excited. New spells to defend herself or to use as a prank to someone or maybe even her enemy? Heck yeah.

Snapping out of her thoughts, she began to practice. Practice now, go find a victim... *Ehem* a practicing partner later. "STÉ-lee-US, wait, I mean... STÉ-lee-us, STÉ-lee-us!" Rachel muttered. Getting her first pronunciation wrong already. But luckily she caught it and changed her pronunciation to the right one or what she thinks is correct. Now onto the wand movements. Copying what she saw, she moved her finger downward quickly and then outward to a chair, repeating the movements three more times. She didn't have a target for now but was looking for one.

Finally seeing a Ravenclaw who seems to be free, she approached him. "Hey there, I'm Rachel. Want to team up? Or do you have a partner already?". As the boy introduced himself, explained, and then agreed, they both came to terms that Rachel would be the first to practice the hex. But before she performed, Rachel quickly got a tissue. Better prepared than sorry. "STÉ-lee-us." She said clearly and loud enough for her partner to hear while moving her wand quickly downwards and then outwards to her partner.

Word Count: 492

Professor Edit: Stopping next to the pair Zahid observed as the Gryffindor took her turn hexing her partner. "Well done, Miss Davis.", he praised before hurrying off to correct a gross mispronunciation two pairs down.

Steleus learned

Backdated as a first yearrrrr

It always seemed to be school, school, school or more school. Not that Alec minded, he loved learning, it was just that eventually. All the information at once was a little to much too dissolve and he felt that his head exploding like a natural disaster thing was very possible. Nonetheless, Alec was surviving, and he would be surviving as always, now it was just about time he got around too paying attention too today's lesson. Glad for a spell because it usually meant he could get up from his seat. His eyes keep on the professor, attempting to listening to this lecture about the spell as well as he could. Today they were learning the sneezing hex. Something that felt it may prove useful. Alec's eyes wandered the room as he listened to the words of the professort speak and explain. Waiting until they were finally excused to practice the spell and off he went to go find a partner for the spell.

Alec was excited for the spell until he now remembered as he was told that yes, they were casting at other's, and Alec's turn was coming first. His eyebrows furrowed in sympathy for the other student. “Sorry, but if it makes you feel better you can do it two times more than I do it. So I cast one and then you know... You cast it, and then try again too.” Alec offered, he attempted to smile it away. He was aware this wouldn't be that bad but the idea of casting it onto another made him uncomfortable. Despite his concerns however he went on. He needed too, for... . . . The greater good? Eh... Oh well good enough. He moved his wand downward quickly the out to the other student, his target. Saying the incantation “Steleus” firmly and cast.

WC: 305

Professor Edit: In his nervousness it sounded like the Gryffindor half-swallowed a syllable which resulted in his partner only twitching his nose slightly instead of the intended sneezing. "Close, but Mr. Mason, make sure to speak the incantation more clearly: STÉ-lee-us."

Steleus not learned

As you did not include the proper pronunciation of the spell, you did not learn it.
You can still learn the spell by making a new post writing how you try again - just make sure to include both the wandmovement and the pronunciation this time.

While Liana found every aspect of her magical education enjoyable, the classes that involved spellcasting were undeniably her favourite. Already interested due to the practical nature of the lesson, the first-year perked up even more when it was stated that this particular piece of magic could be useful in duelling. The young aspiring duellist had not heard of it being used that often, but she would make sure to learn it just in case the need ever arose. She paid close attention to Professor Zahid's words and actions, determined to master the hex as quickly as possible. The incantation was fairly simple, the wand movement also far less complex than what she was used to performing in DADA classes. It couldn't be too challenging to add this spell to her arsenal. Even so, she put careful effort into practicing the incantation and required motions.

The call to pair up caused a small jolt of anxiety in her, as she wasn't too confident about approaching people she wasn't acquainted with. The redhead's eyes darted nervously around the classroom. Most of her housemates that she at least knew by sight already had a pair; how did everyone match up so easily?

Her eyes caught the sight of a Ravenclaw boy that seemed to be just as anxious as she was, if not more - standing alone, looking around, likely searching for someone he knew that he could pair up with, or hoping that he would be approached and wouldn't need to initiate a social interaction himself. Liana took a deep breath and swiftly moved towards him before her courage could fade.

''Hey, would you like to practice the hex with me?'' she offered, trying to conjure up an air of confidence. The boy appeared to be immensely relieved as nodded in response. She couldn't help but smile, proud of herself and how well she picked a companion just by surveying the room.

''Alright then, I'll go first,'' the Slytherin declared, stepping back a fair distance. ''Ready?'' Her partner bobbed his head again, making her wonder for a moment whether his refusal to speak was stemming from his shyness or from an actual physical inability; he would certainly struggle learning spells if it was the latter. She raised her wand, promptly drawing its tip downward before moving it outward towards the Ravenclaw boy. ''STÉ-lee-us!''

Word count: 391

Professor Edit: It was always good to note how confidently some of his students went about their spell casting, like this Slytherin who succeeded on her first try. "Well done, Miss Kerr."

Steleus learned

can we add this to our trunks if we pass?

Professor Edit: Zahid had not seen what went wrong with the Ravenclaw's first attempt as he had been correcting another student's pronunciation, but whatever it had been, it was successfully corrected in her second attempt. "Well done, Miss Fernandez."

Steleus learned

(Yes, like homework spells it can be added to your trunks via the update form.)

Backdated to First Year

Another class, another lesson. As Starlee entered the classroom, her excitement raised as she saw the desks yet again stacked against the wall, clearly another day for a practical lesson. And this one proved to be a fun one, learning the Sneezing Hex. 'So that was why there tissue boxes out...' She noted to herself as she had surveyed the room earlier.

After Professor Zahid had concluded with the lecture, Starlee began to say the spell aloud. It was always important to practice wand movement and incantation separately, otherwise one could run into accidental spellcasting.

"Steleus. Steleus. Slowly... STÉ-lee-us. STÉ-lee-us. Yea... that sounds right." She then pulled her wand from her pocket, and began to practice the movement separately. "Down.... and out. Down, and out." She muttered as she moved the wand the same way. She was beginning to feel confident now and that meant it was time to find a partner.

She began to look around when she caught the eye of a Gryffindor Girl, who started walking toward her. "Need a partner?" Starlee said, and the girl nodded, so it was off to a corner to practice.

"Okay, I'll go first." she told the girl, raising her wand and pointing at her determinedly. "STÉ-lee-us!" she yelled, perhaps a bit too loudly, moving her wand downward and then out toward the girl. The spell missed, as was typical for her, and she sighed.

"C'mon, again! STÉ-lee-us!" She yelled yet again giving her partner little time to readjust, moving her wand in the same downward and towards the girl movement. This time her aim true, as it impacted the Gryffindor dead on. "ACHOO! I- ACHOO! You did it!!! ACHOO ACHOO!" The Gryffindor managed to say through fits of sneezing.

Starlee sighed in relief, letting some of the tension that new spells tended to cause her, and then said, "Okay, once you get done sneezing its your turn!" with a smile.

Professor Edit: Idly, Zahid wondered if several of his students were of the (incorrect) impression that volume helped with precision when it came to casting spells. "Well done, Miss Kennedy, though there is no need to yell your incantation."

Steleus learned

Words: 317 | History of Magic Classrom | 14:30

[font=Corbel Light]Annie was excited to learn The Sneezing Hex today. She’d never want to hurt anyone, in fact the thought made her feel slightly sick, but a bit of harmless fun never hurt anyone. It was one of the reasons why Weasley’s Wizard Wheezes was her favourite shop. Plus, it would be a handy hex to use in a duel, an event she was hoping to sign up for later that day.

Pairing up with her fellow classmate, Annie stood up from her chair and moved a few meters apart. She eyed the Professor, doing her best to copy Professor’s Zahid wand movements. She didn’t want to try straight away until she was sure she got the movement right, and it was best to follow Professor Zahid’s instructions. Annie moved her wand in a quick, downward motion toward her practicing partner, making sure not to say the incantation aloud. Was that quick enough? Maybe she was too slow. She tried again, and then two more times. Yes, that was right.

Next, came the incantation. Placing down her wand, she said the spell aloud. ”Ste-lee-US” she began. No, no. That wasn’t right. ” STÉ-lee-tus,” Annie tried again, stumbling over her words. Damn it. Okay, once more. ”Steleus!” She cried out, triumphant. That sounded right!

Picking her wand back up from her desk, she faced her partner and moved her wand in a quick, downward motion, outward toward her classmate. ”Steleus!” Annie misjudged and hit the desk beside her partner. Oops! That didn't work. Straightening up and squaring her shoulders, she tried again.

”Steleus!” She cried. This time it hit her partner, who immediately began to sneeze uncontrollably. The spell only lasted a few seconds, but Annie was pleased. She looked to Professor Zahid as he passed. ”Was that right, Professor?” She asked. ”I best get ready for my turn!” She added with a laugh, grabbing some tissues in preparation.

Professor Edit: While at first glance the spell effect looked correct, the Gryffindor seemed to have a consonant too many in her incantation - and her partner's nose started turning blue. Luckily a quick Finite turned out to be enough to fix the issue. "Not bad, Miss Asteria, but be a bit more careful with your pronunciation: STÉ-lee-us."

Steleus not learned

As you did not include the proper pronunciation of the spell, you did not learn it.
You can still learn the spell by making a new post writing how you try again - just make sure to include both the wandmovement and the pronunciation this time.

Professor Edit: Like earlier with another Gryffindor, at first glance the spell seemed successful but the sneezing ended a tad too quickly, after only a second. "Close, but your wand movement was slightly off, Miss Solace. It is a quick downward motion but you also neeed to move it outward toward your target. While you held your wand in your target's general direction, you only moved your wand straight down."

Steleus learned not learned

As you did not include the proper wand movement of the spell, you did not learn it.
You can still learn the spell by making a new post writing how you try again - just make sure to include both the wandmovement and the pronunciation this time.