House of Toads PV Group 5

Houses for Toads. It was something she would've never thought of. But, considering the diversity of the plants and animals that lived on the Hogwarts property, she supposed that the toads might need some protection. Especially against the weather. She shivered, ready for when it would finally become spring. Sure, it might've been cold in France, sometimes, but the type of cold here was... impressive, to say the least.

She reached her destination, her footsteps having led her to the greenhouses. Herbology lessons, some herb drying, and now- making toad houses. She suspected that she would find herself out here more often, though. After all, she had enjoyed the errand before- even if it had been ridiculously early when she did so. Now she even had a group to help create these new homes.

She stayed more to the side of the group, yellow scarf wrapped tightly around her neck. She now had a streak of pink in her hair as well, still around. It would probably last until the end of January, if she kept good care of it.

She glanced at the two types of houses. While the second one seemed harder, it did make more sense to the young girl. She would have to cut out a piece of the clay pot, but there were others to help. After all, she was certain that she wouldn't be able to do it on her own. Her strength was practically nothing. She would figure out something, she supposed.

And with that, the Professor left. It didn't seem like the greatest idea in a team of First Years, but it would only be an hour. Hopefully that wasn't enough time for anyone to cause too much chaos. She picked up on of the clay pots, bouncing around a bit. Unfortunately, the first step was to cut out the "door." She inwardly winced, before glancing at the rest of the group.

"Uh, I might need some help to cut this. I'll try first, but..." She trailed off, a blush coming to her face.

Word Count: 342/1000

Lily honestly didn’t know what she was doing. She had signed up for this errand without knowing what she was doing, mainly because it was toad houses. However, toad houses could be used for so many other things. Many animals could benefit from the houses. She moved towards the Herbology greenhouses, making sure to go into the right one.

The toad houses were simple, but effective. Lily could think of many animals, not just toads, that could benefit from these houses. Including some snake species. She paused, watching the professor as he She knew she had to cut out the door for the toads, however, as he left, she immediately felt a sense of dread. Did this professor realise he was leaving a team of first years alone in the greenhouse? Seems like not a very smart idea. Especially with breakable clay pots.

Lily examined the pots, looking over every detail of the pots, making sure that they would be useful for the toads and any other animals that might use them. The first option was easy, but also didn’t give much of an hide to the animals. She briefly recalled her Far’s snakes, and how he created hides out of plastic containers for them with small openings. She could do that, right?

She picked up a pot, turning it over in her hands, before looking at the other group members, swallowing. “Try not to break the pot. It’s going to be difficult to do this without breaking the pot.”

Word count for Post: 250

Toads! Of course Lark had jumped at the chance to lend a hand with creatures of all kind any opportunity she was presented. Although the groupings hadn't gone as she had hoped for, now met with another opportunity... meeting new people. It was exciting but also nerve wracking all wrapped into one for the young Ravenclaw. Still, the idea of making little homes for the toads was too thrilling to make her that nervous to chat up some new faces.

After Professor MacTavish had left the group to carry out their duty, Lark sized up the clay pots and materials. This shouldn't be too.. hard. Right? Her attention was drawn away to a girl donning a Hufflepuff scarf who had asked for a bit of help. Another girl had also piped up about being careful with the pots. It was true.. some of these looked like they could shatter rather easily. Her parents typically used something similar at home for their garden and she knew her father had a habit of dropping them. Grabbing a clay pot herself, Lark walked over to the two other girls and offered them a smile.

"I uh... if you score it that might make it easier." She wasn't sure about what sort of sharp tools they had at their disposal but maybe even something to clamp down and break part of the rim off to make a door? Lark looked around on one of the tables where some other supplies seemed to be laid out and found something that looked like it could clamp down on the edge and break a piece of rim off, as well as a sharper tool to make a score mark so the pot wouldn't shatter. She had only seen her father do this once or twice...

"My parents 'ave a garden at home but we've never made any ah' these before. What 'bout you two?"

Careful to handle the sharper scoring knife, Lark dug a square line to mark out the door on the pot before offering the tool to the short haired girl next to her. "I think it'll break without much trouble." Lark hoped anyway she didn't really seem keen on looking like an idiot "know-it-all" in front of them.

WC: 374

@Lily Áshildr Björnsdotti, @Lark Flaer, & @Teiki Laurent

Of all the creatures Jack thought they might have needed to build houses for, the Slytherin wasn't sure why it was toads. Could the things not make homes for themselves? Were they endangered? Was it just easier to get necessary ingredients from toads when there were specified houses that young wizards and witches on the premises could raid and ransack?

Whatever the case, he had signed up for this assignment and he planned to do it well. Only, when their professor explained it, the errand sounded more like an arts and crafts project than an environmental endeavor. Peculiar, but that wasn't the part that Jack minded so much. What he did mind was that Professor MacTavish had, whether deliberately or not, failed to explain to them exactly how to cut openings in the clay pots for the second types of houses he showed them. He also didn't tell them why there were two types of houses or if there was a preference he or the toads had between them. Why even bother showing them two types at all?

Frustrated at the lack of information and tools, the Slytherin forbade himself from immediately going after the professor in order to get more answers to his questions. Perhaps this was all part of the task set before them. Three girls were already putting their heads together to try to work out how to make the more difficult of the two houses. Jack admired their tenacity in the face of adversity. They could have simply opted to make the more simple houses, but all three were intent on trying to make the more difficult ones. Perhaps it was because they truly cared about the toads meant to live inside them.

Still, the Slytherin boy really didn't see how they were supposed to work with the uncut pots. As a muggle, he knew he'd seen people cut terracotta pots with Dremel tools and grinders, but he doubted wizards and witches had those sorts of things just lying around, much less available for a bunch of first-years to use at their leisure. Even spells that could do the same work sounded like they would have been too dangerous or advanced to teach them right off the bat, so what did MacTavish expect them to do?

One of the three girls who had begun to work together seemed to have a decent idea of what to do, though. Jack overheard her suggesting that they score the pot first before attempting to break off the part they wanted to cut out.

"That's a smart idea," he commented, looking for something else to start scoring another pot with. There didn't seem to be any other scoring knives near him, but he spotted a trowel that he thought might do the trick. Snatching it off a table, he picked up a pot and moved it over to the girls to see what they were doing and perhaps learn from their progress.

As they worked, curiosity took hold of Jack as it often did and he voiced a question to his fellow students. "Was there a reason you guys all decided to start with the more difficult type of house he showed us how to make than the easier sort?" He examined their pots thoughtfully. "I mean I guess in this case it's probably more about quality than quantity, but still…that surprised me that you all went straight to trying to make the second type."

Word count: 575

“My Far owns snakes. Many venomous ones, so I end up helping him with the hides for their enclosures.” Lily said to Lark, before looking towards Jack. “Animals prefer a hide that has a small opening and is a good place to hide and not be seen. Placing the pot on its side leaves a big gap. Well, that’s for snakes at least. I’m not sure how toads like their houses. I’ve never taken care of one. My Far has two, though.”

Lily has looked at Toads as a pet before, however she does not believe she would want one. In fact, her Far doesn’t like her taking care of his two toads, mainly because they do have disabilities. One, Bao, is missing an eye and the other is missing a hind leg. Her Far doesn’t like toads, however, he keeps those two.

Lily paused, looking at the pots, her mind working. “I wonder if any other animal would use these? I know snakes would, but some other animals might use these if we put them in strategic places. We might be able to put them where other animals are, to not just benefit the one species.”

Lily paused in her talking, looking at the other three people, her eyes looking at the pot as she moved it in her hands.

Word Count: 220 words

Interacting with @Lark Flaer @Jack Burnett @Teiki Laurent

Interacting with everyone.
Permission granted by Boniface to locate additional tools.

"Uh, I might need some help to cut this. I'll try first, but..."

“Try not to break the pot. It’s going to be difficult to do this without breaking the pot.”

"I uh... if you score it that might make it easier."

"Was there a reason you guys all decided to start with the more difficult type of house he showed us how to make than the easier sort? I mean I guess in this case it's probably more about quality than quantity, but still…."

Lurking on the fringe of the errand like a ghost, Pericles pondered the goal, wondering with the others even though he was not near them. He listened on the sidelines of the greenhouse with a thoughtful frown. Inwardly, the lad agreed with Teiki and Lily: cut houses would be the most practical design. Nudging spectacles higher up the bumped bridge of his nose, as if setting them firm helped him think clearer, he meandered quietly closer. There were bins which one might easily overlook, brimming with water as though someone had neglected to empty out rain and snow slush. Upon closer inspection, he found them full of stacked clay pots. Professor Boniface hadn't left them without the proper tools: he simply seemed to let them solve how to approach the task as a team, incidentally encouraging the first-years to stick their heads together.

In fact, one girl was already leading them in carefully scoring and cutting. Rolling the sleeves of his robes to his elbows, Peri plucked a pot from the water, letting it drip above the basin as he called "We could use these." While the volume of his voice carried easily enough to them, his style of speaking was mild and modest, the tone of who lived on an odd border between wisdom and weirdness. It was as though he spoke from the comfortable depths of a dream. "They're less likely to crack since the clay's been soaking, you see. We could cut them that way-" he nodded towards Lark "-or use something to strike a hole into the rim, like a small hammer, or... that," he ended with a point towards the trowel Jack held.

Looking about with a searching squint, Pericles continued, "I thought I saw some clay nearby. Maybe, we might use a little to soften the broken edges and stick rocks on the outside of the houses. People could be less likely to think they were left outside on accident, or break them, if we make them look nice." A sleepy smile ended his observation. An additional wet pot was fished from the water for any who might need it, and with that, he joined the group before setting both atop the tool table. "I'm going to fetch a hunk of clay. Would any of you be willing to help me pick some pebbles from the ground?"

WC: 393 , not counting the quoted lines from the start.

^Summary
Pericles found some clay pots soaking in tubs and suggested they could cut or crack the "door" holes into them, since the soaking meant they were less likely to shatter. Suggested they use a small hammer or trowel, offered to go get clay for decorating the pots, and asked if someone else would be willing to help collect rocks and pebbles.

"Scoring, huh.." She muttered the words under her breath, nodding at the idea. It would probably work rather well to help make some of the houses. She watched the Ravenclaw girl for a moment, watching as she started to work on her pot. The First Year seemed to have the right idea.

"No, we didn't even have a garden, really. Only for flowers." She shrugged. That had been quite normal for her, although grass had been plentiful. Perhaps they could've used that area for a garden. Seems like a good idea.

She started to open her mouth to explain to the Slytherin boy why she had, although paused. It seemed as though he had already figured out why. Mainly quality for her, as well as the instructions making a lot more sense to her. Even if she did have a visual that could probably explain all the steps for the first type. Instead, she simply nodded to the boy. He didn't need someone to reiterate what he had already said.

"Oh wow. Why snakes? Were they pets, or profit?" While her question might've been worded rather harshly, the Hufflepuff seemed genuinely curious. Head propped on one side of her rather large scarf, and blue eyes that peered at the girl for a second. She smiled softly, before glancing around again. Her pot sat neatly in front of her, although she was looking for some of the tools that the silver-haired girl had mentioned.

The last member of the group finally spoke up, although the girl watched the water, a slightly amused glance on her face. She recognized him, although still didn't know his name. He was from the Liberation meeting, the one that had figured out the love letter code. As he continued to explain the use of the water, she glanced between the water itself and the items that the other Ravenclaw had prepared. She nodded, stepping away slightly as he placed the pot of water onto the table.

"I'll help." She piped up, before quickly grabbing onto her clay pot. She suspected that they wouldn't need that many pebbles, but it was still useful to have a container to put them in. The Hufflepuff paused for a moment, before stepping away from the table to begin to gather pebbles.

Word Count: 342 + 381= 723/1000

@Lily Áshildr Björnsdotti, @Lark Flaer, @Teiki Laurent & @Pericles Dralt

"Fascinating," Jack murmured in response to Lily's explanation. "I guess that makes sense, but I figured toads preferred to hide among things like tall grasses and reeds rather than holes. Depending on how big and fat they are, couldn't they get stuck? Unlike snakes."

Still, if the professor had given them that house as one of the options for the toads, Jack supposed there had to have been some reason for it. Then again...if they'd tested how much the toads liked each kind of house, shouldn't there have been some evidence toward them having a preference of some sort?

Whatever; there was no point dwelling on such things now. Their job was to make homes for toads as they had been shown. It wasn't his job to determine what was most efficient or if there was a reason toads might have liked one kind of dwelling more than another. However, Lily's comment about other animals using the houses made him laugh.

"Are you kidding?" he asked. "We're supposed to make these for toads. If it didn't matter what creatures they were for, I'm sure he wouldn't have specified. I mean, think about it. A lot of snakes and other things eat toads. Wouldn't providing homes that could be used for toad predators kind of defeat the purpose?" Snorting, he shook his head imagining it. "'Oh, hey - I'm a big, hungry snake and I just found a whole family of toads for dinner! I think I'll eat them and take over their place to sleep off the meal.'"

He knew he may have been being rude, but Jack had never been the best team player. He also had no patience for people who didn't use their brains - or, at least, what he believed was using their brains. Even more irksome was the fact that he recognized Lily as being someone from his very own house of Slytherin, so he expected her to be more clever than what she had exhibited so far.

The blonde boy, on the other hand, showed promise. Jack had also wondered if they could have used anything to smooth the sides of the cut pots, especially considering that the edges were likely to be sharp after they were cut. Clay - wet clay, Jack assumed - would do just the trick. Well...so long as they could make sure it didn't wash off in the rain and whatnot.

The redheaded boy also liked the idea of making the houses look nice so that others were less likely to overlook, mistake, break, or move them. "I like the idea of the wet clay, but is there any way we can fire them so it hardens after we've used it to smooth the edges?" He pulled out his wand for emphasis. "Any spells anyone might know, perhaps? I don't suppose they'd keep a blow-torch out here."

He finished scoring his pot before experimentally tapping the edge, like an eggshell he was trying to break just right. Deciding he would need to sit down for it, the boy went to a bench and put the pot over his leg in order to steady it better before trying again.

"Uh...if anyone has any magical tips or tricks on how to do this less dangerously or destructively, now would be the time to speak up."

Word count: 554

Lily didn’t respond to the question about her snakes. They were more family than pets, as they lived with them. Although they weren’t aloud in the house, because Lily’s Mor couldn’t stand them, Lily had found that in her youth she had often slept next to the snakes, learning more about them. She nodded along with the ideas of the other people, before turning harshly to Jack.

“They would find the homes anyway. Making them beneficial for a couple of species would make them more variable, so not just toads would eat them. Toads don’t live in houses. They live in water, reeds and grasses and under logs, and most of the time they are still eaten where they are. We may be making them for toads, but benefiting many species would help the natural selection happen. Toads aren’t the only species that need places to hide, so if we are benefiting them, we are benefitting all of the other animals.”

Lily paused, realising she had gone on a rant about natural selection and turned her head away, staring work on her pot to stop talking to the other people. The pots could be used for just toads, however, benefiting the one species would have affects on the ecosystem later, meaning that they needed to take other species into account.

Perhaps Lily was looking at this the wrong way. She dug into her knowledge of animals, however, came up with nothing. Her mind quickly turned back to the last winter she had before coming to Hogwarts, her mind thinking of the animals she had dug out of the snow and gotten warm in the house, despite her parents arguments. They had had a large snowfall one weekend, causing many of the farm animals and wildlife to become trapped, as it was completely unexpected and Lily and her Far spent hours clearing out the paths to the sheds and barns. Lily had kept the Feral cats that lived in the barn in her room during that horrid snowfall. Lily hoped her parents were able to feed the cats while she was at Hogwarts..

She paused, when Jack spoke about a spell to harden the clay.

“Incendio perhaps? It’s a fire making spell, meaning it would bake the clay and harden it. At least, that’s how I think clay works? I’m not sure, I haven’t worked with it before.”

WC: 220+393=613