Lecture 1: Review (5-7th years)

[Aaron Nomen]

NOTE: This lecture will end on JULY 24, 11:59 PM CST.

Aaron was excited. His first day of teaching at Hogwarts. A sight to be remembered for sure. He was ready and waiting for the students to come in. This lecture was really only to gauge where his students currently sat in the class. Everything taught from 2nd year to 6th year would be covered briefly today. He just needed a reference point to get the year started off.

Aaron began writing some topics up on the board, so that there would be something to read when the students walked in. As the bell gonged across the castle, Aaron walked over to the door and opened it, allowing students to walk in at will. Several students had already been waiting on him, and they took their seats and began copying down what was on the board.

More and more students filtered in. Total there was maybe 20 students between the fifth, sixth, and seventh years. Some of them seemed eager, while others seemed ready for the class to over with. Well that wouldn't do.

With the second ringing of the bell, Aaron returned to the front of the classroom. "Alright today, as you can see, we're just going to review some basics up to Sixth year. If you haven't already, go ahead and charm your quills to record everything written on the board, because it's going to be covering more information than I could." He waited a moment to let the students charm their quills before tapping the board with his wand.

"Alrighty then. I want to start out with some easy peasy Second Year questions. What is Arithmancy? Muggle text will define it as the divination through numbers. While not incorrect, this basic definition will get you nowhere fast in this room. While it's true that you will have studied divination in this class in years gone, you are well past that now and will almost never be used in this class. Here, you will learn why 7 ate 9, and how to make 9 eat 7. For a quick assignment, I want you to write the answer to this question, and bring it back with you by the next lecture. How many prime numbers are there between 0 and 100, and what are they?" The board was writing more information - his notes - than he was providing. Between the quirky drawings of the number 7 voraciously eating a 9 and his hypothesis on why time spent on divination in Arithmancy would ever be useful, the board was full of things he wasn't actually saying.

"Any questions so far?"

[Isabella Gaunt]

This was the worst class in the history of classes. She hated to say it but, muggle studies was better than this. She gulped at the thought well the professor hadn’t been half bad either since her last detention with him. Isabella sighed as she had arrived in the class room just before the class had started. Let alone if she had been late she didn’t want detention again. Which I doubt he would give her one? or so she thought She sat down towards the middle of the class room but in front. She hated Arithmancy and numbers. Honestly why the hell would 7 ate 9? I mean seriously it was so stupid. Seven plus eight obviously equaled nine and nine ate seven by making six? Honestly so stupid. She half drowned out the professor listening to him glancing down at her book pretending to take a few notes here and there.

[Syrus Helling]

Syrus was prompt to all of his classes, but especially Arithmancy. He had few enough friends to bother with between classes that they hardly ever hampered him from getting to the classroom early. He could generally wait well enough to speak to his friends until after classes for the day had ended. His promptness to class was something else his Slytherin peers compared him to a Ravenclaw for. He’d taken to thanking them for the compliment lately which at first had put them off, but now it seemed to have taken most of the fun out of it since they realized he wasn’t at all offended and they left him alone about it more often than not. He much preferred when it put them off, he loved the looks on their faces then, but it couldn’t be helped.

He was waiting when the professor opened the door and was one of the first in to take a seat. Seeing the notes on the board he sighed lightly and took out parchment, quill, and ink. Beginning of the year review was a tedious thing, bothersome and boring, a consequence of summer vacation he had come to understand, as most students did not spend their summers in independent study and forgot half of what they learned the year before. Yet another reason he disliked summer, the list seemed to go on and on. He charmed his quill to copy the notes on the board and glanced to the door as others filed in. His gaze found Bella where she had taken a seat, he guessed she must have entered shortly after him as the majority were entering now, most probably trying to delay the time they spent in the class as much as possible.

Arithmancy was not a popular subject. It seemed to Syrus most who took it took it grudgingly because it was required in order to be an Auror. Every other bloody student seemed to want to be one. There had been a time, before Hogwarts, that he’d wanted to be one as well. That dream changed soon enough… he would never follow Zaine in anything he did, except to succeed in everything he endeavored at and to exceed expectations while doing it. It had been so easy for Zaine… everything came naturally to him… everything. He turned back to his parchment, gaze narrowed. He was not afraid to work and work hard for what he wanted, if everything came easy it would not be half as satisfying. Zaine could take his perfect and shove it.

He looked up as the professor began to speak. A quick assignment? Prime numbers. Easy enough, he could probably have the answer to him by the end of class. He knew exactly how many there were, though he couldn’t say he knew them all by heart; most of them, but not all. He took out another piece of parchment and jotted ‘Prime Numbers’ down quickly along with how many there were. He would fill in the precise numbers later. He held his tongue when Professor Nomen asked if there were any questions for her had none, not yet, except for ‘when would they be getting on with the real lessons?’ However he didn’t think it quite appropriate to ask as it seemed rather rude and so hold his tongue he did, with some effort.