Post by Professor Terra Athar Grossman on Jul 26, 2006 10:46:35 GMT -5
[In real life, what is your name?] Meh. Just call me Terra. Things go smoothly.
[In real life, are you 13 years old or older?] You know it! Yeah...16.
========================================================
[Name:] Terra Athar Argetlamh Beryl Grossman (No, Argetlamh is NOT taken from Eragon! >.< I'm tired of people thinking that. Jeez, hasn't anyone considered that Paolini is a fan of Celtic mythology? It would certainly explain the appearance of Nuada's name there! </obsessive rant>)
[Age:] 18 (almost 19)
[Birth date:] Feb. 1, 1976
[Position:] Alchemy Professor
[Bloodline:] Half-blood
[Wand:] Rosewood, 13", Dragon heart string (from an Ironbelly)
[Broom:] Firebolt. She bought it in her last term at Durmstrang, but barely got to fly it. Depressing.
[Physical Description:] Terra's hair color changes almost daily. It's naturally brown (almost red), but Terra found a nifty little charm that changed her hair color and length, and uses it quite often. Her eyes are naturally gray, but after a "meditation accident", her eyes were changed to a wolfen yellow.
She's fairly tan for someone half-Irish, half-German, and is short compared to most. Terra wouldn't exactly be considered "athletic"; she has no upper-body strength whatsoever. Skinny. Considered anorexic by some--but she's not. She loves food way too much, and tasting her own barf doesn't appeal to her, either.
[Personality:] Terra has...trust issues. Why? Well you would too if you were bitten by a werewolf at a young age and shunned by your own mother because of it. Her step-father doesn't trust her at all (a sentiment shared, be sure), and would often practice...questionable curses on her, without the knowledge her mother. The experience left her passion against Death Eaters burning, and she looked to alchemy for answers. Already Agnostic, the practice fit perfectly into her own ideas, and she soon moved to Germany to live with her father, where her alchemic practices thrived. Terra's not afraid of much (except being wrong), and hates to be hated. She doesn't like making enemies--her self-esteem couldn't handle it.
[Strengths:] Terra's a fast learner, and was able to teach herself alchemy. Also, due to her...*cough* wolfen side, she has stronger senses than most. She was a Beater for Durmstrang's North Wing Quidditch team and is skilled on a broom, although other than that she's pretty weak...
[Weaknesses:] Because of society's apparent hatred of werewolves, Terra's self-esteem is low. She's constantly afraid that she'll be shunned by her friends and comrades. Her self-esteem problem has also left her spellcasting in a sad state. She rarely trusts herself in new situations and can't stand it when people shun her. The only thing she's really confident with is her Quidditch skills and her alchemy (she considers herself to be the world's leading mind in alchemy o.O).
[Place of Birth:] A small village in Ireland.
[Nationality:] Half German, half Irish.
[Languages:] English, Russian, broken German and a bit of Gaelic and Japanese. But not much. Subbed anime is her only source. *eyes shift*
[Parents:] Father: Karl Grossman; October 17, 1952 Mother: Shelagh Wyrick; July 3, 1957 Stepfather: Sten Eing; September 9, 1951
Shelagh Wyrick and Karl Grossman met in 1976 while she was vacationing in Berlin with a group of Irish witches (read: future Rammstein fans). They became fast friends (and in time, a bit more) and got married September 22, 1974, the day of the Autumnal Equinox. Shelagh, however, conveniently forgot to tell him that she was a witch. A little more than a year later, the twins Terra and Adrien were born. The children soon showed their magical abilities, and Shelagh could hide her secret no longer. Karl was accepting at first, but soon one of Shelagh's friends introduced the couple to a man who went by the name Stan Eing. Karl didn't know much about Death Eaters, but he knew of Voldermort, and had enough sense to tell that Sten was trouble. Shelagh however remained blind to the man's past, and it was Sten that ultimately drove a wedge between the pair. Karl divorced Shelagh and moved back to Germany. In her grief, Shelagh turned to Sten for support. The rest is history. (No seriously. Read the history.)
[Siblings:] Adrien Grossman, Feb. 1, 1977. (Goes by Tripp Eing)
[History:] Terra was born minutes after her twin brother in a small village near Temair (the Hill of Tara). Due to Temair's magical properties, both the twins discovered their talents at a very young age. Shelagh was ecstatic, but Karl was a bit frightened--this was all new to him. The family learned to live with their differences for a little while, but that's when Sten showed up. True, he seemed kind, and Shelagh accepted him as a friend, but Terra was frightened by the stranger. Soon her parents became cold and distant to one another, and it ended in divorce. Still attached to Karl emotionally, Shelagh leaned on Sten for council. Not too long afterwords, the two were married, much to an 8-year-old Terra's discontent. She refused to take Sten's last name, and avoided him as much as possible. Sten noticed the lack of attention and decided the remedy would be a healthy dosage of harmless torture. One full moon, Sten took an unwilling Terra out to see the stars just outside the village. As they were returning from the short star watch, a werewolf came crashing through the village, heading straight for Terra! (Ooh, that sounds so cheesy.)
The Sten was able to riddle the werewolf with silver bullets, but not in time to save Terra from it's bite. The young girl watched the werewolf writhe in pain and slowly turn back into his human form before the lights died from his eyes. As his blood mixed with her own, she slowly realized what the bite meant for her.
After that, things changed drastically, and not just Terra every full moon. Her mother shunned her, and Sten practiced the Crucio curse on her, leaving her self esteem at an all-time-low. It was only the occasional (read: when Sten wasn't near) kind words of her brother Tripp that pulled her through. Alchemy became her only refuge, and when she was old enough to choose, she moved to Germany to live with her father. By then she had already been attending Durmstrang, and decided to continue her enrollment there. Her studies in alchemy thrived--she even managed to create a small Philosopher's Stone, using the energy of Peter Vadisky's soul. At the time, she didn't think much of it--Peter had died, he wouldn't bee needing his soul anymore. It was only afterwards that she fully realized what she had done, but by then it was too late. Peter's soul had been sacrificed for the stone, there was no turning back. She didn't dare destroy the stone--Peter's unwilling sacrifice would be in vain. She carries it with her at all times, slightly more paranoid than usual.
[Credentials:] None, really. Graduated from Durmstrang Institute with...not-so-high marks...hey, she's a tad lazy.
[Years of Service:] None...*cries*
[Special Talents/Info:] Terra's an alchemy prodigy, and is skilled with a broom. She can also do all sorts of "human tricks" (she's double-jointed on her fingers, toes, and she can make her arm turn in a near 360).
[What do you foresee being the main duties of your job?] Teaching students alchemy in it's truest form.
[Owl, Cat, Toad, Rat, or Tarantula?] Penguin named Ted...
[Anything Else?] Yes; she's completely obsessed with video games.
[Writing sample:] Terra sat on her desk, fiddling with some bizarre trinket. She had almost figured it out what made it tick when Ted came running, rather, waddling at a very fast speed, into the room, squawking about cheese. The professor sighed--she knew she shouldn't have tried to pickle cheese faster using an alchemic formula. Now the chimera-like mutated dairy products were terrorizing the staff room. "Gorrammit," she muttered to herself, picking up her wand. Most of the staff would be teaching their classes by now, and if they discovered the pickled menaces in the break room, it would be her neck for sure.
Just then, the bell rang. Students! Ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap... She quickly ran back to her desk and checked in her pocket for her Special just before the students came pouring into her classroom. Well, not exactly pouring...there were only two. "Sheesh, I knew attendance was LOW, but JEEZ!" she complained. "I guess people just don't appreciate the complexities of true alchemy," the disheartened teacher sighed.
"SO! If you're here, than you obviously have an interest in this subject, but I guess I should probably give you a brief history of Alchemy, no?
"Throughout the history of mankind, alchemy's main goal has always been the obtaining of the Philosopher's Stone. It all started with Daoist sages and emperors, searching for the Elixir of Life. In their studies, they...acidentaly invented gunpowder. In Europe, the Greeks were more interested with the science of it all--and to them all mythology was science. They became obsessed with making the stories of strange creatures a reality--Can anyone tell me what a Chimera is?"
A student raised his hand rather quickly. "They're said to have the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a dragon," he answered confidently.
"Very good, you know how to read misconceptions," she said with a smirk. It was a trick question--she would have been very surprised if a student gave her true answer. "Actually, that's the only type of chimera that exists today that we know of. I stress those words very strongly, so heed them well. A Chimera is very simply a new species created from two others, combined through alchemy. There is much arguing in the alchemic community at the moment over whether or not creatures such as Centaurs, Griffins, Hippogriffs, Hippocampuses, Manticores, and other such creatures were created through such practices--it would certainly explain why the Centaurs have such a vast knowledge of astrology and astronomy, but don't let one of them hear you say that. You might end riddled with arrow-holes.
Back to the Greeks: the ancient Athenians practiced the closest thing to the alchemy I will be teaching you in this class--a mixture between the magical and chemical sides. Today there are some in the alchemic community that study only the magical side--he drawing of transmutation circles and relying on your own magical energy to fuel the transmutation--and others who prefer the chemical side--combining metals such as copper and iron to create 'The Net'. The debate between the two sides has lasted for centuries, but I can tell you right now--the only way to obtain the Philosopher's Stone is by using a combination of both. Nickolas Flamel and Albus Dumbledore, the only ones in recorded history who have successfully created a Stone, could tell you that in a heartbeat, but one of them has passed on, as I'm sure all of you know. And I say all the better. The secret dies with him. No one should have that much power..." she near mumbled at the end, almost as a note to herself.
"Any questions?" the teacher asked cheerfully, clapping her hands together.
"You left out the Medieval era," one of the students reminded.
Terra's face darkened as she walked to the student, her gold eyes glowing in the dim light. "Forgot? Oh no, young one, I didn't forget. That particular time period of alchemy was not exactly the brightest, you see? After all--it is the time when the first Philosopher's Stone was created, now isn't it? No, I didn't forget." Her face became cheerful again, "That's saved for another class!" she said with a goofy grin.
"Now, class dismissed. Go on--shoo, shoo! Homework's on equivalent exchange--due by next class!"
As soon as the students were gone, Terra rushed out of the room, Ted at her heels, to fight the terror of the Pickled Cheese.
((Sorry for under-abundance of information History-wise... O.o ...And the randomness of the pickled cheese. Must be the Almond Fudge Icecream...))
[In real life, are you 13 years old or older?] You know it! Yeah...16.
========================================================
[Name:] Terra Athar Argetlamh Beryl Grossman (No, Argetlamh is NOT taken from Eragon! >.< I'm tired of people thinking that. Jeez, hasn't anyone considered that Paolini is a fan of Celtic mythology? It would certainly explain the appearance of Nuada's name there! </obsessive rant>)
[Age:] 18 (almost 19)
[Birth date:] Feb. 1, 1976
[Position:] Alchemy Professor
[Bloodline:] Half-blood
[Wand:] Rosewood, 13", Dragon heart string (from an Ironbelly)
[Broom:] Firebolt. She bought it in her last term at Durmstrang, but barely got to fly it. Depressing.
[Physical Description:] Terra's hair color changes almost daily. It's naturally brown (almost red), but Terra found a nifty little charm that changed her hair color and length, and uses it quite often. Her eyes are naturally gray, but after a "meditation accident", her eyes were changed to a wolfen yellow.
She's fairly tan for someone half-Irish, half-German, and is short compared to most. Terra wouldn't exactly be considered "athletic"; she has no upper-body strength whatsoever. Skinny. Considered anorexic by some--but she's not. She loves food way too much, and tasting her own barf doesn't appeal to her, either.
[Personality:] Terra has...trust issues. Why? Well you would too if you were bitten by a werewolf at a young age and shunned by your own mother because of it. Her step-father doesn't trust her at all (a sentiment shared, be sure), and would often practice...questionable curses on her, without the knowledge her mother. The experience left her passion against Death Eaters burning, and she looked to alchemy for answers. Already Agnostic, the practice fit perfectly into her own ideas, and she soon moved to Germany to live with her father, where her alchemic practices thrived. Terra's not afraid of much (except being wrong), and hates to be hated. She doesn't like making enemies--her self-esteem couldn't handle it.
[Strengths:] Terra's a fast learner, and was able to teach herself alchemy. Also, due to her...*cough* wolfen side, she has stronger senses than most. She was a Beater for Durmstrang's North Wing Quidditch team and is skilled on a broom, although other than that she's pretty weak...
[Weaknesses:] Because of society's apparent hatred of werewolves, Terra's self-esteem is low. She's constantly afraid that she'll be shunned by her friends and comrades. Her self-esteem problem has also left her spellcasting in a sad state. She rarely trusts herself in new situations and can't stand it when people shun her. The only thing she's really confident with is her Quidditch skills and her alchemy (she considers herself to be the world's leading mind in alchemy o.O).
[Place of Birth:] A small village in Ireland.
[Nationality:] Half German, half Irish.
[Languages:] English, Russian, broken German and a bit of Gaelic and Japanese. But not much. Subbed anime is her only source. *eyes shift*
[Parents:] Father: Karl Grossman; October 17, 1952 Mother: Shelagh Wyrick; July 3, 1957 Stepfather: Sten Eing; September 9, 1951
Shelagh Wyrick and Karl Grossman met in 1976 while she was vacationing in Berlin with a group of Irish witches (read: future Rammstein fans). They became fast friends (and in time, a bit more) and got married September 22, 1974, the day of the Autumnal Equinox. Shelagh, however, conveniently forgot to tell him that she was a witch. A little more than a year later, the twins Terra and Adrien were born. The children soon showed their magical abilities, and Shelagh could hide her secret no longer. Karl was accepting at first, but soon one of Shelagh's friends introduced the couple to a man who went by the name Stan Eing. Karl didn't know much about Death Eaters, but he knew of Voldermort, and had enough sense to tell that Sten was trouble. Shelagh however remained blind to the man's past, and it was Sten that ultimately drove a wedge between the pair. Karl divorced Shelagh and moved back to Germany. In her grief, Shelagh turned to Sten for support. The rest is history. (No seriously. Read the history.)
[Siblings:] Adrien Grossman, Feb. 1, 1977. (Goes by Tripp Eing)
[History:] Terra was born minutes after her twin brother in a small village near Temair (the Hill of Tara). Due to Temair's magical properties, both the twins discovered their talents at a very young age. Shelagh was ecstatic, but Karl was a bit frightened--this was all new to him. The family learned to live with their differences for a little while, but that's when Sten showed up. True, he seemed kind, and Shelagh accepted him as a friend, but Terra was frightened by the stranger. Soon her parents became cold and distant to one another, and it ended in divorce. Still attached to Karl emotionally, Shelagh leaned on Sten for council. Not too long afterwords, the two were married, much to an 8-year-old Terra's discontent. She refused to take Sten's last name, and avoided him as much as possible. Sten noticed the lack of attention and decided the remedy would be a healthy dosage of harmless torture. One full moon, Sten took an unwilling Terra out to see the stars just outside the village. As they were returning from the short star watch, a werewolf came crashing through the village, heading straight for Terra! (Ooh, that sounds so cheesy.)
The Sten was able to riddle the werewolf with silver bullets, but not in time to save Terra from it's bite. The young girl watched the werewolf writhe in pain and slowly turn back into his human form before the lights died from his eyes. As his blood mixed with her own, she slowly realized what the bite meant for her.
After that, things changed drastically, and not just Terra every full moon. Her mother shunned her, and Sten practiced the Crucio curse on her, leaving her self esteem at an all-time-low. It was only the occasional (read: when Sten wasn't near) kind words of her brother Tripp that pulled her through. Alchemy became her only refuge, and when she was old enough to choose, she moved to Germany to live with her father. By then she had already been attending Durmstrang, and decided to continue her enrollment there. Her studies in alchemy thrived--she even managed to create a small Philosopher's Stone, using the energy of Peter Vadisky's soul. At the time, she didn't think much of it--Peter had died, he wouldn't bee needing his soul anymore. It was only afterwards that she fully realized what she had done, but by then it was too late. Peter's soul had been sacrificed for the stone, there was no turning back. She didn't dare destroy the stone--Peter's unwilling sacrifice would be in vain. She carries it with her at all times, slightly more paranoid than usual.
[Credentials:] None, really. Graduated from Durmstrang Institute with...not-so-high marks...hey, she's a tad lazy.
[Years of Service:] None...*cries*
[Special Talents/Info:] Terra's an alchemy prodigy, and is skilled with a broom. She can also do all sorts of "human tricks" (she's double-jointed on her fingers, toes, and she can make her arm turn in a near 360).
[What do you foresee being the main duties of your job?] Teaching students alchemy in it's truest form.
[Owl, Cat, Toad, Rat, or Tarantula?] Penguin named Ted...
[Anything Else?] Yes; she's completely obsessed with video games.
[Writing sample:] Terra sat on her desk, fiddling with some bizarre trinket. She had almost figured it out what made it tick when Ted came running, rather, waddling at a very fast speed, into the room, squawking about cheese. The professor sighed--she knew she shouldn't have tried to pickle cheese faster using an alchemic formula. Now the chimera-like mutated dairy products were terrorizing the staff room. "Gorrammit," she muttered to herself, picking up her wand. Most of the staff would be teaching their classes by now, and if they discovered the pickled menaces in the break room, it would be her neck for sure.
Just then, the bell rang. Students! Ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap... She quickly ran back to her desk and checked in her pocket for her Special just before the students came pouring into her classroom. Well, not exactly pouring...there were only two. "Sheesh, I knew attendance was LOW, but JEEZ!" she complained. "I guess people just don't appreciate the complexities of true alchemy," the disheartened teacher sighed.
"SO! If you're here, than you obviously have an interest in this subject, but I guess I should probably give you a brief history of Alchemy, no?
"Throughout the history of mankind, alchemy's main goal has always been the obtaining of the Philosopher's Stone. It all started with Daoist sages and emperors, searching for the Elixir of Life. In their studies, they...acidentaly invented gunpowder. In Europe, the Greeks were more interested with the science of it all--and to them all mythology was science. They became obsessed with making the stories of strange creatures a reality--Can anyone tell me what a Chimera is?"
A student raised his hand rather quickly. "They're said to have the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a dragon," he answered confidently.
"Very good, you know how to read misconceptions," she said with a smirk. It was a trick question--she would have been very surprised if a student gave her true answer. "Actually, that's the only type of chimera that exists today that we know of. I stress those words very strongly, so heed them well. A Chimera is very simply a new species created from two others, combined through alchemy. There is much arguing in the alchemic community at the moment over whether or not creatures such as Centaurs, Griffins, Hippogriffs, Hippocampuses, Manticores, and other such creatures were created through such practices--it would certainly explain why the Centaurs have such a vast knowledge of astrology and astronomy, but don't let one of them hear you say that. You might end riddled with arrow-holes.
Back to the Greeks: the ancient Athenians practiced the closest thing to the alchemy I will be teaching you in this class--a mixture between the magical and chemical sides. Today there are some in the alchemic community that study only the magical side--he drawing of transmutation circles and relying on your own magical energy to fuel the transmutation--and others who prefer the chemical side--combining metals such as copper and iron to create 'The Net'. The debate between the two sides has lasted for centuries, but I can tell you right now--the only way to obtain the Philosopher's Stone is by using a combination of both. Nickolas Flamel and Albus Dumbledore, the only ones in recorded history who have successfully created a Stone, could tell you that in a heartbeat, but one of them has passed on, as I'm sure all of you know. And I say all the better. The secret dies with him. No one should have that much power..." she near mumbled at the end, almost as a note to herself.
"Any questions?" the teacher asked cheerfully, clapping her hands together.
"You left out the Medieval era," one of the students reminded.
Terra's face darkened as she walked to the student, her gold eyes glowing in the dim light. "Forgot? Oh no, young one, I didn't forget. That particular time period of alchemy was not exactly the brightest, you see? After all--it is the time when the first Philosopher's Stone was created, now isn't it? No, I didn't forget." Her face became cheerful again, "That's saved for another class!" she said with a goofy grin.
"Now, class dismissed. Go on--shoo, shoo! Homework's on equivalent exchange--due by next class!"
As soon as the students were gone, Terra rushed out of the room, Ted at her heels, to fight the terror of the Pickled Cheese.
((Sorry for under-abundance of information History-wise... O.o ...And the randomness of the pickled cheese. Must be the Almond Fudge Icecream...))
