Anatomy of a Potion (All Years)

Mariah had returned from winter break refreshed and ready for the new year. She was grateful for the time she'd gotten to spend with her mothers, and her first Christmas in Europe had been exciting - they'd even spent a few days in France to do some sightseeing.

Mariah had always loved the holiday season. She put a lot of thought into the presents she got for people, and she loved watching their faces light up in response. She was disappointed not to be able to see Mr. Weber in person, but they had at least been able to exchange gifts through the mail. He was difficult to shop for. He never seemed to want anything that was good for him. She settled on a box full of famous treats from Hogsmeade, hoping they might bring back good memories of his own time at Hogwarts. He rarely ever talked about his past, but she figured it would be hard to go wrong with Honeydukes chocolate.

In return, she had a received a small, leatherbound journal that only opened at her touch. She now carried it everywhere, grateful that she would no longer have to worry about her privacy when she wrote.

Mariah slipped into the potions classroom and chose a workstation near the back like she normally did, her heart sinking as she saw the cauldrons and knew this would be a practical lesson. She had always struggled with making potions - so far, the only thing keeping her grade up in the class was the theoretical portion where she could simply spit out information and gain points. She sighed, resigning herself to her fate and resolving to pay close attention this time, though she knew it was a hopeless cause.

Potions was one of Lyra's worst subjects at the moment. Not in terms of grades of course, no Lyra's grades were all amazing, but that was more because she'd been working her ass off than than anything else. And because they hadn't as of late been doing actual potions. Her struggles were truly caused by no fault of her own, Ilvermorny had just been behind in a couple subjects, and it just so happened that Potions was one of them. In truth, Lyra enjoyed Potions. But as of late she had been liking them less and less as she attempted to catch up and worked on potions in her spare time that she couldn't quite figure out or understand.

The first thing she did was went straight to the front of the room where a new woman stood. She offered the woman a hand and a bright smile. "Good morning, my name is Lyra Fletcher. I heard we had a teaching assistant but I don't believe we've met yet? Are you teaching class today? I'm sure you'll do amazing." She spoke with the woman for a moment before going to find a seat.

The sight of the cauldrons brought a sigh from the girl, but she moved to take her seat regardless. She chose to sit next to a girl from her dorm that she had recently befriended just before the break, Mariah and gave her a friendly smile. "I hope we'll be practicing simple potions today. I'm not sure I'm caught up on all the fourth year ones just yet."

Dia slipped into potions. As she knew that she might be a late. And she wasn’t sure if Mercy or Mimosa was there. But she was glad to be focusing on something. As she knew that it would be break soon. Now she would have to worry about potions. As she knew that it was important to keep her marks high. And she knew that she would have to tell her uncle Jackson and Victoria about them. But for now she was just going to worry about potions. Afterwards she can worry about everything else later. Dominique then found her seat and seen that Mimosa was there. And then she noticed that she was sitting with squid boy.

Now she was ready for the class to began. She knew today that she would have to be paying attention in class. Dominique smiled as she saw Professor Harrington. As they both had a love for herbology. Now it was time for her to pay attention and get ready to learn.

Over her the last term, Azalea had taken care to learn all her students names. Adman ant to not be caught off guard and referring to the attendance list like she had had to resort to in her first impromptu class, the witch now knew all her kids names by heart. From the hesitant first years to the ones who were currently tearing their hair out in preparation for their NEWTs, the brunette greeted them all by name.

"Morning Nikolai, hello Mimosa, Catherine, Ji Hyun, good break you guys?" she managed before addressing the Hufflepuff who walked in next. "Hey Mariah, did you have fun with your moms over the holidays?"

As each student passed by, Azalea greeted them in turn before encouraging them to find their seat. "Hi Lilac, why don't you join Dia? And hi Lyra, I already know you." The new student who had only joined them a month ago was already making waves. Before Lyra Fletcher's arrival, Headmaster Kessler had sent out notes to all the teachers encouraging them to help the young Hufflepuff catch up with her schoolwork.

"Good morning Apollonia, there's my star brewer!" Why don't you join Sterling and lets see if your combination is as inspiring as I suspect?"

Once everyone was settled, the witch cleared her throat slightly, signalling for the light chatter to die down so they could begin. "Now, before we start, some of you may have noticed... I am not Professor Blackwood,' the girl let out a small laugh. "However I will do my best to maintain her standards in this class. Though unfortunately, this means no pop quiz today." A small cheer went up at the back of the lab before the students fell silent once more.

"No, today we're gong to discuss the elements that make up a potion. For whether you're in your first year and just figuring out the right way to light a cauldron, or in your seventh year and trying to distill fresh snow water for Veritesrum, you will all benefit from learning what makes a potion. " the witch paused, making sure she had everyone's attention.

"So without further ado, why don't you all enlighten me as to what we need when brewing a potion. Keep in mind there are no wrong answers. Just think it over, what are some of the things you absolute need to achieve an effective potion."

As she spoke the words, the chalk rose to the blackboard behind her, waiting to jot down the answers submitted by her students.

She gave the professor a small smile and nodded as she said she already knew Lyra. "Oh, well, then nice to officially meet you!" With that she took her seat.

The mention of no pop quiz earned no response from Lyra. She really didn't care ether way, as she liked taking tests and quizzes in a way, but it was probably better for right now since she wasn't quite caught up. The news that they were mostly studying what sounded like basics was good news at least, because it meant that she didn't exactly have to be caught up.

She raised her hand to respond to the professor's question. Well, was she a professor if she was still a university student? The look from Squid boy made her blush slightly in embarrassment and look down. What was it lately with everyone pointing her out in classes?! Mary-Kate had pointed out the fact that she'd been the only one shivering in front of Jake, much to her embarrassment, and now anyone who was paying attention to him would know that the comment was at least partly aimed towards her.

When called upon she looked back to Squid Boy, though rather than accusing she simply gave him a smile as she spoke. "Another thing you need is a clean workstation. Including your chopping board, knives, caldron, everything your potion will touch will need to be clean. This prevents cross-contamination." Her smile turned from friendly teasing to amusement as her gaze moved back to their instructor. "But one of the most important things to a successful potion is a good recipe. If you have a recipe that doesn't work, there's no way your potion will turn out the way you want it to without sheer luck."