Deconstructing A Potion (All Years)

May had rolled around without much warning, bringing with it spring in full bloom. The Hogwarts grounds had never looked more inviting and beautiful than they did in the last two weeks of school. they had also never been less accessible as exams loomed the very next week. the lower years would be beginning their exams by the middle of the week while the upperclassmen would be sitting fro their OWLs and NEWTs in the final week of school. Nerves were getting frayed and tensions running high in the student population and to top it all of, Annika had declared she couldn't deal with it.

"Azaleaaa," the short silver witch had whined from her armchair in the staff room. "The children are being children again.... I can't think with so many whining babies around, can you wrap up the last few classes?' Of course, Azalea hand's really had a choice since it was her job to do all the Potion Mistress needed to get done. Not that the older witch minded of course, she'd not taken a class since February so she sorely missed getting back into the labs properly.

Promptly, a notification had been sent out to the students that Miss Harrington would be taking the last few classes before exams, and to reach her in case there were questions about the upcoming papers. Belatedly, the witch realized the error of her ways when she was bombarded with owls, all asking some variation of "how possible is it for me to fail completely and ruin the rest of my life?". So in light of the current mood and to relax the nervous batch, the brunette had organised an impromptu session in one of the advance labs, inviting all year to join in.

As usual, Azalea arrived a good fifteen minutes early, noting the house elves had taken her instructions to heart and set up the lab in a more Muggle Style Chemistry Lab fashion than a Potions one. Gone were the cauldrons, ladles and giant basins and instead, high workstations and stools ere dotted throughout the area. The tables were lined with beakers, test tubes, Bunsen Burners and other scientific paraphernalia and to top it all off, each stool had a white jacket folded atop it, with a pair of clear protective goggles resting on the Eazy-Fit material.

As usual, the Potions Assistant took her place at the head of the class, leaning against a high stool herself, her stroppy black heels resting only inches of the stone floor as she waited for the students to arrive.

Mariah really needed this extra potions help. Her end-of-year exams were nothing compared to what she'd heard the fifth and seventh years would be taking, but she was still nervous. She'd never taken a final exam before, at least not in a magical subject. Mr. Weber had tested her occasionally to see what she knew, but he'd never given her an organized exam.

And potions was her worst subject by far.

So when this session was announced, Mariah jumped at the opportunity, hoping she wouldn't be the youngest in a room full of fifth and seventh years. The professor said this was for all years, right?

As she entered the room, she took a look around at the unfamiliar layout, relieved to see that Nikolai was already there. At least she wasn't the only younger student. The classroom looked nothing like what she had come to expect from Hogwarts - in fact, it closely resembled the science lab at her old middle school.

Amidst the surprise and curiosity, a little part of her was actually excited, or at least pleased to see all of this muggle equipment. Oftentimes, she felt out of her depth in the wizarding world, as everybody else seemed to know exactly what they were doing. Today, she might actually have an advantage.

She smiled at Professor Harrington, and moved to take a seat behind Nikolai, next to an older Ravenclaw who was quietly snapping her fingers as she surveyed the materials in front of her. She was wearing a badge that said 'Head Girl' and Mariah suddenly felt a little nervous. Clearly the girl next to her knew what she was doing, which would only make her own incompetence more obvious.

But, then again, maybe that should be reassuring. If they had to work together on something, at least one of them would be able to take charge.

The older witch didn't even look at her as Mariah picked the lab coat and goggles off the stool and held them in her lap as she sat down. Nikolai hadn't put his on yet, so she followed his example, waiting for the professor to give them instructions.

Dominique was doing her best not to be late for class. As she knew that she might get an owl sent from her mother. That was something that she wasn't ready to hear. Potions were one of her better subjects. Dominique then went and found her a seat. And was glad to see that she wasn't late. That meant that she would have to watch her time better. As she loved to spend her free time on the quidditch pitch or with her flowers.

" Good morning professor." She was ready for the class to start. Then she would have to focus on what was happening. Then it would be back to her flowers. Or thinking about what she was going to do over the summer. As there were several trips that were planned. For now, she was going to have to think about what was important. And that was passing potions.

Lyra pushed open the door to the potion lab slowly, gazing around with some vague amount of muted shock. Not only was she half asleep, having only waken up in time after studying all night to slip into her standard Hufflepuff uniformed robes and stumble to the classroom, but she also still felt... weird. All the time. It wasn't sadness per say, nor grief, just... a strange feeling that she couldn't quite pinpoint. It came in waves, and sometimes she could barely notice it, other times she felt it trying to crush her, overwhelming her until she felt like she couldn't breath, like there was some huge animal sitting on her chest.

She gave the professor a small smile and nod in greeting and slipped into the seat beside Apollonia, moving the things previously residing in the stool to the workspace in front of her and resisting the urge to lay her head down on top of them to catch up on some rest. She knew Gabriel wouldn't be here today. He preferred to study on his own, and since this specific class wasn't mandatory he was probably elsewhere, studying.

"Good morning" She murmured quietly to her lab partner, giving her a small smile similar to the one she'd given the professor.

"Hello everyone," Azalea greeted the class, having taken note of each individual attendance in ehr mind. In just a short year, she knew all ehr kids by heart and had no trouble picking them out from the hordes o bypasses in the hallways. She also took note of those who were absent and made a note to owl them to see if they needed anything before the upcoming exams. "Well, go on shad and put on your coats, they'll make sure you don't ruin your uniforms, as well as provide a little flair to our class today,' teh brunette encouraged, gesturing tot eh white lab coats that everyone, in some fashion or another, had ignored or failed to put on.

"Now, I realize the set up of the class is a bit different today, so let's begin with getting to know our equipment and surroundings. Can anyone tell me what one of the apparatus found on your station is, and what purpose it serves? It can be anything from a test tube to the coiled wires. Select any and give it a go."

A series of hands went up, the first among them of course being Mimosa's. The young Slytherin had walked in on the very verge of tardiness surrounded by a group of friends and had taken a seat right beside Nikolai, as Azalea had come to expect of her daughter. This time however, she did not pick Mimosa first.

"Yes Lilac, go ahead," she gestured tot eh girl sitting beside Dominique."

"Le Fu-" the girl began before shaking her blonde head and picking up a plastic funnel on her station. "This iz a Funnel, Professor 'Arrington," she spoke in her distinct French accent. "It iz used to transfer leequids into other containers, to ensure zay do not speel."

"Very good Lilac, take five points. Mimosa?

"Our goggles," the little witch piped up, having already put on her coat and now twirling the protective goggles in her fingers. "In case Squid Boy messes up and our potion blows up. This is to make sure my face doesn't get icky potion all over it."

"Well said, take another five points, and I'm sure Nikolai won't mess up."

Mimosa's confused "who?" was drowned out by the next voice to speak up.

As Mariah donned her lab coat and listened to the other answers, looking around her work station at the variety of things on display - surely they wouldn't be using all of them? - she picked one out that she was sure she could explain with confidence. She had just started to tentatively raise her hand after Nikolai spoke, when she heard a voice beside her.

The older Ravenclaw was muttering under her breath in response to Nikolai's answer. "Hydrogen peroxide and potassium iodide. And dish soap," she said quietly, referring to the experiment Nikolai had described. Mariah had seen it before - elephant toothpaste, if she remembered correctly.

The Ravenclaw didn't stop there. She fidgeted with her hands as she looked at the wall behind the professor's head, a slightly displeased expression on her face. "And round bottom flasks are mostly used for heating or distilling, since their shape allows for an even distribution of temperature. If you just want to mix something, an Erlenmeyer flask would be more appropriate."

Mariah wasn't sure who she was talking to. She hadn't said it loud enough for the whole class to hear, but Nikolai was sitting right in front of them, so maybe she was telling him? Or maybe she was just talking to herself - her eyes seemed a little unfocused, and although the correction seemed a bit rude, Mariah didn't think the girl was being malicious.

She suddenly lost confidence though, because her lab partner clearly knew what she was talking about, and wasn't afraid to criticize people who didn't. Nikolai was one of the smartest people Mariah knew, and if this girl could cut his answer down like that, what would she do to Mariah's? She was pretty sure she knew how a Bunsen burner worked, but only in layman's terms, and now she doubted herself. She lowered her hand, but not quickly enough. Her name was called.

She swallowed nervously, glancing at her lab partner before trying to remember what she had planned to say.

"Um, this is a Bunsen burner," she started, gesturing to the device. "When you turn it on, it emits gas, and then you use this thing," she picked up the striker, "to make a spark, to light the gas. And then you can turn this knob to adjust the flame to make it hotter or cooler, and you usually want it to be blue because that means it's hot." She spoke rapidly, really hoping she hadn't gotten anything wrong. "And then you use it to, um...heat things up, I guess," she finished lamely, looking down at the floor and bracing herself for whatever her lab partner would say. She breathed a sigh of relief as her answer was mercifully met with silence.

The Ravenclaw's hand shot up and she was called upon to answer. She picked up a flask with a rounded bottom and a tall, skinny neck, with only one measuring mark on it.

"This is a volumetric flask," she explained. "It's used for creating and diluting solutions at a precise volume and temperature, usually calibrated for twenty degrees Celcius."

Mariah had very little idea what any of that meant, but she was glad she didn't appear as ignorant as she felt. She'd only taken science through middle school, and they hadn't gotten to real chemistry yet. Clearly the girl beside her had a vested interest in science outside of school, because as far as she knew, Hogwarts didn't offer anything of the sort.