Potions Lesson One - First to Fourth Years

Alberi listened to what the professor began to explain. The rules were simple. He wouldn't have too much of a hard time following them. Though maybe he should try and be more... polite, at least here. As much as he loved to show what he knew, he couldn't do it all the time. The question is : Would he manage? Hopefully the fear of getting detention will stop him from making such a foolish mistake.

When the professor asked for them to answer what the Wideye potion was, Alberi quickly closed his eyes and tried to remember what he had read about it. He did lose the rest of his summer learning everything. Well, it wasn't really lost if it would help him have more free time now... If teachers here were like teachers in muggle schools, that is. But until he remembered everything, other two kids had stood up and talked.

Pity they took the more explained things, he thought. Though the Hufflepuff didn't have a good ending to what he said, it was understandable. 'Standard Ingredients' didn't really say much. As soon as he sat down, Alberi himself stood up, quickly clearing his throat. "I'm Alberi Woodston, sir." he began. "The potion is known to act as an antidote to the Draught of Living Death, I believe." he wondered if he should say what it's other name was but decided that this was enough and sat down.

Naomi bumped her shoulder against Finley's in a friendly manner as he sat down. She nodded when he answered his own question. "Yeah, I didn't exactly want to be caught up in... whatever's going on."

Listening patiently to the instructions, Naomi paled in horror when the professor told them they had to stand up to give answers. It was all she could do in most classes to raise her hand! She slid down a little in her seat as other students answered the question instead, thinking more details about the potion in her head, but nowhere brave enough to stand up herself.

When the professor began talking again, Naomi sighed, half in relief and half in disappointment at her own cowardice. She'd just have to do the potion excellently. "Want to work together?" she asked Finley when the instructions were done. "I'll start the fire if you go grab the ingredients."

Naomi used her wand to start the fire as Finley went to grab the supplies. She glanced at the board and set the fire to medium temperature before filling the cauldron with water. When Finley got back, she helped him lay out the ingredients.

"That sounds like a great plan," Naomi said, smiling. "Let's get to work." The two alternately chatted and worked in silence, comfortable either way, moving in a rhythm born of a year of close friendship and working together in most classes.

Eventually, they reached the end of their instructions and Naomi waved her wand over their halfway completed potion. It turned the appropriate color for this stage of brewing and she smiled. "Alright, my cauldron is brass, so this needs to brew for..." she glanced at the board, "Fourteen hours before the next step can be taken." She raised her hand to attract the attention of the professor so he could come collect their partially completed potion.

Dan read over the instructions carefully before going to the store room and collecting the necessary ingredients. He took a fortifying breath and contemplated simply fleeing the room entirely. No, best to at least give it a try before completely giving up. For all he knew, he could find himself to be decent at this. Doubtful, but Dan wasn't about to discard the notion just yet.

After reading the directions once more, he decided it would be best to get everything crushed or cut before actually adding anything to the cauldron, that way he could simply measure things out as he went and not worry about the timing or temperature quite as much.

He crushed the fangs and standard ingredient and set it aside. After making sure his cauldron was at medium temperature, he tossed in the billywig stings and let that cook for the designated time. While that cooked, he measured out the powder and added it once the thirty seconds were up. Three stirs clockwise and a wave of his wand, and he released a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding. It seemed he hadn't blown anything up, and the potion wasn't eating through the cauldron, so he obviously hadn't been completely incompetent.

After listening to Professor Balan's explanation and instructions about the potion, Emilia went over to the store cupboard and grabbed all her ingredients, careful to grab exactly the right amount. She then, turned the flame on below her cauldron and began the preparation process.

She added six snake fangs to her mortar as well as four measures of Standard Ingredient, then left it there while she continued. The next step was the add six dried Billywig Stings to the cauldron, which she did, heating it on medium for thirty seconds. Finally, she went back to her mortar and finely crushed the ingredients together, tossing four measures of it into her cauldron.

With three clockwise stirs and a wave of her wand, she had completed the first part and raised her hand, eager to continue. She had followed all the instructions perfectly and felt pretty confident in her potion. She sat back, patiently awaiting Professor Balan.

She was never one for cooking or being a potioneer or anything of the sort, but she was one for following directions and that would be what helped her out. Following directions as well as reading books.