| Details for Potions Class, 6th |
| Summary: | NEWT Level Potions Class…Gresham doesn't get that memo. |
| Date: | 1938-11-19 |
| Location: | Potions Classroom |
| Related: | — |
| Characters |
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Andromena sits, perhaps not surprisingly, towards the front of the class. Before her is her book, as yet closed, as well as clean parchment and a quill of superior (but not ostentatious), quality. Arriving early, Rowle took the time to get situated, breaking off her chat with another student that continued on down the hall - no Potions class for them, it would appear. Before too long the class would begin to fill up, and no wonder. Andromena knew a lot of people that had continued on with this particular subject just so that they might catch the eye of the infamous Professor himself. But many and more actually took it for the right reasons, such as herself. She flipped open her book when Slughorn, after giving the class a lengthy greeting that consisted of some and some such, she did not listen, blah blah blah, said today's subject would focus on magical theory. Namely, Golpalott's Third Law.
Soleil has been partners with Gerald in Potions Class since first year. Over the years the partners have grown rather close, so it's not been a real shock especially to the other potioneer types that Gerald and Soleil have broken House taboo and the Slytherin and Gryffindor have been dating the last two months. They keep things very professional in the lab though. So they might be sitting inches instead of feet apart now, and elect to share a book instead of read separately. But the extra lovey dovey stuff is kept out of the class room. So Soleil opens up their book and flips to Golpalott's Third Law. She raises her hand and when called upon she asks, "Professor, once we are done with the theory, how in depth will we go with the antidotes? Will we handle one, a couple, all?" The Professor confirms that they will work on as many potions as they can get through until Christmas Break. With a satisfied smile she shoulder nudges her boyfriend excitedly.
"You're such a nerd." The newly shoulder-checked Gerald mutters with a small yawn, though he does work a faint grin into it. Despite his tease, he's no different than he usually is. Quiet, still and heavily lidded and of course, focused. He teeters on the edge of letting his tease stand, though he does offer a small sigh as he glances back down at Sunny's book. "Is kinda neat though. Assuming I don't ruine it..again."
Musidora is situated not quite at the back but not nearly at the front either… so somewhere in the middle rear. In a completely /surprising/ twist the young witch is partnered with Julian, while very quietly and very stoically keeping her attention focused on what she's supposed to be doing.
Of course, Julian had set up the station for his cauldron a couple of minutes before the class had started. Sitting at the same station with Muse, he was quietly regarding his book, furrowing his eyebrows a little bit as he reads on Golpalott's Third Law, and he purses his lips a little bit. As Soleil begins to ask her question, though, he looks up, and furrows his eyebrows a little bit… Before tilting his head. His eyes cut toward Muse for a moment, in an unspoken question. He doesn't say anything, though, and just tilts his head, smiling a little bit, and shaking his head…
At the front of the class, the professor asks for a volunteer to read aloud the definition of the Golpalott's Third Law. Several students raise their hand, Andromena included. Just when it seemed as though she would not be called upon, Slughorn says her name. Finger tracing beneath the text, Andromena reads in a clear, level voice, "Golpalott's Third Law states that the antidote for a blended poison will be equal to more than the sum of the antidotes for each of the separate components." Sure, it was just reading what was right before her, but Andromena had never been shy about putting herself forward.
"Very good. Now…can anyone tell me what that means?" The question, again, was for anyone to answer. However, Andromena did not get called upon to answer despite raising her little hand ever so high.
Soleil pokes her tongue out a little bit when she gets teased. "You adore this 'nerd' and you know it. Now quit trying to push my buttons. Focus and read, you're not going to ruin anything. The last time your actually really ruined anything was third year. You get a break after three years clean record." She smirks a bit as she reads along while Mena reads aloud. As usual she doesn't raise her hand. She and the Professor both know that she knows what it means, so she lets others get their moments in. She does however shoulder nudge Gerald again to try and encourage him to try to answer.
"Stop poking me," Gerald mutters back at her, though he does seem at least partially amused by her faith in him. "Dark Defenses and charms. I answer there. Here I blend in. Let me blend woman." To his credit pushing Sunny's buttons is fun! He even grins as he lowers his eyes back to the book again.
Fully expecting Muse's hand to shoot up, Julian had waited a moment, before realizing that she seemed a little pre-occupied with something. Huh. Usually, she was raptly focused in Potions. He purses his lips a little bit, and finally, putting a hand on his book, he reaches his other hand into the air. Once called upon, he clears his throat.
"For a blended poison - a poison created by blending several different together - the mixing of the antidote is simply not as easy as finding the antidotes to all of the separate poisons in the blended whole, and mixing them together." A beat, and he continues. "You must find that single ingredient, which when added to the blended antidotes, transforms them near-alchemically into a combined whole, which will counteract the entire blended poison."
He breathes and then settles back into his chair, waiting.
Julian is given a very pleased look for his answer. Andromena did not see it because she had swivelled around in her seat in order to watch him as he spoke. So, the guy wasn't dead. Didn't look the worse for wear…and seemed to be his usual, dapper self. That was a good sign. Not that Andromena had looked just to see if he was black and blue all over. No. She liked to look at people when they answered questions; call it a personal habit. That it also sated another bit of curiosity was just a lucky boon.
That done, the professor seems content to leave the class alone for the time being, telling them only to read the next several paragraphs. That they should take notes was, of course, a given. This Andromena did happily enough. She liked reading, and was an exceedingly good note taker. One might not think of that as something a person could fail at, but fail at it they did! Andromena had only needed to be partnered up with a particularly lackadaisical Hufflepuff last year to learn such an important lesson as that.
When all had been silent for about a half hour or so, Slughorn cleared his throat and addressed the students again. "I should like to know who among you can tell me another useful spell that goes hand-in-hand with what we're studying today? Rowle?"
"Scarpin's Revealaspell," answered easily enough. She had not even bothered to look up from her book.
"Yes! And then…who would like to explain what miss Rowle just said?"
Silence. Julian was going to let someone else have a chance… And he looks around, tilting his head a little bit. Someone's gotta know. Right?.
"It is a spell that divides the parts of a complex potion into multiple primary potions, making the production of an antidote or similar potion easier," Andromena finally interjected when everyone else seemed either unable, or unwilling to answer just then. Professor Slughorn nodded, smiling benignly as he thanked her for her studious effort.
It's NEWT level Potions class, and today the professor had them studying the theory that was Golpalott's Third Law. Andromena could be seen towards the front; Soleil and Gerald are seated together, sharing a book; Musidora and Julian are situated more towards the back of the class. Andromena had just finished answering yet another question and was looking rather satisfied. (Read: smug if you're not fan of scheming little know-it-all Ravenclaws).
Books in hand, man-on-a-mission, Gresham wanders into the class. Seeing the class full, he ducks off to one side and stays out of the way, quietly cursing himself for getting his schedule mixed up.
It was becoming a habit of losing track and staring off into space lately. But now, Musidora looks a little more alert and maybe a little personally ticked at herself for not being quicker this time with a softly uttered and mostly to herself 'wake up, idiot'.
Considering they are sharing a desk together and the like, Julian can't help but glance over toward Muse for a moment, furrowing his eyebrows and clearing his throat a little bit. As the lecture continues, he leans over, just a little, to speak to her quietly. "Y'all right, Muse?" he asks her… before turning his attention - at least, half of it - back toward his book, a quill quietly shifting across a piece of parchment now as he takes a few notes.
The professor notes Gresham's determined entrance into his class. Naturally, Andromena has cast a glance over her shoulder to see what had caused the disturbance. Ollivander, Slytherin. This wasn't his class! By the looks of things, he had belatedly realized that, too. Since Slughorn did not immediately shoo him away, Andromena suspected that there must be something the pair of them had to discuss. Another hopeful entrant into the Slug Club? She did not know the younger boy well enough to guess if his academic performance was even near good enough.
The professor draws her attention away from Gresham when he asks one of the last questions for that particular period. What, he asked, was the antidote used to counteract the effects of Veritaserum? Calling on her, since Andromena had been just oh-so-eager all throughout class…she freezes. Her mind is blank. She, gulp, has not the answer. The shame.
Standing at the back of the room, Gresham begins to relax, to regain some of his… confidence, perhaps? He commits the scene to memory, that he might be better prepared should it or something similar happen again. Might as well learn while he's here, make the best of it..
It's the first time she's actually smiled, even if it /is/ just a quirked, as Muse gives Julian a very wry look. "I didn't get much sleep," she answers, listening to the question… only as she too seems unable to come up with a reply after Andromeda's miss. "I can't seem to recall there being documentation on a proper potion antidote to Veritaserum."
"Ah."
At that, Julian's eyes remain firmly on his notes, as he scribbles them down in otherwise relatively guilty silence. As he writes, he finally decides to start cutting his eyes slightly toward her for a moment. He purses his lips, and considers the answer he's about to give.
Raising his hand, and waiting, once he's called on… He speaks: "Wouldn't a Bezoar work, if taken quickly enough?" he asks outloud.
That answer earns Julian Edwards an amused chuckle from the professor, who merely shakes his head. Slughorn then proceeds to tell the class he would like them all to write a single page essay regarding what they believe would be the correct method of countering such a powerful potion - on top of their other work, of course. Andromena shuts her book, considering. It might be a chance for extra credit, and even if it weren't she was so galled now for not having an answer that she was going to write the damned page out of personal spite.
Ollivander ducks back out, no doubt because he was totally in the wrong place at the wrong time. No matter, the class was drawing to its inevitable close.
"Veritaserum isn't /technically/ a /poison/ in small doses," Muse comments to Julian in a more amused tone, "it's a /serum/." She takes extra care mouthing out the word as she says it before her lips curve into a half-smile. She could be teasing him. Who knows?
Class was dismissed shortly after the small discussion regarding veritaserum and whether there even was an antidote or if Slughorn was just pulling their legs. For her part, Andromena believed that there had to be one or else the man never would have brought it up. Like a hound with a bound, she was determined not to let the matter go as she gathered her things before leaving. She'd wave to Musidora and Julian if the pair of them weren't too occupied with one another.
This from the girl that played footsie with Black in Charms class the other day.
Musidora might be a /little/ distracted but she catches Andromena's wave and gives the other student a smile in return.