Professor Fawcett
September 25, 2010 3:04 PM
Beginners Potions I (1st and 2nd Years) by Professor Fawcett
The early afternoon wasn't, as far as such things went, a bad time for first years. They'd had enough time to wake up fully, had eaten lunch already, and still had a few classes after his, which kept them from being too restless as they thought of their evening leisure time. Or, as most of them were likely beginning to discover, evening homework time. John had found working in the company of his classmates to be a perfectly acceptable and enjoyable form of socialization when he was a child, but he had learned over the years that most people did not look at it from that angle.If they remained in his class beyond the required five years, they would learn, though, to at least appreciate such activity. Somewhere between growing up as the eldest child of a literature professor, being named after Milton, spending seven years as an Aladren, and having a career, for some years, as the sort of behavioral scientist who spent most of his time analyzing numbers and lecturing to students, John had become an academic through and through, and that was reflected in his classes. He kept it within a Potions framework, making sure it helped teach or reinforce things they were required to know by the CATS or RATS standards, but it was not really a secret that he was also dedicated to the goal of ensuring they could all speak and compose fluently before they entered either college or the real world.
"Good day, everyone," he said once the students had all come in. He noted, between chagrin and amusement, that he had grown so accustomed to large beginner classes that he was still taking a moment each class to realize that this was all they had this time. He had expected that to wear off after the first week. "Time for roll call, you all know the drill by now I hope..."
Once he had verified attendance and put the page into its red folder, he rapped the board with his wand, revealing a list of ingredients and instructions. “And now we’ll get started. Today we’ll be working on a Deflating Draught; it may be somewhat challenging for those of you in first year, but I expect you should find it manageable. It is used primarily as an antidote to the Swelling Solution, though there are several other applications you may research at your leisure.
“The ingredients are, as you can see on the board and page 112 of your textbook, chopped daisy roots, armadillo bile, a runespoor egg, porcupine quills, and an eye of newt. You may work in pairs, and you have the remainder of the class period to complete this potion. Take care with the armadillo bile and the porcupine quills; if you’re too heavy-handed with them, or add them at the wrong points, you may well cause disaster. Begin, and good luck.” He paused, sure he had forgotten something. "Oh, yes. Also remember to hand in your essays over last week's discussion before you leave."
OOC: Standard posting rules apply: 200 word minimums, good spelling and grammar, and keeping your part in the story believable. That said, get posting and have fun!
Subthreads: Worried by Ryan O'Malley,Crotalus with Sophie Jamison [Pecari]
Here for some learning by Sophia Randolph [Pecari] with Autumn Collins, Sophia
I actually came up with a theory about Professor Fawcett! by Kirstenna Melcher, Teppenpaw with Neal Padrig, Pecari
Trying Not to Yawn - A Losing Battle by Renée Errant with Valentina Bentancourt [Teppenpaw]
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Professor Fawcett
Beginners Potions I (1st and 2nd Years)
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Professor Fawcett
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Ryan O'Malley,Crotalus
September 26, 2010 11:01 PM
Worried by Ryan O'Malley,Crotalus
Ryan entered the Potions class with increased anxiety. He was even more anxious about this than he was his other classes. Potions was for smart people and Ryan didn't think he was very smart at all. He would probably fail this class due to being mentally deficient. Then his mother would either laugh at him or yell at him for being so stupid and punish him for his failure.He really did want to pass too, and not just because he'd be in trouble if he didn't. Ryan wanted to be good at Potions because there were so many that had so many uses. Besides, Ryan wanted to find one for allergies that would not make him sleepy. He doubted he was smart enough to think up one on his own and create a whole new potion but maybe one already existed.
The first year took a seat in similar place to where he'd sat in Transfiguration. Ryan was early because he didn't want to risk being yelled at for being late but didn't want to take one of the more popular sitting places because then his classmates would get mad at him and resent him for taking the seat they wanted. It was kind of a difficult balance that probably caused Ryan more anxiety than was necessary.
Professor Fawcett took roll and began the lesson. As he said it would be challenging for first years, Ryan began to worry. He didn't know if he could handle brewing something difficult.The fact that the professor mentioned disaster only made Ryan more nervous. What if he caused one? He'd forever be known as the kid who wreaked havoc during potions. Everyone would think Ryan was stupid and agree with them , with his mother and sister.
Worse, he could end up hurting someone. The Crotalus would never forgive himself if he ended up doing that. Even if the other person miraculously forgave him. Even if nobody else held it against him. Ryan would hate to cause anyone else pain in any way.
He knew he was probably worried about nothing. His uncle Seth had told him there wasn't any point worrying about stuff that hadn't happened but Ryan couldn't help it. He didn't think his uncle worried about much of anything. Uncle Seth was more of an adventurous and risk-taking sort than Ryan was. Ryan worried about every little thing. With a mom like his, he had to consider every action when it could lead to him being punished.
Of course, his mother punished him simply for anything she could come up with at any given time. Or what Carrie could come up with to say that Ryan did that he didn't do.
If he caused a catastrophe and it caused someone to be hurt though, Ryan would deserve the worst his mother could throw at him.
The Crotalus first year turned to the person next to him."Will you work with me on this?" Ryan asked. He thought maybe if another person worked with him, the potion might turn out better and he'd be less increased the chances of him harming someone, but Ryan figured that if the other person helped him out, he'd be less likely to fail. Unfortunately, there was a more likely chance of him harming someone else but Ryan figured if his partner helped him, he'd be less likely to mess up.
Besides, maybe he'd end up with a new friend, like in Transfiguration with Neal.
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Ryan O'Malley,Crotalus
Worried
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Ryan O'Malley,Crotalus
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Sophie Jamison [Pecari]
September 27, 2010 10:22 PM
Really? I'm not. by Sophie Jamison [Pecari]
Sophie literally skipped to Potions class. Potions was her best --and favorite-- of all of the subjects Sonora offered and/or made mandatory. The pureblood had always been a talented potioneer. Considering that making potions didn’t really require a wand, Serapes had already taught her much on the subject. In fact, it was Sophie’s dream to follow in her godfather’s footsteps and dabble in a career as a potioneer when she grew up, though she had Quidditch as a back-up plan. Then again, her stupid Pureblood relatives wouldn’t like her as a professional Quidditch player. They were barely tolerating her being in the Pecari team.Speaking of which, that had sure been a surprise! Sophie had been pretty sure she wouldn’t make the team. They already had a Keeper, which was really the only position she was experienced with. Naturally, the team’s Keeper of previous years hadn’t been replaced, but one thing on that list did shock her: she was Chaser! Sophie had only played Chaser in pick-up games with her cousin and his friends when they played because his friends didn’t want a girl Keeping, especially such a lady like her. Boy, had they been surprised by her game.
But now wasn’t Quidditch time; now was Potions time! Hooray! Sophie eagerly took her seat, listening perkily to Professor Fawcett as he spoke. Anyone who was talented in the art of Potions was definitely high up in her book. She found herself nodding along with the professor as he explained the potion the class would be making. Deflating Draught was less than new to her; she had probably made it dozens of times before. This would be no problem for the young blonde.
Gingerly handling her ingredients, Sophie began chopping her daisy roots in a “safe, careful manner” that Serapes had taught her when the boy next to her spoke. “Will you work with me on this?” At first, she didn’t register his words into her brain, but eventually, she realized that she should probably say something back. She paused her chopping and turned to him. “I’d love to!” she said sweetly. Extending a friendly hand to him, Sophie added, “I’m Sophie Jamison.”
“You don’t look like you’ve done a lot of potioneering before today, so I might start telling you what to do,” said the small girl, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement. Oh, how she loved Potions! “If I start getting too bossy, let me know, okay?” Scanning her ingredients, she wondered what the boy would like to do next.
“Here.” She handed him the daisy roots she had been chopping, along with her chopping utensil. “How about you chop some of the daisy roots?” she asked with a warm grin, sort of sensing that the boy was uncomfortable and quite possibly shy. It had been very awesome of him to ask her to begin with, but if he was shy, then it was a major accomplishment!
Carefully, she began preparing the runespoor egg for the potion, keeping an eye on Ryan just in case he needed her help. “I think ya got it!” she exclaimed happily, her slang piercing her British accent. “You’re doing awesome!” she added as she pulled a hair tie off of her wrist and began tying up her blonde hair. It was just too annoying --and, frankly, dangerous-- to have it down in Potions. Brushing the hairs of her (really nonexistent) bangs that refused to be pulled back out of her face, she asked the boy, “So, where is your family from?”
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Sophie Jamison [Pecari]
Really? I'm not.
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Sophie Jamison [Pecari]
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Ryan
October 01, 2010 1:26 AM
That explains our respective sortings. by Ryan
Ryan waited with baited breath for the girl's reply. She seemed to be taking an awfully long time to respond to his question about working together. He was so sure she was going to say no and was just trying to find a polite way to say it. (Though the fact that she would be polite was at least an improvement over some people.)Or she was blatantly ignoring Ryan, which was more what he was used to. Actually, in some cases, it was what he preferred. Ryan would rather be ignored than berated and yelled at any day. In fact, if Ryan was home, he tried to remain beneath his mother's notice though he was rarely sucessful at it. Even if his mother was ignoring him, Carrie would do or say something to make sure Ryan got in trouble when she got bored playing with her multitude of toys.
I’d love to!”
The Crotalus breathed a sigh of relief. Ryan had been worried that this girl already disliked him even though they'd never met before. He took her offered hand and shook it. "Nice to meet you, Sophie. I'm Ryan O'Malley." He rarely ever gave his last name but did because she had. Not because he was ashamed. If anything, Ryan was proud of his family name and didn't feel he was worthy of it. The O'Malleys were good people. His great-grandparents had a pub in Boston and a whiskey distillery. Ryan's father had an important job within the Western branch in Colorado. Sophie might have heard of them if she followed pureblood families (which Ryan did not, though he thought there was a Jamison family) or her parents drank a lot.
There was also the fact that Ryan was afraid people, if they liked him, would only like him because he was pureblood and had a fair amount of money. His mom, who had been a Brockert herself, one of the most influential families in the west, had told him that his name and money was all he had going for him, because Ryan himself was worthless and stupid. He didn't really want to be friends with people who only cared about money and blood. Ryan wanted to be liked for who he was but he had his doubts that he would be.
Furthermore, Ryan didn't want to be resented for his name and money either, the way his mom resented his uncles for what she thought was his grandpa's favortism. Favortism that Ryan knew not to exist. Yet, his mother blatantly and obviously favored Carrie over him. This was what Aunt Jana told Ryan was called hypocrisy. His aunt was very smart. She had been an Aladren.
The Crotalus shook his head. "No, not really." Ryan was considered too young to do potions by everyone but Aunt Jane who had been more concerned with teaching Ryan the basics. She had taught him some magical theories last year and Ryan had just ate it up. Still, his pre-Sonora education had been sort of erratic.
He accepted the daisy roots from Sophie. "That's okay. You probably know what to do better than I do." Ryan replied. Everyone did, but he couldn't let her know this. She might decide not to work with him after all because he was incompetant.
Ryan set to work on chopping the daisy roots. Suddenly, Sophie spoke again, telling him what a good job he was doing. Ryan beamed. "Thanks!" He loved praise and when he got a rare compliment he would soak it up like a sponge. "I'm from Colorado," Ryan answered Sophie's question. "You?"
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That explains our respective sortings.
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Sophie
October 02, 2010 10:21 AM
Or I might just be crazy by Sophie
“Nice to meet you, Sophie. I’m Ryan O’Malley.” Oh! Sophie knew that name, O’Malley. Having such lovely pureblood relatives, Soph had learned --by force!-- most of the pureblood families out there, and O’Malley was definitely one of them. Though she knew the name, she couldn’t place the location. She knew they were an American family, or at least she was pretty sure. As this boy was definitely pureblood, Sophie wondered if he knew and recognized her name, which was a weird thought. Sophie hated being recognized for her family name, whether it was Jamison or her mother’s family, most of whom she hated. “Awesome to meet you, too, Ryan!” the half-English girl said with her slight accent.Now, if it had been her godfathers she was recognized for, it would have been different. Sophie loved Serapes and Ileum immeasurably and would gladly have traded either one of their last names for her own if she could have. Unfortunately, even if she had either of their last names, she probably wouldn’t be recognized at all as they were both halfbloods.
Sophie smiled when Ryan said she wasn’t getting too bossy. “Okay, good,” she replied perkily, beaming. “I get really involved in my potion making --one of my godfathers taught me a whole bunch about potioneering-- and sometimes I get really bossy or annoying. Like I said, if I do, just let me know!” Not really having any friends yet, Sophie really wanted to befriend this kid. He was pureblood like her, but he seemed really nice.
She didn’t argue when Ryan stated that she probably knew more than he did, because that was all-together very likely. The small blonde liked to consider herself a sort of potions expert, or at least compared to most other kids her age. Serapes knew potions like the back of his hand, and he was passing on his expertise to her. By this time, she could probably make potions that alluded third years while she was blindfolded. Well, that might have been a stretch, but Sophie definitely had talent.
It surprised her a little bit when Ryan thanked her for the compliment. It wasn’t really that he thanked her, a lot of people did that when complimented, but he seemed almost surprised that she was complimenting him. It was kind of like he wasn’t used to being complimented. Weird. Her own father put so much effort into being around --even though he often wasn’t-- that he praised her for things as simple as dressing herself sometimes.
“I’m from Colorado.” Ah ha! Sophie had been right about him being American. Now she was glad she had asked. “You?” She smiled. “I live in California,” the blue-eyed girl replied happily. “Well, part of the time. My dad takes me to our other houses in Germany and England a lot, but we stay in California a lot. Dad really likes the states.” Personally, of their houses, Sophie liked the Germany home best, but there were more people she knew and loved in England. Living primarily from California was all her dad’s choice.
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Or I might just be crazy
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Sophie
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Ryan
October 06, 2010 11:47 AM
Good crazy or bad crazy? by Ryan
Ryan listened as Sophie talked about her godfathers. He didn't have godfathers himself, but he had aunts, uncles and grandparents. And his dad of course, but his dad was often away on business trips. Ryan's mother naturally said it was because his father couldn't stand to be around him. This was one thing Ryan knew not to be true-and Aunt Jana said that his dad probably took those trips because he didn't want to be around Ryan's mother."They sound really great," he replied. "My aunt only taught me a bit of theory." Ryan didn't think he was anything special at it though. Especially considering that some of the time he was at home, and he didn't learn anything there. Carrie now had a tutor who came to teach her the basics but Ryan had naturally not been allowed to attend. His sister wouldn't have it and what Carrie wanted, Carrie got.
Of course, it hadn't really come up, whether or not his sister was okay with him being there. His mother had forbid him from attending. The tutor had asked about it but Ryan's mom had told him that Ryan was mentally deficient and that there was no point to it. If it wasn't for Aunt Jana-his grandfather was legendarily cheap and wouldn't hire someone for him, though it wasn't personal in this case-Ryan might be even more behind. He might not even be able to read very well.
Ryan nodded. "You have houses all over the world?" He asked, in awe. Of course, the Brockert family owned quite a bit of land and pretty much most of magical Colorado but he didn't think they had houses in Germany. Well, his grandparents didn't, Ryan thought the patriarch might and he knew there was a cabin in the mountains. He had gone on vacation there with Arabella, Uncle Tim and Aunt Lisa before Serena was born. That had been a lot of fun, other than the nosebleed he'd gotten from being in such high altitudes. It had been the only vacation Ryan had ever gone on.
Still, Grandpa Otis thought multiple houses were silly and unnecessary expense and so he certainly didn't own houses in Europe. Grandpa was the type to hoard his money, which even split eight ways, his kids were going to come into a lot of money someday, though he said Ryan's mother's share was going straight to Ryan.
"I've never even left Colorado until I came here, except a few times when I went to Boston to visit my dad's family." Ryan told Sophie. "Though my dad travels a lot, but mostly in the United States." He could relate to living in multiple places but he didn't want to tell Sophie that, as he didn't want to explain that the reason was that his mother seemed unable to stand the sight of him.
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Ryan
Good crazy or bad crazy?
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Ryan
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