Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
December 20, 2019 11:18 AM
First Things First [Beginners, I-II] by Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
Beginners potions. Mary loved teaching beginners potions. To be fair, she loved teaching every level, and for very different reasons, but there was something about Fall term beginners classes that were particularly special. She loved being there to witness schema shifts in her students, particularly in those who had not experienced much magic prior to Sonora. Also, first and second year students were super easy to impress.With her new, cropped hair left down - it was too short to put up now! - Mary was feeling confident about the new day. She had also selected today's lesson very carefully. She'd selected everything about today very carefully.
Today was the first day of classes.
She chose something lighter than her usual velvet outfits, as it was still quite warm outside, and she was afraid her more buttoned look might frighten new students. Today, she wore a simple blue linen dress, with her buttoned sleeves loosely rolled up to her elbows, and a green hat to match the green embroidered flowers and things around the hem of her dress, where it brushed the floor and tops of her feet. It was comfortable, but it was also light. Today, she was determined to be light.
As the first and second year students made their way into class, Mary thought of everything else she'd been so careful about. Bookshelves lined one wall, with labels indicating what the subject was, but also what language the book was in. Most books were in English, but there were others - particularly copies of the textbooks - which were in Spanish, Russian, Chinese, French, German, and various other languages. She always said a silent word of gratitude for Dorian having sorted them all a few years previously.
The rest of her classroom was intended to be welcoming as well, with ingredients in neat cupboards and shelves, mostly locked away in the ingredient closet where they could not be accessed without her being there to allow it, and sturdy desks set around the room with tall stools so students could sit or stand as they preferred. A large window let in natural light, but overhead lanterns could be lit if students needed more light to see by as well. Also, magic.
"Welcome to Sonora," Mary smiled, once her students had selected places around the room. "And welcome to potions class. I am Professor Brooding-Hawthorne, although Professor Brooding is perfectly fine, and we will be working together over the next several years to explore the theory and practice of potion-making, ingredient collection and maintenance, and various other topics. I am very excited to work with all of you."
As she did with every beginning class, Mary began with a brief overview of what potions were, what was defined as a potion, how it was different from a solution or mixture, etc. These were all things to be found in their textbooks as well, but sometimes it helped to go over them together. Then, finally, the part she knew many students were waiting for.
"Today we are going to be working on the Antidote to Common Poisons," she said, waving her wand to encourage a bit of chalk to take notes for her on the board. She also sent around a stack of scrolls, each marked with the language that they were in so students could choose, and each with the recipe they would be using on it. "However, this potion takes much longer than we have in class today, so we will be working in pieces. First year students, I would like you to complete the first half of this recipe. Second year students, since you have made this before, I would like you to complete the second half. I have potions for you to work with that have finished their time in different types of cauldrons. I want you to take particular care on your wand work. For homework, first year students will write about bezoars, the first ingredient you'll be using, and their various applications. Second year students will write about the use for different types of cauldrons and why it's important, what they do, etc. We'll talk more about these topics this week as well, and that'll be due the beginning of next week."
Mary had selected this potion because it was helpful - many beginning students worried about how dangerous potions were and she liked to remind them that it could also be lifesaving - and because it didn't have anything sticky or slimy in the ingredients, particularly the first half. Bezoars were a little gross feeling, but she hoped powdering it wouldn't cause problems for anyone. Plus, the point was for first year students to get used to the classroom, where to find ingredients they didn't already have, how to measure and prepare ingredients, etc., not to really dig into potion-making just yet. That would come.
"As always, students with concerns about using animal byproducts, students with allergies, or students with other concerns about the ingredients or work can let me know and we will work together to figure out appropriate accommodations for you. Feel free to work in pairs, but not more than two please. You don't have to be in the same year group, though. If you have any questions, let me know! Second years, let me know where you're sitting and I'll get your cauldrons to you. Go ahead and begin."
OOC (Out of Character) - Welcome to Sonora and welcome to potions! Today's potion is from this site: https://harrypotter.fandom.com/wiki/Antidote_to_Common_Poisons. Feel free to assume that the halfblood prince version and the original textbook version are both offered as alternatives to this potion, and talk about whichever ingredients you prefer.
Classes at Sonora are graded based on the writing, not the student's performance. Posts with more realism, creativity, and engagement will earn more points than posts that are less realistic, less creative, or do not provide opportunities for classmates to engage. If a student has a question from Professor Brooding or does something that she may interrupt because it would be dangerous, feel free to tag her, just like I tagged beginner students in the title of the post. If you have any questions as an author, feel free to ask in an OOC message like this, or in the student chatzy, or on the OOC board.
Have lots of fun!
Subthreads: ...This is a change from the chemistry I'm used to. by Mara Morales with Alexander Pierce-Beales
It's all so poetical. by Morgan Garrett with Ellie Alperton
Always a step ahead... kind of by Joanna Rose-Turner with Leonor De Matteo
For all kinds of poisons? by Jezebel Reed-Fischer with Josephine Clyde
22
Mary Brooding-Hawthorne
First Things First [Beginners, I-II]
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1
5
Jezebel Reed-Fischer
January 02, 2020 2:38 AM
For all kinds of poisons? by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Returning to Sonora felt particularly odd when there was magic at home now, too. Augustine couldn't control his and it didn't really come out that much, but it didn't matter. Just the fact that he had any magic at all made Jezebel feel worlds better about herself. She felt a little more normal. She also felt a little more distant from Marcus, though. The two oldest siblings had always been relatively close and Jezebel liked to think it was the two of them against the world. In some ways, she still did. Boy and girl, brother and sister, son and daughter, muggle and . . . and what? Whatever this whole thing was. But now it seemed like she had more in common with everyone else. She and Augustine were both magic. She and Patience were both girls. She and Marcus were . . . well they had been friends at one point.Part of the problem was everything that Augustine's revelation had brought up since Christmas, culminating in higher tensions over the summer months. She stood by her initial assessment of having had a boring summer, complete with trying to talk to Augustine about things he had very little interest in yet, but there was more to it than that. Patience had not yet shown any signs of magical ability, so how the genetic chips fell was still unclear, but some things couldn't be ignored.
Dathan was magical - Jezebel resisted the urge to turn around to find him in class, to see whether there were any telltale markings they shared - and she was magical, and Augustine was magical. Patience might be magical. But Marcus definitely wasn't. While neither Jezebel's father nor her uncle were magical either, there did seem to be something in the family line that had sprung up in this generation. Unfortunately, Marcus was not part of that family line.
Part of the family? Absolutely. Part of the family line . . . well, he didn't share the Fischer blood that apparently made a difference. He was Ekene's son from before she'd married Anthony Fischer. Marcus Reed. He was a big part of the reason that Jezebel and the other children of Anthony and Ekene had hyphenated names. Dathan was just Dathan Fischer, but Jezebel had the all important little "Reed" in the middle. Because Marcus Reed was important, too. Marcus was family. Just . . . not the same family line.
Jezebel had tried really hard to understand genetics. She knew a little about what the word meant and what they were but she didn't really get it. Fifth grade science classes hadn't gotten there yet and there was only so much she could understand from reading science books over breaks. She wasn't emerged in that curriculum anymore. That only served to make things worse because Marcus was. In fact, Marcus was particularly interested in genetics, and more so since learning about the little differences that made very big differences in life. The gap between them seemed insurmountable now, written in blood and another man's name on a birth certificate.
With all this in mind, potions had become particularly interesting to Jezebel. It was the closest thing to muggle science she could get - Care of Magical Creatures was close, but inherently different, and Herbology had the same issues - and that made her feel closer to Marcus, even if she suspected they'd never really be close again. Today's lesson even sounded like a muggle class though. There were common poisons in the Muggle world. She wondered whether this potion could serve as an antidote for asbestos, or cyanide. What would happen if a Muggle drank the potion? Could a Muggle brew the potion?
Jezebel got her answer to one of these questions when second year students were tasked with focusing on wandwork. She really should have known, as it wasn't the first time she'd seen wandwork in potions class, but she hadn't thought about it. For a moment, she had thought she'd found a way to connect with her brother. Maybe if she could just take a sample home, they could use one of his chemistry kits to analyse it . . . That was a thought for another day. Or at least another time - what time were Professor Brooding's office hours again?
Lost as she was in her own thoughts, Jezebel hardly noticed when the class broke for activities. The end of the lecture also marked the end of Jezebel's focus on herself, as she really strove to do well in classes. If she was going to be representing both sides of the Reed-Fischer family tree, then she needed to be the best she could be. That was the most important thing. That was more important than a bloodline.
Turning to the first person she saw, Jezebel offered a smile and some desk space. "Do you want to work with me?" she asked, getting right to the point and hoping desperately to make herself believe that if she just kept doing that, she would be okay. She had to be okay. "I'm excited to do this potion again."
22
Jezebel Reed-Fischer
For all kinds of poisons?
1454
0
5
Josephine Clyde
January 03, 2020 7:52 AM
BBKAWK by Josephine Clyde
She would not be late for the first day of magic class. She. Around the corner! Would. That door! Not! Josie just about crashed into the Potions classroom with all the subtlety of an elephant. Sliding into the first open seat she saw Josie took a moment to calm down. Sleep was beautiful and the home of dreams; it was not the home of being on time.There was some beautiful lady giving out instructions, but the flying scrolls really stole the show. When a little stack settled on her desk she fished out the one in English and gave it a quick read. It looked like a recipe! This was definitely something she could do and definitely do well. But then she looked at the ingredients more closely. Be…zoar? Standard Ingredient? Part two’s recipe had Unicorn Horns ? Josie felt her heart sink a little as she followed the recipe’s instructions. This was nothing like baking!
Lost in more questions than answers she almost missed her seatmate’s question. Work together? That’s right; the beautiful lady had said they would need to work together with second years. Josie turned to give her new partner more attention. Wow, this girl’s hair was almost as beautiful as Mara’s was. The crest on her robes was a red and silver snake. It wasn’t the brown and gold Pecari pig, so she could definitely be polite and friendly.
“Sure,” Josie nodded with a big smile, “I’d love to, but I don’t think I’ll be very helpful.” She hesitated, “I didn’t really grow up with a magical childhood, so I’m a little lost. What’s a…bezoar?”
Josie whipped the recipe paper back out and peered at it again before continuing with her questions.
“I have to make it into a powder using a mortar. Is that this thingy?” Josie gestured towards the stone bowl, “And Unicorn Horn? Is that from a real unicorn? Are they…um…like chickens in the,” Josie paused, she’d been about to say real world, but this was the real world too, “Back home we buy chicken from the grocery store. So are unicorns kind of like the chickens of the magical world?”
Josie paused again, letting the stupidity of her words sink in. Her face flushed and she wanted to crawl into the big cauldron in front of them and die. Were unicorns chickens? Really? She could only pray that the other girl from the mystery house would be nice.
44
Josephine Clyde
BBKAWK
1477
0
5
Jezebel Reed-Fischer
January 04, 2020 12:37 AM
Say what now? by Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Jezebel hadn't really expected to have a partner who was paying even less attention than she was, so there was some advantage to working together, even if the junior girl had come in a little late. She'd noticed Professor Brooding give a curt nod and a raised eyebrow in her direction but she hadn't said anything. Jezebel sort of wondered what the potions professor would look like angry. Probably a little bit like a Venus flytrap.Either way, the first year had probably been paying attention since her arrival and that was one step up on Jezebel. When the girl spoke, Jezebel's head spun a little bit. Since when was she the one people looked to for answers? Jezebel didn't grow up with this stuff either, and just because her family was-- well, her new partner didn't know any of that. Maybe Jezebel's hard work had paid off and she looked a little like she knew what she was doing. Except this new student was an Aladren, so Jezebel probably wouldn't seem impressive for very long. Awesome.
"I didn't grow up with a magical childhood either," Jezebel smiled lightly. Maybe she'd found someone she could get along with because of this, and not just someone to remind her of the mess that was her household right now. "You'll learn fast. I'm Jezebel by the way. I'm a second year, in Crotalus."
The girl asked about bezoars and Jezebel leaned over to show her where she could find that information in her book. "They come from the stomach of a goat. They're weird little hairy rock things. They cure most poisons and are in a lot of antidotes. But if you're dying of some poison, you could probably just chew on a bezoar too I think." Jezebel was surprised at the information that found its way out of her mouth and was proud of herself for having retained so much. Maybe she did sort of know what she was doing.
She nodded, agreeing that the thing on the table was a mortar and pestle set. She started to nod to confirm that unicorn horn was in fact from a real unicorn - and hopefully commiserate on how horrific that seemed - when the girl asked about the similarity to chickens on the market in the Muggle world. Breaking out into a grin, Jezebel shook her head at that one. "Yes, real unicorn. But they're super rare I think." She wrinkled her nose. "I don't think I'd want to eat unicorn. My family gets chicken from the grocery store, too. We've got a big family so chicken is a good option. Do you have any siblings?"
OOC - I also write Professor Brooding-Hawthorne so her reaction to Josephine coming in wasn't godmodding.
22
Jezebel Reed-Fischer
Say what now?
1454
0
5
Josephine Clyde
January 05, 2020 6:24 AM
My name is! by Josephine Clyde
Crotalus. What had her father said about them? Aladrens were bookworms, Teppenpaws were pushovers, Pecari was awesome and the Crotalus were somewhere in the middle. Nice, not terribly boring, but a little strict. Then her father’s eyes got a little distant and she knew what he’d say before he said it. Her mother would have been in Crotalus. Because of that little tidbit Josie felt an automatic closeness with the other girl, but held herself back. They’d only just met after all, but Jezebel was so kind. The second year nodded along and answered all of her questions and hadn’t even been rude about the chicken comment! The closeness felt justified now, but she’d still wait since it was only polite to figure out what the other person wanted.“I do,” Josie nodded as she began preparing the ingredients, “Two step-brothers. My family isn’t big, but Daniel and Samuel eat a lot, so my step-mother is always going to the grocery store with them.”
Did it matter to them that Josie’s mom had died in a car accident on the way back from the grocery store? Nope, but lots of things about her didn’t matter to them. Did the mortar need that much force to grind it into a powder? Nope, but at least she wasn’t bursting into tears at the memory of her mother anymore.
She was glad that Jezebel had said she didn’t have a magical childhood either. Everyone else she’d met so far had been fellow first years and even if they came from the same minimal magic background as she did they were all still first years. She wanted to talk to someone who had some experience in both worlds. They’d probably be more patient with her questions.
“Our homework is writing something about this potion, right? Are classes usually like this? Where we work in pairs with older students? And is our homework something we need to work on together too? If you’re not busy later could you help me find more information in the library? I remember what you said about bezoars earlier, but I want to do well.”
Josie was about to look back at her fake recipe when it occurred to her that she’d forgotten to introduce herself.
“Oh!” That was a bit loud, she ducked down and hoped no one noticed, “I’m Josie, it’s probably a good thing if you know my name before answering all of my questions.”
44
Josephine Clyde
My name is!
1477
0
5