A Lesson in Acting
1/1
“Hey, Harry, can I check your copy of this book against mine? I think there’s been a mis-print,” Seamus hissed across the desk to him.
Harry did not want Seamus to see his beloved potions book, the Prince’s book, so he ignored him, and continued cutting up his toadstools, making sure he measured them into perfect 3.47cm² cubes as he went.
“Psst, Dean,” he whispered, nudging the boy next to him, jogging him so that the cloudy, pearlescent-white substance he was stirring flicked up onto his robes, turning purple, then dissolving, leaving large holes in it’s place, “Do you think this looks right?”
Dean looked over briefly, shrugged and murmured something Seamus couldn’t catch, then returned to his stirring.
Seamus sighed. He’d just have to try it.
He looked up and down page 284 of Advanced Potion Making, trying to make some sense of it. It just wasn’t right. How on earth could he start by stirring something when there wasn’t anything to stir?
Well, it was the textbook. It must be right.
Making a Growth Draught
1. Stir until dark purple
Stir what, exactly? Thin air?
“Seamus, why on earth are you stirring thin air?” asked Dean, bumping him slightly. Seamus turned to look at him, noticing he had a mildly annoyed expression on his face. Obviously, he was miffed because he hadn’t been able to spill something over Seamus, to get him back for earlier.
Seamus shrugged, and when Dean returned back to his own work, he decided to give up looking like an idiot and carry on following the instructions.
2. Add the merridew roots.
So he did so. But what was he supposed to do with just a load of limp things, loose in the bottom of his cauldron. So, he read on to the next step.
3. Add the toadstools in three, approximately even groups, stirring in between each addition.
Easy enough. He took out his toadstools, and added them, making sure he stirred the now fizzing, frothy mixture that he was creating. But just as he thought he was finally getting somewhere, he noticed instruction four.
4. Roughly chop the toadstools.
Dammit.
Oh well, they could survive being whole. What difference would it have made? How were you supposed to chop something once it’s dissolved, anyway?
It shouldn’t matter.
5. Add the elm seeds, a handful at a time.
So Seamus did so. The first two handfuls made no difference to the mixture, but at the third, it started to bubble wildly. Thinking this was normal, he added a fourth handful and a fifth handful. The bubbling became more and more violent, until he added his seventh handful.
The classroom exploded in a burst of bright yellow flames.
No one seemed to be hurt, on the contrary, most people were giggling insanely, especially the girls. Professor Slughorn got up slowly, clumsily up onto his feet with great difficulty, surveyed his once beautiful classroom, which much of was now coated in a sticky, pale green substance.
“Class dismissed, “ He told the students in a distressed voice.
As Seamus and Dean rounded the corner, out of sight of their teacher, they hi-5ed and burst into insane laughter.
“Best class ever?”
“Yep.”
“You won the bet, Seamus. Very convincing acting, I must say. Well done. I’ll pay you your 5 galleons next time I actually have some money.”
“Can you take that reversal charm off the book now?”
“Umm…Sorry. I don’t know the counter-charm!”
Harry did not want Seamus to see his beloved potions book, the Prince’s book, so he ignored him, and continued cutting up his toadstools, making sure he measured them into perfect 3.47cm² cubes as he went.
“Psst, Dean,” he whispered, nudging the boy next to him, jogging him so that the cloudy, pearlescent-white substance he was stirring flicked up onto his robes, turning purple, then dissolving, leaving large holes in it’s place, “Do you think this looks right?”
Dean looked over briefly, shrugged and murmured something Seamus couldn’t catch, then returned to his stirring.
Seamus sighed. He’d just have to try it.
He looked up and down page 284 of Advanced Potion Making, trying to make some sense of it. It just wasn’t right. How on earth could he start by stirring something when there wasn’t anything to stir?
Well, it was the textbook. It must be right.
Making a Growth Draught
1. Stir until dark purple
Stir what, exactly? Thin air?
“Seamus, why on earth are you stirring thin air?” asked Dean, bumping him slightly. Seamus turned to look at him, noticing he had a mildly annoyed expression on his face. Obviously, he was miffed because he hadn’t been able to spill something over Seamus, to get him back for earlier.
Seamus shrugged, and when Dean returned back to his own work, he decided to give up looking like an idiot and carry on following the instructions.
2. Add the merridew roots.
So he did so. But what was he supposed to do with just a load of limp things, loose in the bottom of his cauldron. So, he read on to the next step.
3. Add the toadstools in three, approximately even groups, stirring in between each addition.
Easy enough. He took out his toadstools, and added them, making sure he stirred the now fizzing, frothy mixture that he was creating. But just as he thought he was finally getting somewhere, he noticed instruction four.
4. Roughly chop the toadstools.
Dammit.
Oh well, they could survive being whole. What difference would it have made? How were you supposed to chop something once it’s dissolved, anyway?
It shouldn’t matter.
5. Add the elm seeds, a handful at a time.
So Seamus did so. The first two handfuls made no difference to the mixture, but at the third, it started to bubble wildly. Thinking this was normal, he added a fourth handful and a fifth handful. The bubbling became more and more violent, until he added his seventh handful.
The classroom exploded in a burst of bright yellow flames.
No one seemed to be hurt, on the contrary, most people were giggling insanely, especially the girls. Professor Slughorn got up slowly, clumsily up onto his feet with great difficulty, surveyed his once beautiful classroom, which much of was now coated in a sticky, pale green substance.
“Class dismissed, “ He told the students in a distressed voice.
As Seamus and Dean rounded the corner, out of sight of their teacher, they hi-5ed and burst into insane laughter.
“Best class ever?”
“Yep.”
“You won the bet, Seamus. Very convincing acting, I must say. Well done. I’ll pay you your 5 galleons next time I actually have some money.”
“Can you take that reversal charm off the book now?”
“Umm…Sorry. I don’t know the counter-charm!”