Text Cut: StarShine
Quote:
Originally Posted by
StarShine 
"Okay, so, it is unknown exactly when it was invented, but it's thought to be around 500 AD," he said as he was in front of the class once more to explain it better. "The first records of it are in ancient Persian libraries, but they are not the inventors. The tribe that invented it doesn't have a name or origin in the records, but Persians provide us with a logical and satisfying story.
"The potion is used by the tribe in the holy rituels to honour the dragons, because they were their gods. As I've already said, it has salamander blood in it that is an ingredient used to cure, but the tribe didn't know it then. They thought it was the holy dragon spirit that cured them, and the recipe was their most prized possession. Just imagine, the dragons are even more impossible to tame in those days, and a potion that enables them to breathe fire like them cures them, warms them up on cold winter days and because it is fire, scares off other animals. It is still a handy potion out in the wild, and for us modern people, the most important property is the 'curing'. It is easy to brew and you will recover from flu in less than a day. It is also good for scars and light illnesses like flu.
"As for what happens if you drink it, I saw some enthusiastic students among you to demonstrate." His eyes SHONE. "Why don't we give them a chance after we are done with brewing?"
He smirked again and tapped his wand at the board for the ingredients to appear.
• 3 goose feathers (chopped WELL that they look like powder)
• 5 centimetre square of parasites (mycosis fungus)
• Roughly 2 centimetre square fire-crab shell (prepared)
• One fire slug
• 8 drops of salamander blood
• Some flobberworm mucus (depends on how much rigidity one wants)
"The feathers and fire-crab shells are already prepared and are on my desk, where you can also get a culture of fungus." Mycosis fungus. Should he warn them, in case they didn't know what it was? During brewing, maybe. "The size of the shell depends on how much you want to brew. We don't want to spend all Hogwarts money, so we are keeping them small." He EYED them. No playing around with them, okay?
"Only the fire-crab shell part is modernised. They used to use a plant for that, but it is extinct now due to the wars that destroyed its habitat." He sighed dramatically. "But the effect is the same, so let's start brewing.
"Fill your cauldron 1/3 with water, please, and do not light a fire undernearth.
"Any questions, in the meantime?"
Well.
Now wasn't that just the most interesting story you've ever heard? It was pretty cool to have a story and a different sort of purpose behind a potion. Sophie suddenly wondered if her mother had brewed this before, and if she hadn't, well...why not?
Sophie cleaned her cauldron then filled it with the right amount of water.
Text Cut: StarShine
Quote:
Originally Posted by
StarShine Cosgrach checked his watch. They had to move on.
"You ARE cleaning your cauldrons and mortars and stuff before using them, right?" So that they didn't forget the 'cleanness' rule? Because he'd had to correct 3-4 students already, and he didn't want anyone to fall behind because of that.
"The next step is: Add the powdered feather and stir clock wise with a wooden stick until it looks homogenous, then turn the heater to high and add culture of mycosis fungus into your mortar. I advise you wear your gloves before doing that, because mycosis fungus is a parasite that lives on your skin and may leave permanent white stains if not cured in time. The curing process is... hard, to mildly put it, and they cause odour after a while."
Could he scare them enough? Hehe
"Once they are in the mortar, crush them with pestle for thirty seconds or so, add some water on them and shake the mortar a little for them to mix better with water. Then, add them calmly to the potion."
Sophie had already gathered the ingredients by this point, so all she had to do was pretty much follow the instructions they were just given. She added the powdered feather then stirred clockwise with her wooden stick. Homogenous? What was that again? Wasn't it just a really fancy word for 'alike'? Why he hadn't said that in the first place was beyond Sophie.
Professors...
When everything looked the way it was supposed to, she turned the heater on high then began cleaning her mortar and pestle. She secured her gloves then added the culture of mycosis fungus into her mortar.
Text Cut: StarShine
Quote:
Originally Posted by
StarShine ...and off their half-done potions went to who-knows-where with his wand movement and muttered "Evanesco."
He then turned to the class.
"I mean it when I say 'everything'. CLEAN. EVERY. THING. You two, start over and don't forget to clean your mortar before and after the crushing."
"Okay, everyone. Please stir counter clock-wise for 7 times with your wooden stirrers and turn off the heater. Let it cool until no vapour is seen. It should take about five minutes to cool. If it takes more than six minutes, vanish the potion and start again." So that was their first check-point.
"Those who got it correct, get your fire crab shell but do not add it. Hold it with a metal spoon, lower it nicely into the potion just inside the surface—make sure it doesn’t splash water AT ALL—then start stirring 1 time clockwise, 1 time counter clockwise for 12 times in total. Each stir should take about ten seconds for it to spread thoroughly. Once done with stirring, get it out and put it away on some tissues for it not to get the half-done potion on your table." Not that it would hurt at this point, but he didn't want to clean sticky shells off the desks afterwards either.
They KNEW it was pricey, right?
Sophie followed that by stirring seven times with her wooden stirrer then turning off the heater. She watched her potion as she waited until no vapor could be seen. When the time grew close to five minutes, Sophie eyed her potion. She SO didn't want to start over. Thankfully, the brew had cooled.
Sophie assumed this meant she'd gotten it correct, so she grabbed the fire shell and held it with a metal spoon. She lowered it into the potion just as she'd been instructed to do. She moved through the whole stirring process twelve times, counting to make sure she didn't miss a turn. She retrieved the shell then placed it carefully on some tissue.