Table 2. Post 1
 

Oakey wasn't so sure this was the same Charms Professor he had last term that made him and his classmates run around in cool October weather playing capture the flag. He rubbed his head some more then looked up to see that both Gideon and Alyssa were discussing what the symbol of the item on their table may be.

He looked down at the sheet and looked at each symbol that was shaped like a circle. No, they had just said it could be in different shapes. He pressed his fingers to his temples a little harder and focused some more on the sheet of paper. He even took a glance over at the picture that Alyssa showed Gideon. Hey he finally spoke up That picture look a little like one of these few symbols He took one hand off the side of his face and pointed to the symbols of magnefium, rentorta, recepiens, cucurbita, pulverifare, and fundere. Maybe we can narrow it down to one of these six thanks to Alyssa's picture.

Post 2; Table 7
 

Chelle stared at Oichi.

How on earth am I supposed to know? I can't even figure out what any of these symbols represent.

"I guess we're supposed to find the symbols which represent the object that the mortar and pestle are used to grind, no?" she asked Oichi. At least that's what Professor had said. "Let's have a look at the textbook."

Chelle took out her Textbook and started flipping through the definitions of various terms, reading each one not-so-carefully, but carefully enough to highlight the important words. A grin broke out on her face as she found something. "Here, Oichi. Have a look at this. Our item has to be something related to this process," she told Oichi, pointing towards the definition in her book.

Post 3: Table#2
 

"I think Antimonium is a kind of metal...or at least it sounds like one." Alyssa agreed with Gideon. Then she heard what Oakey had to say which made a lot of sense.



"Remember that symbol I showed you guys earlier, here's the page where I found it." Alyssa showed her fellow group members the page showing the Alchemical Symbol for Retort.

"I guess the latin word for it could possibly be retorte." Alyssa said.

"But now that I have a better look at it, and looking at the symbols handout, I'm inclined to agree with Oakey now. It could be any of those symbols he mentioned."

Post #1, Table 6
 

As Professor Schirmer had gotten to her table, and started explaining the little apparatus that was sitting on it, Stella had to bite her tongue so as not to sigh, or roll her eyes, or outwardly show any of the exasperation she was feeling at the first sentence out of the professor's mouth. Of course I had to end up at the difficult table, she thought, glancing down at Paulie again as the description continued. Well, they knew it was a kind of furnace, which obviously meant that there was fire involved. Burning, heating, a process like that, but she still was entirely unsure of how exactly they were going to decipher what their apparatus was.

Because of that very fact, the first thing she did once the explanations concluded and they were told to answer the questions posed to themselves and the other tables was to go up to the front and pick up a few of the textbooks the professor had indicated they could use. Besides, they'd been told they might have to refer to other sources, and she was comfortable with books. Books were where she'd gotten most of the alchemy knowledge she already had, after all, and she flipped the first open as soon as she'd returned to her seat. "I think...," she began, glancing up at her partner the head boy before going back to the book and her thoughts, "this might be a kind of athanor." At least, the book described that as kind of a furnace. There was sort of the domed roof, and it looked to be clay, and she slid the book over toward Paulie carefully so he could read the description. Now they just needed to figure out the symbol or symbols related to that description.

Post #2 @Table#1
 

Vickers looked up from what he was rifling through when Louisa posed a question. "Oh its uh.... " he mumbled, going back to his handouts. He just saw it when he was geeking out reading it earlier. He turned and smiled at Kurumi as she joined their table, then pointed it out to her fellow Prefect "Yup thats the one." he nodded then dropped his voice a bit when Louisa read it aloud "I think its pronounced destilare... that character there is a symbol for an S sound." he whispered to her, pointing at the letter she mistook for an F.

He went back to the textbook and found something that look very much like what they had on their table "I was right...." he made a little fist pump as he kept on reading. But he suddenly looked up when Kurumi said something "A... coffee maker?" he sat back and stared at the copper instrument for a moment. It didnt look anything like a coffee maker to him "A tea maker maybe.... " he mumbled as he peered down at what Kurumi was referring to. "Oh!...." he said suddenly smiling as he realized why Kurumi mistook it for a coffee maker "Thats not a heating coil, although it does look like it, it being copper and all." Gently he took the copper cup and touched the snake-like piece, tilting it towards the girls so the can see its end "Its a pipe, it connects from that spout over there..." he said touching the other slender pipe sticking out of the onion-like top of the main instrument. He paused for a moment, looking at the girls on his table if they really want to listen to a boring explanation of the distillation process. He does tend to talk too much about the technical things...

Table #1 Post #3 // OH! It's called إنبيق originally in Arabic x3
 

Destilare..? Louisa repeated after him, "Destilare.. okay." She dropped her gaze and eyed the symbol, not friendly. So now what happens? After figuring out the symbol and its name? They don't even have to use this copper pot anymore, right? Vickers said it was an old version of that one over at table three.

However, Kurumi yet started getting real curious at the... coffee maker? Louisa's eyebrows furrowed, she stared at the item on the table. She listened to Vickers demonstrate to both of them how the thing works. "Go on..." Louisa didn't really care whether it made coffee or whiskey, but Kurumi would probably want a more elaborate explanation as to why this item was not something she'd use in her little kitchen. Leaning on her hand, she waited for the spiel Vickers was probably about to go on with.

Post #3 @Table#1
 

His hand touched the larger, copper bottom that looked like a squash “This pot like thing is usually called a Retort. Its where the liquid or some kind of mixture is placed for distillation, they heat up the pot and the vapor is trapped by this bulb like cover…” he said, shifting his hand to touch the smaller, onion-shaped top “This has a hole on top, its covered now by this spout…” he said as he ran a finger down the slender copper tubing “The vapor condenses into a more purified form of liquid and the spout leads it down this tube here when its attached to it… ” he said as he connected the cup with the copper coil to the spout’s end. “This cup would have something cool, usually water, and it helps in reconstituting the purified liquid in the copper tube faster.” He then pointed at the short spout sticking out at the bottom of the copper cup “This is the end of that copper coil, and that’s where the purified liquid comes out and can be collected in another container. That product can be used immediately or undergo another distillation process.”

He pressed his lips together and looked up nervously at the rest of the students at his table. He sure hoped that he didn’t loose them with that explanation.

post 4 @ table 1 <3
 

Kurumi found herself simply staring in awe as Vickers went on to explain the bits and pieces of the device while also going into details about how the actual process worked. She wished she had brought her parchment with her to take notes on this. "You're amazing, you know that right?" she asked while her head continued to nod as the information sunk in a little more. Few people could probably appreciate Vickers' ramblings, but Kurumi was one of those people. Being overly curious and all that.

Glancing over at Louisa for a moment. "So...Destilare," Kurumi repeated, most likely butchering that pronunciation. "We think that is the symbol for this?" The upside down check mark that is. Her eyes were back on the glorified coffee/tea maker device. Whatever it was. Had any of them named it just yet? Turning her attention to her textbook now, Kurumi flipped through the pages a bit, hoping that there would be a page or two without text and some with pictures so she could identify what was on the table. "Oh, is this it?" she asked, pointing to a picture. Well, it was more of a diagram than a picture, but it looked about the same. "An...Alembic?"

Kurumi glanced back at her own table. She should probably start heading back to Jezz soon. She hadn't meant to leave the Gryffindor for so long, but when her and Vickers got to nerding out talking about things, she did get distracted.

Table #1 Post #4
 

Okay, that explains why Vickers wasn't yawning or nodding off in this class. Louisa was staring at him as he went on about the copper pot. Nodding her head at Kurumi when she said Vickers was amazing. "He is." Even if his brains were toward something Louisa didn't really find interesting.

Moving on... the Ravenclaw started flipping through the pages of her own textbook trying to spot the device's name somewhere, maybe under a picture of it. That would be really cool, offering information instead of nodding and staring in awe at her genius housemate. "Yeah. I think it is an Alembic." She agreed with Kurumi, looking at the diagram.

Looking around, Louisa looked up at the Gryffindor. "Where is your table? What did you get?" They probably figured theirs out since the girl was at their table still, right?

Post #4 @Table#1
 

He stared back at Louisa and Kurumi. He was amazing? He could feel his face flush as he pressed his lips together then dropped his eyes to ground "Ehrm... i-its real simple really." he mumbled sheepishly as he started leafing through his textbook self-consciously...

But oh they found the name of their instrument. Focusing back on the task at hand Vickers glanced at their textbook and read the name "An Alembic... copper pot." he leafed quickly through his handouts and pointed at the symbol for copper "Other than the distilling symbol, this can also apply to our instrument...." he looked up, eyes flitting from one table to the next, looking at what their items were made of, then he spotted an item that looked strangely like a double boiler. "That team also has a copper apparatus...." he said, angling his head at the table a few rows away.

post 5 @ table 1 & mooooooving to table 8
 

Kurumi leaned over a bit to see what Vickers was pointing out and nodded again. "I wonder which symbol applies to this, or do both of them? One is rather literal and the other is what it does. Though...I don't think this has to be copper..." Kurumi replied as she furrowed her brow slightly. Maybe she was over thinking things a bit. "Can you...combine symbols? Like what you do with runes? Maybe not overlapping them, but just lining them up like words in a sentence?" Worked in theory, what little theory Kurumi had about alchemy that is - which was nothing. Kurumi was more willing to lean towards what the item did as opposed to describing its physical appearance. Assuming they had to choose.

Turning her attention to Louisa, Kurumi was just about to answer when Vickers was pointing to her table. "That one," she laughed. "It's a Bain-marie. I've used it in cooking before, mainly custards and cheesecakes though. I was in the middle of searching for a symbol that represented heating when I came over here." Meaning...did either of them happen to know of one off the top of their heads?

"I should actually head back over there...if you guys want to come with me that is." The more great minds thinking together the better, right?

Table #1 Post #5
 

Louisa wanted to laugh at the way Vickers' cheeks burned. He was all confident and greatly holding himself until girls complimented him, very typical of a Ravenclaw genius. Louisa suppressed her laugh, no need to get him melting now.

Copper-related symbol? Sounded cool. The Ravenclaw looked down at the symbol Vickers suggested. "Aren't there a lot of copper symbols though?" She ran fingers across a table titled 'Symbols for copper, copper ore, and derivatives'. Kurumi's point of combining symbols was cool. "Maybe.." even if the question was really for Vickers. Those both seemed to be getting the hang of Alchemy. Louisa was more than happy to merely exchange a word or two with them proving she was still in the group. Hehe.

O______O

"Really?" She seemed really excited about it, too. Louisa didn't blame her. "Wow, who would've thought baking come in handy in Alchemy." She gave a genuine chuckle, "Although technically, cooking is a bunch of chemical reactions."

Moving to their table? Sounded interesting. Better than sitting here and waiting for the professor to call on them. Louisa got up, held her textbook and looked at Vickers for confirm.

Post #5 @Table#1
 

"Yeah there are several symbols for copper, and a few more symbols for the distillation process, I guess for someone who is well versed in the language of Alchemy they would know which symbols would be best used at which time..." he glanced back at his group and nodded when Kurumi mentioned they can combine symbols "Yes exactly, like for example, that heating symbol... " he pointed at the triangle "...can be placed either next to or under the copper symbol... and maybe over them is the distilling symbol which would then be a simple way to describe the process for what this apparatus is about. I guess its a bit like hieroglyphics."

***

Oh so that was Kurumi's table. Vickers eyed the copper contraption she called a Bain-Marie "So thats what its called, I just see that in the kitchens back home." he can safely assume here too given that Kurumi seems to know it so well. He grinned and nodded on Louisa's statement "Exactly, cooking is almost no different from Potions except for the ingredients and the spells we use to make the potion come together."

He was good with moving to Kurumi's table and taking a closer look at the Bain-Marie. As he took hold of his handouts and the borrowed textbooks he leaned towards Kurumi and asked "What was Professor Schirmer's question to your group about your item?"

Sarah was feeling out of place at her table, students were exchaning ideas and she felt lost. She moved around, taking notes at the different tables, the item on table #8 reminded her of the dish her mom used for melting chocolate when she made peanut-butter balls.She tried to decipher the symbols on her handout with difficulty.

Post 4: Table# 2
 

Alyssa continued to study the symbols on the list that had been handed out to the students. She was still torn between the Retorta , Curcurbita and Alembicus alchemical symbols to describe what the receptacle in front of them.

Then she realized that Table 1 had almost the same kind of receptacle as theirs and so went over to look at it and to hear what their conclusions were. She heard the words Retort and Alembic being mentioned. Alyssa smiled because that was exactly what the members and her table were discussing about too.

So she returned to their table. "Guys I think that we are on the right track and close to coming up with the answer. I'm going to check the textbook to see what the symbol definitions for retorta, curcurbita and alembicus mean. Hopefully, one of them will best describe the symbol we are looking for that looks like a gourd." Alyssa told her team mates before pulling over her textbook again.

Post 3: Table 9 and checking out table 7
 

Looking at the apparatus again, Ella continued to flip through her textbook and had a sudden idea. "You know, incinerators are kind of like this thing here." She said thoughtfully, pointing to the miniature apparatus. "They are used to burn things and the smoke could easily come through this top part here." She said, indicated the rounded part at the top of the object. "I really think that might be what this is!" And then she continued to skim the textbook for mention of that word. "Here! It says that incineration, is synonymous with another alchemical terms like ceration. And it also says that Icineration is when you turn a substance to ashes using fire!" Well TA-DA! Ella might have found out what this thing was after all. "And I believe I just read..." The second year traced her finger back down the page of the textbook. "Yeah, I think Incineration has something to do with Jupiter...so maybe we can look for that symbol on the handout."

Having now figured out a good chunk about the apparatus at her own table, Ella was curious to see what some of the other tables had on them. She excused herself from her group and began walking around, checking out the tables she passed. The second year stopped when she came to table 7, as the item on top of it looked really familiar. "You know, that looks a lot like the mortar and pestle used to crush things up in potions." She said, leaning closer to the object. "Did you guys find out anything about what the symbol might be?" She asked curiously, looking at her classmates that were sitting at that particular table.

Post 3, Table #7
 

Chelle looked up as Ella approached their table. She was glad that Ella seemed familir with it. She nodded, explaining to her what they had come up with so far. "Hey Ella! Yeah, I just came across this definition in the Textbook," she said, and showed her what she was talking about.

"I'm guessing it might be one of these: mercury, lead or something." She paused, and then asked. "How're you doing at your table?"

Post 4: Table 7
 

Ella waved when she saw that Chelle was part of group 7. It was nice seeing the first year again. "Hey Chelle!" She greeted with a smile. When Chelle showed Ella the definition, Ella read it, following along with her finger so she didn't miss anything. "Well that does mention the instrument so you're probably on the right track." She said with an encouraging nod.

When asked about her own table, Ella gestured with her head to the object on table 9. "Our table is doing pretty good. I believe our apparatus is some kind of incinerator for burning things and turning them to ash." She said with a shrug. "Although I'm not quite sure if that's right. The apparatus does have that opening at the top. I think that might be where the smoke would go out of so..." So Ella was sticking to her theory unless someone else had a better idea. In that case, she'd be eager to her what else the object could be.

Post 5: Table 2 and crossing to Table 1
 

Alyssa continued to study the receptable and the list of symbols that the Professor had Kurumi hand out to everyone. She got up and walked over to look at the receptable on Table 1 again. "Hi sorry for barging in on your team conversation. I just wanted to examine your receptacle. The Professor said that ours was almost similar to yours only ours had it's own function. Did you guys come up with what your's is?" Alyssa smiled over at the team.

"We have narrowed down our possible symbols to either the curcurbite, the resorta or the alembic." Alyssa told them.

"The Professor had said that our symbol looks like a gourd, and those are the closest symbols that represent it. I'm inclined to go with the Curcurbite mainly because it's definition in the textbook says that it is the lower part of a still, containing the original liquid. It is made of glass or earthenware and was also known as a "gourd" on account of its shape; a receiver. It also said to refer to the alembic and distillation definition."

"That's why I came over because I overheard Kurumi, Louisa and you talking about the fact alembic and distillation symbols. Does it mean that since ours is also made of copper that we should be looking for the cooper symbol too?"

Table #1 Post #6
 

Almost walking behind Kurumi, Louisa hesitated when she spotted Alyssa coming over. She dropped her textbook and notes down on the table as the Hufflepuff spoke. "No, it's alright," Louisa gave a friendly shrug. The professor said to roam around the place checking what the other tables had, right? So it was okay. Maybe the Ravenclaw would help a younger student out with the little she caught from Kurumi and Vickers...

Or not.

Louisa stared at Alyssa; first her eyes, then her mouth, then down at their copper pot, followed closely by the device on Alyssa's table, and back to the girl who was explaining the obstacles she was having with the symbols. "Uhh.. I.. uhh.. think.." Louisa's hands fumbled with the book and the notes, trying to look the symbols Alyssa just mentioned. "Well Vickers said that our device's job is distilling. We figured it was an Alembic." The Ravenclaw glanced around for Vickers quickly. HELP, her face said.

Looking back at their table's visitor, Louisa tried to help, "You see this pot-like part? It's called the Retort. It's where the liquid is placed first. It heats up and the vapor is trapped by this onion-shaped...lid." AHEM. "And it has a hole on top, it's covered now by this… thing.” Louisa forgot what Vickers called it. Anyways, "The vapor condenses into a more purified form of liquid and the spout-" YES! That was what he called it, "-leads it down this tube here when its attached to it." Louisa mimicked his gesture by bringing the cup together with the copper coil to the spout’s end. “This cup would have something cool, usually water,” She then pointed at the short spout sticking out at the bottom of the copper cup, "This is the end of that copper coil, and that’s where the purified liquid comes out eventually."

Looking back at Alyssa, the Prefect squinted her eyes thoughtfully. "Did that answer one of your questions?" Hmm? "I don't really think I can help with the symbols though." Louisa would recommend asking Vickers for that. "Vickers was the one to explain all this to me, honestly." Cue a nervous chuckle.

Post #6 @Table#1
 

They were about to proceed to Kurumi's Team's desk when Alyssa from the next table over asked them a question. Vickers listened to Louisa's reply, nodding in places and giving her a small smile. She explained it pretty well. He looked back and forth between the item on their desk and the one on Alyssa's "Yeah well they do look very similar-- that bottom part on ours that we call the Retort can very easily be the same component that is on your desk. Although perhaps as a singular unit it has a slightly different function." he said with a small shrug of a shoulder. Its hard for him to say that definitely their items are the same, with Alyssa's only being a piece of the entire apparatus that sat on the first table. He wasnt familiar with the old school distillers like the one they had that if they were broken down in pieces, might perform separate functions, like what Alyssa's could possibly do.

Now as for the symbols "IF you look at the handouts there are a couple different ways to represent the copper symbol... but yeah they should mean the same thing. As for the distillation symbol, i'm not sure if that can also be applied to your apparatus... maybe yes, maybe not. Have you looked into the handouts and the textbook if there are other symbols that would also be descriptive of what your item can do? As it is it looks like a pot... or a bowl." He looked around at the other tables, spotting a few more that looked bowl-like "Those other items may be made of other materials, but they look very similar to what your item can do." which strictly speaking, is a container.

still table 1 but talking about table 2 item post 6
 

Kurumi was just about to answer Vickers and Louisa's questions about the item at her table, when Alyssa came over and began asking questions. Letting Louisa handle them, or so the Gryffindor thought, Kurumi peered around to take a look at what was on Alyssa's table and she squinted slightly. Referring to the book in her hand again, the one that had identified the alembic, and she glanced back at Alyssa.

"Well, it isn't an alembic, your item," Kurumi said as she scratched the back of her neck. "But I think it is a part of one. I looks like this part," she continued, poiting to the pot on Louisa & Vicker's table's item. "Its the part where contents heated to encourage," she paused for a moment to find her place in the text. "... the evaporation of the more volatile components for the extraction of alcoholic distillates, essential oils and floral waters." Looking up again now, and closing her book. "My guess would be that this one has a symbol associated with heating and or evaporation."

Post 6: Table 2 having crossed over to table 1. Thanks Vickers, Louisa and Kurumi
 

Alyssa was now glad that she had crossed over to Table 1. Vickers, Louisa and Kurumi, definitely knew their stuff.

"So basically all you guys are saying is that our receptable is more like the receiving end or the container part of your receptable." Alyssa looked over at the container at her table and then back at Table 1's. It did look like the receiving end.

"Okay so now we've got it narrowed down to either the curcubita or the retorta. Kurumi, since ours is made of copper, do we need to add that symbol to the alchemical symbol too." Alyssa asked Kurumi, since she seemed to know a lot of smart stuff.

table 1 but talking about table 2 item post 7!
 

Kurumi shook her head, not that Alyssa was completely off, but she just wanted to clarify a few things. "It's not the receiving end, I don't believe," she said, pointing to the device on their table again. Vickers was the expert on this and she was wishing more and more that she had taken notes. "This part starts the process of distillation. The receiving end would technically be here," she said, pointing to the bit of copper tubing sticking out at the end. "You would need another cup or something to collect the distilled solution that came out though." Then again, this was assuming that she was right and making sense of all this. Besides the item at her table, Kurumi really did not have much confidence in all this - especially with all the Latin.

When Alyssa mentioned...two other words...whatever those were, Kurumi sort of just stared blankly at her. Yeah, didn't have any of this stuff memorized and squinting at the symbols on the pieces of parchment was starting to hurt her eyes - no offense Professor Schirmer. "Um...well...these aren't always made from copper," she said with a small shrug. "So I really don't know the answer to that. We were wondering the same thing." So, her guess was as good as Kurumi's. She didn't speak Alchemy.

Glancing back at Louisa and Vickers again, perhaps for some sort of conformation or what have you, Kurumi shrugged her shoulders again nervously as a small smile tugged on her lips. Kurumi liked puzzles, and this is sort of what this activity was turning out to be.

She could do without the Latin though.

Table 2. Post 2, with Table 1 cross over? I'm just as confused as Oakey now
 

Cool so now they were down to six different options thanks to Oakey. He was happy to have helped some. But this class had more memorization of Latin than Transfiguration did, and Oakey's mind was spinning trying to place all of these different words that sounded made-up.

He watched as Alyssa stood and gathered more information from the others at Table One. He was still terribly confused from all this crazy talk and tried to follow, but all he got out of it was that his six were narrowed down to two... but the curcurbita and retorta were not it either? He gazed at the two on the sheet that weren't to far from each other on the list. He flipped through his textbook as well to see if he could find different symbols for the two. He just kept flipping through the book but nothing came to mind. Could he slam his face on the desk to rid himself of this painful headache yet?