Minerva walked down to the potions classroom. First potions of the term and she was ready. She always loved potions even if she had a love/terrified relationship with Lafay. As she headed into the classroom she noticed Lafay sitting on her desk and smiled, "Hello Professor, hope your doing well."

Turning she saw Ethan sitting at her usual workstation and she went over to him, "Hello" she smiled and found her place next to him at the empty seat. Pulling out her things she got ready for class to start, she wondered what they would be doing noticing that there wasn't anything on the board nor Lafay didn't seem to have anything to give them any clues.

Raven walked into the eerie looking classroom with her hands in her pockets. "Good morning professor Hecate!" Yes, she did remember this professors name! Normally she would not call a professor by their first name, but she didn't know what last name to use for her.

Annabeth entered the classroom looking a little bored. 'Another weird teacher and other nonsense lesson', she thought. 'All that mess about the elves, what the students are thinking? My former school was dirtier and the colour and smell of the meal reminded dog food. Hogwarts seemed the paradise when compared with my former school... She looked at the teacher. Professor Lafay didn't look so bad as people had told her. "Hello, Professor Lafay.", she said before finding a place to sit near the exit door.

"Captain Bishop, welcome back." She said with a nod.

"Good Day Master Kinnnnsley," She said emphasizing the pronounciation of the name... because he'd corrected her one before on it.

"Ahhh Master Barrington, welcome back..." She said to the boy she'd once poisoned to prove a point.

"Well... Hello to you Prefect Katharos." What did she scare him or something? She didn't even have Lucille out.

"Hello Master Carver," She said looking on her roster, this kid had creepy, haunting eyes...

"Indeed it is, Master Elisabeth-Potter," This boy was growing up to be a handsome one... Trouble. That was Trouble with a capital T... thank Merlin Sierra was out of Hogwarts.

"Hello Miss McIntyre, it has, thank you." She said to the Ravenclaw.

"Good Day Miss Franze," She said looking at her Roster. There seemed to be many first years this term. Good.

"Hello Miss Jones, yes, I have." She replied to the girl.

"Good Day Miss Hyde, and I did." She told the Hufflepuff.

"Good Day Miss Kim." She said.

"Miss Castell, Good day to you," She said to the girl.

"Good day Miss Hyde." This one wasn't the annoying Hufflepuff though.

Hecate raised an eyebrow. "Hello Turner." She said and stood.

"Hello Miss Carter-Hope" She said to the girl.

"Master Odessa, Hello." She said to the boy.

"[b]Good Morning Master Steele[b]" She said to the boy.

"Hello Master Tempus." She said frowning at the kid.

"Hello Miss Laning" She greeted.

"I did, thank you Miss Sung." She said.

"Master Lecium, Good Morning" She greeted.

"Good Day Miss Gallaway." She said.

"I did, thank you Miss Bones." She gave the girl a nod.

"Hello Master Summers," She said to he boy.

"Hello Miss Cambridge," She said and raised an eyebrow, "I did."

"Master Branxton, Good day." She said to the boy.

"Good Day Master McCarthy" She said.

"Master Yarborough, Good Day to you and you may sit wherever you wish."

"Hi..." Really?

"Hello Miss Dawnsel," She said.

"Good Morning Miss Fisher." She said with a nod.

"Hello Miss... Dragongrass." A lot of noobies...

"Good day Miss Duvessa." She said.

"Hello Prefect Hudson," She said to the girl.

"Miss Quinn, Good Morning." She said.

"Thank you, Master Toussaint. Good Day to you." She gave the boy a nod.

"Miss Moriarty, welcome to potions." She said to the girl.

"Good day Miss Jung," She told the transfer student.

"Master de Ferreis, Good Day." She said.

"Hello Miss Edwards," She said to her.

"Hello Miss Greene," She told the girl.

"Master Stonewall, Good Day to you," She greeted.

"Good Day Miss Ferrier." She greeted.

"Captain Montmorency, it is a pleasure..." she said with a nod. He better win her the championship.

She raised her eyebrow looking at the young Ravenclaw... "I don't know about you, but when I enter someone else's room, I greet them... Then again... Those are manners." Her Slytherins had them... if they hadn't, she'd set them on fire.

"Good Morning Master Stark." She said thankful the Slytherin greeted her.

"Miss Baltazar, Sit over here please." She pointed to the opposite side Richard Turner was on.

"Hello Miss Johanson," She said.

"Good Morning Miss Ryans" She said to the girl.

"Hello Miss Wheatborn, and Yes, I am," She said.

"Good Morning Miss Zavang," She said looking at her Roster. "And you will address me as Professor Lafay, or Mistress Lafay."

She shut the door and locked with her wand, and then turned to the class. "Let's go over the basics... Who can tell me what a potion is and what they are for?"

She wasn't paying much attention to anything in particular, juuuust looking around at everything, thinking about her candy and the occasional random humming that seemed to be happening more and more frequently since lately. Humming was fuuuuuun.

Her attention only returned to the class when the first question was asked.

!!!!

It wasn't one about the ingredients and what they did!! GOOD! She never knew the answer to those. This though, she could answer, even if only a little so she stuck her hand up. "It's a mixture--the magic kind--that you have to brew in order to obtain and it can be used for lots of stuff. Like you could use it to heal someone...or poison someone...or...well, like I said, you could use it for lots of stuff because the mixture has an effect on the people it's used on."

That's basically it...to her anyway.

Uh...... okay that was a weird way to start the class. But then, everything was weird and different this term. So...yeah. "A potion is a brew or drink that has various effects on the user depending on what type of potion it is." Basically, they could do pretty much anything if brewed correctly. Though, personally, if there was either a spell or a muggle concoction that would do the same thing, she pretty much tended use those. Most potions tasted nasty and took much too long to brew. Shortcuts for the win!

Daydreaming a little before Lafay started class. Nigel always goes back to when he HAD to ask how a bezoar worked. Nigel did not have to ask. But of course he did. Though, Nigel did learn something from being poisoned that day. He learned to always have a bezoar on him at all times. He has not had to use it yet. But like his uncle always says . Better safe than sorry.

Nigel raised his hand and answered the question. "A Potion is a magical mixture usually mixed or brewed in a cauldron."

It was basically the textbook definition. But whatever it was right and Nigel wanted to see what they were going to be brewing today.

Kace heard the clicking of the door being locked. This was getting serious. Kace gulped but knew this teacher was nice if you got on her good side. Then he heard the question the professor asked. What was a potion and what are they for? Kace wondered what his answer would be.

Kace raised his hand tentatively and said, "Professor i know a potion can be used as either for love, harm or magical purposes."

Master Tempus? That was a new one. Okay, yeah, wow.

Tobias had progressed to tapping slightly on the desk, but stopped at once when the professor (Lafay apparently?) pointed her wand at the door. He couldn't see it or hear it, but presumed she had closed it. But why did she need her wand to do that? She couldn't have locked it... surely?

Literally shaking his head to get rid of that idea, the Hufflepuff raised his hand at her question, even though he wasn't entirely sure of the answer. The energy had to go somewhere, and talking was the best thing to try. "Uh, is it like... a mixture of certain ingredients, but only like actual proper ingredients, like magic things, and they work on living things by kind of... changing things about them. Physically and not so physically. And they can be bad as well as good." He was unsure and his words had a way of abandoning him when he needed them most. Tobias shifted slightly, acting as though he was pulling his stool closer to the table to try to disguise his need to constantly fidget.

What they were really slowing it down to start this term weren't they. She wasn't sure Lafay ever took it to that big of the basics, well not that she could remember. Listening a moment, she couldn't believe Lafay wouldn't just expect the first years to know that. Did she think this knew lot were slower then most?

Putting her hand up she answered, "Professor a potion is something that is brewed with different ingredients. Depending on the ingredients the potion could do almost anything you need it to from poisoning someone to almost bringing someone back from near death." She put her hand down and listened to the others.

Theo smiles? Ella was too tired to question this so she smiled back, giving him a small nod of acknowledgement. Honestly, she hoped they'd be proper friends soon. No more of this wishy-washy stuff.

And Professor Lafay had called her Captain Bishop, which was nice to hear. She still wasn't quite used to hearing it but she smiled anyhow.

And the boyfriend sat next to her which was good, for reasons. Also bad for reasons too. Concentration reasons. Because trying to concentrate while he was around was going to be a struggle.

The blonde listened carefully to Lafay's question and thought it over for a minute or two before raising her hand in the air. "Professor, a potion is a mixture of ingredients and like Alexa said, potions can heal, harm, or give the person taking the potion the desired effects of said potion... if brewed correctly. For example, a love potion would cause the drinker to become infatuated with another person."

Well, that was a surprisingly simple (and broad) question. Surprising to Isobel, anyway. It encompassed a lot, but she thought she could answer it. She took a deep breath before she spoke up.

"Well, a potion is a liquid or close to liquid combination of magical ingredients, usually heated at some point, and brewed in a cauldron but not necessarily. And the potion has some kind of effect on whoever drinks it. Some can do things just from contact, though, and those usually shouldn't be drunk," she added hastily, remembering plenty that could be harmful if ingested. There, Isobel thought she answered the question completely, if in a bit of a roundabout and twisty way.

Nerida had sat down right as the Professor asked the first question..[i]Wow Nerida way to be almost late[i].She raised her hand "Potions are mixtures commonly brewed in cauldrons and used to create various effects on the drinker. Potions can be used as medicine, poison, or it can give the drinker any effect from strength enhancement to immunity to flames."

Ezra didn't really answer November's greeting because what was the point, really? He saw her every day at all times, and he found it a little bit pointless to say hello every single time he saw her. More than pointless, it was repetitive, and he wasn't really a fan of that. Cautiously, he raised his hand and said: "Potions are like charms and spells except that they're liquid." How eloquent of him. He cleared his throat. "And can be used for a lot of things, really - for healing, cleaning--" Gran was a fan of those! "--embellishment, make-up... which I guess can be embellishment... uh, maybe." Ezra did not want to look around, did not want to see if he'd offended anyone. "Uh, I don't know anything about make-up though so maybe not that." He shifted on his seat, a little awkwardly.

She smiled at the teacher and nodded then took a seat. The teacher started and she raised her hand to answer, "A potion is a magical brew mixture. They are for a lot of things. Some heal, some curse, some enhance certain things and some change emotions. There is an endless list of uses."

Jory raised his hand after a while. "A Potion is a concoction which was brewed using a variety of magical ingredients,'' he said. "Each potion has a different effect on the drinker and the effects depend on the ingredients used.'' Wasn't he forgetting something? Oh yes! "And a Potion does not necessarily have to be swallowed.''

West put his hand up to answer, expression sort of on the thoughtful side.

"Well Potion comes from potio which is Latin for 'beverage' or 'drink', and the Greek poton which means 'that which one drinks', and it gives you a bit of a clue there: potions are generally liquids but they don't always have to be ingested." West began.

"They are used for medicinal or magical purposes, and sometimes they are poisons. A potion is a combination of ingredients, prepared in a bunch of ways, and depending on how they're prepared or administered a potion can be called a brew, a concoction, a tisane, an elixir, or a tincture, amongst other names." Because they weren't all the same thing after all. Kind of like the difference between a charm, a hex, and a jinx or whatever. All were spells but they were still different.

"Almost anything you can do with a spell, you could do with a potion in theory."

West dropped his hand and fell quiet, curious to see where this lesson was going, given they rarely dropped back to basics.

Oh, back to the basics. WAaaaaaaaaaaay back to the basics of the basics. Mo nodded along at what his classmates were saying, because it sounded about right. What else could he say that hadn't already been said?

Oh! Mo raised his hand. "Just like wands are magical conduits, so are potions. Using magical and mundane ingredients, we concoct a conduit with magical properties of its own. Usually, they're liquids, but I suppose that a potion could be condensed to a solid or evaporated to a gas too."

Tell her what a potion is..? O___O

That had to be a trick question, right? ... Or maybe not..? Derry had no idea, she didn't know the definition of potion, she just knew what they did. Some of them. But... it was good to hazard a guess, right? "A potion is a mixture of ingredients, sometimes including a magic spell as well as magic ingredients, and they have to be mixed in the right order with the right amounts to work properly..." Right..? "And they're for... whatever the specific potion is for. There are hundreds of uses..."

She was writing some of the suggestions down, scribbling away in an attempt to get everything written down. Because she'd forget it otherwise... probably...

The thirteen year old had already pulled out her notebook to being taking feverish notes on every single ingredient they would be using this lesson, but the lesson plan wasn't revealed as quickly as she'd expected. In fact, after hearing this very basic question, she sat her quill down entirely.

Um...really? Someone's got to REALLY be lost to not even know what a potion IS. She raised her hand to contribute and tried her best not to let her amusement at the easy question show in her voice. "A potion, is a magical brew that can have almost any effect you'd like. They can be consumed, topical, or used for an area treatment such as turning a room dark or making it smell awful. Potions require specific ingredients and procedures in order for them to work." Her mind went back to some of the really intricate potions they'd made before. The one that set things on fire that didn't really burn was one that really stood out in her mind. But then again so was that horrible smelling one they'd tested in the pods. She shivered at the memory.

Susan sat and watched everyone file into the classroom and take their seats. Well they really were starting with the basics. Susan wanted to think about her answer before she answered the professors questions. If she talked before she thought about it she tended to sound stupid. "Professor Lafay, a potion is a concoction you brew with various ingredients and potions can do many things such as healing." There, that sounded half way decent, she hoped.

Woa. locked the door? Tora already felt cramped inside, but the door locking her inside the tiny room ugh. She made a mental note to go visit the Hospital Wing to see if there was anything she could take to help with claustrophobia, at least when she was in Potions, because it would get extremely difficult to concentrate very very quickly. For example, Tora had no idea what the question the Professor had just asked and so she sat out the first few times a student answered to see if she could figure it out. Ahhh. Ok. Once she felt she got the gist she raised her hand.
"Uh, well, a potion is a combination of a bunch of ingredients, magical and non, to make a, uh, mixture that helps with certain...." Tora searched for the right word. "Ailments! A mixture that helps with certain ailments which aren't only limited to stuff like boils, or illness, or werewolf-ness, but could refer to ailments of other people like if you want someone to fall in love with you, or if you want to poison someone, or if you need a bit of extra oomph." She said firmly, completing her initially tentative idea. Geez, she really hoped this Professor was OK with slightly longwinded answers, otherwise she would be in trouble...

Since he was a first year, Michael didn't find anything unusual about the question being asked. Of course he found it slightly boring since he had heard his father recite this many times. So he raised his hand, "A potion is a magical mixture that is brewed, where different types of ingredients are used depending on the type of potion being made."

He supposed he could have gone on a little more but the question was a basic one so he decided it only needed a basic answer. No point in peaking too early. Bwaha!

Oops! Did the teacher lock the door? Ok, let me see... I can't run off, perhaps I can hide myself shrugging my shoulders and sliding under the desk, so the teacher can't see me either... *Annabeth tried to slide* It doesn't works. It's better to venture a guess: "A potion is the result of a carefully chosen combination of brewed ingredients brought together in the right proportion into a cauldron. It might be used to heal, bewitch or poison people."
Zero of knowledge but 100% of imagination mixed with pompous words... It should be enough. She thought, waiting for the teacher's reply.

Oh, hey, look. It was that one kid who was friends with the REALLY LOUD Gryffindor. She didn't say anything, but sorta kinda LOOKED at him out of the corner of her eye.

The awful thing about answering questions after most of the clever people in the room had was that there was absolutely nothing else left for Alice to say without sounding repetitive. "Like everyone else said, potions don't necessarily have to be ingested, and the ones that aren't can be physically applied or can effect the potioneer just by being created," she voiced after a few moments of thinking, raising her hand before she spoke. "They can serve for as much of a channel for magic as wands can, I think, seeing as loads of them enhance or worsen our senses and abilities, and that's what a bunch of spells do, too."

She fell quiet again and continued examining the first year as inconspicuously as she could.