Lesson One - 1st Years

[Terrance Thatcher]

"Uhmm..." Terrance mumbled.

His eyebrows stood up on his brow, betraying his shock that he had been called out so quickly. His eyes darted from Professor Harris to the word in his book, and then to the young Ravenclaw student, clad in blue. Another second passed as his brain registered the situation: he had the wrong answer, and was now in the spotlight.

"I, uhm... I thought it was something else." Terrance admitted, lowering his hand back down to his desk.

Terrance may have been many things, but he wasn't a liar. His inability to lie had caused him a lot of grief throughout his life, but as his mother told him, it also saved him from a lot more. He really couldn't use the word he had seen in the book; upon further investigation, it was just one part of a complete sentence in the Introduction of the Chapter, regarding a boil cure potion: "If the porcupine quills are added before the cauldron is taken off the fire, the mixture produces clouds of acid green smoke and a loud hissing, melts the cauldron, and burns holes in people's shoes."

Somehow he felt adamant now that porcupine quills had nothing to do with thickening a potion. The Ravenclaw girl's answer sounded much better than his would have, he thought. He looked over to the girl Professor Harris called "Miss Hathaway" and smiled, shrugging his shoulders in embarrassment.

[Sebastian Harris]

Sebastian's face fell ever so slightly. He had sincerely hoped to see Terrance with the right answer. Getting correct answers from Ravenclaws was all too common; it would have been a treat to get a correct answer from a Gryffindor, especially one who was in their first year. "I see," said Sebastian, sounding let down. "Well, write down Flobberworm Mucus, because Miss Hathaway is indeed correct." He turned away from Terrance and walked down the aisle of students. "And five points to Ravenclaw for the right answer, Miss Hathaway," he said, flashing her a small smile. "Yes, Flobberworm Mucus is indeed used to thicken potions. It is the most common way to thicken potions, in fact.

"Not all ingredients have the same effect, obviously. Some ingredients may only have one effect while another ingredient may have several. You were all required to buy a standard ingredients kit from an apothecary before you started Hogwarts. All of your kits contain the same things as your peer's. Will one of you be so kind to lend me your kit for a moment?"

[Sylvia Roberts]

"Good morning, first-years," he said casually. Not waiting for an answer, he laid his briefcase across his desk and turned around, facing what he was given to work with. He looked them over for a moment before speaking again, feeling a sense of relief he didn't get from his older students. "My name is Sebastian Harris, and I am your Potions instructor. You, of course, will refer to me as Professor Harris.

Sylvia was listening intently to every word Professor Harris said. He seemed rather strict, but she thought she'd be able to handle it. The study of potions was one of the many things that fascinated her. She sat in the front, next to another Slytherin first year whom she hadn't met yet. Silver looked down at the old text book in front of her and opened it slowly. The thick smell of old parchment and dust engulfed her nose making her nearly sneeze, but held it in, knowing that it would only cause her to be more noticed. Her kit lay in front of her on her desk, and her fingers were itching to open it and get her hands on what was inside. She wondered what kind of potions she could make with just the few amount of ingredients supplied.

"Now, back to the ingredients. Like I said, there are thick potions and thin potions. When people think of potions, there mind's eye usually pictures something thick and glutinous. One of the most common ingredients is used to thicken potions. Getting hold of this ingredient, however, can be tedious and rather gross. Can someone tell me how to thicken a potion?"

Sylvia looked around the room. A Gryffindor shot his hand up in the air, and started bouncing up and down, making it seem like he had his pants on too tight. She then hear the Ravenclaw answer him without even holding up her hand. Of course, they're all so typical, with there smart little answers and the way they suck up to the teachers. It made her sick. At first, Silver wanted to be sorted into Ravenclaw, but when she realized how they all acted, she had changed her mind in an instant. The Ravenclaw girl should've at least given the other boy a chance. He seemed rather eager to give the Professor an answer. Of course, the Ravenclaw got the answer correct and was awarded five points. Typical.

"Not all ingredients have the same effect, obviously. Some ingredients may only have one effect while another ingredient may have several. You were all required to buy a standard ingredients kit from an apothecary before you started Hogwarts. All of your kits contain the same things as your peer's. Will one of you be so kind to lend me your kit for a moment?"

Silver's blonde locks sat properly curled at the bottom, with her sparkling blue eyes eager to begin when he mentioned their kits. When he asked if someone would lend him their kit, she bit her bottom lip thinking about it momentarily. What if they were going to get the chance to open their kits, and she would only get to watch? Taking the chance, Silver raised her hand. "Professor Harris? I'd be willing to lend my kit to you." She said, holding the Potion's kit out towards the Professor.

OOC: Sorry for the crappy post. I have an itsy bitsy headache. Point proven; I just wrote "a" itsy bitsy headache instead of an. Yeahhh. Crappy. ):

[Seraphina Rose Hathaway]

Serrie blushed at how she didn't even give the Gryffindor boy a chance to speak. The answer just fell out of her mouth without a thought. She sighed at how she gave a horrible first impression to Professor Harris who seemed strict but seemed to have a warm side to him. She smiled at the boy who smiled and shrugged his shoulders in embarrassment. She hated when she embarrassed a person. It made her feel all guilty and sad inside. But, she decided to do something nice for the boy to make up from the embarrassment she had caused him.

"And five points to Ravenclaw for the right answer, Miss Hathaway," he said, flashing her a small smile. "Yes, Flobberworm Mucus is indeed used to thicken potions. It is the most common way to thicken potions, in fact.

Serrie was kind of caught off gaurd when Professor Harris flashed a smile at her. She would've thought that he would be a bit disappointed with her lack of respect for not raising her hand. Maybe he was, but was just glad to have had an answer than no answer at all. Probably. Serrie listened to Professor Harris go on about potion ingredients and wanted to offer her kit, but decided that it was bad enough that she had already seemed to make a bad first impression. So, she watched as a Slytherin girl said she was willing to lend her potions kit. The Slytherin girl was pretty and reminded her of her half sister Myla. So, Serrie just turned her attention back to Professor Harris and the girl that kept reminding her of the half sister who treated her like dirt whenever she had the chance to.

[Isabella Leone]

Isabella sat in the very back in the classroom, not wanting to be noticed. Sure, she loved this class, but she thought that if she sat up front and she did something wrong it would be an embarassment. And that's the last thing that she wanted to happen. At least in the back she could be more discreat. She's heard that the Potion's professor was tough, strict and dedicated to his job. It was quite obvious by the way he held himself that it was the truth, but in a way Isabella respected him for it.

"Good morning, first-years," he said casually. Not waiting for an answer, he laid his briefcase across his desk and turned around, facing what he was given to work with. He looked them over for a moment before speaking again, feeling a sense of relief he didn't get from his older students. "My name is Sebastian Harris, and I am your Potions instructor. You, of course, will refer to me as Professor Harris

Not exactly paying much attention to him, her mind wandered off, as she scoped around the room in search for something interesting. She honestly didn't care what he wanted them to refer to him as, since she probably wasn't going to be very talkative anyway. While scoping the room, her eyes settled on a fellow Slytherin. She was very beautiful, even for Isabella's very high standards. Her hair was a silky blonde color, that had not one hair out of place. In a way, she looked like the way she imagined her mother would always look like. Her eyes were the same shade of blue as Isabella's and her face looked a bit like Isabella's just a little lighter skinned. What if... No that can't be She thought to herself. She was starting to wonder if maybe she was related to that girl in some sort of way. She watched the little longer before tuning back in to the professor's voice.

It seemed like he had asked a question since a boy's hand was raised high in the air; but she wasn't paying attention. A Ravenclaw girl answered, as if the question was referred towards her, usual attitude for Ravenclaw's. Always being the teachers pet and wanting to get the answer right. Isabella couldn't help but laugh at the eagerness of the Gryffindor, and then he got it wrong. It was a humerous sight to see. Isabella looked at the kit in front of her, what's this? Her curiosity was getting the best of her, as she wated to open it. Isabella grabbed the kit and tried to lift it up, but from the angle she was at, she couldn't get a good view.

"Not all ingredients have the same effect, obviously. Some ingredients may only have one effect while another ingredient may have several. You were all required to buy a standard ingredients kit from an apothecary before you started Hogwarts. All of your kits contain the same things as your peer's. Will one of you be so kind to lend me your kit for a moment?"

The girl that she had seen before raised her hand. She couldn't help but notice the great robes she was wearing, and she wanted to ask her where she got them, mainly as an excuse to talk to her. Her face seemed so familiar to her, she was dying to know where she was from. Isabella noted the other Slytherin girl's accent, it was the same as hers, she must have grown up in the same area of Great Britain. She gave a sly smile as she offered to give the professor her kit. She needed to talk to her.