xiv

                                    

                                          
"POTIONS"
                          

                            

                                
                            
                              
                                  
                              
                              
                                
                                  
                                  
                                
                              
                             
                            
                            
                          
                          
                          
The houses of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff rushed into the classroom in the dungeons — the Potions classroom with Professor Severus Snape at the head of classroom, waiting for the students to seat themselves.
                          
"No nonsense today. Take a seat ... all of you," the Potions professor spoke at the front of the classroom, with a textbook flipped open. Professor Snape walked to the students that still stood absentmindedly and watched as they practically ran to the closest empty seat. The greasy-haired man walked back to where the open textbook waited for him. "Now that we're settled, turn to page 468."
                          
As the sound of flipping parchment commenced and the sighs of all of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students echoed around the room, Snape sighed as well, rather in annoyance and mimicry, "Ah, yes, the Polyjuice Potion, how stressful." The professor paused, and returned his voice in his serious and calm manner, "Read the entire chapter about the potion and write down what you deem acceptable. That is your assignment for this week, it is due on the third of January. ... You may begin now."
                          
The sound of quills on parchment began as Professor Snape said just that. The two houses seemed to be bored by the Polyjuice Potion. But many faint whispers could be heard as the class went through the day writing down and reading what the Polyjuice potion was described as, and what was known of it in the textbooks given.
                          
The loudest whispers and the most continuous came from the opposite side of the classroom where Professor Snape eyed the seated students warily. "Bloody hell!" Was what was hissed as the whispers paused. Not all students in the classroom looked that way, but also did the professor: whom walked quickly and silently to where the commotion was, and realized the occupants within the whispered conversation of conflict.
                          
"Mr. Weasley," Snape walked then slowly to where the three Gryffindors sat, leaning towards each other in the pathways between the arranged desks. "Surely you do not find the Polyjuice potion exhilarating as though you feel the need to use language, and to interfere with the attention of other students present in this classroom?" Snape shrugged as though it was nothing, and walked briskly towards his desk, his hair covering his eyes almost completely.
                          
When he did arrive, a hand shot up the same area that he had just been overlooking previously before. It was Hermione Granger, a third of the Golden Trio, and a girl considered to be the most knowledgeable witch of her time. Hermione asked her question, but Snape had not permitted her to, "Sir, we aren't on this advanced topic yet. We were only doing the Pepperup potion last week."
                          
"Thank you, Ms. Granger for that clear information," Snape looked at Hermione Granger who nodded, and smiled as she was being acknowledged. He paused and stared at the three Gryffindors, then back to the witch, "First of all, students shall not speak unless allowed to. ... Second of all, 10 points of Gryffindor due to Ms. Granger's insufferable tendency to speak out during class." Professor Snape turned back towards the book that he had been reading before.
                          
Hermione Granger raised her hand again, waiting for Professor Snape's approval for her to speak. He said to her, "Yes, Ms. Granger?"
                          
"Sir, if I may," the Gryffindor witch swept her eyes across the words written in her Potions school book. Hermione then looked up and spoke, "This text on page 516 states that "If a person dies while under Polyjuice Potion, then they will retain the form of whoever they have transformed into, rather than reverting back to their original shape." Does this mean that if they are within the transforming stages of the potion, and they die, let's say that they have the eyes of whomever they wished to transform themselves into, but they still have the stature of them true selfs?"
                          
"Yes, Ms. Granger," Professor Snape stared at her again, and nodded, "that assumption is valid." Everyone seemed amazed by Hermione Granger's valid assumption that even Professor Severus Snape had not called her off for overlooking the topic too thoroughly. She, too, was amazed by this, that she had not caused more points to be taken away from Gryffindor.
                          
Two Hufflepuffs sat together, both of them reading the Polyjuice potion topic, until someone in the desks infront of them leaned backward, Oliver Wood, "Hey, Cedric. Professor McGonagall allowed us to practice on the field this afternoon, are you up for a surprise match?"
                          
"Sure, I'll rally up the Hufflepuff Quidditch team," Cedric whispered in a slow, quiet manner careful not to disturb Professor Snape.
                          
Olvier Wood smiled and leaned back quietly into his chair, and ushered other Gryffindors beside him. He finally looked backward and nodded, whispering cautiously, "It's settled then, Diggory, this afternoon."
                          
"Mr. Wood, Mr. Diggory? Do I hear whispering coming from over there?" Snape questioned the two boys, whom he had known as the two Quidditch captains. He looked at them warily, as though trying to hear what whispers had previously been spoken by the two boys.
                          
"No, sir," Cedric answered as shook his head slightly, whereas Oliver Wood stared back at the Potions professor wide eyed, shaking his head as though he had the Cruciatus Curse demonstrated on him.
                          
The ex-Slytherin professor then looked over the classroom's newly acquired occupants, and sighed in a irritated tone, "Good."
                          
Alana Wallace was the person who sat next to the Hufflepuff Quidditch captain, she had overheard the two Quidditch captains' conversation. She broke off a piece of parchment that she had been writing on, and wrote three words onto it: "A Quidditch match?" Cedric nodded when he noticed that she has pushed the piece of parchment onto the passage he was reading from the book. He wrote down quickly his response, "Come this afternoon, bring a scarf - it looks snowy." Alana had watched him write this down, and she nodded at his response, accepting the invitation to the practice match.