| Chizpurfle
Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: Hazbin Hotel
Posts: 10,915
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Norman A. Carton
Graduated
Hogwarts RPG Name:
Sydney M. L. Masters
Slytherin First Year
Ministry RPG Name:
Gaston A.L. Marchand
Minister's Office
Ministry RPG Name:
Normandie A. Carton
Law Enforcement |  *catches up on all the things* Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll
Text Cut: Pre-activity stuff
Tina flushed in embarrassment and indignation as she sat on the floor. Noble's threat stung, but she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of knowing that. Not once in her time at Hogwarts had a professor ever threatened her with points loss, let alone for something as trivial as not sitting down fast enough! How was she supposed to know there would be no chairs provided? It was an honest mistake! She was sensing a pattern here… This made twice she'd set foot in the dueling arena, and both times involved a professor being snappish. If she didn't know better, she'd think Trent had placed some curse on the room that brought out people's worst qualities, which made sense in a weird way. Amplifying people's aggressive tendencies would theoretically make them more likely to duel each other, and this was the dueling arena after all… but that was neither here nor there.
She refocused her attention on the question asked. She thought of the usual things, glue, sticking charms, tape, etc., but those had already been said and didn't need repeating. The only other answer she could think of was stitches. Stitches were used to attach pieces of fabric (or flesh, in the medical context), so that counted as a method of fastening something, right? That was probably too much of a stretch. Fearing further disapproval for that answer, Tina remained silent, but her lack of speech didn't mean a lack of attentiveness. As she listened, she compiled a list of her classmate's answers as well as her own.
Oh, so they were identifying different forms of adhesives? Tina had to admit that sounded pretty fun, just the sort of straightforward, scientific work she liked! She listened carefully to Professor Noble's instructions, not wanting to make another mistake and get in trouble again, then set to work gathering the materials she needed. Before she did anything else, she took some newspapers and arranged a generous layer over her work area. If Noble was willing to threaten points loss for taking too long to sit, she didn't even want to know what he'd do if she spilled something! Not to mention Trent… the less she had to do with that guy, the better! Once she had her area thoroughly covered and her gloves on, she made her way to the front, grabbed a couple of cups, and filled them with the contents from the first two cauldrons, carefully carrying one cup in each hand back to her station so as not to spill. She neatly numbered the cups 1 and 2 before setting them down and going back for samples from the other three cauldrons. Holding three cups at once was a little trickier, but she managed without spilling a drop. After numbering and arranging all 5 cups in a neat line and a quick trip for stirrers and parchment, she was ready to begin.
The fifth cup was easy! It was definitely spellotape. Tina could tell just by looking at it, as it was the only form of tape in the bunch. The other cups would take a bit more analysis, however. She picked up the first cup and looked inside. Judging by the substance's white color, she was pretty sure this one was non magique muggle glue. She'd had a lot of experience using the stuff before in arts and crafts, so she should know… but she'd perform a couple more tests just in case. She stirred the stuff around in the cup. It had the same thick consistency as glue, but the only way to tell for sure was to actually try it. Using the stirrer, she spread a thin layer on a couple of scraps of parchment and stuck them together, then tried repositioning them. As the substance dried, she noticed the parchment wrinkling slightly, and she knew her hunch was correct. Muggle glue it was!
The second cup's contents weren't evident just by looking at it. This substance was transparent and when stirred, it had a viscous consistency somewhat similar to the glue. Hmm… that didn't narrow things down much. Tina tested the substance on parchment and found she was able to reposition the pieces several times. Well, that ruled out the StuckOnUGlue! She had a feeling this was the gripping solution, but she consulted her textbook to be sure. The description matched her findings so far, but there was still one more test she could perform. She applied the stuff to another scrap of parchment, then tried to scrape it off with the stirrer; it wouldn't come off. That confirmed it! Cauldron 2 was the gripping solution.
Three samples down, just two to go: the StuckOnUGlue and the sticking solution. Again, Tina couldn't tell which was which based on the appearances; she'd have to get straight into the testing, specifically testing whether or not the parchment could be repositioned. She spread each substance on a separate piece of parchment and stuck another scrap to each piece. Then she tried repositioning. The parchment stuck with cauldron 4's contents could be repositioned; cauldron 3's couldn't. That was a pretty good indicator, but just to be safe, she would do another test. After waiting for the parchment to dry, she tried pulling the pieces apart again. The substance from cauldron 3 wouldn't budge, while cauldron 4 had a little give. Now there was no doubt in Tina's mind. Cauldron 3 was the StuckOnUGlue, and cauldron 4 was the sticking solution. She jotted down her findings in her notes:
Tina finished writing just in time to hear the instructions for the next activity. Apparently they were supposed to put the various adhesives to use…. well, that explained the tables! She got up and examined each station in turn, ultimately deciding to start with the broken dishes. She chose a mug with the loudest, brightest pattern she saw, thinking the busy pattern would make it easier to match the pieces, and gathered all the broken shards she could find with the same pattern. Now there was just the question of which adhesive to use. Tina thought for a minute. Not the sticking solution; it weakened over time… which would make a nasty surprise for anybody trying to drink out of the mug when it came apart! Muggle glue wasn't exactly infallible either, so she decided to go with the StuckOnUGlue. After retrieving a cup of the stuff, she set to work carefully examining and turning each broken piece to see how they fit together. Only when she was sure the pieces were aligned just right did she spread a thin layer of StuckOnUGlue on them, starting with the bottom of the mug and gradually working up and around to the rim, saving the handle for last. As she worked, she saw a large coffee mug with a tie dye pattern taking shape. It was an odd pattern for a mug, but she liked the bright colors. When she was done, she took a quick moment to admire her work, smiling slightly to herself.
Which station to do next? Tina looked around, her dark eyes landing on the slippers. That one seemed pretty quick and straightforward. Unlike the mug, she knew exactly which adhesive to use. The only logical choice was the gripping solution. All the others would leave the shoes stuck to the floor for an extended period of time (or in the StuckOnUGlue's case, permanently), and who needs that? She went back up front for a cup of gripping solution, then carefully applied a layer to the soles of the slippers, setting them aside, soles up, for a minute to allow the solution time to dry. Now she needed to test it out. Somehow she didn't think it was a good idea to test the shoes on the table or an uncovered section of the floor, just in case they left any residue, so she found a sheet of newspaper to use. She pressed each shoe into the newspaper, pulled them apart, then repeated the process a few times, as if to simulate a walking motion. It worked just like she thought it would!
__________________ Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led
If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true... |