SnitchSeeker.com - View Single Post - Potions Seminar #3

BanaBatGirl · 11-28-2020, 02:56 AM

Text Cut: Replies!

SPOILER!!: Fox

SPOILER!!: Blaze

SPOILER!!: Jones

Quote:

Originally Posted by MadMadamMalfoy

SPOILER!!: pre-mini activity catchup

Heath blinked, slightly taken aback by Claudine’s greeting. No “Hi, you”? What was up with that? Had he done something to offend her? Memories of that awful nightmare… the one where Claudine inexplicably hated him rushed back, and he shook his head to distract himself. If she really hated you, she wouldn’t have said anything, he tried to reassure himself. Maybe she’s just having an off day or focused on her doodle…

Something else that surprised Heath? Learning that his outside-the-box answer to the first question was actually correct! He knew it had to be something to do with cheesemaking - because what else could those specific ingredients be used for? - and that was the only thing he could think of that had anything to do with potions. He nodded, returning Mr. Trubridge’s smile with a small one of his own, and continued gathering his materials. He returned to his station, neatly setting his ingredients on the table in front of him just as Mr. Truebridge started speaking again.

Heath paid careful attention to the demonstration before completing the steps himself. After performing a quick scourgify on his cauldron, he used his wand to ignite the burner and adjust the heat to low, just as Mr. Truebridge had done. Then he added the milk, taking care not to spill a single drop. He combined the citric acid and 100 ml water in a beaker, then added that to the cauldron as well. While he stirred the mixture with one hand, he reached for his thermometer to check the temperature. Still quite a way to go to 40 degrees… While the mixture was warming, he dissolved the renet in the beaker with the 10 ml of water.

Heath was so absorbed in the task at hand that he nearly forgot that Mr. Truebridge also asked a question. What was it again… something about a spell that could speed up this process? That must be it, if his classmates’ answers were any indication. Others had already covered heating charms and self-stirring spells. What else could he say? He thought for several moments. Maybe there was a spell to instantly combine the water and citric acid or one to dissolve the rennet. The problem was he didn’t know the incantation for those spells or even if they existed at all, so he kept quiet for now.

Oh, they were using a cheesemaking spell? Heath supposed he should’ve seen that coming! He wasn’t sure he’d ever use that spell outside of a classroom setting, but he supposed it was good to know anyway. At least he was learning a spell that he didn’t already know! He quickly jotted down the incantation, pronunciation, and wand movement in his notes before turning his attention back to the thermometer, which now read 40 degrees exactly. He turned off the burner and after setting his timer, he added the diluted rennet and stirred for two minutes.

As he stirred with his left hand, he used his right to practice the spiral wand movement. “Cas-e-um-cel-eri,” he said under his breath. “Cas-e-um-cel-eri, caseum celeri…” He kept practicing the spell and wand movement separately until his timer went off. Had it been two minutes already? Wow, that was fast! Time to do the spell for real now… Aiming his wand at the mixture in the cauldron, he made the spiral shape and cast, “Caseum celeri!”

For a fleeting instant, Heath worried that his spell wouldn’t work, but as he looked into the cauldron, he saw curds forming. Good, it worked! Now what? He glanced at the board. Oh, right… cut the curds in a crosshatch pattern. He picked up his knife and made a series of careful, decisive cuts forming a crosshatch pattern in the curds.

By the time Heath had finished doing that, it was time to move on to the next steps. He blinked, slightly confused as he listened to the instructions. So they were to heat the curds to 40 degrees, then cast the cheesemaking spell again? Okay, then… He reignited the burner, adjusting the flame to low. As the mixture reheated, he stirred occasionally, peeking at his thermometer as he did so. Almost there… and 40 degrees exactly! “Caseum celeri,” he cast, again making the spiral wand movement.

He watched the curds break up into a cottage cheese-like state and the whey drain. Once all the whey had drained, he turned the flame up, watching the thermometer as the temperature climbed. A slight smile appeared on his face as he heard Mr. Truebridge’s last sentence, Nice pun, sir!

At least someone appreciated his pun! David returned the Ravenclaw's smile and nodded toward his progress. All looked well in that cauldron so far.

SPOILER!!: Blackthorne

SPOILER!!: James and Whitlock

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cassirin

"Oh, he hmm'd at you," Phoebe muttered quietly, keeping her face over the cauldron to watch exactly what their potion!cheese was doing. "I think that means he's in love with you, actually. You can say what you want, Flynny, but I have no hope of inspiring great love and admiration in anyone, now or ever." She was always second choice. Sometimes third. And it was okay.

"Oh, we have curds. How exactly are we meant to separate it from the whey? Why don't they call it cheese juice? That's what it is, right?" She fussed with the fire so the whole concoction could start reheating. "How about I take over stirring and you can do the casting this time? And the separating, however we do that. Just pour it off, do you think?"

Her attention caught on Kizzy being quietly instructed by the professor, and she went still and watchful to make sure she wouldn't have to punch the man or something.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tegz

Flynn did not like that. He did not.

"Don't say that." He said, shooting a disconcerted look down at his much shorter friend and tucking his chin in with an air of self-conscious discomfort he rarely exhibited. He even missed the cue to reassure Phoebe of her epic and lovely worth, something he usually did to a fierce degree, he was so thrown.

".... Yeah. Cheese juice." He agreed vaguely. "You're better at spells. I'll just stir." that way, also, he could just stare deeply into the cauldron and nowhere else at all while gently stirring. Did they need a ladle?

Fortunately again, David missed the first part of this conversation, and only happened upon this pair as they were discussing 'cheese juice.' He pinched the bridge of his nose, as he often did when dealing with Gryffindors (like the ones that had been his school friends) and cleared his throat by them.

"The whey, or cheese juice, will evaporate completely as soon as you cast the spell again. I assure you, you will not need to pour or decant anything." He stared at them both as though watching, and waiting, for them to cast the spell.

A short while later, David returned to the front of the room. "Alright, so the last step is to streeeeeeeetch and fold your cheese. Once it reaches 80°C, you can sprinkle the salt over it and then massage it in. You might want to put gloves on for this step, because now you're going to pull the cheese and fold it in on itself until it's smooth and shiny."

David demonstrated, snapping on a pair of gloves of his own and beginning to work the mozzarella in his cauldron. "If you wanted to flavour your cheese, you could also do so at this point. Some people use olive oil, tomatoes, herbs...." And those options were laid out in little containers along the counter where they had gathered their original ingredients.

As for his mozzarella, well, he was leaving it plain to use in a potion.

"If you finish your mozzarella, you can leave it in one ball or break it up into three or four. I'd like for us to try each other's cheeses, if you all are willing. I think they could be... grate?" He couldn't help grinning a bit at that one. "If you want us to sample it, bring a bit up to the front and put it on my cheeseboard here. If you want to keep it, there are containers over by all the seasonings."

11-28-2020, 02:56 AM	#44 (permalink)
BanaBatGirl Banshee Join Date: May 2007 Location: Gotham Posts: 51,216 Hogwarts RPG Name: TBD Gryffindor Hogwarts RPG Name: Zara H. Bunbury-Foster Slytherin Fifth Year	main activity you could say Professor Pink \| Mrs. Bruce Wayne \| I'm on a Goat \| Glitterpuff \| Dumbledore's Defense Squad \| BHB Text Cut: Replies! SPOILER!!: Fox Quote: Originally Posted by astrocat Ashley nodded. Good. She would probably give it to someone else. It was done right, so she assumed that it would be edible. Even if it did involve rennet. She was following instructions. Doing all the stuff to make cheese. Etc. And then she made a very strange sound at the professor's pun. She wasn't entirely sure if she wanted to laugh or snort, so what happened was something akin to choking. She coughed a couple times until she was fine, died of embarrassment, and pretended she hadn't just done that. She went back to doing the cheesemaking stuff. David did not notice the choking fit of the young Ravenclaw, as he again took a few laps around the classroom to check on the various students. But he would count the fact that no one was groaning at his cheese pun as a win. SPOILER!!: Blaze Quote: Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19 If Mr. Truebridge must know, Potions was one of Claudine’s stronger subjects but not as strong as CoMC or Charms. It also helped that she was good at following directions. She acknowledged Truebridge’s nod with one of her own, very pleased with herself. However, just because she was good at Potions, it didn’t mean that she got confused at times. For the next set of instructions, this was exactly as to how the fourth year felt. A small frown appeared on her face. Did she have curds and whey? Check and check. Small flame? Using magic, the burner was relit and adjusted appropriately. Check. After ensuring that the thermometer was nearby, the contents of the cauldron were occasionally stirred. Finally, it all seemed to be approaching the 40 degrees {plus the curds did look like they were melting}. "Caseum celeri,’’ Claudine commanded, doing all the things to make the spell happen correctly. Colour her amazed as the whey evaporated. And yes, the remainder did look like cottage cheese. Next step? The heat. Up it went. All she had to do was keep an eye on the temperature. Was she having a good time? Um… it was no CoMC lesson but it was alright. At least the frown had left her face. David didn't say anything to disturb this Slytherin who was working and keeping a nice pace. He passed by her cauldron with a small nod. SPOILER!!: Jones Quote: Originally Posted by MadMadamMalfoy SPOILER!!: pre-mini activity catchup Heath blinked, slightly taken aback by Claudine’s greeting. No “Hi, you”? What was up with that? Had he done something to offend her? Memories of that awful nightmare… the one where Claudine inexplicably hated him rushed back, and he shook his head to distract himself. If she really hated you, she wouldn’t have said anything, he tried to reassure himself. Maybe she’s just having an off day or focused on her doodle… Something else that surprised Heath? Learning that his outside-the-box answer to the first question was actually correct! He knew it had to be something to do with cheesemaking - because what else could those specific ingredients be used for? - and that was the only thing he could think of that had anything to do with potions. He nodded, returning Mr. Trubridge’s smile with a small one of his own, and continued gathering his materials. He returned to his station, neatly setting his ingredients on the table in front of him just as Mr. Truebridge started speaking again. Heath paid careful attention to the demonstration before completing the steps himself. After performing a quick scourgify on his cauldron, he used his wand to ignite the burner and adjust the heat to low, just as Mr. Truebridge had done. Then he added the milk, taking care not to spill a single drop. He combined the citric acid and 100 ml water in a beaker, then added that to the cauldron as well. While he stirred the mixture with one hand, he reached for his thermometer to check the temperature. Still quite a way to go to 40 degrees… While the mixture was warming, he dissolved the renet in the beaker with the 10 ml of water. Heath was so absorbed in the task at hand that he nearly forgot that Mr. Truebridge also asked a question. What was it again… something about a spell that could speed up this process? That must be it, if his classmates’ answers were any indication. Others had already covered heating charms and self-stirring spells. What else could he say? He thought for several moments. Maybe there was a spell to instantly combine the water and citric acid or one to dissolve the rennet. The problem was he didn’t know the incantation for those spells or even if they existed at all, so he kept quiet for now. Oh, they were using a cheesemaking spell? Heath supposed he should’ve seen that coming! He wasn’t sure he’d ever use that spell outside of a classroom setting, but he supposed it was good to know anyway. At least he was learning a spell that he didn’t already know! He quickly jotted down the incantation, pronunciation, and wand movement in his notes before turning his attention back to the thermometer, which now read 40 degrees exactly. He turned off the burner and after setting his timer, he added the diluted rennet and stirred for two minutes. As he stirred with his left hand, he used his right to practice the spiral wand movement. “Cas-e-um-cel-eri,” he said under his breath. “Cas-e-um-cel-eri, caseum celeri…” He kept practicing the spell and wand movement separately until his timer went off. Had it been two minutes already? Wow, that was fast! Time to do the spell for real now… Aiming his wand at the mixture in the cauldron, he made the spiral shape and cast, “Caseum celeri!” For a fleeting instant, Heath worried that his spell wouldn’t work, but as he looked into the cauldron, he saw curds forming. Good, it worked! Now what? He glanced at the board. Oh, right… cut the curds in a crosshatch pattern. He picked up his knife and made a series of careful, decisive cuts forming a crosshatch pattern in the curds. By the time Heath had finished doing that, it was time to move on to the next steps. He blinked, slightly confused as he listened to the instructions. So they were to heat the curds to 40 degrees, then cast the cheesemaking spell again? Okay, then… He reignited the burner, adjusting the flame to low. As the mixture reheated, he stirred occasionally, peeking at his thermometer as he did so. Almost there… and 40 degrees exactly! “Caseum celeri,” he cast, again making the spiral wand movement. He watched the curds break up into a cottage cheese-like state and the whey drain. Once all the whey had drained, he turned the flame up, watching the thermometer as the temperature climbed. A slight smile appeared on his face as he heard Mr. Truebridge’s last sentence, Nice pun, sir! At least someone appreciated his pun! David returned the Ravenclaw's smile and nodded toward his progress. All looked well in that cauldron so far. SPOILER!!: Blackthorne Quote: Originally Posted by MadAlice So, back in the cauldron went the curds, to be heated up again to 40 degrees. Violet watched the thermometer carefully, and when it was time, she got out her wand. [b]"Time to drain away the whey!,"[b] she said to herself--hey, it rhymes! This time she felt more confident when she cast Caseum Celeri, since it had worked before, and indeed, so it did again. Magic was wonderful, wasn't it? She watched as all the whey began to drain away. Soon it would be time for the last step. David paused beside the Slytherin's cauldron, watching her cast the spell with confidence this time. "Well done," he praised her, continuing onward to the next student(s). SPOILER!!: James and Whitlock Quote: Originally Posted by Cassirin "Oh, he hmm'd at you," Phoebe muttered quietly, keeping her face over the cauldron to watch exactly what their potion!cheese was doing. "I think that means he's in love with you, actually. You can say what you want, Flynny, but I have no hope of inspiring great love and admiration in anyone, now or ever." She was always second choice. Sometimes third. And it was okay. "Oh, we have curds. How exactly are we meant to separate it from the whey? Why don't they call it cheese juice? That's what it is, right?" She fussed with the fire so the whole concoction could start reheating. "How about I take over stirring and you can do the casting this time? And the separating, however we do that. Just pour it off, do you think?" Her attention caught on Kizzy being quietly instructed by the professor, and she went still and watchful to make sure she wouldn't have to punch the man or something. Quote: Originally Posted by Tegz Flynn did not like that. He did not. "Don't say that." He said, shooting a disconcerted look down at his much shorter friend and tucking his chin in with an air of self-conscious discomfort he rarely exhibited. He even missed the cue to reassure Phoebe of her epic and lovely worth, something he usually did to a fierce degree, he was so thrown. ".... Yeah. Cheese juice." He agreed vaguely. "You're better at spells. I'll just stir." that way, also, he could just stare deeply into the cauldron and nowhere else at all while gently stirring. Did they need a ladle? Fortunately again, David missed the first part of this conversation, and only happened upon this pair as they were discussing 'cheese juice.' He pinched the bridge of his nose, as he often did when dealing with Gryffindors (like the ones that had been his school friends) and cleared his throat by them. "The whey, or cheese juice, will evaporate completely as soon as you cast the spell again. I assure you, you will not need to pour or decant anything." He stared at them both as though watching, and waiting, for them to cast the spell. A short while later, David returned to the front of the room. "Alright, so the last step is to streeeeeeeetch and fold your cheese. Once it reaches 80°C, you can sprinkle the salt over it and then massage it in. You might want to put gloves on for this step, because now you're going to pull the cheese and fold it in on itself until it's smooth and shiny." David demonstrated, snapping on a pair of gloves of his own and beginning to work the mozzarella in his cauldron. "If you wanted to flavour your cheese, you could also do so at this point. Some people use olive oil, tomatoes, herbs...." And those options were laid out in little containers along the counter where they had gathered their original ingredients. As for his mozzarella, well, he was leaving it plain to use in a potion. "If you finish your mozzarella, you can leave it in one ball or break it up into three or four. I'd like for us to try each other's cheeses, if you all are willing. I think they could be... grate?" He couldn't help grinning a bit at that one. "If you want us to sample it, bring a bit up to the front and put it on my cheeseboard here. If you want to keep it, there are containers over by all the seasonings." __________________ yeah, there's one thing about me that you should know________________________________ __________________________________________that I can't help from speaking my mind