Potions Seminar #1 - Adelon Ryder-Jones
 

Ivy made her way to potions, her cauldron clanging in her backpack. Entering the dungeon, it immediately felt... different. It almost felt like she was back in the Hufflepuff Common Room rather than standing in the usually-gloomy potions classroom. It was a nice change, she decided. Instead of a professor, there was a woman in bright green robes smiling around at everyone. As she got closer, she could read the woman’s name tag, and she immediately brightened. A healer!! Ivy was super excited to learn more about healing and helping people. Taking the name tag, she returned the woman’s warm smile and made her way to an empty table. She wrote her name on her sticker and attached it the front of her robes similar to how Healer Ryder-Jones had hers.

Taking out her things, she prepared her potions stations and then eyed the peppers with interest, but was careful not to touch the jar just in case she knocked it over and broke it or something... that would certainly be her luck.

Naya entered the Potions classroom feeling a little anxious. Potions always brought on anxiety for her because she knew that one mistake could mean disaster. “Hello”, she said to the professor as she headed for an empty workstation. She took a name tag and when she sat down, she wrote her name on it and stuck it on her robe.

It was then that Naya noticed the jar on the table. This made her wonder what they would be doing today. She took out her materials and hopefully everything that she would need for class. Now all she had to do was wait.

"Hello! Thanks!" Violet beamed at the teacher as she accepted the name tag. She was uncharacteristically cheery today, because Potions was her favorite subject. She smiled over at Ashley and Mamie, who'd been in some of her other classes, but tried to sit near the second-year, Gemma, because she wanted to get to know some of the students closer to her age group--at 14, she was already older than most of the other second years.

She organized her things and carefully wrote her name on her tag with her quill: "Violet P. Blackthorne" She smiled to herself as she remembered her first year, when she introduced herself to everyone with her full name. She didn't do that any more, but she still liked to write it out that way.

She looked at the jar of curious red peppers on her desk and wondered what they were. She didn't need the warning on the board to tell her not to open it yet--she knew better than to mess around with strange potions ingredients unless you knew what you were doing (her governess, Miss Howard, had drilled that into her before she even got to Hogwarts)

Aboli was SO excited for the potions seminar. She found that she was missing Noble more and more as time went on....he was mean, but it was an amusing kind of mean. Trent used to be that kind of mean, too, but this year that had at changed. Like, if someone was a good person at heart, they could still be mean. Aboli had lost faith in Trent's morality completely at this point. It was funny, too, because she had never before thought herself as a moralist, or someone who cared about morals. Hmm.

Curious indeed.

"Good day, Healer..." She squinted at the woman's nametag. "Ryder-Jones!" she smiled and nodded at the woman. She loooooved the color of those robes. Bright. Happy. Fun. Something she would never wear, but hey, this woman pulled them off.

She had a seat at a workstation and got reaaaaal close to the jar of what looked like peppers, squinting at them now.

Avalon was very excited about the Potions seminar. It was always good to have some variety in teaching styles and topics. It kept things interesting. As she entered the room, she smiled at the unfamiliar face. "Nice to meet you, ma'am," Avalon said as she accepted the nametag. The woman was wearing very bright robes, and the classroom seemed lighter than usual. Maybe that was a sign that this would be a more cheerful lesson than the usual, dreary classes from Professor Noble.

Taking a seat at a workstation next to Naya, she peered curiously at the jar of peppers before scrawling her name on a tag. What did peppers have to do with potions? Or maybe it was a special type of pepper, with magical properties?

SEMINAR STARTS HERE! *Adding Heath so I don't double post*
 

Heath was conflicted about attending this seminar! He had nothing against the subject itself, but the fact that his mum was teaching it made him uneasy. Would anyone here know who she was? Merlin, he hoped not! He could already hear the comments about the stark contrast in their appearance in the back of his mind. He entered the classroom, blinking at the unexpected brightness as he mumbled a greeting and took a nametag. It wasn’t necessary, strictly speaking. She knew his name, but people might guess that something was up if he was the only person without one.

He made a beeline for the back of the room and took a seat beside Claudine. “Hi," he greeted with a small smile as he neatly arranged his supplies on the workstation in front of him. After writing his name on the sticker, he slumped down in his seat, trying to make himself appear as small as possible - a task made much harder without the usual darkness of the room. Why did Mum have to make it so bright in here?!

SPOILER!!: Individual replies here! ^_^

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Originally Posted by astrocat (Post 12470487) Oooh. It was warm in here. And there was someone who was a healer. And they were saying hi to Ashley. "Hello." She took a nametag and wrote Ashley Fox on it. This should be interesting. A little known thing about Ashley was that she had great interest in healing. she looked very suspiciously at her arm, and her nose, and pretty much anything she had injured in the past six months, which was a lot. She took out a marker and started drawing healer stuff on her arms.

Adelon felt a rush of excitement as she eagerly watched for students. She didn’t have long to wait before a young girl, probably a first year, arrived. Oh, wasn’t she adorable?! She smiled, her blue eyes following the girl into the room.

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Originally Posted by Dances_With_Potter (Post 12470490) Ivy made her way to potions, her cauldron clanging in her backpack. Entering the dungeon, it immediately felt... different. It almost felt like she was back in the Hufflepuff Common Room rather than standing in the usually-gloomy potions classroom. It was a nice change, she decided. Instead of a professor, there was a woman in bright green robes smiling around at everyone. As she got closer, she could read the woman’s name tag, and she immediately brightened. A healer!! Ivy was super excited to learn more about healing and helping people. Taking the name tag, she returned the woman’s warm smile and made her way to an empty table. She wrote her name on her sticker and attached it the front of her robes similar to how Healer Ryder-Jones had hers. Taking out her things, she prepared her potions stations and then eyed the peppers with interest, but was careful not to touch the jar just in case she knocked it over and broke it or something... that would certainly be her luck.

Adelon could hear the clanking of what she assumed was a cauldron in the next child’s backpack, even before she saw her approach. No matter, she knew all too well how noisy cauldrons could be, having had that same problem herself when she attended school here, so she wasn’t fussed by it. She nodded politely at the girl as she entered the room.

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Originally Posted by Bazinga (Post 12470494) POTIONS! Gemma wasn't fully convinced the subject wasn't just cooking, but she liked it all the same. With the seminars and having different guest professors it was much cooler this year too. So she bounced into the room happily ready to learn whatever it was they would be learning today. Oh jars! Gemma wanted to touch them even though she saw that the board said not to open, but it was so cool she wanted to really look into it. She reached out to grab it and open it, but forced her hand down instead moving to the sticker.

Adelon couldn’t resist a smile as she watched this girl bounce into the room. It was always fun to see such a happy child! Her gaze followed the girl to her seat, and for a moment, he thought she was going to touch the jar of peppers. That would’ve been okay; there was a reason she put them in jars. She was well used to curious children, having raised three of them herself. Speaking of whom, where was her ickle baby Eagle? She hadn’t seen him come in yet. Never mind… “Feel free to pick up and look at the jar,” she told the girl, “as long as you don’t open it.”

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Originally Posted by Daydreamer11 (Post 12470501) Naya entered the Potions classroom feeling a little anxious. Potions always brought on anxiety for her because she knew that one mistake could mean disaster. “Hello”, she said to the professor as she headed for an empty workstation. She took a name tag and when she sat down, she wrote her name on it and stuck it on her robe. It was then that Naya noticed the jar on the table. This made her wonder what they would be doing today. She took out her materials and hopefully everything that she would need for class. Now all she had to do was wait.

Here was an older student. Oh, good! Adelon was beginning to worry that the older students didn’t get the message that there was a potions seminar today… either that or they weren’t interested in potions. Either one would’ve been unfortunate! She returned the girl’s greeting with a smile, watching as she took her seat.

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Originally Posted by Waddles (Post 12470505) Mamie quite liked Potions class, mostly due to its proximity to the Hufflepuff common room, meaning she could wait until the last minute to leave. Unlike those classes in the towers where she had to hike up hundreds of stairs. Today was extra surprising, because the classroom was nice and warm! She almost felt like she could ditch the extra sweater she had layered with her uniform! She took a sticker, eyeing the nametag on today's teacher's robes. A Healer? That was like a wizard doctor, from what she could remember. "Good day," she said simply before looking for a place to sit. Spotting Ivy and Ashley, she mumbled a greeting and took a seat near her fellow first years before pulling out a quill and ink to label herself. Margaret Mamie Turov, she wrote. Her mother kept telling her she should have professors call her by her full first name, but it still didn't feel right.

It did Adelon’s heart good to see so many of the younger students taking an interest in potions! Seriously, how cute were these children?! “Good day,” she replied, beaming at the girl as she entered.

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Originally Posted by MadAlice (Post 12470522) "Hello! Thanks!" Violet beamed at the teacher as she accepted the name tag. She was uncharacteristically cheery today, because Potions was her favorite subject. She smiled over at Ashley and Mamie, who'd been in some of her other classes, but tried to sit near the second-year, Gemma, because she wanted to get to know some of the students closer to her age group--at 14, she was already older than most of the other second years. She organized her things and carefully wrote her name on her tag with her quill: "Violet P. Blackthorne" She smiled to herself as she remembered her first year, when she introduced herself to everyone with her full name. She didn't do that any more, but she still liked to write it out that way. She looked at the jar of curious red peppers on her desk and wondered what they were. She didn't need the warning on the board to tell her not to open it yet--she knew better than to mess around with strange potions ingredients unless you knew what you were doing (her governess, Miss Howard, had drilled that into her before she even got to Hogwarts)

This child’s cheeriness earned her a beam in return from Adelon. Attitude was everything! “You’re very welcome,” she replied.

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Originally Posted by kayquilz (Post 12470525) Aboli was SO excited for the potions seminar. She found that she was missing Noble more and more as time went on....he was mean, but it was an amusing kind of mean. Trent used to be that kind of mean, too, but this year that had at changed. Like, if someone was a good person at heart, they could still be mean. Aboli had lost faith in Trent's morality completely at this point. It was funny, too, because she had never before thought herself as a moralist, or someone who cared about morals. Hmm. Curious indeed. "Good day, Healer..." She squinted at the woman's nametag. "Ryder-Jones!" she smiled and nodded at the woman. She loooooved the color of those robes. Bright. Happy. Fun. Something she would never wear, but hey, this woman pulled them off. She had a seat at a workstation and got reaaaaal close to the jar of what looked like peppers, squinting at them now.

Adelon gave the next girl a polite nod and smile in return. Such a polite girl! “Good day to you too,” she replied.

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Originally Posted by Fireheart (Post 12470530) Avalon was very excited about the Potions seminar. It was always good to have some variety in teaching styles and topics. It kept things interesting. As she entered the room, she smiled at the unfamiliar face. "Nice to meet you, ma'am," Avalon said as she accepted the nametag. The woman was wearing very bright robes, and the classroom seemed lighter than usual. Maybe that was a sign that this would be a more cheerful lesson than the usual, dreary classes from Professor Noble. Taking a seat at a workstation next to Naya, she peered curiously at the jar of peppers before scrawling her name on a tag. What did peppers have to do with potions? Or maybe it was a special type of pepper, with magical properties?

Here was another polite one! It was always nice to see good manners; a little kindness went a long way, as Adelon knew from experience. She positively beamed at the girl’s words. “Thank you! It’s a pleasure to meet you too, dear,” she replied.

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Originally Posted by FearlessLeader19 (Post 12470532) Claudine expected to freeze during the entire seminar, especially if the person hosting it was as heartless as Trent. It was needless to say that she was pleasantly surprised to find herself proved wrong. Warmth. Blessed warmth. But what were those things in the jars? She wondered this to herself as she removed a scarf from around her neck. Certain clothing wasn't needed now as the room was warm. “Good day… er...,’’ Claudine started to greet the blond witch. Thankfully, she spotted the tag. “Healer Ryder-Jones.” Um... so they’d have to wear a tag too? The Snakette took hers before proceeding to choose a workstation at the back. Her name was neatly written on the tag before she settled back and waited for things to get started. So… were those really peppers? Or no….?

Adelon smiled warmly at the next arrival, a girl who looked to be about the same age as her youngest son. Did she know him? She hoped so; he could use more friends! Part of her was dying to ask, but she wouldn’t want to embarrass the girl… or her son, wherever he was! “Good day,” she replied, watching as the girl made her way to the back of the room. Oh, dear! She hadn’t chosen that seat because she struggled in potions, did she?

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Originally Posted by SilverTiger (Post 12470542) Heading down to Potions had never seemed stranger than when Carys considered the fact that she wasn’t going to see Professor Noble waiting there to greet them. Or not to greet them, depending on his mood for the day. The contrast between her former head of house and the current one had never seemed so distinct, either, but just the fact they weren’t having a regular Potions professor seemed to speak volumes to her. Yet, the cheerfulness of the woman waiting for them as the brunette prefect had made her way into the room had raised Carys’ spirits somewhat. “Hello,” she replied simply, giving the healer a smile as she accepted the nametag and found a seat in the room, not far from Naya and Avalon. Her fellow Hufflepuffs (Ivy, Gemma and Mamie) had also gotten a smile from her as she settled in, along with Aboli, before she regarded the peppers on her workstation. So far things didn’t seem to be following the strangeness of a lot of the other classes.

The next student to arrive also got a smile from Adelon. Goodness, so many girls in attendance today! Did the boys at this school not care about potions? No matter… they would still have a fun time, whoever showed up!

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Originally Posted by LilFox06 (Post 12470569) Valencia was rather excited about this seminar. It was always exciting to learn from new people. Different perspectives was important in shaping one's thoughts. "Hello." the Ravenclaw greeted before taking a seat at one of the stations. She leaned in to take a look at the jar on the table before filling out her nametag. VALENCIA PHILLIPS She stuck the tag to herself and patiently waited for the lesson to start.

Adelon smiled, nodding politely at the next student. This one didn’t say much, did she? Maybe she was just shy...

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Originally Posted by ArianaBlack (Post 12470578) Kinsay shed her scarf as she made her way into the potions classroom. "Hi, it's toasty in here." This was not a compliment. It was Kinsay's way of asking if the room could be cooled down. She liked to drop hints. It was way too warm. This was supposed to be winter. Taking the nametag, Kiz made her way to one of the workstations. She had a favorite. It's the workstation she always sat at. Before she wrote her name on the sticker, she took a moment to inspect the curious looking pepper on the desk. Yes, this called for raising her hand. "Are we making lunch?" Kiz didn't mean to, but she was most definitely frowning. She didn't like spicy foods. Probably wouldn't like spicy potions either. Then she wrote her name on the sticker. Her handwriting, teeny tiny, as always. https://i.postimg.cc/VN6dqy5q/kinsayname.png

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Originally Posted by DaniDiNardo (Post 12470586) Kizzy walked too fast sometimes, or maybe she walked slow when it came to potions. Don't ask her what Auntie Jessa saw in the subject, it was completely lost on the little girl. Why make potions when you could just buy them and save yourself sometimes a month of brewing? Seemed like a real waste of time, time better spent working on a new routine for either dance or ballet. But she did get there and took the name tag without so much of a grumble. Why? She heard something about lunch and the lioness happened to be starving. "I hope so." Emm said, sinking into her seat next to Kizzy. "Oh oh oh!" Emmerson's hand shot up. "Can we make roast? I don't care what kind. We can build a spit fire and...and....have that poking thingie--can I be in charge of the poker." She'd only stick a few people with it, like J o s h u a~ On the name tag, she wrote her name big enough for the woman to see from literally annnyyywhere in the room. Her would be be one of the FIRST learned today. Obviously.

Adelon beamed at the next arrival (Kinsay), her smile not diminishing in the slightest at the girl’s comment. She wasn’t whether it was meant as a compliment or as a polite way to tell her that it was too hot in here, though if it was the latter, she’d take care of it momentarily. For now, she simply replied, “So it is.” She had barely enough time to greet the next student (Emmerson) before she noticed the other girl’s frown and her hand in the air. Oh, no! There must be something she could do to turn that frown upside down! “No, we aren’t making lunch today,” she said to the girl who’d just spoken (Kinsay).

Then the other girl (Emmerson) piped up. “I’m afraid not, but that sounds like a very fun idea,” she replied, stifling a giggle. These two reminded her a lot of her daughter at that age! “Maybe you could talk to a house elf of a professor later and see if they’ll help you roast something.” Ooh, maybe she could organize a student bonfire! That would be so fun for everyone?!

Oh, there was her son. Hi, baby! She blinked, slightly taken aback by Heath’s mumbled greeting. Oh, no! Had something happened to put him in a bad mood? Was he eating well? Getting enough sleep? He wasn’t being bullied, was he? If she found out that he was, she would march straight into the headmaster’s office and demand the culprit be punished! She watched him slump in one of the back seats and immediately realized he must be embarrassed. Poor thing! He needn’t worry; she wouldn’t draw attention to him… much.

Adelon took a quick glance down the hallway for any stragglers before closing the door with a flick of her wand. If anyone else wanted to join the seminar in progress, they were more than welcome to, but it was time to get started! She made her way to the front of the room, looking out at all the students. “Thank you all for coming to today’s seminar,” She addressed the group. “Just in case anyone missed the nametag on the way in -” She gestured to the sticker on her chest. “My name is Adelon Ryder-Jones, and I’m a healer in the rehab department at St. Mungo’s hospital. Before we get started, let’s see a quick show of hands. How many people think the room is too warm?” She would gladly tone down the warming charms if needed, but she’d let the majority rule on that.

She paused a moment as her blue eyes scanned the room for hands in the air, making a mental count of the number she saw vs. the number of students with their hands down. Once she had the matter of the room temperature settled, she continued, “Before we get into brewing today’s potion, I have a question for you. Who can name a remedy for the common cold. magical or muggle?”

OOC:The seminar has officially begun, and question one is up. Adelon is asking for a cold remedy; it can be something magical or muggle and can come from any culture. Feel free to jump in at any time; pretend your charrie has been here the whole time or post them joining the seminar in progress, your call. IC late arrivals WILL NOT lose house points.

We’ll move on again in AT LEAST 24 hours. ^_^

We feel so popular! <3
 

Ivy smiled and gave Mamie a small wave as she showed up. Then Carys came in and acknowledged her, too, and she wasn’t sure if it was feeling like she had friends or just the overall warm fuzzy feeling of the dungeon, but Ivy was feeling remarkably better than she had in the last few weeks. As the Healer began to speak, Ivy actually gave the woman her undivided attention and was one of the first to raise her hand to wait and be called on. ”Well, I grew up in the Muggle world, and they don’t really have anything that cures the cold - just stuff that makes certain parts of a cold feel better. When I got a sore throat or a cough from a cold, my mom would make a drink with flavored gelatin and hot water, and I would drink it, and it would make my throat feel sooooo much better.”

Well, this woman was absolutely lovely. Aboli also smiled as Carys right??? sat next to her. She thought Carys and Carsyn didn't look alike, but their names were so similar that always called them the wrong one. Whoops. At the healer's question, she raised her hand.

"Well, firstly...I am not warm. Secondly...my grandmother makes the most interesting home remedy for colds. You boil some milk, add some turmeric, pepper, sugar, and saffron. It's called milagu paal." She added.

WAIT this made her wonder why her stepdad's mum, her...step-grandmother would have to say about colds. Did SHE have any cool home-remedies like her Daadee?

Class was starting and Naya took a deep breath. It was going to be ok......hopefully. She listened as the professor introduced herself and asked if the room felt too warm. Being from a place that was warm pretty much all of the time, Naya kept her hand down. She was good.

The professor wasted no time getting to the first question. This time Gryffindor had an answer right away. She raised her hand immediately and prepared to share her remedy for the common cold. “In my house, my mom makes an awesome chicken soup whenever anyone gets sick. That’s the Lindsay home remedy.“ Naya wasn’t sure if it was really curative, but it always made her feel better.

A cure for the cold? Violet wasn't sure there was one.

Violet listened to her fellow Slytherin answer the question--at least someone thought of a magical remedy. She wished she could get to know some of the older girls in her house, at 14 she was older than most of her fellow second years.

Violet raised her own hand. "I'm not sure there is a cure for the cold. At least, people in my family use Pepper-up Potion for it, too, like Claudine said, and my governess used to give me hot tea with ginger, honey, and lemon in it. But all those things just make you feel better for a while, they don't actually make the cold go away. You just have to wait for it to run its course."