Errand The Light Inside Is Burning Bright Fin

With excitement, she watched as one student after another arrived in her classroom. A feeling of unknown pride filled her stomach and she realized, that she would have the joy of seeing young students enter her classroom on a daily basis now. She nodded at the ones that met her gaze while coming in, while some, especially the younger ones, seemed to be too shy to try and interact with her right now. Béatrice didn't mind they would get more comfortable as time would go by, or so she hoped. 

She walked some steps with the aid of her walking stick to make more room for the incoming students. Some immediately went to find a spot at the fireplaces, some others were more hesitant. "You may take a seat, dear," she said, pointing at one of the free cauldrons.  As she was looking at the boy finding his seat, a girl went passed her to get some of the herbs on the table. With curiosity, Béatrice followed her with her gaze and watched as she took a big handfull of everything Béatrice had provided. She smiled at the eagerness of the young girl and made some more room for her to choose her herbs. 

Just as she had averted her gaze, the girl suddenly was standing in front of her again. "Hi, professor?" Béatrice looked down with a warm smile at the small Ravenclaw. "I was just making sure there weren't any steps I missed before I started. Can I just break up the herbs with my hands into the wax, and then I just start dipping the thread?"

Eager indeed, Béatrice thought and instead of answering immediately, she turned around to get something from the table. It only took her a second. "It depends on how much scent you want to add to your candle, child." She held one bunch of lavender that she started to pick on. "If you want to slice them, the scent will only be faint. You can pick them, that will result in nice smelling candles with a nice pattern on them. The pieces of herbs will be visible. You may also use this." She pointed at one of the mortar and pestles. "If you grind them to a nice powder, the scent will be purer and less smokey and the candles will have a smooth texture. There is no wrong way to do it, it is for you to decide where your priorities are." She put the half pciked lavender back to the table, before she gazed down at the girl, waiting if she had any other questions.

  

Miss Béatrice was a tall, striking woman, with blue eyes and a serious expression. Her facial markings intrigued Tatiana, and she stared up wide eyed at her as she spoke. Ancient Runes wasn't a subject she's was particularly knowledgeable about, but her interest was certainly peaked after meeting the instructor and seeing her classroom. Tatiana listened intently as the professor spoke, her head nodding along as she listed off the different ways in which to infuse the wax with herbs. After hearing her options, she decided the mortal and pestle would achieve what she had intended the best. It was a tool she was familiar with, and she used it often in the apothecary workshop, as well as in the kitchen. "That would be perfect, thank you prof- I mean, Miss Béatrice," she caught herself this time, remembering the woman had mentioned this is how she preferred to be addressed by the students. She smiled, giving her one last nod before retrieving the tools from the table she had just pointed to.

Tatiana returned to her stool, setting the mortal and pestle down and looking over the herbs she'd gathered. Unsure of which to combine first, she decided to break up a little of each into the bowl. Then, using the pestle, she carefully ground the herbs together until they were roughly crushed, but not quite yet a powder. As she poured the mixture into her cauldron of melting wax, the aroma hit her nostrils immediately. It was a bit overwhelming at first, but still pleasant. The concoction smelled floral, and woody, and full of earthy tones. She stirred it slowly, making sure it was evenly dispersed, before deciding to add the remainder of what was left from her bowl. Pleased with the consistency and potency of smell drifting from her cauldron, Tatiana set down her tools and grabbed the string from her table.

The next part of this process would be slow, albeit easy, work, and she was suddenly regretting not asking someone to accompany her for the task. She rested one elbow on the table, leaning her head on her hand, while she used the other to repeatedly dip and raise the string from the wax mixture, letting it dry and harden slightly between each motion. Not the most entertaining of activities, but it was relaxing if nothing else. The semester was just getting started and she figured she would be grateful later, after her studies started to pick up, if she could just enjoy spending a little free time doing not much of anything. Deciding now was as good a time as any to try socializing with her professors, she looked up to make sure she wasn't busy talking to another student. She'd chosen a table close to the front and was well within speaking distance of the woman so she wouldn't need to leave her station or yell in order to be heard. "Miss Béatrice?" she asked, getting her attention. "I'm a second year, so I won't be able to take your class until next year. But how would you describe the topic to someone that doesn't know much, if anything, about it, and how did you come to be teaching it?"

Word Count : 537, Total : 1196

OOC : Sorry, I know I've already reached the word count, but figured I might as well take the opportunity to roleplay with you while I can.

Watching over so many students at once was stressful, she realized. Not, that she regretted it to be here, on the contrary. This new experience was enlightening and was just as much a test for her as for the students. Soon she would have to watch classes bigger than the group now, although, and she was well aware of that, her students would just sit at their tables, writing down whatever she taught them. Now she had to watch them sitting close to fire and keep the risk low for them to hurt themselves. 

She had never guessed that a doorframe would be dangerous but apparently, it was a trap to fell over. She could already feel her knees starting to ache and sighed. She needed to sit down for a moment. Just as she reached for her seat, the Ravenclaw from earlier once again shouted for her. Béatrice was pleased to see that her candle was starting to form just well, and nodded. 

"What is it child?" she asked, once she had reached her. The stinging pain in her knees caused her to walk more slowly now. 

She wondered what the girl might have trouble with, the candle looked just fine to her, but it were not the candles that the Ravenclaw was interested in. Surprised Béatrice listened to the questions the curious girl had for her and couldn't answer at first. In confusion, she leaned on her walking stick and blinked a few times. She was not prepared for so much interest in her as a person.

"How curious," she spoke out her thoughts. "Are you interested in Runes, Miss?" She realised she didn't know her name. Odd, she usually knew everything about the person she was talking to. But this was not her small village anymore. 

"Someone who doesn't know anything about my topic could possibly never imagine what to expect. Studies of Runes is a complex field of research and is far from just reading old texts. I assure you it will take a while until I will present any of that." She closed her eyes and considered her next words carefully, slowly finding her courage to answer. "Runes are dangerous, child. I guess I will disappoint most of you during my first lesson. It is old magic that is just as powerful today as it was thousands of years ago." Béatrice decided to not continue any further with her answer. The girl was too young to know about Runes and their purpose and didn't have to be burdened with it. She opened her eyes and gave her an apologetic smile, silently telling her that she would not go further than that. 

Instead, she quickly thought about answering the last, less troublesome question. "I never thought I would teach it. After all these years living on this earth, I expected to help others with what they needed. Usually, that means giving advice. It was an odd occurrence, really, that I was visiting England just as news got to me that Hogwarts is looking for a new Runes teacher. I believe in fate, little Miss Ravenclaw. And on this day I simply knew I belonged here, I was needed here. I hope this answer your question?"