Brew With Me PV Piper Clark Abandoned

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@Maison Pritchard

Potions class was one Piper looked forward to quite a bit. As her mother was a biochemist, she supposed she might fit right in there. She liked the systematic way that lists and ingredients combined to form a substance. Her mother often researched cells' chemistry, and Piper had picked up quite a lot from her. This was hopefully going to go as well, though she hoped it was less like baking, as she was a lost case there. Piper remembered the time when she had nearly burned her kitchen to the ground forgetting about cookies in the oven. Even worse, she had added salt rather than sugar. To this day, her mother still insisted on supervision in the kitchen.

It seemed the Slytherins' first class would be with Gryffindor. The room was rather cold, but inviting nonetheless. Hmm, the Cure for Boils would be taught today. Piper couldn't see what use that would be in the real world. In all her short life, she didn't think she had seen a legitimate boil. The professor gave directions at their seats, and their words rooted Piper to her seat. The class could find 1-2 partners and begin. Partners? Sweet Merlin, she'd be better off on her own. Sighing, she stood and looked around. Most had paired up, especially with their own Houses.

Suddenly, Piper was approached by a Gryffindor boy who practically radiated energy. He gave Piper a grin. “Hiya! I haven’t got a partner yet. D’ya want to work with me?” He had tousled light brown hair and bright blue eyes that squinted as he grinned. Oh, dear...a feeling of dread filled Piper. The boy was reminiscent of that annoying Valencia Vilks, whom Piper had most certainly not begun to like. Piper surveyed the classroom desperately, for any other options. Unfortunately, most people had found partners by now and sat down, and she had no choice but to accept. She had to sit with someone.

"Uh...sure." She took a seat next to the boy. Deciding she should at least be somewhat polite and not-awkward (and also she decided the boy should have a name with his face), she said nonchalantly, "We should start. I'm Piper...what's your name?" She gestured to the board where directions were listed. There. She didn't fail at talking that time!

Piper could just tell that this boy was going to be the bounciest of all time by the way he walked and his huge smile, but there was always the off chance he wouldn't. Sighing, she looked up at the board. Crush 6 snake fangs in a mortar and pestle...she took these ingredients out of her bag and began to crush them. This was much harder than she had initially expected. This was very different from biochemistry...and as far as she knew, snake fangs had no magical properties. But then again, she didn't know a lot about potions. She pressed hard. When would these actually form dust? She wished she were more patient.

@Piper Clark

Maison was staggered by the overall lack of enthusiasm conveyed by the Slytherin girl. He began to worry that he might be coming on a bit too strong, but if that was too strong… well, he wouldn’t be able to reign it in much further. This was just his baseline level of vivacity. Perhaps it would take some time for the other girl to warm up to him. Yes, he thought to himself, she’ll come around. Maison shook the furrow from his brow, deciding not to let it throw him off too much. He was determined to make this partnership worth her while.

The young lion watched as she lowered herself into the seat beside him, seemingly defeated. “We should start. I’m Piper…what’s your name?” Indeed, introductions were always a good place to start. Maison tried not to giggle as she gave her name. Piper seemed like such an energetic name for someone who… well, wasn’t.

“I’m Maison! Pleasure to meet you,” he beamed back at her. She seemed rather eager to get started, but Maison was a big proponent of getting to know a person while brewing magical concoctions with them. Hopefully he’d be able to engage her in some casual conversation while they worked. Meanwhile, his eyes flicked towards the board. Crush 6 snake fangs- “Snake fangs?” Maison blurted out, rummaging through his ingredient supply in search of the fangs, plucking a single fang from the bag and examining it carefully. “Is this a real snake fang? It’s so cool! I don’t see what it’s got to do with curing boils, though. How do you reckon we’re suppose to cru-"

Maison glanced over towards Piper at just the right time. She had already began crushing the fangs using her mortar and pestle. He glanced back up at the board, realizing he hadn’t yet read the second part of the first step. Crush 6 snake fangs in a mortar and pestle. Alright, so maybe he wasn’t the best at reading directions (or at reading anything, really). “Oh. Like that, I suppose.” He watched Piper intently as she attempted to crush the fangs into a fine powder. This seemed like the perfect opportunity for a bit of small talk. “So, Piper, how are you liking Slytherin? Is it scary? Living in the dungeons, I mean. At least you’ll never get lost on your way to Potions.”

@Maison Pritchard

Piper was right. The boy was the bouncy type after all. The boy stifled a laugh as she introduced herself. Was he mocking her? What was so funny? She was just trying to be nice. “I’m Maison! Pleasure to meet you,” Maison. As Piper solidified this information in her head, the Gryffindor first-year dove into his bag. He pulled out one snake fang and looked it over. He sure seemed fascinated. “Is this a real snake fang? It’s so cool! I don’t see what it’s got to do with curing boils, though. How do you reckon we’re suppose to cru-" He cut off, seeing Piper at work at her mortar and pestle. “Oh. Like that, I suppose.”

Of course, Piper thought this was exciting, too, but...snake fangs weren't new, to the Muggle world or the wizarding world. She wondered if they contained venom. "Yes, I think so. They definitely aren't plastic. Oh, and you'll need five more." Piper observed generously. Maison wouldn't get too far with just one fang.

As Piper concentrated on grinding her snake fangs, Maison decided to strike up some conversation. Piper gave an inward groan. She hated small talk; back home she always seemed to fail at it. How was it even possible to fail at small talk? “So, Piper, how are you liking Slytherin? Is it scary? Living in the dungeons, I mean. At least you’ll never get lost on your way to Potions.” So many questions! Good Lord, how could anyone be so enthusiastic about anything? Piper had no idea whether to feel amused or offended. Of course Maison had stars for eyes, and by the sound of it he had to be from the Muggle world by his shameless, open awe of everything. But honestly, scary?

Certainly, Piper had been surprised at getting Slytherin. She had fully expected Ravenclaw, in fact, but the stupid Sorting Hat had had other ideas. She hated that thing; it was so invasive of her private thoughts. Its statement had pounded through her head over and over: What you could be, what you could be. She had no idea what it meant, but hopefully she'd find out. Realizing she had just spiraled into thought (again), she paused mashing her fangs, which were now nicely powdered, though with a few chunks. Eh, it would probably be fine. Probably. Her arms were too tired to go on.

"You should probably start working." she pointed out. She tried not to sound accusatory but some of the tone may have slipped into her voice. Oops.."I mean, that way we can both have something to show for the hour." Much better. And what had Maison meant about scary...? She also didn't like his reference to the dungeons. Technically, yes, she was in the dungeons, but it wasn't all slimy and..and... "Scary? Why would Slytherin be scary?" Piper furrowed her brow. As far as she could remember, none of the other Houses had been described as "scary." "Well...yes, I am pretty close to Potions class." she admitted.

Squinting, Piper read over the next line. Add four measures of the fang powder. Heat cauldron to 250 for 10 seconds. Oh, dear. Fire. Remembering the Cookie Incident, Piper set her tin cauldron up and carefully measured her powder into the cauldron, clumps and all. She wondered what would happen if she didn't heat it right. Hopefully nothing bad. No way she'd ask anyone for help; she could easily do this all by herself. Glancing tentatively at Maison to see if he was watching, she began to turn the heat up. "One, two, three..." she began counting.

@Piper Clark

Maison was unimpressed with Piper’s overall lack of enthusiasm. Sure, he’d seen plenty of snakes in his eleven years, but not many muggles his age were afforded the opportunity to play with use snake fangs in an academic setting. “Yes I think so. They definitely aren’t plastic.” Of course he knew they were real. His question had been more rhetorical than anything. “Oh, and you’ll need five more.” Maison furrowed his brow slightly at this last statement. He was fully capable of reading, thank you very much, and could have done without the reminder.

“You should probably start working.” Who did this girl think she was? His dad? “I mean, that way we can both have something to show for the hour.” The key word here was hour. Maison didn’t see why they had to rush through it. He was beginning to suspect that Piper was very much a no-nonsense type of person. These were, unsurprisingly, Maison’s least favorite type of people. Alas, he felt it was much too early to write off the possibility of gaining her friendship, though he was now cognizant of the fact that she would be a tough nut to crack.

Perhaps he just needed to get her laughing. Maison reached into his bag and pulled out a second snake fang. He gripped the first fang between his pinky and ring finger and the second between his index and middle finger. His thumb pressed up to his fingers so that his hand formed what looked like the head of a snake, Maison began moving his arm back in forth in a slithering motion. “Oooooooo,” Maison sing-songed, slithering his hand towards Piper, opening and closing his fingers as though his hand was talking, “Lookie here! I’m a snake!”

Suddenly, the Gryffindor boy proceeded to karate chop his snake arm using his free hand, and his snake arm fell limp against the table beside Piper. “And now the snake is dead, and I’m going to extract it’s fangs and crush them up for my super-secret magic potion. Muahahahaha!”

Alright, alright. Enough childishness. Maison removed the snake fangs from his fingers and scooped up an additional four from his bag. He began to crush them up as Piper continued speaking. “Scary? Why would Slytherin be scary?” Maison shrugged. “It’s not that Slytherin is scary. I just reckoned the dungeons might be. That’s why I asked. Though a lot of people in my house don't seem to like Slytherin very much. I don't really understand why. After all, you seem nice enough.” Just dreadfully uncheerful, was all.

As soon as he stopped talking, he realized that Piper was moving on to the next step, which was to heat the cauldron for ten seconds. Maison glanced back down at his still fully intact snake fangs and then back to Piper, a puckish grin forming on his features. “It’s not very partnerly of you to move onto the next step without me, Piper,” he teased, fully oblivious to the fact that he had interrupted her counting.

@Maison Pritchard

Maison had jokingly formed a snake with his fingers and the fangs, directing them towards Piper. "Ooooooooh, lookie here! I'm a snake!" After pretending to kill the snake with his other hand, he said excitedly, “And now the snake is dead, and I’m going to extract it’s fangs and crush them up for my super-secret magic potion. Muahahahaha!” Piper tried not to giggle at Maison's very-not-evil-sounding-laugh. That would be childish. In spite of herself, she cracked a grin and turned away to attempt to hide it. Maison began trying to crush his snake fangs, replying to Piper's Slytherin question, “It’s not that Slytherin is scary. I just reckoned the dungeons might be. That’s why I asked. Though a lot of people in my house don't seem to like Slytherin very much. I don't really understand why. After all, you seem nice enough.”

Well, Piper was glad she seemed nice; that didn't happen often, sadly. But hopefully she didn't come off as horribly bouncy. "Oh. Well, no...our common room is very nice. It's not dark or scary at all." Piper was content to move on after clearing this up, but something brought her up short. "Wait. People don't like Slytherin? Why?" She seriously hoped it was just a Gryffindor thing.

As Piper counted the seconds ("One, two, three, four, five..."), the Gryffindor boy noticed she had moved on and said something about it. Was it really so hard to work in silence? "It’s not very partnerly of you to move onto the next step without me, Piper." Well, maybe if he'd started working like she'd said, he would be all caught up. Wait, how many seconds was she on? Seven? Ten? Piper, momentarily ignoring Maison, frantically tried to turn the burner off but turned it the wrong way. She turned the opposite way and the flame finally shut off. A terrible burnt smell emitted from her cauldron. Had the fangs burned too long? Piper groaned. Not burning again!

Looking desperately at the board through the haze of smoke filling the classroom from others, Piper read: Wave your wand and leave to brew. Wait, how could she leave it to brew if her flame was off? Was she just supposed to turn it down rather than off? Which way should she wave her wand? Gritting her teeth in silent refusal to ask for help, she hastily waved her wand over the mixture and turned it to 200. She leaned back and relaxed. She wasn't sure how long to leave it to brew, but she'd pick back up around the time other students did, perhaps.

Turning to Maison, Piper glared at him with what she hoped was an icy look that would make him feel sorry. "Now see what you've done! My potion might be ruined all because you kept talking." It was most definitely not her fault, at any rate. And Maison hadn't even done any work on his own potion yet! He'd better be more careful.

@Piper Clark

Maison considered Piper’s fleeting grin in response to his snake performance to be a small victory. He was prepared to supply as many goofy antics as was necessary to win her over. She would be full-out guffawing in no time. Maison was sure of it.

But first, he had to keep her engaged in casual conversation. He wasn’t really getting anywhere with the discussion about Slytherin stereotypes, as she seemed to be rather clueless about them. Though, he supposed, it wasn’t as though he was aware of how the other houses felt about Gryffindor. Perhaps it was a conversation best suited for the common room and not Potions class (with a member of the house in question, no less). “Oh. Well, no…our common room is very nice. It’s not dark or scary at all.” He supposed he would have to take her word for it, though it was rather disappointing news. “Wait. People don’t like Slytherin? Why?”

Maison shrugged. “You can’t expect me to know everything. I only overheard some of my housemates saying that they didn’t fancy Slytherin house much. They’re probably just competitive. Everyone likes to think that their house is the best.” It seemed like a notion that was often engrained in wizard-born students even before they came to Hogwarts. Maison supposed that he, too, would have strong opinions about the other houses if he had been born to a long line of witches and wizards who had all been in Gryffindor. “I wouldn’t take it personally, really. I think Slytherin sounds like a very cool house. Your mascot is a bloody snake, after all.” Although, a lion would probably win in a match against a snake any day, but he would refrain from mentioning that for now.

The Gryffindor boy returned to crushing his snake fangs. When he called out Piper for moving on without him, he hadn’t realized that he had interrupted her careful counting. In fact, it wasn’t until an awful stench tickled his nose that he became aware of the Slytherin girl’s mishap. Of course, he was still oblivious to the fact that it had been his fault.

“Now see what you’ve done!” Maison glanced up from his mortar and pestle to find Piper scowling at him. Oh, if looks could kill… “My potion might be ruined all because you kept talking.” The Gryffindor boy did not take well to this particular comment.

“Look what I’ve done?” Maison retorted. “You’re the one that decided to move on all by yourself. The reason we’re partners is so we can help each other, you know. And you’re not being very helpful.” Neither was he, but that was beside the point. “Anyway, I’m sure it’s not completely ruined. Just leave it to brew and see what happens. By the way, how did you crush your snake fangs so quickly?” Maison had now made some progress, but they weren’t anywhere near the same fine, powdery consistency that Piper’s had been.

@Maison Pritchard

Maison had said the other Gryffindor boys "didn't fancy Slytherin as much." Piper wondered why. If all Slytherins were like her, though, it wasn't a hard question - most seemed to be put off by Piper for reasons unbeknownst to her. She hadn't had too many Slytherin interactions yet, despite being in the common room. It had simply been in her best interest to find a comfy chair in the corner or in her dormitory and study or read. The Gryffindor boy had also pointed out that snakes were cool animals. Piper had to agree, though she found herself wistful of the Ravenclaws' mighty eagle. And why were the mascots the way they were? Her mind began spiraling into analysis as per usual, but she made herself snap back to reality.

The first-year Gryffindor was clearly irritated at Piper's reaction, and it was odd to see such a cheerful face shadow over. “Look what I’ve done? You’re the one that decided to move on all by yourself. The reason we’re partners is so we can help each other, you know. And you’re not being very helpful.” These points startled Piper. The way she saw it, it was a race, almost - a challenge to see who could brew the better potion which she was dismally failing at. Though, in that light, partners made a whole lot more sense. But still. How was she supposed to help anyone if they kept chattering away and not paying attention? It was still not her fault she had lost count, either. Anyone else would have lost count drafting an indignant counterargument in their head, too.

“Anyway, I’m sure it’s not completely ruined. Just leave it to brew and see what happens." Was he actually serious? If a potion might be ruined at its base, what good would the rest be? However, Piper had to begrudgingly give Maison that, too. There wasn't enough time to start all the way over; she had to show something. A different voice inside of her protested, Wait! But he didn't apologize! It had become crystal clear in Piper's short time at Hogwarts that not everyone was going to apologize for their misdeeds, unfortunately. She'd have to let it go. Besides, it occurred to Piper that Maison reminded her of an overly zealous puppy and she suddenly felt as though she had just stepped on his tail by snapping.

Sighing, and almost appearing to deflate, she subconsciously pretended he had apologized. "It's all right, I suppose...I guess I'll try and keep going. This'll have to sit for some length of time and brew now." Piper felt a swell of pride; she had moved on without pushing for more conflict.

"By the way, how did you crush your snake fangs so quickly?” came Maison's third question. Piper raised her eyebrows. She hadn't done much...just experimented until she figured out the right kind of movement. Plus hers had several chunks of fang so it might not have been as accurate...her potion was brewing so she figured she could help Maison catch up with his. She was very proud of herself. Even after his great disservice, she was still being kind and partnerly, as Maison put it.

"Uh...I just...let me show you." the Slytherin said awkwardly. How did one verbally explain the way to use a mortar and pestle? She was also fairly certain she was doing it wrong, but it worked for her, so it shouldn't be a big deal. She pulled his mortar and pestle towards her and demonstrated. "I sort of whacked it. Instead-of-grinding-it," she said between hits, (gently) pounding the fangs rather than rubbing them with the pestle. "It kind of blows it apart instead of just getting little bits off. Oh, and it helps to start at the tips." It had seemed that the fangs did not in fact include venom, which was rather disappointing. Piper wondered where the fangs had even come from, and from which type of snake?

A few of the fang tips broke off after several whacks. "Here, you can try now." Piper, though still miffed about her own potion, managed the smallest, hopefully encouraging smile. It turned out almost imperceptible, though she imagined it bigger than in reality. She pushed the mortar and pestle back toward the Gryffindor and glanced around the room anxiously to see if anyone else was turning down their heat yet.

@Piper Clark

Admittedly, he too was glad that Piper hadn’t escalated things any further. She had every reason to, but it wouldn’t change his mind about who was at fault for the potion mishap. Sometimes he was just too stubborn for his own good.

“It’s all right, I suppose...” the Slytherin girl had sighed, looking defeated. “I guess I’ll try and keep going. This’ll have to sit for some length of time and brew now.” Maison couldn’t help grinning like a Cheshire cat, as if to say, ‘That’s the spirit!’. He did rather enjoy the feeling of being right. Better yet, Piper could now use this extra free time to help catch him up so that they could continue their work as partners.

“Uh…I just…let me show you.” Maison didn’t object to this, leaning back so that the Slytherin girl could take the lead. “I sort of whacked it. Instead of grinding it. It kind of blows it apart instead of just getting little bits off. Oh, and it helps to start at the tips.” The lion tried to watch intently as she demonstrated how to crush the fangs, but he also had the attention span of a goldfish, and was finding himself easily distracted by peripheral conversations. “Here, you can try now.”

Maison stared blankly at the mortar and pestle for a moment. What had she said to do again? He coiled his fingers around the pestle and began striking the fangs forcefully, perhaps a bit… too forcefully. He managed to blow a great deal of damage to one of the fangs, but not without sending bits of the other fangs flying out of the mortar and towards his face. “Oops,” he uttered quietly, trying to scoop the remnants of fangs that had fallen to the table into his hands. He placed them back into his mortar and pestle and tried again, this time with a bit less force.

“You’re really good at Potions, you know.” Which was saying a lot as it was only their first practical. His fang crushing had slowed down a bit as he spoke. Maison was willing to sacrifice his progress if it meant he could keep the small talk going. “I was hoping it would be a bit like muggle chemistry – my dad teaches it – but… s’not really like chemistry at all. It’s actually kind of boring.” He had conducted plenty of chemistry experiments at home with his fathers, most of them ending with some sort of explosion or big, colorful reaction (elephant’s toothpaste was his favorite). In Potions, all Maison had done was crush some venomless snake fangs, and nothing (so far) had blown up.

Maison stared down at mortar and pestle. His fangs were mostly powder at this point, with a few larger bits sprinkled throughout. Shrugging, Maison decided that it was probably close enough, and haphazardly added four measures to his cauldron. He began to turn up the heat and count the seconds aloud in a whisper, using a silly trick he'd learned in primary school: “One banana, two banana, three banana…” So on, and so forth.

@Maison Pritchard

As it turned out, Maison could not even focus on such a mundane task as grinding snake fangs. They didn’t even have venom! A couple fangs blew left and right as Maison whammed his pestle into the mortar. Piper stared. Maison’s huge grin was almost too much. The Gryffindor picked up the chunks as best he could and returned them to the mortar.

As the terrible stench of Piper’s potion filled her nose, Maison said, “You’re really good at potions, you know.” This was too dreadfully ironic, and Piper let out a small, grim laugh. Maybe I’m better than you, but I’m not very good at all. Piper was satisfied with this thought... until she realized it meant she was terrible at potions herself so far. She hated it. She had to excel at everything; her grandmother would expect it. And her mother, above all. If her mother was a biochemist, wouldn't it make sense Piper would be good at potions? Life was SO unfair.

Maison kept chattering, while even more annoyingly ignoring his work for the most part. How was she supposed to not move on if he wouldn't make any progress!? “I was hoping it would be a bit like muggle chemistry – my dad teaches it – but… s’not really like chemistry at all. It’s actually kind of boring.” Well then. Piper wasn't sure what to make of this information. If Maison's dad taught chemistry, shouldn't Maison know how to follow directions? But by the sound of it, it looked like Maison's version of chemistry involved reacting chemicals until an explosion happened.

Biochemistry was much different, and Piper had always loved looking through the microscopes at tiny parts that made up molecules that made up the world. The intricate design and complexity of each little cell awed her, and researching with her mother was fascinating. Piper's mum would make the hugest biochemistry discovery ever; Piper was sure of it.

"Well, things don't have to make big scenes to be interesting." she pointed out. "The little things are the best parts to me. Like I wonder how everything in potions form to make a magical mixture with a whole new special effect!" She surprised herself with this outburst. Piper usually wasn't one to (purposely) show her geekiness to anyone besides her mother.

Having seemingly satisfactorily powdered snake fangs, Maison dumped four imprecise measures into his cauldron and turned up the heat. Piper pursed her lips. If the other first year wanted a good potion, Piper was pretty sure he'd have to be careful to follow directions. "One banana, two banana..." He counted. Piper sighed. She couldn't argue there was anything wrong with using "banana," but she was certain there were better counting words out there.

While Maison counted (she was not going to disrupt, unlike someone), Piper peered at her cauldron. The fangs didn't look great, but she had to go with what she had. Others had started resuming their potions, so Piper strained to see the next line of direction: Add Four Horned Slugs to your cauldron. She dug around in her bag, remembering visiting the Apothecary. Piper removed four horned slugs from her bag. She resisted her gag impulse on seeing the squelchy slugs. She wasn't sure if they were alive or not, but she gingerly picked each one up with two forefingers and tossed them into her cauldron. "Ewwwwwwwww."