Potions and Items, Desperately Needed [Open]

[jointheclub]

[The Itemcrafting classroom looks like something out of The Sword in the Stone today, with beakers, cauldrons, tubes, liquids, chests, and sundry supplies all floating around in midair, almost but not quite bumping into each other. On one side of the classroom, knives furiously chop away at roots, stalks, and bulbs; on another, large tongs stir boiling cauldrons. In the midst of all this, Slughorn directs traffic with his wand, hurrying here and there to check this process or temper this reaction.]

[Truth be told, Slughorn is running himself raw, between days of gathering up students on the Island and nights of making items and potions to repair the damage they've done to themselves. A very uncharacteristic scowl seems to have landed permanently on his face, and he is constantly mopping at the shine on his increasingly-mottled forehead. In fact, one might almost say he's showing his age...]

Don't even know why I came out of retirement. What am I, a Healer?

[He flicks his wand irritably, sending two completed sleeping draughts and a half-dozen Potions flying into a box.]

Comments

[jointheclub]

[Slughorn begins to respond -- then halts, draws himself up, and addresses the moogle with somber dignity.]

You don't understand. The Killing Curse -- is precisely as it sounds. If someone with the skill to cast the spell directs it to you, that is the end. You perish. There is no countercharm, there is no shield.

[tiamat_shot]

And you don't... er... didn't... teach it.

There's rumors of similar things where I come from, but they're not taught by good-hearted people, and I don't think anything this academy does is quite that bad.

[jointheclub]

Certainly not. Dark magic has never been taught at Hogwarts, nor will it ever be so long as a scrap of decency remains in the wizards of England at large.

[tiamat_shot]

See, that's... kind of the point. The creatures out there... they aren't using dark magicks, kupo? People can survive this, which will help them recognize when it's a really bad idea to rush in foolishly and the price of that sort of thing, kupo...

[Not sure where he's going with the point, he turns his head to watch the chopping of the herbs for a few moments.]

...hey, have you ever considered grinding those instead of chopping, kupo? You'd get a lot more mileage of them that way...

[Of course, the moogle is no apothecary, so he doesn't know if there's a difference in the process.]

[jointheclub]

[Happy to seize on a topic that isn't the favorite spell of the Dark Lord and his followers, Slughorn answers with some relief.]

To properly brew a restorative elixir, these must be chopped. Preferably by hand, but this will do.

[tiamat_shot]

[Hm. He could swear the nu mou back in Clan Tiamat never used that much mugwort...]

Is it a recipe from home, kupo? I'm just... kinda wondering what was so different than the Potions I saw back in my world.... they didn't use as much of similar ingredients as you are, kupo.

[Potions back home are also a quarter as effective, Emias.]

[jointheclub]

Potions back home, eh? [Slughorn's attentions almost visibly shift to fully take in Emias.] Do tell.

[tiamat_shot]

Basic restoratives... they took about half as much mugwort as you have, some glowstone dust, muskmallow leaves...

[He trails off, the moogle sitting and racking his brain to think about what else he's seen. He's not one of the ones brewing the potions, so he only got to watch other people do it. Well, and got to hunt for all the ingredients.]

I... wanna say there's a pinch of dreamhare fluff?

[jointheclub]

Ah. That kind of Potion.

[He lifts up one of the familiar healing items native to this world.]

Of this variety.

[tiamat_shot]

[He perks his head and stands as he sees that.]

Yeah! I... wait, that's what I'm supposed to be carting to the infirmary, kupo... what is it you're making...?

[jointheclub]

Some of those, certainly, but Potions -- Potions as we wizards understand it, is a far broader subject. Restoratives, tonics, restoratives, truth serums and sleeping draughts... Far more effective and far more remarkable than the simple items anyone with the proper training can put together.

[tiamat_shot]

Oh! Oh, I... okay, now I get what you mean, kupo. You're talking about alchemy in general, kupo, not just the healing stuff!

[Yeah, you're basically a slightly taller, less wrinkly nu mou to him now, Slughorn.]

Sorry, I just get so used to the restorative stuff being called 'potions', and then the rest of the stuff being called what it does.

[jointheclub]

Alchemy? No, no, no, my boy, alchemy is a branch of Potionmaking, distinct and in many was separate. Much more concerned with transmutations and transformations of solids.

[tiamat_shot]

[Okay, the first point of contention - obviously alchemy in his world meant something entirely different.]

No, it's the brewing of potions and other liquids, including poisons, protective wards, and... [He trails off, again, thinking.] Okay, so maybe the making meteorites appear out of thin air is a bit different, kupo...

[...maybe you should just stop, Emias.]

[jointheclub]

Potions and liquids, precisely. A branch of magic far more subtle and marvelous than many -- if you've the knack, of course. Not very straightforward, not particularly flashy in the execution, but the results? Can't be beat.

[tiamat_shot]

Flashy is for people who want to show off. It's always really unwieldy, kupo...

O-oh! Right! Uhm, where are my manners...

[He rifles through his pockets as if he's trying to find something, then bows politely, wings flitting.]

Emias Oaks, kupo, new trainee here at the academy. It's a pleasure, Professor... uhm...

[jointheclub]

Slughorn. Professor Slughorn, or Instructor, if you favor the Garden terminology. Itemcrafting Instructor.

[tiamat_shot]

A pleasure, Professor Slughorn!

['Instructor'? Eh, he prefers the thought of the people training him actually being masters in his field, thanks.]

I've gotta get this stuff to the medics, though, so I should.. uff... [There's a slight strain - the box is almost as large as the moogle] C-cut the conversation short, unfortunately.

Hopefully we can talk again, though?

[jointheclub]

[With a casual flick of the wand, Slughorn lays a Lightening Charm on the box, then returns to his work with an absent wave.]

Yes, of course. No time now. Injured students to repair, troubled students to rescue. Never thought I'd be so hopeful to see the end of a break.