Study Group and a Battle of Wills
"What happens if you put in too much Mandrake root in the cleaning potion?" Neville Longbottom asked with a tone of panic in his voice, then quickly ducked behind his desk.
Professor Severus Snape did not look up from where he was helping absent minded Luna Lovegood with her potion issue, "Your face will break out in a bad acne if you touch it," the Potion Professor informed Neville coldly, without looking up from what he was doing.
"The only way to cure it is with a Gloover blossom based paste," Hermione Granger piped up.
"Thank you, Miss Granger," Snape said sarcastically, "Now Miss Lovegood, you need to pay attention. You can't keep staring into space. You're letting the Xandar root burn."
"But Professor, I was thinking about lunch. I heard they are going to serve pudding today." Luna smiled as she stroked her long blonde hair.
"As you may know Miss Lovegood we are not in the lunch room, nor is it lunch time," Professor Snape pointed to the grand clock on the class room wall, which read 10:37. This was going to be a long class… GLAARP! A horrible sound disrupted the professor's train of thought.
"Neville over boiled his potion," Hermione chimed from across the class room.
"Mister Longbottom," Snape hollered, as a horrid black smoke started to fill the room, "you are a disgrace to your house and your year. You are a fifth year student you should know by now how not to boil over a simple potion. What do you have to say for yourself?" The potions professor grew menacing.
Neville looked down at his shoes. A tear looked like it was trying to escape his brown eye and roll down the geeky boy's face.
"May I be excused to the lavatory?" Neville said in a small anxious voice.
"GO!" Snape bellowed. Neville grabbed Trevor, the toad, and shuffled out of the room.
Immediately after Neville left, Snape's attention went back to Luna. She was wearing a pair of large odd pink glasses. "Miss Lovegood, take those off and give them to me." The raven-haired professor demanded.
"But the Spectra Spec's have been showing me that our class room is full of 'Nargles'" The blonde wizard girl insisted, as she handed the glasses to Snape.
Severus was stressing out, he couldn't deal with Luna and Neville at the same time. Who in the headmasters' office allowed for this class scheduling, they were going to receive a nasty letter from him later by Merlin's beard.
"We will now have a ten minute recess," Snape announced as he walked out of the class room.
Severus walked down the long hall way until he arrived at the men's restroom. Knowing Neville he would still in there crying. Snape marched up to the closed cubicle door. "Mister Longbottom," he called out.
"Yes," Neville answered nervously, his voice sounded as if he had been crying.
"I have proposition to make. It is a well known fact that you and Miss Lovegood are lacking in your grade in my class." Snape tried to open Neville's cubicle door. The young wizard started to slowly open the door. "If you would be interested in extra credit, I would like to set up a study group with Miss Lovegood, and Miss Granger. This is a one-time offer." Snape added bluntly.
Neville started to slowly move forward, "Thank you professor,"
"Please turn to page 257," Hermione chimed.
To be continued