Disclaimer 2: The title of this story, and the song lyrics that will
proceed each chapter, are not mine (although I really wish I could claim them).
They belong to a fabulous band which tours the folk festivals in Australia,
called Jigzag. The lyrics I'm starting with are actually from a different song,
which is called "Ordinary Mystery". Both of these are great songs,
and if you visit you can listen to some mp3's of their
work and maybe even buy their CD (no, I don't make any money off promoting them
but if they make money then they might come to Melbourne more often).
Also note that the lyrics are not necessarily following the order they appear
in the song. They're being chosen partly on whim and partly for their appropriateness.
Author's Note: I know it's been a long time between installments. Blame my university for that one. If they didn't give me so much work, I could write more often. *sigh*
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Chapter 3 - The Disappointment
So easy to resign until we're blind to the divine
Seona was quite pleased with her first meeting with Professor Snape. Ron kept telling her repeatedly that she was quite mad, but it was all she could do to keep from laughing at the dumbstruck expression on his face. And when he had come to class, he hadn't mentioned the incident again. She was glad. It had been slightly concerning to hear her friends' assessment of the Potions Master, but now she was sure that she would be able to deal with the situation.
What she wasn't as pleased with, however, was the class itself. It was quite obvious that they had been telling the truth when they said that Snape favoured Slytherin over Gryffindor. A question would be asked and a Gryffindor answered correctly, and lost points. A Slytherin answered a question wrong, and was awarded points for making an effort. The unfairness of it was something that nagged at her, but even that she could have dealt with if it wasn't for the other problem: the subject matter.
She had always loved Potions as a concept and a subject. She experimented at home with as much as she could get her hands on, read extensively about potions she could not afford the ingredients for (or which no one was willing to sell her ingredients for), and had always been dissatisfied that the professor who had taught at her old school hadn't really been that far ahead of her in terms of knowledge. Certainly he had been far behind her in terms of passion. That was why she started researching the different Potions Masters at other magical academies. She had been very impressed with what she read of Professor Snape, and had made up her mind that she wanted to study under him. She wrote to Headmaster Dumbledore and explained this, as well as sending in some work she had written herself on the use of particular ingredients and potions to show that she wasn't all talk. Her application had been successful, and now she had her wish.
It wasn't what she imagined, however. In fact, it wasn't that different from what she had known back home. They were going to be making very basic potions. The instruction they received on the background of the first potion they were to make, and the ingredients used in it, was negligible and it seemed that they were expected to find out most of that sort of thing themselves as homework. Not that she minded that bit, but she had hoped to add the views and ideas of a true Potions Master to what she could find in books.
Come the end of class, she felt a huge sense of dissatisfaction. It's just the first class, she reminded herself. Maybe it will improve. With that thought to cheer her up, she followed her friends out of the room. She laughed when they asked her what she had thought of the class and, catching sight of Professor Snape watching them intently, replied cheerily, "Well, you were right about him being strict, but I could listen to his voice all day." The other three laughed and shook their heads in amazement, and she followed them ipstairs to the next class.
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Two weeks later, the sense of dissatisfaction with Potions class had grown. The rest of her classes were OK, although History of Magic was frightfully dull and she tended to spend much of it with a book sitting in her lap under the desk, surreptitiously reading. Transfiguration and Charms were a challenge for her, as she had been taught different techniques at her former school and had to unlearn a lot of what Professor McGonnagall had crisply informed her were "bad habits". Hermione, who was clearly the best student in the class in both subjects, gave her as much help as she could, but it was obvious that it would be a while before her marks were particularly high in either subject.
Potions, however.... Not to put too fine a point on it, she was bored. All the potions they had made so far were things she felt she could make in her sleep. It didn't help that she never had a word of praise, in spite of the fact that after her first rather dramatic meeting with Snape she had kept her head down and worked quietly and efficiently. She wrote her assignments in between other classes (and occasionally during History of Magic, if she felt she could do most of it without the aid of a book) and gained reasonably high marks, but there were never any words of encouragement on that side of work either.
Seona was not the best person to allow to become bored. She had been described by a previous teacher as having a mischievous streak a mile wide, and this slowly and subtly came to the fore in Potions. One of the most interesting things she found to do was to annoy the Slytherins. After all, they went out of their way to annoy the Gryffindors. They never got punished for it, either. The fact that Snape wasn't likely to be so lenient on her meant that she had to find more subtle means, but that was half the fun.
Hermione had been surprised when Seona had suggested that they move from their usual spot to sit nearer the Slytherins, and she didn't approve when it was explained why. But after a bit of pleading and cajoling she agreed to move, and they took up their new station quietly and without much fuss. From that point on, the surrounding Slytherins often found ingredients going missing or being exchanged for other ingredients that weren't called for in the potion being made.
Snape wasn't stupid, she had to give him that. He made the connection between her moving seats and the trouble starting after the third class, and informed her that she had just lost her house 30 points and this would be doubled if she didn't stop tormenting her fellow students. She had inwardly grumbled at the injustice of this, and made a silent pledge that she would get even with the Slytherins who were grinning and jeering at her, but outwardly she nodded in acceptance and continued quietly with her work.
At least the points weren't too much of an issue... she had been awarded 40
points that morning for finally managing to complete a simple transfiguration
on her own - at least McGonnagall gave credit where credit was due - so on the
whole they were still 10 points up from her efforts. And she hadn't been the
only one awarded points that morning, so she knew that they really weren't being
put at too much of a disadvantage. She was simply going to have to find other
ways to amuse herself in Potions class.
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Reviewer's Tribute:
Many thanks to everyone who's read the first chapter, but particularly to:
Ricky Roo - Thanks. :) I promise I will read your fic, but it won't be until end of semester I'm afraid. *sigh*
