Potions: What Would a Girl Do Without It?
by Slave4Severus
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plot and any original characters I will add in as I deem necessary. Everything else belongs to J.K. Rowling. Should any other literary references be used, they will be so noted at that point.
Alanna woke bathed in sweat, her limbs twisted in her satin sheets making it near impossible to detangle herself. Her breath was coming in short gasps in a futile attempt to calm her racing heartbeat. Sleeping was definitely out of the question at this point, even though the gray of dawn was barely touching the night sky. She leaned back against the mahogany headboard and tried to untangle herself from her sheets.
Her "demon" haunted her dreams at least once a month, even though she had not laid eyes on him in over a year, yet she could still recall his touch and unique scent as if it were only yesterday. Alanna groaned at herself in disgust and slid to the edge of the bed throwing her feet over its side.
As they connected with the carpet, a menacing growl split the silence.
A massive, snarling dog was lying at her feet, exposing several rows of serrated, wedge-shaped teeth. His blood-colored eyes were fixed on Alanna's ankles, as he began nipping at them.
"Oh! I am so sorry, Peaches."
She smiled at her pet and ruffled the gray-black fur between his ears. The Irish Wolfhound/Barghest mix grunted audibly and situated his large frame into another comfortable position, where he lay down with a resounding thud. She regarded her familiar and smiled at his antics.
'He is worse than an old man,' she thought to herself as she began her morning routine.
After a quick shower and a change into every-day casual robes she faced her bathroom mirror to deal with her tangled hair. Alanna gazed thoughtfully at herself.
'By the Gods, I wish I were not so plain!'
Her soft auburn tresses framed a heart-shaped face with high cheek bones. Blue-green eyes stared back at her and settled on a pert little nose graced with a spattering of freckles, her full lips etched into a frown. With a spell she dried and tamed her hair, mumbling softly:
"It's sad, but this is as good as it gets."
"Well dearie, shall we hope tomorrow gets better," the mirror called after her, adding to her frustration.
She retrieved her wand and school books from her desk and quietly made her way down to the kitchen. Zippy was expecting her and began fussing the minute she stepped into the house elf's domain.
"Little Miss up already?" She squeaked surprised.
"Yes, Zippy, I...er...had problems sleeping. I thought I would get some breakfast before working on my term project in the lab." She walked to the small table in the corner of the pristine kitchen and sat down gracefully.
"What does Little Miss want? Little Miss looking peaky this morning. How about tea and cinnamon toast?"
"Thank you, Zippy, that would be lovely."
"Are you talking to the help again?"
Alanna turned in her chair and looked at her mother in the doorway. Melanie Flint was a striking woman of one-hundred and seventy-eight centimeters, with ebony hair, piercing blue eyes, and a soft smile she mostly reserved for her daughter. She was strong willed and very much a pureblooded witch, a concept she, to this day, had tried to instill in her daughter. Since Alanna was a toddler her mother tried to properly educate her on a pureblood's social standings in the Wizarding world. First and foremost...'you do not talk to the help'...closely followed by...'do not befriend or acknowledge half-bloods and Muggleborns...unless they fill a means to an end.'
Needless to say, Alanna thought most of the things her mother taught her before her seventh birthday were pretty trivial and just...utter rubbish! Since then, she had plastered a serene smile on her face and let her mother 'educate' her while she was reciting various potions or Arithmancy theories to herself.
Honestly, why should she not be allowed to speak to a Muggleborn or half-blooded witch or wizard based on their parentage? What bollocks! At this point, Alanna would be happy to just have a FRIEND for a change. She was surprised she had not turned completely nutters yet.
"Honestly, Lana dear, we have dining rooms for this sort of thing." Melanie arched a perfectly plucked brow at her only child.
"Good Morning, Mum." Alanna replied smiling, returning to her light breakfast. She knew that deep down inside her mother truly loved her, but the expression of said feelings had always been few and far between. On this morning however, Melanie swept into the kitchen and hugged Alanna tightly before placing a chaste kiss on her forehead.
'Odd, she has not done that since I've been twelve. I wonder what is going on..." Alanna returned her hug and looked up at her mother questioningly.
"Alanna, your father and I need to have an important talk with you tonight after dinner." She took the seat next to her daughter and waited for her answer.
"Of course, I will be there. I will come straight to your rooms after my piano lesson, alright?" She finished her breakfast and rose from her chair, smiling forcefully down at her mother.
'Oh Gods...I wonder if they found out about the python in the greenhouse...or Grandmama's antique silver that I melted for the Soul-Resurrection potion last month...or the Limb-Reattachment potion from last WEEK...or...'
"That will be perfect." Melanie said softly, and watched her child walk out of the kitchen. The evening could not come soon enough in Melanie's eyes.
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Alanna spent most of her morning in the family library, searching for various books on potions and curative ingredients that could be useful in creating an antidote to the Hemorrhaging Curse, a pet project she had been working on for nearly three months.
Around 8:00 she made her way to the private classroom in the west wing of the manor, still thinking about the puzzling encounter in the kitchen from earlier that morning.
The classroom was sparsely furnished with a big mahogany desk and matching chair by a ceiling-high window on the far end. A wall length blackboard graced the north side of the room, while a second desk, belonging to the Professor, was situated closer to the door. The rest of the wall space was covered with yards of books on every subject imaginable. Alanna was proud to say that she read all of these books at least twice! Professor Correlius was already waiting for her, snapping her out of her thoughts with a curt:
"Good Morning, Miss Flint. Please, get out parchment and quill for an impromptu test."
Alanna groaned softly and crossed the room. Exactly what she needed after a sleepless night...a damnable test! She quickly made her way over to her desk, getting out a fresh sheet of parchment and a quill from her bag. The professor began to pace around the room in stern concentration, contemplating his first question, and abruptly turning toward her.
"What, Miss Flint, are the properties of Wormwood and Aconite in the 'Draught of Living Death', include in your answer at least five other potions these two ingredients may be combined in, with either ill-effects or successful fusions. Write a minimum of one roll of parchment." Professor Correlius eyed his pupil and resumed his pacing while thinking of another question.
'Great! I know this one!' Alanna smirked and began to scratch the quill over the parchment with lightning speed.
"Next, Miss Flint, you will write at least one full parchment on dreams and their interpretation, as outlined in chapter fifteen from 'The Future Beyond Earl Grey' by Cassandra Vablatsky. Make sure you include detailed analysis of all five dream stages and their relation, and accuracy, to foreseeing the future. Use last nights dream as your example."
'Oh damnation!'
Not only was she utter crap at Divination, but she would NOT analyze last nights dream. The professor would either faint of shock or SHE would die of embarrassment. 'Well, I guess I could lie and say I saw the Grim...I really wouldn't be too far off.' She smirked and continued writing.
As the morning rolled over into the afternoon, Alanna commenced with her practical courses of the day. She was scheduled to have her weekly flying lesson with her father, and looked forward to the needed exercise. Absentmindedly rubbing the back of her aching neck, she sauntered across the lawn with her Nimbus 2000 slung over her shoulder, inhaling the fresh October air with relish. Her father was already waiting for her by the outskirts of the forest.
"Are you ready, love?" He bestowed her with a boyish grin as he kicked off hard from the ground and soared above the tree tops. Alanna grinned as well, mounting her own broom and followed suit. The crisp breeze ruffled her hair while she soared high above the trees to where her father was waiting for her.
"So, after refining your racing skills last week, I have decided to teach you something more dangerous. Watch and learn."
'More dangerous?'
Was he kidding her? Last week she was all but killed trying to keep up with his antics. Not only had they been racing each other, but he had also tried to knock her off her broom, bumping into her from every imaginable angle, while she was forcefully concentrating on keeping the broom steady and herself on top.
If he had not insisted on teaching his daughter evasive maneuvers at an early age, she would have undeniably killed herself last week. But, alas, she was still amongst the living and not at all pleased to learn something more dangerous than last weeks lesson. Alanna watched her father with baited breath as he descended at rapid speed into the forest below.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me." She said out loud, while her father disappeared into a very densely populated part of the forest.
'I am not going in there.'
She thought to herself, while searching for her father's form to immerge between the treetops. It did not take long before she could make out a figure dashing from the forest ten yards ahead of her. Her father turned sharply and made his way straight toward her at breakneck speed, stopping his broom a few inches from Alanna's. She arched a brow at him, and he responded with booming laughter.
"Surely, you aren't scared of a few trees Alanna, darling."
"It's not the trees I am worried about, but my flying capabilities to not hit any of them."
Farrell shrugged and pointed at a small opening at the top of the trees right below them. "When you enter the forest, make sure that you fly as closely to the ground as possible. The objective of this lesson is not only to avoid the tree trunks, but also to weave through the trunks at high speed."
Alanna let out a loud sigh. "How can anything this dangerous be educational, Papa?" She stared at him in disbelief.
His smiling face faded into a mask of indifference, staring at his daughter intently. "Miss Flint, when I ask for your opinion you will know. Now, as your teacher you will address me with the proper respect that I deserve, and will not second guess my teaching methods. When I expect you to barrel dive, you will. When I demand of you to fly faster than you ever have before, you will. When I tell you to jump through a hoop... you will! Is that perfectly understood?"
"Yes, sir."
She cast her eyes downward, but defiantly clenched her teeth. She hated it when he treated her as if she was a young child. Honestly! The only time he treated her inn such a manner was when something was truly bothering him. She watched him as he fished in his robes for his pocket watch, wondering what could have made him so edgy today. Alanna desperately hoped it had nothing to do with 'The Talk' that was to come tonight.
After retrieving his watch, he nodded curtly. "You have two minutes...beginning...now!"
Alanna cleared her head of all thought and directed the broom handle downward, shooting at a ninety degree angle towards the black hole at the top of the trees. As the darkened forest engulfed her she tried to make out the mossy earth before she hit it. Branches and twigs tore at her face, hair and robes making her flinch in pain.
'Merlin! Is this truly necessary?' She ranted, distracting her from her flight for less than a second. Unfortunately, she was only two seconds away from crashing headfirst into the ground. Letting out an unladylike yelp, she pulled the handle of the broom upwards, missing a rather nasty looking boulder by centimeters. As the broomstick leveled she leaned as far down the handle as she could; slowly shifting her body to allow subtle adjustments to the pressure of her thighs and knees for better grip. The broom lurched and quickly picked up speed.
Alanna concentrated very hard to maneuver through the densely populated trees as her broom shot forward at an insane velocity, rogue branches hitting her sides, arms, and face. One in particular made a nasty welt on her forehead, forcing her to loose her focus yet again. How she could have missed the two huge tree trunks that were looming before her, she did not know, but her eyes widened and her breathing hitched in anticipation of the biggest smack of her life.
"Oh, shit!" She squealed as her over-production of adrenaline kicked in, sharpening her motor reflexes, causing her to pull hard on her broomstick. Alanna barely covered her face with her arm as the Nimbus barreled through the foliage. She was battered yet again with branches and finally broke through the treetops into the sunny sky.
Breathing heavily she stopped her broom and hovered to collect herself, picking random pieces of debris from her body. Her face stung with cuts and bruises and she could feel blood, hot and sticky, running down the side of her face and forehead. With a swipe of her sleeve she mopped at her face in frustration.
Farrell was already by her side, concern etching his features at her thrashed appearance. Drawing his wand, he mended her cuts and bruises with a quick spell, raising a brow at her before speaking.
"I would have expected better from you Alanna. You did not make it farther than three acres before remerging." He turned his broom and flew back to their starting position. Alanna was still breathing hard, but felt much better after being patched up.
"What the bloody hell is wrong with him! I did the best I could!" She said through clenched teeth.
The slight burn in her forehead was persisting, but would settle within a few minutes, even though the headache her father was giving her would have to wait until she could brew a batch of headache potion later that night. Unfortunately, she knew that he would not let her go until he was satisfied with her progress. Dreading the coming hours, she flexed her thigh muscles picking up speed, as she flew after her father.
"You will do this lesson, until I am satisfied with your results." Before Alanna could protest he gave her a stern look, retrieving his pocket watch from his robes. "Begin...NOW!"
'This is going to be the longest day of my life.' She thought viciously, as the darkness of the forest engulfed her yet again.
Author's Note: Please Review! This is my first fic and constructive criticism is welcome! One-hundred and seventy-eight centimeters is equal to 5'10".