Summary: Tahlia has her first Potions lesson. Review!
Chapter Three: Tractus Confuto
The next week breezed by, and still no luck came to Tahlia. She had not met one new person on her own. Every day, when she ate her meals, she sat alone at the Ravenclaw table and every day after her classes, she retreated to the library to finish her homework. Finally! It's Friday, and it's dinner. In no time, I'll be in my first lesson with Severus! she thought. Just as she began to serve herself, Sirius Black walked across the hall and took the seat opposite her. She looked up to find him smiling mischievously at her. She bit her bottom lip as a soft pink colour came upon her cheeks.
"Hello again, Lupin," he said, as he extended his hand out to her.
"What brings you here?" she asked shyly through a smile as she reached up to shake his hand.
"Well, to tell you the truth, I've been watching you the last couple of days. Why don't you sit with anyone?" he implored, wrinkling his forehead. Tahlia thought that this was by far his most attractive face: the dumbfounded expression.
"I don't have any friends in my house… anymore. I've actually been very busy will school work, so I haven't had time to catch up with Lily and Alice, either," she explained. Tahlia looked at Sirius hopefully.
"Well," he started, "James and I thought you might want to sit with us at the Gryffindor table. So... what do you say?" Tahlia looked down at her plate, then over to the Gryffindor table where she saw Remus talking with Peter.
"All right, sure." She smiled and got up from her seat. Sirius waited for her to gather her things before walking her back to where he had been sitting.
"Hey, Remus. Dad sent some money for Hogsmeade and Halloween. I left it back in my room though. I'll bring it down tomorrow at breakfast," Tahlia explained as she slid into the seat beside him. She continued, "You didn't have to invite me to sit with you. I have to leave and meet Severus pretty soon, anyway. But... thanks, I suppose." Remus forced a smile.
"It wasn't my idea to invite you over," he droned. Tahlia looked over at Sirius. He winked. Of course he winked! I swear; he winks more than he blinks! she thought. Tahlia started eating when she saw Severus walking towards the arch that led to the hall.
"I've got to go, Remus. Thanks for letting me sit with you." She patted him on his head and messed up his hair. Tahlia picked up her bag and walked briskly out into the hall. She reached the door to Slughorn's class then leaned against the wall to catch her breath. Tahlia stood up and looked around for Severus. She spotted him briskly walking towards her. He had a set of keys in his hands that he used to unlock the classroom and they entered.
"Did you bring what I told you to?" the boy spat, making it his mission not to look her in the face.
"Hello, Severus... yes, I did... but I was thinking... I'm really quite good in Potions. I don't really know what we could do or work on. I'm not meaning to sound arrogant or anything like that. It's just, what exactly are we going to be doing? How can I improve if I'm already advanced?" Tahlia asked nervously, as they walked to the nearest station.
"Fine. If Potions is so easy for you, then here." He sounded offended as shoved an open book at Tahlia. She looked down at the page and quickly back at Severus. "Brew it. I'll give you twenty-five minutes," he instructed, as a smug smile stretched across his face. Have fun with that, girl. It took me a month to perfect that potion, he thought.
"This is more advanced than N.E.W.T. level potions!" Tahlia felt her temples began to throb. He is such an ass, she mused, how does he expect me to do this? She set the book down on the desk with the cauldron on it. She read, "Tractus Confuto Serum," then glanced at Severus. "What does this do exactly?"
"It slows time," he hissed, overly annoyed. Tahlia rolled her eyes at this.
"Care to elaborate?"
"It makes it so that for every hour that goes by, every hour to normal standards that is, lasts two hours... to the person who drinks it. I was able to brew it my fifth year. If you're as good as you think, it should be no problem." He leaned against the desk behind him and folded his arms to his chest. "Slughorn has permitted me to use what ever supplies required. They're just in that cupboard. Go ahead." Tahlia looked down at the book.
"Hellebore... shrivelfigs... MOONSTONE! Do you REALLY think Professor Slughorn keeps an extra supply of moonstone!" she yelled, and slammed the book closed, glaring at the boy. He reached into his pocket and pulled a small cloth.
"I've brought some of my own." He walked over to her desk and placed it next to the book. "Come on then. Get the rest of ingredients, and bring the book." He walked over to the cabinet and unlocked the cupboard with the same ring of keys he used to open the door. After collecting all the bottles and bags of ingredients she needed, they walked back to the station. Tahlia laid all the ingredients over the table in perfect rows and columns. She returned to the book and began reading. After a few moments, she began to grind the shrivelfigs. She added them to the cauldron. After a few more moments, after grinding, cutting, and juicing several other ingredients and adding them to the cauldron, she began to stir the concoction. Severus retreated to a seat against the desk at the other end of the classroom. Trying to look unimpressed, he began cleaning his nails and whistling the Hogwarts school song. "Aren't you done yet? You only have fifteen more minutes," he mocked. Barely looking up from the cauldron, she eyed him and whispered something under her breath. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch that. What did you say?" he asked. He snorted in amusement and returned to picking at the dirt from under his nails. Every so often, he checked the time on his pocket watch. "Seven more minutes, Lupin," he teased. He looked up at her and at that very moment, she plopped the moonstone into the liquid with a smile upon her face. Severus huffed at this. She better not waste my moonstone. It's not exactly cheep, he scorned. He heard a soft noise, like a whisper. "Did you say something?"
Tahlia raised her voice, "I said, I'm done." She ran a hand over her forehead and through her hair, wiping back the sweat that had beaded on her skin. "Don't you want to come take a look? I don't know if I did it correctly, but I tried my hardest." She moved away from the desk as Severus strode to the cauldron and looked down. He looked back up at Tahlia with a horrible, screwed up, disgusted face.
"WHAT DID YOU DO!" he yelled at her.
She shuddered. "I did everything the book told me to... except, I changed my mixing rhythm just a bit," she said quickly and quietly. What could I have done? It can't be that bad, whatever it was. Oh, COME ON! she thought. Severus was about to continue, but bit his tongue. Stepping away from the cauldron, he turned to Tahlia and looked at her straight in the eyes.
"You've done it," he said serenely. He walked back to the cabinet and retrieved three medium-sized phials. Returning beside the cauldron, he turned back to Tahlia. He sighed, "Well, let's bottle it then. It would be a waste to throw it out." She walked slowly to his side and reached for a phial.
"I didn't mean to upset you. I thought I wasted your moonstone. I will replace it anyway... but, why... well, why did you get so upset?" She slightly leaned over the desk trying to look the boy in the eye. He filled one phial, placed a cork in it, set it down, and turned back to Tahlia.
"I didn't think you would actually be able to do it... I was wrong," he grudgingly admitted. "I don't know what I can do to help you. I don't know why Slughorn hasn't noticed you. Or has, and decided to ignore you." He reached for the second phial and proceeded to fill it.
"Hey…I've got an idea. Maybe you can go through my notebook, " she asked hopefully. "I have fully documented every potion I've ever brewed. From looking over that, I have these …theories about a large number of ingredients: how to cut them properly, how to grind them efficiently, when to add them to a potion, how to mix them. Maybe you can look it over?" Waiting for Severus to answer her, she began chewing the inside of her cheek (a nervous habit she has had ever since she could remember).
"I do that as well. Keep a notebook, I mean," Severus conferred, slightly taken aback. He continued, "I can bring it next week and compare them." He corked the second phial and placed it on the desk. Tahlia finished filling the last one and handed it to Severus. Their hands brushed against each other's. His hands are so warm and soft, she thought. He put a cork in the last phial and began to clear the desk. Tahlia slung the strap of her bag over her shoulder and waited for Severus to finish cleaning. He returned his wand to a pocket on his side and turned to Tahlia. He smiled weakly and self-consciously. "Until next week, then?" he asked. After nodding and shaking hands with the boy, Tahlia turned and began walking away. After a few steps, she stopped, looking over her shoulder at Severus.
"What are you doing tomorrow?" she inquired.
"Nothing in particular," he said suspiciously. "Why?" he asked. She turned completely around and started fidgeting with her buttons. What is so bloody interesting about her buttons? he thought.
"Well, maybe, instead of meeting next week… we can get together tomorrow?" She looked everywhere except at him. "We can go sit by the lake or something. If we are just going to be looking over some notes, we don't have to stay inside a classroom...I don't ever have anything to do over the weekends."
"Why don't you ever have anything to do?" he asked.
She looked at him, shamed, and explained, "I don't really have any friends. I use to have one, but we haven't talked for a good six months." She looked up at him. A piece of hair obscured his eyes and he flicked it back.
He thought for a moment, then answered, "Where do you want to meet?"