DISCLAIMER: I OWN NEITHER HARRY POTTER NOR FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST!
Chapter Eight
"Hello, there," said a voice, before Ron could say anything.
Everyone looked to see that it was…
"Hi, Teacher," Ed said.
Izumi Curtis wasn't like any of the other teachers who had worn the required robes. No, Izumi had on her trademark white trench-like top and black Capri pants. She had her arms crossed.
"Hello, Mrs. Curtis," Hermione said.
"Hello, Miss Granger," Izumi said. "But from now on, you will either have to call me 'Sensei', 'Teacher', or 'Professor Curtis', do you understand?"
"Yes, Professor," Hermione said.
"I expect I will be getting respect when you come to my class and no nonsense about magical substitutions for Alchemy, correct?" Izumi asked.
"What will happen if - ?" Ron started.
"You don't want to know," Izumi interrupted. "Isn't that right, Edward, Alphonse?"
Ed and Al nodded.
"Well, I'll see everyone later," Izumi said. "Oh, and Fred and George, if I see you selling your 'treats' or testing them on students, I will give you detention and write your mother."
Then Izumi left.
"That woman is scary," Ron said.
Harry, Fred, George, Ed, and Al all nodded in agreement.
"I don't think she's scary," Hermione disagreed.
"Not now," Ed muttered. "But you will."
In History of Magic, the first class of the day, Harry and Ron played Hangman on parchment, Ed snored away, and Al and Hermione took notes. When class was over, Al woke Ed up. Ed stretched and got his bag and slung it over his shoulder.
"Brother," Al told Ed as they left class, "you should really pay more attention."
"I can't help it if that ghost guy is boring," Ed complained. "Besides, I can just copy off of you."
"Edward," Al sighed.
"You are sixteen, Edward, you should write your own notes," Hermione scolded Ed.
"Tell someone who cares," Ed brushed off.
"Fine, I'll tell Professor Curtis," Hermione said.
"You wouldn't dare," Ed snarled.
"Try me," Hermione said.
Ed stalked off to go wait by the door of Snape's classroom.
"Brother, wait!" Al said.
Then Al ran after Ed.
"That was low, Hermione," Ron said.
"How?" Hermione asked.
"I agree, Hermione," Harry agreed with Ron. "We copy off of you, but you don't tell Mrs. Weasley about it."
Hermione pursed her lips and left. In Potions, Ed and Al sat at their own table as Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat at their usual table in the back.
"Settle down," Snape said coldly as he came into the classroom and shutting the door behind him.
Quiet had fallen and all fidgeting had stopped.
"Before we begin today's lesson," Snape went on as he swept over to his desk and staring around them all, "I think it appropriate to remind you that next June you will be sitting an important examination, during which you will prove how much you have learned about the composition and use of magical potions. Moronic though some of this class undoubtedly are, I expect you to scrape an 'acceptable' in your O.W.L. or suffer my…displeasure."
His gaze lingered on Ed, who had a bored look on his face, and then on Neville, who gulped.
"After this year, of course, many of you will cease studying with me," Snape went on. "I take only the very best into my N.E.W.T. Potions class, which means that some of us will certainly be saying good-bye. But we have another year to go before that happy moment of farewell, so whether you are intending to attempt N.E.W.T. or not, I advise all of you to concentrate your efforts upon maintaining the high-pass level I have come to expect from my O.W.L. students."
Snape went on to tell what they would be making that day, the Draught of Peace, and what to do and where to find the ingredients.
"You have an hour and a half," said Snape. "Start."
Just as Harry, Ron, and Hermione predicted, Snape could hardly have set them a more difficult potion. The ingredients had to be added to the cauldron in precisely the right order and quantities; the mixture had to be stirred exactly the right number of times, firstly in clockwise, then in counter clockwise directions; the heat of the flames on which it was simmering had to be lowered to exactly the right level for a specific number of minutes before the final ingredient was added.
"A light silver vapor should now be rising from your potion," Snape called, with ten minutes left to go.
Harry, who was sweating profusely, looked desperately around the dungeon. His own cauldron was issuing copious amounts of dark gray steam; Ron's was spitting green sparks. Seamus was furiously prodding the flames at the base of his cauldron with the tip of his wand, as they had gone out. Ed and Al, however, were not sweating as their potions were emitting the light silver vapor. Snape swept by Ed and Al and did not comment on their potions. Then Snape came to Hermione's and looked down his nose at Hermione's potion that also had the light, silver vapor rising up. Snape said nothing and went to Harry, smirking horribly at Harry's potion.
"Potter, what is this supposed to be?" Snape asked.
The Slytherins at the front of the class all looked up eagerly; they loved hearing Snape taunt Harry.
"The Draught of Peace," Harry said tensely.
"Tell me, Potter," Snape said softly, "can you read?"
Draco Malfoy laughed.
"Yes, I can," Harry said.
"Read the third line of the instructions for me, Potter," Snape instructed.
Harry squinted at the blackboard; it was not easy to make out the instructions through the haze of multicolored steam now filling the dungeon.
"'Add powdered moonstone, stir three times counterclockwise, allow to simmer for seven minutes, then add two drops of syrup of hellebore,'" Harry read off, his heart sinking.
"Did you do everything on the third line, Potter?" Snape asked.
"No," Harry muttered.
"I beg your pardon?" Snape asked.
"No," Harry repeated loudly. "I forgot the hellebore…"
"I know you did, Potter, which means that this mess is utterly worthless," Snape criticized Harry. "Evanesco."
The contents of Harry's potion vanished; he was left standing foolishly beside an empty cauldron.
"Those of you who have managed to read the instructions, fill one flagon with a sample of your potion, label it clearly with your name, and bring it up to my desk for testing," Snape said. "Homework: twelve inches of parchment on the properties of moonstone and its uses in potion-making, to be handed in on Friday."
Ed and Al each filled a flagon with their potions and then took them to the front and put them on the desk. Then they went back to their desk and cleared out their cauldrons. Ed put his wand into his boot as Al put his into his bag. They packed their bags and when the bell rang for class to end, Ed and Al left the classroom. They had met up with Harry and Winry at the Great Hall. The ceiling had turned to an even murkier gray during the morning. Rain was lashing against the high windows.
"Are you all right, Harry?" Al asked.
"Fine," Harry muttered.
"What's wrong?" Winry asked.
"Snake," Ed said. "He vanished Harry's potion without giving him any points."
Just then, Hermione and Ron came to the table and sat down with them.
"That was really unfair," Hermione said consolingly to Harry, as she got some shepherd's pie. "Your potion wasn't nearly as bad as Goyle's, when he put it in his flagon the whole thing shattered and set his robes on fire."
"Hermione, Snake is never fair to Gryffindors, and you know that," Ed pointed out.
"He's got a point, you know," Ron said.
"I did think he might be a bit better this year," Hermione said in a disappointed voice while she looked around. "I mean, you know, now he's in the Order and everything."
Ed burst out in laughter.
"Brother," Al sighed.
"What's so funny, if I may ask?" Hermione asked.
Ed stopped laughing, but he snickered.
"Just because he's in the Order, it doesn't mean he's going to start being happy-go-lucky, Hermione," Ed snickered. "He's too much of a jackass. Snake isn't going to change."
"Snape!" Hermione corrected.
"I don't care what your boyfriend is called, Hermione," Ed snickered.
Hermione's face went red with embarrassment.
"He is NOT my boyfriend!" Hermione protested, Ron laughing. "Ron, shut up!"
"Hermione, Edward is only joking," Winry said, flipping her hair. "You need to loosen up."
"Loosen up?" Hermione asked.
"Yes, it means to stop having a stick up your ass," Winry said.
Hermione's jaw dropped in shock. Ron and Harry didn't know what to say as they looked at each other in shock. It seemed as though the agreement to agree to disagree had ended.
"How - ?!" Hermione started.
Winry stood up, not wanting to hear what Hermione was going to say, and left. Ed and grabbed their bags and went after Winry. Ed and Al caught up with Winry out in the entrance hall.
"You all right, Winry?" Ed asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Winry said. "I guess I just miss Granny."
"We miss her too, Winry," Al said. "We all haven't seen her in a while."
"She didn't want me coming back," Winry admitted.
"Why?" Ed asked.
"She doesn't want me get involved with the stuff here," Winry said. "That sort of thing. But she let me come back anyway because she knew that she couldn't change my mind."
"It wouldn't have been the same without you, Winry," Ed said.
"Ed, you're just saying that because you need me here to maintain your auto-mail," said Winry.
"That's not true," Ed said, then adding after a look from Winry, "Well, a bit of that is true, but I do want you to be here, Winry. Besides, somebody's got to keep Hermione in check."
Ed grinned at Winry.
"That Umbridge woman is such a…," Winry started.
"You already had her?" Al asked.
"Yes, and she's an awful person," Winry said. "She doesn't even teach anything! She just had us read out of that stupid book! It's so boring!"
"Why didn't you say anything?" Ed asked.
"Next time, I will," Winry said. "Alphonse -."
"I know, I know," Al said. "Go away so you and Brother can kiss. I will wait for you at the ladder for class."
"You remember where it is?" Ed asked, since he had shown the way there to Al the day of the final task.
"Yup," Al said. "Have a nice session."
"AL!" Ed said.
Al laughed and went on his way. Ed scowled, but Winry had led Ed to an empty classroom.
"You still look cute in your uniform," Ed complimented.
"Thanks," Winry said. "I know I do."
A moment later, Ed kissed Winry. Winry kissed Ed back as Ed put his left hand on her thigh. After making out for a few minutes, they came up for air.
"We can continue this later," Winry said, her cheeks flushed. "We need to get to class."
"Yeah," Ed said. "Right. See you, Winry."
Then Ed left the class room, Winry leaving a moment after him.