Potions and a Gryffindor

[Danielle Gates]

Danielle was balancing her old Potions book on her lap as she scanned the notes that she had kept at home. She had sent an owl home to send these notes since she would be helping some younger students with this particular subject. She was fifteen minutes early so as to organize the notes, highlighting some parts that she deemed essential and helpful for Rose Holland, a Gryffindor third year. With her wand on her hand, she flicked it once more highlighting one more line just as the student she was waiting for arrived. "Hi there. Ready?", she greeted her, getting to the point at the same time.

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose wasn't sure why she had signed up for Potions tutoring, as she was pretty sure she was just sort of hopeless at it. Still, it couldn't hurt and it made her parents happy, so she didn't mind giving it a go. Maybe she would even make a new friend! Though the girl she was paired up with was a bit older and someone she wasn't familiar with. When she arrived at the place they would meet, she spotted someone she had never seen at the Gryffindor table before. She looked around the right age, but Rose wasn't the most observant person and it could very well be a Gryffindor she just hadn't noticed before. But then the girl greeted her and Rose assumed it really was her tutor. "Danielle, right? Yep, pretty much ready." She said with a smile, taking a seat.

 

[Danielle Gates]

Rose was a pretty girl with a charming face. This was the first thing Danielle noticed. Since they were the only people at the Gryffindor table, there was plenty of space for her to sit beside her. "Yep, that's me. You can call me Dani, if you want.", she smiled at the girl. She placed the book that she was holding and put it on the table. She asked the question if the girl was ready but she didn't want to overwhelm her."So, let's get to know each other first. We will get to Potions in no time.", she encouraged her with a friendly smile.

ooc: I find this funny because this is like I am rping my job here as a teacher.

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose wasn't sure what she had expected from her tutor, maybe someone extremely serious with her hair in a bun and glasses? But the girl she had been assigned to seemed very relaxed and nice, which was great. "Dani it is! I'd let you call me a nickname too but Rose is kind of hard to shorten." She said with a shrug. She was surprised to hear the girl wanted them to get to know each other but she liked the idea. "Sounds good! I'm Rose and in third year and Gryffindor but I guess you already knew all that. Uhh... My favorite subject is Herbology, though I really like Care of Magical Creatures too. I like to knit and I have three younger sisters."She listed anything interesting about herself that she could think of and then turned to the Hufflepuff. "What about you?"."

(ooc: funny, I'm studying to become a teacher too )

 

[Danielle Gates]

Danielle nodded with a laugh when Rose mentioned that her name was already short enough to have a nickname. "Or we could go with Ro.", she added with a smile, half-intending it to be a joke of sorts. She was actually having fun in this tutor session. She even felt that she was just having a group study with someone. She just hoped that the Gryffindor also felt that way. "I'm Danielle and on my last year. I belonged to Hufflepuff and Potions is one I am good at, somehow. Like you, I find CoMC interesting too along with Transfiguration. I love to play songs and I have four older brothers." She told the girl, somehow matching the things that the girl also told her. It was like a breath of fresh air for Danielle since she had never had this kind of introductions with Silus Hollister. She could feel that family was a touchy subject for the Ravenclaw.

Danielle opened up her old Potions book again as well as the old notes that she was scanning a few minutes back. "So, how difficult is Potions for you?",she asked as a way for her to get some feel on how she would make Potions easy for her new friend.

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose grinned widely at the older girl. “You can call me Ro if you want! Or ...'Se' , which doesn’t make much sense.” She giggled at the idea. Tutoring really wasn’t so bad, and if it was always this fun and friendly she would definitely sign up again next year. Maybe she could be a tutor too, in Herbology maybe? It was the only subject she felt like she was really any good at. She was very impressed that Danielle was good at Transfiguration. Rose herself had dropped the subject at the start of this year as she found it very difficult. Her mouth dropped open when Danielle said she had four older brothers. “Wow, four! I thought three was many!” She exclaimed, unable to hide her genuine surprise. “What’s that like? Are they much older?” 

But the older girl didn’t dwell on her family history for too long, and Rose was forced to focus on the subject of Potions again. The girl’s question made her shrug, she felt slightly embarrassed at the answer she had to give now. “Well, pretty difficult I’d guess? When we brew I just seem to mess them up, I read the instructions but then when I’m trying to follow them I forget what they said exactly or I get distracted or I count the number of stirs wrong... I just keep making mistakes.” She said helplessly. “It’s so precise! You can’t do one tiny thing differently or it’s all messed up.”

 

[Danielle Gates]

Danielle laughed along at Rose when she attempted at using the last two letters of the girl's name. The Hufflepuff was actually having fun at this and she thought she would dread teaching another student. Rose even found it amusing that she had four brothers. Danielle laughed when she showed interest on them. "They are the best, actually. Strict yet caring. The fourth one was actually twelve years older than me. He works for the Ministry, in the Magical Law Enforcement Squad. So, basically much older.", she explained.

Danielle's eyes lit up when Rose mentioned about following instructions. She had encountered this kind of problem and her dad taught her a technique that somehow worked every time especially when it came to stirring. She noticed that when Rose was telling her her dilemma, she sounded nervous just thinking about it. Danielle laid her hand on top of the girl's, "Calm down. You already sounded nervous." She showed the girl her notes along with the tips that she found helpful as she did the potions. "The first thing you need to do is read the instructions first. From beginning to the end. Even the night before the class. If you want, you can even read it again and again.", she said calmly. She wanted the girl to feel calm and confident because that was the key to achieving good results in brewing.

 

[Rose Holland]

Rose was amazed to hear about Danielle's brothers, and the amazement showed on her face. "Twelve years? That's almost my entire life!" She said, astonished. "I mean, I'm thirteen, but still. My sisters are all kinda close to me in age actually. We will all be at Hogwarts together." She told her happily. "My sister Phoebe is already here, she's a second year Ravenclaw now. And my sister Diana is coming next year." The Hufflepuff next to her was a seventh year, so she would graduate next year. Rose wondered if the girl minded that. The idea of graduating scared her, but thankfully it was still far away.

Rose was glad to be reassured by the older girl, though she really wasn't sure how much she could help. Right now it was fine to discuss how to do better, but she had a feeling she would screw up again next time she was in front of a cauldron regardless. Still, she was here to make an effort. What Danielle suggested sounded smart, reasonable, but also like a lot of work. "The night before?" She asked, somewhat dismayed. Truthfully, she never really paid much attention to what classes she had the next day. She tended to follow someone she knew shared the class with her, and it usually turned out okay. "I could give it a shot." She said, not wanting to make the girl think she would dismiss her advice.