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(Horace Slughorn) Cauldron Clash
Author: Severus Snape
Date: 01-26-07 08:50
Professor Slughorn surveyed the scene in the dining hall at Durmstrang Institute. Fourteen cauldrons had been arranged on a stage for each student per level. Only ten students presently stood on stage, since Okapi ?cole de Sorcellerie and Sydney's School of Sorcery didn't have 11-12 year old students. Representing Hogwarts were Alexa Wenlock of Slughorn's own house Slytherin and Alan Birdwell of Gryffindor. He'd worked hard with them and all the other Hogwarts students competing in the Cauldron Clash and had no doubt that Hogwarts would do well in the tournament.
Headmaster Spangler Nacht addressed everyone assembled in the dining hall.
"Greetings," he said in German. "Welcome to Durmstrang Institute, honored guests. It is my great pleasure to host the Cauldron Clash and Dueling competitions at our school. I want to wish you all the best of luck. And now, let the Cauldron Clash begin."
The entire time he spoke, words scrolled over his head in the other languages represented in the competition, including English, French, and Spanish.
Spangler stepped off the stage while the first judge, Pollyanna Pocket, stepped forward and introduced herself. She spoke in English.
"Good morning, students. I am pleased to meet you all and hope you all have fun competing in the Cauldron Clash. I'm sure you've worked very hard to be here today. The procedure for today's competition follows thusly: Each level will participate in three rounds of competition. All rounds will last ten minutes. Winners will be selected from each round and then cumulative winners will be chosen."
She held three cards in her hand which had the names of the three potions the 11-12 year old would be brewing printed on them.
Each table next to each cauldron had supplies and ingredients already on it, so that the students didn't have to waste time by going to a store cabinet to get what they needed for their potions. The supplies included things they actually needed for their potions and things they didn't need, so they really had to know what they were doing in order to do things correctly.
Judge Pocket moved to where an hourglass was positioned on a table and read from the first card. "Boil Cure Potion." She flipped over the hourglass. "Begin."
Reading the Daily Prophet
Author: Remus Lupin
Date: 01-26-07 09:36
Remus opened his window to accept the owl delivering Saturday morning's edition of the Daily Prophet. He slipped a couple of coins in the sack it carried and fed it a piece of jerky he kept in a jar for owls who visited him. Then he closed the window and sat down at his kitchen table with a cup of coffee at his elbow.
The man who copied Fenrir Greyback's werewolf attacks had injured someone in London on February 8th. Unfortunately, he'd gotten away without being identified by anyone. The victim had fallen into a coma a few days after her attack and had yet to wake. It was, by far, the worst attack since the copycat had taken up where Greyback had left off.
The next full moon was on March 9th. Remus wondered whether the attacker would revisit the site of the very first genuine serial werewolf attack, Manchester, or choose an entirely different M city to terrorize. Remus wished he could stake out Manchester himself. He wanted the crimes to stop, even if it had been determined that the attacker wasn't a werewolf at all and that his victims weren't at risk of becoming werewolves themselves.
Lupin wondered if the person continuing Greyback's attacking streak was actually working for the Death Eater or whether or not he worked on his own accord. Was it all a big joke to see how long he could get away with it or was the man as evil and sadistic as Greyback himself?
Lupin shifted his mind from the faux werewolf attacks to the upcoming anniversary of Voldemort's death. An article in the Daily Prophet glossed over it. Would the Ministry do something official? Would there be unofficial celebrations to mark the first year of relative peace in the wizarding world? Thinking about Voldemort's death automatically put Harry to mind. How would he feel on the day of the anniversary of his own death? Thank Merlin for Hermione and her quick thinking!
Remus drained his cup of coffee and decided to fix himself some jam on toast for breakfast.
Carnivorous Fern
Author: Ronan Eastwick
Date: 01-26-07 09:53
When the professors started shooing the students from the Great Hall after breakfast so that they could quickly arrange the room for the apparition lesson, Ronan slipped on his coat and headed outside to the greenhouses. Ever since getting selected for the Best in Show: Magical Plants competition for the SAT, he'd been meeting with Professor FitzRoy to go over possible ideas for a plant to groom for the tournament.
Professor FitzRoy was in one of the greenhouses when he arrived. He lightly tapped the glass outside the greenhouse to get her attention and then stepped inside and pulled off his coat. It was very warm in the greenhouse.
"Hi, Ronan. I'm glad you could make it," Professor FitzRoy said with a smile. "I've got just the thing for you." She went over to a table and slipped on a pair of dragon-hide gloves. Then she picked up a tiny potted fern and set it on the main table in the green house.
"A carnivorous fern?" Ronan asked, grinning. "Cool. Yeah, I like this idea."
"I thought you might. It's a very young plant, but as you know, it'll grow a lot over the next few months. It'll be a very impressive plant in time for the competiton––if you treat it right."
"I will, of course," Ronan said.
"Good. Do you remember what we learned last term?"
Ronan sat down on a stool at the table and thought back to months ago, when his fifth year class talked about carnivorous ferns and fanged geraniums. He told Professor FitzRoy what he remembered and listened as she reminded him about some of the things he'd forgotten as well as gave him new facts and tips on how to best care for the plant.
Boil Cure Potion (Alexa Wenlock)
Author: Aaron Miller
Date: 01-26-07 10:51
Alexa knew the rules and procedures for the Cauldron Clash because Professor Slughorn had had one of his special parties to which he'd invited only those students coming to Durmstrang for the Cauldron Clash. During the gathering he'd handed out parchment on which everything was spelled out and he'd gone over it all with the fourteen Hogwarts students. Since that night Alexa has read over the parchment so many times she knows it by heart. Nonetheless, Alexas listens very closely when judge Pollyanna Pocket gives the first group its instructions just in case there was some last minute change or in case the professors and judges decided to slip something new in to see how well the students pay attention and follow directions.
Hearing the first potion Alexa can't help but smile. She's got boil cure potion down pat. Alexa immediately cautions herself not to get to cocky and over confident because that's when mistakes happen to even the most knowledgable and skilled. Or so all the adults she knows have always said.
Alexa studies the ingredients layed out on her table, reaching for the dried nettles. Out of the corner of her eye she sees that cute Claude Saint-Pierre from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic pick up nettles as well but not dried one. Poor Claude. Off to a bad start but that's one less person who's real competition in this wave of the Cauldron Clash.
Alexa reaches for snake fangs, nearly picking up chopped ones instead of the vial of crushed ones. She measures out the amount of crushed snake fangs she needs then does the same with the stewed horned slugs that go in the potions as well. Alexa notes that there are two other types of stewed slugs on the table and supposes that a student or two will get tripped up and use one of those two instead of the horned slugs.
Alexa carefully mixes everything over her fire. There's a loud hissing nearby so Alexa ventures a look over to see one of the Durmstrang students with a cloud of acid green smoke rising from her cauldron. The girl jumps back as a hole melts into the side of the cauldron allowing the potion inside to run out. Alexa would be jumping back too if it were she who'd made the mistake of adding in the porcupine quills before taking the cauldron off the flames. When that happens the incorrect potion can eat holes in your shoes and will cause nasty, painful boils.
With little time to spare in gawking at the Durmstrang girl and the icky potion streaming onto the floor at that girl's station, Alexa removes her cauldron from the heat. Only then does she stir in the porcupine quills she'd measured out already.
When time is up, Alexa is pleased with what she's done with one exception. She thinks she added one too many dried nettles. For now though she's got to think towards the next potion so hurries to clean her cauldron and get her station tidy again wondering what potion Judge Pocket will announce next.
Cauldrons Clashing (Jack Emerson)
Author: Kody
Date: 01-26-07 16:28
Last Saturday at the flying and Quidditch workshop, Jack had been thrilled nearly speechless to have the chance to collect more signatures of pro players. That's when he remembered he'd yet to send Eithne ni Domhnaill a thank you note for Ballycastle Bats player Aine McGeoghan's card with personalized autograph.
Jack's mum had told him back at Christmas to write the thank you but typical of many kids, when it comes to writing thank you letters, Jack kept putting it off. He meant to do it last week when the workshop was over but got distracted by some of his friends before they'd even gotten back to the castle from the pitch.
For some reason yesterday, just after arriving at Durmstrang and while being given the tour, Jack thought about it again. Maybe because Durmstrang is where Coach Krum went and Coach Krum is a professional Quidditch player. Whatever the reason, Jack remembered.
As soon as the tour was over and Jack had a little free time he'd written the thank you note. Then one of the Durmstrang students Jack had gotten to talking with offered to trade her lined gloves charmed to keep her hands always the perfect temperature when in the frigid winter cold out of doors for Jack's Ravenclaw scarf, matching knit hat, and matching gloves. Jack included the Durmstrang student's gloves in the owl to Eithne.
Now, sitting and watching the last wave of the first years sesson, Jack keeps darting glances at the girl who traded with him, Ekaterina Slovak. In a very short time, if he understood her correctly yesterday, which is quite possible since her English is limited and Jack doesn't speak any of the languages she does, Ekaterina and he will be competitors in the SAT's potion competition.
For now though, while the first years are still going, Jack is finding it fun to flirt a little. Even just a couple of months prior Jack would have shuddered at the thought of purposely flirting. It's only been very recently that Jack has truly noticed girls as being, well, girls. He's pretty sure it was at the SAT events at Beauxbaton when meeting Aimée Martel and Catalina Vargas. Thinking of those two has Jack looking around the large room. Both are here and both are very pretty. Definately worth a little flirting time.
Jack is so busy making eye contact with each of the three girls, smiling at each and talking from time to time with Ekaterina whose sitting close enough to him they can whisper, Jack barely pays attention to the end of the first group's Cauldron Clash session. With the first group being entirely done, the results of the first wave are announced.
In third is Hogwarts's own Alexa Wenlock, with Jessica Miller of Watling's in second, and Allegra Zapata of La Escuela de Hechiceria in first.
After the applause has died down, the trophies handed out and pictures have been made, the results of the first years' second wave are announced. Once again it's Alexa Wenlock in third, with Beauxbatons' Adrien Turcotte in second and Jessica Miller from Watling's in first.
By the time all the hullaboo has died down again, the judges have the results of that group's third potion. In a clean sweep of third place is Alexa Wenlock. Jessica Miller adds another first to her day's work, and Allegra Zapata gets second.
The overall placements are then announced with first to Jessica Miller, second to Allegra Zapata, and third to both Alexa Wenlock and Adrien Turcotte.
The second group, Jack's group, are called up. Hans Müller
is the main judge this time, giving the 12 to 13 year old age group the same directions and instructions as Pollyanna Pocket had given to the first group. Jack's group is told its first potion to make: swelling solution.
Jack grabs one of the ingredients he knows for sure then scans the table for another of them, getting frustrated at not immediately spotting the puffer-fish eyes needed and losing precious time as a result.
The time goes by so quickly Jack feels like protesting that it was only a couple of minutes instead of the full time alotted. He keeps quiet though knowing how idiotic he'd look. Cleaning everything up after turning in his swelling solution, Jack hopes the second potion is just as easy and that he doesn't piss away so much time looking for what he needs.
At Durmstrang Institute
Author: Minerva McGonagall
Date: 01-27-07 07:52
Professor McGonagall sat in the audience in the Great Hall at Durmstrang Institute and watched as the Cauldron Clash progressed. She would have ordinarily been at Hogwarts monitoring the apparition lesson, and would instead chaperone the extra apparition in Hogsmeade this coming Friday afternoon.
After the second group represented by 12-13 year old students finished, Hans Müller announced the winners. First, second and third place for round one consisted of Denis Peltier of Beauxbatons, Jack Emerson of Hogwarts and Zina Zayid of Okapi, respectively. In round two, Zina placed first, Jack placed third, and Esmeralda Villarreal of Hechiceria placed second. Only Jack of the previous winners placed in round three. He won second again. Ekaterina Slovak of Durmstrang and Edward Smythe of Sydney's won first and third, respectively.
Minerva applauded loudly when the overall winners were announced. Jack earned first place, Zina earned second, and Denis and Ekaterina tied for third.
After receiving their trophies and posing for photographs, the 12-13 year olds filed off the stage while the 13-14 year olds took their positions at the clean, empty cauldrons. Representing Hogwarts in the third group were Isabella Hastings and Edward Croft of Ravenclaw House.
Their judge, Apollonia Portokalos, introduced herself and then dove right into the first potion on the three cards she held in her hand.
Pleasant Work Environment
Author: Hermione Granger
Date: 01-27-07 11:22
Working with Henry ever since his brawl with Ron turned out not to be as awkward and unpleasant as Hermione originally anticipated. Henry was nothing short of cordial and polite, possessing a professional demeanor that Hermione honestly hadn't expected. She didn't complain, of course. The environment in which she'd found herself at work was only how she'd ever dreamed it should be.
Odd, considering how much Hermione knew Henry loathed the fact that she would choose someone like Ron over him. Maybe he'd finally gotten over the fact that she wasn't interested anymore. Perhaps he realized the truth after all, that Hermione and Ron were in love.
The door to the laboratory opened and in stepped a gorgeous woman with blonde hair, blue eyes, and a dazzling smile. She was tall and thin, but had a nice, curvy form. She wore robes that flattered her body in every way.
"Can I help you?" Hermione asked pleasantly.
"I'm looking for Henry," the woman said, smiling in a friendly manner.
"I'll let him know he has a visitor," Hermione replied. "Whom shall I say is asking for him?"
"Myra."
Hermione nodded and went to Henry's office door. It was cracked, so she knocked once and then pushed it open ever so slightly. Henry was in the middle of dictating notes to a quill that moved across a piece of parchment on its own accord. He stopped when Hermione came in.
"Yes?"
"You have a visitor, a woman named Myra."
"Ah, thanks." Henry waved his hand over the quill, causing it to fall down limp over the parchment. He followed Hermione out the door.
She went to her lab station, while he went to Myra. Henry kissed her full on the lips.
"Henry, darling," Myra gushed, after the kiss had broken, "not here."
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself, dear. Are you ready for brunch?"
"I am."
Henry shot a look at Hermione. "I'll be back in an hour."
"All right," Hermione replied stoically. She couldn't tell if Henry was trying to make her jealous. If so, he'd be disappointed to know that it wasn't working. She looked down at her lab table and resumed her work.
Henry paused a beat and then left the lab with Myra on his arm.
Try, Try Again
Author: Ariella Beck
Date: 01-27-07 11:39
By now, Ariella was quite convinced that she was the worst student in the apparition lessons. She'd never been the worst student in anything academic she'd ever attempted. Even in Quidditch, she'd been pretty dang good. So, what was her problem now? Why was she having so much trouble with one single spell? Yes, it was extremely difficult. Yes, it was incredibly easy to really screw it up, but so far, she'd not even splinched herself all that much.
"Practice makes perfect," she heard Wilkie Twycross say.
Ariella tried to believe it, because it usually was true, but the longer she went without showing any sign of improvement, the more she started to believe that "practice makes perfect' didn't always apply.
She focused on her hoop. She tried to picture herself disappearing from where she stood and miraculously reappearing inside the hoop. She moved into it in her mind... and then... POP!
She found herself face down inside the hoop.
What she didn't realize is that her upper body had made it into the hoop, but the rest had stayed behind. Professors Miller and Flitwick hurried over to reattach her lower half to the rest of her body. It took a couple of loud bangs and a bunch of purple smoke and then she was back together again.
"Well, that's progress, I suppose," Ariella said to herself.
The Fourth Group's Turn (Estella Primrose)
Author: Gabrielle Delacour
Date: 01-27-07 19:14
Sitting with the other fourth year from Hogwarts participating in the Cauldron Clash, Octavia Oldenburg, Estella asks under her breath, "What do you think we'll get?"
"At least one antidote I think; you know, since they're a main thrust for us in Potions this year. With such a short time to prepare that does help narrow down what we might be assigned," Octavia answers equally quiet.
Estella thinks about this for a moment the comments, "I wish I'd thought to ask someone from another school what they study fourth year."
"That would have been good if either of us had thought of it. Too late now. They're finishing up so we don't have much time."
The "they" to whom Octavia refers is the group of 13 to 14 year olds that includes the two Hogwarts third years Isabella Hastings and Edward Croft. That group's session of three waves has already concluded and the overall winners are currently having the last of their pictures taken.
The wave one winners for third group were from Durmstrang Institute, La Escuela de Hechiceria, Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. Specially, first going to Feodora Reznik, second to Antonio Amador, and third to Karine Pequegnot.
Second wave had Hogwarts shut out again. First place went to Dustin Hunt from Watling's Wizarding Academy. Estella thinks it's too bad Dustin comes across as a bit full of himself. Second place went to someone Estella has become friends with, Erin Fellows from Sydney's School of Sorcery. Mahdi Tobias from Okapi École de Sorcellerie.
The wave three winners were Dustin Hunt again with Karine Pequegnot also placing but second this time. Her fellow Beauxbatonia Olivier Rousseau took third.
Overall first place went to Dustin, who's head has surely swelled from two wave wins and the overall win. Estella is glad she doesn't have to hang out with him. What little time she was around him yesterday was more than enough. Feodora Reznik too second overall with third overall going to Karine.
The 14-15 age group is called to get into place. Estella's stomach flutters nervously and she once again gives herself a mental chiding for not thinking to ask some of the others what they study this year in Potions. Octavia and Estella exchange good luck wishes then take their assigned work stations.
The main judge this round is introduced. Natalya Borzov then asks, "Does anyone need me to go over the instructions?" When all the heads are shaking no and verbal negatives given, the judge continued, "No. Good. Your first potion is the Arousal Draught."
All over the Durmstrang dining hall students try to stifle the snickers that always threaten to turn into full blown laughter when hearing the name of the potion antidote for taking too much sleeping draught or sleeping pills - Arousal Draught.
Estella, trying to get out of her head the connated image that hearing the words Arousal Draught always bring to her mind, still ends up giving a little giggle as she reaches for the first ingredient she'll need.