A Potion for Two (Snape x Reader)

Bluedrop Flowers

The month passed with ease. Although you didn't see your 6th year friends much  besides eating together in the Great Hall and having a quick chat in the common room, you weren't lonely. Knowing that you had taken the classes before and that you had a pretty good understanding of the material, the 5th years in your House started cozying up to you, hoping that you'd help them out when they got stuck. You agreed, used to your friends begging you for help as well, and it would serve as a good review for the stuff you'd forgotten in the classes you dozed off in. Plus, they'd sometimes give you some snacks in exchange for your help. Definitely worth it.

LNow accustomed to your strange class setup you either spent your History of Magic classes working on your Study of Ancient Runes homework or catching up on your sleep. It was the same for Astrology; you quickly found out that you could just turn in the same work from last year and slept through the class. You didn't get the chance to slack off in your other classes though as the teachers kept you busy with mastering a concept or learning a new one. Professor Snape kept you especially busy, constantly increasing the level of difficulty with each new potion he taught you. You studied hard, not wanting his extra work in preparing your lessons go to waste. Today, however, you finally messed up.

As the rest of the class filtered out of the classroom in a rush, jeering at a classmate who had singed his hair after a mishap, you stared dumbly into your cauldron waiting for something, anything to happen. You quickly snatched your notes off your desk in a flurry, scanning over the words, trying to figure out what went wrong. The Blood-Replenishing Potion was supposed to be red, but yours was still crystal clear. Absolutely pitiful, you thought to yourself.

In your frustration, you hadn't realized it but Professor Snape has walked over to you. Seeing him in the reflection of your failed potion, displeasure evident on his face, you raised your head to look at him with sorrow in your eyes. "Professor, I don't know what went wrong. I followed the instructions properly; I couldn't find where I went wrong when I looked back over the notes!"

He looked down at your cauldron, swirling the liquid with his wand. His frown grew deeper as he watched the wasted ingredients swirl around limply. But that is what he had expected. "Miss (y/l/n), Potion making is not simply following some instructions on a parchment. Care must be given to each ingredient, knowing how they react with one another separates a great potion maker from a mediocre one." You stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out what he was trying to say. Sure, you hadn't thought about how the ingredients would interact with one another, but you didn't add anything extra. The recipe wouldn't lie to you either. Seeing your look of confusion, he continued, "The last time you brewed something, you left in a hurry did you not?"

"That's right, it was the first quidditch match of the year. I had to go and support George. Why?"

"The Blue Gumwart potion is notorious for being hard to clean. Cauldrons, phials, clothes, hands. Had you spilt any you would have had the pleasure of spending detention cleaning it up." A look of understanding flashed through your eyes. Noticing it, he nodded and asked, "now, what ingredients did you use to make that potion?"

You thought for a second before listing them off, "Gumroot, Spleenwart, Bluedrop flow..." your eyes widened as you made the connection, "Bluedrop flowers! They cancel out the effect of the Silverweed extract used in the Blood-restoration potion. That's why the potion failed?"

"Correct," He replied, the frown fading from his face. He ran a finger along the inside of the cauldron, collecting a thin, pale-blue slime. "Brewing the potion according to the instructions is only one factor in potion making. You must be sure that your equipment is in proper shape before you begin." You nodded your head eagerly, making a mental not to inspect them each time you brewed something and to keep them extra clean. Professor Snape looked at you with a cruel smile in his eyes.

"Now, clean your cauldron and make it again!"