In comic books, superheroes were exposed to rays, or bitten by radioactive spiders, and then gained all sorts of superpowers.
After the Chernobyl incident, to prevent casualties caused by the spread of radioactive dust, fifty thousand people evacuated their homes overnight, creating a vast uninhabited zone with a radius of thirty kilometers.
A large-scale cleanup had originally been scheduled for seven months afterward, but according to the newspaper, it had been canceled and replaced by an even wider evacuation.
"Ah!"
A scream came from afar, followed by a booming explosion. Soon, Pomona saw a flash of intense light before her eyes.
She turned to look out the half-basement window. Everything seemed perfectly normal.
"Whatever." She said calmly and continued reading the newspaper.
About ten minutes later, a student came to fetch her to the Hospital Wing.
There were two "injured patients" inside. One was Elena Aiken, sent over by the Slytherin Head of House; the other was Charlie Weasley, brought in by his teammates. Both had been "blinded."
"What happened?" Pomona asked.
Snape's face was dark.
"I wanted to fix Lumos into a potion." Elena Aiken said miserably. "But I think I turned it into a flashbang."
"Miss Aiken clearly has no such self-awareness and forgot that she is only a first-year." Snape sneered.
"She almost succeeded, didn't she?" Pomona said.
He looked at her coldly.
Pomona leaned closer.
"A childish little thing like this cannot enter the Potions Tournament," Snape said.
"It's an innovation," Pomona said.
"People do not care whether it is innovative." Snape bared his yellow teeth and said wickedly, "If she wants to compete, she must meet the standards for entry."
"She has talent, doesn't she? What are the other first-years still doing?" Pomona gave him a shove. "When you made Cheering Potion, you didn't succeed