"What a disaster..."
"Seriously..."
Potions class had barely ended before the students filing out began whispering about what had happened. Professor Snape had been in a shockingly foul mood today. Just like in their first lesson, he had torn into them all.
He hadn't even spared the students who usually did well in Potions class, simply because their potions hadn't turned out quite the perfect color.
"That was terrifying... Andrew, how many times did he yell at you?"
"Twice." Andrew shook his head. "I mixed up how to prepare two kinds of beetles, and then I didn't cut the grass roots at an angle."
He couldn't help it. He still made the occasional mistake that had nothing to do with magic. Two beetles could look almost identical, yet one had to be gutted through its back, while the other had to be gutted through its belly before its left legs were cut off...
He could understand the first part, but why the second? And somehow, beetles with their left legs removed and beetles with their right legs removed had completely different effects when added to a potion. They even went into different potions.
He simply couldn't memorize details that fiddly while he was still trying to get his head around Transfiguration. All he could do was skim the material beforehand and check his book again in class. As a result, his skill in Potions remained at the level of not blowing up the cauldron, producing something usable, and occasionally brewing a potion that was less than perfect.
"Twice... That's not too bad. But why was the professor so furious again today?"
"No idea. Gryffindor doesn't even have class until this afternoon..."
Andrew shook his head and lied. He knew why, but that bit of gossip absolutely could not come from