An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
Post by MJ Birdwhistle on Nov 7, 2023 1:02:04 GMT 10
It was a very snowy morning but that wasn't enough to deter MJ away from her plants. She donned her trusty winter boots and trudged her way through the snow, wrapped up warmly. Not that it staved off the cold completely and she was still shivering by the time she made it to the Student Greenhouse.
MJ approached her pots and set down her satchel. She took time to unravel her scarf and set it to the side, with her gloves on top. She didn't want to risk anything getting in the way when dealing with the plants.
Especially since she had planted a few seeds she hadn't tried before and wouldn't know how to handle those plants just yet.
But she was still excited to get stuck in and rolled up her sleeves. She was ready to do battle.
After harvesting was complete, nothing of value remained -- including ordinary clay pots that were cracked and no longer usable. Spaces of the counter were free again, unless having more seeds and supplies to start over with. Then all that was left was to clean up the workspace. Professor Sprout would appreciate it.
The main Puris pod was the goal to obtain a viable ingredient, but its musty stink increased with proximity. It was as marshmallow-soft as it looked, making sheers and spells too risky. It tore off easily enough, but released a sour gas when grabbed -- causing blurry vision and light-headedness, which would soon fade. The broken stem oozed stinging sap that needed to be gently cleaned off.
Taffen Hide gloves would protect the skin from contact during picking. Without it, any skin exposed to the plant or its sap would be left with sensitive marks, which would last a few hours. Once picked, its skin-contact risk was subdued.
Rewards (per ingredient): 4 house points. 90 Herbology exp
The plant was unremarkable and could easily be overlooked in an ordinary garden -- a factor which would prove dangerous to an unsuspecting gardener. Once the plant sensed its company or was in any way disturbed, its leaves became coated in a pale green juice.
Firemint lived up to its name, with a minty odour filling the air -- another feature that was deceptively harmless, as the juice itself was like corrosive acid. Taffen Hide gloves were necessary to protect the skin / fabric / organic matter from contact while tilting the leaves to drain the juice into a jar. Without it, the substance was highly dangerous and excruciating.
Rewards (per ingredient): 4 house points. 90 Herbology exp
The Toxyvine plant was the very embodiment of intimidating. Its thorns were the most prominent feature, and were sharp as knives. They leaked a dark poison, making Taffen Hide gloves a necessity to protect skin while snapping the tough thorns off. Or really, to handle the plant in any way as it was prone to sudden movements.
Without protection, any exposed skin would be bloodied and infected -- a hasty trip to the Hospital Wing would be of dire need.
Rewards (per ingredient): 4 house points. 90 Herbology exp
The Thistle plant was primarily just the flower itself, though (unlike its visually-similar Muggle counterpart) it was incredibly lively and braced for attack.
Any attempt to grab or snip it was met with the stalk extending and flexing like a needle-covered vine. It could grab and pierce anything that made contact, though was particularly interested in arms. With its ability to squeeze like a python, sheers were useless; once grabbed, anything could be snapped from the pressure.
Taffen Hide gloves were the only chance a gardener had to grab and break off the thistle flower, and live to tell the tale.
Rewards (per ingredient): 4 house points. 90 Herbology exp
The vines of the mystery plant are highly combative and difficult to damage. They move constantly, and will wrap painfully tight to anything that gets near or tries to pick the flower's cotton-like pollen.
Once collected, the plant begins to wither. The pollen is damp and smells sweetly herbal -- inhaling it soothes anxiety, cures headaches, or heightens focus.
Post by MJ Birdwhistle on Nov 8, 2023 20:22:17 GMT 10
Seeing the task that laid before her, especially as they were plants she hadn't tackled before, MJ pulled on her taffen hide gloves. She hesitated for a second and then sighed as she rolled her sleeves back down.
Time to get to work.
The first plant smelt awful, like laundry that had sat in the washing machine too long or a room that was in desperate need of airing out. MJ pulled a face as she studied the plant and considered how she would claim the large pod.
She reached out and poked it, feeling how soft and springy it was -- shears wouldn't be a good idea here. Of course, she knew using her wand wasn't ideal either so MJ would just have to grab it and tug it off without harming the pod.
MJ's experience with plants in the Student Greenhouse told her to be wary so she slowly reached out and put both hands around the pod.
As soon as she did this, a gas was released and MJ choked back a cough. It was sour and made her vision blurry. MJ waited for it to settle but found herself feeling light-headed instead. MJ let go of the pod and took a few steps back.
"Okay... Wow. Okay. At least now I know what to expect." She mumbled, wiping her forehead with the back of her head. The blurriness disappeared and soon she felt a lot better.
MJ stared at the plant and committed its shape, height, everything to memory. She had to rely on being able to harvest this pod while her vision was blurred and MJ wasn't about to lose a viable Potions Ingredient.
Reaching for it again, the gas was released as soon as her hands wrapped around the pod. MJ closed her eyes this time to prevent herself from feeling queasy from the lightheadedness and blurred vision. She took a slow breath and then tugged.
The pod popped off easily and MJ opened her eyes, blinking owlish as she quickly put it into her Potions Kit. Any effects from the plants were gone immediately and she was grateful for that.
Time for the next one.
It really did look like an ordinary, mundane plant. This confused MJ for a second and she wondered if she had planted the wrong seeds when she touched a leaf. It became coasted in a pale green liquid almost immediately and a strong scent of mint filled the air. She was worried that this liquid was far more dangerous than it seemed and she was right.
A drop fell onto the bench and hissed, creating a small hole and MJ hurried to grab an empty jar.
With care that slowed her progress, MJ tilted the leaves one by one to collect the juice that was forming on them. She soon had a full jar for her efforts and MJ smiled. It was an easy plant to deal with and she was thankful for that.
The jar was placed safely inside her potions kit.
The third plant looked dangerous! It was covered in lots of spikes and MJ didn't fancy nicking her finger on one. Thank goodness for her gloves.
This was another plant that MJ just took her time with. There didn't seem to be anything coming from it that would affect her in any way so she just snapped off the thorns one by one while being careful. A small pile formed next to the plant and when she inspected it and saw she had every last one, she put them all into a special part of her Potions Kit.
Three plants down and two left to go.
The fourth one really just looked like a thistle plant to MJ. She almost let her guard down when it attempted to grab her! She quickly moved out of its reach and gasped.
"Cheeky... You're a sneaky one aren't you?" MJ said, eying the plant warily. It was going to give her a lot of trouble, was it? There had to be something she could use to distracted it while she got what she wanted -- the flower.
MJ looked around the Student Greenhouse and some a pile of sticks stacked nearby. With a smile, she grabbed one and approached her plant again. She used the stick to touch it and it immediately grabbed on.
The stick snapped a few seconds later and MJ hadn't even had a chance to do anything. She let out a low whistle and went back to the pile of sticks. They were probably used as support canes to ensure plants could grow correctly if need be.
Hopefully Professor Sprout wouldn't mind her borrowing another one. MJ made sure to pick a thicker stick this time and waved it in front of the plant like it was a dog.
"Go on then, don't you want it?" She felt a bit daft but her limited experience at Hogwarts told her that plants could be very much alive as well. More so than their mundane counterparts.
The thistle plant took the stick and had a harder time breaking it this time. This was her chance!
MJ reached over and grabbed the flower with both hands and tugged it free, which made the plant flail for a few seconds and then it stilled. MJ was still wary so she didn't dare touch it and put the flower away into her Potions Kit.
Last one.
MJ saw how this one liked to move around as well, "Not you too..."
She sighed and rubbed her head. She knew it was the blue pollen she was after. It seemed very cotton like and MJ knew it would be fragile. She didn't want to waste more of Professor Sprout's sticks so she simply offered her arm in sacrifice.
The plant had a strong grip and it was very painful but MJ could endure it.
Nothing would stop her from getting her prize!
She let the plant focus on squeezing her arm and reached for the pollen bit. A few stray vines latched onto her other arm but MJ didn't allow herself to panic. If she was clever about this, she could fight against the hold and still reach the pollen.
MJ strained, gritting her teeth and let out a grunt as she shifted and reached.
Almost... There... There!
The pollen came off and had a damp-like consistency. MJ held it in wonder at the herbal scent it gave off -- immediately she felt refreshed and more focused. She noticed how the plant withered and was glad she didn't have to deal with the vines any more.
MJ started on the clean-up process so she could reuse the slots with some new plants. She planned to take advantage of the Student Greenhouse as much as possible over the Christmas Holidays.
Once the slots were all cleared and tided up, she added five new pots in the same slots -- regular pots in 06, 07, 08 and 09 and then a deluxe pot in 10.
She filled each one with soil and took out the seeds she had for each pot. She planted them in the same order as before -- pale green seeds in 06, dark green seeds in 07, brown seeds in 08 and pale seeds in 09.
For her deluxe pot, she had some mystery seeds again and planted those.
MJ made sure each one was covered over with enough soil and then took out her wand. She aimed at each pot as she cast, "Aguamenti"
She did this five times, a shower of water sprinkling over each pot and was satisfied that the job was done. She removed her gloves and put them in with her Potions Kit and packed up her satchel once more.
Taking a step back, MJ made sure she hadn't missed anything to clean up or had overlooked something when planting her seeds.
Nope, everything seemed good.
With a sigh, she turned and left the Student Greenhouse. On to the next adventure.
Post by Thorne Perry on Nov 12, 2023 3:16:22 GMT 10
Thorne passed MJ leaving - she looked a little tired, like some of her plants had fought back. Thorne had some experience with that! He gave her a small wave, and hurried to his single pot. He'd gotten some more seeds, but first he had to deal with the plant that had grown so he could plant the new ones...and so he could get to work on his potion later and show it off to his friends!
Stems of the berry plant were strong, but simple to deal with. A charm or some nearby sheers would help snip the ingredient free, even as the plant's leaves tried to make it harder to spot the berries, but sometimes a hands-on approach worked just as fine too.
Rewards (per ingredient): 1 house point. 40 Herbology exp
Post by Thorne Perry on Nov 19, 2023 3:18:22 GMT 10
Thorne carefully nudged leaves aside, finding all the small blue berries. He clipped them off neatly, setting them off to the side of his work space for later.
Then, he swept aside the broken pieces of his old pot, cleaning the dirt and debris off his workspace. He set his fancy advanced pot up alongside four normal pots in slots 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. He filled each pot with soil, leveling the tops off before digging a hole in the middle.
Carefully, he pressed a seed into the hole - a pink seed in 1, a blue seed in 2, and a yellow seed in each of the last three, covering them with soil. He waved his wand over them with a whispered "aguamenti"!
He directed the stream of water over each put until the seeds were wet, Then he cancelled the spell. He wiped up spilled dirt and water splashes until the work bench was neat and pristine. Content in a job well done, he headed out for the day.
Last Edit: Nov 23, 2023 13:59:18 GMT 10 by Lena: advanced pot used, not deluxe :)
Post by Orla Fallwater on Nov 25, 2023 0:07:44 GMT 10
Orla had been feeling sorry for herself after her potion adventure, but the brisk walk through the wintery grounds really lifted her spirits.
The snow was falling steadily, and when Orla reached the greenhouse door she noticed footsteps coming and going through the snowy pathway. Seems like other students were also taking advantage of the winter break and extra free time to grow some plants.
She entered the greenhouse and stamped her feet to shake off the snow before heading to a free workspace. It was considerably warmer now, so Orla unwrapped her damp scarf and set it aside before she pulled out her deluxe garden pot - she was eager to get these mysterious seeds growing first - and placed it at slot 11.
Rolling up her sleeves, Orla filled the pot with handfuls of soil, then pressed divots in the surface for the seeds. Satisfied with their depth, Orla placed her mystery seeds carefully in each spot, covering them with soil and giving each a small pat of encouragemen.
Now she turned to slot 12, 13, 14 and placed a garden pot at each slot, filling them with soil in turn. Her pink seeds went into the first pot, blue seeds in the next, and yellow seeds in the final pot.
Satisfied that each seed was well-situated and comfy, Orla took out her wand.
"Aguamenti," she cast, making sure each pot got a spell of magical watering. Orla considered leaving then because the worktop seemed clean to her eyes, but really there was a small scattering of loose soil around the base of her pots.
Tempted though she was, Orla didn't want to annoy anyone who might come after her and see a mess, so she quickly swept the worktop with a soft brush and pan.
It was warmer in the greenhouse anyway, so she was glad of a job done properly and warmed through for the first time that day - even her damp scarf had dried considerably, and she nuzzled into the wool as she wrapped up again.
"Grow well, wee ones," she said, giving her pots a wave before she walked back out into the snow.
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