Zeltiva University - The West Wing
5th of Spring, 512 AV
"Favorite color?"
They were giggling profusely, their eyes squinted in amusement as they gazed upon each other. He leaned close to her eagerly as he sat by his desk, his wide grin matching hers as she mimmicked his pose. She wasn't even sure what was so funny, or why they couldn't stop laughing or looking at each other, but it must be that silly little thing that her mother used to warn her about all the time. Infatuation, was it not? It didn't stop her from enjoying herself, however, as Andrew was incredibly fun to talk to. They were asking each other little questions as an icebreaker, to pass the time as they waited for Professor Henry, who was running late.
"I-I don't know," she managed in between her chuckling, "white, yellow?"
"Like your skin, and your hair!" he replied enthusiastically, as he reached over and tugged lightly at one of the golden ringlets that fell by her pale cheeks. She blushed. "Or my scales?" she offered, bringing her hand up to feel the ones on her forehead. Andrew moved his hand away from her hair and placed his knuckles against the scales on the side of her neck; they were barely visible, yet he'd taken note of it.
"Yeah," he said softly, as he retracted his hand away.
Invisible daggers were being thrown at her, and threats were filling her mind as a few of the girls in the classroom eyed her enviously. They were all huddled up in one corner of the room with frowns on their faces, but their anger gave the Konti no trouble. She was having too much fun for it to get to her. They sat in silence for a moment, until the redheaded boy realized that he needed to tell her his favorite color as well.
"Blue," he blurted out, his eyes darting towards the window behind Erudite. "Like the sky?" she turned to the window herself as she mentioned it. He shook his head, but realized that she couldn't see the gesture. Whenever the breeze picked up and entered the room, the potted herbs by the ledge would fill the room with a mixture of aromatic, spicy or sweet scents. The Konti's gaze lingered upon the little green plants as the wind blew upon their leaves and sent a wave of their scents towards her nostrils. She breathed in deeply and turned towards Andrew once more.
"More like your eyes," he muttered, as he stared at them. Erudite's blush returned, but she simply stared at him with a blank expression on her face. "I can't even begin to explain--"
"Sorry, I'm late!"
A panting Professor Henry waddled into the room with a heavy-looking suitcase and his usual pair of wrinkled old textbooks. He set his things down upon the center of the teacher's desk with a heavy sigh; he brought out his hankerchief and wiped the sweat off his flushed face with a silly grin. The students eased at the sight of his smile and faced front, anticipating the beginning of the lesson. "I hope you haven't all forgotten," he said in between heavy breaths, opening up his wooden suitcase to reveal a wad of neat parchment, "we have an examination."
The students at the back stifled groans and whimpers, while the ones seated around the middle remained nonchalant. The select few at the front, however, beamed with excitement, some of them even turning to each other to express their happiness over the simple fact that there was a test. It was rather typical - they desired to compete, to prove themselves, to achieve. The first two mattered little to Erudite, however; she just wanted to achieve and succeed. Professor Henry straightened out the stack of test papers and laid them by his suitcase, and then placed a stained leather pouch on top of it. As he cleaned his desk and brought his textbooks close to him, his students brought out notebooks, inkwells, and quills.
"Let's not waste any time," he began; everyone leaned in with anticipation, their quills poised and ready.
He furrowed his brows at them and belted out a boisterous laugh. "What are you all doing?" he exclaimed, "we're just going to review, before the exam. You should have all this information already." The students at the front and the middle grinned sheepishly as they kept their journals, while the ones at the back remained still. Professor Henry eyed them with suspicion; his pursed lips looked just about ready to shout. But, the fair-haired man merely nodded with an amused smile, much to the relief of the unprepared students.
"Name one of the five ways to utilize an herb's medicinal properties," he stated, as he raised his forefinger and aimed it at one of the students behind Erudite.
"T-Tincture," the student stumbled out. Professor Henry darted his hand towards the opposite side of the room and pointed at another student.
"Infusion," she said confidently. It was Veronica. It wasn't long before another student spoke up; the Professor must've pointed to the girl beside the supposed Svefran. "Ground up?" she replied, though it sounded more like a question. Professor Henry nodded happily and then turned his finger towards Andrew.
"As a whole," he shot him a silly grin. The Professor chuckled and then turned to Erudite. "And lastly?" he said with an expectant smile.
"Decoction," she answered happily. He smiled at her graciously and mouthed a thank you. They were going to pretend like their discussion the other day never happened, after all. The sentiment had the Konti sighing with relief.
"Explain every single on of them, miss Erudite."
Or maybe not.
"Stand up, and don't read from your notes."
Definitely not.
She rose from her seat and gave the professor a scrutinizing gaze, which he returned with a seemingly innocent smile. Andrew gazed up at her with awe, as if she'd just been given an honor a prize - if only he knew the real reason. Veronica guffawed from the back of the room, only to earn a glare from Professor Henry. The girl quickly quieted down and mumbled an apology. Why would he do this? He didn't seem to be the type to hold a grudge, to bear ill intent; she can't feel him desiring to do her any harm, so what was this? Erudite returned his smile and decided to go with it. She knew the answers, after all.
"Tinctures are alcoholic extracts that are taken from the leaves of an herb or plant. It is made simply by placing the leaves of the plant inside a jar, and then filling it up with a mixture of water and alcohol. The measures are usually one part water, and five parts alcohol. Shake vigorously from time to time and leave out for two to three weeks." she looked to Professor Henry for approval. The man nodded, and so she continued.
"Infusion is usually done for plants that are easily dissolved in either water, oil, or alcohol. The process is similar to the making of tea, which is called steeping," she eyed the expression on his face as she spoke, and saw that his lips had formed into a wide smile at the relation to tea. She'd studied more after his lecture, after all.
"The plant, berry, or flower in question must first be dried, and then soaked for a period of time, until its active ingredients have been released into the liquid, which can either be the aforementioned three: water, oil, or alcohol," she brought out three fingers as she mentioned each one. "Oh, and the liquid is not required to be boiled. Its temperature will depend on the plant. After it has been sitting for some time, simply drain the plant parts and use the liquid."
She didn't wait for his approval any longer. She simply went on with answering, her eyes fixated upon the little plants that sat upon his desk. Professor Henry eyed her with an impressed glint in his eyes; maybe this wasn't revenge after all. "Decoction is a little bit similar to infusion, only it utilizes boiled water. The plant part used could either be its stem, roots, or bark; basically, the plant part is mashed up or ground up, and then boiled in hot water for a period of time."
"The last two is simply mashing up the herb and using the powder, or simply placing the herb over the affected area," she said with a tilt of her chin. The room fell silent for a moment as they all took in her words - perhaps she'd said too much? Professor Henry gestured for her to sit down, and she did so with a nod of her head and a triumphant smile. "Thank you very much, miss Erudite, good job," he said with a genuine smile, as he turned towards the class once more. He clasped his hands behind his back and tilted his head to the side, seemingly gesturing over to the windows. The plants that they had studied the other day all sat in a neat row.
"They're labeled, so review them," he said, finding amusement in the way every student all turned in unison to examine the plants by the ledges, "you all have ten minutes." The professor began to prepare the test papers, counting out the students per row and laying them out to be passed when their time was up. He had a little sack of charcoal for those who had no quills, and by the looks of it, the entirety of the back row did not have any writing materials. He wordlessly passed the dusty bag around, retrieved it, and then waited patiently by his desk. For so long, the room was filled with the sound of rustling leaves and tapping fingers, as each student worked to absorb the names and the characteristics of the plants before them.
5th of Spring, 512 AV
"Favorite color?"
They were giggling profusely, their eyes squinted in amusement as they gazed upon each other. He leaned close to her eagerly as he sat by his desk, his wide grin matching hers as she mimmicked his pose. She wasn't even sure what was so funny, or why they couldn't stop laughing or looking at each other, but it must be that silly little thing that her mother used to warn her about all the time. Infatuation, was it not? It didn't stop her from enjoying herself, however, as Andrew was incredibly fun to talk to. They were asking each other little questions as an icebreaker, to pass the time as they waited for Professor Henry, who was running late.
"I-I don't know," she managed in between her chuckling, "white, yellow?"
"Like your skin, and your hair!" he replied enthusiastically, as he reached over and tugged lightly at one of the golden ringlets that fell by her pale cheeks. She blushed. "Or my scales?" she offered, bringing her hand up to feel the ones on her forehead. Andrew moved his hand away from her hair and placed his knuckles against the scales on the side of her neck; they were barely visible, yet he'd taken note of it.
"Yeah," he said softly, as he retracted his hand away.
Invisible daggers were being thrown at her, and threats were filling her mind as a few of the girls in the classroom eyed her enviously. They were all huddled up in one corner of the room with frowns on their faces, but their anger gave the Konti no trouble. She was having too much fun for it to get to her. They sat in silence for a moment, until the redheaded boy realized that he needed to tell her his favorite color as well.
"Blue," he blurted out, his eyes darting towards the window behind Erudite. "Like the sky?" she turned to the window herself as she mentioned it. He shook his head, but realized that she couldn't see the gesture. Whenever the breeze picked up and entered the room, the potted herbs by the ledge would fill the room with a mixture of aromatic, spicy or sweet scents. The Konti's gaze lingered upon the little green plants as the wind blew upon their leaves and sent a wave of their scents towards her nostrils. She breathed in deeply and turned towards Andrew once more.
"More like your eyes," he muttered, as he stared at them. Erudite's blush returned, but she simply stared at him with a blank expression on her face. "I can't even begin to explain--"
"Sorry, I'm late!"
A panting Professor Henry waddled into the room with a heavy-looking suitcase and his usual pair of wrinkled old textbooks. He set his things down upon the center of the teacher's desk with a heavy sigh; he brought out his hankerchief and wiped the sweat off his flushed face with a silly grin. The students eased at the sight of his smile and faced front, anticipating the beginning of the lesson. "I hope you haven't all forgotten," he said in between heavy breaths, opening up his wooden suitcase to reveal a wad of neat parchment, "we have an examination."
The students at the back stifled groans and whimpers, while the ones seated around the middle remained nonchalant. The select few at the front, however, beamed with excitement, some of them even turning to each other to express their happiness over the simple fact that there was a test. It was rather typical - they desired to compete, to prove themselves, to achieve. The first two mattered little to Erudite, however; she just wanted to achieve and succeed. Professor Henry straightened out the stack of test papers and laid them by his suitcase, and then placed a stained leather pouch on top of it. As he cleaned his desk and brought his textbooks close to him, his students brought out notebooks, inkwells, and quills.
"Let's not waste any time," he began; everyone leaned in with anticipation, their quills poised and ready.
He furrowed his brows at them and belted out a boisterous laugh. "What are you all doing?" he exclaimed, "we're just going to review, before the exam. You should have all this information already." The students at the front and the middle grinned sheepishly as they kept their journals, while the ones at the back remained still. Professor Henry eyed them with suspicion; his pursed lips looked just about ready to shout. But, the fair-haired man merely nodded with an amused smile, much to the relief of the unprepared students.
"Name one of the five ways to utilize an herb's medicinal properties," he stated, as he raised his forefinger and aimed it at one of the students behind Erudite.
"T-Tincture," the student stumbled out. Professor Henry darted his hand towards the opposite side of the room and pointed at another student.
"Infusion," she said confidently. It was Veronica. It wasn't long before another student spoke up; the Professor must've pointed to the girl beside the supposed Svefran. "Ground up?" she replied, though it sounded more like a question. Professor Henry nodded happily and then turned his finger towards Andrew.
"As a whole," he shot him a silly grin. The Professor chuckled and then turned to Erudite. "And lastly?" he said with an expectant smile.
"Decoction," she answered happily. He smiled at her graciously and mouthed a thank you. They were going to pretend like their discussion the other day never happened, after all. The sentiment had the Konti sighing with relief.
"Explain every single on of them, miss Erudite."
Or maybe not.
"Stand up, and don't read from your notes."
Definitely not.
She rose from her seat and gave the professor a scrutinizing gaze, which he returned with a seemingly innocent smile. Andrew gazed up at her with awe, as if she'd just been given an honor a prize - if only he knew the real reason. Veronica guffawed from the back of the room, only to earn a glare from Professor Henry. The girl quickly quieted down and mumbled an apology. Why would he do this? He didn't seem to be the type to hold a grudge, to bear ill intent; she can't feel him desiring to do her any harm, so what was this? Erudite returned his smile and decided to go with it. She knew the answers, after all.
"Tinctures are alcoholic extracts that are taken from the leaves of an herb or plant. It is made simply by placing the leaves of the plant inside a jar, and then filling it up with a mixture of water and alcohol. The measures are usually one part water, and five parts alcohol. Shake vigorously from time to time and leave out for two to three weeks." she looked to Professor Henry for approval. The man nodded, and so she continued.
"Infusion is usually done for plants that are easily dissolved in either water, oil, or alcohol. The process is similar to the making of tea, which is called steeping," she eyed the expression on his face as she spoke, and saw that his lips had formed into a wide smile at the relation to tea. She'd studied more after his lecture, after all.
"The plant, berry, or flower in question must first be dried, and then soaked for a period of time, until its active ingredients have been released into the liquid, which can either be the aforementioned three: water, oil, or alcohol," she brought out three fingers as she mentioned each one. "Oh, and the liquid is not required to be boiled. Its temperature will depend on the plant. After it has been sitting for some time, simply drain the plant parts and use the liquid."
She didn't wait for his approval any longer. She simply went on with answering, her eyes fixated upon the little plants that sat upon his desk. Professor Henry eyed her with an impressed glint in his eyes; maybe this wasn't revenge after all. "Decoction is a little bit similar to infusion, only it utilizes boiled water. The plant part used could either be its stem, roots, or bark; basically, the plant part is mashed up or ground up, and then boiled in hot water for a period of time."
"The last two is simply mashing up the herb and using the powder, or simply placing the herb over the affected area," she said with a tilt of her chin. The room fell silent for a moment as they all took in her words - perhaps she'd said too much? Professor Henry gestured for her to sit down, and she did so with a nod of her head and a triumphant smile. "Thank you very much, miss Erudite, good job," he said with a genuine smile, as he turned towards the class once more. He clasped his hands behind his back and tilted his head to the side, seemingly gesturing over to the windows. The plants that they had studied the other day all sat in a neat row.
"They're labeled, so review them," he said, finding amusement in the way every student all turned in unison to examine the plants by the ledges, "you all have ten minutes." The professor began to prepare the test papers, counting out the students per row and laying them out to be passed when their time was up. He had a little sack of charcoal for those who had no quills, and by the looks of it, the entirety of the back row did not have any writing materials. He wordlessly passed the dusty bag around, retrieved it, and then waited patiently by his desk. For so long, the room was filled with the sound of rustling leaves and tapping fingers, as each student worked to absorb the names and the characteristics of the plants before them.
