Chapter 14: The Shrinking Solution and the Slippery Dungeon part-1
"Goodnight, Ron," Harry said, trudging up the stairs.
"Goodnight, Harry."
I sat alone in the common room for a moment.
Potions class….
I had 'Liquids Manipulation'. I had 'Telekinesis'. And I had a classroom full of bubbling, colorful fluids.
(Tomorrow,) I promised myself, (is going to be a masterpiece.)
The dungeons of Hogwarts were always cold, but the chill seemed to penetrate deeper than usual this morning. Or perhaps that was just the icy glare of Professor Severus Snape, who swept into the classroom with the menace of a giant bat looking for its next meal.
I sat at a workbench near the back, sandwiched between Neville Longbottom and Dean Thomas. Directly in front of me, occupying the prime splash zone, were Harry Potter and Hermione Granger.
Hermione had clearly not recovered from the "Soup Incident" of the previous night. She was twitchy. She had buttoned her robes all the way to her chin and was wearing a dragon-hide apron that looked thick enough to stop a curse. She had also positioned her cauldron as far away from the edge of the table as possible.
(Paranoia is a survival instinct,) I observed, unpacking my ingredients. (Unfortunately for you, Hermione, my system thrives on your survival instincts failing.)
"Settle down," Snape's voice cut through the chatter like a knife. "Today, you will be brewing the Shrinking Solution. An acid green potion that, if brewed correctly, will cause objects to reduce in size and age. If brewed incorrectly..." His black eyes lingered on Neville. "...it can result in a painful death or, worse, detention."
"Instructions are on the board," Snape sneered, flicking his wand. "Begin."
The classroom filled with the sounds of chopping roots and the bubbling of cauldrons. The air grew thick with fumes.
I checked my system status.
Current Goal: Trigger an incident involving a potion.Active Skills: Liquids Manipulation (Minor), Telekinesis, Structure Analysis.
I began to chop my daisy roots methodically. My "Master Level Magical Theory" made brewing the potion child's play. I knew exactly how many counter-clockwise stirs were needed to achieve the perfect viscosity.
I watched Hermione. She was focused, her brow furrowed in concentration. She was dicing her caterpillar slices with surgical precision. Her potion was turning a perfect, vibrant bright green.
(She is too good,) I thought. (If she brews it perfectly, nothing will happen. We need a variable.)
I looked at the ingredients on her table. A bowl of shriveled figs. A vial of rat spleen juice.
I focused on the liquid inside her cauldron using my new skill, "Liquids Manipulation".
(Connect,) I thought.
I felt a mental link with the bubbling green liquid. It felt heavy and hot in my mind.
(Now, let us increase the surface tension and create a localized pressure pocket at the bottom of the cauldron.)
I didn't need to add a wrong ingredient. I just needed physics. I compressed the liquid at the base of her cauldron, building up pressure like a shaken soda bottle.
"Harry, pass me the leech juice," Hermione said, reaching out her hand without looking.
"Here," Harry said, handing her the vial.
As she uncorked the vial to pour it in, I released the mental pressure.
Bloop.
It started with a single, ominous bubble that rose to the surface of her cauldron. It was the size of a grapefruit.
"Hermione?" Harry asked, backing away slightly. "Is it supposed to do that?"
"I... I followed the instructions perfectly!" Hermione panicked, checking her book. "It should be simmering, not bubbling!"
BLORP.
A massive geyser of acid-green Shrinking Solution erupted from the cauldron. It didn't spray outward in a mist; it surged up in a solid column of liquid, directed by my mental guidance.
It arched beautifully through the air.
Hermione gasped and tried to step back, but she was hemmed in by the table.
The wave of potion crashed down on her.
It soaked her from neck to knees. The dragon-hide apron took the brunt of the heat, protecting her skin from burns, but the liquid soaked into her school robes, her shirt and her skirt instantly.
"Class!" Snape barked, spinning around. "Granger! You incompetent girl!"
But then, the effects of the potion kicked in.
It was a Shrinking Solution. It was designed to make things smaller.
The fabric of Hermione's clothes began to react. The wool of her robes, the cotton of her shirt and the blend of her skirt all began to contract rapidly.
"Oh no," Hermione whispered.
She felt the squeeze. Her robes, which had been loose and comfortable, suddenly tightened. They shrank one size. Then two. Then three.
The fabric strained against her body. The hem of her skirt shot up from her knees to her mid-thigh, then higher. Her sleeves retracted, becoming tight bands around her upper arms.
The real problem, however, was the buttons.
(Structure Analysis,) I commanded.
I saw the stress points on her shirt buttons glowing angry red in my vision. The fabric was pulling apart, unable to contain her form within the rapidly shrinking material.
Pop.
The top button gave up the ghost. It flew across the room and hit Goyle in the eye.
"Ow!" Goyle grunted.
Pop. Pop. Ping.
The buttons on her shirt detonated in rapid succession. The shirt, now sized for a seven-year-old, was pulled wide open by the tension.
Underneath, she was wearing a sensible camisole. But the potion had soaked that too. It shrank. It became a tight, binding second skin that squeezed her chest, pushing everything up and out in a display of physics that defied Hogwarts' dress code.
(...cough...)
"My clothes! They are shrinking!" Hermione shrieked, crossing her arms over her chest, but it was a losing battle. Her skirt was now effectively a belt.
"Don't move!" Harry yelled, pulling off his own cloak to cover her.
But I wasn't done.
The potion had splashed onto the stone floor.
(Liquids Manipulation: Reduce viscosity to zero.)
I altered the properties of the puddle on the floor. It became slipperier than ice, slipperier than oil. It became a friction-less surface.
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