White Heather for Protection

Fantastic Feats

Chapter Text

Now that Hadrian had no use for the Polyjuice, Heather decided to experiment with the half-finished potion. For a while now, she had toyed with the idea of incorporating runes into potions, integrating her two favourite branches of magic.

To her half-complete Polyjuice, Heather used her crystal rod to stir in the shape of the rune for persistence instead of the requisite anticlockwise stirs. She was careful to channel a steady amount of power, as if to write the rune into the potion using magic.

The problem was that it was difficult to inscribe the symbols, since they couldn't be written or carved in. She had toyed with several possible methods to do so, but this method of using pure magic to 'write' the runes out seemed the most practical. No physical substances were introduced into the delicate brew, so there wasn't the problem of ingredients reacting negatively.

Other than the potion almost overheating due to the influx of energy, it showed no signs of instability. In fact, the finished product looked exactly like the unmodified version.

Heather hadn't actually believed that it would turn out so well, but now faced another problem. How was she supposed to test it out?

She contemplated just taking a Hogsmeade weekend to ingest it herself, but decided that she liked being alive and unharmed. Thus, armed with a strand of Fred's hair that had been enthusiastically supplied, Heather sought out the resident Potions Master.

~~~

The girl, Heather Lyra, was looking expectantly at him. Severus glanced suspiciously at the phial on his desk, then looked back at her.

"Well, what do you think, Professor?" she asked eagerly.

Truly? Severus thought the girl had finally gone mad after the latest stunt her foolhardy brother pulled at the Quidditch match. Runes and Potions? No one had ever tried to marry the two before. For good reason; one could not write on liquid. Yet...if the girl had managed to accomplish this, it may not be an entirely fruitless endeavour.

"How did you etch the runes?" The Polyjuice did not look changed at all. Why had she utilised such a complex potion to pilot her radical idea? A Boil Cure or Bruise Paste would have done just as well.

Heather Lyra's countenance brightened, acting like he had already given his approval. Granted, not banishing the potion straight away had indicated, at the very least, his attention. "I used magic and a crystal stirring rod."

"Pardon - magic? Raw magic?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes, I suppose?" she answered, nonplussed. As if she manipulated her magic in its wild state every day. The girl did not even realise the magnitude of such a feat, did she? It was the entire basis of wandless magic!

"And that is how you formed the runes in the potion. By writing them with magic using the rod as a quill of sorts," he stated more than questioned. The girl nodded.

Severus leaned back in his chair, staring intently at the seemingly innocuous phial. It sounded like the perfect solution to the problem. Unfortunately, this meant that only a scant few could successfully brew these Rune-Potion combinations due to the inherent difficulty of the near-wandless magic.

He cast his thoughts back to last November, during another of these sessions. Heather Lyra had non-verbally healed herself. Her wand had not been visible and he had simply assumed that it was hidden in her sleeves. In reality, she had likely not required her wand. Wandless magic, even then? This casual display of control was not indicative of a recent development.