Charming

January 25th, 1895 — Location
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After failing to proceed to the next round of the Potions Competition - which, she had been disappointed by the loss, but not surprised; her lack of experience in professional potioneering was not to her advantage, but there was always next year! - Victoria opted to head into work early. With a potions event of this magnitude, it was always a good idea to have an extra pair of hands on deck in case of any potential potions accidents - and in her experience, there was usually that one competitor who overestimated their skill and wound up needing medical assistance afterward. While she hoped this wouldn't be the case, it happened often enough for her department to be prepared for it.

Tori had just returned from the breakroom where she was having a spot of tea to a summons from the Artifact Incidents department, requiring her help with an exploding cauldron case, and unsurprisingly, the patient was none other than a competitor from the potions competition. The patient’s file was flipped open in front of her as she boarded the lift, her mind turning over possible diagnoses as it moved upwards. The most common mistake with a Calming Draught was too much peppermint oil, but clearly something else had gone amiss for the cauldron to explode. Had the potion been too hot when the crocodile hearts were added in? Tori supposed she would find out once she got there.

The door was slightly ajar when Tori arrived at the patient’s room. She rapped her knuckles lightly upon it as stepped in, pushing the door open further to announce her presence. “I’ve been summoned?” She called out to its occupants, a polite smile on her face.

Cauldron explosions were par for the course during Potions Competitions. Burns were most common, but there were also a number of things that could go wrong where the ingredients were concerned. It was quite normal for them to have to cross-reference remedies when it came to amateurs not knowing what they were doing. Which was currently the type of patient that Sybella was dealing with. She bustled around the patient on the bed, occasionally letting the clinking of glasses and beakers drown out the brief mutterings of Italian that she let out under her breath.

Thankfully, her reprieve came in the form of Healer Hunter. “Ah!” She greeted her warmly, arms spread in thanks. “Meno male, Healer Hunter.” She turned to put the beakers back down and summoned the chart. Waving her wand she cast a a diagnostic spell and let it hum above the patient’s head while she gave her colleague the summary. “This is Mr. Silverman, he was in the potions competition. Calming Draught potion,” Sybella knew Tori most likely had looked over the duplicate chart already, but such was the theatrics of healing; this was mostly for the patient’s benefit in case he wanted to chime in with anything. Though with his head half-wrapped in bandages, it wasn’t likely he was going to be able to get a word in edgewise. “The problem is, as you can see, Mr. Silverman is currently not at liberty to verbally express the exact percentage of ingredients or what stage his cauldron blew up. I was hoping you might have a clue.”

Victoria Hunter

Sybella Capobianco