Ford winced as Darrow slammed the jar down on the counter hard enough to crack it, but if Darrow had even noticed it happen, he didn't react. This was going to hinder his chances of being able to get out of here without it being obvious that someone had gone searching through everything in the observatory... but maybe it could be useful, in another vein. If Darrow really hadn't noticed, maybe this was a sign that his nerves were a little thinner than they ought to be. Maybe Ford could provoke him into making some critical mistakes, and nullify whatever potion it was he intended to brew for Ford to consume.

Unfortunately, he didn't really know enough about potions to know what sort of mistakes would help neutralize whatever it was, and what might only make it worse. He didn't want Darrow's hand to waver at the wrong moment and for the potion to blow them both up, or turn poisonous (assuming that it wasn't already poisonous). He'd only taken potions up through fifth year, and honestly he may have learned more about the subject just listening to Noble talk than he had from school, so he was hardly well suited to this. He'd have to revisit this strategy before he could decide if it was worth it or not. In the meantime, he pressed on with the same tactic as before.

"And the rare ingredient you said you were looking for?" he asked. "Is that something they won't miss?"