Potions class
Valentine waited until what he'd judged was the last straggler to make their way in and shut the door. The dungeon classroom was, for the moment, brightly lit and students were paired up in front of cauldrons. There were a number of beanbags shoved off against one wall. "Why, hello," he said, waiting for whatever chatter was in the air to die down. "And welcome to today's potion class. As I stated on the sign-up notice, this class will be split into two parts. First, you will be making wit-sharpening potion. The ingredients are all available at your tables, as you can see." Indeed, there were small piles of scarab beetles, ginger roots, and a container of armadillo bile at each station. "You will need to grind the beetles, cut the roots, and add everything in the order and amounts written on the board." Valentine's flowery hand had written out clear, concise instructions in chalk on the blackboard behind him--the sooner the students got through this portion, the sooner they could get to the good part.
"Once the potions have been made, you yourselves will be ingesting an amount of it. Not only does this prove incentive to get it done correctly, but it should aid you in the second--and might I add, more interesting--part of the class." He pointed to a plant on his desk at the front of the room--the same plant that had been in his office during open hours earlier that week. "This, my lovely little students, is Salvia divinorum, also known as 'diviner's sage', 'Maria pastora', or simply salvia. It originates in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, where it has been used by Mazatec shamans in rituals for a very long time.
"The active ingredient in the leaves is a chemical called 'salvinorin A', quoted as being one of the most potent naturally occurring psychotropics known. Luckily for you, dear students, the side effects are relatively mild--within a matter of hours, you will be back at whatever baseline you have. In the meantime, between then and ingestion, you will experience... well, you'll just have to see for yourselves." With a little flourish, he pulled a stoppered vial and a dropper out from a drawer, holding it up for the class to see. "Over the past few days, I've been making large quantities of a tincture of salvia. Each student will get two droppers, a vial of tincture, a cup of hot water, and a small empty shot glass. You will measure out several drops of tincture into the glass, add an equal amount hot water, sip the mixture, and hold it under your tongue for fifteen minutes. I will have a timer to tell you when time is up. After it goes off--" he smirked. "Spit or swallow as you wish.
"Afterwards, everyone will sit on beanbags and do your best not to cause the rest of your classmates to go off on a dissociative nightmare. The wit-sharpening potion should in theory give you additional insight into whatever visions you receive." He smiled. "Have fun!"
((Partners are up to you! Go with whoever you think will cause the most mayhem. If you or your group need any special attention from Valentine, please say so in the subject line of your post. I've littered this post with links to various sites with information, so that's what your characters can expect. Have fun!))
"Once the potions have been made, you yourselves will be ingesting an amount of it. Not only does this prove incentive to get it done correctly, but it should aid you in the second--and might I add, more interesting--part of the class." He pointed to a plant on his desk at the front of the room--the same plant that had been in his office during open hours earlier that week. "This, my lovely little students, is Salvia divinorum, also known as 'diviner's sage', 'Maria pastora', or simply salvia. It originates in the state of Oaxaca in southern Mexico, where it has been used by Mazatec shamans in rituals for a very long time.
"The active ingredient in the leaves is a chemical called 'salvinorin A', quoted as being one of the most potent naturally occurring psychotropics known. Luckily for you, dear students, the side effects are relatively mild--within a matter of hours, you will be back at whatever baseline you have. In the meantime, between then and ingestion, you will experience... well, you'll just have to see for yourselves." With a little flourish, he pulled a stoppered vial and a dropper out from a drawer, holding it up for the class to see. "Over the past few days, I've been making large quantities of a tincture of salvia. Each student will get two droppers, a vial of tincture, a cup of hot water, and a small empty shot glass. You will measure out several drops of tincture into the glass, add an equal amount hot water, sip the mixture, and hold it under your tongue for fifteen minutes. I will have a timer to tell you when time is up. After it goes off--" he smirked. "Spit or swallow as you wish.
"Afterwards, everyone will sit on beanbags and do your best not to cause the rest of your classmates to go off on a dissociative nightmare. The wit-sharpening potion should in theory give you additional insight into whatever visions you receive." He smiled. "Have fun!"
((Partners are up to you! Go with whoever you think will cause the most mayhem. If you or your group need any special attention from Valentine, please say so in the subject line of your post. I've littered this post with links to various sites with information, so that's what your characters can expect. Have fun!))