As it turns out, being Headmistress does not excuse one from their professorial duties. It just makes them lower on the list of overall priorities.
Amelia Lyons had just been getting used to her position as Potions Professor when she had been appointed Headmistress a few weeks ago. It had been a decision by the Governing Board, one that Amelia had been neither forewarned about nor given very much say in. So far, she had merely been shaking a lot of important hands and trying not to say anything stupid, but there were many looming responsibilities that she was trying to juggle, and this class was just one of many.
And on top of it all, Amelia hadn’t been feeling well at all. She had headaches nearly all the time, and if it hadn’t been for the healers of the Hospital Wing, she would be teaching this class bearing a striking resemblance to the Wicked Witch of the West. The green rash that had started on her back only a day after becoming headmistress had spread quickly, and not wanting to show any sign of weakness, Amelia had immediately had it taken care of. She still had to apply the thick salve twice daily to keep the colour at bay, but at least she looked human. If only she felt more human.
I think I’m allergic to being headmistress… Amelia thought, brushing the chalk from her hands as she stepped away from the blackboard. Usually, she would have written there with her wand, but her magic had been eerily unreliable lately, which was throwing Amelia off even more than her physical symptoms. Now that she was so very much in the public eye, she couldn’t afford to be seen performing anything less than perfect magic, so she was quietly refraining from using it when anyone was around, and then cursing loudly whenever she attempted anything in private.
On the board behind her, Amelia had written a list of potions ingredients, but no further instructions. Glancing at her watch, she moved to lean on the front of her desk while she waited for her students. With any luck, today’s lesson would go off without a hitch, and she could get back to alternately crossing things off the never-ending to-do list and panicking in her new Headmistress’s quarters.