In May, the students seemed to awaken from hibernation. Exams were drawing near, and everyone had thrown themselves into studying for them.
On the first Sunday of that month, the Ravenclaw prefect approached Richard during breakfast.
"Erm…" she began uncertainly. "Mr Grosvenor, we have an important matter to discuss with you."
"Miss Clearwater, you look splendid," Richard said, flashing the girl a dazzling smile. "I would be delighted to spare you some time."
"In that case, would you mind accompanying me to our House common room?"
"Of course, Miss Clearwater."
Richard set off beside the raven prefect towards Ravenclaw Tower.
"You mentioned, Miss, that you had encountered some difficulties," Richard continued as they made their way to the dormitories.
"Yes…" Penelope Clearwater drawled. "You see, we… that is, the students of our House have become divided in opinion. We split into groups, each attempting to develop a method of producing graphene. And some students focused on finding practical applications for the material instead. In the end, three groups managed to devise different methods of creating graphene, while another two developed possible uses for it. Now everyone's worried that many of them won't receive a prize."
"Miss Clearwater, please inform your Housemates that there is no reason for concern. The matter is quite simple to resolve — I shall divide the grant between several groups, and those students who worked on practical applications of graphene will also receive a reward, provided I find their results satisfactory."
Penelope brightened immediately.
"Oh, thank you, Mr Grosvenor," she said with heartfelt gratitude. "We were beginning to think we would have to divide the reward amongst ourselves somehow, and that everyone would end up at each other's throats. I believe your proposal is an excellent solution."
Soon Richard and Penelope arrived in the Ravenclaw common room. Nearly every Ravenclaw student was waiting there eagerly for them. Five distinct groups stood out among the crowd, ranging from one to five members each, mostly older students. The rest — primarily younger years — acted as spectators.
Dozens of gazes filled with anticipation, excitement, and curiosity turned towards Richard.
"Everyone," Penelope Clearwater announced briskly at once, "Mr Grosvenor has assured me that the reward will be divided fairly among all research groups. Therefore, I strongly urge you to refrain from inflicting bodily harm upon one another. You will now demonstrate your achievements one group at a time, and Mr Grosvenor will evaluate them honestly and impartially.."
"Thank you, Miss Clearwater," Richard said. "If it would not trouble you, could you please compile a list of all the developers organised by research group?"
"Certainly."
The first thing Penelope did was summon an empty armchair and place it before their guest. Richard settled into it comfortably, while the students formed a semicircle around him, leaving an open space in the centre of the room.
Clearwater armed herself with parchment, quill, and ink, sat down at a distant table, and began compiling the list.
A tall, thin, black-haired youth with bright blue eyes burning with enthusiasm stepped forward. The prefect's badge made it obvious who this fifth-year student was.
"I'll go first," he declared, casting a cold glance towards the displeased students from the other four groups. None objected. "Robert Hilliard," he introduced himself. "Right then, I'll begin…"
Robert was extremely nervous, which caused him to pause frequently.
"Erm… well," he continued, "our group developed a step-by-step method for producing graphene. First, numerous flakes are created using adhesive tape and pencil graphite. They are then enlarged with magic, and the graphene scales are gathered together and joined using Permanent Sticking Charms. This process is repeated until a sufficiently large sheet is formed. The material is then shrunk, leaving behind a tiny scrap of graphene film.
"After that, the film is duplicated with Doubling Charms and joined together again. And so on, until a large graphene sheet is produced. Once we succeeded in creating an enormous roll of graphene film, all that remained was to duplicate it."
Robert picked up a prepared roll of film which resembled ordinary packing plastic. Between the ultra-thin layers of graphene film lay sheets of thin yellowish paper. The roll was nearly two metres wide, and surprisingly thick. The Ravenclaw prefect demonstratively duplicated the roll using Doubling Charms.
"That's all from me," he concluded.
"Magnificent," Richard said. "I shall expect a full and detailed report outlining the entire graphene production process. You have certainly earned a reward. Next, please."
The next student to step into the centre of the room was a charming seventh-year blonde. She adjusted her short hair, cut in a boyish style — Richard vaguely recalled the hairstyle being called a garcon cut — then fixed Richard with an intense brown-eyed stare and, with only slight nervousness, began speaking in a melodious and enchanting voice:
"Good afternoon, my Lord. My name is Eliza Brooks. This year I shall be graduating from Hogwarts, and I would very much like to work in your workshop."
"That is something we may consider, Miss Brooks," Richard replied in a patronising tone. "Please, continue."
"Ahem… Thank you." The corners of Eliza's lips curled upwards involuntarily. "Our team developed an alternative method for producing graphene. Allow me to present the documentation."
Richard responded with a gracious nod. At once, a short sixth-year boy with fair hair sprang forward and handed Grosvenor a folder full of papers. Robert Hilliard watched this with poorly concealed annoyance. The students from the next presenting group immediately grew restless as well; two of them dashed off through the crowd towards the boys' dormitories.
Richie opened the folder and glanced over the neatly prepared charts before focusing his attention back on Eliza.
"As I mentioned earlier," Miss Brooks continued melodiously, "our team decided to pursue a different path. We asked ourselves: 'What exactly is graphene?' The answer was obvious — it is a substance composed of carbon. And then we thought: 'Why not use a ritual that transforms objects with a high carbon content into graphene film?'"
(End of Chapter)
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