Miss Quinn

170 ~ Apparition Lessons

The snow melted around the school as February arrived, to be replaced by cold, dreary wetness. Purplish-grey clouds hung low over the castle and a constant fall of chilly rain made the lawns slippery and muddy. The upshot of this was that the sixth-years' first Apparition lesson, which was scheduled for a Saturday morning so that no normal lessons would be missed, took place in the Great Hall instead of in the grounds.

When Emma and Venus arrived in the Hall, they found that the tables had disappeared. Rain lashed against the high windows and the enchanted ceiling swirled darkly above them as they assembled in front of Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick and Sprout -- the Heads of House -- and a small wizard whom Emma took to be the Apparition Instructor from the Ministry. He was oddly colourless, with transparent eyelashes, wispy hair and an insubstantial air, as though a single gust of wind might blow him away. Harry wondered whether constant disappearances and reappearances had somehow diminished his substance, or whether this frail build was ideal for anyone wishing to vanish.

"Good morning," said the Ministry wizard, when all the students had arrived and the Heads of House had called for quiet. "My name is Wilkie Twycross and I shall be your Ministry-Apparition Instructor for the next twelve weeks. I hope to be able to prepare you for your Apparition test in this time--"

"Malfoy, be quiet and pay attention!" barked Professor McGonagall.

Everybody looked round. Malfoy had flushed a dull pink; he looked furious as he stepped away from Crabbe, with whom he appeared to have been having a whispered argument. Emma started to wonder what had gotten him so frustrated, then shook her head to clear the thoughts away. She wasn't thinking of him any longer. And she didn't care what he was up to or upset about, because it didn't concern her.

"--by which time, many of you may be ready to take your test," Twycross continued, as though there had been no interruption.

"As you may know, it is usually impossible to Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts. The Headmaster has lifted this enchantment, purely within the Great Hall, for one hour, so as to enable you to practise. May I emphasise that you will not be able to Apparate outside the walls of this Hall, and that you would be unwise to try.

"I would like each of you to place yourselves now so that you have a clear five feet of space in front of you."

There was a great scrambling and jostling as people separated, banged into each other, and ordered others out of their space. The Heads of House moved among the students, marshalling them into position and breaking up arguments. Emma spread out a bit from Venus, finding equal space on all sides of her between her sister on the right, Hermione on the left, Hannah Abbott in front, and Charlotte Flynn behind her. Emma waved to her old acquaintance, and Charlotte grinned back. She'd certainly come out of her shell a bit more since Emma had met her in third year. And she was just as pretty. Maybe even prettier than Venus, who Emma had always found to be deserving of her name.

Emma turned back around to face the front, and noticed that Harry, who had been standing near Hermione, was nowhere to be seen. Emma scanned the crowd for him and finally spotted him right at the back of the crowd, directly behind Malfoy, who was taking advantage of the general upheaval to continue his argument with Crabbe, standing five feet away and looking mutinous.

The Heads of Houses shouted "Quiet!" over the noise of the students, and silence fell once again, everyone facing the front to await instruction.

"Thank you," said Twycross. "Now then. . . "

He waved his wand. Old-fashioned wooden hoops instantly appeared on the floor in front of every student.

"The important things to remember when Apparating are the three Ds!" said Twycross. "Destination, Determination, Deliberation!