Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, flying, year one. Using the mandatory prompt, along with dragon, "I did it, really! My mum even got the picture to prove it!", era: Trio, and someone must do a trick on a broom. HP Potions, Alihotsy Draught. Greenhouses, Alihotsy. I had lots of fun writing this one, Ernie's a great character. Word count: 349.


November 1991, Hufflepuff Common Room

"I did, though," Ernie persisted. "I swear. My mum even got the picture to prove it."

"Sure," said Hannah, not completely believe his pretty hard-to-believe tale.

"There was a helicopter, though. A Muggle helicopter, but Merlin, those are like dragons in the sky! My Da let me borrow his broom," Ernie explained, using over-enthusiastic hand gestures to make his point. Justin, the Muggle-born of the group, giggled at Ernie's allusion to helicopters.

"And he had put a cushioning charm on it, so I could sit comfy. I was such a natural flying that thing," Ernie boasted, "even though it was my first time. I circled up, and up, and up, until my Ma was yelling at me to come back down, but it was so much fun that I didn't go down. I could hear a noise in the sky, but I just thought it was the wind, but Merlin, I was wrong!"

Ernie's voice raised in volume, and a few older students still lingering in the common room shushed him.

"Maybe you should lower your-"

"I didn't see it until it was right there, I tell you. I could only be a few meters away from the thing, and the blades on that thing were razor-sharp!"

"Okay," laughed Hannah.

"Well, it was coming closer and closer. I was a bit nervous, but of course, I didn't show it, you see. I was frozen in my place, but just as it was about to hit me, I did the most amazing thing - I pulled up! I pulled up and did a loop-de-loop - oh, you should have heard my Ma shrieking at me like a banshee - and I narrowly missed it, it was quite the close call!" Ernie took a deep breath, before continuing. He hadn't realized he had caught the attention of most of the common room, who were all giving him unsure looks as he continued his enthusiastic story.

"I landed back down smoothly - Da told me how. I was grounded for two weeks, but it was worth it!"