Chapter Four: Here We Are at the Start, I Can Hear the Beating of our Hearts
Once again, the Slytherins all entered the classroom as a unit. Daphne claimed a table in the front right corner with Tracey, Pansy, and Millicent while Draco, Blaise, and Crabbe sat at one table and Harry, Theodore, and Goyle sat at another. A tabby cat was sitting on the desk at the front of the room, and after they had all gotten their things out, they stared at it for a few moments. Draco was the first to cut the silence by turning to Blaise and telling him that he claimed unrestricted mirror rights in the morning- to which the boy snorted- and the other Slytherins took this cue to begin talking about inane things. They were sitting there for a couple of minutes until the Gryffindors started trickling in. The first one in was Hermione, and she chose the only table at the front not occupied by Slytherins. As the other Gryffindors filed in, they all chose seats at the back.
When every student was in the classroom, the cat on the desk turned into their professor. She was completely calm and unruffled, despite having just turned from a cat to a human, which on second thought was completely reasonable. Several of the students stared at her- mostly Gryffindors with the addition of Harry. Theodore looked absolutely envious, Blaise looked completely expressionless, and Draco looked slightly haughty. Tracey raised her hand and McGonagall called on her to speak.
"You're a registered Animagus, correct?" Tracey asked.
"Why yes, I am," Professor McGonagall replied. Hermione raised her hand, and the professor called on her.
"What's an Animagus?" Hermione asked, her quill at the ready.
"An Animagus is a witch or wizard who has learned to turn into an animal. OWL level Transfiguration covers the subject more thoroughly," McGonagall replied. She then wordlessly turned her desk into a pig and back. "Transfiguration is the art of changing one thing into another, most of the time only temporarily. Today you will try it in practice, and then next class we will learn the theory." She waved her wand, and matchsticks appeared on the tables in front of the students. Another wave of her wand and a board at the front of the room showed a word and a wand movement. "You will be turning matchsticks into needles. Go."
"Conflatiles," Harry murmured, trying the wand movement. He tried the spell several more times, before he remembered something Susan had said about intent. He turned to Theodore.
"Hey, Theodore," Harry began.
"You know, you can just call me Theo," the other boy said.
"Okay, Theo, what do you know about intent when it comes to magic?" Harry asked.
"It's a very big part of it," Theo replied. "But from what I've heard, transfiguration is a branch of magic that's more about visualization than intent."
"Okay, thanks," Harry replied, turning back to his needle. Visualize it? Harry closed his eyes and pictured a needle in his mind from the times he had seen one. He could only focus on his vision of a needle for a few moments, though, before he got distracted. When he opened his eyes he couldn't even really focus on the needle. This continued throughout the entire lesson, and only frustrated Harry. By the end of the lesson, he had barely gotten a silvery sheen to his matchstick, which he supposed was better than Goyle, who had coated his matchstick with frost, or Ronald, who had blown his up.
"Cheer up," Theo said, putting his hand on Harry's back. "It'll get better."
"I know, but- it's so frustrating!" Harry almost raised his voice, then clamped his jaw shut and swallowed hard. "We can talk about it in the common room."
Hearing this, Draco, Blaise, and Crabbe fell back and Daphne and the girls bunched tighter around the boys. When they reached the common room, Tracey took control. She grabbed Harry by the shoulders and forcefully sat him down in a chair.
"Okay, talk," she said. "What's got you so frustrated?"
"I couldn't focus in there," Harry said, burying his face in his hands. "It's like my mind kept wandering off and I couldn't keep it on task. I've never had that problem before!"
"So you were focusing on what, exactly?" Daphne asked.
"I was trying to see the needle that I wanted to turn my match into," Harry replied.
"So was I," Pansy said. "But I couldn't focus on it either."
"Me too," Theo said, frowning.
"I was also having problems focusing," Draco added. The first years looked extremely unsettled.
And then some of the fifth years walked in, including Anna and Marcus and a couple others. The fifth years shared some looks, evidently noticing the distressed expressions and the aura of distress around the first years.
"Okay, what's got our firsties having such a serious conference?" Serena Woodley, a regal-looking girl with golden-brown hair asked, leaning over the back of a couch.
"None of us could concentrate in Transfiguration," Theo said. "I've practiced before; I've done that transfiguration before!" The fifth years looked a little confused.
"We couldn't visualize," Daphne clarified, and the fifth years frowned.
"All of you were struggling?" Anna asked. All the first years nodded.
"Now that I think about it, practicing transfiguration in the classroom is a lot harder than outside it," one of the other fifth years- a clean, immaculately dressed boy named Ezekiel Moore- said. The fifth years all nodded, and Marcus' frown deepened.
"I'll bring it up at the next prefect meeting, the Ravenclaws at least have to have noticed," he said. "In the meantime, try your hardest and stick together." The first years all nodded.
The fifth years left the first years, heading for their own corner of the common room, and Draco rubbed his hands together and stood.
"Now that our Transfiguration problem is semi taken care of," he began, "tonight we officially begin to educate one of our number in the traditions, customs, and etiquette of the wizarding world. His education up until this point has been dismal, but we shall rectify this problem."
"I didn't know you were dramatic," Crabbe noted, nodding with appreciation.
"I can be if I want to be," Draco replied. "Now, being good Slytherins, we cannot allow this travesty to continue. So, lesson number one: how to meet people."
"Always complement someone you are just meeting," Pansy said first.
"If they are a politician, always complement them whenever you see them, but learn to veil your insults so they look like complements, too," Daphne added.
"Address anyone older than eighteen as sir, madam, or if they have a title, by that title," Theo said.
"If they offer their first and last name to you, offer your first and last name to them," Daphne said.
"Whoa, can we wait a sec, I feel like I should be taking notes," Harry said, and dug in his bag to pull out a quill and piece of parchment. A couple of his yearmates snickered, but they held off on the tidbits of advice until he had his utensils in front of him.
The 'lesson' continued, and gathered attention from other year levels coming through the common room. The lesson started winding down about the time the fifth years were ready to head down to the Hall, and they invited the first years to sit with them. The group of Slytherins all headed to the Hall together, and when they entered as a unit, Professor Snape smirked. Professor Sprout, who was sitting next to Professor Snape, shied away from him.
Harry sat next to Serena and Blaise, across the table from Ezekiel and his study buddy/girlfriend, Helena Marx.
"So, other than Transfiguration, how was our firsties' first day of classes?" Serena asked.
"Herbology was okay, but the Ravenclaws were hogging all the questions," Daphne replied. "Charms was better."
"I learned that Harry is a ladies' man," Tracey added. Serena looked at Harry and raised her eyebrow. Harry's face flushed.
"Is this true?" Serena asked.
"Oh, very," Draco replied. "The Ravenclaw girls in our year were all quite charmed with him at breakfast, and he managed to somehow get Susan Bones, Hannah Abbot, and Megan Jones to invite us to lunch."
"The networking is strong with this one," Helena said with an expression of approval. Harry's face just turned an even brighter shade of red.
"So, Marcus, who do you think is going to make the Quidditch team this year?" Anna asked, leaning across the table.
"Terrence and Miles are probably staying in their positions unless some prodigy is hiding," Marcus replied. "Most of the other positions are up for grabs, though, so if any of you firsties are any good…" He trailed off and looked at the first years.
"You allow girls on the team, right?" Tracey asked, and Millicent looked interested.
"Never had that much interest from girls, but if you want to try out go ahead," Marcus replied. "What positions?"
"Chaser," Tracey said.
"Beater," Millicent said.
"I might try out for Chaser since you already have a Seeker," Draco said.
"I've never been on a broom," Harry replied, shrugging.
"Not interested," Daphne said, and Pansy agreed. Blaise and Theo just looked a little uncertain.
"Beater would be okay," Crabbe added, and Goyle nodded.
"Well, you guys can come and try out and see if you have anything to offer the team. I could scramble some brooms for you that aren't school brooms for tryouts," Marcus said, nodding appreciatively. "If you're good enough we might stand a chance of winning by playing clean."
"Would be the first time since second year," Anna added.
When the fifth and first year Slytherins left the Hall, the sixth and second years followed them. Professor Snape's smirk grew, if at all possible. Professor McGonagall began to fear for the health of her Gryffindors.
Disclaimer: I own the noodles I am eating. Harry Potter is not noodles, I am not eating it, therefore I don't own it.
Thanks for everyone who paused to review. I really, really appreciate it. Thanks to everyone else who faved and followed! School starts this Tuesday for me so yeah there's that but hey! I'm being mostly homeschooled this year, taking college courses and stuff but well I have three ensembles I'm a part of. I have like thirty chapters already finished though so as long as I remember to update everything will be fine!
Question: What do you think is going to happen next chapter?
Next time: Potions Class.