Zacharias Smith was not happy.

His stomach ached—no, it absolutely burned in pain. His shins felt like someone had repeatedly assaulted them with Bludgers as he ran. His eyes could barely focus. They stung as sweat dripped into them, but he didn't dare wipe them dry, as he might just lose his rhythm, which was the only thing he had going for him.

He was nearly there. He couldn't have been more than a kilometre out—but it wasn't clear if he was going to make it. The angry plant nipped at his heels, apparently quite dissatisfied that it hadn't yet had a proper meal that morning. It was well known that Smith was the worst runner of the group. So far, it hadn't posed a serious problem, because the recruits typically ran in lockstep. But now, it was just him; he could hide behind no-one.

"Ahh!" he yelped as he tripped over a root, falling flat on his face. He should have been paying attention, but he had been so absorbed in his thoughts that he had neglected to watch the path in front of him. But it was too late now. He stared up at what he may have called the face of a decidedly irate plant.

With a quick shake, the plant raised its two oversized, dome-like flowers, and then swept in to collect its prey.

Smith panicked. He screwed his eyes shut, and then made the last mistake he would ever make on this island.

#

As Ezra lay on the cold ground trying to recover from the deadly assault on his legs, a forcible CRACK suddenly resonated through the air.

"What was that?" someone muttered.

The Caretaker jumped up out of his seat with a deep growl, running toward the form of a body on the ground some thirty metres away. Against his better judgement, Ezra followed him out of curiosity. The others seemed to have a similar idea.

"Did you just try to Apparate on my island?" the Caretaker thundered. "Are you completely fucking brain-dead, Smith? No bloody wonder this country is in shambles. It's people like you who are trying to become Aurors. How's it feel being splinched? My God, you are hideous."

Indeed, Smith had arrived without a left arm or right leg, and was bleeding quite freely from the stumps that remained.

The Caretaker waved his wand in a complicated pattern, muttering under his breath the whole time—though Ezra wasn't sure if he was saying an incantation or complaining about recruits. After several seconds, the boy's limbs flew into sight from beyond the trees, whereupon they reattached themselves to their respective stumps with a disturbing squelching sound.

"Shit, I should have just let you die for that stunt. Merlin's bollocks..."

"Caretaker," Smith wheezed. "You said if anyone got caught by the plant, they'd be kicked out. I didn't get caught."

"Well fucking congratulations, you bloody lout. No, you didn't get caught. But you also didn't finish the run. I don't accept cheaters in my Auror force. Bugger off back home."

With that, the Caretaker flung Smith's wand at him, and the ugly plant sprang out of the earth to instantly engulf Smith in its thorny embrace before rushing off to the barracks.

The instructor instantly pivoted on his feet, facing the cadets who had observed the whole debacle. "If there's one thing I don't like, it's a cheater. Are you cheaters?"

"No, Caretaker!"

"Are you sure? Jarrett, did you cheat on your twenty-one kilometre run?"

"No, Caretaker!" the boy yelled.

"What about you, Devenish? Did you cheat on your twenty-one kilometre run?"

"No, Caretaker!"

And he went down the line, asking every single cadet if they had cheated—each responding with a resounding "no."

"Very well. Who arrived first?"

"I did, sir," McCormack responded with a hint of apprehension.

"And why is that?"

"Well, umm... I guess I'm a good runner..." she mumbled.

"You're damn right you're a good runner, McCormack."

She looked up in shock at the Caretaker's compliment.

"But I don't think you tried your hardest tonight. You were minutes ahead of everyone else, and you got complacent," he said with a surprisingly calm tone of voice. "You were just riding the wave at the end."

"Sir, you said—"

"I know what I said, McCormack. But I also know what I said at the beginning of training. And I know that you know what I said at the beginning of training. Remind me, if you will—remind your fellow cadets."

"You said you wanted our very best—more than our very best," she said despondently.

"And did you give your very best tonight?"

She worked her jaw for a moment. "No, sir. I did not."

The Caretaker stared at her before reaching into his pocket and withdrawing her wand. With a sigh, he handed it to her. "I'm sorry, but I cannot use you."

With a hiccough, McCormack took the proffered wand, turned, and began the long trek back to the barracks.

"Let this be a lesson to you all. Don't get complacent. You are never safe—not from the enemy, and not from me. If you are not prepared to give your best effort one hundred percent of the time, then the Auror force does not need you."