Chapter 6 - Professor Mechante
After that little trick in Potions, James noticed that Remus came out of his shell a little. Everyone wanted to know how to do the spell, and it turned out he was a very good teacher. James thought it must have been because he was so patient, he even got through to Peter (eventually), and that took real patience. James would have given up ages before.
During the first week, James and the other three boys took the time to figure out which teachers were likely to let them get away with things. If they hadn't seen her reaction to Remus' little spell on the first day, James would have been sure that Professor Mechante would have been a huge problem (especially as she was the head of Slytherin, as he found out later), but now they knew that as long as they were careful not to be caught they would be okay in her classes.
It turned out that James' first reaction to Professor McGonagall had been completely accurate. There was no way she would let them get away with a thing. That was a problem, because as of this year, she was the new head of Gryffindor house. The very first lesson, she gave them a lecture, "Transfiguration is an extremely complex and difficult part of your magical education. I demand complete concentration from each and every one of you. The first person to cause any trouble in my class will be shown the door." Then she promptly turned her desk into a pig and back, earning a round of applause, everyone was very impressed, however, she then gave them all a match and told them to turn it into a pin. Fortunately for James, he didn't find it too hard and got it almost immediately, but the others weren't that lucky. At the end of the lesson he was the only person to have managed it. He was feeling quite pleased with himself.
The other teachers, however seemed to be easy enough in their own way. Little Professor Flitwick was a strange but kind little man. He seemed fair. The young woman that taught Herbology, Professor Sprout was incredibly pleasant and jolly, if a little forgetful. Professor Binns was something else. He was the only ghost teacher in the school. James was informed by Arthur that he had fallen asleep in front of the fire in the staff room one night a few years ago and got up to teach, leaving his body behind. His routine had always been the same, alive or dead. James thought this would be a good place to catch up on his sleep! He wasn't sure that he'd have enough energy to even try to liven things up.
Professor Sabio, however, was something else again. She was very clever, you could tell immediately she knew all about the Dark Arts and how to get around them. She also seemed like she could take a joke. James wasn't so sure, but Sirius on the other hand liked to live dangerously!
Professor Sabio had brought a cage with a very unusual looking creature. It was a Redcap and it looked a little like a goblin. Professor Sabio told the class that it was a nasty little creature, which lived on deserted battlefields and the battlements of old castles, anywhere where there'd been bloodshed. The Redcap had a little club, which according to the professor was used to bludgeon anyone who came near it. Sirius seemed to be utterly fascinated by this little thing and was staring intently at it. All of a sudden, though, he whipped out his wand and hissed 'Alohomora'. The door to the cage swung open and with an evil sounding cackle the Redcap sprung out of it's cage and bashed professor Sabio on the head. The class stared, astonished as the professor toppled onto the floor with a thud. Even Sirius had stopped laughing; he'd gone an odd shade of green. Meanwhile, the horrible little creature was ricocheting around the room, cackling madly. The class had stopped staring and were now desperately avoiding being, well bludgeoned to death. James decided he had to do something, especially as the thing was now swinging on the long dark hair of a girl in the front row. Unfortunately, he couldn't remember a single spell,
"Wingardium Leviosa", he heard a voice shouting the flying charm they had just learned in Charms that morning. He looked around for the source of the voice and saw that it was Lily. The Redcap was hovering in the air, chattering wildly, it obviously didn't like being levitated. All of a sudden, she let it go, and fell to the ground with a thud, not unlike the sound Professor Sabio had made when she hit the floor. James peered over at it; it was out for the count. He hurried over and picked it up, stuffing it quickly back into its cage and locking the door before it woke up. With a sigh of relief he turned back to the class and caught Lily's eye. He grinned gratefully at her. She grinned back, an odd sparkle in her green eyes. James just couldn't shake off the feeling that she knew what he knew. It was very odd. Just at that moment, Professor Sabio woke up, and demanded (in a very groggy voice) to know exactly what had happened. James caught Lily's eye and shot her a questioning look. She nodded, and he began to explain,
"Well Professor, you see, the Redcap's cage wasn't locked properly and it managed to push the door open. Then it jumped out and, erm whacked you. Lily managed to knock it out with the charm we learned this morning so I could shove it back into it's cage and lock it properly." He said this very smoothly; he had had lots of practise lying to his parents. He added the winning smile that earned him extra pocket money from family members. The Professor looked slightly puzzled'
"Strange, I could have sworn I'd locked it properly." She looked at James searchingly; it made him feel quite uncomfortable, as though she was looking at something past his face but he tried to keep his face impassive. After a few seconds she seemed satisfied and awarded 30 points to Gryffindor because of how well Lily has dealt with the creature and told them to go to lunch early, so she could go to the infirmary to get a headache cure. 'Aha,' James thought, 'she's trusting.' But as he left he noticed a little smile playing around her mouth and an amused glint in her eye as she watched Sirius, who was still a bit green, pack up his bags and edge out of the room. She was no fool.
After that little trick in Potions, James noticed that Remus came out of his shell a little. Everyone wanted to know how to do the spell, and it turned out he was a very good teacher. James thought it must have been because he was so patient, he even got through to Peter (eventually), and that took real patience. James would have given up ages before.
During the first week, James and the other three boys took the time to figure out which teachers were likely to let them get away with things. If they hadn't seen her reaction to Remus' little spell on the first day, James would have been sure that Professor Mechante would have been a huge problem (especially as she was the head of Slytherin, as he found out later), but now they knew that as long as they were careful not to be caught they would be okay in her classes.
It turned out that James' first reaction to Professor McGonagall had been completely accurate. There was no way she would let them get away with a thing. That was a problem, because as of this year, she was the new head of Gryffindor house. The very first lesson, she gave them a lecture, "Transfiguration is an extremely complex and difficult part of your magical education. I demand complete concentration from each and every one of you. The first person to cause any trouble in my class will be shown the door." Then she promptly turned her desk into a pig and back, earning a round of applause, everyone was very impressed, however, she then gave them all a match and told them to turn it into a pin. Fortunately for James, he didn't find it too hard and got it almost immediately, but the others weren't that lucky. At the end of the lesson he was the only person to have managed it. He was feeling quite pleased with himself.
The other teachers, however seemed to be easy enough in their own way. Little Professor Flitwick was a strange but kind little man. He seemed fair. The young woman that taught Herbology, Professor Sprout was incredibly pleasant and jolly, if a little forgetful. Professor Binns was something else. He was the only ghost teacher in the school. James was informed by Arthur that he had fallen asleep in front of the fire in the staff room one night a few years ago and got up to teach, leaving his body behind. His routine had always been the same, alive or dead. James thought this would be a good place to catch up on his sleep! He wasn't sure that he'd have enough energy to even try to liven things up.
Professor Sabio, however, was something else again. She was very clever, you could tell immediately she knew all about the Dark Arts and how to get around them. She also seemed like she could take a joke. James wasn't so sure, but Sirius on the other hand liked to live dangerously!
Professor Sabio had brought a cage with a very unusual looking creature. It was a Redcap and it looked a little like a goblin. Professor Sabio told the class that it was a nasty little creature, which lived on deserted battlefields and the battlements of old castles, anywhere where there'd been bloodshed. The Redcap had a little club, which according to the professor was used to bludgeon anyone who came near it. Sirius seemed to be utterly fascinated by this little thing and was staring intently at it. All of a sudden, though, he whipped out his wand and hissed 'Alohomora'. The door to the cage swung open and with an evil sounding cackle the Redcap sprung out of it's cage and bashed professor Sabio on the head. The class stared, astonished as the professor toppled onto the floor with a thud. Even Sirius had stopped laughing; he'd gone an odd shade of green. Meanwhile, the horrible little creature was ricocheting around the room, cackling madly. The class had stopped staring and were now desperately avoiding being, well bludgeoned to death. James decided he had to do something, especially as the thing was now swinging on the long dark hair of a girl in the front row. Unfortunately, he couldn't remember a single spell,
"Wingardium Leviosa", he heard a voice shouting the flying charm they had just learned in Charms that morning. He looked around for the source of the voice and saw that it was Lily. The Redcap was hovering in the air, chattering wildly, it obviously didn't like being levitated. All of a sudden, she let it go, and fell to the ground with a thud, not unlike the sound Professor Sabio had made when she hit the floor. James peered over at it; it was out for the count. He hurried over and picked it up, stuffing it quickly back into its cage and locking the door before it woke up. With a sigh of relief he turned back to the class and caught Lily's eye. He grinned gratefully at her. She grinned back, an odd sparkle in her green eyes. James just couldn't shake off the feeling that she knew what he knew. It was very odd. Just at that moment, Professor Sabio woke up, and demanded (in a very groggy voice) to know exactly what had happened. James caught Lily's eye and shot her a questioning look. She nodded, and he began to explain,
"Well Professor, you see, the Redcap's cage wasn't locked properly and it managed to push the door open. Then it jumped out and, erm whacked you. Lily managed to knock it out with the charm we learned this morning so I could shove it back into it's cage and lock it properly." He said this very smoothly; he had had lots of practise lying to his parents. He added the winning smile that earned him extra pocket money from family members. The Professor looked slightly puzzled'
"Strange, I could have sworn I'd locked it properly." She looked at James searchingly; it made him feel quite uncomfortable, as though she was looking at something past his face but he tried to keep his face impassive. After a few seconds she seemed satisfied and awarded 30 points to Gryffindor because of how well Lily has dealt with the creature and told them to go to lunch early, so she could go to the infirmary to get a headache cure. 'Aha,' James thought, 'she's trusting.' But as he left he noticed a little smile playing around her mouth and an amused glint in her eye as she watched Sirius, who was still a bit green, pack up his bags and edge out of the room. She was no fool.