"That was a great lesson." Harry said, "I don't think I have seen anything like it before, ever."
"You haven't." Katrina said, "It's usually used by people with more experience, and not all that often. In fact, I would be surprised if even Dumbledore knew how to do it."
"Really? It's that rare?" Hermione asked. Katrina nodded in affirmative.
"Right then, so if it's rare, then 'ow does 'e do it?" Ron questioned.
"Well, Atrus isn't exactly like Dumbledore; he can do very strange things because he went to a different school to learn how to do it."
"But you said that you knew how to do it." Neville commented.
"I do. My school is different than this one. It's well-" It teaches mages, not wizards. It's more powerful. Students that go there study the old ways. It has non-humans in it as well as humans. The students there are trained for war. Katrina thought to herself, "Complicated." she finished instead. "Very complicated."
"If you're that good to be in that school, then why did you get sent here?" Hermione asked.
"Because, I was learning so fast, they needed to send me someplace where I could learn some and cool my heels." Katrina smiled. And to give them a break, and get away from the portal near the school that just happens to attract creatures through there. And to my greatest misfortune are attracted to wraiths or part wraiths. Which I am half of. And I needed to get some actual work done because I spend most of my time fending of beasts from the Abyss. So I'm here, and Atrus is here to teach me so when I get back I can fight better.
"So I was right, you were sent here because you weren't challenged." Hermione said smugly.
No, actually, Harry was right, but you don't need to know that, Katrina thought.
"All right then, so I was wrong." Ron said. "What else is new?"
"Wrong and right about what?" Katrina asked, although she knew perfectly well what.
"Why you came here." Harry replied. "Here's transfiguration."
"This should be easy; I was very good at transfiguration." I turned a five headed green hell demon with warts all over his skin and inch long fangs, into a cute and cuddly white kitten with no teeth, dainty bones and small amber eyes. "Very easy." She smiled at Hermione.
"Like I said, you are very smart."
"Yes, I had to be." Katrina answered, truthfully.
"Watch out, guys, we got brain power shooting at us." Harry joked.
"I actually thought I heard some wheels turning." Ron added, cupping his ear and cocking his head toward the two girls.
"I was aiming more toward, 'Yes! Smart people to help me!'" Neville explained, with the hand gestures.
"You're still going to have to do your own work, you know." Hermione said with that exasperated look.
"We'll only just help you." Katrina added matter-of-factly.
Here they entered the transfiguration classroom.
"Good evening, class." Professor McGonagall spoke as the students filed in. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Katrina and Neville chose seats in the front row- in that order.
"Now class, you will start by taking notes on this subject before we start transforming. You will write down what I tell you to." The students quickly got out paper, a quill, and an inkwell. When everyone was ready she began.
Katrina honestly didn't know how that woman could talk so much in such a little time without running short of breath. She had about five pages of notes and she wrote tiny, and the class session wasn't over yet. Professor McGonagall had then stopped, and taken a deep breath. Every single kid in the class tried to shake out writer's cramp and hope shone in their faces.
"Please, no more, I already have ten pages of notes." Neville complained.
"Well I am sorry to hear that. Put away your notes. We will write more tomorrow." Every one breathed a sigh of relief- Hermione included. "Now we will actually try transforming. Katrina, you first, along with Draco. Home team versus our visitor. Now let's see who can do more." She nodded at both of them. "You must first turn this needle into a match." Both of them did so perfectly. "Good, now try and turn this desk into a pig." Again they did so. And it went on and on, a box into a mouse, a pencil into a dagger, a bird into a mouse. Katrina always did something extra like turning a bird into a mouse; the mouse was black whereas the bird had been white, and everything else rather elaborate. Draco did his cruelly, the dagger had a crimson stain on it and the mouse was bloody and broken.
"Very well done, well done." McGonagall said. "Lastly, turn this pixie into another creature or thing. Then, we shall see." She gave a secret smile to both of them; neither of them knew what on Earth she was talking about. "Alright then." She continued. "Here are the two pixies." She held out two cages, in both there were two figures flitting around trying to escape.
Katrina held her wand ready, a perfect image was in her mind. She uttered the spell. Magic had shot out of her wand as the pixie began to change. It became dark, becoming black, its hands and feet became claws and talons, its nose jutted forward, as like a snout, its eyes darkened, becoming black with grey slits. A tail formed, growing large and sprouting scales. Then the wings turned black, scaly and dense, and the entire thing grew. It grew to fill the cage and then burst open the cage bars because the cage was simply too small. Katrina then lowered her wand. A black, heavily armored dragon, bigger than a horse, was where the pixie had once been. Smoke was curling from the huge nostrils, and gleaming teeth as big as her thumb stuck out from beneath the black lip.
Neville fainted, cold out and on the floor. Long fangs showed under the snout, three inches long. The massive wing span was twelve feet from wing tip to wing tip, and deadly spikes ran down the spine from the two horns curling back to the barbed tail.
"I'm done." Katrina said simply. The creature impatiently dug long furrows in the floor. It had all happened in about five seconds. Draco was staring wide-eyed at the dragon. There was no way that his spell could beat that; still, he had to try.
"My turn, then." He replied calmly, regaining his composture. He took a deep breath and aimed at the next pixie, staring horrified at its companion. Draco spoke the word and light flared out as the pixie began to change. Its body was becoming long, round, and narrow; its head becoming flat and sharp. Draco lowered his wand. There was an orc axe. It was monstrous. The shaft was made of rotting ebony wood, the blade was double bladed, and had notches all down the side. It was impressive- but, not a match. Professor McGonagall went to Draco's 'pixie' giving the dragon a wide berth. The axe had broken apart the cage, and was far too heavy for McGonagall to lift.
"Both are good, however I think it is clear that-" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "Draco wins." Everyone was staring wide eyed.
"What!" Katrina yelled. Draco was smiling.
"Looks like you can't beat the best." He said smugly. Slytherin erupted in cheers, and taunted Ravenclaw.
"Sathe' al on mare kangths." Katrina hissed at the dragon.
"McGonagall!" 'Run,' she said, 'to destroy the lying teacher'!" Harry shouted when McGonagall didn't move. Katrina stared at him non-believing.
"How can a human know that?" She asked, slightly hissing. She opened her mouth to say more, but McGonagall intervened.
"Okay, Katrina- call your dragon off please. Uh, anytime now." She said. The dragon was walking toward her and acidic, green drool pooled on the floor. Katrina smiled and stood still, her dark eyes stared at McGonagall maliciously. You prejudiced, lying, murdering scum. I'll do nothing to save you. Katrina mentally told McGonagall, who let out a small yell and backed away into a corner. The dragon was nearly on her. Draco grinned.
"You haven't." Katrina said, "It's usually used by people with more experience, and not all that often. In fact, I would be surprised if even Dumbledore knew how to do it."
"Really? It's that rare?" Hermione asked. Katrina nodded in affirmative.
"Right then, so if it's rare, then 'ow does 'e do it?" Ron questioned.
"Well, Atrus isn't exactly like Dumbledore; he can do very strange things because he went to a different school to learn how to do it."
"But you said that you knew how to do it." Neville commented.
"I do. My school is different than this one. It's well-" It teaches mages, not wizards. It's more powerful. Students that go there study the old ways. It has non-humans in it as well as humans. The students there are trained for war. Katrina thought to herself, "Complicated." she finished instead. "Very complicated."
"If you're that good to be in that school, then why did you get sent here?" Hermione asked.
"Because, I was learning so fast, they needed to send me someplace where I could learn some and cool my heels." Katrina smiled. And to give them a break, and get away from the portal near the school that just happens to attract creatures through there. And to my greatest misfortune are attracted to wraiths or part wraiths. Which I am half of. And I needed to get some actual work done because I spend most of my time fending of beasts from the Abyss. So I'm here, and Atrus is here to teach me so when I get back I can fight better.
"So I was right, you were sent here because you weren't challenged." Hermione said smugly.
No, actually, Harry was right, but you don't need to know that, Katrina thought.
"All right then, so I was wrong." Ron said. "What else is new?"
"Wrong and right about what?" Katrina asked, although she knew perfectly well what.
"Why you came here." Harry replied. "Here's transfiguration."
"This should be easy; I was very good at transfiguration." I turned a five headed green hell demon with warts all over his skin and inch long fangs, into a cute and cuddly white kitten with no teeth, dainty bones and small amber eyes. "Very easy." She smiled at Hermione.
"Like I said, you are very smart."
"Yes, I had to be." Katrina answered, truthfully.
"Watch out, guys, we got brain power shooting at us." Harry joked.
"I actually thought I heard some wheels turning." Ron added, cupping his ear and cocking his head toward the two girls.
"I was aiming more toward, 'Yes! Smart people to help me!'" Neville explained, with the hand gestures.
"You're still going to have to do your own work, you know." Hermione said with that exasperated look.
"We'll only just help you." Katrina added matter-of-factly.
Here they entered the transfiguration classroom.
"Good evening, class." Professor McGonagall spoke as the students filed in. Harry, Ron, Hermione, Katrina and Neville chose seats in the front row- in that order.
"Now class, you will start by taking notes on this subject before we start transforming. You will write down what I tell you to." The students quickly got out paper, a quill, and an inkwell. When everyone was ready she began.
Katrina honestly didn't know how that woman could talk so much in such a little time without running short of breath. She had about five pages of notes and she wrote tiny, and the class session wasn't over yet. Professor McGonagall had then stopped, and taken a deep breath. Every single kid in the class tried to shake out writer's cramp and hope shone in their faces.
"Please, no more, I already have ten pages of notes." Neville complained.
"Well I am sorry to hear that. Put away your notes. We will write more tomorrow." Every one breathed a sigh of relief- Hermione included. "Now we will actually try transforming. Katrina, you first, along with Draco. Home team versus our visitor. Now let's see who can do more." She nodded at both of them. "You must first turn this needle into a match." Both of them did so perfectly. "Good, now try and turn this desk into a pig." Again they did so. And it went on and on, a box into a mouse, a pencil into a dagger, a bird into a mouse. Katrina always did something extra like turning a bird into a mouse; the mouse was black whereas the bird had been white, and everything else rather elaborate. Draco did his cruelly, the dagger had a crimson stain on it and the mouse was bloody and broken.
"Very well done, well done." McGonagall said. "Lastly, turn this pixie into another creature or thing. Then, we shall see." She gave a secret smile to both of them; neither of them knew what on Earth she was talking about. "Alright then." She continued. "Here are the two pixies." She held out two cages, in both there were two figures flitting around trying to escape.
Katrina held her wand ready, a perfect image was in her mind. She uttered the spell. Magic had shot out of her wand as the pixie began to change. It became dark, becoming black, its hands and feet became claws and talons, its nose jutted forward, as like a snout, its eyes darkened, becoming black with grey slits. A tail formed, growing large and sprouting scales. Then the wings turned black, scaly and dense, and the entire thing grew. It grew to fill the cage and then burst open the cage bars because the cage was simply too small. Katrina then lowered her wand. A black, heavily armored dragon, bigger than a horse, was where the pixie had once been. Smoke was curling from the huge nostrils, and gleaming teeth as big as her thumb stuck out from beneath the black lip.
Neville fainted, cold out and on the floor. Long fangs showed under the snout, three inches long. The massive wing span was twelve feet from wing tip to wing tip, and deadly spikes ran down the spine from the two horns curling back to the barbed tail.
"I'm done." Katrina said simply. The creature impatiently dug long furrows in the floor. It had all happened in about five seconds. Draco was staring wide-eyed at the dragon. There was no way that his spell could beat that; still, he had to try.
"My turn, then." He replied calmly, regaining his composture. He took a deep breath and aimed at the next pixie, staring horrified at its companion. Draco spoke the word and light flared out as the pixie began to change. Its body was becoming long, round, and narrow; its head becoming flat and sharp. Draco lowered his wand. There was an orc axe. It was monstrous. The shaft was made of rotting ebony wood, the blade was double bladed, and had notches all down the side. It was impressive- but, not a match. Professor McGonagall went to Draco's 'pixie' giving the dragon a wide berth. The axe had broken apart the cage, and was far too heavy for McGonagall to lift.
"Both are good, however I think it is clear that-" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "Draco wins." Everyone was staring wide eyed.
"What!" Katrina yelled. Draco was smiling.
"Looks like you can't beat the best." He said smugly. Slytherin erupted in cheers, and taunted Ravenclaw.
"Sathe' al on mare kangths." Katrina hissed at the dragon.
"McGonagall!" 'Run,' she said, 'to destroy the lying teacher'!" Harry shouted when McGonagall didn't move. Katrina stared at him non-believing.
"How can a human know that?" She asked, slightly hissing. She opened her mouth to say more, but McGonagall intervened.
"Okay, Katrina- call your dragon off please. Uh, anytime now." She said. The dragon was walking toward her and acidic, green drool pooled on the floor. Katrina smiled and stood still, her dark eyes stared at McGonagall maliciously. You prejudiced, lying, murdering scum. I'll do nothing to save you. Katrina mentally told McGonagall, who let out a small yell and backed away into a corner. The dragon was nearly on her. Draco grinned.
