Chapter 45

September 1st 1993

Hogwarts

On September First Harry and Daphne Potter walked along with Cyrus,Adeline and Astoria Greengrass to the entrance to get on the Hogwarts Express.

It was a big day.

First Astoria would be starting out at Hogwarts along with Harry and Daphne going to Hogwarts as a married couple now.

A few days ago they had received a floo call from Delores Umbridge who had let them know that their situation this year would not be much changed.

She said that their goal was to have the British Family Act impact day to day life relatively little.

So they would both still have their rooms in the Slytherin Common Room but according to Umbridge it had been worked out with Dumbledore that there would be nothing against them if they decided to stay in each other's rooms for a long period of time.

The Ministry was eager.

But Harry and Daphne agreed to not start trying for kids until after graduation in two years.

They would use the given opportunities to spend more time together and to show Astoria around Hogwarts a bit.

For Harry and Daphne the start of the year at least was going to be chill.

For everyone else it was going to be crazy.

Today the selections under the British Family Act began.

Starting today letters would start to be sent out to thousands of witches and wizards from all around the British Isles letting them know who they had matched with for their partner.

They were supposed to be matches made with similar minded people but even if there were a lot of perfect couples matched up together there was going to be controversy.

But Harry and Daphne did not have to worry about that.

Entering the Hogwarts Express Harry,Daphne and Astoria found a compartment and they were soon joined by Edmund and Layla.

"Why hello Mrs Potter"Layla said to Daphne who blushed.

"Hello Mrs Murdock ''Daphne said "Wonderful day isint it".

Harry looked at Edmund ``Well youll soon be finding out who will become Mrs Spiers in just a few years won't you".

"Well yeah"Edmund said "I hope I get someone who I can match with as well as you and Daphne do".

"That's impossible"Layla said "No one can get together as well as these two do".

Harry and Daphne both blushed at the praise.

Soon Raymond and Heidi stopped by.

"Hey"Heidi said "Congragulations on the Marriage".

"Thank you"Harry and Daphne said.

"Are we going to be continuing with the Archmagi this year with Umbridge taking over the Defense against the Dark Arts Post"Raymond asked Harry.

"Yeah"Harry said "I have new ideas for stuff to teach this year if everyone else is still wanting to come to the meetings".

"We all do"Heidi said "I was wondering also about if we are allowed to invite people to the group".

"Invite people,"Harry asked.

"Yeah"Heidi said "There are these two girls I want to invite".

Harry thought about it for a second.

"I can introduce you to them. ''Heidi asked "Their are really good and dont like Thicknesse and Umbridge ''.

"I think that would be a good idea"Daphne said "The more people the merrier".

"Ok"Harry said, nodding "That's fine Heidi".

"Can I join"Astoria asked.

"Of course"Harry said and then to Raymond and Heidi "This is my new sister in law Astoria she's starting at Hogwarts this year".

"Nice to meet you"Heidi said, shaking Astorias hand "I hope you're like your sister and that you enjoy your time at Hogwarts".

"Thanks,"Astoria chirped.

They all then continued to chat on the way to Hogwarts as more members of the Archmagi stopped by to ask about the lessons this year and to congratulate them on their marriage".

SCENE CHANGE

Welcome, welcome, one and all

the show is about to start

I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat

and it's time to play my part

You may call me worn and ragged

if that's all you truly see

But listen close and I will tell

where you're supposed to be!

You might belong in Gryffindor

where the bravest often dwell

Perhaps it's loyal Hufflepuff

where your heart will truly swell

Or could it be wise Ravenclaw

whose language you speak best

Yet again perhaps it's Slytherin

but will help you taunt the rest!

Go ahead and try me on

there's nothing left to fear

I'll find right where you belong

by looking between your ears!

Harry and Daphne clapped along with the rest of the students as the sorting hat finished its song and the storing began.

Harry noticed how Astorias year, the group born right after the end of the Wizarding War, was not really any bigger than the previous year.

That sort of made the British Family Act make more sense.

He thought back to when they were in first year and how the seventh years at the time were a much larger year it seemed.

Those seventh years would have been born in Nineteen Seventy at the start of the war.

And the years after that got smaller Harry realized that he had been in school with the kids born from Nineteen Seventy to Nineteen Eighty One throughout the length of the war.

Wow.

And if he extrapolated the Hogwarts Class sizes to fit the overall population.

Wow.

Soon the first years started to get sorted into their Houses and Harry clapped for each one of them, not just the Slytherins.

Then Astoria was sorted into Slytherin.

Standing up cheering and hooting and hollering, Harry anad Daphne welcomed a smiling Astoria to the Slytherin table where she sat with the rest of the Slytherin First Years.

After a great feast Dumbledore got to his feet at the staff table. The talk echoing around the Great Hall died away almost instantly.

"The very best of evenings to you!" he said, smiling broadly, his arms opened wide as though to embrace the whole room. "Now . . . to our new students, welcome to our old students, welcome back! Another year full of magical education awaits you "Those wishing to play for their House Quidditch teams should give their names to their Heads of House as usual.

"But now, your beds await, as warm and comfortable as you could possibly wish, and I know that your top priority is to be wellrested for your lessons tomorrow. Let us therefore say good night. Pip pip!"

With the usual deafening scraping noise, the benches were moved back and the hundreds of students began to file out of the Great Hall toward their dormitories.

SCENE CHANGE
The next day the ceiling of the Great Hall was serenely blue and streaked with frail, wispy clouds, just like the squares of sky visible through the high mullioned windows while all the students tucked into their morning porridge and eggs and bacon,

After they had eaten, they remained in their places, awaiting Professor Snape's descent from the staff table. The distribution of class schedules was more complicated than usual this year, for Professor Snape needed first to confirm that everybody had achieved the necessary O.W.L. grades to continue with their chosen N.E.W.T.s.

Both Harry and Daphne had signed up this year to take Transfiguration,Potions,Herbology,Defense against the Dark Arts,and Charms while dropping Astronomy and History of Magic.

Professor Snape got to them and looked down at their

applications and then consulted their O.W.L. results.

He nodded.

"Mr and Mrs Potter your applications are approved"He said before moving onto the next student.

Smiling Harry and Daphne hand in hand left the Great Hall for their first Transfiguration Class.

SCENE CHANGE
A week later signs went up for the Sixth Years Apparition Lessons that were scheduled to start on Saturday evening which also happened to be when Harry decided to schedule the first Archmagi Session.

He made sure that they finished up an hour before the Apparition Lessons were supposed to begin so everyone would have time to get to them.

Which was a good call since there was a rainstorm on Saturday that caused the sixth years' first Apparition lesson to take place in the Great Hall instead of on the grounds.

When Harry and Daphne arrived in the Hall they found that the tables had disappeared. Rain lashed against the high windows and the enchanted ceiling swirled darkly above them as they assembled in front of Professors McGonagall, Snape, Flitwick, and Sprout — the Heads of Houses — and a small wizard whom Harry took to be the Apparition instructor from the Ministry. He was oddly colorless, with transparent eyelashes, wispy hair, and an insubstantial air, as though a single gust of wind might blow him away. Harry wondered whether constant disappearances and reappearances had somehow diminished his substance, or whether this frail build was ideal for anyone wishing to vanish.

"Good morning," said the Ministry wizard, when all the students had arrived and the Heads of Houses had called for quiet. "My name is Wilkie Twycross and I shall be your Ministry Apparition instructor for the next twelve weeks. I hope to be able to prepare you for your Apparition Tests in this time by which time, many of you may be ready to take your

tests,"

"As you may know, it is usually impossible to Apparate or Disapparate within Hogwarts. The headmaster has lifted this enchantment, purely within the Great Hall, for one hour, so as to enable you to practice. May I emphasize that you will not be able to Apparate outside the walls of this Hall, and that you would be unwise to try. I would like each of you to place yourselves now so that you have a clear five feet of space in front of you."

There was a great scrambling and jostling as people separated, banged into each other, and ordered others out of their space. The Heads of Houses moved among the students, marshaling them into position and breaking up Arguments".

Daphne and Harry found their positions and out of the corner of his eye Harry saw Edmund enter the Great Hall.

"Thank you," said Twycross. "Now then . . ."

He waved his wand. Old-fashioned wooden hoops instantly appeared on the floor in front of every student.

"The important things to remember when Apparating are the three D's!" said Twycross. "Destination, Determination,Deliberation!

"Step one: Fix your mind firmly upon the desired destination," said Twycross. "In this case, the interior of your hoop. Kindly concentrate upon that destination now."

Everybody looked around furtively to check that everyone else was staring into their hoop, then hastily did as they were told. Harry gazed at the circular patch of dusty floor enclosed by his hoop and focused hard to think of nothing else.

"Step two," said Twycross, "focus your determination to occupy the visualized space! Let your yearning to enter it flood from your mind to every particle of your body!"

"Step three," called Twycross, "and only when I give the command . . . Turn on the spot, feeling your way into nothingness, moving with deliberation! On my command, now . . . one —"

Harry glanced around again; lots of people were looking positively alarmed at being asked to Apparate so quickly.

"— two —"

Harry worked to fix his thoughts on his hoop again

"— THREE!"

Harry spun on the spot, lost balance, and nearly fell over.

He was not the only one. The whole Hall was suddenly full of

staggering people;

He saw Daphne had fell down and he rushed over to make sure she was ok.

"Never mind, never mind," said Twycross dryly, who did not seem to have expected anything better. "Adjust your hoops, please, and back to your original positions. . . ."

The second attempt was no better than the first. The third was just as bad.

Not until the fourth did anything exciting happen. There was a horrible screech of pain and everybody looked around, terrified, to see Beatrice Haywood of Hufflepuff wobbling in her hoop with her left leg still standing five feet away where she had started.

The Heads of House converged on her; there was a great bang and a puff of purple smoke, which cleared to reveal Beatrice sobbing, reunited with her leg but looking horrified.

"Splinching, or the separation of random body parts," said Wilkie Twycross dispassionately, "occurs when the mind is insufficiently determined. You must concentrate continuously

upon your destination, and move, without haste, but with deliberation . . . thus."

Twycross stepped forward, turned gracefully on the spot with his arms outstretched, and vanished in a swirl of robes, reappearing at the back of the Hall.

"Remember the three D's," he said, "and try again . . . one— two — three —"

But an hour later, Beatrice's Splinching was still the most interesting thing that had happened. Twycross did not seem discouraged. Fastening his cloak at his neck, he merely said,

"Until next Saturday, everybody, and do not forget: Destination. Determination. Deliberation."

With that, he waved his wand, Vanishing the hoops, and walked out of the Hall accompanied by Professor McGonagall. Talk broke out at once as people began moving toward the entrance hall.

"How did you think you did?" asked Daphne"I think I felt something the last time I tried — a kind of tingling in my feet."

"This is going to take some time to learn,"Harry murmured.

Over the next three lessons Apparition was proving to be very difficult to learn, though a few more people had managed to Splinch themselves. Frustration was running high and there was a certain amount of ill feeling toward Wilkie Twycross and his three D's, which had inspired a number of nicknames for him, the politest of which were Dogbreath and Dunghead.

Harry was determined to learn how to Apparate.

He had learned so many difficult things already he wanted to cross Apparition off the list.

He also found out why Edmund was late to the first Apparition Lesson.

He had gotten assigned to marry Ravenclaw Adalynn Monkton who was a member of the Archmagi.

So that was a source of relief and much embarrassment.

Harry and Daphne were so glad they were already married.