You'll get your first true taste of Skyward School of Practical Sorcery in the next chapter! This is the last setup type chapter. I'm doing well and am safe and healthy. Though, I'll be glad when October hits. An unfortunate aspect of being Arizonan is having to deal with the summer heat of triple digit temperatures for four months from June through September.
A few minutes before August 31st was about to turn into September 1st, Heather led Hannah to the Yellow Quartet's outside bench at Skyward School of Practical Sorcery.
"Stand up by the Yellow Quartet's bench, " Heather instructed Hannah, "But don't sit down quite yet."
Heather retrieved her wand from her right hand pocket with her right hand and cried, "Accio Hannah's new dress and shoes!"
Almost instantaneously, Hannah's brand new bright vivid yellow dress and tennis shoes soared into Heather's hands.
"Take off your tee shirt, shorts, and current shoes, " Heather instructed Hannah.
Hannah obeyed and Heather said, "Put on your new dress and shoes when I yell "NOW!"
An instant after midnight, Heather yelled, "NOW!" and Hannah put on her new dress and shoes.
Then, a minute after midnight, Harry, Amy, and Susan suddenly appeared before them, all wearing their brand new bright vivid yellow dresses and matching tennis shoes.
Noticing the Yellow Quartet's bench, Harry piped up, "This bench is reserved just for us?"
"Yes, " confirmed Heather, "Even I won't sit on it. Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah, would you four all please sit down on your bench now?"
"Yes, Heather," chorused Harry, Amy, and Susan while Hannah replied, "Yes mom, " and Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah all sat down together on the Yellow Quartet's bench at the exact same nanosecond.
Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah all smiled at each other. it was a crisp, cool, pleasantly breezy night and all of four of them were happily engulfed with the feeling of having made it.
"Harry, Amy, Susan, how did you get here?" asked Hannah curiously.
"Portkeys, " answered Heather, as Harry, Amy, and Susan each held up a silver paper clip with his or her right hand.
Heather relived Harry, Amy, and Susan of the paper clips with her left hand and put them in her left hand pocket.
"So," explained Heather, "With the lone exception of bringing Hannah by side along apparition yesterday, I have made the decision that the way people will enter and exit Skyward School of Practical Sorcery is via Portkeys."
"What was your reasoning for selecting Portkeys as the method of transportation to and from Skyward School of Practical Sorcery?" Harry asked Heather curiously.
"In my opinion, " said Heather crisply, "Portkeys give the best combination of speed, safety, reliability, and avoidance of muggle attention. "
"You know, mom, " admitted Hannah, "I've always thought it was retarded that students had to sit on a train for the better part of a day when there so many hasty transport options available in the Wizarding World."
"Hear, hear, Hannah," said Heather approvingly, "Furthermore, there were incidents of witches and wizards attracting muggle attention at King's Cross. Sure, Platform Nine and Three Quarters cannot be penetrated by muggles, but, because so many witches and wizards congregated at King's Cross in the first place, there have been incidents of witches and wizards attracting muggle attention. As such, anything similar to the Hogwarts Express was a no go."
"I take it brooms were also considered too slow?" asked Harry.
"Yes," replied Heather, "Wizarding Broom Riders can avoid muggle attention if they fly high enough, but brooms are a very slow way to travel over long distances. "
"Apparition is extremely dangerous, most students are too young to apparate on their own, and not every student will have someone who can Side Along Apparate with them as many adult witches and wizards shun the practice of Apparition due to danger and lack of confidence, " said Amy matter of factly.
"Exactly, Amy, exactly, " smiled Heather, "I definitely wanted a safer method of coming to Skyward School of Practical Sorcery than Apparition. I was comfortable taking Hannah by Side Along Apparition in our special case because I know I'm highly skilled in Apparition. But, as you point out, too many students may not have such an adult who can Side Along Apparate with them for this to be the appropriate selection."
"The Floo Network is highly unreliable, " piped up Susan, "It's easy to come out of the wrong fireplace. Moreover, the clarity of speaking required could pose difficulties for students who are naturally and understandably nervous on their first day of school."
"You're right, Susan, " said Heather in a businesslike voice, "The Floo Network can also be spied on, a much greater risk if many people use it in a short period of time."
"So," grinned Harry, "You settled on Portkeys."
"Yes," said Heather seriously, "Portkeys are safe, fast, reliable, and don't attract muggle attention. "
"OHH!" interjected Amy suddenly, "What if a student misses his or her Portkey?"
"The Portkeys used to gain entrance into and departure out of Skyward School of Practical Sorcery are not the pretimed kind, " explained Heather, "The Portkeys used to come to and leave from Skyward School of Practical Sorcery are the activate when touched type."
"How will you manage many students arriving at once, mom? " inquired Hannah.
"For most students, I'll just send the Portkeys out at various intervals on September 1st to stagger arrivals, " said Heather briskly, "This is explained to each student in his or her letter. I told each student when to expect his or her Portkey."
Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah all nodded in understanding.
"BTW, " said Hannah sincerely, "Harry, I just really want to take this moment to thank you for setting up the mother-daughter moment that I was able to share with mom yesterday. Being able to share the first steps anyone ever took on the campus of Skyward School of Practical Sorcery with my mom and only my mom gave me a feeling of warmth and beautiful mother-daughter memories that will last a lifetime."
"I totally got goosebumps when I first stepped onto the campus of Skyward School of Practical Sorcery, " said Heather with heart in her voice, "It was the culmination of my dreams coming true and then to add that mother-daughter moment on top of it. Yesterday was a day I will never forget."
Now looking around at the campus, illuminated by the moon, Harry, Amy, and Susan, all smiled themselves.
"So," prodded Heather, "With every letter I sent out to the students coming into Skyward School of Practical Sorcery, I asked them which school club they will be joining. This will be standard for first year letters in the future. But I'll ask you four in person. Which school club are each of you joining? I know you've had several months to look over the list of School Clubs I'm offering and consider it."
"I'm joining the Broom Club," declared Harry, "I think it'll be fascinating to learn about all the different types of brooms and how brooms developed over the years!"
"Harry, " Heather told him glowingly, "A few of the students who have signed up for Broom Club have actually agreed to bring their vintage broomsticks to certain club meetings and show them off."
"EXCELLENT!" said Harry excitedly, "I can't wait to see the broomsticks of yore."
"As for me, " cooed Amy, "I've selected Potions Club. As last academic year progressed, I found that Potion Making was a great outlet for me. I noticed that if we did a Potions lesson on a day when I was riled up or in a bad mood that I always felt better after the Potions lesson. I also found myself more and more interested in the subject of Potions as the year progressed and I'm looking forward to learning about more Potions than normal class time allows for."
"Not only will you learn about more Potions by being in Potions Club, " Heather informed Amy in a kindly voice, "You will also learn about a wider variety of methods for brewing Potions as well as how Potions developed over time. Class time in any subject is naturally limited, especially at a school like Skyward School of Practical Sorcery that aims to provide a diverse education. Potions Club was specifically created for students who have a strong interest in Potions and wish to pursue the subject and its details further. "
"The alternative methods part really struck my fancy, " said Amy cheerfully, "And played a big role in my choice of Potions Club."
"Susan and I initially had selected the same club," acknowledged Hannah, "But, given your insistence that each of the four of us joins a different club, that is not an option. Ultimately, Susan agreed to pick a different club owing to the fact that, by our judgement, she likes her second choice better than I like my second choice."
"At the end of the day, I settled on joining the Sand Club, " revealed Susan, "I enjoy spending time outdoors, so the Sand Club is a good club for me to join."
"The Sand Club shall consist of various activities all taking place in the vat of sand on the west hand side, " grinned Heather, "I expect it'll be a fun club for those in it," said Heather radiantly.
"As for me, " said Hannah happily, "I will be partaking in the Water Club."
"That's right up your alley, Hannah, " said Heather warmly, "I know you love swimming and diving and I think you'll be delighted by some of the other activities the Water Club will engage in. "
Hannah smiled at her mom.
"I've always felt at home in water, " said Hannah brightly.
"I think you've all made choices you'll be happy with, " said Heather in a satisfied voice, "But also remember why I am having the four each join a different club. Please embrace the opportunity to meet different people and make new friends."
"We will," promised Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah.
A/N: Speaking for myself, it actually bothered me in canon that Ron and Hermione seemed to have a monopoly on Harry's time at Hogwarts. (Regardless of my views on either character.) I also always thought there was a lot of missed potential for Harry to have a wider circle of friends at Hogwarts. It always bugged me, for example, that Harry seemed to have no relationship with Angelina, Alicia, and Katie despite being teammates with them for FIVE years. Heather's idea here is that the Yellow Quartet will stay together, still be BFFs, still spend some time together every day, but then also branch out and meet other people and make unique friendships apart from each other.
A shout out to the following members who have added Harry Potter and the Yellow Quartet to their favorites/and or follows lists since the last update:
darylvthomas
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Much love from Arizona for all the support! Love you all -Michael :)