The first Apparition lesson for sixth-years was scheduled for Saturday morning, avoiding conflicts with other classes.
When John arrived in the Great Hall, all the tables had been cleared away. Rain pattered against the tall windows.
The enchanted ceiling, much like the one used by the Constellation Society, turned dimly overhead, its slow rotation perfectly matching the gloomy weather outside.
All four Heads of House were present in the hall.
Students from each house gathered in front of their respective Head.
Aside from the four of them, there was also a short wizard.
Other than Professor Flitwick, he was the shortest person there.
He was the instructor sent by the Ministry of Magic to teach Apparition.
Unnaturally pale, with even his eyelashes nearly translucent, his hair fine and wispy, he had an unreal quality to him—so thin and fragile he looked like a gust of wind could blow him away.
These were the aftereffects of excessive Apparition and prolonged magical research.
John narrowed his eyes. The man looked more like an assassin than a teacher.
"Good morning," the Ministry wizard said once everyone had assembled. "My name is Wilkie Twycross. For the next twelve weeks, I'll be serving as your Apparition instructor."
"I hope to help you prepare for the Apparition test. By the time it arrives, many of you may already be qualified to take it."
As Twycross spoke, John wasn't really listening.
Malfoy was showing off to Goyle and Crabbe, boasting that under Barty's tutelage, he had already learned Apparition.
"Hogwarts normally doesn't allow Apparition, so the Headmaster has temporarily lifted the restriction for one hour—of course, only within the Great Hall," Twycross was still explaining.
Once he finished speaking, he prepared to begin the Apparition lesson.
The Great Hall descended into chaos as the students began to spread out.
Malfoy acted arrogantly, shoving aside students who got in his way and declaring smugly, "Watch closely. It's time to show some real skill."
Goyle and Crabbe moved farther away from him, while Daphne stepped closer to John.
Seeing her, John chuckled softly and asked, "Do you remember that feeling?"
Daphne thought of their trip to Hogsmeade and nodded with a smile.
The Heads of House moved through the crowd, arranging positions for the students.
John didn't need to instruct Daphne much, as Twycross was already explaining the three D's of Apparition.
After finishing his explanation, Twycross gave the order and began counting down.
They were to Apparate into the wooden hoops placed in the hall.
As he reached "three."
Four loud cracks echoed through the Great Hall.
Four people appeared inside the wooden hoops at once. Malfoy slammed straight into a solid chest and cursed, "Your chest is like stone, Neville."
Neville uncertainly patted it.
"I did it!" Daphne said in delight.
Standing in the hoop, John grabbed Daphne's left hand and said softly, "Not completely."
Daphne looked down to see that her left index finger had been left behind.
Before any blood could even flow, John had the finger fly back and press itself into place on her hand.
He raised her left hand and murmured an incantation.
After pouring a bit of Essence of Dittany over it, the finger looked as though nothing had happened at all.
Twycross was stunned. He'd never encountered anyone who succeeded on their first try—let alone three at once. And Daphne's partial Splinching was, by all standards, excellent.
"Outstanding—and you as well. That was textbook handling of Splinching," Twycross exclaimed in delight.
The four of them instantly became the center of attention.
John's excellence and success were something the students had grown used to, but for Malfoy and Neville, it felt like a sudden, show-stopping debut.
Harry spun in place, lost his balance, and nearly fell over, drawing an unrestrained laugh from Malfoy.
Twycross tried a second round, and once again it was the same four people.
This time, Daphne lost a strand of hair, but Malfoy and Neville were as steady as ever.
Now Twycross was certain—these students absolutely had what it took to pass the Apparition test.
The lesson itself was rather dull, with Twycross endlessly emphasizing the three D's and making them repeat the same spinning motions.
Aside from members of the Constellation Society, only Susan Bones managed to make it into a hoop once—and even then, her left foot stayed behind.
Harry couldn't understand how Malfoy was so proficient.
He barely failed at all, and after a few tries, Daphne successfully completed a full Apparition as well.
The gap between the Constellation Society and the ordinary students was laid bare in the classroom.
Malfoy loudly mocked those idiots who still couldn't manage Apparition, to the point where even Slytherins wanted to hit him.
Blaise Zabini came over to ask him for advice, but left soon after, unable to tolerate that arrogant tone.
As for Blaise, he'd somehow picked up some inside gossip lately—apparently Ginny had fallen out with Dean, and their relationship was on the verge of ending.
That restless young man immediately began planning to give Ginny a grand surprise on Valentine's Day.
By the looks of it, he was aiming to steal that Gryffindor red rose on Valentine's Day.
As for how that would go, nine out of ten Slytherins weren't optimistic at all.
The remaining tenth included Pansy, the hopeless romantic.
After all, Pansy had always believed that as long as there was love, even someone from another house wasn't out of the question.
Even though she herself only ever dated Slytherins. That didn't stop her from cheering on Blaise, a fellow love-brained soul.
Malfoy went over to pour cold water on the idea, hoping Blaise would quit while he was ahead, only to get scolded by Pansy instead.
"I really don't understand how Theodore can put up with Pansy," Malfoy complained. "She's not gentle at all, unlike Astoria."
He genuinely couldn't comprehend Theodore Nott's taste. What kind of aesthetic was that?
John shot Malfoy a glance. The idiot clearly hadn't noticed Daphne glaring at him viciously.
Malfoy excitedly went on about the gift he planned to prepare for Astoria, ideally something that would be a surprise on Valentine's Day.
A wicked plan slowly took shape in Daphne's mind. She sneered as she listened to Malfoy enthusiastically reveal every detail of the gift, with no defenses whatsoever.
...
When Valentine's Day arrived,
John had expected to see Blaise first, watching Ginny toss his gift straight into the rubbish bin.
Instead, he saw Malfoy let out a grief-stricken wail.
"No—!"
Malfoy dropped to one knee, staring in disbelief at Astoria, who stood there at a loss, holding a gift identical to the one he had intended to give her.
Daphne's scheme succeeded. Before Malfoy could give his gift, she bought the exact same one and presented it to Astoria first.
Malfoy's "unique idea" was brutally snuffed out just like that.
John watched the two of them in silence. Even though Daphne had accepted Malfoy as Astoria's boyfriend, she still felt compelled to mete out punishment whenever she could.
"It's alright, Draco."
The moment Astoria said that, she looked like an angel bathed in holy light in Malfoy's eyes.
"As long as it's a gift from you, it's unique and worth cherishing."
Now that's what you call skill. That's real mastery.
Malfoy's frustration at being beaten to the punch instantly vanished, and he even shot Daphne a smug look.
In that instant, John could practically feel Daphne's urge to hang Malfoy from the ceiling.
By the afternoon, John witnessed a second dramatic scene.
As expected, Blaise was rejected, and an already foul-tempered Dean charged in again, leading to another fistfight.
Both of them were sent to detention.
Ginny, for her part, didn't seem to care much about that boyfriend of hers at all.
…
John also carried out several more modifications on Hagrid's armor.
The engravings now covered a full third of the surface, and Grawp could no longer strike it effectively.
After days of hammering, Grawp's arms had visibly thickened by an entire size.
Even the Zouwu had to sprint at full speed just to catch the furballs knocked loose by Grawp before they hit the ground.
After testing the armor's hardness, John estimated that it could withstand the blows of more than a dozen giants without much trouble.
The competition for house points between Slytherin and Gryffindor gradually stabilized.
Slytherin reclaimed first place, with Hagrid contributing no small amount.
After all, John was "doing extended practice" with him. As a professor, Hagrid naturally had to show some enthusiasm, and he handed out points with particular generosity.
Occasionally, the Ancient Runes professor and the Alchemy professor also pitched in.
Two advanced rune texts John translated for Ancient Runes earned thirty points, while Alchemy added a staggering fifty.
Percy sent a message to thank John. The emerald potion had completely cured Mrs. Weasley.
Fleur wanted to meet John, and they agreed on the Hog's Head.
They would see each other on the next Hogsmeade weekend.
With his preparations at Hogwarts fully in place, John shifted his attention back to the Black Lake.
He hadn't forgotten that, deep beneath its waters, lived a giant squid that had survived for a thousand years.
While the weather was still cold, he once again entered the icy waters of the Black Lake.
As March arrived, there wasn't much change in the temperature—only added dampness and stronger winds.
On the shores of Hogwarts' lake, Malfoy and Neville competed once more.
The next trip to Hogsmeade arrived as well.
John prepared to go and meet Fleur as promised.
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