Despite the initial encouragements of Flitwick, levitation was very difficult. It was not as hard to understand as the long and incomprehensible calculus the students did in Transfiguration, but it was not the facility of the Lumos spell either. Alexandra had used to levitate several objects without a wand before her eleventh birthday, but the sensations with a magical focus were really different. Nigel Wolpert was no help: the shy boy had not managed to even enounce the incantation once. After fifteen minutes, the only moment interesting was Seamus Finnigan reducing his quill in ashes in a formidable explosion. This Gryffindor was a danger for everyone around him, in Alexandra's opinion. A fact that Dean Thomas, who was now shaking under the table, would not be arguing against until the end of this year. Even Flitwick face had harboured a preoccupied expression for a few seconds and had rushed to heal the burn marks of the clumsy Irish boy.
Hermione Granger, at the other side of the classroom, was the first person to make her quill fly ten minutes before the bell rang. One minute later Padma Patil managed it.
Exasperated by the lack of compliance coming from the object in front of her, Alexandra shouted "Wingardium Leviosa!" The targeted quill skyrocketed and slammed down against the ceiling with the power of a gunshot.
"Less power, more control, Miss Potter!" Grinned Flitwick, who cancelled her charm to let her destroyed quill fall down on her desk. The Potter Heiress emitted a parody of military salute before casting a Reparo at the martyred object she had just vented her frustration on.
After two more failed tries, Alexandra finally levitated correctly her quill, the recipient of her efforts slowly rising from table to stop two feet over her head. Nigel was looking at her with awed eyes, and she noticed the Gryffindor boy was looking less scared now.
Looking around, she saw most of the other students hadn't had much luck. When they tried. Neville Longbottom and Leo Black were plunged into a deep conversation where levitation wasn't the main subject. Unless they planned to use it in a prank or two against the Slytherins. Lavender Brown and Thelma Holmes were gossiping about dresses and make-up. Seamus Finnegan had stopped his attempts for now, aware the next time he tried something with his wand might set the room on fire or another unpleasant catastrophic event.
But the main attraction was at the table where Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger sat. Hermione Granger had managed to make her quill fly. The efforts of the red-hair boy however, had led to nothing until now. Okay, nothing but a lot of noise and a headache for those who were in the vicinity.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ronald Weasley shouted every ten seconds, waving his long arms like a windmill or a baboon who had found a wand somewhere in a tree. "Wingardium Leviosa!"
"You're saying it wrong," Alexandra heard Hermione Granger snap. "It's Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the "gar" nice and long."
"You do it, then, if you're so clever," Ron shouted, clearly not appreciating the critic. Then the boy looked at Leo Black behind him, who emitted a nasty smile in return.
Hermione rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!"
Their feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads.
"Oh, well done!" Cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. "Everyone see here, Miss Granger's done it again!"
Hermione beamed, but her joy was short-lived as Leo Black threw her a Jelly-finger jinx in the back when Flitwick turned his attention to criticize the lack of efforts on the part of Lavender Brown, forcing her to let her wand fall on her desk. Alexandra saw the three Gryffindors look satisfied at this, like they had done something they should feel proud of. So much for Gryffindor being the House of nobility and courage. Why, the risk and the courage of cursing someone in the back were so dashing!
Weasley and most of the first-year Gryffindor having utterly failed in making their quill fly, they had to write a fifteen inches essay on the charm of the day and practise Wingardium Leviosa for the next lesson. It did not put Weasley in a better mood, and he profited from the occasion to lash with words at Hermione Granger:
"It's no wonder no one can stand her," Alexandra heard him tell Neville as they pushed their way into the crowded corridor. "She's a nightmare, honestly." Neville and Leo nodded exaggeratedly and laughed, as if what Weasley hadn't just in public insulted a member of their House.
Someone knocked into Su Li as they hurried out down the corridor to get to lunch. It was Hermione. Alexandra caught a glimpse of her face from the corner of the corridor – and was not surprised to see that the bushy-haired girl was in tears.
"I think she heard you." The voice of Leo Black sounded a bit ill-at-ease, coming behind her.
"So?" Answered Ron Weasley in a condescending voice. "She must've noticed she's got no friends. Honestly, I'm not sure this girl is a true Gryffindor, really. Now what's up for Lunch? I'm so hungry I could eat..."
Alexandra had to approve at this last words. If Ron Weasley was a true Gryffindor, then Hermione Granger certainly wasn't. Weasley was not on the level of her cousin Dudley Dursley as a bully, but only because he cared so much about food, sleeping and commenting about Quidditch. He never earned a single point for Gryffindor and lost scores of it, while Hermione Granger earned a hundred points by herself in two weeks. Hermione was a model student, while Ron Weasley passed all his evenings in detention with a professor or another, direct result of his pranks and misadventures with Leo Black and Neville Longbottom. Still, the derogatory remarks of Weasley had had a bad effect on Hermione Granger, as the bushy-hair girl didn't turn up for lunch or for the rest of the afternoon classes.
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