The short weekend ended, and Monday came around again.
Professor McGonagall’s Transfiguration class.
I sat in the front row, just as Professor McGonagall had told me last time.
Harry and Ron sat on my left, and Hermione on my right. Hermione naturally liked sitting in the front, but the other two were desperately trying to get to the back.
"Harry, Ron. If you sit in the back, the professor will still see you messing around anyway. Just give up and come up here."
"No, it’s not that we’re planning to mess around. It’s just a little stressful sitting right in the front."
I grabbed the two of them as they tried to retreat and forced them into the front row.
"If you sit up front and show a good attitude, who knows? The professor might think you’re being good and give you points."
"Huh? Really? That could happen? Then I guess we’ll sit in front."
They really were easy to fool.
Once class started, Professor McGonagall came in and cast a spell on my desk, turning it into a long desk that stuck out toward the front.
"Today we’ll continue with last lesson’s spell for turning matches into needles. Everyone, take out your wands."
We began turning matches into needles as instructed, but there still wasn’t a single noticeable success.
Transfiguration really was difficult.
I turned the match placed at the far end of the long desk back into a needle.
Professor McGonagall saw my spell, but this time she didn’t award any points.
I hadn’t expected to get points for it again anyway.
Wanting points for the same thing twice would just be robber mentality.
Ron let out a long sigh at the match that wouldn’t budge no matter how much he practiced, then looked at my needle and asked, "Hey, Leonard, isn’t it inconvenient having the match so far away? From here it looks kind of weird."
I changed my needle back into a match and said to Ron, "I actually think this is better. Why don’t you try it?"
Ron happily sat in my seat and cast the spell on the match.
But what do you know? The match that hadn’t moved at all suddenly turned halfway into a needle.
"Wow! I did it!"
Hmm... he managed that much with a worn-out wand that had unicorn hair sticking out all over the place?
"Harry, you want to come try this too?"
I changed Ron’s half-transfigured match back to normal and gave Harry the seat.
Harry did even better than Ron, turning almost the entire match into a needle and leaving only the head behind.
"Wow, magic feels like it works better from this seat. Why is that?"
I sent Harry back to his seat and called Hermione over to try the same thing.
But Hermione didn’t get much of a result.
At that moment, Professor McGonagall, who had been supervising the students, came over and spoke to us.
"Is there some problem, Mr. Oppenbach?"
"Oh, well. Harry and Ron practiced from my seat, and their results improved a lot. So I had Hermione try it too, but nothing changed for her."
"Really? Let me see. Mr. Potter? Try it once."
Harry tried Transfiguration as the professor said, but it was no good. He came back to my seat and tried again, and this time he did fairly well, just like before.
"Hmm... Mr. Oppenbach does seem to be right. Though I’m not sure why that would be. It’s not as if Mr. Oppenbach’s match is anything special..."
Why was that? What was the difference between the match right in front of me and the one far away? Hmm... could it be that?
"Professor, may I run a few more experiments?"
"By all means, Mr. Oppenbach."
Professor McGonagall readily agreed and went back to supervising the other students.
"Dean, Neville. Come here a moment."
Seamus was out. If I called him over, he’d definitely make the match explode again.
I called Dean and Neville over and tested them, and they showed the same effect.
Hmm...
"Parvati, Lavender. Would you two come here a moment?"
I called Parvati and Lavender over for additional testing.
When Parvati and Lavender tried the same thing, they actually got worse.
At this point, I think I’d narrowed it down somewhat.
"Professor McGonagall. I think you should come take a look at this."
"Mr. Oppenbach, have you found something?"
"I called a few more people over to test it, and all the boys improved, while the girls either stayed the same or got worse."
"Really? The sample size is very small, but it does seem to vary by sex. Still, I’ve never heard of ability differing by sex..."
Professor McGonagall tilted her head.
I called Harry over again.
"Harry, come here. Want to try this match I’ve suspended in the air?"
I floated a match about two meters in front of Harry, at roughly face level, and held it in place.
"Sure, okay."
Harry came up to the front and tried Transfiguration on the match I had floated there.
This time, it worked perfectly, with no leftover bits at all.
"Wow! I think I did it."
"Oh! Very neat Transfiguration, Mr. Potter. Five points to Gryffindor."
"Professor, this may get a little noisy for a moment, but may I do a few more experiments?"
Perhaps because things were going unusually smoothly, Professor McGonagall readily allowed my experiment.
"Hey, all the boys over there. Come here."
I called all the boys over, lined them up, and had them cast spells on the match I had floated in the air, one by one.
Just as I expected, the boys did much better.
"Girls, could you come here too?"
The girls, as expected, showed no results.
"Professor McGonagall. I think I’ve found the answer."
"Yes, Mr. Oppenbach. What do you think the cause is?"
"I think it has to do with where you’re directing your gaze."
"Your gaze? There is certainly a difference there. But what does that have to do with it?"
"This is just my personal theory, but I think it has something to do with the structure of the human eye."
"The structure of the eye?"
"Human eyes are set in the front of the face. That kind of arrangement is usually found in carnivores that hunt for food.
"This eye structure sacrifices field of vision in exchange for the ability to judge distance from prey more accurately.
"But hunting is done while looking ahead, not while looking down.
"Humans spent a very long time hunting, so I think that instinct may have remained in us.
"In my opinion, the closer the way you look at the match is to the way you’d look at prey, the better you can focus."
Professor McGonagall partly accepted my opinion, but also raised a question.
"Mr. Oppenbach, what you say does seem somewhat plausible. Then why do the girls have a harder time focusing?"
"That’s also just my guess, but men used to hunt while women handled handiwork at home. Maybe that’s why women are more used to directing their gaze downward."
"Hmm... now that you mention it, that does make sense. But for it to work this well... it’s rather shocking."
"Well, men who fail at hunting end up starving their families... I think there’s a pretty big difference between a normal state and a hunting state. Hunting is, of course, a life-or-death struggle, so there has to be an increase in focus to reduce the chance of failure."
"Hmm. Whether your hypothesis is right or wrong, the results are clearly visible, so there’s no harm in applying it to class right away. Now, everyone listen up! All students should gather their things and wait at the back."
Once the students had all moved to the back, Professor McGonagall waved her wand and began rearranging the desks.
The newly arranged desks were blatantly split down the middle.
Professor McGonagall then waved her wand again and cast Transfiguration on all the desks on one side.
The enchanted desks became much taller and longer, turning into extremely awkward-looking desks.
"Boys on the left, girls on the right. Let’s practice like this for the rest of class."
With the approach changed, the boys’ results clearly began to improve.
Seeing their own skills improve, the boys brightened up, while the girls’ side grew noticeably gloomy.
As class ended and I was about to head off for lunch, Professor McGonagall called me over.
"Mr. Oppenbach. Come here a moment."
"Yes, Professor. You two go on ahead. I’ll catch up soon."
Professor McGonagall took me to her office.
"Would you like a cup of tea?"
"No, thank you. It’s almost mealtime."
"Very well. The reason I called you here, in fact, was to ask whether you intend to present a paper on that topic just now."
"A paper?"
"Yes. If your hypothesis is correct, then it could become a very universal theory of practical magical education, applicable not only to Transfiguration but also to ordinary magic, Defense Against the Dark Arts, and more. I think it would cause quite a stir if it were published."
Professor, what on earth are you talking about... I already have enough to do, and now you want a paper...?
"I’ll verify the hypothesis together with the other professors, so how about you organize it and present it? If it goes well, the school may even award you a scholarship. Wouldn’t you like to buy something for Miss Granger as a Christmas present?"
I absolutely would. Please, let me do it.
"I’ll do it, Professor."
"Good. I’m glad you’ve decided. And apart from the paper, you’ve made a great contribution to improving the students’ grades, so there should be a reward, shouldn’t there? Fifty points to Gryffindor."
"Thank you, Professor. Then I’ll be going now. Please enjoy your lunch as well."
"Yes, thank you, Mr. Oppenbach. Off you go."
*
Separate from the paper, my school life continued.
Today was Thursday of the second week.
It was the day of flying class.
The first-years ate breakfast in the Great Hall while talking at length about Quidditch and broomsticks, but most of it was exaggeration and lies. That was true not only at the Gryffindor table, but at the other house tables as well.
Malfoy’s lies were especially bad. He shamelessly went on about some ridiculous story involving rescuing Muggles from a helicopter at the last second.
But the pure-bloods of Slytherin, who didn’t even know what a helicopter was, listened to Malfoy’s lies with great interest.
The only ones not taking part in this farce were me, Harry, Neville, Hermione, and a few of the girls.
I had no interest in Quidditch to begin with, Harry didn’t even know what Quidditch was, and Neville said he had never once ridden a broom in his life. Apparently his grandmother had never let him ride one?
Hermione was very worried about flying class, and for good reason. Flying on a broom is entirely practical skill, so no amount of reading mattered.
I ignored all the nonsense the boys were spouting and focused on my meal.
Then, all of a sudden, I heard a flapping sound, and owls flew in, dropped the mail, and left again.
Neville received a Remembrall from his grandmother.
Come to think of it, it was about time I sent a letter to the headmistress, too.
*
3:30 p.m.
The first-year Gryffindors went outside for flying class.
Of all things, flying class was held together with Slytherin.
The one in charge of our flying class was Madam Hooch. At least from what I’d seen in books and films, Madam Hooch was definitely incompetent.
She might be good at flying a broom herself, but her ability to control these unruly kids and respond to accidents was seriously lacking.
Well, I still didn’t know what she was really like.
It’s a bit unfair to judge someone without actually experiencing it, isn’t it?
So let’s see. Was Madam Hooch really incompetent or not?
In any case, Madam Hooch tried to teach us in her own way.
"Now, everyone stand to the left of your broom. Then extend your right hand over the broom and call out, ‘Up!’"
Everyone followed Madam Hooch’s instructions and shouted "Up!" The only ones whose brooms rose at once were me, Harry, Ron, and Malfoy.
Hermione’s broom seemed like it wanted to rise, but didn’t, and Neville’s broom didn’t move at all.
After a bit of back-and-forth, once everyone had their brooms in hand, Madam Hooch explained the next step.
"Now, when I blow the whistle, everyone kick off from the ground with your feet. Do not fly upward. Just hover a few dozen centimeters above the ground."
No, seriously, how are we supposed to do that? Who would understand it if you put it like that?
The only part of that sentence I could make sense of was "kick off from the ground with your feet."
Sure enough, Neville, already tense with nerves, floated upward and started flying off on his own.
Neville had absolutely no control over his broom.
And our Madam Hooch could do nothing but panic.
She couldn’t even fly after him to bring him back, and she couldn’t use magic to separate Neville from the broom.
No, seriously, just [Accio] the broom and [Aresto Momentum] it. You can’t even do that one thing? Are you really a professor...?
With the professor who was supposed to handle emergencies failing to do her job properly, Neville ended up drifting all over the place before falling to the ground and breaking his wrist.
Madam Hooch made another poor judgment call here.
"Oh dear, your wrist is broken. I’ll take Longbottom to the hospital wing, so all of you wait here quietly."
Well... if she tells them to wait quietly, do you really think these kids will actually stay quiet?
And if you take Neville to the hospital wing, who’s supposed to supervise our class?
At the very least, she could have brought in an older student with a free period to keep watch.
She didn’t even think of that and caused this whole mess.
"Look what Longbottom dropped. It’s a Remembrall."
Sure enough, Malfoy picked up the Remembrall and started acting like a little bastard.
"Give that here, Malfoy."
Harry took the bait.
The two of them began flying on their brooms.
Whether they did that or not, I spoke to Hermione.
"Hera, come here. Want to ride a broom with me?"
"What? Madam Hooch told us to stay put."
"It’s fine. You can’t even Apparate at Hogwarts, and the hospital wing is pretty far from here. I want to ride with you... just for a little while."
"...Okay. Just for a little while?"
Good. I’d managed to persuade Hermione, and now all that was left was to trust my blessed physical ability.
I’d called a broom up at once earlier, so I seemed to have decent control over it. This would be a pleasant sky date with Hermione.
I mounted my broom and had Hermione sit behind me.
"Len, I’m a little scared... What if I lose my grip and fall?"
"It’s okay, Hera. If you fall, I’ll catch you for sure. Fear is poison when riding a broom. Confidence is what matters. If you’re scared, the broom will know it and stop listening to you even more."
I kicked off the ground hard. The broom we were riding gradually climbed in altitude, and before long we were near the tallest tower of Hogwarts.
"Hera, look over there. Isn’t it beautiful?"
I pointed to the Black Lake, glittering under the warm afternoon sun.
"Where? Wow... it really is pretty..."
I steered the broom down from the top of a tower shaped like a chess rook.
Hermione pressed herself against the battlements and began admiring the view that could only be seen from high up, and I wrapped my arms around her from behind.
"See? It was worth coming up here, wasn’t it?"
"Thanks for bringing me here, Len. I definitely wouldn’t have been any good at riding a broom."
"It’s fine, Hera. If you want, I’ll take you flying anytime. But shouldn’t we start heading down now?"
"Oh, right! We should hurry down. Madam Hooch might be back soon."
I got back on the broom and had Hermione sit behind me again.
"Hera, this time I’m going to pick up the speed a little. Don’t be scared. I’ll make sure I get you back safely. You trust me, right?"
"I-I know. Let’s do it."
"Hold on tight. Here we go!"
I started speeding up with Hermione on board.
We flew around the castle here and there, then returned to the courtyard where flying class was being held and plunged straight down toward the ground.
The grass is getting closer.
Speed up a little more.
We’re about to hit the ground.
Just before impact, I sharply turned the broom and leveled it out parallel to the ground.
Of course, it wasn’t as fast as Krum on a Firebolt.
This was just an old school broom, after all.
Still, that was a pretty successful [Wronski Feint].
"Mr. Oppenbach... what on earth is this...? How dare you carry a student and fly so recklessly..."
Ah, right...
On the ground was Professor McGonagall, who had come down after being startled by Harry’s flight.
How was I supposed to explain this...?
No choice. I’d have to bluff my way through it.
"With a broom this old, it’s impossible to get hurt. I haven’t even shown you ten percent of my real skill yet."
"Is that any way to speak when you’re the one who did something wrong, Oppenbach? Ten points from Gryffindor!"
Ah, so that didn’t work.
"Potter and Oppenbach, come with me. Class is over for you two, so return to your house now."
See? I knew this would happen.
Madam Hooch had run the entire class for a grand total of ten minutes today. If I had the authority, I’d fire her first thing.
Hermione said to me in a voice full of worry, "Len, maybe I really should have stayed down below... Professor McGonagall seems really angry."
"It’s fine, Hera. I don’t think I’ll get scolded too badly. Ten points is decent enough. Anyway, go on in first. I have to follow the professor."
Professor McGonagall took us to the ordinary magic classroom.
After knocking and opening the classroom door, Professor McGonagall said to Professor Flitwick, "Professor Flitwick. I’m sorry to interrupt class, but I need to take student Wood with me."
"Ah! Of course. Mr. Wood? Off you go."
The student called Wood came out of the classroom, a short-haired student who looked like he was born to play sports.
We went with Wood to Professor McGonagall’s office.
As soon as she sat down, Professor McGonagall said in a solemn voice, "Mr. Wood. I think the time has finally come for us to make Gryffindor great again."
"Professor, do you mean... have we finally found a new Seeker?"
"Exactly. And not just one, but two."
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