Chapter 16: The Assessment Requirements
The next morning was different from most. The Great Hall was sparsely populated, and the few students who were eating breakfast were huddled together, whispering excitedly.
The real crowd was packed around the notice board, layers upon layers of students straining to see a single piece of parchment that had just been pinned up.
"I can't see! Someone on the inside, read it out loud!" a student on the outer edge shouted.
"Mumble-mumble... accomplish..." a faint voice could be heard from the depths of the crowd.
"Can't hear you!"
"Louder!"
"It's too noisy!"
Cedric Diggory, a Hufflepuff in his third year, managed to squeeze his way through the mob. "Everyone, please be quiet for a moment!" he called out. "I'll make copies of the announcement for everyone!" He raised his wand, pointed it at the parchment, and incanted, "Geminio!"
Instantly, a flurry of identical parchments appeared, and every student in the crowd managed to snatch one or two.
Cedric also grabbed a copy and unfolded it. It contained only two sentences:
[Describe one great work (or one unique creation) you wish to achieve with magic, and explain your reasoning.]
[Please write your ideas on this parchment within three days and submit it to the front desk of the Adventurers' Club on the second floor.]
Reading the second sentence, some of the shrewder students realized the catch. "Thanks to Cedric!" one of them exclaimed. "Without him, students who don't know the Duplicating Charm wouldn't have been able to apply!" The announcement specified that applicants had to write on this parchment, which meant knowing the Geminio charm was the true first test.
Amidst a wave of both sincere and feigned gratitude, Cedric looked a bit flustered, unsure if he had just helped everyone cheat.
Soon, waves of students arrived at the notice board. After hearing what Cedric had done, the younger students and those less magically inclined all began searching for older friends to make copies for them.
Harry and his group hurried through their breakfast and made their way to the notice board.
"Oh, great Prefect Percy, won't you help your poor, pitiable little brother Ronnie?"
"Yes, Prefect Percy, Ron needs your help."
The Weasley twins were already back to their daily routine: teasing Percy and mocking Ron. Both Percy and Ron's faces turned beet red with a mixture of embarrassment and anger.
Harry watched the Weasley family's banter with a pang of envy.
More students were whispering amongst themselves, their eyes darting between Harry's scar and the notice on the board. A girl with a head of bushy brown hair squeezed through the crowd. Harry recognized Hermione and greeted her.
"Good morning, Hermione."
"Good morning, Harry."
After reading the notice, Hermione immediately began asking older students where the library was.
"Hermione, why are you asking about the library?" Harry asked, confused.
"I read in Hogwarts: A History that students are allowed to borrow books and study magic on their own," she said, her head held high. "I believe it is an essential part of every student's education."
As Harry watched her march off, a familiar worry crept into his heart. Would he be able to keep up at Hogwarts? What if he was expelled for poor grades? He thought of his Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon, and his cousin Dudley. He thought of his cupboard under the stairs for eleven years, and then of the magnificent feast from the night before. Harry shivered. He had perhaps found something even more terrifying than death.
"I can't believe she's in our house," Ron grumbled to Harry. "I can't stand her."
"That's not a nice thing to say about a classmate," Harry chided gently.
Ron didn't press the issue, merely pouting.
The Second Floor, Adventurers' Club.
After a long night of work, Ryan downed a bottle of Invigoration Draught just as a visitor walked in. "Well, look what the cat dragged in."
Dumbledore was amused. "Your club only opened today, Ryan. You haven't had any customers yet. How can I be a 'rare' visitor?"
Ryan smiled and gestured with his hand. A colorful assortment of sweets flew towards them. "Candy from Honeydukes. A nice treat after a meal."
"I assume you didn't prepare these over the summer?" Dumbledore asked, tearing open a package of Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans. "This seems to be a new product, released just two days ago." His eyes then drifted to a candy dispenser mounted on the wall. "Did you design this machine yourself?" he asked with genuine interest. "A brilliant idea."
"You could say that," Ryan said. Wall-mounted candy dispensers weren't a common Muggle invention yet, and this one was enchanted with a summoning charm, so Ryan felt justified in claiming it as his own invention.
"I saw your recruitment notice."
"Any suggestions, Headmaster?"
"Just curious, so I came to have a look." Dumbledore surveyed the newly renovated room and the various new gadgets. With his expertise, he could see that the magic involved wasn't particularly advanced, and some of the devices were purely mechanical. He knew that electronic products wouldn't work at Hogwarts due to the constant, powerful Muggle-repelling field generated by the castle. And yet, each of these devices was designed to bring a unique kind of convenience to daily life, a different experience from the convenience offered by magic.
"It's truly refreshing," he said. "Though, perhaps not many wizarding families would have a need for these things."
"True," Ryan readily admitted. "They are easily replaceable, and in some cases, less convenient than a simple wave of the wand."
Dumbledore said no more. He knew this brilliant student of his well enough. To others, Ryan's actions might seem eccentric, unexpected, and even rebellious. But Dumbledore knew that Ryan often acted as he did because he saw things from a much longer perspective, a viewpoint beyond the scope of most people's thinking. After all, someone who could plan for the next three to five months could be called a master strategist. What then, of a boy who could see years into the future?
Right now, these devices, which seemed inferior to a simple swish and flick of a wand, held a meaning that perhaps only Ryan himself understood.
As he was about to leave, Dumbledore suddenly said, "Oh, I almost forgot. This freshly produced candy tells me that you were out after hours last night, and even paid a visit to Hogsmeade." He winked. "Let's see… for your actions, I will have to deduct ten points from Ravenclaw."
"I must remind you, Mr. Welles, the main reason Ravenclaw consistently fails to win the House Cup is because, under your leadership, more and more Ravenclaw students have come to view the school rules as mere suggestions."
"Even with all the points you earn, it's not enough to make up for such deductions."
Ryan was used to it. The House Cup was useless, anyway. "Headmaster, you can't deny that even though Ravenclaw has lost the House Cup, the graduates from the past three or four years have been more enterprising, more daring, and more innovative than in years past."
"Several of my older friends who have graduated have written to me. They've already achieved great things. Take Larvin from the Ministry, for example. He was just promoted to Deputy Head of the Department of Magical Transportation this year."
"An excellent young man," Dumbledore agreed. He remembered Larvin. A former Ravenclaw prefect and Head Boy, and a staunch defender of Ravenclaw's house points. Of course, after a single debate with a first-year Ryan, the seventh-year Larvin had been thoroughly "corrupted," becoming the first domino to fall in the sea change Ryan had brought to the Ravenclaw house spirit.
"Yes, yes," Dumbledore said with a sigh. "The Ravenclaw of today is more like a fusion of Ravenclaw and Gryffindor. But knowledge and wit are still placed first."
"Because we are Ravenclaws," Ryan said with a fierce pride. "Eagles in pursuit of knowledge. And eagles are also fearless."