Lesson Two

"I think that is enough for all of you trying to command your brooms. Mr. Parker, I suggest that you should be more confident on saying the word. Brooms might have some trouble trusting your voice."

Everyone focused their attention on him, holding their brooms tightly. "Since most of your brooms knew you already, this is the best time to mount on them but I need you all to wait for my instructions. There is a tendency for you to fly involuntarily by mounting your brooms only. I need you all to relax, keep calm, especially the two of you, Ms. Frey and Mr. Riddle. Don't worry, you life is safe on me." He saw the two of them, trying to relax themselves about the fact that they have never rode a broom before.

"For you to fly, you need to have some kind of a telepathy towards your broom. Speak to them. Trust me, they listen to you. The question is, what are you going to tell it? Simple. Command them to fly, letting them know that you are still the one that should be followed and how high you should fly. This is the first thing you should remember. If you will have a lot of practice, the broom, on its own, will read your mind and follow it. Is everyone ready?"

He paused for a while, making sure that this class won't have any accidents on flying. "Your first task is to fly one foot from the ground. Ready? Go!"

Aurora stared blankly at Professor Clark. Talk to the broom with telepathy, seriously? Whatever the case, she had never felt any kind of connection with a broom, old and experienced or not. Looking down at her hand, she focused on the broom, and rather foolishly, thought, Hey, broom, listen up. You're gonna let me fly now, okay? She swung one leg up over the broom and pulled the tip up with a jerk. Fly, fly! With a distinct impression that if the broom was human, it would be laughing at her, Aurora felt her bottom hit the ground as she slid off the broom's tail end. "Ouch," she muttered, rubbing the place that had whacked the ground. Aurora glared murderously at the broom where it sat, looking innocent. I don't care if he thinks it's easy, it's not!

As soon as he instructed them to fly, Aurora Finnigan strove to the air, almost loosing her control. Focused on the broom more, she did manage to control it in the end by stopping on one place. "Ms. Finnigan, please be careful! Try to be more confident about it. I know that it is a bit hilarious but trust me, that will not result nicely."

"No one is permitted to die in this class," Ashton reminded them of the fact that what they are doing right now is a very dangerous activity.

Once everyone was ready to mount their brooms, Professor Clark gave them further explanation about the principles of flying. Apparently, they had to control their broomsticks with their voice until, with enough practice, they would respond to their mere thoughts. James looked at the handle he was holding and hesitantly swung one leg over it. All right, the first step is done, he reassured himself, now I just have to command it to fly.

Glancing at the others, he witnessed Aurora fall to the ground with a loud "Ouch". "Are you okay?" he asked her, but at the same time Professor Clark approached the Ravenclaw and urged her to be careful. "No one is permitted to die in this class" he finished, addressing all of them. Die? James repeated in his mind. He couldn't help wondering if that had already happened before, and the little confidence he gathered instantly vanished. "Professor, I'm not sure I can do this." he admitted.

"Up!" Ella said.The broom flew up into her open palm. She smiled a little inside from satisfaction.Ella got ready to mount her broom while Professor Clark explained that they were going to fly.

Ella swung one leg over her broom and pulled upward thinking, Fly. Ella lifted about a foot off the ground before falling to the fairly soft ground below. Too discouraged to try again Ella just sat on the ground.

Keith sighed. "Up!" He tried one last time, this time, the broom flew straight up into his hand. Satisfied with his success, he listened to the Professor talk some more. Uh oh. I hope I can fly alright. Keith though miserably. He mounted his broom and gently lifted off the ground, trying his best not to fly off in a random direction. Maintaining his broom, he slowly flew back down to the ground. He smiled. I managed to do it! And on the first try!

Ashton's attention was converted on Keith Parker's performance. For a very short period of time, he managed to control his broom at the exact height that he instructed. "Excellent Mr. Parker. Ten points for your house."

"Everyone should try to fly now. The weather seems to be with us but I don't think it will wait for forever for all of you to fly perfectly."

Kim mounted on her broom for the first time. She had ridden a broom before but it is an ordinary broom that is used in sweeping the floor of their home. She had never thought of riding one and use it to fly.

As instructed, she is to kick on the ground for the broom to know that it is already time to fly. Before she can do it, she saw Aurora doing it successfully but the control on the broom was not enough. Then, Keith went for a try, successfully doing it at once. Now, she doesn't really know whether this task is easy or not.

She made a slightly strong kick on the ground, taking the broom to know what she wanted to do. It floated a few feet from the ground, moving sideways. She focused more on the it, trying to control her height and its movement. In the end, she did manage to control it without looking at the ground that will surely make her sick.

Professor Clark didn't seem to have heard him, since he was on the other side of the pitch, congratulating Keith for his success. Maybe it's not that hard after all, James thought once his brief moment of panic had passed, watching the Gryffindor softly land. I just have to rise a few feet and then return to the ground. Besides, the teacher would surely be able to intervene if something went wrong.

"Fly" James whispered to his broomstick once he was ready. At first, nothing happened, but just as he was starting to think that he failed, the broom started slowly soaring. Startled, he instinctively gripped the handle more tightly. As the broomstick continued its ascension, he felt his feet suddenly leave the grass, almost throwing him off balance. After a few seconds of struggle, he finally found the right equilibrium. Even though his heart was still racing and he was holding the stick so firmly that he was surprised it didn't break, he also felt something he never had imagined he would feel while riding a broom: he was enjoying it. It gave him a sense of endless freedom, as he could just fly off in any direction.

However, his satisfaction was shortly lived. As he was now some four feet above the ground, he began feeling a bit dizzy. "Stop" he said to the broomstick, thinking that he must look foolish talking to a piece of wood, but apparently the others were too busy to notice. "Down" he commanded more loudly after his mount refused to listen to him and continued rising. Without warning, the broom dropped as fast as a rock falling through the air. Despite the rough landing, James managed to stay on his feet. Enough for today, he said to himself, getting off the broomstick, relieved that this task was over.

Ella tried again and this time she was able to make it a good five feet into the air before falling down. "Ouch," she landed with a thump. "That's enough for today." she said in a stern, angry voice. She looked at her broom with a evil eye then stood up, her back hurting from landing on it.

Seeing Keith Parker's success, some students were encouraged to try the same thing. Afterwards, Kim Frey, James Riddle and Ella Fontayne successfully managed to fly at the proper height. "Great job Ms. Fontayne. Ten points for you. Though, please practice landing smoothly next time." He helped her stand up on her feet while checking some bruises that have might occurred.

Then, he turned to the two muggle-borns on his class, who did an remarkably nice job on the broom. "You two are very excellent. I know that this is your first time but you two did an excellent job trying to do it on the first time. I would like to give fifteen points to each of you. I do admire your courage. Keep up the good work."

"Ms. Finnigan, please try again and make sure that you concentrate on the broom this time. Ms. Malfoy, I would like you to try to fly now. There is an activity waiting for all of you."

Oh, no, panicked Aurora. I'll make a fool out of myself again. Determined, however, not to let James or the rest see her back out, she swung her leg over the broom again. "Fly," she told her broom sternly, and it lifted off the ground slightly. Aurora wobbled, trying desperately to regain her balance. The broom floated higher, and Aurora started to hyperventilate. Go down, go down! Somehow, the broom listened to her, at least a little bit, for it dropped like a stone and Aurora toppled off. "Oops," she muttered, rubbing her bottom again.

Fly? Actually fly? Keith wondered. He took a deep breath and mounted his broom. He lifted the broom up slowly and gently, making his way up off the ground. He made it a good few feet, before the broom went berserk and came crashing back down, forcing Keith off the broom. Keith angrily got back up and snatched the broom. He mounted it again, attempted to do the same exact movements as last time. The broom slowly lifted off the ground. Keith managed to get a few inches higher than last time, but before he could do anything else, the broom came back down and he landed with a thud. "So close.." Keith said.

"Great job Ms. Finnigan. Ten points for you too, though like with Ms. Fontayne, please be careful on landing next time," Ashton informed his student.

He looked at them all and it seems that everyone is already done with their basics. Some of them might need a lot of practice but Ashton was sure that they can tolerate the next activity for that day. "Everyone, please form a circle around me. In this activity, you will learn how to control your flying ability in terms of height, speed and movement." As his students did what he said, he opened a huge paper in which a diagram was drawn. In the diagram were fifteen circles scattered on different directions:

...........................START: O ------ O ............. O ------------ O ---------------- O..........................................................................................
.......................................................|.............../ ................................................|..........................................................................................
.......................................................|............./....O ------- O..............O ------- O.........................................................................................
.......................................................O------O.......|..............\............../.........................................................................................................
............................................................................|..............O -------O.........................................................................................................
............................................................................|.......................................................................................................................................
...........................................................................O ------------------------------------- O :FINISH..................................................................

OOC: Just ignore the periods/dots :OOC

"There are fifteen circles where all of you needs to fly through. These circles have a liquid substances on them. Once you touch on their rim, the substance will obviously stick on your brooms, letting me know whether you touched them or not. Each circle is worth one point. If you touch one circle, automatically, it will be deducted on your total score, which is suppose to be fifteen points." The students made some buzzing sound, commenting on how they will manage to go through them perfectly. Ashton ignored them and proceeded on the activity he made. He drew his wand one more time, waved it lightly and for a moment, the diagram became real on the field. The circles arranged themselves accordingly and stayed still on their positions.

"Whoever is ready to begin, just go to the starting line and wait for my go-signal."

"Everyone, please form a circle around me. In this activity, you will learn how to control your flying ability in terms of height, speed and movement." He took out a map.
"There are fifteen circles where all of you needs to fly through. These circles have a liquid substances on them. Once you touch on their rim, the substance will obviously stick on your brooms, letting me know whether you touched them or not. Each circle is worth one point. If you touch one circle, automatically, it will be deducted on your total score, which is suppose to be fifteen points." "Whoever is ready to begin, just go to the starting line and wait for my go-signal."

Ella stared blankly at the professor and whispered under her breath,quiet enough that Professor Clark couldn't hear her," How am I supposed to do that?I can't even stay on my broom..why did I even take this class?" Reluctantly, she walked over to the starting line.

"Everyone, please form a circle around me. In this activity, you will learn how to control your flying ability in terms of height, speed and movement." Professor Clark announced, and the students all gathered around him.
He opened up a paper with a diagram drawn on it, Lucy's eyes widened as she looked at it.
"Oh," was all she managed to say about it. She didn't quite understand yet what the circles meant.

"There are fifteen circles where all of you needs to fly through. These circles have a liquid substances on them. Once you touch on their rim, the substance will obviously stick on your brooms, letting me know whether you touched them or not. Each circle is worth one point. If you touch one circle, automatically, it will be deducted on your total score, which is suppose to be fifteen points." He explained, and then with a wave of his wand, the diagram became real on the field. "Whoever is ready to begin, just go to the starting line and wait for my go-signal."

She kept back as she watched Ella reluctantly go to the starting line.
"Good Luck!" she yelled.

"There are fifteen circles where all of you needs to fly through. These circles have a liquid substances on them. Once you touch on their rim, the substance will obviously stick on your brooms, letting me know whether you touched them or not. Each circle is worth one point. If you touch one circle, automatically, it will be deducted on your total score, which is suppose to be fifteen points." He explained, and then with a wave of his wand, the diagram became real on the field. "Whoever is ready to begin, just go to the starting line and wait for my go-signal."
Wade watched Ella go to the starting line, ready to take on the task.
"Good Luck!" Lucy yelled.
Wade grabbed a hold of his broom, trying to not show that he was nervous.

"Good luck!" she heard Lucy call.

"Wait, I'm going by myself? No, no, no..." Ella shrieked as she backed away from the starting line and stared at everyone else. "I won't go alone, not fair." Ella continued, as she knelt on the ground.

After Professor Clark explained their task, Keith wasn't sure how well he would do. After all, he didn't want to lose any points for his House. Before he could do anything or ask any questions, he watched Ella begin to walk up. Keith smiled and cheered along with his other classmates, before Ella seemed to realize it was only her. "Wait, I'm going by myself? No, no, no..." Ella shrieked, backing up away from the course. "I won't go alone, not fair." Ella said. Keith looked at Professor Clark. "Perhaps someone else could go with her? I'll volunteer, if so, sir." He said.

Ashton saw one of his students, Ella Fontayne, walked into the starting line. Seeing that she is the only one who is approaching it, she had second thoughts on pursuing the task. Meanwhile, Keith Parker volunteered if he can go with her. "This task should be done individually, not by partner. If you mean to say is to go to the line behind Ms. Fontayne, well then, suit yourself," Ashton said to Mr. Parker. Then, he turned his attention to Ella Fontayne. "Ms. Fontayne, everyone should do this activity. If ever you are not ready, it is fine with me. Maybe Mr. Parker is willing to go first," Ashton said to her, turning his sight to Keith.

Ella looked at the Professor, her eyes wide. She then turned to Keith, "You can go." she said blankly then went to the end of the line.

After thinking over, Ella Fontayne let Keith Parker do the task first. "Alright then. Mr. Parker, mount your broom now. You are allowed to fly only when you hear my whistle blow. Are you ready?" Ashton inquired. The boy nodded and mounted on his broom at the same time, focused only on the whistle and the circles. "In 3, 2, 1.." Ashton blew his whistle loudly and clearly enough for everyone to hear his signal.

Keith took a deep breath as he mounted his broom. "In 3, 2, 1.." Professor Clark said, before blowing his whistle. Keith pulled up off the ground and slowly made his way through the first circle carefully, he continued flying carefully through the next few circles. He turned sharply and made it through his next circle. "Only three left.. Come on.." Keith muttered quietly to himself. He made it smoothly through the first circle, but accidentally touched the rim of the second and got a bit of the liquid substance on his broom. Keith groaned. "Okay, just keep going.." He said quietly. He made it through the last circle and to the finish line. He flew back down to where his classmates were and looked at Professor Clark. He knew he at least at gotten fourteen points, due to hitting the second to last ring.

Following his classmates, James approached Professor Clark, who had just opened a large piece of paper with some sort of drawing on it. Stepping closer to see what it was, he distinguished a series of circles linking the words "START" and "FINISH". That's impossible, he thought to himself, guessing what they would be instructed to do. A few moments later, the teacher's explanation confirmed his fears. He had really hoped that there were done with flying for this lesson, but they now had to perform a task suited for a professional Quidditch player.

"Whoever is ready to begin, just go to the starting line and wait for my go-signal." Professor Clark announced after conjuring the circles on the field. James quickly moved back, glancing at his classmates to see who would be brave enough to go first. Despite her visible apprehension, Ella came forward, until she suddenly realized what she was supposed to do. Seeing her distress, Keith then stepped up and volunteered to take her place, showing chivalry worthy of a true Gryffindor. Even if he touched a few circles on his way, Keith then completed the assignment much more easily than James had expected. A cheerful applause greeted him as he landed, a wide smile on his face. "That was impressive." James complimented him when he had retaken his place among the others.

Once Keith had landed, he was surprised by the applause that sounded. He smiled. "That was impressive." James told him, once he had made his way back over to the others. "Thanks! I know you'll do great, too." Keith replied, smiling.