Surprise Test

"Your defenses," said Snape, a little louder, "must, therefore, be as flexible and inventive as the arts you seek to undo. These pictures"— he indicated a few of them as he swept past —"give a fair representation of what happens to those who suffer, for instance, the Cruciatus Curse"— he waved a hand toward a witch who was clearly shrieking in agony —"feel the Dementor's Kiss"— a wizard lying huddled and blank-eyed, slumped against a wall —"or provoke the aggression of the Inferius"— a bloody mass upon the ground.

Many of the students gasped. Chris sat straighter in her seat.

Snape set off again around the other side of the classroom toward his desk, and again, they watched him as he walked, his dark robes billowing behind him.

". . . you are, I believe, complete novices in the use of nonverbal spells. What is the advantage of a nonverbal spell?"

Ginny slightly raised her hand. Snape took his time looking around at everybody else, making sure he had no choice, before saying curtly, "Very well — Miss Weasley?"

"Nonverbal spells gives us the element of surprise against our opponents," answered Ginny. "Because they don't hear what spell we are using or going to use."

"Yes, those who progress to using magic without shouting incantations gain an element of surprise in their spell-casting. Not all wizards can do this, of course; it is a question of concentration and mind power which some lack," sneered Snape.

Ginny, Colin and Chris exchanged a few looks.

"You will now divide," Snape went on, "into pairs. One partner will attempt to jinx the other without speaking. The other will attempt to repel the jinx in equal silence. Carry on."

A reasonable amount of cheating ensued; many people were merely whispering the incantation instead of saying it aloud. Chris and Colin faced each other while, Ginny faced Alex, a roommate of Colin and a DA member. Colin always struggled with nonverbal spells, so Chris patiently waited to repel his jinx. Colin was purple in the face, his lips tightly compressed to save himself from the temptation of muttering the incantation.

"Pathetic, Creevy," said Snape, after a while. "Here — let me show you —"

He turned his wand on Chris and instinctively conjured a shield and Snape's jinx bounced back against her shield. Chris dissolved the shield but Snape attacked her again. Chris blocked it with her wand. Several people gasped, including Ginny. Snape attacked again, Chris made a shield again.

"Surprise me," said Snape lazily moving his wand to attack again. "Only blocking spells won't help you to pass."

Surprised Chris blocked him again, then quickly became serious and tried to attack Snape. The entire class stared wide-eyed and gasped repeatedly as Chris and Snape started to duel without uttering a single incantation. Chris attacked Snape blocked, Snape attacked Chris blocked. Finally, Chris found an opening and attacked Snape but soon she realized it was a trap. Snape's spell knocked Chris off-balance and she hit a desk.

"Never think your enemy will give you a chance," scowled Snape. "It's always a bait."

*****

"Did he really duel with you?" Harry's mouth dropped open later that night at the common room.

"And you really duel with him?" Ron said looking awestruck.

Chris shrugged.

"She is being modest," said Colin grinning. "She didn't let Snape win that easily."

"But he won," said Chris.

"Everyone knew he is going to win," said Ginny. "But you gave him a fight, that's what matters."

"Yeah," said Hermione nodding. "And I think Snape was impressed with you."

"Snape and impressed?" Harry repeated shocked.

"Yes, why do you think he gave that advice at the end of the lesson?" Hermione said in a matter of fact tone. "Anyway, you won't believe what Professor Slughorn offered us as a prize today. Felix Felicis. He asked us to make the Draught of Living Death potion and who makes it best will get it."

"Felix Felicis? The liquid luck?" said Chris surprised.

Hermione nodded and opened her mouth looking excited but Ginny interrupted.

"So I guess you got it?"

Hermione's face fell.

"No, I did not. A Ravenclaw student's potion was better than me," she sighed.

"That's kind of impossible," exclaimed Colin surprised. "You are the best in your year."

Hermione shrugged.

"Maybe not in potions."

"It's not that —" Chris began but abruptly stopped, as Leon came hooting towards her and sat on her forearm. "Hey, what happened?"

There was no note or anything with Leon, but Leon continued hooting.

"What's wrong with him?" asked Ginny.

"Maybe Heavenleigh chased him out of the room?" said Colin suppressing his laugh.

"Heavenleigh doesn't chase anyone, does she?" Ginny looked at Chris. "She never chased Leon, right?"

Leon started to hoot more loudly and a few of the other Gryffindors looked annoyed.

"Please make that owl shut up, will you?" snapped Danielle, a roommate of Chris and Ginny.

"I think he is just hungry," said Chris glaring at Danielle, then turned to her friends. "I will give him something to eat then send him for hunting. Be back in a bit."

Chris got up and went back to her room with Leon. As soon as Chris entered the room Heavenleigh purred, rubbed her head on Chris' leg and walked out. Suddenly, Leon flew from Chris' arm to her bed. Chris smiled and followed him and only then she noticed a red Phoenix feather and a note on her pillow. Chris quickly picked the note up and recognized the thin, slanting writing on the parchment.

Dear Christina,

I would like to meet you in my office now. I ask you to come as secretly as possible. Maybe it will be best if you do not tell anyone about it now.

Yours sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

P.S. I enjoy Acid Pops.

As soon as Chris finished reading, the note burned itself.

"You dragged me here to see Fawkes message?" Chris looked at Leon, who was looking very pleased with his smartness. "When did you start to get along with him?"

Leon hooted happily. Smiling, Chris tucked the Phoenix feather in her pocket and walked out to meet Dumbledore.

"Where are you going?" asked Colin as Chris crossed the common room.

"Just for a walk," Chris lied and climbed out of portrait hole.

Dumbledore had asked her to not to tell anyone about this, Chris knew there must be a reason. She turned a corner, out of sight of the portraits and turned into her Animagus form, a snake.

"Acid Pops," said Chris turning back to human as she reached the spot in the seventh-floor corridor where a single gargoyle stood against the wall. The gargoyle leapt aside; the wall behind it slid apart, and a moving spiral stone staircase was revealed, onto which Chris stepped, so that she was carried in smooth circles up to the door with the brass knocker that led to Dumbledore's office.

Chris knocked.

"Come in," said Dumbledore's voice.

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To be continued. . .