Krum Niche

Jessica crossed the room to visit with the Krum girl. "Any questions before you continue?"

Annie shied away from the professor as she drew nearer. She wasn't sure she would be able to calm down enough to actually do the magic required, but she would try her best.

"No, Professor," she said. She managed a small smile and leaned up against the stone wall, waiting for the rest of the students to arrive and the lesson to begin.

Annie felt small beads of sweat roll down her back as she watched the professor work the spell. It really is awfully warm in here, she thought, wiping her brow with the back of her hand. The actual spell did not seem that complicated, but then again, she had not spent much time watching beetles, so she was unsure if she would be able to get a full transformation.

She listened closely to the incantation and watched the wand movements. Once the professor concluded the lesson, she decided it might be a good idea to look at the beetle diagram. We wouldn’t want mini Kerry’s dancing around on my desk. Annie giggled at the image.

She spent quite a long time staring at the diagram, noting the major parts: six legs, two antennas, a head, a thorax, wings… Once she was confident she could visualize the beetle correctly in her head, she stepped back in front of her station.

Lined up in a neat row were twelve beans. She took first one on the right and placed it directly in front of her. She closed her eyes, visualizing the beetle and whispered, “Escarabajo.”

Annie picked up her wand and practiced the small circular flick, careful not to speak the spell until she was sure she had the movement down.

Jessica watched Annie for a while before crossing the room. She watched her study the beetle diagram and then practice the spell before adding the wand movement.

"So, Miss Krum," she said, placing her hand on Annie's shoulder. "Are you almost ready to give this a try?"

Annie jumped when Professor Kishna showed up behind her. She felt her face flush. "Yes, Professor," she said, and stepped back a little from the desk.

She closed her eyes, visualizing the beetle from the diagram, gave her wand a small circular flick and said, "Escarabajo."

It was all over much too quickly and she opened her eyes to see if anything was crawling around on her desk.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

27

Jessica smiled when the bean remained unchanged. "I understand, Annie," she whispered, leaning in closer to the girl. "I saw him chatting with the Morrigan girl too..."

Jessica winked and patted her shoulder. "Keep practicing," she said as she walked back to the center of the room.

Well, this wasn’t going to be simple and now that the professor mentioned Kerry and the girl from their history class she couldn’t get THAT image out of her mind. Great…

She turned around and watched Kerry pacing back and forth. He looked deep in thought. I guess he isn’t having much luck either. She breathed deeply and turned back to her desk.

She practiced the wand flick again, this time with more emphasis on the flicking motion. The whole time she was flicking her wand, she was thinking about Kerry. This won’t do, she thought, and put her wand down.

She moved back to the diagram and forced herself to concentrate on the image in front of her. She stared at the antenna, moving to the legs, the head, the thorax, and finally the wings. I can do this.

Annie walked back to her desk, selected another bean, grabbed her wand, and cast the spell.


Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

49

Another dud… This wasn’t going well at all. Annie flipped back through her textbook and read the first two chapters again, when something caught her eye.

“While one still needs to concentrate on the outward appearance of the orange, one also has to concentrate on what makes up the essence of the orange. This would include the fleshy insides, the juice, texture, fragrance, and color. These together make an orange an orange.”

Maybe she was thinking about this all wrong. The first two times she focused on the outer appearance of the beetle. Perhaps she needed to change her thoughts to include the inner parts of the beetle.

She closed her book and pushed it to the far left of her desk. Closing her eyes, she envisioned the inner workings of the beetle, its intestines, its stomach, its beating heart…

Annie pulled another bean from the line, took her wand, and cast the spell again.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

75

Annie wasn’t paying attention when the professor spoke up…until she heard Kerry’s name followed by put yourself together. She spun around and saw him wiping his face with the sleeve of his jacket. Her whole body ached to go to him, but she remained rooted to the spot—the earlier warning echoing in her head.

The professor announced his success and Annie clapped along with Professor Kishna for him. Her heart rejoiced in his triumph.

The professor then did something unexpected—she excused him from the rest of the class. That was something Annie hadn’t been prepared for and she felt herself begin to panic. She watched him pack his things, debating whether she should walk to the door, when he took off—in the opposite direction.

She beamed when she realized what he was doing. "You'll get it; I'll wait right outside," he whispered to her and again, she had to resist the urge to run after him. She took a moment to compose herself and then turned back to her desk. The bean she had already partially changed was sitting quietly, waving its antenna.

She took another bean from the line and whispered, “Escarabajo.”


Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

39

Yeah, I suppose I deserve that. Annie pushed the unchanged bean aside. Eight more left. She took a deep breath and tried to clear her mind. She knew what the beetle looked like…six legs, two wings, one head, one thorax, two antennas. She also imagined the inner part of the beetle, focusing her thoughts on the heart.

Slowly, she lifted her wand, performed the small circular flick, and repeated the spell.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

27

Nothing…again. Annie put her wand down and leaned against the stone wall. She was mentally exhausted and dripping with sweat. This is never going to happen. She closed her eyes and her thoughts took her to Pamporovo. The winters were always a magical time there. The snowflakes; massive, feathery…

She stood up straight and selected another bean. The sweat ran down her face; dripping into her eyes on the way down. Softly, she repeated the spell again.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

44

Annie felt the tears sting her eyes. She had already used up six of her beans and only one of them sort of resembled a beetle. She wiped her face with her sleeve.

What am I doing wrong? She stood back from her desk and practiced her wand movements. Her wand was comfortable in her hand. I wonder… She remembered watching the professor switch hands with her own wand after Kerry asked about the movement in the other hand. It was worth a try.

Annie put her wand in her left hand and practiced the circular flick. It felt the same so she selected a bean from the six left in the line and said forcefully, “Escarabajo.”

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

72

Annie managed a weak smile. She had one more partially transfigured bean/beetle. She scooted it over to the other bean that shared its fate. Watching them together, she felt better…and she knew why.

She wouldn’t give up until the last bean was used or she managed a perfect transfiguration. She pulled the eighth bean out from the line and fired the spell at it.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

15

By now, Annie was desperate to leave the inferno that was the classroom. All she could focus on was getting a drink of water and sitting down—she debated sitting on the floor but thought better of it.

Four beans left. She glanced around the room, stopping to stare at Kerry’s empty niche. She looked at the door he ran through--that seemed like ages ago. Is he still waiting? Annie tried to push the thought from her mind. Her only way out of this was to pull it together and transform a bean or just run out of beans to transform.

She pulled the ninth bean out of line, closed her eyes, and cast the spell again.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

20

Nothing…again. Annie was starting to get upset. Fury coursed through her body, her hands began to shake, and her breathing was coming quicker. Her heart was pounding in her chest, drowning out the sounds of those around her.

She snatched up the tenth bean, clenching her wand tightly, and growled the spell at it.

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

62

She flicked the bean aside and snatched up the eleventh bean, anger flooding her thoughts. She held up her wand high, performing the circular flick and snarled, "Escarabajo...."

Annie Krum carried out 1 launched of one (D100.) :

93

Annie watched the perfect beetle scuttle around her desk. She dropped her wand, and fainted.

Jessica watched Annie from a distance and almost lost hope that she would make it...and then she noticed a distinct shift in her attitude that was both frightening and thrilling to watch.

She crossed the room, mesmerized by the tangible energy emanating from her body--and then Annie fainted.

Jessica whipped out her wand. "Sedo offensus." Annie opened her eyes and began to come around.

She helped the girl up to her feet. "Well done, Miss Krum," she smiled. "I was beginning to think your Kerry had already managed to ruin you. I am pleased to see that is not the case." She turned and picked up the small beetle.

"Attention class," she said. "Miss Krum has managed a perfect transfiguration and has earned an Outstanding for her efforts, as well as 25 points for her coven." She placed the beetle in Annie's hand and leaned in closer. "Clean up and hurry to your Kerry, Miss Krum," she whispered.

She applauded the girl and walked back to the center of the room.

Annie opened her eyes to Professor Kishna helping her up off the floor. I've fainted...again. She was beginning to get used to the idea that her emotions would end up knocking her out, and then she remembered she managed to turn her bean into a beetle...and not just halfway either.

The professor handed her the beetle and she stared down at it in disbelief. What she had to do to get this little thing to change was unsettling and she doubted she would have the strength to pull it off again.

Professor Kishna dismissed her, taunting her by telling her to go to her Kerry, and really...that was the only thing she wanted at that very moment. She retrieved her wand from the floor, packed her beetle safely into her bag along with her textbook and dashed out of the door of the classroom.