Chapter 19 — Assistant
"Daphne, I know you can manage it, so please go ahead and begin running through the first-year spells."
I addressed my attendant, and she nodded in understanding, moved the little wire frame aside, and began running through the movements and incantations for every first-year spell in sequence.
"Right. Why is everyone else just sitting there?"
I looked around at the Ravenclaw students and let my frown speak for itself.
"Or do you think I intend to go easy on you?"
"Er..."
"Wait. Some of you are Muggle-born, so let us start the lesson with something more fundamental. There are three commonly accepted wand grips. The first is commonly called the everyday grip, and it is very well suited to general wand work. Most wizards use it not only in daily life but in their professional work as well. It is called the everyday grip, but in my view the more accurate name would be the universal grip. Watch how the wand should be held..."
I took hold of the tip of my wand with my left hand and demonstrated slowly, making sure every student in the room could follow: not only the Ravenclaws, but the Slytherins who were sharing the lesson with us.
"Everyone try it."
They all did.
"Now, with that grip, try the exercise..."
I nodded towards the frames and gave everyone about ten minutes.
"That will do. Now watch for the second widely accepted grip. It is called the combat or dueling grip. Aurors rarely use it, simply because by the time they enter the Auror program they have already grown accustomed to the previous one. Professional duelists, however, like Professor Flitwick, tend to prefer this."
I demonstrated.
"Combat wizards also use this grip. Please do not confuse combat wizards with Aurors. They are different things. I would say that combat wizards and professional duelists are the only people who actively retrain themselves to use this grip if they did not start with it, because it suits their purposes and saves approximately a third of a second on spell execution. Try the exercise with this grip now..."
I noticed that Flitwick had stepped back towards his own desk. Every student in the room was watching me, and he appeared to have decided to step aside and simply observe.
Good. Exercise finished. There is one more common grip, called the precision grip. It is used by high-level Healers and practitioners in fields where shifting the wand even a few millimeters is not acceptable. Watch how it is performed.
I demonstrated once more.
I should note that this grip is perfectly usable in everyday life, but for dueling, combat magic, Auror work, and any profession where speed of casting matters, it is not ideal. There have, of course, been exceptional individuals who used it successfully even in those contexts, but I shudder to think what they put their wrists through to get there. Now try the exercise.
Ten minutes later, I stopped the practice.
Good. Everyone return to the everyday grip.
I demonstrated it once more.
And run through the exercise again for another ten minutes.
What if I don't want to? What if I want to use the dueling grip?
Use the dueling grip, then.
I shrugged.
Just don't complain when you reach your seventh year and decide to become a Healer, and find yourself retraining from scratch. Personally, I think it is far simpler to learn with the everyday grip, and then spend ten minutes each evening practicing the dueling grip and ten minutes on the precision grip. And yes, Mr. Nott, that is one point from Slytherin for calling out without raising your hand.
You can't do that!
That is two points.
Flitwick stepped in, and Nott was forced to fall silent.
Mr. Black is already my assistant for lessons attended by Ravenclaw first-years, and from next week Mr. Nott will be assisting me with the first three years.
I thought that was just a rumor...
The boy looked stunned.
Not at all. Mr. Black is considerably ahead of the curriculum, and my colleagues and I considered it entirely appropriate to examine him early. As my assistant, he has every right to deduct and award points.
I... understood...
The boy looked rather deflated.
Why is everyone just sitting there? Only Daphne is doing anything.
I shook my head.
Or do you think that because Mr. Black and Professor Flitwick were distracted by a single student, you are free to do nothing?
"No, but..."
Every student in the room immediately returned to their practice. I began to move between the rows, wand spinning between my fingers.
"Yes, Mr. Potter?"
I noticed Harry raise his hand.
"Why are you spinning your wand like that? Is that another exercise?"
"Exactly, Mr. Potter..."
I gave an approving nod.
"...this exercise develops the wrist and fingers for one of the less popular grips. It falls between the dueling and precision grips and combines the advantages of both, though not without drawbacks. It places significant strain on the wrist and fingers, and requires a great deal of conditioning."
"Could you show it to us?"
I shrugged and demonstrated the grip.
"If you would like, you are welcome to try a few repetitions, but I very much doubt your wrists and fingers will hold up past five or six."
"Ha..."
Nott picked up his wand in a pointed imitation of my grip.
"Mr. Nott..."
I stopped him before he began moving.
"What now?"
He was irritated, his expression edged with mockery.
"I simply wanted to clarify something. The previous three grips are all standard average holds, and the small individual variations I noticed in how each person in this room was holding their wand are entirely acceptable. That is precisely why those grips are recommended: they can be adjusted slightly to suit the individual, which reduces strain on the wrist and fingers. This grip, however, is extremely sensitive to precision. Exactly how the wand is held matters a great deal, so please look carefully at exactly how I take it..."
I repeated the grip slowly.
"And?"
"Your thumb, you are holding it slightly out of position..."
I moved to the boy and adjusted his thumb.
"Ow!"
He dropped his wand.
"Are you trying to break my finger?!"
"Not at all..."
I shook my head.
...but as I said, this grip is very demanding. You could certainly have continued holding the wand as you were, but then you would have had neither the advantages of the dueling grip nor those of the precision grip. That would be the best case. At worst, continuing to hold it incorrectly would eventually injure your wrist.
"Excuse me, like this?"
Potter caught my attention, and I went over to him, examining his grip carefully.
"Almost. The difficulty is your little finger, Mr Potter..."
I adjusted it, and he hissed in pain. He didn't drop his wand immediately, but after only three repetitions, it slipped from his fingers anyway.
"Well?"
"It hurts..."
Harry looked at his hand, surprised and confused, rubbing his wrist as his fingers trembled slightly. Another few forced repetitions, and his fingers would have cramped completely.
"Everything all right?"
"Yes..."
Harry stopped rubbing his wrist.
"Good. Everyone, take your wands in the everyday or universal grip, set the frames aside, and try the exercise by simply moving your wand through the air."
They did as I asked, and the practice continued. At the very end of the lesson, I asked them to perform the movement without any aid. Flitwick vanished the frames himself, and the students ran through it from memory.
"Hmm... seventy percent of the class performed the movement correctly."
Flitwick gave a thoughtful nod.
"That is quite a strong result overall. I expect by the next lesson everyone will be managing it, and then we can add a tongue‑twister alongside it. Well done, Mr Black. You've really pleased me. I would have run the lesson somewhat differently myself, but for a first attempt at teaching, you handled it very well indeed."
"Thank you, Professor."
I gave him a nod.
"Would you like to conclude by giving the students their homework?"
"Of course..."
I smiled and turned to face the class. They turned to face me as well, though a few were glaring at me as if I were something they'd scraped off their shoes. The moment suggested otherwise.
"Write this down. I want each of you to write an essay covering the three most common grips we discussed today: advantages, disadvantages, and professional applications. In addition, research non-standard wand grips and trace their origins."
"Excellent..."
Flitwick clapped his hands.
And as both an assignment and a piece of advice, I would strongly recommend spending ten minutes a day practicing the movement the Professor demonstrated earlier. Our next lesson is not until next week, and I hope to see good results from everyone at the start of that class. If we stay ahead of the curriculum, we may be able to use a lesson or two before the New Year for something genuinely interesting...
"Interesting?"
Hermione looked at me with bewilderment.
"That is one point from Ravenclaw for calling out without raising your hand, Miss Granger..."
Hermione went red with a mixture of embarrassment and indignation. I could practically see the question burning in her eyes: "You're taking points from your own House?!" Though she thought better of voicing it.
"...as for your question, we might look at unconventional applications of everyday charms, or explore certain everyday charms that are perfectly safe to cast without a wand... or perhaps even look at something that could, broadly speaking, be considered combat magic."
I smiled.
"Hmm... I shall keep that idea of Mr Black's in mind, but the final decision about what we study on those free lessons at the end of the half-year will be mine. I trust my experience will make the choice a rather more... interesting one."
Flitwick gave an approving nod and introduced his own adjustment. I simply shrugged, as if to say that he was the professor here, and I had merely made a small suggestion.
"Now then..."
Flitwick glanced at the clock.
"...you may begin packing up, as the bell will ring in a couple of minutes. You all worked well today, and that includes you, Mr Black."
"Thank you, Professor, though I did nothing special. I simply reproduced the method my own tutor used with me."
"The most important thing is that you reproduced it without breaking anything, and that you did so with sufficient effectiveness. That, too, is no small thing. Believe me."
I gave a grateful nod. A couple of minutes later the bell rang, and the students streamed out of the classroom, as did I. Penny Clearwater was already waiting in the corridor.
"How did the lesson go?"
She looked at me inquiringly.
"Not bad at a--"
Someone knocked into my shoulder in passing. Thanks to my training, it was the other boy who came off worse.
"Don't get above yourself, Black."
Nott walked on without looking back.
"What was that?"
"That? That is a disgruntled boy who considered himself exceptional, and has now discovered that someone his own age has achieved more. So he is taking it out on the world. As for the lesson itself..."
"It was brilliant!"
Parvati came up to Penny and gave her a firm thumbs-up.
"Draco explains things really well! I think Charms might actually become one of my favorite subjects, and I always thought nothing could beat Divination!"
"So you tried your hand at teaching?"
Penny gave me a sly look.
"At assisting, and yes, I did. I think it may turn out to be an interesting experience that helps me understand the subject better."
"Boo. You're so dull..."
Penny pulled an exaggerated pout. It was clear she had been hoping for a different reaction from me, but I had already counted everyone and had them lined up in order, so she dropped the theatrics and led us all toward the Great Hall.
//=================//
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