underage magic (WAS Special Qualities of Auror Magic?)

[urghiggi]

No: HPFGUIDX 79734

Tom wrote:
> So, they're keeping track of Harry's "area," but more specifically, 
> only cases of 'non-adult' magic in the area, right? So, wizards and 
> witches (like Mundungus and any other members of the Order who are 
> watching Harry) wouldn't register, but House Elves and Harry would. 
> Hmmm...
> 
> Still, in light of that, I'm stumped a little bit about people like 
> the Weasleys (who clearly use magic at home over the summer) and 
> Hermione, who says (I think, in the first book) that she practiced 
> magic at home. Why don't they have to deal with Hearings?
> 

urghiggi replied:
I think you must be referring to the 'hogwarts express' scene early in SS/PS 
where Herm says she has already "tried a few simple spells for practice." I'm 
thinking she was not yet officially enrolled in Hogwarts at the time, was 
unaware of the rule about underage magic (at least no such rule appeared in 
HARRY's first Hogwarts letter, so if she got the same letter, she wouldn't know 
about it either), and thus was not bound by the rule. By OoP she's certainly 
aware of the rule, and complains that she was not able to make good house-
elf clothes over the summer because she had to do all the knitting by hand.

Re Ron, I don't remember any instances of him doing magic at the Burrow 
during holidays at all. We do see Fred & George doing lots of it in OoP, but by 
this time they are 17, and no longer "underage." In GoF they can't apparate at 
the World Quiddich Cup, have to take a portkey, because they are both 
underage and haven't passed the test. Their experiments with magical food, 
like the ton-tongue toffee, must not count as "underage magic" in the same 
way as magic with a wand and a spell, because certainly they've been doing 
that for quite a while. They also don't get called down for driving their dad's 
enchanted Anglia in CoS -- but they didn't enchant the car, they were just 
driving it -- did this really count as "underage magic?" Apparently not.

Hmm. Maybe you have to use a wand for it to count?

urghiggi, Chgo