Hermione's age

[Bex]

No: HPFGUIDX 119853


mcmaxslb (sign your posts!):
> First I find it hard to believe that Hogwarts doesn't teach 
> apparation. Maybe in HBP we will see a room in the castle that 
> allows this or they take the kids who are ready to learn to 
> Hogsmeade for the day.
> 
> I think the most interesting thing is now that the characters ages 
> mean something in that when a witch or wizard turns seventeen they 
> no longer come under the under age magic restrictions that 
> Hermione will be the first to be able to apparate and do magic 
> outside of school. 

Yb:
*Anti-Ron statement edited out :)*
I know, I know, it's just like him, but wait, I have some thoughts 
on this.

mcmaxslb:
> But as for Harry being left behind because of age, remember 
> Dumbledore and Voldemort fighting in the MoM and how they were 
> apparating all over the place. What could be more useful in a 
> fight, not a duel but a fight, than the ability to apparate behind 
> an enemy and attack him or disapparate away from their attack. I 
> think that this is too important, indeed even lifesaving for Harry 
> not to be able to do regardless of ministry regulations. So Harry 
> maybe the first to learn not the last.

Yb:
Maybe not the first, but he won't be waiting till July, and you can 
knock me over with a feather if I'm wrong too. See, Hermione is 
going to be learning to Apparate a whole SIX (6) (six) months before 
EITHER of the boys will. Boy, won't Ron be green with envy for this!

What do we know?
-Hermione is a bookworm.
-She's not above helping the boys with (dangerous) magical stuff 
they probably shouldn't be doing (like the polyjuice potion).
-The boys are like normal boys: a friend gets a car, they /all/ want 
to drive it.

So Hermione has probably been studying like mad over the summer to 
prepare for this. She's read every book she can find, maybe even a 
manual, or a summer class of some sort. (I don't know how it works 
in the UK, but in the US, you can take Driver's Ed when you're 15, 
then take the test for your license at 16 and 1 month.) So she's got 
all the paper part down. A few weeks into the school year, maybe 
McGonnagall takes her aside for some training; perhaps there's a 
class at Hogwarts that allows of-age wizards to practice; then the 
first Hogsmeade visit (Halloween), she takes the test at the 
Apparation Branch that is surely there. It's the largest all-wizard 
settlement in the UK, of course they'd have one. And if they don't, 
perhaps she could Floo to the MoM for a Saturday. 

Anyway, she passes with flying colors, as Hermione always does, and 
suddenly Harry sees how useful this little talent is. And Ron is 
jealous, but he wants to learn how, preferably not from a book, but 
from Hermione (GO R/H SHIPPERS!!!!).

"Hermione, teach us..."
"C'mon, just tell us about the test..."
"Is there a spell? I mean, how do you do it?"
"I know you can't apparate on the Hogwarts grounds, but can you show 
us at Hogsmeade next weekend?"
"Come on, Hermione..."

So Hermione starts coaching them, like an instructor would (and Ron 
would probably need all the help he can get). Thus Harry gets 
lessons /months/ before he should be getting them, and he is pretty 
good at apparating before the school year is out, to the point that 
when Ron takes his test, Harry is coaching the older students. He is 
the probably the youngest in his class, after all. Perhaps DD can 
make him an "Apparating Permit" that allows him to apparate legally 
though he's underage? (We have Driving permits in the US, given to 
someone at the successful completion of Driver's Ed; you have strict 
limitations on them, like no driving passengers unless a 21+ person 
is in the front passenger seat, etc.)

I will be honest, this was *THE* book in the series I wanted to see, 
since reading GoF, and finding out about the Apparation test. Max is 
right; it's the first one in the series where the character's ages 
will make a serious difference in what happens to them. Not only 
would this one clear up the "Hermione's age" question, but it could 
have serious implications on Harry. If he has to wait until July to 
learn how to apparate, (In which case we'll have to wait for book 
SEVEN, ARRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGH!!!!!!!!!!!) we will definitely see a 
more alienated Harry, since all of his friends will be able to 
Apparate before he will. He could be forced to hang out with Ginny 
more, if Ron and Hermione are busy studying, or practicing, 
or "studying." :) LOL

Here are some things I want to know: 
Will somebody get in trouble for apparating illegally? 
Will someone splinch themselves? (Neville is a very likely candidate 
for this.) 
How does the training and testing system for Apparation work? Are 
there classes? (I look in my crystal ball, and I see Harry demanding 
information from Hermione on this subject, so we get to see some of 
it in this book instead of the next one.)

And one more little thing...
-GoF: Ron is a very angry person.
-OotP: Harry is a very angry person.
-HBP: Will Hermione have an emotional upset in this book? 

Now some may say that that happened in PoA, but I don't quite agree. 
I think that Hermione wasn't in the middle of some teenage angst 
then; she didn't have the /time/ for it. So maybe her turn's up for 
a screaming breakdown. If it is, it will be for one of two reasons:

a. She gets fed up with Ron being seemingly oblivious to her, nad 
finally lets him have it, and they finally get together as a couple, 
putting Harry into further alienation.

b. Or she finally fails at something. Not just messing up a question 
or two, but actually FAILING. If this is the case, she would be in a 
bad mood for ages, and we'd see a completely different side of her, 
like we've seen with Ron and Harry in the two previous books. It 
could be interesting.

I'd kinda like to see the first one, just because all of us shippers 
could finally get some sleep, but the second shows some major 
promise, and some possible ships developing from it as well. (Harry 
goes to comfort her, she bites his head off, he tells Ron (after 
Madame Pomfrey reattaches his head), Ron gets angry, confronts 
Hermione, and their verbal sparring is just what she needs to take 
her mind off things, thus all of my wishes come true, and all those 
bets I made pay off BIG TIME!!!) :)

Anyway....
So what could Hermione possibly fail? She probably set a record for 
the number of owls she got (a whole freaking flock!), so it can't be 
that. What if she fails Apparition? It's probably like flying; you 
can read all you want to on the subject, but actually trying it is 
the only way to learn it. So she could finally flop at something, 
losing her perfect record, and perhaps Ron is a natural for it, so 
he passes it with flying colors, and /she/ becomes green with envy.

Interesting.. Any thoughts?

~Yb, who had a great time writing this.