Quote:
Originally Posted by
Felixir 
Tobias watched as Cutty preformed his spell, unable to keep from noticing that the boat the Slytherin managed to transfigure the wood into was a lot more complicated and fancy than the simple rowboat he'd managed.
When Cutty prompted him to start, Toby's eyes lingered on the clipper and he glanced up at Cutty, and then back at the boat again. He was pretty sure he'd not be able to get his boat perfect on the first attempt; how many days had passed since the lesson? A lot. And that was the last time he'd managed the spell. But still, what was homework for?
"Okay."
Toby was pretty glad that the wand movement only required a tap, because he and Cutty were sat close enough together than any extravagent wand movements could be difficult to execute. Still, it was warmer than sitting alone, so no complaints here. Toby only hope his non-stop fidgeting wasn't bothering his friend.
"Lignum Navicula," the Hufflepuff cast, tapping the end of his wand on the chunk of wood that still balanced on his knee. The block began to change and morph, and Toby reached out to steady it as the bottom rounded out slightly. When the spell had finished, Tobias was left with a kind of... middle product. No longer a block of wood, sure, but not really a boat either. Sure, it LOOKED boat-ish, and you could tell that that was what it was supposed to be, but the shape was so crude it didn't really count in Toby's mind. The point was, if this was on a larger scale and Tobias was stranded on a desert island, he wouldn't count on this 'boat' to take him back home.
"...... I probably need to do the visualising thing first," he said, almost apologetically, as he used the tip of his wand to scratch at his temple. "I dunno why I didn't, to be honest."
But it was okay. Because that's what practice was for.
"
It helps me." He confirmed the idea of visualization first, realizing that he'd done that to his own practice wood. He wouldn't have given that as a tip if Tobias hadn't brought that to his attention. Was Tobias the observant type? "
You know what else would help, Tempus? For you not to be so anxious." His glance carried down towards the tapping foot, and his hand reached out and pressed against Toby's knee in an effort to stop the leg and thus the foot.
No, Toby wasn't observant. Not overly so, anyway. He would've noticed this manifestation of his own nervousness and tried to stop it. Or so Cutty thought. Why would anyone want to let anyone know what one was
really feeling?
He slowly removed his hand from Toby's knee and picked up the boy's boat. "
It's not bad, really. It's not. Reverto!" He changed the boat back into it's original form and held it up examining it this way and that, looking for the most boat-like shape in it. "
Think of a boat you know really, really well. Noah's ark, maybe? Picture it! Hold the image in your head and use the heavier part of your wood as the bottom half of the boat. Work with what you have and make it what you want. That's a big part of Transfiguration." At least it was for Cutty.
"
Reverto!" He said hitting his own boat with the spell and started again. "
I think you might be on the right track with this, though. Keep it more simple." Cutty re-examined his wood and pictured a Greecian war boat. "
Lignum Navicula!" He tried again and his wood stretched and formed the single-masted ship in miniature. But it was not that detailed and so Cutty was unhappy with it.