Angel looked at the dragon as it went through hoop number eleven. "Your doing amazing little one." Angel had got fed up of shouting Crazy everywhere she thought everyone would be calling her names after this lesson.

Angel looked at the dragon as it went through hoop twelve and thirteen, she really wanted this dragon to finish the cause. "Come on little one, we've nearly finished the cause." Angel smiled.

:Norah waved her arms and attempted a high kick as Posy flew and flew. She wobbled on one leg and yelled "Way to go!" before she lost her balance and almost landed flat on her bum. but guess what. SHE DIDNT. SO THERE. If that wasn't an improvement then she didn't really know what was. Maybe it was the marshmallows.

Raising her wand and aiming beneath her little dragon,s belly, she cast another firm "Incendio!" to guide the dragon towards the next hoop. She passed through one after the other until there were only four hoops left between the little dragon and the BIG FINISH. "SO CLOSE, POSY!" But so far away.

Hoop six, here we come!

Kate was really getting into this now. It was too bad she was off to a late start. She always loved a good race. Racing and winning would have been fun, but Kate was more worried about having fun with Sparky. She couldn't tell for sure, but it looked like he was having a good time, too! At least, he hadn't crashed or started spewing fire at her yet.

"Incendio!" Kate said, giving Sparky a little more fuel for the flight. It seemed to help the little dragon pick up its speed, and Kate started guiding him toward the sixth hoop. He cleared it easily, so she worked toward the seventh hoop now. Sparky didn't seem to be getting too tired, so he seemed to be in good shape. He cleared the seventh hoop, earning him a smile from Kate.

"Way to go, Sparky!" she said.

On the eighth hoop the small dragon hit the side of the hoop with its wing, and like in a tragic muggle film, the creature came swirling down. Beverly didn't panic. Tried not to at least, but...her dragon was plummeting. BAH!

Jumping quick into action, the Prefect crouched, flicking her wand underneath the belly of the dragon before it actually hit the ground. "Incendio!" Ash seemed to register the fire quickly, flapping her wings and rising like the mighty creature she was. She let out a roar and glided toward the next hoop. Proud dragon mumma right here.

Both Kate and Sparky must have gotten in too big of a hurry, because Sparky suddenly bumped his head on the eighth hoop. He didn't look too happy about it either, because he backed up and just hovered in front of the hoop for a little bit. "Sorry, Sparky!" Kate called out. "You can do it, though! We're about halfway finished!"

"Incendio!" Kate called out. With the fire lit underneath him, Sparky decided to have another go at it and flew through the eighth hoop. "Good job!" Kate said. She cheered him on as he cleared the ninth hoop, too. She couldn't believe he hadn't tired out by now. She guided him toward the tenth hoop, and cheered him on as he flew through it.

They'd only had one mishap so far on that eighth hoop, but other than that, they were doing really good. Five more hoops!

Angel looked at her small little dragon as the creature seemed to be going off course. "Incendio!" Angel did the wand movement and then guided the little dragon back on course. "Awesome, your amazing." Angel smiled at Crazy as the little dragon went through hoop number fourteen and then it went through the final hoop. "Awesome Crazy, you flew through all fifteen hoops, I bet we could go for the record one day." Angel smiled at her small dragon.

Angel then smiled at the dragon. "Well done Crazy, you get a lovely rest now and maybe the Professor will give you a treat later." Angel would if the Professor wouldn't, Crazy had done some amazing work today.

Angel looked at the dragon then cased Finite to make sure there was no flames about, she then decided to put the little creature back where it belonged. "Windgardium Leviosa!" Angel watched as Crazy rose and she pointed it in the direction of where the tank was. She smiled as it went gently into the tank. "Goodbye Crazy." Angel was glad that was over.

It was really starting to look like Sparky wanted to stop flying and land, and Toby sooooooooooo badly wanted to let him. But he also knew that this sort of flagging during the flying was probably totally normal, and Thompson wouldn't have set out fifteen whole hoops if he didn't think the little creatures could handle it.

"C'mon, boy. Just a few more to go, and then you can rest. Incendio!" Toby cast the fire spell towards the dragon's underbelly again, to encourage him to stay up and keep flying, and Sparky seemed to get something of a second wind, his confidence bolstered. "That's it! Atta dragon! This way!"

Toby didn't need to cast 'Incendio' again this time, because Sparky changed course on his own, leaning and veering towards the next shiny silver hoop. Toby beamed with pride and trotted alongside him as he soared straight through it, then suddenly picked up the pace, ROCKETING through the next two.

"Hey, you're getting the hang of this!" GO SPARKY! WOOOOOOOO!

They - or rather Sparky - had gone through NINE hoops now, which meant only SIX more until they were done.

Norah cast "Incendio" again, fueling Posy's underbelly as she got closer and closer to the end of the run. She trotted underneath the dragon, still flapping her arms every now and then juuuuust for fun. Almost there almost there almost theeeere! Was this exciting or WHAT? What a TIME to be ALIVE. The next silvery hoop was to the left of where the little dragon was headed, so she raised her arm to cast the spell again. But look! LOOOOK! She had turned left all by herself without Norah even having to tell her to. Man. The dragon was a genius or something.

"One hoop left! You can do it, I KNOW you can. I beliiiieve. B-E-L-I-E-V-E." She chanted the encouragement up at Posy, who didn't seem to be listening but she definitely was. Definitely. The fourth year could just tell. Once the dragon advanced through the last hoop, she cast "Wingardium Leviosa!" and with a swish and a flick she was FINISHED.

The second wind definitely seemed to be exactly what the miniature dragon needed, and now Sparky was positively racing through those final hoops. Toby watched in awe, trying to imagine seeing this happen but like... with the dragon at REAL ADULT SIZE. They would have to be some preeeeeeeeetty big hoops.

"Go on, Sparky! That's it, you're doing great! Home stretch now!"

And it was true, too. Sparky had soared through hoop number ten... eleven... twelve... As he reached hoop thirteen, the dragon started to wobble and falter in the air a bit, in the way that Toby imagined an aeroplane's engine would stall. He sent another, "Incendio!" towards and under the belly of the dragon, and Sparky kept flying, but it was very clear he was not willing to stay in the air for very long, fire or no fire.

Through hoop fourteen he went... just one more... one more hoop! "Here we go, almost there... Incendio!"

The closer they got to the tank, the more she grew excited. It was mostly her thoughts that did that. The endless possibilities of what she would doing when she became a proper dragon tamer. Maybe she'd even open a dragon sanctuary of her own. Actually. Scratch the 'maybe.' She WILL open her very own dragon sanctuary one day. She will. And it will be the greatest.

Her excitement charged her magic, causing the flames to boost. It didn't hurt Ash, of course not. But it did cause the dragon to rise higher and bump her head on one of the hoops. Ash growled at her.

"Sorry!" Oops. Excitement got the best of her, honest.

"Incendio!"

There. That was the last one. That should do it. Sparky managed to stay aloft in the air, flapping his wings one last time which boosted him through the fifteenth and final hoop. It was almost like he KNEW that was the last one, too, because he seemed to immediately give up on flying any more.

"Good job, Spar-... oops." The dragon was heading very quickly towards the floor and it didn't look like it was going to be a graceful landing, but Sparky seemed too tired to care. Soooooooo, Toby stepped in. "Wingardium Leviosa!" he cast, swishing and flicking his wand and 'catching' the dragon in midair. He grinned and tried the praise again. "Good job, Sparky. You can rest now. You did GREAT though, I'm SO PROUD!"

Toby gave a dramatic sniff and wiped a non-existent tear away from the corner of his eye, walking over to the tank and bringing Sparky with him. But... was this goodbye? ... But... but he wanted to borrow him. Thompson would surely NOTICE if he was one creature down though, would definitely realise one was in Toby's pocket if he had to go see him at the end of class too. Huh. Dilemma.

The Hufflepuff reached out and rubbed Sparky's neck again. The tired little dragon breathed flames for him one last time, and Toby smiled at him. "You just relax now, yeah. Good boy." That was better than saying goodbye, Toby decided, as he lowered the dragon into the tank.

Toby was just gonna stand here and watch them, though. 'Til class was over. They were so cuuuute. HE WANTED TEN.

There were on the last three hoops, and Ash seemed more determined than ever. It appeared like she knew she was close to the finish line. Maybe she did know, but right now Beverly focused on helping her keep afloat. Ash seemed to trust Beverly, even letting her know when her wings were too close to the hoop. Beverly would then cast Incendio, and help keep her elevated.

Like right about now.

"Incendio!" Flames spread underneath the belly of the Norwegian Ridgeback. The dragon spread her wings with confidence, passing through the last hoop. Beverly couldn't help it, she first bump the air. HER DRAGON DID IT!

Ash flew down, perching herself on Beverly's forearm, chest out and head held high. Oh, she KNEW she did great. "That was awesome." She stroked inner lines of her wings, earning a what she guessed was a content growl.

Now it was time to set her in the tank. See. This was the reason she hated naming things. She grew attached to them and when it came time to say goodbye, it was hard. "I'll find you again. I'll make Alfred help me." She promised. It was a good thing she had relatives working in dragon sanctuaries, especially ones with power. All she had to do was get him in a headlock and ask. ^__^

As much as Dot's arm was EXHAUSTED, she didn't want to let Angelina down. Literally and figuratively. There was some arm propping for a while, and then Dot tried a subtle switching of hands. Epic bad decision, though, because she couldn't recast with her non-wand hand and Angelina drifted toward the floor.

Quickly.

"Noooopppe nope nope. Incendio!!" Dot dove neatly under the dragon, prompting her up and toward the fourth hoop. Her knees were chaffed and smarting from the ground, and her shoulder ached, but at least Angelina was fluttering those precious baby wings again.

Now to the next hoop, right? "Nearly there, bitty thing. Keep going." Could they have lemonade and a nap later, please? And there they were through hoop number five.

Kate and Sparky were nearing the homestretch now! "Only a few more to go, Sparky!" Kate called out. She guided him away from the tenth hoop and toward the eleventh one. "Incendio!" she called out. A fire lit beneath the dragon, but Kate could also tell Sparky was getting weak. "Hang in there!" she encouraged.

"Wingardium Leviosa!" she said, giving Sparky a little boost to help him along.

Sparky seemed to be traveling a lot easier now, so Kate guided him through the eleventh and twelfth hoops. "You can do it, Sparky!" she said. Sparky cleared the thirteenth hoop then, which meant they only had two more to go before finishing the obstacle course.

Ugh... was she last? Was it worth even finishing? MR. PROFESSOR? Dot moved Angelina carefully through the sixth hoop and gave little exasperated noises to let herself, the dragon, and everyone know that the Dot was displeased. Displeased Dottie.

"Incendio. Keep flying, bitty thing. I'm proud of you, even if I'm very last and it means I'll never ever get to see you on your reserve because only the ones who came first get to do that, but STILL, we have to keep going." Not that the dragon was tired. It was just Dot who was tired. Angelina was the happiest little pumpkin head ever.

They went through another hoop, and another, and Dot wasn't sure she even knew what number they were on any more. NUMBER ALMOST DONE. It was her favorite number ever. "Just a little further, dragon thingy. You're a lovely little flier. Beautiful wings, good form."

Just reminding herself that the point was teaching Angelina to fly and NOT the serious cramp in Dot's shoulder. And... there. The last hoop. Dot lowered her wand and let her dragon drift down into her arms. "You are a very brilliant bitty thing."

Kate's blue eyes switched from Sparky to the tank at the end, and she realized that they really were at the very end of the race. "Only two more hoops, Sparky!" she said, slight sadness filling her eyes as she saw how tired the dragon was becoming. "Don't worry, I got this!" She raised her wand and casted the levitation spell again, helping Sparky along. "Incendio!" she also cast, knowing Sparky needed all the strength he could get.

Kate guided Sparky through the fourteenth hoop and toward the fifteenth hoop. "Go Sparky! You can do it!" she cheered. It occurred to her then that because she wouldn't be one of the winners of this race, this would be the last time she'd see Sparky. Her face fell a little, as she realized clearing the fifteenth hoop would be bittersweet.

As Sparky flew through the last hoop, Kate called out, "Congratulations, Sparky! I had fun!" Then she guided him into the tank, knowing he needed to rest.

Merlin, was the Creature Housing getting stuffy in here from all the heat. Professor Thompson made his rounds after capturing Lotte who was attempting to find an escape, returning the little dragon back into the tank before watching the other students. Secretly extinguishing/controlling flames that may have posed a risk at lighting up this area in more ways than one, ahem.

Goodness did the time fly right on by when it looked as though nearly everyone was finished, "Excellent work everyone, you may stop now to return your dragons to their tank from wherever they are. Congratulations to Mr. Atreyu, Miss Valke and Mr. Rehman for earning your house an extra 5 points for your quick maneuvering. I'll be sure to inform the Sanctuary before you get your notice on seeing them again." He then clamped a hand on Mr. Fuller-Thompson, "Class is dismissed." Preventing this one from attempting to leave with the others right this instant.

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OOC: Thank you for participating everyone. =) Feel free to post your last goodbyes to the little dragons before thread closes tomorrow.

Adi DIDN'T want to leave Reptar. He had turned from the tank only to turn back to wave at his new friend again. Couldn't he just keep it and love it and feed it and pet it forevaaah? Unfortunately not.

Waving one last time, he shuffled away towards the rest of the class when Thompson started addressing the class. Eh, what?! He had been among the three that won? He hadn't even realised! Benny and Ilia were the other winners? HOW COOL!

"Guys! Awesome job!'' High fives for his fellow creatures lovers. "If anyone deserved to win that, it was you,'' Adi said to Benny as he went to collect his bag. He was proud of the bestie. "Said goodbye to your dragon? Ready to go then?"
.........................

"Byeee, Professor! This was another awesome lesson!'' It would have been totally perfect if he hadn't lost a point but oh well, he had already covered that by getting extra points. 'Cos that's how Adi rolled. He gave Thompson a wave before departing with Benny.

Toby had fun spending the remainder of the lessons observing the dragons in the tank, even though most of them curled up and had a little snooze and relaxed and stuff. It WAS getting warm in here, though. WHEW, MERLIN. He tugged on the collar of his shirt and loosened his tie a good amount to let the air FLOOOOOOW.

All too soon, it was time for the class to start winding down. Aww nooooooo. But DRAGONS. They were so COOL. Except not cool right now, 'cause of all the fire. They were HOT, but like, literally. They were AWESOME. Again, Toby considered scooping up his little Sparky - by now he'd heard that apparently another two dragons were also called Sparky... MAYBE THEY WERE TRIPLETS (shhhhh that's totally how it works) - and pocketing him before leaving, but suddenly a hand clamped down on his shoulder, and Tobias realised that Javy was still speaking and he'd actually stopped paying any attention after 'excellent work everyone'. Oops.

Class dismissed. Except him, of course, though Toby had actually toooootally forgotten about that. It wasn't until he tried to step away to leave with the others (and maybe peek under the covers that were over the creature pens and say hello to the occupants) and found that Thompson wouldn't let him, that he suddenly remembered. OH, so that was why he had his shoulder... Right. Okay. Cool. COOL. That made sense. So while everyone else made their exit, Toby stayed where he was, and examined his bitten and slightly burnt finger again now that he had the opportunity.

Yep. Still there and in one piece. That was good news.