Micah popped in to see if there was anyone in the Practice Room. "Apparently not." he muttered. He then retreated out of the room and into the Test Room.

Alright... Destination... Determination... Deliberation... firmly set my mind inside the hoop... that's where I want to end up... I am determined to be in the hoop! He's gonna command... wait... who's HE to command me?

"Excuse me, I'm sure you mean instruct, not command..." It wasn't a question... Cassandra Trelawney would NOT be commanded... by ANYONE.

Micah shot a curious look at one of the darkest girls and then smiled. "Concentrate... do not lose your focus over such matters."

She glared at him. Stood straight and said "I'm ready." She didn't care if the others were... "Just awaiting your next instruction..." not command... "Sir." Yeah... her focus went straight out the window...

Micah nodded and said to the three: "On three, 1...2...3!" He definitley couldn't wait till they tried...

Ok... this is it!

Destination... in the hoop...

Determination... I WILL be in that hoop...

Deliberation... whatever that means...

She closed her eyes and spun on the spot. As she opened her eyes, and there was the hoop... still in front of her... she was merely an inch to the left of where she started... probably because she spun there...

This wasn't her fault... he didn't explain it right. It was his fault... this Mr. Nettings... who wanted to command the people in his office. URGH! He was making her so VERY mad! She growled and stepped back into place.

If either of this girls was going to get it, she would know he'd have helped THEM... This was probably his venue for hitting on young 17 year old girls...

Rhiannon listened to Mr. Nettings go over everything again, and then tried not to laugh as Cassandra seemed offended or something. Don't worry about her, a small voice in her head said to her.

As he counted to three, she tried desperately to concentrate. But she kept wanting to turn to look and see what Cassandra was doing. Next thing she knew, she had done a graceful pirouette, but had gone nowhere.

Darn it, she thought. But at least I haven't splinched.

Micah nodded at the three and smiled. "As expected... not bad, not bad. Try again. 1...2...3!" he shouted near the end.

As Expected?!?! This man was insufferable! She tried again a second time... She thought hard on the three D's and did her best to envision herself in the hoop... she spun on the spot... Nothing...

That's it! I'm not waiting for HIM again.

She tried a third time, without his permission or go ahead. She could have cared less if he was watching. He wasn't helping anyway. She closed her eyes this time. Thought hard on her destination, with determination and moved with deliberation and as she turned, she felt her body squeeze as it did when Branxton side-alonged her... she was doing it... she was doing it!!!

There suddenly was a breeze on her face and she opened her eyes. She was standing in the hoop!! She turned around to call on the man, but as she did she realized something was missing. She looked at her previous location, and there floating on it's own, was her nose.

Cassandra screamed like a banshee.

Micah nodded and clapped his hands. "Well done! Very well done indeed! I never expected you to splinch this quick and leave behind so little." He walked up to the dark girl and pulled out his wand. After a wave and a couple of incantations, her nose had been sealed back into the right place. "D'you want to continue on or take a rest?" Micah looked back at the other 2 and said, "You can continue on without me as long as you know what to do."

Cassandra was still crying when she realized the ministry man had re-attached her nose to her. She threw herself in his arms in thanks, and then quickly pulled back embarrassed. "Thank you Mr. Nettings." She said. "I think maybe I'll sit down a bit.. catch my breath..." she just wouldn't be able to concentrate on apparating if she was in this state.

Rhiannon had stared at the Slytherin when she had shrieked. For once, she hadn't been paying attention to the other girl. She had tried to Apparate a couple more times, with about the same result as the first time.

As Cassandra got her nose reattached, and said she was going to sit out for a bit, Rhiannon closed her eyes. She was determined to keep trying, even if it took her all day. Concentrating, she spun around.

Next thing she knew, she was inside the ring. Looking down at herself, she thought at first that she had been successful. But, upon turning to look back where she had started out, she saw a tiny object. And, looking again at her hands, she discovered that one finger was missing the nail. Sighing, she simply sat down in the middle of the ring to wait.

Micah approached one of the applicants and raised his eyebrows. "Not bad!" he waved his wand again with the same incantations and finally her fingernail was back into it's right place.

"That should've been painful!" Micah said. "Maybe a rest will do for you. Well done."

Rhiannon looked at her hand as Mr. Nettings reattached her nail. When he commented, she loked up at him, staying in her seated position. "Painful? Not really. Or, at least, I've dealt with worse." Like that bludger plowing into her side last term. She nodded as he commended her, and remained on the floor in the center of the ring. He never said she had to move to get rest.

Cassandra turned to the other girl and looked at her... She would get this if it killed her!

She stood in front of the hoop and closed her eyes. Before too long, Cassandra turned on her heels and voila! she was in the hoop.

No Breeze... YES! She turned around and there was some hair that had splinched off behind her. PANTS! Pants! Pants! Pants!!! She quickly grabbed it and stuffed it in her pocket.

"Mr. Nettings!" She said hoping he didn't see the hair. "I did it..."

Still seated in the center of her ring, Rhiannon raised an eyebrow at Cassandra. She saw the quick movement of the Slytherin trying to hide her hair splinching, but wasn't going to say anything. It wasn't worth it to point it out.

Besides, she was almost to the point where she didn't care how the Slytherin prefect did.

Micah looked at Cassandra suddenly when she had done it. "Ah! You may be qualified...." He walked towards her and observed her to see whether she had 'left behind anything'. He walked over to her back side and saw part of her hair gone. "Hmm.... Funny... I don't remember you having a chunk of hair missing... I suppose my eyes were playing tricks on me. Tell me... is that a new kind of fashion for kids? No hair in a certain area?"

He arched an eyebrow at her then summoned a clipboard. "You seem qualified to take the real test.... Forgive me but, did you know only the Test Coordinators and I can 're-attach' whatever you 'left behind'. Hah. So silly of me, giving out secrets..."

Rhiannon stood back up, simply to give her something to do to keep her from giggling at how Cassandra got caught in her lie.

But she waited before she tried to do anything else. There were too many distractions at this exact moment.

"Oh... uhmmm" PANTS!!! She made a graceful movement while he was busy looking at his clipbards and casually dropped the hair on the floor.

"My Hair?" She pretended to be suprized, "Oh... Flibbertygibbets..." She exclaimed. "There it is... on the floor, I must have accedentally knocked it down..."

Cassandra glared at the Ravenpuff... One word and you are toast!

Micah smiled a smile that did not reach his eyes. "Ah, there it is." he waved his wand and her hair went flying back into place. "Hmm... it seems as though you are not qualified to take the real test. Tsk, tsk, tsk. A shame really...." He looked at the other Ravenclaw girl and said, "Well, I didn't mean just stand there. Is that your definition of 'resting'?" he muttered something unintelligible then said, "Well I suppose if you want to continue on with your practicing, that's fine. I believe one or many more test coordinators will be here to help you if needed, that is to say if you have splinched. For now, I must be off to my office. Chao." And with that, he left the Testing Room and to his office.

She watched as the insufferable man left... "URGH!!!, I don't like him, not at all! Not one bit." She looked at the girl, "Todd right? Are you a claw or a puff?" She asked with a scowl.

Rhiannon put an innocent look on her face, as if she was thinking Who me? Why would I do such a thing? Even though she still just wanted to collapse under a giggling fit.

She turned her attention to Mr. Nettings as he addressed her. "Nope. I was sitting down. Just stood up right now." She watched as he left them, wondering if any test coordinators were actually going to show up. By this point, she felt pretty confident she could apparate, but didn't want to practice by herself on the off chance something would happen.

She turned back to Cassandra as the Slytherin spoke. Raising one eyebrow slightly at the girl's scowl, she said, "Yes. And, to use your terminology, I'm a claw. Why?"

"Merely curious..." she said shrugging.

Rhiannon's eyes narrowed. She wasn't sure if she believed the answer she was getting. But she also didn't feel like challenging it. She had enough common sense to know that she shouldn't.

So she remained quiet for the time being.

Cassandra stood in front of the hoop staring at it... I am going to do this before she gets it... Now she was fiercely determined. She closed her eyes, and spun on the spot, aparating perfectly inside the hoop.

When she opened her eyes she looked around... nothing splinched! "Now why in holy hades is HE not here to see that!" She said in frustration.