one of us will have a specific duty, and we will accomplish those duties using no spells, potions, or charms. This term, students, we will be producing a theatrical presentation of the famous wizard play, The Triumvirate.'
A wave of chatter moved through the assembly. James couldn't tell if the general response was positive or negative.
'What's that about?' Ralph asked.
Rose whispered, 'It's a story about a love triangle between a young witch princess named Astra and two wizards, Treus and Donovan. Donovan's older and richer, Treus is younger, a captain in the king's army. I saw it with my mum once when I was little. It's got a huge cast. Should be interesting.'
Near the front of the assembly, Havelock Baumgarten, one of the Slytherin Beaters, stood up, raising his hand peremptorily. 'Professor Curry, The Triumvirate is a classically magical production,' he said in his cultured, rather smarmy voice. 'By its nature, it is dependent on key magical elements. The dream sequence alone has the heroine flying, imagining phantom armies, and witnessing the predicted sinking of Treus' galleon in a hurricane. How can we possibly expect to remain faithful to the story if we insist on strictly Muggle methods?'
'A legitimate concern, Mr. Baumgarten,' Curry replied. 'However, I have just returned from a tour of some of the Muggle world's better theatre productions, and I must say that the sheer ingenuity and resourcefulness of those presentations amazed even me. In fact, you may be interested to learn that even Muggles refer to the 'magic' of theatre.'
From the crowd, Victoire spoke up, 'But how can Astra fly without levitation?'
'You'd be quite surprised what can be accomplished with ropes and pulleys, Miss Weasley,' Curry said, smiling. 'In fact, I think all of you will be quite impressed by the amount of mundane 'magic' that can be done simply with paint, costumes, props, lights, and a seemingly endless number of stage-hands. This is why I have asked the school to involve all classes in this rather extensive production. The sheer number of teams and skills required assures that every one of us will play a vital role in the production. I will serve as director, of course. The production will run one night only, in this very amphitheater, the last week of the school term. Your parents and families will all be invited to attend. It will be, I am quite sure, an evening that all of us will remember.'
The assembly broke apart into hushed babbling again as everyone considered this rather unusual plan. Professor Curry cleared her throat.
'To this end,' she said, raising her voice over the chattering crowd, 'I have posted several sign-up parchments in the hall immediately adjacent to the amphitheater. Anyone who wishes may try out for a part. Auditions will be scheduled in class, and parts will be awarded by the end of next week. Those who do not wish to act onstage may sign up for the orchestra, the props department, the costume shop, light crew, stage crew, and et cetera. I am sure everyone will find an area they will enjoy working in. And now, allow me to be the first to welcome you all to the world of the theatre! The assembly will conclude now, allowing you plenty of time to consider your options and sign up for whatever you wish. Thank you, students, and good evening.'
As the assembly broke up and trickled toward the huge castle archway, Rose said, 'You should sign up for a part, James. You're tall for your age. I bet you could play Treus.'
James grimaced. 'No way,'
'Why not?' Rose insisted. 'Don't tell me you're afraid to get up on stage in front of everyone.'
'No,' James said, his face reddening a bit. 'It's just silly. I mean, if we were doing The Last Assault
'Yeah,' Ralph agreed. 'I'm going to sign up for that or the props department. This could be kind of fun. I saw a play in London when I was a kid. It was wicked. I always thought it'd be neat to work behind the scenes.'
'I'm putting my name down for Donovan,' Noah proclaimed. 'I've got that older, mysterious rogue look down already. I should be a shoo-in.'
'It's too bad Ted's gone this year,' Sabrina commented. 'He'd love this. I wonder how he's doing with his Quidditch training.'
Damien said, 'We'll see him Hogsmeade weekend. We have a plan to meet him at the Triple Sticks.'
'As long as he can get off work from Weasleys',' Noah interjected. 'I hear George's been working him like a dog. Ted's not complaining though. He gets paid on commission, and he's pretty much a walking advertisement, isn't he?'
The crowd of students thronged near the archway as everyone milled around the sign-up parchments. Rose broke away, pressing toward the far end of the hallway. 'I'm going to sign up for Astra,' she called. 'It's probably a long shot, but I can always fall back on costume shop if that doesn't work out.'
Ralph also shouldered his way into the throng, heading for the props department sign-up parchment. James watched his friend go, and then scanned the nearby parchments. The crowd was finally thinning a bit as most of the students happily found their way to an early dinner. James glanced around, still hanging back. Satisfied that no one was watching, he slipped quickly over to the actors' sign-up parchments. He glanced over them, finding the parchment he was looking for. Grabbing the quill dangling from a bit of string, he signed his name to the parchment titled 'TREUS'.
It was completely silly, he assured himself. He'd never get the part. It was just a lark, a personal dare. Still, there was something exciting and giddy about the idea of playing the dashing male lead. He couldn't bring himself to admit it to Rose or Ralph. If by some remarkable fluke he were to get the role, he'd probably acknowledge that he'd secretly wanted to play it. Otherwise, no one would ever know, and that was just fine. Before stepping away, James peered quickly at the other names on the parchment. He'd been halfcertain that Scorpius' name would be on the list. It wasn't, and he felt a bit silly for looking.
James sauntered as casually as possible over to the group still gathered around the stage crew sign-up parchment. Ralph was just finishing signing his name.
'I'm on stage crew and props department,' Ralph said. 'I hope I can be on both. What'd you sign up for, James?'
James finished signing his name on the stage crew parchment. He turned, keeping his face blank, and gestured with the quill before letting it drop back on its string.
Ralph nodded and smiled. 'We'll work together, maybe. Trenton's signed up for stage crew too, and so is Beetlebrick. He's not so bad if you can stay off the topic of Quidditch. Did you see what Albus signed up for?'
James shook his head. In fact, he hadn't seen his brother the entire assembly. 'We can ask him at dinner,' James replied. 'Come on.'
It wasn't the first time James had sat at the Slytherin table. The previous year, he had frequently joined Ralph and Zane for meals under the green and silver banner. Only now, however, did James realize how comforting it had been to have his mischievous American friend, who'd been a Ravenclaw, alongside him in those instances. There were no seats near Albus, who persisted in being rather a popular character in his new house. James reluctantly sat with Ralph and Trenton Bloch near the end of the table.
James was distracted throughout the meal. He was annoyed at having to go to such lengths to attract the attention of his younger brother. It was supposed to be the other way around, wasn't it? Albus was simply being gullible. He believed that the Slytherins were drawn to him for his wit and personality, but James knew that they were just using him. Having a Potter amongst the Slytherins was a sort of moral victory for Tabitha Corsica and her stupid Fang and Talons club. James wanted to warn Albus that the Slytherins' friendship wasn't sincere, but he was also a little angry with him for being so easily taken in.
Albus finally stood up from the table along with the group of older Slytherins that always seemed to
