HP: Professor From Azkaban

Although William still didn't know the identity of the wizard cursed alongside him, that person had indeed done him a huge favor.

Thanks to them, William could afford to steal a few moments of relaxation amidst his intense studies. The looming threat still hung over his head, but having an extra layer of protection was always comforting.

After calculating that he could at least scrape through with his first year's salary, William shifted his focus to the spell he found most intriguing.

Apparition.

The name alone sounded cool, and the effect was even more impressive.

As a spell only adult wizards were permitted to use, Apparition allowed near-unrestricted movement to any location within the caster's awareness. However, learning it was notoriously difficult.

Yet, the rewards of mastering it were immense. Whether for travel or escape, the spell's versatility was unmatched. Its only drawback was its high level of difficulty.

"How long have you been an adult, and you still can't Apparate?" Tom, whom William had dragged out to help, looked at him with disdain.

Despite his attitude, he didn't leave. The bar was usually quiet around two in the afternoon, and Tom often used this time to get some sun anyway.

"Here, from this side to that side. This distance should be enough," Tom muttered, drawing a line on the empty lot behind the bar with his foot.

"Stay clear of the trash bin and the wall. I don't want my customers walking into the bar smelling like garbage."

"Then you might need to kick out the pure-bloods, or I'll have to file a complaint based on what you just said." William responded with a common joke from Azkaban; most of the inmates in the deepest cells were pure-bloods.

"You've got too much prejudice against pure-bloods, kid. A person's worth isn't determined by their bloodline," Tom said lazily, conjuring a rocking chair and settling into it. He quickly followed up with a cheeky Slytherin joke. "But Slytherins? Yeah, most of them are no good."

They both laughed. With three other houses always taking jabs at Slytherin, Slytherin jokes were always in demand; especially in bars.

"Alright, kid, start training. We don't have much Essence of Dittany in stock, and frankly, I doubt you'll even manage to splinch today."

"Focus, determination, composure. The three keys to Apparition. Spin, kid." Tom leaned back, rocking gently in his chair.

William stood behind the line, clearing his mind and fixing his target on the other side. He spun, attempting to Apparate; and executed a perfect 360-degree turn in place. He glanced at Tom and, seeing that the man wasn't paying attention, took a step back and pretended nothing had happened.

Set the target, clear the mind, focus, and try again.

William spun with more force this time. After two full rotations, he completely lost his balance and fell flat on his backside.

"Hahaha! William, are you trying to Apparate your clothes into pieces?" Tom laughed so hard that his rocking chair shook violently, even shifting from its original position.

"Tsk..." William stood up, returned to the marked spot, and attempted again, following all the instructions carefully.

To his surprise, he suddenly felt as though he had been stuffed into a space far too tight, like being squeezed through a narrow tube. The next thing he knew, the wall seemed to have jumped in front of him, appearing abruptly as if it had been moved.

It felt like a glitch, teleporting from one spot to another in an instant; but this was no glitch. It was true Apparition.

"You succeeded this quickly?" Tom's voice was full of amazement.

Though Apparition was known to be difficult for some but easy for others, mastering it this quickly was still unexpected. Back when he was at Hogwarts, most students needed at least two full lessons to grasp even this short-distance teleportation.

Still, since William was set to become a professor at Hogwarts, picking it up a bit faster wasn't too surprising.

"Alright, now it's just a matter of constant practice to familiarize yourself with the feeling. Once you're comfortable with short-distance jumps, you can try long-distance travel. That'll save you plenty of Knight Bus fares." Tom rambled as he headed back toward the bar.

"I'll grab some Essence of Dittany. Keep practicing for a bit; I thought it'd take you at least until tomorrow to reach this level."

William stood frozen, stunned. The joy of mastering Apparition ahead of schedule vanished entirely.

He had been too careless!

Where had he gotten the courage to casually test such a dangerous new spell? He was still under a curse that could leave him disabled.

If he'd accidentally splinched himself just now, and if Tom returned with expired Dittany from the bar's stock, he might have become the fastest-cursed professor in Hogwarts history.

Losing an arm or a leg would have been manageable. But if he'd splinched his neck; or worse, everything below his eyebrows; it would have been a disaster.

A wizard's life was tough enough without tempting fate, especially with a curse turning low-probability risks into near certainties. He couldn't afford to let his guard down.

***

When Tom returned, he found William striding toward him in just a few steps.

"Tom, did you bring the Essence of Dittany?"

"Of course! There aren't many brawls here, but what kind of bar wouldn't stock Dittany? Besides, with the herbal shop so close by, even if I didn't buy it, they always bring some over."

True enough; where there's alcohol, injuries tend to follow. Dittany, a potion for stopping bleeding and healing wounds, was naturally a staple.

"It's not expired, right?" William asked cautiously.

"How could it be? I just used some last month, and it worked like a charm."

"Is there enough of it?"

"Enough to patch you up seven or eight times if you splinch yourself. What's with all the strict rules in Azkaban?"

"No, no, just being careful. I'll get started now, but for safety's sake, I wanted to ask--"

"You doubting me?!" Tom pulled out his wand, striking a mock dueling pose.

William obediently shut his mouth, walked over to the marked spot, and focused all his attention, determined to avoid any mishaps with splinching.

Maybe it was because he was so focused, but splinching never occurred during the entire hour of practice. His proficiency with Apparition steadily improved.

By the end, Tom even suggested William try a slightly longer-distance Apparition; but William firmly refused.

He planned to stock up on Dittany, Skele-Gro, and other healing potions later.

As a former potion worker, he was even considering brewing some highly effective illegal potions. While a few of the ingredients were banned, William knew exactly where to source those rare items.