"After speaking with Madam Bones and Madam Marchbanks of the Wizarding Examinations Authority about the situation as it stands, those who wish to take up the School Board's offer to be allowed to go back home in the interim we recommend you give your names to any of the current teaching staff. That staff will then hand those names in to Professor Sprout, who will liaise with the School Board to organise two-directional single use portkeys between the school and your home.
"For those who do not know, Albus Dumbledore's trial will be tomorrow. His will be the last of the staff who have faced trial.
"If, by some chance, he manages to hold on to his position as Headmaster - which many of us seriously doubt, based on the information that has come to light - that will be yet another position that will require being filled before we can consider ourselves, once again, a school. The School Board and the Wizarding Examinations Authority will be working on the problem of finding enough qualified staff to fill the vacant positions; but it is going to take them time."
A senior Hufflepuff raised their hand.
"Misterrrrr... Blenkinsop?" asked Flitwick, seeing the hand.
"Yes, Sir," said the student. "For those of us with plans to head home, I think many of us need to tell our families when we are likely to start arriving. Can you give us some idea?"
"A fair question," replied Flitwick. "At this time, it is likely we will begin sending folks home as tomorrow or the next day. When each of you will be able to head home is unknown at this time. The main reason for that is we need to know how many of you will be wanting to head home, as it will determine how many portkeys will need to be made."
"Wouldn't the number be reduced if some of us can organise with our parents to come and pick us up from here?" the student added. "I mean, that will then reduce the number of portkeys, would it not?"
Harry gave a snort of amusement at both the question and the expression of shocked embarrassment on Flitwick's face.
Flitwick looked at the student in surprise for a long moment before he said, "If I was able to award points, Mister Blenkinsop, I'd be awarding you twenty right now. I'll pass that suggestion on to those who are currently making the decisions.
"For those wishing to head home and will be submitting their names, please also include if you'll be needing a portkey or not."
From where he was sitting on the end of the Gryffindor table with Hermione and Neville, Harry gave a sigh of disappointment and turned to his best friend. "They're really that daft, aren't they?" he asked.
"Hunh?" she asked. "Why do you think they are now?"
"When we get back to the common room I'll pull out parchment, ink and quill and write down a list," he replied. "Then, you'll see what I mean."
_‗_
―==(oIo)==―
ˇ
After dinner and they returned to the common room, Harry did precisely that. While he was writing down his list, Hermione was drafting yet another letter to her parents.
Once he was done he handed it to her.
~ # ~
How to get Students Home
As portkeys can only be made to go through the wards of Hogwarts by the Headmaster or Headmistress of the day, all portkeys made will need to be made to operate from outside the Hogwarts wards. That means they cannot be activated until the student is outside the Hogwarts gates. Therefore, other means should be employed.
1. Students whose homes have an active floo connection can floo straight home from a professor's office.
2. Students whose families have a house elf can be picked up by their family's house elf.
3. Students who live nearby each other can share a portkey. (The Weasleys, Luna Lovegood and Cedric Diggory are examples of that for Ottery St Catchpole; however, all three homes would also have an active floo connection.)
4. Students can also take the Knight Bus if they're prepared to pay for the trip (and suffer the hair-raising ride). This includes muggleborns and the muggle-raised.
5. Almost all students over the age of 17 have their apparation licences and can apparate home from outside the wards.
6. Have the students all floo to a central location outside of Hogwarts and floo, apparate, be portkeyed or be side-along apparated direct from there. (Leaky Cauldron or the Ministry atrium, perhaps?)
~ # ~
Hermione read through the list, groaned and appeared as if she wanted to bang her head on the desk before her.
She quietly handed the list to Neville, who had joined them at the table.
When he read through it he gave a snort of amusement and handed it back to Harry. "If I didn't already have plenty of examples from you before, that list demonstrates, quite clearly, why you think witches and wizards are daft."
"What are you going to do with it, Harry?" asked Hermione.
"As he said Professor Sprout was busy, I'm going to give it to Professor Flitwick," he replied, starting to rise from his seat.
"Can you give me a few minutes to finish writing to my parents so I can join you?" she asked.
"You're intending to let them know we'll be there likely within about two to four or so days, right?" he asked.
"Riiiiiight," she carefully replied.
"Well, that time scale might be radically shortened if Professor Flitwick passes on my recommendations to the School Board et al," he replied. "Therefore, don't you think you should wait to finish it until after we've talked to him?"
Hermione slumped her shoulders, sighed and began packing away her materials again. "You're right," she quietly admitted....