Gus was still trying to wrap his around what a practical exam meant. He’d done a thousand different practical things in his life with his knowledge, and how he was supposed to have his students showcase that in an afternoon was beyond him. During his years at Hogwarts, the practical exams had ranged from solving puzzles to spitting out answers to questions. He;d been better at some than others, although spitting out memorized spells and motions had been much more difficult for the former Hufflepuff than solving puzzles. He loved those. The professor he’d taken over had left in a rush, leaving him nothing to go off of for previous years. It had sent Gus into a tizzy and he’d holed himself away for the first two weeks of May, only emerging from his hole for Hogsmeade Weekend (he needed his chocolate fix, and well, it wasn’t as if he could weasel out of chaperone duty), and classes, although he’d spent the better part of those having them read on their own or releasing them early so he could mull over what he was going to do. Finally, a conversation he’d had with Mason months prior had popped into his brain one sleepless night and Gus found himself out on the grounds the very next morning, casting spell after spell to build a maze for his students to go through, showcasing the different spells they’d been taught throughout the years, each level building on knowledge they should already have from years prior. The OWLs and NEWTs had separate exits, although he’d added in a third one for his first and second years, offering house points for those bold enough to try their way through it.
The course took much longer to build than he’d expected, and Gus had consumed a few wide-eye potions to ensure its creation before the exams were set to start - sleep? He didn’t need sleep. With a sigh he raked his fingers through his hair as he wondered if being a professor was actually for him. This maze was going to be his tell all and he was terrified of having failed his students in teaching them… anything. He shook the thoughts from his head. He’d just have to wait and see. This and that, here and there, Gus found himself poking and prodding, casting and recasting, tearing down walls and rebuilding them with such haste that he nearly forgot to breathe.
Finally, he stumbled backward to stare staring at with large eyes, still unsure if he’d made the right choice. What if it was too hard? Too easy? Too long? He should probably test the course, at the very least, although having someone who didn’t know it as well as Gus run through it would be even better. He turned then, blue hues scanning for a student he didn't recognize - he could offer house points for doing this, and with points as close as they were, a student would surely take him up on the offer. His eyes landed in Foxwood instead, and he seemed to be coming toward him with haste. He frowned as he jumped from foot to foot. Gus hadn’t done anything wrong to be sternly talked to!
“I think I made a mistake.” The words precipitously spilled from his mouth as the other neared him, and he blinked at him before he blew a hot breath from his mouth.This whole year had been one giant mistake. Then Gus motioned toward the maze behind him. He brushed his fingers through his hair before offering Foxwood a lopsided smile.
![[Image: UkiVTG8.png]](https://i.imgur.com/UkiVTG8.png)