When it was determined they would need to locate partners, Ned immediately sought out Alice. Out of their friends, he enjoyed studying with her the most, Sisse coming in close second in that regard. He also knew her discomfort with the subject, and he was determined to continue to keep that fact a secret from the others. He knew how it embarrassed her so.

"Pretend it's just us," Ned whispered, shooting Alice an encouraging grin.

He shuffled away so that they were an appropriate distance apart, waited until she declared she was ready, and set out trying to cast the water spout charm with a few second delay. He didn't put as much oomph behind it as he could have, hoping Alice would be able to freeze it and thus boost her confidence. Knocking her off her feet with a stream of water wouldn't leave her hoping to try again. He wouldn't ever do that to her. Cameron, maybe, but never Alice.

Alice Dawson