When the new day arrived, Andrew still didn't know who his roommates were.
Whether it was because of exhaustion or something else, the new students all woke up late. After receiving the answer to that day's riddle from a sleep-deprived prefect, they quickly washed up, changed clothes, and dashed to the dining hall with their books in hand. After hastily scarfing down a few bites, they rushed off to their first class.
And what a class it was—Charms, a major subject.
Putting aside its overall importance, the class was taught by none other than the head of Ravenclaw House: Professor Filius Flitwick.
This was a formidable opening. While the professor wasn't tall and didn't radiate an overwhelming presence, his reputation alone was enough to command the room—and that's without mentioning his spellcasting, which could only be described as art.
At the beginning of the lesson, Professor Flitwick casually waved his wand. One by one, books floated up and arranged themselves beneath his feet, forming a tall stack that allowed him to stand atop knowledge as he looked down at his students.
"That's definitely not a simple Levitation Charm or some crude Summoning Spell... It's a spell that combines several object manipulation charms."
Andrew silently noted to himself. This wasn't a basic spell—anyone with a little magical common sense could tell that Flitwick had essentially given himself a dozen agile, invisible arms made of magic.
"Charms… are the essence of controllable magic,"Professor Flitwick's voice rang out."I believe most of you have accidentally cast magic before—but in most cases, you couldn't replicate that magical miracle again."
As he spoke, chalk floated alongside him, scribbling furiously on the blackboard.
"Charms are the most stable form of spellcasting. As the textbooks say, with a clear incantation and precise wand movement, your magic will produce predictable results—free of messy and unintended consequences."
He looked over the students and allowed himself a tiny smile—then quickly suppressed it.
"Take, for example, the Levitation Charm. Recently, for certain reasons, this most basic spell has become widespread among first-years. I even heard St. Mungo's staff complaining about the dangers caused by incorrect spellcasting."
This certainly got the students' attention. Everyone immediately sat up straighter.
"Levitation Charm—Wingardium Leviosa."
As his wand traced a perfect arc through the air, the chalk on the podium floated—all of it, not just one piece. They scattered into the air at various speeds and reassembled midair to spell out the incantation, before slowly gathering together again and, feather-light, silently settled into the chalk tray.
"The Levitation Charm isn't just about making something float."
Under the amazed gazes of the students, he continued:
"Sure, in the early stages you should focus on levitating increasingly heavier objects. But eventually, the stability and finesse of the charm become equally important."
"Is this what the Level 9 assessment covers?"
A student couldn't help but blurt out. In the silent classroom, the question rang loud and clear.
But Flitwick didn't get angry. He smiled warmly.
"If nothing unexpected happens, yes—I believe it will be."
"Whoa!"
The class broke into a chorus of awe. Even Andrew, wanting to fit in, couldn't help joining in—though inside, he felt secondhand embarrassment at how over-the-top it all sounded.
"Now, remember these principles and the basic spell."
By the time Professor Flitwick finished speaking, half the blackboard was already filled—with enlarged diagrams of wand movements and careful phonetic breakdowns of the incantation syllables.
After repeating the lesson several times and having the students practice the incantation without wands, the meticulous professor finally handed out feathers so they could begin casting.
It seemed easy enough.
Andrew was surprised to see someone even more proficient than himself. He thought he was already decent at the spell, but that student could make the feather dance midair like it was attached to invisible strings!
Their performance was so impressive that Flitwick immediately awarded Slytherin three house points.
"A flawless demonstration,"Flitwick said joyfully."Let's try two feathers this time, shall we?"
Handling two feathers was clearly more difficult, but the Slytherin still made both float and land simultaneously…
"Excellent. You should put more effort into mastering this charm—Slytherin, five points!"
The lesson ended on a high note. Since all students managed to cast the spell successfully, there was no essay assigned—just a recommendation to practice and preview the next topic.
Back in the staff lounge, Professor Flitwick finally let out the laugh he'd been holding in throughout the class, prompting the other off-duty professors to crowd around and ask what had happened.
"A perfect class—probably the most perfect one I've had in years,"he beamed."Every student had pre-read the material and practiced the charm in advance."
"A whole class of Levitation Charm experts!"
"Professor Flitwick,"said Professor Taylor, peeking over her newspaper with a teasing grin,"I doubt next class will go as smoothly."
"Naturally,"Flitwick didn't even deny it."I'm sure they've been practicing the Levitation Charm non-stop ever since they read that story—but it doesn't matter. The technique behind charms is transferable. Whether intentional or not, practicing one spell helps build skill for others."
"That's true,"another professor chimed in."Too bad Dumbledore never took every subject seriously—if he had, we'd all be much better off…"
The lounge was suddenly filled with cheerful laughter.
"Just classroom lessons alone aren't enough for me…"
"Let's see what group meetups are scheduled—after that, I can start planning library study sessions…"
After a bit more Levitation Charm practice, Andrew began organizing his day.
"Also, I should ask the upper years if there are any empty classrooms for practice—I'm guessing student groups probably know about stuff like that…"
If he was going to join a group, he had to learn how to gather intel from experienced members. He had considered this even before joining.
"I wonder how the story will be changed next time… Never mind that—time to really start studying magic!"
So thought Andrew.