Charms Class

Magic was a force that could almost make wishes come true, and Transfiguration was its most typical manifestation.

Many students seemed to think their Transfiguration had failed because they had not pronounced the spell clearly or accurately enough, or because they had not waved their wands decisively enough, so they kept trying different variations. But when Professor McGonagall had turned the desk into a pig just now, there had been no special gesture or incantation at all. She had merely tapped it lightly with her wand, and the desk had transformed.

Wade raised his wand and pointed it at the match.

In his mind—clear imagery;

unshakable conviction;

and unwavering confidence.

If the concept of a "needle" in one's mind was vague, or if one was thinking—This is really difficult. Can magic really do this? I can't do it. I'm bound to fail at the beginning...—then the spell would be difficult to cast successfully.

A wand was like a conduit for the magic power within a wizard's body, making that power more obedient and gentler. Spells, gestures, and magical rituals were more like means of reinforcing one's belief—a wizard's form of self-hypnosis.

A truly skilled wizard needed no unnecessary trappings to make the world change according to his will.

"Very good, Miss Granger!" Professor McGonagall suddenly praised. "A very obvious change. One point to Gryffindor."

The surrounding students could not help craning their necks to look. The match before Hermione had not only become pointed at one end, but its color had also turned somewhat silvery white. It looked a little like a needle.

The brown-haired girl tried hard to keep her excitement from showing, but her eyes sparkled.

Professor McGonagall said, "Miss Granger, perhaps you would be willing to demonstrate the process of Transfiguration for everyone again? Given that..."

Before Professor McGonagall could finish, a wave of amazed exclamations rose from the students on the other side.

Wade's match had suddenly become long, thin, and sharp. Its end had a tiny hole, and its surface gleamed with a metallic sheen.

Professor McGonagall hurried over and levitated the needle with her wand, examining it closely. A pleased and satisfied smile appeared on her face. "A perfect transformation. Three points to Ravenclaw!"

She restored the needle to its original form, then had the Young Wizards gather around to watch Wade demonstrate. Under everyone's gaze, Wade quietly spoke the spell and tapped lightly with his wand—

The match swiftly lengthened and changed color. In an instant, a slender silver needle appeared on the desk.

Everyone let out a synchronized "Wow!"

Wade looked up. His gaze swept over Hermione's face, which held a trace of unwillingness, before meeting a pair of emerald-green eyes.

The boy with messy black hair gave him a friendly smile, his eyes full of amazement and admiration. The red-haired, freckle-faced boy beside him simply looked dumbstruck.

"They say Ravenclaw is the smartest," Wade heard Ron tell Harry after class. "I think I understand that a little now."

Transfiguration Class was followed immediately by Charms Class, with only ten minutes to change classrooms. As soon as Professor McGonagall assigned their homework, the students all streamed toward the Charms classroom—Charms was once again shared by Ravenclaw and Gryffindor.

"Wade." Ignoring the difference between their Houses, Hermione sat directly beside Wade and asked, "Do you have anything else planned after class?"

"I'm going to the Practice Room," Wade said.

"Good." Hermione let out a breath of relief. "I was planning to go there and keep practicing Transfiguration too. How did you succeed on the first try? Do you have any tricks?"

"If there's a trick, it's that you have to believe you can definitely do it. That's the most important thing—"

Before Wade could finish, Professor Flitwick had already entered.

The Charms professor, Filius Flitwick, was the Head of Ravenclaw. He was only about a meter tall, roughly the size of a three- or four-year-old child, but he had long white hair and a fluffy white beard. To teach students who were taller than him even while seated, Professor Flitwick had stacked a thick pile of books on his podium like steps, then climbed to the very top.

A few students could not help chuckling.

"All right, all right, children." Professor Flitwick held a short wand in his tiny hand. "Perhaps some of you are wondering why you have such a little professor teaching you?"

Quite a few students burst into laughter at the professor's self-deprecating words. It seemed this professor did not mind being joked about.

"—Or rather, what can he possibly teach me?"

As Professor Flitwick spoke, he waved his wand. A flock of Little Birds flew from its tip and circled above the students' heads. He tapped his wand again, and two books sprouted long, thin arms and legs like bamboo branches, floating in the air as they danced.

The students applauded enthusiastically, completely won over. Though only two minutes had passed, they already liked this short professor—he was neither timid like Quirrell, nor boring like Professor Binns, nor so stern that he inspired fear like Professor McGonagall or Professor Snape. The Ravenclaws could not help thinking proudly—Our Head of House must be the best professor at Hogwarts!

"Thank you! Thank you for your applause." Professor Flitwick spoke in a high, thin voice. "I believe Charms is the most interesting subject. A wizard who cannot cast spells cannot truly be called a wizard. Of course, before class begins, I must first take attendance and get to know my lovely students—"

Professor Flitwick called names from the register. Everything went smoothly at first, until—

"Harry Potter!"

Before anyone could answer, the professor let out a scream and toppled off the stack of books with a thud.

The students were instantly dumbfounded, exchanging looks. Quite a few turned to look at the black-haired boy. Harry Potter awkwardly raised his right hand and hesitantly said to the empty stack of books, "I'm here, Professor."

Another small scream came from behind the books. After quite a while, Professor Flitwick, his beard in disarray, crawled out from behind them, muttering, "Oh, of course—you would be in my classroom too—of course, I should have known—"

The elderly professor stroked his beard, cast [Scourgify] on himself, then looked excitedly at Harry Potter and said, "I'm very glad to see you, child."

Harry nodded and gave a shy smile.

Wade did not know whether Professor Flitwick had seen someone else's shadow in Harry Potter. After a moment of silence, he continued taking attendance.

Naturally, the first Charms Class also began with theory. They only learned the simplest spell, [Lumos]. It was the sort of spell that any Young Wizard could learn before school started as long as they practiced it a few times at home, so by the end of class everyone had mastered it successfully. Professor Flitwick was also generous with points, giving the two Houses roughly the same amount. The homework he assigned was not much either, only three inches—basically a review of the key points covered in class. If Wade wanted to be lazy, he could probably just hand in the notes he had taken during class.