Chapter Two: The Classes, Part One
Charms Classroom, Hogwarts Castle
2 September 1890
Tuesday Morning
"Good morning." Rose greeted him with a smile, sitting to his left. He returned her greeting and asked if she met any other fifth-years this morning like him.
"Oh, yes… Cressida Blume… Garreth Weasley… Natsai Onai… and Nellie Oggspire… Cressida is trying to learn nonverbal magic, Garreth is the nephew of Professor Weasley, Natsai transferred from another magical school in Africa, and Nellie… likes to climb things." Rose giggled at the last part. He chuckled then noticed Alexandra sitting to his right and asked if she met other fifth-years too. Her eyes shifted to him from her book with an unreadable expression but she answered him anyway…
"Well, since you've asked… Yes, I have also met some of our classmates… Imelda Reyes, Nerida Roberts, Ominis Gaunt, and Sebastian Sallow. Reyes is very competitive and likes flying, Nerida, the silly girl, believes she can be a liaison to… Merpeople… She can't swim, mind you… Sebastian… seems to dislike the school's stance on the Dark Arts… A sentiment I agree with… But Ominis Gaunt was the most interesting… He's blind but he sees with his wand somehow and his family has a dark history… Much like my own… Though, from the paternal side of his family, he's a descendant of one of the four founders of Hogwarts, Salazar Slytherin, who also happened to believe in the purity of magical blood." Alexandra finished. Rose and him blinked… He asked if she really found all that out this morning…
Alexandra simply nodded.
"And naturally, because of the color of their robes, they were fishing for information on all of us… And it seems Rose is of a higher standing than I thought… Perhaps, it would be best if we kept our eye on her and I taught her how to… act in our world… Although, I don't think you're having much trouble doing the former already." Alexandra said with narrowed eyes at him. He stammered while Rose blushed…
After that embarrassing and awkward conversation, he took a look around the Charms classroom they were currently sitting in. The faded blue classroom had black chalkboard walls filled with strange magical text, books laid around, wood floors with raised wood platforms and wood desks and chairs facing each other across an empty lane at the bottom.
Their Charms professor, Abraham Ronen, then appeared from his office and began the lesson, pacing every so often. He had wrinkled brown skin, gray hair, brown eyes, and a gray beard. Thankfully for them, they only had to review the Summoning Charm, the incantation Accio, for their first day of class.
They were then paired off to summon any book from another classmate. Before he could even think, Alexandra stood and grabbed onto his right arm, pulling him away from a wide eyed Rose who then partnered with the girl she mentioned earlier, Natsai, while he tried to figure out what just happened…
He used his own personal themed Field Guide book. The same book Professor Weasley gave each of them to help them catch up with their classmates. They stood across from each like everyone else and Alexandra held out her temporary wand.
"Accio!"
He watched with awe as his Field Guide flew out of his hands with a purple glow and into Alexandra's outreach free hand. He even saw her pleased smirk when she saw his expression…
"Points to Slytherin! You are a swift learner! I see a lot of potential - but remember, potential is nothing without practice. Keep at it, you might just rival Miss Onai here!" Professor Ronen exclaimed. The mentioned girl and Alexandra then shared a competitive glance…
Oh not, he thought…
But then it was his turn. He held out his temporary wand while Alexandra held out his Field Guide. He then said the Summoning Charm incantation. The book flew to him with a purple glow… along with Alexandra. She landed with her feet still on the ground and her arms crossed, holding his Field Guide to her chest, while he wrapped his arms around her to catch her. She gave him an unamused expression with narrowed eyes and a small blush while he smiled sheepishly…
Wait, why was she blushing?
"Ha! Charmer! More points!" Professor Ronen laughed along with the rest of the class including a giggling Rose while Alexandra's blush grew… "Very good everyone. Enough of that." He then began pacing as everyone returned to their seats. As they did, Alexandra gave him another look and he released his hold on her. Without a word, she gave him his Field Guide back and went back to her seat.
While keeping her blush…
Class continued on for a few more minutes until they were eventually dismissed by Professor Ronen. As they were leaving, Alexandra and him were properly introduced to Natsai, or Natty, by Rose. She had brown skin, short black hair, and dark brown eyes and she wore the standard uniform but with a scarlet plaid vest and long skirt. They learned she transferred from Uagadou before her fourth year after her mother received an offer to teach Divinations at Hogwarts.
She told them Uagadou School of Magic was the largest wizarding school in the world. Much bigger than Hogwarts. She described it as a place carved out of the mountainside covered with thick mist which made it seem like it was floating in mid-air. Truthfully, it sounded just as magical as Hogwarts. They also learned to use magic without a wand which impressed Rose and intrigued Alexandra as well as him. But Natty preferred the wand as she deemed it more… dramatic. To which they all nodded their heads in agreement.
She thanked them for asking about her home and went on her way before Professor Ronen talked to them. He told them they did well and Professor Weasly also asked the other professors, including him, to help them catch up with their classmates through assignments outside of class. He told them to expect to hear from him outside of class next week. He also told them they could choose to work individually or together, although he suspected the latter. He then dismissed them. With a shared glance and shrug, they began to make their way to their next class…
Defence Against the Dark Arts…
Defence Against the Dark Arts Classroom, Hogwarts Castle
2 September 1890
Tuesday Morning
"Stupefy!"
The Slytherin boy, Sebastian Sallow, casted the red Stunning Spell, incantation Stupefy, against Rose in a duel in the Defence Against the Dark Arts Classroom while the Student, Alexandra, and the other students watched. He had white skin, brown hair, and brown eyes and he wore the standard school uniform with a gray vest, green plaid jacket, and short green plaid pants. Immediately, Rose casted the purple Shield Charm, incantation Protego, to block the spell…
"Protego! Levioso! Stupefy!"
…followed by the yellow Levitation Spell, incantation Levioso, and the Stunning Spell, sending Sebastion off the dueling platform to the loud cheers of the class… The red faced Rose panted heavily with sweat on her brow but caught his smile and the pleased look from Alexandra which made her smile in return…
As the dueling platform lowered, she walked over to Sebastion and helped him to his feet. His previously smug smile was gone, replaced with a genuine smile. Rose then went over to them and he told her she did really well.
"Yes, you move rather… gracefully with a wand… Once we get our actual wands, you should consider dueling as a future prospect." Alexandra suggested with a thoughtful expression.
"Thank you both… and I will!" The nervous Rose nodded shyly with a small smile and blush.
The class continued with more exciting duels while Rose rested. Alexandra and him dueled but she won… She also seemed to be impressed with his effort as she gave him a slight nod of acknowledgement. And for some reason, that gave him a warm feeling… But after a few more duels, they returned to their desks where the Defence Against the Dark Arts professor, Dinah Hecat, gave them one final lecture on dueling. She had wrinkled white skin, short gray hair, and brown eyes.
She told them she wouldn't go too much into Magical Theory as Professor Fig was far more knowledgeable in that field but spells and shields act as a cause and effect. The Stunning Spell is red, and more often than not, easily avoidable. Most dark wizards expect the Stunning Spell so they focus on creating a shield against it. However, the shield can still be penetrated by another spell group. For example, a shield against the Stunning Spell would either be yellow or purple. The Control spell group is filled with yellow colored spells such as the Levitation Spell, the Force spell group is filled with purple colored spells such as the Summoning Charm, and the Damage spell group is filled with red colored spells such as the Stunning Spell. So to break a yellow or purple shield, they would use either a Control spell or Force spell. She then said there were some exceptions such as the Utility spell group with light blue colored spells such as the Mending Charm, incantation Reparo, and also known the Repairing Charm, the Transfiguration spell group with light green colored spells such as the Conjuring Spell, and…
The Unforgivable Curse spell group…
Silence filled the classroom and from the look of confusion from him and a few other students, she explained further… There were three Unforgivable Curses. The clear Imperius Curse which allows one to control another… The red Cruciatus Cruse, or the Torture Curse, which allows one to cause extreme pain to another… And the green Killing Curse which allows one to rip away the soul of another… instantly killing them… All three were unblockable… And all three were a one way ticket to the wizarding prison Azkaban…
Uncomfortable silence filled the classroom… He glanced at Rose to see her uncomfortable before he glanced at Alexandra… who held a blank unreadable expression… But similar to Sebastian… And the Slytherin boy, who he believed to be Ominis Gaunt, next to Sebastian appeared paler…
Professor Hecat then dismissed the class. Hesitantly, they went to speak to the professor regarding their late acceptance into Hogwarts. They learned she was an Unspeakable for the Ministry and took out the largest poacher ring in eastern Wales. He realized the older a wizard or witch was, the more powerful they likely were and it seemed everyone in class reached the same thought regarding Professor Hecat. Especially Alexandra who stared at the old witch like she was her new hero. And once she dismissed them, they were done with their first day at Hogwarts…
At the risk of not completing this story once again, I've settled to leave this chapter as it is. Originally, it was split between the two classes with about 2,500 words each. I edited it down to fix the pacing and stay focused on the classes. I cut out the Summoning Court game and the Dueling club as both only increased the length and didn't fit with the story I was trying to tell. It simply felt like a copy of the main story and I didn't want to copy and paste every dialogue and interaction as seen with me not giving Natty or Sebastian dialogue. Both will but for now, the focus is more on the main trio. Their respective stories and time will come. On Professor's Heact lecture on spells, it was actually supposed to take place at the beginning of the class but I decided to have Rose's duel first (originally a duel between the Student and Sebastian) thus allowing a more uneasy end to their first day which sets the tone for the rest of the story. I know the explanation on spells will also seem video game-y but I think there's something interesting to be said about it. One of the biggest issues in the Harry Potter universe is how limited and limitless magic can be. Why bother with certain spells when there are other spells that are much better? I simply had the lecture as an excuse to avoid this issue. I think a better explanation and rule set for magic in this universe could be made but these are the rules I'm sticking to for now. Anyway, a bit of a lengthy chapter. Felt like you all deserved it for the wait and I know I'm juggling between several stories such as this story, my Evil Dead Rise story, and my Godzilla story, and I even have a Jurassic World story planned, but this is just to keep my interest in writing. I had a major block and lack of motivation since late February and I prefer to keep this output of stories going sooo... no pressure? Lol no but seriously, I appreciate you and I hope you stay around because I have a different direction for this story then I'm used to as hinted in the second half of this chapter... Until then.