Meanwhile, while Steven was destroying the diary horcrux, Heather was teaching Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah about Wandlore.
"The first thing I should tell you about Wandlore, " explained Heather, "Is that wands are absolutely dependent on their magical cores to work. Without their magical cores, wands would just be sticks of wood and would not allow wizards to channel their magic through them."
"I know that there is a such thing as Wandless Magic, " piped up Hannah, "Was there ever a time in wizarding history when witches and wizards just performed their magic naturally without the use of wands?"
"Yes, " answered Heather in a businesslike voice, "But that was a LONG time ago. Like over a millennium ago. The specific year or years when wands came into use is unknown. Wands were being used, but a very new thing, when Hogwarts opened. I assume you lot know who the four founders of Hogwarts are?"
"Yes," chorused Susan and Hannah while Harry and Amy chorused "No."
"Harry, Amy, " explained Susan patiently, "The four founders of Hogwarts were named Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin."
"So the houses are named after them?" guessed Harry a nanosecond later.
"Yes," replied Heather, "And Godric and Rowena both played roles in wands coming into wizarding life. There had always been occasional issues of witches and wizards getting carried away with or losing control of their magic. But around this time period, episodes of witches and wizards getting carried away with or losing control of their magic were becoming noticeably more common. There were many deaths caused by accidental magic at the time and the magical population was declining."
Harry looked suddenly uncomfortable.
"I know for a fact that I've performed some accidental magic in my time, " said Harry uneasily.
"All witches and wizards do when they are children, " revealed Heather patiently, "Accidental magic is much more dangerous when performed by adults or even teenagers than when it is performed by children because the magic of adult and even teenage witches and wizards is significantly more powerful than the magic of witches and wizards who are children."
Harry gave off a relieved expression.
Heather continued, "Rowena was the one who realized that witches and wizards would become an endangered species if the circumstance of witches and wizards getting carried away with or losing control of their magic was not controlled. She asked her three besties, Godric, Helga, and Salazar to think of ideas for tools that witches and wizards could control and channel their magic through while giving it some thought herself."
"Was Salazar actually really friends with the other three?" asked Hannah.
"In the beginning, yes," said Heather matter of factly, "He actually saw eye to eye with Godric, Helga, and Rowena on more than many people realize. However, the refusal of the other three, especially Godric, to limit Hogwarts to all magic families led to Salazar falling out with them and he left the school. No one knows what became of Salazar after that, but most magical historians believe he lived out his life as a loner angry at the world and his former friends. Godric remained close with Helga and Rowena for the rest of their lives although it has been said by some magical historians that Godric felt sad from a lack of male friends. But, back on topic, Helga suggested using gum wrappers because she knew that any tool to channel magic would have to be carried by hand and choose something she felt could easily and convinetly be carried by hand."
"Gum wrappers would be too brittle to make good magical instruments, " observed Amy, "Too easy to break, tear, destroy."
"That's what Rowena told Helga, " Heather went on, "Then Godric suggested using small strips of wood, which he had named wands. Rowena loved the idea the nanosecond Godric presented it. Remember that wands can easily be carried in pockets too."
"And wands have been used ever since?" asked Harry.
"Yes, " answered Heather, "And the introduction of wands into wizarding culture was a smashing success as the death rate from witches and wizards killing themselves and each other due to getting carried away with or losing control of their magic declined dramatically after that. There's no question that the advent of wands made the magical world a much safer place for witches and wizards by allowing them to channel and control their magic."
"How many magical creatures provide wand cores?" inquired Amy curiously.
"Infinitely many, " responded Heather, "But it tends to vary by wandmaker and by region. Unicorn hair is the most common wand core worldwide while dragon heartstring is the most common wand core in the United Kingdom."
"What about the United States?' demanded Amy, "I'm Arizonan, remember, I got shortlisted for Hogwarts because there are no wizarding schools in Arizona, though Heather clearly did the right thing in pulling us,. But I'm just curious about my original country."
"That's completely understandable, " smiled Heather, "The most common wand core in the United States is kneazle hair. kneazles are a kind of magical cat known to be very intelligent with a inane ability to know who to trust and who not to trust. Kneazles are popular pets around the world but are very common in the United States."
"Heather, " piped up Harry "Olivander told me that the wand chooses the wizard and that you will never get such good results from another wizard's wand. Can a witch or wizard use a wand that hasn't chosen him or her?"
"Sure, " said Heather in a voice that lacked conviction, "If you have any magic in you then you can use any tool to channel it. But the BEST results must always come from a wand that has chosen you."
"It would seem to me, " said Harry clearly, "That this would be particularly important for witches and wizards who are learning magic. Do you know if any Hogwarts students are currently using second hand wands?"
"Well, that should never happen, " said Heather firmly, "Once Dumbledore's trial is over I'll have Amelia look into this and if the answer is yes then the issue will be addressed. Students can't do their best if they don't have the right tools."
"Does wand length matter?" wondered Amy aloud.
"Yes, " Heather informed them, "Longer wands are more powerful. This is most important in Transfiguration, as Transfiguration is the magical art that requires that strongest magical power to perform. The shortest wands known to exist are six inches and the longest wand known to exist is twenty one inches. It is rare for wands to be over sixteen inches though. Generally speaking, witches and wizards who are good at Transfiguration use wands at least ten inches in length. Longer wands are more powerful because magic is channeled through every part of a wand. So, the more of a wand there is, the more power it has."
"Okay," chroused Harry, Amy, Susan, and Hannah."
"We'll leave it there for today, " said Heather simply.