"Class! Class!"
As dawn had only just broken, the newly arrived first-years at Hogwarts leapt out of bed in high spirits. In small groups, they made their way to the Great Hall for breakfast. After wandering the confusing staircases for quite some time, they finally managed to find their first lesson—Charms class.
As they walked, they excitedly flipped through The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1, waving their wands as they discussed the many spells recorded inside, along with the theories that, for now, made little sense to them at all.
Hufflepuff shared Charms with Slytherin, yet in the entire classroom, there was only one student wearing robes with green lining. He sat quietly in the very front row, calmly reading his textbook.
"Baron?"
The moment Avada entered the classroom, his eyes were drawn to the lone figure seated at the front. He looked a little surprised."You're up this early too?"
As a reincarnator, Avada had been even more excited than the average first-year last night. His sleep had been poor, and he still felt somewhat sluggish.
"Good morning, Ken."
Baron smiled as he greeted him. "Didn't expect to see you again so soon. Want to sit here? Front-row seats are hard to get."
"I'd be delighted. Thanks."
Avada thanked him, pulled out the chair, set down his bag, and took the seat beside Baron. He pretended to read his textbook—though he'd already read it cover to cover during the summer.
Gradually, the Slytherin students and the better-rested Hufflepuffs filed into the room, sitting together with their own Houses. Soon, the classroom divided neatly into two distinct areas of yellow and green. In that arrangement, Avada and Baron found themselves forming the only boundary between the two sides.
At last, a wizard as short as a goblin entered the classroom, his long robes trailing across the floor. With a wave of his hand, a stack of books floated to the podium. He hopped up onto it in a single bound, just tall enough to peer over its edge.
"Allow me to introduce myself," he said in a high, sharp voice. "I am Filius Flitwick, professor of Charms and Head of Ravenclaw House."
"Before we begin, let's take attendance…"
He withdrew a piece of parchment, studying the names written on it with a slightly twisted expression.
"Mr. Ken!"
"Here," Avada replied weakly, drawing sideways glances and hushed whispers. Cedric had warned the Hufflepuffs not to pry into his name—but Slytherin hadn't been told.
"Mr. Baron Shafiq!"
"Here."
Baron hesitated for a moment before answering, momentarily puzzled by the sudden formality—though he quickly realized that the professor was addressing everyone the same way.
"Mr. Xavier Nott!"
"Here."
…
Only then did Avada realize that after calling his name, Flitwick had added "Mr." or "Miss" before every student's name.
"Excellent. Everyone is present."
After folding up his parchment, Flitwick surveyed the classroom and continued, "When I entered just now, I noticed most of you were already reading the textbook. That's a fine habit. So tell me—what do you think of the material so far?"
Several hands shot up at once.
"Mr. McNeill," he said, pointing to a Slytherin student.
A tall, thin boy stood up and answered proudly, "The spells are very simple. I already knew quite a few of them from home!"
"Very good."
Flitwick smiled kindly, then called on a Hufflepuff girl. "Miss White, what about you?"
"It feels… magical," she replied shyly. "I never imagined there could be so many incredible spells in the world—able to do so many unbelievable things!"
Soft laughter rippled from the Slytherin side of the room, making Baron frown slightly.
After asking a few more students and receiving a variety of answers, Flitwick nodded."It seems everyone here is quite eager to learn magic. Then let me ask you a different question: did anyone read the preface of the textbook carefully?"
The classroom fell silent.
They were only eleven years old—who would bother with a long, obscure preface when faced with brand-new spells?
After a long pause, one hand slowly rose from beneath a desk.
It was Avada.
He really had read the preface; it had been extremely helpful in understanding the magical world. He had intended to keep a low profile, but seeing Flitwick's carefully built momentum come to a halt, he reluctantly raised his hand.
"Oh! We actually have one!"
Flitwick looked surprised. "In the past several years, not a single first-year read the preface. So, Mr. Ken—would you like to share your thoughts?"
So you did that on purpose…
Avada stood, his expression twitching slightly. After a brief pause, he answered, "The preface is quite profound. I don't understand much of it, but it seems to discuss the nature of magic—why we can use magic at all, and the latest developments in magical research. As for the various terms it mentions, like 'Essentialism' or 'Overlay Theory'… I don't understand those at all."
"Precisely!"
Flitwick said cheerfully, motioning for Avada to sit down. "If everyone could understand everything in the book on their own, there'd be no need for a professor at all. Two points to Hufflepuff."
"Mr. Ken is absolutely right. Ever since wizards discovered they possessed extraordinary abilities and distinguished themselves from Muggles, discussions about magic and magical power have never ceased—and continue to this day."
His expression turned solemn.
"Why is it that we are all human, yet wizards can cast spells and Muggles cannot? Why does the seemingly orderly natural world allow something as law-defying as magic to exist? And what, precisely, is the nature of magical power?"
"To this day, none of these questions have definitive answers."
"However, as our era advances and research into magic grows ever deeper, many erroneous theories have been discarded. We inch closer and closer to the truth. For example, an ancient and once-popular view—often called Substance Theory—held that magical power was an innate supernatural energy residing inside a wizard's body. Modern discoveries have proven this to be false. At the very least, we now know that magical power permeates the natural world, and that wizards merely use certain inherent traits to influence and manipulate it."
"Professor, then how does the current mainstream theory explain magical power?"
A Slytherin student asked impatiently, not even bothering to raise his hand.
"At present, there are three mainstream perspectives."
Flitwick did not scold him, instead smoothly continuing, "They are known as Essentialism, Overlay Theory, and the Inherent Theory—a concept that has only emerged in recent decades."
"Essentialism proposes that magic is the essence of all matter and energy, capable of transforming into anything else while exerting a one-way influence upon the world."
"Overlay Theory claims that magic is a substance or form of energy that transcends all physical matter, existing in a higher dimension and blanketing the entire world, thereby influencing everything within it."
"As for the Inherent Theory, it was inspired by Muggle science at the beginning of this century and quickly gained popularity. It argues that there is no such thing as 'magic' as a separate force; rather, magical effects are inherent properties of all matter and energy. Any object can spontaneously produce magical phenomena without external input. What we call magic is merely the medium that triggers these effects."
Flitwick looked at the students—some shocked, some confused, others deep in thought—and smiled, pausing to give them time to absorb the information.
"Of course," he continued after a while, "none of these theories have conclusive proof. If any one of you were to completely prove—or disprove—any of them, congratulations. Your name would be etched into wizarding history. Not even the Order of Merlin, First Class, could encompass a hundredth of that achievement!"
"I truly hope that the wizard who leaves such a mark on history will be born in this very classroom."
Seeing the students' eyes gradually fill with enthusiasm, Flitwick knew the atmosphere was exactly where he wanted it. Satisfied, he tapped the blackboard with his wand.
"Now then—let us take the first step toward uncovering the mysteries of magic."
"For our very first lesson, we shall learn the Levitation Charm!"
(End of Chapter)