Wyzett had made it his goal over the summer to master the Memory Charm.
Naturally, once term began, he wasted no time scouring the library for every book he could find on the subject.
Compared to the ancient Dark Arts, the Memory Charm was a relatively recent invention.
Its origins could be traced back to the sixteenth century, when it was created by a witch named Mnemone Radford.
The moment the Memory Charm appeared, it was swiftly adopted by wizards everywhere, used to erase Muggles' memories of magic and those who wielded it.
The Ministry of Magic even created a new position for this purpose—Obliviator—with Mnemone Radford herself serving as the very first.
The invention of the Memory Charm greatly accelerated the signing of the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy.
Yet despite her monumental contribution, Mnemone Radford never made it onto a Chocolate Frog card, nor did she become a household name among witches and wizards.
Most modern wizards know of the Memory Charm—few know its creator.
Even A History of Magic mentions it only in passing, offering no real analysis.
Determined to uncover the truth, Wyzett dug through Hogwarts' vast library and found his answer.
Mnemone Radford had written an autobiography: Repenting in Memory, Suffering in Forgetting.
In its pages, she compared the Memory Charm to the Killing Curse, declaring that to cast it was to murder memory itself.
The depth of her magical research was beyond question.
Between the lines, Wyzett could sense Radford's conflicted reflections on her own creation, and her profound insights into the soul.
To her, the Memory Charm was a weapon that could kill a person at the very level of their soul—by murdering their memories.
She posed a question reminiscent of the Ship of Theseus: if a wizard erased every memory from a person's mind, was that person still the same?
Someone wounded by a Memory Charm would have to relearn everything—family, hobbies, talents, even the meaning of love.
After rebuilding their memories and forging a new life, could they ever truly recover their original self?
Radford, inventor of the Memory Charm, wrestled with these questions but could offer no definitive answer.
As the Ministry promoted the spell, wizards grew increasingly casual in its use, rarely pausing to consider the consequences.
The Ministry worked hard to cast the Memory Charm in a positive light, framing it as the very foundation of magical secrecy.
Radford, however, saw it as a dangerous beast—one whose harms outweighed its benefits, and which should only be used with the utmost caution.
Perhaps that's why her presence is so faint—absent from Chocolate Frog cards, glossed over in A History of Magic.
Wyzett, with his own soul labyrinth, found himself agreeing with Radford's view.
For a person, memory was everything.
It was his memories that had allowed him, last year, to slow down Voldemort with his soul labyrinth and help Professor Quirrell escape disaster.
He had even faced Voldemort directly within that labyrinth...
There are counter-charms to the Memory Charm, but their effectiveness is limited by the spell's very nature.
A wizard harmed by a Memory Charm must first realize their memories are missing, then know the correct counter-charm.
Even then, the counter-charm must be far stronger than the original Memory Charm to have any hope of restoring what was lost.
Meeting all these conditions typically requires outside help—perhaps from an Auror.
And even then, full recovery is rare; how much comes back depends as much on luck as on magic.
It was precisely because he understood the Memory Charm so deeply that Wyzett was determined to master it completely—not to wield it crudely, as so many wizards did, but to understand every nuance.
Perhaps this Lockhart before him could offer something new.
Following Lockhart's guidance, Wyzett reviewed the Memory Charm once again.
Lockhart eyed him curiously. "Have you studied the Memory Charm before?"
"I learned a bit after coming back to school. Did some self-study," Wyzett answered honestly.
"A bit? Self-study?" Lockhart's voice rose, sharp as nails on glass. "Wyzett, are you saying..."
"You're spending your mornings in the greenhouses learning Herbology, researching Transfiguration in your spare time, and you still have time to teach yourself the Memory Charm? School's barely started!"
"Oh, and I've seen you after class—showing a little blonde girl around. Luna Lovegood, right? She's your sister? You..."
Wyzett replied matter-of-factly, "Yes. Hogwarts castle is a bit complicated, so I wanted to look after her. She's much better at it than I was, though!"
Looking at Wyzett's calm smile, Lockhart felt a headache coming on.
He'd planned to play the long game—correcting pronunciation and gestures, slowly building rapport.
He hadn't expected Wyzett to master everything so quickly, leaving nothing to correct.
Things were clearly not going to plan. If he didn't show some real skill, his "big fish" might slip away to tour Hogwarts with his sister.
After a moment's thought, Lockhart made up his mind. "Since you've got the theory down, it's time for something different!"
"A lot of wizards think the Memory Charm is just like the Scouring Charm—if a Muggle sees magic, just scrub away the memory."
"It's a simple, blunt approach, and it works—at least, for Muggles."
"But if you try that on a wizard, you'll leave all sorts of traces. At least, any experienced witch or wizard will spot the flaws."
At this, Wyzett immediately asked, "Professor Lockhart, what should we do in those cases?"
After a year at Hogwarts, he knew the value of questioning and thinking for himself.
If you don't ask, you'll never learn—and you'll only have yourself to blame later.
Lockhart arched an eyebrow, recognizing that he'd hooked Wyzett's curiosity.
He flashed a dazzling smile. "Even though the Memory Charm is a simple spell for me, I never underestimate any magic—no matter how ordinary..."
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