On the afternoon before Halloween, Tver hummed a tune as he walked toward the classroom.
Last night, he had successfully defeated Percy at wizard chess—and won every game throughout the night. As a reward, the training mannequin session was extended by a month, giving them more time to practice.
As usual, he handed out a test paper to the students. The first-years had already covered quite a bit of material and were beginning to follow the same pace as the second and third years, reviewing what they'd learned before class.
Half an hour later, Tver collected the papers.
"I heard something in the Great Hall at lunch—you started practicing the Levitation Charm in morning Charms class, correct?"
The students immediately responded with excitement. This was, after all, their second proper spell—the first being the Lighting Charm.
With a flick of his wand, forty parchment strips crumpled up and flew to land in front of each student.
"Alright then. First, I need to check how proficient you are with this spell. See the strips before you?"
"If you can levitate a feather, you can levitate a strip. Don't be discouraged—this is essential for the next step."
"I imagine you all remember that duel from over a month ago?"
"Once you've completely mastered the Levitation Charm, I'll teach you an advanced application of this magic—something that will make the ordinary extraordinary!"
This time, instead of disappointment, the students grew even more excited. They remembered that duel vividly... well, not every detail. The exchange had been so fast that even following the general moves was impressive.
Still, the most striking moments had been discussed so often that they were etched into everyone's memory—the unexpected Transfiguration, the bird-shaped Disarming Charm, the golden Shield Charm.
Most importantly, those weren't particularly advanced spells. If they could learn the advanced applications the professor mentioned, they might be able to cast them too.
Their faces were filled with anticipation, as if they couldn't wait to learn that magic immediately.
But within a minute, they encountered their first setback.
Aside from a few students, no one managed to make their paper slip float.
"This won't do," Tver said, shaking his head in mock disappointment. "This isn't Charms class. We don't have time to practice the Levitation Charm here."
"If everyone hasn't mastered it in ten minutes, I'll just have to postpone this lesson."
The young wizards instantly grew anxious. Those who had already succeeded began guiding their classmates, and cries of "Wingardium Leviosa" rang out across the room as wands were swung with much greater enthusiasm.
A flash of red light shot out, and Tver quickly cast a Shield Charm, wrapping the red glow tightly within it.
A dull "boom" followed as the shield dissolved into white light.
"Mr. Finnigan, you'd have better results if you relaxed a little," Tver said.
He couldn't help but marvel at the boy's explosive talent. Even a misfired spell packed quite a punch. If he focused on studying high-powered magic, he could become a human cannon.
Ron, however, wasn't so lucky. His wand wasn't well-suited to him, and after spending the morning arguing with Hermione, he couldn't even get the paper strip to twitch.
"I told you, it's 'Wingardium Leviosa,' not 'Osa'! Why can't you get it right?" Hermione huffed, her cheeks puffed in frustration.
Ron pursed his lips. "I thought you weren't talking to me anymore?"
"Did you think I wanted to talk to you?" Hermione shot a glance toward the professor's desk. "If it weren't for the professor's lesson, I wouldn't waste my time tutoring you!"
"Well, thanks a lot then."
Ron's tone was dismissive, but he understood that if he was the only one slowing the class down and keeping everyone from learning advanced magic, he'd be drowned in glares. Besides, he wanted to learn that spell too. No matter how annoyed he was by Hermione's attitude, he had to swallow his pride and follow along.
"Wingardium Leviosa!"
Ron's paper strip floated slowly into the air, and he grinned from ear to ear.
"Excellent. Now that the last student has mastered the Levitation Charm, we can move on to the main event of today's lesson."
The students held their breath, their eyes fixed on Tver.
Tver raised his wand toward Ron's floating strip. "Wingardium Leviosa."
The paper dropped as though slapped by an invisible hand, slamming flat against the desk and smoothing out in an instant. The once-wrinkled strip now lay as neat as a freshly ironed shirt, not a crease in sight.
"See?" Tver lifted the note to hover above their heads. "By applying the opposite kind of control, you can turn the Levitation Charm into a Pressure Charm."
At once, the students recalled a rumor—that third-year students had once been pinned to the ground by one of the professor's spells, completely unable to move.
So this was that spell?!
Their faces lit with excitement as they stared at the perfectly flat paper, their eager gazes so intense it looked like they might set it on fire.
"Everyone, take note," Tver continued. "The two spells are essentially the same. The incantation, the wand movement, even the magical output—it's all identical. The only difference lies in applying the opposite force."
"So think carefully about how you controlled your magic when casting the Levitation Charm, and then reverse that feeling."
The classroom once again filled with the sound of "Wingardium Leviosa," though this time, success came far less quickly.
"Don't rush. If you're unsure how to reverse the force, imagine yourself upside down—"
"Hey, Mr. Longbottom! Imagine it, don't actually flip yourself over!"
Tver chuckled as he watched the young wizards try all sorts of ridiculous ways to "reverse" their energy.
Ron "cleverly" switched hands, only to find he couldn't channel any magic at all.
Harry, learning from his previous mistake, swung his wand downward—and managed to strike his own left hand hard enough to draw blood.
Padma Patil from Ravenclaw took a different approach, flipping her wrist over—and by sheer luck, it actually worked once.
"Congratulations, Miss Patil, you're the first to succeed," Tver said with a smile. "But I don't recommend that method. I'd rather not have Madam Pomfrey complaining about sprained wrists on my account."
The class laughed, though several students subtly twisted their wrists to try it anyway.
In theory, the Pressure Charm was simpler than most advanced spell applications—it didn't change the incantation or transform into a new spell. But "simple" was relative. For first-year wizards, it was one of the most difficult techniques they'd encountered so far.
Hermione shot Ron an exasperated look as he twisted his arm around again. "The professor said flipping your wrist doesn't work."
"But Patil did it! You're so brilliant—why don't you show me the right way?"
Ron had the odd feeling he'd said something like that earlier that morning. A second later, he was sure of it—because Hermione had just proved him wrong again.
Her paper strip was pressed flat against the desk, unmoving even in the slightest breeze, though not as perfectly smooth as Tver's.
"You... you try getting it completely flat then!" Ron muttered, turning his head away stubbornly.
Hermione's face flushed red. "How could I possibly manage that in one go?!"
"Well, you still can't..." Ron grumbled under his breath.
As soon as class ended, Hermione gathered her books and hurried out of the room, not even hearing Tver's final words—
"If I get the chance, I'll find you an opponent, so you can experience what real combat feels like."