The classroom on the third floor of the castle was far larger than Alvin Vance had imagined, spacious enough to hold all the first-year students from all four houses.
High ceilings and large, bright windows lit the room.
A stack of thick cushions stood before the podium, behind which rose rows of tiered benches and desks.
The first-years from the four houses naturally divided themselves into distinct areas based on their affiliations.
The red of Gryffindor stood in stark opposition to the silver and green of Slytherin across the room, while Ravenclaw’s blue and Hufflepuff’s yellow filled the center and flanks.
Alvin Vance followed the Slytherin line and sat down in the area on the right.
Sweeping his gaze across the room, he saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione looking over at him from the Gryffindor side.
Harry and Ron averted their eyes with complicated expressions, still seemingly bewildered by his house assignment.
Hermione, on the other hand, had already opened her thick copy of *The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 1* and begun reading ahead.
Alvin withdrew his gaze and refocused on the upcoming class.
Charms class—one of the cornerstones and cores of the Western magic system.
He was curious to see how Professor Flitwick, a reputed former dueling champion, would lead them across the first threshold into this miraculous world.
When Professor Flitwick came jogging into the classroom, Alvin was genuinely taken aback.
Compared to the massive frame of Hagrid, the gamekeeper—who looked as though he might burst through doorframes—the Ravenclaw head of house and former dueling champion went to the complete opposite extreme.
He was strikingly short.
If one didn’t look closely, he could easily be hidden completely behind the tall podium.
With practiced ease, he dragged over several thick, heavy tomes and stacked them under his feet, barely bringing his shoulders and head above the edge of the podium.
He looked for all the world like Tuxingsun from *Investiture of the Gods*, popping up out of the earth.
“Welcome!
Welcome, first-years!”
Professor Flitwick’s voice was surprisingly booming and full of enthusiasm, instantly capturing everyone’s attention.
His high-pitched tone carried a buoyant, rhythmic cadence.
“I am Filius Flitwick, your Charms professor!
It is a pleasure to see so many fresh faces.
Are you ready to set sail upon the ocean of magic?”
He pulled out a long roll of parchment and began taking roll.
Each time he called a name, he would look up through his small spectacles and cast an encouraging smile at the student who answered.
When he called “Harry Potter,” Professor Flitwick gave a delighted blink.
When he read “Alvin Selwyn,” his gaze lingered on Alvin Vance for an extra second, seemingly laced with a hint of curiosity, before giving a friendly nod.
Once roll call was finished, Professor Flitwick set the parchment aside.
Resting both hands on the edge of the podium—a stance that made him look like he was leaning flat against it due to his height—he began the formal lesson.
“Charms,” he said clearly, “is the foundation of a wizard’s craft.
It is the delicate combination of willpower, gesture, and language, guiding our inner magic outward to alter reality according to our will.
It can be Lumos, lighting up the dark; it can be Scourgify, cleaning away stains; and, of course, it can…
make objects fly!”
He paused intentionally, successfully piquing the young witches’ and wizards’ interest.
“And today, as the starting point of our wonderful journey, I will teach you a very, very practical basic spell—one that tests your initial coordination with your wand: the Levitation Charm!
A spell that makes objects float!”
The Levitation Charm?
Alvin’s interest piqued, immediately recalling Ron’s failed attempt to make a quill twitch on the Hogwarts Express.
So this was the first spell they were going to learn.
Let us first look at the theoretical description and the breakdown of the wand movement in the book…”
The rustling sound of flipping pages filled the classroom.
Alvin opened his brand-new textbook as instructed and quickly scanned the page.
Clear diagrams illustrated the precise trajectory for waving the wand—a gentle swish and flick—accompanied by the Latin incantation “*Wingardium Leviosa*,” along with breakdown marks for syllables and emphasis.
“Excellent!” Professor Flitwick clapped his hands.
“Theory is important, but with charms, practice is paramount!
Now, everyone watch closely—”
He picked up a wand that looked a bit too long for his small hand, cleared his throat, and pronounced each syllable in his high, exceptionally clear voice:
“*Wing-gar-dium Le-vi-o-sa!*”
At the same time, his wrist flicked with a remarkably precise and gentle motion, tracing a graceful arc with the wand tip.
Upon the podium, a pale blue feather used for the demonstration seemed to be gently lifted by an invisible hand.
Smoothly and slowly, it rose until it nearly touched the ceiling, then descended just as smoothly and slowly back onto the desk.
The entire process was so fluid there wasn’t a single tremble.
“Ooh—!”
A chorus of soft cheers, a mix of awe and longing, rippled through the classroom.
Over on the Gryffindor side, Ron’s eyes were wide as saucers, while Hermione gripped her wand tightly, her lips moving silently as if memorizing the incantation.
On the Slytherin side, most students also wore focused, eager expressions.
Draco Malfoy raised his chin slightly, wearing an expression that said “this doesn’t look hard at all.”
Alvin watched intently, not merely with his eyes, but perceiving with his cultivated spiritual sense.
This was his first time observing a professor perform a complete, standard charm so up close and clear.
In his perception, the moment Professor Flitwick uttered the incantation, magical energy was summoned along the specific rhythm of the syllables.
Channeling through the wand—an exceptional conductor and amplifier—and pairing with the precise trajectory of the gesture, it formed a unique “wave” or “field.” This field acted accurately upon the feather, applying a continuous upward force.
Willpower as the guide, incantation as the key, gesture as the path, magic as the force, and wand as the bridge—acting upon an object to alter its natural state.
Alvin summarized quietly in his mind, trying to break down and understand the process using the Eastern cultivation concepts with which he was more familiar.
This differed greatly from the Daoist arts he had learned.
Daoist talismans and spells focused more on accumulating and circulating internal spiritual power, harmonizing with and borrowing from the natural principles of Heaven and Earth.
They often pursued subtle, quiet transformation or the summoning of heavenly might.
The medium of casting—talisman paper, hand seals, spoken mantras—served more as catalysts or rituals to guide and resonate internal spiritual power with the outside world, rather than absolute necessities.
In contrast, the Western charm before him relied more on a set of precise, external formulas (incantation + gesture + wand) to forcibly shape and channel relatively loose magic, which carried a stronger personal emotional tone, into a specific effect.
“Alright, everyone!” Professor Flitwick’s voice pulled his thoughts back.
“You’ve seen the principle and the demonstration.
Now, take out your wands and face the feather in front of you—oh, right, almost forgot!”
With a wave of his wand, a stack of lightweight feathers flew out from a cabinet behind the podium, landing with pinpoint accuracy on each student’s desk.
“Try to make it fly!
Remember: speak the incantation clearly, and keep your wrist movement light and fluid, as if waving the feather itself!
Most importantly, concentrate and hold a firm intent to make the feather rise!”
The classroom instantly burst into noise.
Syllables of “*Wingardium Leviosa*” echoed from every corner in various tones, rhythms, and accents, accompanied by a wild variety of wand waves. Get faster updates on g.com.
Most feathers merely twitched, emitted a puff of grey smoke, or failed to react entirely.
Neville Longbottom’s feather even burst into a small ball of fire with a *pop*, startling him so badly he nearly threw his wand away.
Over by Seamus Finnigan came a faint explosion and the smell of singed fabric.
Alvin was in no hurry to begin.
Closing his eyes to focus his mind, he replayed Professor Flitwick’s demonstration repeatedly in his head.
Then, he tried shifting his framework of understanding:
Could the specific trajectory of the wand movement be understood as a route for guiding spiritual power?
Were the syllables and rhythm of the incantation similar to true words or mantras in Eastern arts, serving to tune into specific energy frequencies?
And focusing one’s willpower on wanting the feather to rise—wasn’t that precisely the basic Daoist requirement of guiding energy with intent, allowing the spirit to harmonize with matter?
He treated the feather before him as an object needing to be commanded, and his wand as an extended tendril of spiritual energy.
He slowly raised his cherry wood wand.
Rather than copying the full swing of Professor Flitwick’s gesture, he made a more reserved, harmonious flick upward according to the flow of his own spiritual power.
At the same time, in a clear yet composed tone, he uttered the incantation:
“*Wing-gar-dium Le-vi-o-sa.*”
Something miraculous happened.
As if awakening from a deep slumber, his pale yellow feather rose off the desk with extreme stability and zero effort.
It ascended at a steady speed until it reached eye level, then hovered firmly in place, quivering slightly as if floating in invisible water.
There was no precarious swaying, nor any sign of strain.
It simply floated there, natural and steady.
“Oh!
Splendid!”
A squeaky exclamation came from the direction of the podium.
Professor Flitwick had stood on tiptoe at some point, leaning half his body over the podium as he stared excitedly in Alvin’s direction.
The tip of his wand flickered with faint light from his excitement.
“Perfect!
Mr.
Selwyn!
A nearly perfect Levitation Charm!
Such stability, such control!
Look at that feather, how serene!
Five points to Slytherin for exceptional understanding and succeeding on your very first try!”
The entire class’s eyes immediately locked onto Alvin Vance and the floating feather before him.
Surprise, envy, disbelief—a flurry of emotions hung in the air.
Draco Malfoy opened his mouth, glancing down at his own feather, which had merely twitched, and then back at Alvin.
A flash of reluctance and deeper astonishment crossed his face.
On the Gryffindor side, Hermione bit her lip and began waving her wand with even greater effort; Harry and Ron stared with wide eyes.
Alvin calmly controlled the feather to gently settle back onto the desk, nodding to Professor Flitwick.
“Thank you, Professor.”
He could sense that his success just now was not because he had instantaneously mastered the essence of Western magic, but because he had cleverly grafted his existing foundation in spiritual energy manipulation onto this relatively simple spellwork framework.
This gave him a unique confidence and interest in his future magic studies.
The Eastern and Western power systems did not seem entirely isolated; at certain fundamental levels, there were intriguing connection points waiting to be explored.