Chapter 29: Third Year Part 9
Kaiser went down from the boy's dorm to the Ravenclaw common room, after a very productive discussion with Karl. He liked the atmosphere in Ravenclaw. Not too loud to be annoying, and not too quiet to feel deserted.
He noticed Tracey and Michael sitting in one of the sofas by the fire place, their talks bordering on flirting, while Daphne was next to them with a book in her hands, rolling her eyes loudly. He wanted to say hello, but maybe it wasn't the best time?
He made his way out, but was followed by Daphne who stopped him once they were far enough.
"So, how did it go?" she asked. Karl trusted his daughter a great deal, and kept her well informed. The meeting just took place, so she couldn't know the details yet. She was too eager to know if it went well, since it concerned something else, she had in mind.
"Very well." Kaiser reassured, knowing full well why she was interested. "Your father believe he will sign the contract in no time. But we have already gotten the most important thing."
Daphne nodded. She understood Kaiser knew very well the value of the Black Library, but he somehow believed some other object she was unaware of was more valuable. She was smart enough to understand why she couldn't be told such sensitive information, and therefore didn't ask.
"Where are you going this late, by the way? Not that you have to tell me, but you are clearly their target. It's dangerous to be alone in the corridors at night." she quickly added, afraid she might step over her limits.
"I have practice with professor Flitwick. Don't worry, I won't do something that stupid. But your concern is appreciated." he gave her a polite smile. She was a good ally to have, if the latest of events was any indication.
----------------------------------------
Kaiser entered the practice room, and found Flitwick already waiting for him there.
"I'm sorry for being late, professor." he offered a respectful bow. Flitwick spent a lot of his personal time teaching him, and he was very grateful for that.
"It's quite alright, Mr. Lunar. I am certain you had a good reason." the diminutive professor chuckled. "Today, I will teach you about a very advanced feat of magic. I do not expect you to replicate any time soon, but merely to be aware of the possibility. Stand there, Mr. Lunar, and do not move."
Kaiser did as he was told. Flitwick pointed his wand at the wall in Kaiser's side, and incanted: "Stupefy."
The spell could be seen moving slower than usual towards the wall, but there was definitely something wrong with its movement, apart from its unusual speed. As more time passed, barely a second, he could tell what: the spell's trajectory was not a straight line, it was curved. The spell never hit the wall, but continued curving until its motion vector was parallel to the wall, meaning it would never hit it. It still continued curving, now it was heading right next to Kaiser's position. But something even more unexpected happened once it reached its location: it disappeared.
Kaiser spent a long moment processing what just happened, and he was clueless. He did not understand it one bit.
"Can you tell me what I exactly did, and how?" Flitwick chuckled at his clueless face, and waited for him to speak.
"You changed the spell movement in space, along with its speed. As for how… theoretically speaking, you could've modified the phenomenon's propagation runes, but that's a ridiculous thought… to do so would require years of research, not to mention the risks involved in modifying spells…" Kaiser mused out-loud about the possibilities. Magic, at its purest form, was in fact Runes. Spells were a runic construct that made up a phenomenon, then propagated it to its target. Modifying a spell not only is exceedingly difficult, but also very risky. Luna's mother died when she was experimenting with a spell, and she's only one of the many many examples.
'Wait a second… isn't professor Flitwick a Charm Master? Charms, by definition is the area of Magic that "modifies behaviors". Could it be that it's not limited to physical objects?'
"Professor, is it possible to modify a spell's behavior with charms?" he asked after a minute of thinking.
"That is correct, Mr. Lunar. But that is a Master level technique, far beyond NEWT levels. And not only limited to spells. It can be applied to almost anything." Flitwick chuckled. "What I did was change the spell's trajectory, as well as it's speed, but also its lifespan. The latter part can also be achieved with a dueling technique we will be covering today. But before that, let's explore other possibilities of charms, shall we."
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
The professor pointed his wand at the wall, but what came out this time was not a sphere-like spell, but a blue arc. Blue was the color of the stunning charm, which meant it was a stunning arc. That's not all, before the Arc hit the wall, it abruptly changed direction. It didn't seem smooth, but rather discontinuous. One moment it was heading for the wall, the next for the ceiling.
"Also, throwing spells around isn't the only way to fight."
Flitwick conjured a ball of water, and threw it at the nearby table. Once the water hit the table, it started corroding it, and it lost its structural integrity, collapsing to the ground. The professor then vanished the water and repaired the table.
Next, professor Flitwick conjured a blade. He moved it slowly towards the table's leg. It passed through it like a knife through butter.
Kaiser was very impressed at what he was seeing. It appeared he still had much to learn about the endless possibilities of magic, this was an eye opener.
"Charms can be used in numerous ways, it only depends on the caster's imagination. The same goes for Transfiguration or even Alchemy. Now, let's get to the main course. In a duel, running out of energy is the same as forfeiting. Therefore, it is important to manage your spells well. We have already done this with the Shielding Charm. With a projectile spell, it's different. You have to only charge the spell enough for it to reach its target. It requires a great deal of concentration and repetition."
Then, Flitwick began guiding Kaiser to correctly apply the technique, though he still had a long way before it was applicable in a real-life situation. He would need to use it for months, and get used to it for each offensive spell he uses.
----------------------------------------
The next day, Kaiser was surprisingly approached by Harry and Hermione, who wished to discuss something with him.
"We noticed that your… combat skills are better than ours, and we wish to improve. With the number of problems, we run into every year, we believe it's wise to do so. Not to mention how there is a mad psychopath who's after Harry." Hermione said hesitantly.
"You can cast spell silently. I've asked the older years students, and they told us the technique was too difficult. Do you know of some kind of secret?" Harry asked curiously.
Kaiser looked pensive for a moment, thinking about the best way he can help them out. He was glad Ron wasn't with them, he didn't wish to deal with him anymore.
"I do know a few. For starters, if you wish to improve, you will have to practice Occlumency first. It is a necessary step. Have you tried it before?" Kaiser asked Harry.
"Well, I've spent a lot of time meditating, especially during the summer. I can clear my mind now." Harry answered.
"Good. That should save us some time. I will try to get you guys a book on Legilimency, that way Hermione can help you practice even more." Kaiser promised. "Do you know of the different ways of casting magic?"
"There is Verbal Casting and Non-Verbal casting, right?" Harry answered, though it was more of a question than an answer.
"I've also read about Thought Casting, but it said on the book it's extremely advanced and ridiculously difficult." Hermione added.
"It is very difficult, but mainly because it requires a great deal of concentration and repetition. With enough practice, you can master a few spells with that method." Kaiser affirmed.
Hermione and Harry nodded in understand, but then Hermione froze. 'Wait a minute…' she just registered what he said.
"Y-you can thought-cast spells?" she asked hesitantly. She wasn't expecting this at all, as she always believed only legendary wizards were capable of it.
"Only a handful of spells. It's not that rare, actually. Almost all professors at Hogwarts are capable of it."
"That's amazing! We can't even cast spells silently!" Harry exclaimed. They saw him cast spells "silently" during the battle, but they didn't think it was more impressive than that.
Kaiser proceeded to explain his "secret" to spell casting, though it was a well-known fact. It's only that his regime is more intensive than usual, and it required a lot of discipline and motivation to do it. He was certain both of them had more than enough motivation, except Harry had a dead weight pulling him down.
"Harry." Kaiser's face morphed to a serious expression, indicating that what he was about to say should be paid attention to. "There are always people that will pull you down in this life, even disguised as a friend, and those that will help you rise up. Make sure you're only influenced by the right kind." he left after he finished his monologue.
Harry was puzzled by those words. What exactly did he mean? But Hermione obviously understood his meaning clearly.
"What was that for?" Harry asked.
"He's talking about Ron." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Honestly Harry, do you ever pay attention?"
"Sorry for not being as smart as you." he pouted, though he was more troubled than he appeared to be. Did Kaiser just suggest he shouldn't be friends with Ron? He couldn't do that, Ron was his first and best friend.
As if reading his mind, Hermione reassured: "He is only saying you shouldn't always be as lazy as him. It's common knowledge that Ron only likes eating and sleeping."
They walked for a while before Hermione said: "You know… I thought he was only good with Runes, spending the vast majority of his time on them… I told myself, if he can do it, then we can too, right? But I underestimated him. He takes his education more seriously than we do, that's why he's better than us."
"You're right. With Valdy out there, we should prepare ourselves better than this. Who knows what might happen in the future? We couldn't even be a match for one of his Death Eaters, what would we do if he ever showed up?" Harry said, determination seeping through his voice.