At the edge of Professor Flitwick's desk in his office, the warm aroma of tea and the sweet scent of pastries filled the air.
Professor Flitwick nodded with satisfaction as Lucien successfully completed the Undetectable Extension Charm on his own.
"Well done, Lucien," he said warmly.
Lucien, pulling his gaze away from the tea, replied earnestly, "Thank you for your patient guidance, Professor."
With a cheerful chuckle, Flitwick gestured to the pastry stand. "Have sothing to eat first. Take a break."
Lucien picked up a small pink cake and nibbled at it politely.
"Lucien," Flitwick began, "when it cos to objects enchanted with the Undetectable Extension Charm to hold living creatures, what conditions do you think are necessary?"
Swallowing the last bite of cake, Lucien pondered for a mont before answering, "First, you'd need to ensure a suitable environnt—climate, food, water…"
"And the space has to be stable. It can't suddenly shrink or collapse…"
"But beyond that, I'm not sure."
Flitwick nodded approvingly at Lucien's response. "You've thought it through quite thoroughly. There's one more thing to consider, though—if you're housing different species with vastly different environntal needs, you'd need to create separate spaces. That involves a much deeper level of spatial folding."
Lucien fell into thought, struck by Flitwick's insight. Indeed, enchanting an object to hold living creatures was a whole different beast compared to just expanding its capacity. The knowledge and magical finesse required were far beyond his current abilities.
With a hint of regret, Flitwick added, "I'm sorry, Lucien, but when it cos to containing living creatures with the Extension Charm, I can't help you much. That kind of magic is closer to a complex magical matrix. The only ones who've studied it deeply are the Scamander family."
The na sparked Lucien's attention imdiately. "Scamander? You an the family of Newt Scamander, the author of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them?"
"Exactly," Flitwick confird. "The author of that worldwide bestseller."
Lucien's mind raced back to the films from his past life, picturing Newt's suitcase—a portable world with layered environnts housing all sorts of magical creatures. It was like a pocket dinsion!
"Unfortunately," Flitwick continued, "a few years ago, you might've been able to contact Mr. Scamander, but he's retired and gone into seclusion. Hardly anyone knows where he is or how to reach him now." He spread his hands in a gesture of regret.
Curious, Flitwick asked, "By the way, Lucien, what made you think of using the Extension Charm to contain living creatures?"
Scratching his head, Lucien grinned sheepishly. "Well, honestly, I just thought my dormitory bed was a bit small and wanted to make it bigger."
Flitwick blinked, then burst into laughter. "Haha! You're quite the interesting and proactive young wizard!"
Of course, Lucien kept his real motive to himself: he wanted to house magical creatures for observation, preparing for future studies in magical creature transfiguration. If I had a suitcase like Newt's, I wouldn't need to sneak into the Forbidden Forest as often. It'd be so much easier.
Their conversation drifted to variations and advanced techniques for common charms, including spells like the Disillusionnt Charm and the Tracking Charm, which Lucien figured might co in handy for finding magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest.
Before he realized it, noon was approaching. Lucien stood to leave. "Thank you for answering my questions, Professor. I won't disturb you any longer."
Flitwick waved him off, clearly pleased. "No need to be so formal. I love seeing students passionate about learning."
As Lucien turned to go, Flitwick suddenly rembered sothing from the Sorting Ceremony—his chat with Professor McGonagall. Yes, Ravenclaw's gained a fine student.
"Oh, one mont, Lucien!" Flitwick called, waving his hand. A piece of parchnt and a quill floated over from the desk. The quill scribbled a few lines, ending with Flitwick's signature. He handed the parchnt to Lucien, who accepted it with both hands.
"This is a list of advanced Charms books," Flitwick explained. "If you're interested, take it to Madam Pince in the library. She'll help you find them."
Lucien's face lit up. "Thank you, Professor!" He'd been planning to visit the library that evening, and Flitwick's recomndations were perfect timing.
With the list in hand, Lucien left the office.
---
A few minutes later, Flitwick studied the teacup Lucien had enchanted with the Extension Charm. Though it could use so refinent, the fact that a first-year had pulled it off was astonishing.
Suddenly, a hearty voice bood through the office. "Filius, are you in? I'd like to discuss sothing."
Flitwick looked up to see the tall figure of Albus Dumbledore plopping into the chair across from him. "Oh, fresh tea? And it's still hot!" Dumbledore's eyes glead. "Filius, your private tea stash is the best in Hogwarts."
Spotting the teapot, Dumbledore grabbed a cup, opened the sugar jar, and dropped in several sugar cubes. Flitwick's eyelid twitched.
Dumbledore took a sip and frowned. Not sweet enough. Odd, this amount of sugar usually does the trick. Then he noticed sothing. "Heh, Filius, why'd you enchant this teacup with an Extension Charm and all these little lifestyle spells? It's quite amusing."
He could tell the spellwork wasn't perfect, but assud it was just a playful experint of Flitwick's.
"Actually, Filius, I ca to talk about Lucien Grafton. Has he been to your class yet?"
Flitwick nodded, his expression turning a bit peculiar.
"Good, good. What do you think of his talent? I an purely in Charms."
Flitwick's expression grew even stranger. If Dumbledore's face hadn't been so earnest, he'd have suspected the old wizard was pulling his leg and had been eavesdropping outside.
Pointing to the teacup in Dumbledore's hand, Flitwick said evenly, "Lucien's talent in Charms? Well, all the enchantnts on that cup were done by him."
"Mm. What?"
Dumbledore's clear surprise confird he hadn't been listening at the door. Flitwick recounted the entire exchange with Lucien, from his questions to the completion of the chard teacup.
As Flitwick spoke, Dumbledore grew more convinced of the Sorting Hat's judgnt: a talent seen once in a millennium.
"It's a pity," Flitwick added. "Lucien wanted to try using the Extension Charm to house living creatures, but I told him only Newt Scamander's mastered that, and he's retired and in hiding."
"Newt?" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. An old friend! It had been a while since they'd corresponded. Maybe he'd write to Newt soon—and ask about this for Lucien's sake.
"Ahem, thank you for sharing, Filius," Dumbledore said. "Lucien's talent is remarkable, but as a Muggle-born, his understanding of magic is still limited. He might accidentally dabble in dangerous spells. Geniuses like him need careful guidance. As Ravenclaw's Head, I hope you'll keep an eye on him."
Flitwick nodded enthusiastically, fully agreeing. Gifted students needed proper ntorship to avoid straying down risky paths.
But then a word caught his attention. "Wait, Albus, did you say Lucien's Muggle-born? No wizarding family at all?"
"That's right."
"Then… where did he learn all this magic?"
The two wizards locked eyes, a shared confusion dawning. How had they stumbled onto such a mystery just by comparing notes?
---
anwhile, Lucien was heading to the Great Hall for lunch.
As he passed the Potions classroom, the sharp ring of the bell signaled the end of class.
Bang!
The door flew open, and a dark, bat-like figure swept out.
"Good afternoon, Professor Snape," Lucien said politely.
Snape rely grunted and strode past, his black robes billowing.
Yikes, who got on his bad side this ti? Lucien thought. Oh, wait, Snape's always like this.
Noticing Snape's greasy hair and sour expression, Lucien had a hunch. He glanced at the classroom door.
Sure enough, among the students filing out, he spotted Harry Potter's frustrated, sullen face.
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