The dismissal bell of Charms class brought no sense of relief. Instead, it rang like a heavy funeral knell upon the hearts of every Gryffindor first-year.
Professor Flitwick, the always-cheerful, diminutive wizard, had just assigned them their very first formal essay.
Standing on top of a pile of books taller than himself, he announced the homework in his sharp, delighted voice:
"An essay on 'The Historical Evolution of the Levitation Charm and Its Applications in Modern Magic'."
"As for length… at least two feet of parchment."
Two feet.
The word itself detonated an invisible groan across the classroom. Students' faces collapsed instantly, as if struck by a Petrificus Totalus. Two feet of parchment—what was that even supposed to mean? It was long enough to wear as a scarf. To any new student, it was despair in physical form.
That evening, in the Gryffindor common room.
The warm fire crackled in the hearth, its glow lighting up one miserable face after another. The air was thick with the mixed scent of ink and frustration. Most first-years slumped in armchairs before enormous, blank sheets of parchment. The glaring emptiness seemed to mock their helplessness.
Sighs rose and fell in chorus, a background to the snapping of firewood.
Crack!
A sharp snapping sound broke through.
Lee Jordan had just snapped his quill clean in two, the feather scattering pitifully across his still-blank parchment.
"Merlin's beard!" he burst out, his voice brimming with suppressed irritation.
"How are we supposed to write this? Two feet! I don't even know who invented the Levitation Charm!"
He raked his fingers through his hair, face contorted in torment, as though he meant to yank it all out.
"Exactly," Angelina Johnson groaned from her desk, chin propped against her untouched roll of parchment. "What are we supposed to do, write 'swish and flick' over and over until it fills two feet? I'd rather go fight an Acromantula in the Forbidden Forest."
Her complaint drew murmurs of bitter agreement.
Some were doodling stick figures on their parchment. Others had abandoned all pretense of work and begun a game of wizard chess, their pieces clashing violently on the board, only making the room feel even more strained.
But in one quiet corner of this sea of despair, a steady voice cut through the gloom.
Not loud, but like a pebble dropped into still water, it drew every ear at once.
Alan Scott closed the heavy tome in his lap—Advanced Potion-Making, thick enough to kill a man if dropped.
He rose to his feet.
The noisy common room stilled, quiet rippling outward from him like a tide. Complaining, dazed, distracted—every pair of eyes was drawn irresistibly to him.
"Everyone."
His voice was calm. He didn't raise it, yet every word carried clearly to each corner of the room.
"If you don't mind, perhaps I can share a method that will make essay writing… a little easier."
For a moment, silence. Then a ripple of hushed chatter spread among the crowd.
Alan ignored it. He strode to the empty red carpet before the fireplace and raised his wand. With a neat flick of the wrist, a beam of soft white light appeared in midair, stretching and shaping itself into a semi-transparent, glowing blackboard.
The clean, wordless display of Transfiguration drew impressed stares even from upper-years.
"A two-foot essay sounds terrifying," Alan began, turning to face them, steady and confident.
"But in fact, we can break it down using what I call the Modular Method of Essay Writing. Instead of one impossible task, it becomes several small, simple ones."
His wand tip traced across the glowing board, inscribing fiery-white words one by one:
[Introduction]
[Historical Background]
[Spell Structure Analysis]
[Modern Applications]
[Conclusion]
Five headings appeared, aligned in crisp order, radiating the elegance of pure logic.
"First, the Introduction module."
Alan pointed with his wand. The word glowed brighter.
"No invention needed here. Just three to five sentences answering two questions: What is the Levitation Charm? Why is it important? That's your standard opening. Remember this formula—it will serve you in every future spell essay you write."
He paused, letting it sink in.
"Second, the Historical Background module."
He tapped the second heading.
"This isn't creation. It's collection. Go to the library. Find A History of Charms or Notable Wizards of the Nineteenth Century, and turn to the section on Jarlett Devlin—he was the inventor of the Levitation Charm. All you need to do is summarize, in your own words, his process and the early applications. Three or four paragraphs. This is basically reading comprehension and note-taking, not writing."
Lee Jordan's eyes lit up. He unconsciously sat straighter in his chair.
"Third, the Spell Structure Analysis module."
Alan's voice grew more precise.
"This is the core of the essay—but it's actually the simplest part. Because you practice it every day. All you have to do is describe, in words, what you already know. Break down the incantation 'Wingardium Leviosa'—which syllables must be stressed, which drawn out. Then describe, step by step, the swish-and-flick motion: wrist angle, arc of the swing, the snap of the flick."
He allowed himself a faint smile.
"And if you still find the length too short? Add diagrams. Draw one for the correct wrist movement, another for a common mistake. Compare them. That alone can fill a good chunk of parchment."
A wave of stifled gasps rippled through the crowd, as if they had just glimpsed the gates to a brand-new world.
"Fourth—[Modern Applications]. This is the module where you can truly unleash your imagination, and also the easiest place to bulk up word count. Close your eyes and think: where is the Levitation Charm used at Hogwarts, in Diagon Alley, or even in your own homes?"
"The floating pumpkin lanterns on the Great Hall's ceiling, moving heavy cauldrons, professors summoning books to their hands, even in Quidditch matches—controlling the Quaffle involves an advanced form of the Levitation Charm. All you need to do is list five to ten examples, and for each one, write a sentence or two. The possibilities for this section are nearly endless."
Finally, his wand tip rested on the last title.
"[Conclusion]. Just like the introduction, this is a standardized ending. In three to five sentences, re-emphasize the greatness of the Levitation Charm, and then briefly envision its possible future applications. And just like that—a perfect, two-foot-long essay is complete."
When his words fell, the Gryffindor common room went utterly silent.
Everyone stared, wide-eyed, at the glowing board with its five neatly laid-out modules.
The essay that had seemed like an impassable chasm was dismantled by Alan into a series of simple, clear, even somewhat mechanical steps—calmly, logically, and with an undeniable sense of order.
This wasn't just magic.
This was something on a higher dimension altogether—a wisdom called methodology.
Before the others could recover from their shock, Alan made an even more astonishing move.
He pulled out a sheet of parchment and quickly scribbled on it. Then he raised his wand, pointed at the parchment now covered in writing, and whispered:
"Geminio."
The Duplication Charm.
The parchment began multiplying itself, one copy after another, until a dozen identical sheets floated neatly in the air.
"These are templates I've prepared for the five modules, along with keywords you can use to fill in the content."
With a flick of his wand, the parchments automatically flew into the hands of every first-year present.
The students scrambled to catch them.
When they looked down, they saw not only detailed writing guidance for each module, but even pre-made sentence structures and a wealth of related keywords.
[Historical Background] Keywords: Jarlett Devlin, 1845, groundbreaking, controversy, Royal Society of Magic…
[Modern Applications] Keywords: cargo transport, construction work, household chores, Quidditch, medical assistance…
This brutal process-ization and formula-ization of something that had seemed like a complex, creative writing task left every student in the room feeling as if their intellect had just been crushed flat.
Their minds suddenly cleared.
They realized that, following Alan's method, not to mention two feet—even if Professor Flitwick demanded four feet—it… no longer seemed that difficult.
Angelina Johnson snatched up her copy of the template, her eyes glittering with the light of salvation. She was so excited she nearly jumped on the spot.
She rushed up to Alan, her face shining with undisguised joy and relief.
"Alan, you're a genius!"
Her voice rang bright and clear, full of energy.
"With this, I can save so much time—and pour it all into my favorite Quidditch training instead!"
~~----------------------
Patreon Advance Chapters:
[email protected] / Dreamer20