Once, twice, three times... Ethan Jones kept chanting the incantation and waving his wand, but he never succeeded.
The most successful attempt during this period only produced a tiny spark from the tip of the wand.
But he did not give up.
He had already verified that his talent in fire magic was indeed far beyond that of ordinary people, and even Hermione, who had always learned various spells very quickly, was easily crushed by him.
Therefore, he had reason to believe that he must also have the same talent in Dark Magic.
Aside from this not-so-evil Dark Magic, which was even used to start fires in the movie, the only other Dark Magic he's encountered so far is some minor curses from The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection, and he hasn't come into contact with anything else yet.
As for the other minor curses Professor Flitwick mentioned, he had tried them, but they were too simple and easy to learn, and they didn't showcase his talent at all.
He hasn't used these curses on any living beings yet, since he couldn't possibly cast such curses on his classmates, could he?
His persistent practice paid off, and before Hermione told him to rest, he finally managed to unleash a small orange fireball, blasting a small crater in the ground.
The mud splashed everywhere, startling Hermione.
"Yay!" he shouted excitedly, startling Hermione who was walking towards them.
"What kind of magic is this? Why is the color different from the two spells we saw yesterday?" Hermione also saw the orange fireball and quickly noticed the difference.
"The Confringo! How about that? Pretty impressive, right?" Ethan Jones looked at Hermione with a pleading expression. Note: Using Confringo as it fits the description of "Blazing Flames/blasting crater".
"Was it recorded in the book Advanced Spells? How did you learn such a difficult charm?" Hermione quickly realized the source of the charm.
"Because it's a fire-based Dark Magic, and I happen to have some talent in both areas." Ethan Jones felt there was nothing to hide, but he clearly underestimated Hermione's reaction to Dark Magic.
"Dark Magic?!" Hermione's focus, however, was on the Dark Magic he had just mentioned.
"Is this mentioned in the book?" She thought for a moment, but because these spells were too profound, she only glanced at the introduction and then skipped over it.
Then she said with a serious expression, "Ethan, we shouldn't learn this kind of advanced Dark Magic; it will change your mind."
Ethan Jones thought to himself, "You used it to start a fire in the movie! Now you're objecting to me using it?"
Of course, he wouldn't say these thoughts out loud. He could only try to persuade her: "Hermione, Dark Magic can indeed change a wizard's mind, but only some advanced Dark Magic can."
As you said, this magic comes from the book Advanced Spells.
If it were truly Dark Magic that could change a person's mind, it wouldn't be in the books sold at Flourish and Blotts, would you agree?
Since this book can be published openly and honestly, does that mean it won't change a wizard's mind?
Just like in textbooks like The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection, which also mentions some Dark Magic, these minor curses won't affect people.
Hermione disagreed: "This isn't like a textbook, something that's been verified by professors. Ethan, you'd better not use this magic."
Ethan Jones continued to try to persuade her: "Hermione, I think that since it has been published and so many copies have been sold, doesn't that mean it's been verified?"
Hermione's attitude remained firm:
"No matter what, it's wrong without the professors' approval. I don't agree to you continuing to study this kind of Dark Magic unless you get the professors' permission!"
Ethan Jones was helpless. This was magic he had learned on his own. Who was he supposed to ask for permission? Was he supposed to ask Voldemort in Quirrell's skin?
It's likely that apart from Quirrell, no other professor would approve of him, since Professor Flitwick had said that he didn't encourage the use of Dark Magic.
He would never actively seek out Quirrell; that would be like a lamb entering a wolf's den, courting death.
Ethan Jones knew he couldn't persuade Hermione, so he gave up for the time being and made a stop gesture: "Okay, okay, I don't need to. Let's go and rest."
Hermione probably realized that although Ethan Jones said he didn't need it, he definitely didn't mean it that way.
So in Hagrid's hut, Hermione was a little distracted, answering Hagrid's questions while nibbling on her cake, as if she didn't realize how bad it was.
Ethan Jones, on the other hand, was a completely different story. He looked pained, but seeing Hermione's expression, he couldn't say that the cake was bad. He could only take a small bite and swallow it without chewing, as if he were being tortured.
"We'll be going now, Hagrid. See you next week." After practicing for a while longer, the two said goodbye to Hagrid, with Ethan Jones winking at him before leaving.
"See you next week!" Hagrid waved goodbye to the two from the doorway.
The two of them, carrying backpacks full of Rock Cakes, headed towards the castle.
Throughout the journey, Ethan Jones pondered how to get rid of the cakes that he found inedible.
Hermione remained silent, perhaps still wondering if he would continue learning about the Dark Magic that wasn't recorded in the textbooks.
"Hermione, what are you going to do with these cakes?" He couldn't think of any good solution other than throwing them away.
"I don't know." Hermione's tone was somewhat stiff.
"Alright then." After resting, Hermione was rather quiet during the second half of the magic practice, not saying much.
Ethan Jones knew she might have sensed his perfunctory attitude and couldn't accept it immediately.
However, deep down he didn't think he had done anything wrong, and he really couldn't bring himself to promise her that he would never study again. So the two of them were stuck in this stalemate.
The two walked into the castle in silence, ate, went to the library, had dinner again, and went to the library again.
Ethan Jones spent Sunday afternoon and evening trying to break the awkward silence, but often found himself unable to speak.
Having little experience in relationships, he couldn't think of any sweet words to comfort someone.
In the end, he felt the best approach was to set aside the dispute and prevent the disagreement from growing larger and eventually becoming an unfathomable chasm.
"Let time tell. Everything has changed since Harry Potter enrolled this year." He nodded helplessly, said goodbye to Hermione, and left the closed library.
After Ethan Jones returned to his dormitory, adhering to the principle of not wasting food, he tried to find another way to deal with the Rock Cakes besides throwing them away—feeding them to Goyle and Crabbe.