Chapter 22: Transfiguration
Seeing that it was almost time, he climbed out the window, checked his backpack for the textbooks he needed and the letters he was about to mail, and left the dungeons.
He waited a few minutes at the Owlery before he spotted Hermione rushing toward him.
She apologized, out of breath. "Sorry, sorry, I had so much to write, and I lost track of time. I'm late."
"It's all right, just a few minutes. Catch your breath before we go in." He brushed off the bench and gestured for her to sit.
"Thanks." Hermione didn't hesitate, quickly sitting down to catch her breath.
All right, let's mail the letters.
They entered the shed and were immediately surrounded by a sea of owls.
Owls of every size and color gathered there, waiting to deliver letters and packages to the teachers and students. Ethan and Hermione had seen them yesterday morning, just as they would every morning.
Recalling his encounter at the Eeylops Owl Emporium in Diagon Alley, Ethan was still shaken. Not entirely confident in his ability to handle the birds, he stood at the door and shouted, "Edward! Edward!"
A huge owl swooped out, landed on his shoulder, and affectionately lowered its head to rub against his hair.
"All right, all right, if you keep rubbing my hair like that, it'll get messy." Ethan stroked its smooth feathers to keep it still.
"Edward, deliver letters for both of us. You know the addresses. Left foot is mine, right foot is Hermione's. And bring back replies. Got it?"
Ethan and Hermione each tied a letter to one of Edward's feet.
Ethan and Hermione had planned it so Edward would deliver Ethan's letter first, then Hermione's, allowing the owl to collect replies from both locations in one trip.
Edward nodded his understanding.
"Good boy!" Ethan took out some dried fish he'd brought from his dorm and fed it to Edward.
Just then, a vaguely familiar owl flew out of the shed and circled in front of him.
Ethan observed carefully and finally recognized the round-headed owl as the one that had delivered his Hogwarts acceptance letter.
"It's you. Long time no see," he said. He held out his arm, inviting it to land.
However, the owl merely circled above him, keeping its distance, a stark contrast to its earlier behavior.
"Got it." He glanced at Edward, who seemed agitated, and immediately understood.
"I didn't expect you to rule the roost so quickly." He ruffled Edward's feathers vigorously, placed the three dried fish on the ground, and stepped outside with Edward.
"Coo, coo!" The owl that had been circling moments before landed instantly and devoured the dried fish.
Hermione's heart melted. "It's so cute! I really want to adopt one so it can deliver my mail, and then you won't have to go to the trouble anymore."
"I don't mind, but you'll need to get permission from someone, since it's school property."
Of course, to be honest, he also wanted to adopt it so he wouldn't have to spend extra money on one, but it flew away too quickly, and he couldn't find it in the end.
Eventually, in Diagon Alley, the shopkeeper had given him Edward.
"A gift?" Hermione asked curiously.
Ethan deliberately put on a smug look. "Hey, do you remember when we first met? My family was a bit of a mess, right? Edward and the other animals were behind it. Well, I suppose I'm just irresistible to small animals."
"Show-off." Hermione chuckled, watching Edward fly up into the sky beside him.
After Ethan entered the classroom, he looked around, trying to see if the cat that Professor McGonagall turned into in the movie was sitting on the desk.
"What are you looking for, Ethan?" asked Draco and his cronies, who had just entered the classroom, as Ethan paced back and forth.
"Nothing. I was just curious about the classroom layout." Naturally, he couldn't tell them the real reason.
Ethan searched in vain and finally gave up. He idly flipped through his books to pass the time before class.
He turned to the last page, read its contents, then slammed the book shut.
"I've finished this book on bloodlines. I'll go to the library again later and borrow another one."
Professor McGonagall entered the classroom as the bell rang, still wearing bright green robes, though in a slightly different style.
After taking attendance, she said with a serious expression, "Transfiguration is the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts."
Anyone who misbehaves in my class will be asked to leave and never allowed to return.
She tapped her wand, cast a spell, and a desk in front of her transformed into a giant python. It slithered toward the Slytherin students, looping around them a few times, before Professor McGonagall changed it back.
"I warned you."
The Slytherins were terrified, yet captivated by the display and eager to learn it themselves.
They soon realized Transfiguration was not easy to master.
"Transfiguration is magic that transforms one object into another. It can turn inanimate objects into living things, just as I demonstrated. Of course, the reverse is also true."
"However, doing so is extremely dangerous, which is why I forbid you from using Transfiguration on your classmates or other humans. You lack the skill, and attempting it will only cause harm."
"When casting a Transfiguration spell, you must possess a thorough understanding of the object you wish to transform, and you must maintain intense focus, just as with any spell. Otherwise, the transformation will fail."
"Furthermore, before teaching you any Transfiguration technique, I will first teach you the Reparifarge spell, which returns transformed objects to their original form."
"Repeat after me: Reparifarge."
The class recited it loudly.
"Very good. For homework, I want you to copy this spell fifty times and hand it in at our next session."
After the class had practiced it several times, Professor McGonagall nodded in satisfaction and continued with the lesson.
Before the practical demonstration, Professor McGonagall explained Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration.
Though he appeared to be taking notes, his mind had begun to wander.
"Speaking of transformation, many stories in Chinese mythology involve it. Besides Sun Wukong's seventy-two transformations and those of various monsters, the most famous is probably the tale of turning beans into soldiers."
He imagined throwing out soybean-sized objects, chanting a spell, and watching countless Yellow Turban Warriors appear instantly. A smile touched his lips.
When the daydream ended, he listened even more attentively to Professor McGonagall's explanation, cementing his theoretical foundation in hopes of someday recreating that power.
"Still, I don't know how to translate this supernatural power into English. Magic Soldier, perhaps? Or Magic Warrior might be better."
Everyone was growing weary of taking notes, so Professor McGonagall ended the lecture and began the practical demonstration.
She handed out a match to each student and instructed them to transform it into a needle.
"Recall what I have just explained. Let us begin."
Incantations rose and fell throughout the classroom, but nothing happened to the matches.
Ethan examined the match before him, visualizing the precise shape and silver sheen of the needle he wished to create. He raised his wand and spoke the incantation with determination.
Vera Verto!
The match quickly grew slender and began to shimmer with a metallic luster, though it still didn't resemble the silver needle he had envisioned.
"Well done, Ethan." Professor McGonagall strolled through the classroom, a smile spreading across her face as she observed his work.
"Thank you, Professor." He was genuinely pleased with himself. Though the transformation remained imperfect, this was the closest he'd come to success since summer break.
A saying came to mind: true teachings can be contained in a single sentence, but false teachings require countless volumes.
Naturally, his admirable performance also earned Slytherin House a point.
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