For some peculiar reason, ordinary glass did a remarkably poor job of containing raw lightning. Perhaps it was simply the wild, untamed nature of naturally harvested magical energy.
Charlie opened his leather toolbag, pulling out an assortment of silver spoons. He selected the slenderest teaspoon, uncorked the dark vial, and carefully scooped out a minuscule, crackling bead of lightning.
Snap, crackle, pop.
The little spark was highly unstable in the open air. While the sun and moon dew simply evaporated at a leisurely pace, the lightning acted as if it were actively trying to escape.
"Quiet down now," Charlie murmured. He fixed his gaze on the erratic spark, a strange, focused light shimmering in his eyes.
Ever since he had begun grasping the concept of casting magic through pure desire, his natural harvesting abilities had grown substantially stronger. Even without a wand, commanding this tiny, pea-sized drop of lightning dew was quite manageable.
Once he successfully deposited the lightning dew into a mixing vial, his eyes darted between his jars of sun and moon dew. He opted for the moon. There was no grand scientific reasoning behind this choice; he simply had more of it left over. Furthermore, he was deeply curious about what sort of volatile reaction might occur when the highly magical moon dew met the chaotic energy of lightning.
Would it explode? The thought certainly crossed his mind.
He decided to risk it anyway.
Moving with practiced efficiency, he struck a match with one hand and lit his miniature warming stove. With his other hand, he uncorked the moon dew and unwrapped a block of premium chocolate. He carefully deposited a single drop of moon dew into the mixing vial, while simultaneously tossing the chocolate into his small cauldron to melt.
Finally, he sealed the thumb-sized mixing vial containing one drop of moon dew and a half-drop of lightning. He began to shake it vigorously, looking very much like a miniature bartender.
He found himself wishing for a proper magical centrifuge or a self-stirring cauldron, wondering if the blending speed would affect the final product. For now, manual labor would have to suffice.
Five minutes later, Charlie's arm was aching, and the chocolate in the cauldron had completely melted into a glossy pool.
He stopped shaking the vial and held it up to the light. Silver and purplish-blue swirled together, yet they remained distinctly separate. It was obvious just from looking at it that the two elements refused to fully bind.
"Bother it," he muttered.
Spongify!
He cast a wandless Softening Charm directly onto his own wrist. Instantly, the bones and joints in his right hand turned to flexible rubber. With his wrist completely loose, he began spinning his hand in the air like a runaway windmill, moving so fast his fingers blurred into a fleshy propeller.
It was a brilliant way to avoid wrist strain.
Another five minutes passed as the melted chocolate bubbled happily over the flame. Charlie finally halted his spinning hand, reversed the Softening Charm, and examined the vial.
The liquid inside had transformed into a beautiful, uniform pale blue. The sharp, aggressive sparks no longer pierced through the glass.
What should I call this? Lunar-Lightning? He popped the cork and gently stirred the liquid with a glass rod. A pleasant, tingling numbness traveled up the rod and danced lightly across his fingertips.
He pulled out his notebook, meticulously recording the color, viscosity, and electrical intensity of the new mixture. Then, he divided his melted chocolate into two batches. He would make three chocolates with a liquid Lunar-Lightning center, and three where the potion was mixed directly into the chocolate itself, varying the dosage for each.
Crafting the liquid-centered chocolates was a familiar routine. However, mixing the potion directly into the melted chocolate yielded unexpected results. The moon dew possessed an astonishing dyeing power. The pale blue tint bled perfectly into the dark chocolate, giving it a faint, magical azure glow.
He poured the mixed chocolate into his molds and observed carefully. The liquid-center chocolates looked perfectly normal. But the mixed chocolates, having the Lunar-Lightning fully integrated, gave his fingertips a distinct, static shock whenever he hovered his hand near them.
This was not exactly a comforting sign.
Magical energy did not just appear from nowhere. If the chocolates were actively discharging electricity into the air, would they lose their potency over time?
His worries vanished ten minutes later. Once the chocolate cooled and hardened into a solid shell, the erratic energy of the Lunar-Lightning was entirely sealed within.
Charlie breathed a sigh of relief. Now came the true test.
After a moment of deliberation, he decided to sample the chocolate with the highest concentration of the liquid center. He popped the candy into his mouth. The rich chocolate shell began to melt on his tongue.
A moment later, the liquid center burst open.
Wait. No. This is wrong!
Spongify!
He cast the Softening Charm on his own head with desperate speed.
A split second later, Charlie's head forcefully inflated outward like a carnival balloon, looking remarkably like a cartoon cat that had just swallowed a lit firework.
Alice, who had been resting peacefully as a hat on his head, was violently launched into the air. She hit the floor, instantly transforming back into a rabbit, every single hair on her body standing straight up in electrified terror.
Charlie let out a long, rumbling burp, exhaling a thick cloud of chocolate-scented smoke. Wisps of blue vapor curled lazily out of his ears and nostrils.
"What in the world was that?" Charlie gasped, his words spilling out in a rapid rush. "Why did moon dew and lightning create an explosive reaction?"
Thank Merlin his reflexes were sharp. Turning his skull rubbery had saved him from a miserable trip to the Hospital Wing.
"This makes no sense," he muttered, rubbing his stomach. "Last time I tasted two drops of raw lightning, it just hurt. This time it was only one drop of lightning and one drop of moon dew. It actually caused a localized explosion!"
He eyed the remaining Lunar-Lightning chocolates with deep suspicion. He needed to state for the record that he was absolutely not afraid of his own candy. However, it seemed entirely reasonable to take a short break and go watch his friends play chess.
Yes, a break was the most logical step.
Rubbing his slightly tender head, Charlie trotted out of the dormitory and down the spiral staircase into the common room.
Before he even reached the bottom step, a chorus of cheers and groans washed over him.
"Another defeat! Who is next? Who dares to challenge him?"
"Bloody hell, the bloke is entirely ruthless on the board!"
"Does anyone else want a go?" Anthony's voice rang out over the crowd, sounding like a carnival barker. "I will ask the Hufflepuffs tomorrow, I hear Cedric Diggory is decent. Or maybe I will hunt down a Gryffindor!"
"I will play him!" a girl's voice called out, pushing through the throng of blue and bronze robes.
Charlie squeezed his way to the front. Hector was sitting calmly behind a wizarding chessboard, waiting patiently for his next victim. His new challenger was Tina, the fifth-year prefect.
Charlie nudged Anthony. "How is his record?"
"What did you say?" Anthony frowned, leaning his ear closer.
"I asked how Hector's record is," Charlie repeated.
"What? You are speaking too fast," Anthony blinked, then seemed to catch up. "Oh, his record! He is undefeated. No one has even come close. Someone tried to challenge him to a blitz game earlier, and Hector played so fast the magical pieces could barely keep up with his commands."
Charlie looked at Hector with surprised amusement. "Is he really that good? Has he not had a single difficult match?"
"What did you say?" Anthony scrunched up his face again.
"Never mind, we will talk in the room later," Charlie decided, speaking slowly. He turned his attention to the board.
The miniature stone soldiers were rolling their shoulders, brandishing their tiny swords, and shouting insults at the opposing side.
Prefect Tina made the first move. Hector immediately sat up straighter. Playing black, he barked a command. His pawn leaped forward two squares.
It was an incredibly aggressive move, placing his piece directly into the striking range of a white pawn. It was practically begging to be attacked.
Tina obliged. Her white pawn stepped diagonally, driving its tiny sword right through the black pawn's chest, lifting it up, and hurling it off the board.
"What wonderfully dramatic flair," Charlie noted, his eyes sparkling. With animated pieces like this, anyone would find chess thrilling.
The victorious white pawn smugly wiped its sword on its shield. Hector remained completely unbothered. He sent his knight forward, targeting the smug white pawn.
Tina quickly moved her own knight to defend.
A fierce skirmish seemed to be brewing around that single pawn. Hector aggressively pushed his Queen forward, instantly reaching out to slam his hand down on the brass chess timer resting beside the board. Ding.
Tina moved her Queen into a defensive formation, slowly tapping her side of the timer. She smiled, looking quite satisfied. She was ready for his charge.
But Hector did not charge the pawn. Instead, his Queen vaulted across the board in a completely unguarded direction, putting Tina's King in direct jeopardy. Ding. He hit the timer again.
Tina scrambled to build a wall around her King. The moment she hit the timer, Hector issued another command, hitting his button three seconds later. Ding. The pressure was suffocating.
The match ended in a flash. Hector's Queen charged forward, physically picking up a white pawn and throwing it into the crowd. The pieces Tina had initially moved to defend the center were entirely out of position.
The relentless ringing of the chess timer compressed Tina's ability to think. Blitz chess was never about who could plan the furthest ahead; it was about who could think the fastest while remaining completely cold-blooded.
After five more rapid exchanges, Tina's backline was completely ravaged by Hector's lone Queen.
When Hector slammed the timer down again after barely three seconds, Tina threw her hands in the air.
"Alright, alright! I resign!" she groaned. "That infernal ringing is driving me mad."
"I am terribly sorry," Hector said, ducking his head with a bashful, apologetic smile.
"He has not shown a single ounce of mercy to anyone," Anthony snickered, whispering into Charlie's ear. He then raised his voice. "Any more challengers?"
The older students exchanged weary glances, shaking their heads.
"Well, if that is everyone, we ought to go finish our Herbology essays," Anthony declared.
But before Hector could stand up, a new figure slid into the seat opposite him.
"Oh? A new challenger approaches!" Anthony announced, before doing a double-take. "Wait, Charlie? When did you sit down? You moved like a ghost!"
"You have to play slowly with me," Charlie warned Hector, ignoring Anthony. "I have never actually played a real game before. I only know theory from reading newspaper puzzles."
"Not a problem," Hector nodded happily, resetting the board and the timer.
Charlie took the white pieces. Without hesitation, he commanded his pawn forward and slapped the timer. Ding.
Hector looked mildly surprised. It was the exact same opening Tina had used. Assuming Charlie was simply copying what he had just seen, Hector responded with his aggressive black pawn counter.
Barely one second after Hector hit the timer, Charlie slammed his hand down. Ding.
Before Hector could even blink, Charlie's white pawn skewered the black pawn and tossed it aside.
Hector narrowed his eyes, resetting his defensive knight formation just as he had against Tina. Charlie mirrored the exact same setup.
Seeing the pattern, Hector deployed his Queen, launching it toward the backline just as he had done previously.
But this time, Charlie was ready. A white pawn actively jumped into the Queen's path, blocking the assault. Ding.
Charlie's speed was utterly terrifying. It looked as though he was moving purely on instinct, not pausing to think for even a fraction of a second.
Hector's competitive fire flared to life. He commanded his knight forward, stepping right into Charlie's territory.
He is trying to bait my Queen into a trap, Hector realized. He issued his command and tapped the bell. Ding.
Ding.
Charlie's knight suddenly reversed direction, brutally trampling Hector's knight into stone dust.
Caught off guard, Hector commanded his Queen to smash Charlie's knight and toss it off the board. Ding.
Ding.
No time was wasted. The bells chimed almost in unison.
Charlie's bishop slid out from the shadows, violently knocking Hector's Queen off the board.
Hector frowned, his expression turning deadly serious. He sacrificed a pawn to slow the momentum.
But Charlie's board was completely open. His rooks and Queen were unleashed, glaring hungrily at Hector's crumbling defenses.
"Let us see what you have, then," Hector whispered. The game devolved into a blistering, chaotic war.
Hector finally managed to force himself to calm down. He realized he had fallen for a brilliant trap. Charlie had used the exact same opening to lull him into a false sense of security, pretending to be a novice, all while using overwhelming speed to shatter Hector's concentration.
Once Hector regained his cold logic, Charlie's attacks became far less effective. His pieces were slowly picked off by clever, hidden traps. Yet, Charlie did not go down quietly. He constantly found narrow windows to assassinate Hector's remaining forces.
Finally, the dust settled. Hector's last pawn crushed Charlie's final rook.
The board contained only Hector's King and a single pawn, facing off against Charlie's lone King.
"He did it! He finally did it!" Roger Davies bellowed, practically leaping over the table to shake Charlie by the shoulders.
"We are the champions!" another Ravenclaw cheered wildly.
Charlie looked around, completely bewildered. "Is this not a stalemate?"
With the current board state, neither of them could force a checkmate. It was a draw.
"Exactly! A draw against him is basically a legendary victory!" Roger beamed, slapping Charlie on the back.
Charlie could hear someone in the background actually humming a victory march. He looked back at Hector, who was smiling warmly at him.
"Well, managing a draw against a terror like you certainly feels like a win," Charlie laughed.
"What did you say?" Hector leaned in, looking confused.
"Do not mind him, he is just overly excited," Anthony interjected. "He has been speaking impossibly fast all evening."
Charlie paused, turning to look around the room. Wait a moment. Why did everyone keep saying he was talking too fast?
He looked over at the large, ornate grandfather clock standing against the far wall.
One second. Two seconds. Three seconds.
He counted the steady beats perfectly in his mind.
Tick. Tock.
The heavy brass pendulum had only swung twice.
Did he miscount? Or... had time itself slowed down?