Chương 7: Magic is an Explosion!
Harry led Jake to the Gryffindor common room, guiding him since Jake had never been there before. Their arrival caught the attention of curious and conflicted gazes from other students.
Jake lightened the atmosphere with a playful remark. "Why the long faces, everyone?" he asked, flashing a grin. "Hogwarts now has two champions, both Gryffindors. Doesn't that prove our house is the best?" His words elicited chuckles from the surrounding students.
Seamus, an angry Irish Gryffindor, couldn't contain his frustration. "We're tired of the showboating," he shouted, referring to Harry. "He always steals the spotlight. This was a chance for someone else to shine, and once again, he's taking all the glory. We've had enough."
Dean joined in, echoing Seamus's sentiments. "Yeah, it's always about Harry, Dumbledore's precious Golden Boy. And now the whole school will turn against our house because of him."
Jake observed the room, noticing the agreement among some Gryffindors. It seemed that these individuals had unresolved issues with Harry. He realized that there was pre-existing tension. 'Huh, seems like there's some history here,' Jake thought to himself, deciding to address the situation directly.
"Listen, guys and gals," Jake spoke up, projecting his voice across the common room. "Most of you wanted to be in the tournament and entered. If the Goblet chose Harry over you, that's how it is. There's nothing you can do about it. But coming together here in the common room to complain is honestly not cool." Jake added his perspective, hoping to inject reason into the room.
However, the complaints persisted, with even Ron, who Jake thought was Harry's best friend, accusing Harry of cheating. Jake felt disappointed seeing Ron turn against his friend, and he sent him a disapproving glare. "Hey, man, that's not cool at all. Just because you weren't chosen doesn't mean you should turn on your best mate," Jake reproached Ron, who seemed slightly ashamed.
Jake then addressed the room once more, defending Harry's potential innocence. "And you know what?" He declared. "Even if Harry did put his name in and managed to outsmart the Goblet, good for him. That means he outsmarted a centuries-old magical object and even Dumbledore himself. And in my book, that's pretty damn impressive."
Fred and George, sitting at the back of the room, applauded Harry's supposed achievement. "Here, here!" they exclaimed. "Well done, Harry! You truly have the Marauder spirit in you. Very impressive." Their lighthearted support began to sway the mood of the room. Some of the angry individuals seemed to soften at their words. Outsmarting Dumbledore was seen as quite an achievement, even if it wasn't entirely accurate...
As the tension lingered, Jake decided it was time to retire for the day. He called out to Harry, who was still standing on the fourth-year boys' floor. "Alright, Harry, let's meet bright and early at 8:00 tomorrow. I'll show you some awesome spells that will definitely help you in the tournament. So be ready," Jake said as he headed up to the fifth-year's floor where his assigned room was located.
Harry nodded at Jake's words, feeling a mix of gratitude and relief. He appreciated his friend's support amidst the doubts and hostility from some fellow Gryffindors.
—
The next morning, Jake woke up refreshed, feeling the comfort of the magically enchanted beds at Hogwarts. Making his way downstairs to the common room, he noticed Ron and Harry playing chess together, a sign that they had made amends. Hermione was nearby, engrossed in a thick book on magical math... Jake found the concept horrifying. Magic was supposed to defy math, wasn't it?
"Alright, Harry, and the rest of you if you want to join, let's head outside by the lake. We don't want to accidentally blow up the school or something. I haven't tested two of these spells yet, so I'm not sure how strong they are," Jake explained.
Hermione couldn't help but interject with a question. "How can you say you've learned the spells if you haven't actually used them?"
Jake pondered for a moment before responding. "Well, I'm not entirely sure, but these spells have simple concepts. It's easy for me to imagine their effects, and that makes them easier for me to cast." Unbeknownst to Jake, it was his devil's power of imagination at work. Basic spells like creating fire or water were effortless for any devil. The complexity increased with more intricate spells, making them harder to cast.
"That's not how magic is supposed to work," Hermione muttered to herself.
The group of four students exited the Gryffindor common room and made their way outside toward the lake. Once they reached the grassy shore, Jake turned to the three younger students.
"Alright, guys, what's the first thing any aspiring mage should know if they're thinking about combat with other magical people?" Jake asked, ready to begin their practice session.
"The Expelliarmus charm?" Harry suggested.
"The stunning spell," Ron chimed in.
"How to cast a shield," Hermione answered correctly.
Jake pointed at Hermione with a nod. "You hit the nail on the head, young lady," he said, giving her a playful wink.
Hermione grumbled, "You're only two years older than me..."
"Alright, guys, I'm going to cast the Shield Charm, and I want you to fire your spells at me," Jake instructed. Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged surprised glances. Did Jake really believe his shield could withstand all three of their spells simultaneously?
"Is that safe?" Harry asked cautiously.
"Maybe." Jake chuckled. 'What's life without a little danger?' "Alright, here I go. Protego!" As he uttered the incantation, a massive shield appeared in front of him. It was significantly larger and thicker than any Protego they had seen before, measuring around 5 feet wide and nearly a foot thick. The shield seemed impenetrable, and what amazed them even more was that Jake cast it wandlessly. They had never witnessed wandless magic before!
"Wow, that's amazing!" Ron exclaimed, while Harry and Hermione nodded in agreement. "It's the coolest shield I've ever seen. It's like a giant wall of pure magic. I don't think we'll be able to make a scratch, but I'll give it a shot." Ron pointed his wand at Jake and carelessly cast the Bombarda spell. *Doink* The spell had absolutely no effect upon contact with the shield.
"Ron, you can't just Bombarda someone!" Hermione scolded.
"But he seems fine," Ron shrugged.
"You'll have to do better than that," Jake taunted, causing Ron to pout in annoyance.
"Come on, mate," Ron said. "We're only fourth-years, and that's the strongest spell we know." Harry nodded in agreement.
Hermione glared at the two boys, irritated by their lack of effort. "Maybe if you two picked up a book once in a while, you'd know some stronger spells. Let me show you." Ignoring her own words about not using dangerous magic, she pointed her wand at Jake's shield and cast the Reducto spell. The spell hit the shield with a more solid doink, but it still had no effect... Hermione looked down in disappointment. Jake chuckled, amused by her failed attempt to outshine Harry and Ron.
"Alright, now that you've seen my shield in action, would you like me to teach you how to cast it?" Jake asked.
Ron spoke up on behalf of the group. "Mate, hate to break it to you, but we all learned how to cast Protego in our second year. It's the most basic shield charm... I have no idea why yours is so much stronger, though. You must just have a ton of magical power." Ron's voice held a tinge of envy.
"Even if you have a lot of magic, it's kind of a waste to overpower a simple Protego. You should learn a more advanced shield," Hermione advised. "Otherwise, you might exhaust yourself in the future, even with your reserves."
"Do you know any better shields?" Jake asked her, realizing he hadn't come across any during his time in the library.
Hermione shook her head. "They don't teach the super advanced spells until after the NEWTs. They want to prevent students from harming themselves. Those spells are also not in the regular section of the library," she explained, disappointed in herself for not knowing.
"Well, that's disappointing. It seems you guys already know two of the spells I learned yesterday. The other one was Bombarda as well," Jake said. "Hey, how about you guys cast Protego, and I'll fire a Bombarda at your shields. Let's see how well they hold up." The three students wore horrified expressions at the suggestion. If his shield spell was as powerful as it seemed, his Bombarda might actually penetrate their shields and cause harm. They frantically shook their heads, refusing to let him cast magic at them. After all, they didn't want to risk their lives.
Jake just let out a sigh of disappointment. "Alright then, everybody, why don't you take a couple steps back as I demonstrate the third spell I found yesterday." Jake turned towards the lake and pointed his hand at it, then he cast the spell as he channeled his magic through his arm. "Incendio!" he called out.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione had horrified looks on their faces as they witnessed Jake cast his spell. Incendio was normally just a small spell that could conjure a small stream of fire, not even enough to be lethal towards a person, just enough to burn them slightly. Jake's Incendio spell, however, was an absolute torrent of fire. Harry and Hermione looked like a bomb had just gone off over the school's lake. None of the three of them had ever even seen Fiendfyre in person, but they could imagine this is what it looked like as Jake's flamethrower fired out, 10 feet wide and just as high of pure devastation and heat that absolutely evaporated all the water it touched! And then... boom! The spell actually caused a massive steam explosion that sent ripples across the entire lake with an incredibly loud blast, knocking them all backward a couple of feet!
Jake's breath came in heavy pants as he tried to catch his breath after casting the spell. A wide smile spread across his face, filled with a mixture of exhilaration and satisfaction. "That was absolutely incredible!" He thought to himself in sheer glee. This was exactly the kind of magic he had envisioned when he first started learning – powerful fire spells, explosions, and the whole works that reminded him of his favorite video games. It was a moment of pure magic and excitement.
Returning his gaze to the three younger students, he noticed their expressions of complete shock and awe. The realization hit him that he might have gone a little overboard with his demonstration.
"Well, what do you all think about that? Do you guys know this spell too? Because judging from your faces, clearly you don't. Wasn't it awesome!?" Jake asked the somewhat terrified three younger students.
The three of them just nodded along as Jake spoke, not wanting to argue with him apparently. Hermione's thoughts were running wild. That clearly was not a normal Incendio! That was definitely the legendary dark spell, Fiendfyre!' She continued to ramble on in her head for a bit longer.
"Well, Harry, I'm going to head up to the Great Hall and grab some food. I kinda wore myself out with that last one. I want you to stay out here for at least half an hour and practice the Incendio spell over the lake. Try to cast it at least half as strong as I did," Jake instructed, leaving Harry blankly nodding in response. "See you later, guys!" Jake called as he made his way back to the castle.
As they watched Jake leave, Harry turned to the others. "So, should I actually practice?" He asked, unsure.
"Well, I guess it couldn't hurt," Ron replied with a smirk. "Though I highly doubt you'll get anywhere close to Jake's level. That fire spell was incredible. Good thing Seamus wasn't here; he might have had a heart attack from that explosion."
Harry laughed at Ron's comment and approached the lake, preparing to cast his own Incendio spell. However, before he could do so, a dozen aquatic heads emerged from the water, belonging to the lake's mermaids. They glared at Harry, carrying spears and looking furious.
"Oh wow," Hermione gasped in awe. "It's the lake mermaids! I've never seen them before, let alone a dozen of them. They're so beautiful, but... oh no, they look mad!"
Suddenly, the mermaids let out an unholy shriek, the loudest sound the students had ever heard. They all clutched their ears in agony. Hermione shouted, "I don't think they liked Jake casting that massive explosion on their lake! We have to get out of here!" Hermione exclaimed, fear evident in her voice.
The three of them wasted no time and quickly turned to flee from the enraged mermaids. The mermaids' shrieks continued to echo behind them, filled with anger and annoyance at having their peaceful sanctuary disrupted by the students' reckless actions. As they ran, Harry, Ron, and Hermione could already imagine the formal complaint the mermaids would lodge with the Headmaster against them. They didn't do it! It was Jake! They were internally sobbing at being framed….
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