Hogwarts: Starting with full Unforgivable Curses

“Of course I’ve heard of it.” Dylan nodded in response, his tone clearly showing interest. “Mr. Scamander’s suitcase is indeed very interesting. It must contain a lot of magic similar to the Unseen Stretch Charm to have such a large internal space.”

He paused, carefully recalling the details about the box, and added, "Moreover, it can not only store a large number of magical animals, but also create exclusive territories suitable for survival for each animal according to their habits—this means that it also uses magical techniques similar to weather manipulation to regulate the internal environment and climate to meet the needs of different animals."

"Huh? It seems you know this box very well!" A hint of surprise flashed in Flitwick's eyes, then he smiled and said, "But that's even better, it saves me the time of explaining the background, we can get straight to the point."

He adjusted his posture to make himself more comfortable on the thick stack of textbooks. "The magic I'm going to teach you is inspired by Mr. Scamander's suitcase, so it will involve both the weather charm you've already mastered and the basic principles of the Unseen Stretching Charm."

Flitwick's gaze fell on Dylan, and he said with certainty, "I can see that you have reached a very high level of proficiency in using these two types of magic, so I can go into more depth and not just stay at the basic level."

He blinked, tapped his knee lightly with his fingers, pondered for a few seconds, and said, "Then let's start from the perspective of music—that's the key to understanding this magic."

Speaking of music, one cannot help but mention an old story about Hogwarts.

According to school regulations, new students are allowed to bring pets into the castle upon enrollment. Pets that can be selected include owls, toads, or cats.

For today's freshmen, owls are undoubtedly the first choice—they can deliver letters and look very impressive. Many students also choose cats as pets because they are lively and cute.

There are very few students like Neville who still keep toads as pets these days.

But in earlier times, the situation was completely different—toads were the most popular pets among students, with almost everyone owning one.

During that period, Professor Flitwick, in addition to being the Charms teacher at Hogwarts, also had a special title—the conductor of the Toad Choir.

He would train the students' toads to make them croak rhythmically together, forming a unique "chorus" that they would perform at some of the school's celebrations.

However, as time went on, fewer and fewer students chose toads as pets, and the toad choir gradually dwindled in number, eventually disbanding quietly.

Although the toad choir is long gone, Professor Flitwick's love for music has not diminished in the slightest.

Music still occupies an important place in his life, and even subtly influences his understanding and creation of magic.

Next, Flitwick began to explain the principles of this new magic in detail, while Dylan listened attentively and, drawing on his long-term research into soul magic, quickly sorted out and understood the core logic.

This magic, which Flitwick named "Pleasure Land," is essentially related to the fusion of soul, music, and magic.

In Dylan's view, truly understanding the "Land of Pleasure" is not difficult—provided one has some knowledge of soul magic.

The core of this magic is to build a bridge of communication between the soul and magic through specific music. The melody and rhythm of the music evoke emotions deep within the caster's "soul," and the evoked emotions further trigger related memories. With the blessing of magical power, these memories automatically create a corresponding space based on the characteristics of the music.

This space can not only expand capacity, but also replicate environmental details from memory, just like Scamander's suitcase, enabling multifunctional scene construction.

"So, this magic actually has elements of ritual magic," Dylan murmured after listening to Flitwick's explanation. Ritual magic often requires a specific medium and involves elements such as emotions and intentions, which is similar to the principle of this magic.

“Oh, oh, oh, hehe, you have a keen eye.” Flitwick admitted without hesitation, then changed the subject and asked, “Recently, a very interesting research paper about vocal music and magic has appeared in the school.”

Dylan paused for a moment, then quickly realized what he meant and tentatively asked, "You mean that paper from Beauxbatons, the research on the fusion of ritual magic and elemental magic, right?"

“That’s right, that’s it.” Flitwick nodded with a smile, his tone certain. “Given your focus on magical research, you certainly wouldn’t miss such valuable information.”

Dylan suddenly thought of something and looked at Flitwick, saying, "Professor Flitwick, if we take Beauxbatons' paper as an example, and even extend it to the most primitive fire-making ritual—don't you think that all magic or actions related to 'fire' are essentially aimed at achieving the core effect of 'generating flames'?"

He paused, then thought of a basic spell that all new students learn upon enrollment, and added, "Looking at the Fire-Starting Spell from this perspective helps us understand why it's classified as a basic spell. In principle, it requires mobilizing magical energy to convert it into heat energy and then ignite a flame; the process shouldn't be that simple."

“That’s right! That’s right! Absolutely right! Your understanding is spot on!” Professor Flitwick nodded with satisfaction, his eyes full of approval. “Often, as long as the desired magical effect can be achieved, the process is not that important—the core of magic is ‘achieving the goal,’ not being bound by a fixed form.”

Dylan understands this very well.

This is also why he has always liked to draw inferences from one instance to another.

When you encounter a wide variety of magic and master a rich array of skills, the solutions you can come up with when you encounter problems will naturally become more diverse.

This concept was actually already present in magic textbooks, most notably in the basic universal anti-magic spells. Extending to more advanced levels, there's also the Scarpin revealing spell, which he frequently used when learning potions. As one masters more magic and accumulates more experience, the applications of these basic spells become increasingly broad.

For example, in previous combat training, when facing offensive magic from the opponent, he used an extension of the general counter spell when he waved his wand to deflect or directly erase the magical energy. He simply adjusted the power and direction of the spell according to the different magical attacks.

Dylan quickly realized that now was not the time to discuss other magic, and hurriedly steered the conversation back to the main topic: "Actually, voice has had the effect of influencing emotions for a long time."

He gave an example: "For instance, when people hear unknown or eerie sounds, they instinctively feel fear, while hearing gentle breezes and rolling waves makes them feel happy. A more typical example is mermaids—their voices carry all sorts of magical powers, and some are even strong enough to revive people from despair."

“You’re absolutely right. The source of these influences was indeed initially just sound,” Flitwick added. “However, music’s influence on emotions is more direct, more directional, and more likely to guide people into a specific emotional state than scattered sounds—which is the core reason why ‘Pleasure Land’ chose music as its medium.”

Dylan nodded slightly, serious: "Moreover, for someone to create impactful music, they need a combination of emotion and memory—only by truly experiencing and feeling it can music carry the corresponding emotions."

He paused his pen, looked up at Flitwick, and continued his analysis, “In this way, music can more accurately trigger the spellcaster’s memories, thereby constructing a space that fits the needs. This actually also includes an understanding of the ‘conversion of matter and energy’ in alchemy, and flexibly applying this understanding to the construction of magic.”

“Besides that, music has a special quality.” Dylan thought of what he had been researching. “After listening to the same piece of music, most people usually have a similar understanding of the emotions it conveys and the atmosphere it creates—this collective consensus should also play a role in promoting the application of ‘Pleasure Land’.”

The space constructed using this common understanding is probably similar to how the creatures in the Black Lake space maintain their shape by relying on their own light and shadow.

After saying this, Dylan organized his thoughts and continued, "Using music to evoke emotions and memories deep within the soul, and then using magical power to create a space... if my speculation is correct, a space created with the 'Pleasure Land' should be much more stable than a space constructed simply by using an invisible stretching spell from an individual's will—after all, it has shared cognition and emotional memories as its dual support."

“Oh?” Flitwick raised an eyebrow in surprise, a hint of astonishment flashing in his eyes. “Dylan, I hadn’t even realized this point before. And, I haven’t even had a chance to tell you about how the ‘Pleasure Land’ is superior to the Unseen Stretching Charm,’ yet you’ve already deduced it yourself. That’s quite a surprise.”

Dylan smiled slightly.

Before leaving, Dylan and Flitwick talked for a while about the place of pleasure, such as how to choose suitable music and how to control the intensity of emotions.

The bell rang, and Flitwick jumped off the thick stack of textbooks, stretched, and said with a touch of emotion, "I really didn't expect that time would fly by when we were talking about magic. You're still so smart, and you always bring me new insights."

“Dylan, although you are not a Ravenclaw student, I think that whether it is me, Minerva, or even Snape, we have already regarded you as our student. This does not depend on the house. I hope you can go further and surpass me, surpass Snape, and even surpass the headmaster.”

Dylan paused, nodded, and said, "I also hope that day will come. Thank you, Professor Flitwick."

He glanced at Dylan, "But don't rush to study new magic. Take advantage of the Christmas ball to enjoy the music. It might give you inspiration to cast 'Pleasure Land'."

On the morning of Christmas Eve, a heavy snow fell without warning.

Snowflakes fell gently and softly from the sky, and soon every window of the castle was shrouded in a thin layer of mist, becoming foggy.

To see the view outside the window, you have to wipe the condensation off the glass with your hand. As your fingertips glide across the cool glass and the fog dissipates, a vast expanse of white comes into view. The whole world is covered in snow, pure and without a trace of impurity.

The heavy snow was like a huge white velvet blanket, gently covering the rooftops and towers of Hogwarts Castle, as well as the grounds and forests outside the castle, softening even the normally distinct outlines of the buildings.

But Ginny interpreted the scene outside the castle differently. She had come to discuss with Dylan some details and preparations for the ball.

Seeing the heavy snow outside the window, she excitedly pulled Dylan along and pointed to Hagrid's cottage in the distance, saying, "Look, Hagrid's cottage looks like a gingerbread house covered in a thick layer of icing sugar, with 'powder sugar' stuck to the edges!"

Following her finger, Hagrid's hut was covered in snow, its roof and walls truly resembling a meticulously crafted gingerbread house.

Ginny pointed to the Beauxbatons carriage not far away, her eyes sparkling: "And that blue carriage, it looks like a cake covered in blue fondant, with snow falling on it like a layer of white sugar sprinkled on it!"

Before she could finish speaking, she turned to look at the shore of Black Lake. "Look at that magic ship. The snow on its gunwale is frozen and shiny, like it's been drizzled with transparent syrup. The thick snow on the sails looks like sugar threads coated with powdered sugar!"

Isn't so much sugar too sweet?
Listening to Ginny's imaginative description, Dylan couldn't help but laugh and said, "If Hogwarts really became a candy world, Headmaster Dumbledore would be very happy—he loves sweets so much, he might even want to 'take a bite' of the castle."

In order to better showcase the splendor of Hogwarts at the Christmas Ball and leave a lasting impression on visiting guests, the entire castle has undergone a meticulous renovation in recent days.

Even the students who were about to graduate and had lived in the castle for seven years couldn't help but marvel at the decorations before them, saying that it was the first time they had ever seen Hogwarts so magnificent!

Emerging from the common room, as you walk down the corridor past the armored figures standing on either side, they immediately react, slowly raising their arms, adjusting their posture, and singing classic Christmas carols in deep, solemn voices. (End of Chapter)