Lesson Two - Lumos Solem and Lumos Maxima (Year I)

Defence Against the Dark Arts: Lesson Two (Year I)

Ambrosius watched as his students were entering the classroom and heading to their seats. "Good afternoon everyone, and welcome back to Defence Against the Dark Arts" he calmly greeted them as most of them were looking around the room with surprise. There were indeed some odd additions to the classroom. In one corner, there were four shining crystal balls floating in mid air, forming the shape of a square, and that seemed to be connected between them by a luminescent ray. In that cage made of light, one could see a spectral dog, walking in circles, on alert. On the other side of the professor's desk, a ghost was standing near the wall, furiously glancing at the students. He was rather frightening, wearing a robe covered in silver bloodstains, and carrying chains and a sword around his belt. Finally, on his desk, Ambrosius had placed a plant composed of a mass of soft, springy tendrils and vines.

Aylee entered the classroom, breathing heavily as she just ran up and down a couple of staircases. She was still new so she wasn't used to the castle yet. For one moment, she thought that she was late when she realized that she was one of the first students to come in. Quietly, Aylee slid into one of the desks at the back of the class.
She looked around the noticed the dog, ghost and strange plant. Curiously, she stared at the dog wondering what the lesson would be about. Aylee was a bit upset because she had missed the first lesson. Maybe I'll ask someone for their notes, she thought.
Now settled, Aylee looked at the teacher and waited for the lesson to start.

Curious, Ryland's feet dragged him into his second class. He didn't know how anyone could use magic to defend themselves, let alone how anyone could use dark magic! When he walked in, he saw a ghostly dog inside what looked to be a cage, a mossy plant, and what he thought was a ghost, with a menacing look and bloodstained robes. Looking at all of these in awe, Ryland's green eyes widened as he noticed they would most likely be used in the lesson.

He took a seat near the middle of the classroom; not too far back, but not on the front row. He wanted to know what these creatures were, and what they would do if they were to interact.

Guest

Maybe it was just because she was getting into classes more, or maybe she was just getting braver. Or maybe it was the fact she’d managed to earn points for Hufflepuff in the last lesson. Either way, Emmalynne wasn’t half as nervous when she’d walked to the second Defense against the Dark Arts lesson. She still looked around herself with wide eyes once she’d entered, after giving Ryland and Aylee smiles. At least she didn’t see any hinkypunks, after the last lesson had discussed them. There had been the possibility of there being one, in her mind. “Good afternoon, Professor Umbranox,” she returned, as the professor had greeted her, and she calmly made her way to a seat near Ryland. Still eyeing the spectral dog and the plant on the desk, although she’d lost curiosity about the ghost.

Mostly. There was still one question she wanted to ask, so she’d returned her wide hazel eyes to the professor. “Is the Baron going to be joining the lesson today?,” she asked, acknowledging the ghost once again even though he was the least curious addition to the room. Questions about what the dog and the plant were doing probably were supposed to wait until the lesson began. That didn’t mean she didn’t have the questions in her head, though. Curiosity was never a bad thing when you were an investigative journalist.

"Yes, I have prepared something quite special and interesting for this lesson, but you will hear more about that later. By the way, as some of you may already know, this is the Bloody Baron, the house ghost of Slytherin. He has indeed kindly agreed to help me with this lesson" he announced, answering Emmalynne St. Pierre's question. "But for now, we will proceed with what we had not finished last time, more precisely the uses of the Wand Lighting Charm and its variations in Defence Against the Dark Arts. I trust you have all done your homework?" he asked, observing the students. "Could you please just pass them to me so that I see what you have written?"

OOC: If you haven't done your homework, you can role-play as if you had. I will wait until tomorrow to give others the possibility to join the lesson, and then proceed. You can still submit your homework until then.

Aylee listened with great interest as Professor Umbranox spoke. She looked at the ghost as soon as it was mentioned. She quickly noticed the blood stains which sent a shiver down her spine. Shaking her head, Aylee slowly reached into her bag to pull out the homework.
Happy with her work, she looked at it one more time. She had spent a whole three hours looking up the charm in her books and writing it down. It took her a long time to finish it so Aylee was really proud of it.
Then she stood up, walked over to Professor Umbranox's table and left the homework there. Almost skipping, Aylee reached her desk again and sat down.

Guest

Leah walked into the DADA classroom extremely tired. She couldn't sleep last night, due to her overly active mind that absolutely hated her. She turned in her homework and sat down at a desk already fighting to keep her eyes open.

Apparently, all of his students had accomplished their task. And quite well, it seemed. "I see that you have done this with the required seriousness. I will keep your parchments in order to examine them more thoroughly, and will consequently award you with the house points your work deserves." He paused for a moment and swiftly leafed through the papers he was holding.

Once he was certain to have his students' full attention, Ambrosius continued with the lesson, slowly walking around the room. "You have all understood that the Wand Lighting Spell, as well as its powered up version, is used to ward off spectral foes, and that the Lumos Solem charm was an effective weapon against the Devil's Snare. However, as you know, Defence Against the Dark Arts is about making you able to defend yourselves in the face of danger. Therefore, I believe that what we are learning here would be useless without applying it to more practical situations. And that is exactly what we are going to do today. Now if you would all please stand up and come to the front of the classroom.".

As soon as the students had joined him, with a swish of his wand, he moved the desks and the chairs to the back of the room, leaving a vast empty space in the middle. "Before we start, I want each of you to choose a partner since you are going to practice in groups of two." He then leaned against the wall and left them a couple of minutes to form the packs.

Aylee listened to Professor Umbranox speak, hanging onto every single word.
She then froze as she understood what he meant. They were going to try the spells against the creatures. She felt her face go red as she stood up and slowly walked over to the front of the classroom along with a few other students. Aylee looked at the strange dog. Were they going to fight it? If so, she hoped that it wouldn't be her as she was super scared to do so. Aylee watched as Professor Umbranox sent the desks and chairs go to the back of the room.
"Before we start, I want each of you to choose a partner since you are going to practice in groups of two." she heard him say.
Aylee then felt more scared. She didn't know half the students in the class. She looked around and saw Leah who she had met once in the Great Hall. Aylee also saw Ryland and another Hufflepuff girl who she was pretty sure were in her Care of Magical Creatures class.
Should I ask them? Aylee debated inside her head. What if they don't want me for a partner?

Aurelia rummaged through the depths of her bookbag, before extracting a carefully folded piece of parchment. Giving the paper one last glance, she decided that she was pleased with her homework and rose to her feet elegantly, striding forward as she clutched her homework in her hand and placing it gently on the Professor's desk. Once that was finished, she returned to her seat and pulled out the necessary materials for the lesson, placing them on her desk as she settled in her seat to listen attentively to Professor Umbranox.

As he mentioned that they would be practicing the spells Lumos Solem and Lumos Maxima, a smile of delight crossed her features and she immediately sat up, feeling slightly more confident about her abilities. She had practiced the charms in hte common room after the lesson, and although it took a fair few tries, she was now able to produce a decent charm--the spell, at the very least, produced the desired effects and she was more than content with that. As Professor Umbranox concluded his statement and announced that they break off into pairs, Aurelia glanced instinctively at the boy seated beside her--a Gryffindor that she hadn't had the chance to meet yet. "Would you like to be partners?" inquried Aurelia politely, offering him a small smile as she spoke, azure eyes meeting his green eyes as she spoke.

Sydney walked into the giant room just in time to here the professor say to partner up. She scanned the room and saw her best friend Aylee. “Hey, Lee. Partner with me?” She hoped Aylee wouldn’t ditch her. But just in case, James had told her about the new guy, Ryland. He seemed ok, and cute. But she wanted to work with her friend.

Guest

Auden walked into the classroom when the professor said to partner up. Auden sat down and was at a loss of who to ask. Auden hated group projects because it made her feel nervous and because she wasn't good friends with anyone here. Auden glanced around nervously waiting for a partner to appear.

Noticing that some students seemed hesitant, Ambrosius figured it would be easier if he were the one to determine the groups, at least for this lesson. "As you still do not know one another very well, I will actually form the pairs this time." he announced. Taking the list of students from his desk, he scanned the room, wondering how to distribute them.

"Miss Walters with miss Hale, miss Rosier with mister Marcotte, and miss Baker with miss Mayer. Miss St. Pierre, you will be practicing with me this time." he declared after a few moments. "All right, we can proceed now. I have asked you to master the Wand Lighting Charm, and I hope all of you have done that. Today, you will be practicing two of its variations, Lumos Solem and Lumos Maxima, as we will be needing them later. You can ignore Lumos Duo for now, as it is not used for defensive purposes. However, if some of you have the curiosity to see what it looks like, you should observe the cage in that corner" he said, showing them the area with the spectral dog.

"In every group, one of you will first attempt to perform the spells, the other criticizing them, pointing out mistakes, for example in the incantation or the wand movement, as it is often easier for others to see our wrongs than for ourselves. Of course, when you succeed in casting the charms, you will change roles with your partner. Lumos Solem will probably not be a major problem for you since you have mastered the Lumos spell, but Lumos Maxima may be a bit more difficult, since it is a powered up version of the basic charm. It therefore demands greater concentration and precision from the caster. But I do not doubt that you will manage to perform it after a certain number of attempts."

As the students were preparing to start the exercise, he added: "When you are done, I will give you further instructions."

Guest

Auden felt a weight lifted off of her shoulders. She didn't have to ask anyone to be her partner! Auden glanced at Leah Baker. She noticed that Leah was very sleepy and a Ravenclaw like Auden. Auden walked to Leah's desk. "Hi Leah. I'm Auden. It's nice to meet you. So do you want to go first or should I?" Auden asked.

Guest

The homework had been one thing. Emmalynne had only had to move from her desk for a short period of time in order to turn it in, and she’d gotten the brief moment of pride when she had not only gotten an answer from Professor Umbranox about whether or not the Baron was going to be joining the lesson, but she’d been correct in the assumption that the ghost had in fact been the Baron and not just some poor thing who looked sort of like she’d imagine he would. The part that had made her nervous was when he’d decided to separate everyone into partners for some practical activities with the charms. Of course, it hadn’t been nerves about asking anyone to be her partner. Even when Aurelia had asked if Ryland would be hers.

No, she’d returned to her almost deer-in-headlights expression when the professor had turned around and not only decided to assign partners, but announced that she’d be working with him. She’d slowly made her way over by him anyway, placing her closer to the two specters as well. It wouldn’t work to defy a professor, even if she’d much rather still be safe in her desk taking notes or anything else. It felt like she was in trouble, almost, but at least it was just practice. Therefore it shouldn’t be too bad if she didn’t accomplish the spells at first. Either way, even as he had continued speaking to announce that they’d be getting further instructions a bit later, she’d closed her eyes. Both to try and calm down and to concentrate on the spells that she only theoretically knew how to cast. It wasn’t just Lumos anymore. “Lumos Solem,” she whispered, holding her wand out even as she kept her eyes closed. She didn’t want to see if she failed.

Ryland had paid close attention to the professor, and was about to look around for a partner when the girl next to him asked if he wanted to work with her. Ryland was about to agree when Professor Umbranox announced that, either way, they would be partners. "I guess you're kind of stuck with me." he said as he turned back to look at her. "I'm Ryland." He let out a small smile.

"Ladies first," he said as they were preparing to work on casting the charms. He'd been practicing alone in the Common Room, but so far he had not been able to cast Lumos. In a way, it disappointed him more than it should have, but he didn't want to feel like he wasn't magical, after all, Headmistress Torres had flown all the way to France to prove him he was indeed a wizard.

Aurelia heaved a sigh playfully, the corners of her lips curving downwards to form a mock frown. "And you're stuck with me. It's unfortunate, I know," she quipped lightly, before extending a hand in his direction. "Nice to meet you Ryland. I'm Aurelia Rosier," she stated by way of introduction, smiling automatically in response to the Gryffindor boy's smile, her own smile wider and more cheerful.

As he announced that ladies ought to go first, Aurelia grimaced inwardly and pulled out her wand from her pocket, brandishing it before her. "I apologize in advance if this goes terribly wrong," whispered the girl in a voice too low to be heard by anyone apart from her partner. "Lumos Solem, Lumos Solem, Lumos Solem," muttered hte girl to herself several times, repeating the words in a hushed tone before deciding to attempt the spell. Straightening up, she aimed her wand at the other end of the classroom, narrowing her gaze as she focused all of her attention on the spell. "Lumos Solem," she stated confidently, pointing her wand and concentrating on the desired effects. A ray of light began to seep through from the tip of her wand, slowly narrowing to form a single beam of light that made its way across the room. Blinking several times, she glanced at the light with a hint of uncertainty, before turning to her partner. "Am I doing this right?" inquired the girl softly.

Chuckling at the girl's comment, Ryland shook her hand and attempted to return a better smile, but there was no way to match hers. He could see a genuine interest in wanting to work with him, but it was still troubling for him to trust her as he had just met her.

Ryland watched in amazement as Aurelia performed the spell. She had actually been able to produce light from her wand, something that Ryland had been working to hard to accomplish every night with no success. "Yes," he replied, amazement clear in his green eyes as he struggled to take it all in, "I believe you are."

The girl's azure eyes widened and an amused expression graced her features as she tapped her wand lightly. "Well then..that was unexpected," stated the girl, staring at the light that she had produced for a few seconds, before waving her wand in the air. "Nox," she announced, extinguishing the radiant beam of light before turning to the boy. "Would you like to give it a try now?" asked the girl, giving him an encouraging smile as she stood by the side, eager to see what he would be able to do with his wand.

"Um," Ryland hesitated, "Sure." Without a second thought and wishing to get it over with, Ryland took his wand out and pointed it towards the other end of the room. "Lumos Solem." he said, half hoping to find the same beam of light Aurelia had produced, but was disappointed as he saw nothing was happening.

"Lumos Solem." he said again, this time with a bit more strength, yet nothing happened still. Getting frustrated and embarrassed, Ryland tried it again. "Lumos Solem" This time, however, he managed to produce a silver spark. Startled, he turned to Aurelia and admitted defeat.
"I'm doing something wrong, right?"

Aylee looked at Sydney, smiling.
"I guess we're partners!" she said. She took her wand out of her bag and shrugged.
"Who goes first?" Aylee asked, hoping it wasn't her. She wasn't very good at magic yet and she had failed to make the Lumos spell worke. When she practiced in the Common Room, all she would get was a small faint light for a second and then it would go out.

“I’ll try.” She cleared her throat and proudly said the spell. “Lumos Solem.” Her wand emitted a short, but bright light, before it went out. She smiled and did a little happy dance. “Yay! I did it!” She clapped her hands like a little girl. “Your turn, Lee. Go on, now.” SHe then turned and raised her hand. "DId i do this correctly professor?"

Aylee smiled as Sydney managed to do the spell. As she turned to her, Aylee felt a bit nervous. If she didn't manage to do the spell, she would look like an idiot. Sighing, she took out her wand, closed her eyes and muttered, "Lumos Solem".
She opened her eyes immediately. Nothing. Aylee's face turned into a frown as Sydney asked the Professor if she did it right.
I'm hopeless, she thought, covering her face in her hands.
As Sydney was still waiting for an answer from Professor Umbranox, Aylee held her wand again, mustering all her concentration and saying out loud, "Lumos Solem!" Half of her was saying "I can't do this..." but the other half was yelling "You can do it!"
She tried again and again until a bright light appeared at the tip of her wand. Aylee, astonished, stared at it until it went out, making it only two seconds.

Aurelia gnawed on her bottom lip gently as she watched Ryland’s attempts to cast the incantation, though his efforts didn’t seem to produce the desired results. After three tries, a silver spark was produced from his wand and the girl couldn’t help but clap her hands together enthusiastically. “You’re on the right track!” exclaimed Aurelia, flashing him a small smile before suggesting, “Maybe you should try placing more emphasis on the ‘lu’ and the ‘so’ part of the incantation.” Not wanting to sound like a know-it-all, she flushed slightly, her cheeks turning a slight pink, before she shook the thought from her mind. “But the silver spark was definitely a good sign,” reassured the girl, as she twirled her wand around the tips of her fingers.

Smiling at the sound of Aurelia's encouragement, Ryland turned his gaze to the wand in his hand. "Lumos Solem" He said as he waved his wand in what he was sure was the correct way and his eyes widened as he saw a light ray of light appear at it's end.
"Woah." he whispered as the light disappeared soon after. More determined this time, he casted the spell again and managed to produce a better and brighter ray that lasted longer than the first. It still wasn't perfect like hers, but it was good enough for now.
"Thank you." he said as he turned to look at Aurelia once again. Somehow, her encouragements had been able to give him the confidence he needed to be able to cast the spell.

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