Tonks asked Moriarty what he had in mind. He simply shook his head, offering no explanation. "You'll see when the new broom is released," he said mysteriously.
The rest of the afternoon was spent with Moriarty meticulously testing various parameters of the new broomstick. He was joined by Tonks, Charlie, Penelope, Leon, and Jericho, all of whom served as test pilots and offered valuable feedback.
Draco was collected early by Narcissa Malfoy, who seemed particularly keen on speaking with Moriarty. However, her efforts were in vain, as she could not find him.
Moriarty carefully recorded every bit of feedback and test data into a thick sheepskin notebook. The work continued late into the night, until Jericho eventually brought dinner to Moriarty's room.
The following day was Thursday.
The second class of the morning was Charms. For once, Moriarty allowed himself to sleep in a little.
At nine o'clock sharp, Moriarty and the rest of the Slytherins walked into the Charms classroom. Professor Flitwick was already there, standing on his usual stack of books at the center of the classroom.
"Ladies and gentlemen," he said cheerily, "please take your seats on both sides of me—yes, to my left and right."
The boys followed Moriarty to Flitwick's right. The girls followed Lilith to his left.
Thus, the boys and girls sat face to face.
Many of the girls' eyes found their way to Moriarty, and they whispered among themselves with muffled giggles. The murmurs quickly became louder, cascading into bursts of laughter.
Only Lilith sat quietly, leaning back in her chair like a block of ice.
"She's acting off," Jericho whispered from diagonally across, next to Moriarty.
Moriarty raised an eyebrow. "Who?"
"Who else?" Jericho threw a quick glance toward Lilith, as if afraid she might catch him staring. "Miss Piliwick. Something's up between you two. You didn't come to the dinner table last night, and she didn't even mention you. Usually she'd bug me for answers."
Moriarty turned his attention to Lilith, who sat directly across from him. Indeed, something felt off.
But what?
Lilith noticed his gaze, shot him a cold look, and turned away without a word.
"Good morning, Professor Flitwick!"
The Ravenclaws entered the room. The girls offered their usual sweet greetings to their Head of House.
Flitwick instructed them to take their seats behind the Slytherins—boys with boys, girls with girls.
Jericho, ever the flirt, shot what he believed was a dazzling smile at a Ravenclaw girl seated across from him.
His flirtation did not go unnoticed.
A boy from Ravenclaw sitting just behind him nudged Jericho.
"Oi, Blanche, check out Clovert—middle row. That's the top flower of first year. I bet you could pull her, cowboy."
The boys laughed among themselves.
Jericho rolled his eyes. "You're dreaming. Can't you see Penelope's there?"
"What are we supposed to see?" asked one of the Ravenclaws, feigning confusion.
"Forget it," Jericho muttered, "Are all British boys this dense?"
Moriarty leaned over and murmured, "Not all of them—just not as 'open-minded' as you Americans."
Jericho chuckled nervously. "You heard that, huh? I wasn't talking about you. Just... comparing. Ilvermorny lads in first year already—well... you know."
"Girls that young? That's disgraceful," Moriarty replied coolly. "It's unhealthy."
Jericho, momentarily humbled, mused silently. No wonder Moriarty preferred Tonks' company.
At that moment, Penelope took her seat behind Lilith and greeted her warmly. Lilith offered only a curt nod.
"Wands out, everyone!" Professor Flitwick declared, raising his own wand above his head.
With a practiced "swish," each student's wand snapped into their hand.
"Oh, you're using wand holsters? Quite stylish," said Flitwick, clearly pleased. "Looks like something out of a performance!"
Students exchanged smiles and grateful glances at Moriarty, whose idea had inspired the holsters.
"Professor," Moriarty asked, "what will we be studying today?"
Though already skilled in many spells, Moriarty valued the opportunity to learn directly from Flitwick.
"Excellent question. Today, we'll learn the Freezing Charm!" Flitwick beamed.
"This spell is usually taught in second year, around March. But due to recent disturbances in the magical world, we're learning it early. You've all heard the tale—Lockhart freezing a vampire to defeat Quinlan?"
The class murmured in agreement. Even those who hadn't read Lockhart's latest novel were familiar with the story.
"Professor!" Jericho exclaimed. "Up to date as ever! I respect that."
The students grew more excited. "Learn the Freezing Charm—fight the vampires!"
Flitwick laughed. "Now, we'll learn the basic version—not freezing the Eiffel Tower like Lockhart claimed. I certainly can't do that."
He winked at Moriarty, who smiled knowingly. The Hogwarts staff had long known that Lockhart exaggerated his tales. In fact, Dumbledore had discreetly dispatched investigators to the Himalayas to uncover the truth behind the Eiffel Tower incident.
Unaware of this, Moriarty practiced the wand movement as demonstrated by Flitwick.
The Freezing Charm immobilized the target, halting both living creatures and inanimate objects.
It was relatively simple to learn and frequently used. After about twenty minutes, the students had mastered the proper wand movement.
"Now," Flitwick said, "open your Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2, to page 17. Let's read the incantation aloud—Immobulus!"
"Immobulus!" echoed the classroom.
"Excellent! Again, without wands this time."
"Immobulus!"
Many students muttered it under their breath repeatedly: "Immobulus, Immobulus, Immobulus..."
Moriarty had already mastered it. He pointed his cedar wand at the chandelier above: "Immobulus!"
An icy streak shot out, striking the chandelier and freezing it instantly.
"Beautifully done! Ten points to Slytherin," Flitwick applauded.
Not to be outdone, Lilith cast the same spell on the second chandelier. It worked partially—some crystals remained exposed.
"Well done, Piliwick. Five points."
Jericho, Penelope, and several others grew enthusiastic. Flitwick quickly intervened.
"No, no—our targets are not the chandeliers."
The students chuckled—until Flitwick's next words turned their amusement to surprise.
"See the student sitting across from you? Yes, that one. They are your new target."
He gestured between the rows. "Partner up! Face to face."
Jericho smirked. "Now we're 'ladies and gentlemen'? A moment ago, we were 'kids.' Clearly, our professor's in high spirits."
He flirted with the Ravenclaw girl across from him.
Facing directly opposite Lilith, Moriarty met her eyes for the first time in the lesson. Neither spoke.
Then Penelope leaned forward. "Moriarty, team up with me?"
She added with a sweet smile, "Since we're facing each other, maybe you could conjure some moving targets for me to practice accuracy?"
Moriarty agreed.
Lilith immediately turned away, pairing with a Ravenclaw boy behind Moriarty.
"Oh Merlin!" Flitwick exclaimed to Penelope. "You're absolutely right—five points to Ravenclaw!"
He addressed the class: "Let's not cast the Freezing Charm on your classmates directly. Create practice targets using Transfiguration. Professor McGonagall tells me you've all been progressing well."
Encouraged by the bonus points, Penelope beamed. She stepped around her desk and floated forward to stand beside Moriarty.