Thomas gently waved his wand at the matchstick on the table, imagining a needle in his mind. The matchstick successfully transformed into a silver needle, gleaming with a metallic luster.
This was the first time Thomas had successfully used a Transfiguration Spell. While trying various spells at home, he had never succeeded with any Transfiguration-related spells.
This was because the textbook didn't mention the most crucial point: when transfiguring, one needed to imagine the appearance of the object they wished to transform into.
Professor McGonagall walked over, nodding in satisfaction: "Very good, Mr. Snape, ten points to Slytherin!"
"Thank you, Professor," Thomas said, and then heard James Potter's unwilling voice from the Gryffindor side.
"Professor McGonagall, I succeeded too!"
Professor McGonagall walked to his side and praised him similarly: "Good Transfiguration, Mr. Potter. Five points to Gryffindor."
"Why do I only get five points? You didn't see it, I succeeded at the same time as him," James Potter said, dissatisfied.
Professor McGonagall picked up the silver needle in front of James Potter and gently applied force with both hands; the silver needle broke into two pieces. Its material was still wood. "Mr. Snape, let everyone see the silver needle you transfigured."
"Yes, Professor." Thomas picked up the silver needle he had transformed as instructed and gently bent it. The silver needle curved and deformed, but it did not break; its material had already become metal.
"Mr. Potter, you are very talented, but you need to be more meticulous. Transfiguration is far more complex than you imagine."
James Potter nodded, casting an unwilling glance at Thomas. He had actually practiced this magic at home, but he still lost to the cunning Slytherin!
He secretly vowed to definitely win against Thomas Snape in the next Transfiguration Class!
Severus tried again. His matchstick finally changed, but it turned into a thin iron rod. Thomas leaned over to look—wasn't this a cauldron stirring rod?
"Severus, what were you thinking just now?"
"I... I didn't brew potion all day yesterday..." Severus said, a little aggrieved.
Thomas didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "The key to Transfiguration is to clear your mind, don't let your thoughts wander, only imagine the object you want to transform into."
Sure enough, Severus also succeeded very quickly. He was originally a very talented young wizard.
As the dismissal bell rang, the little snakes of Slytherin wore triumphant smiles on their faces. They packed up their textbooks and wands and left the classroom with their heads held high.
In contrast, the little lions of Gryffindor were like eggplants hit by frost, many with furrowed brows and faces full of frustration.
In this class, most of the Slytherin students successfully transformed their matchsticks into needles, while less than half of Gryffindor's students succeeded.
These students were young wizards from mixed-blood or Muggle families, who had almost no prior exposure to magic spells, so they found learning very difficult.
But as long as they got through this period, became familiar with how magic circulated in their bodies, and adapted to the rhythm of magic, their talent and potential would begin to show.
At that time, the differences between students would truly become apparent. In the Wizarding World, talent is more important than effort!
Thomas was not interested in inter-house rivalries; he held his textbook, feeling a headache.
He finally understood why Professor McGonagall would say this was something needed only after class.
The homework Professor McGonagall assigned them was simply astonishing.
She actually assigned them an essay—the topic was "Transfiguration Class Theory and Practice: Exploring the Mysteries of Morphological Transformation."
Thomas secretly grumbled, is the Wizarding World this competitive?
Eleven-year-old children already had to start writing essays!
This was simply beyond his imagination!
Although he knew this essay was a major assignment spanning the entire semester, he still felt immense pressure.
It seemed he would have to ask Severus to brew a few more bottles of hair-regrowth potion when they got back.
Thomas looked at Severus's face, which was identical to his own, with a mournful expression, imagining that face bald, and shivered.
"Thomas, don't look at me with that kind of gaze." Severus felt a bit unnerved by his brother's mournful and helpless gaze, and he couldn't help but speak.
Thomas sighed, and with a wise old look, he lamented, "Severus, you're still just a child!" He mused inwardly that only children wouldn't know how terrifying writing an essay was! Thinking of this, he became even more determined to go back and have Severus brew a few more bottles of hair-regrowth potion. After all, no one wanted to go bald from writing an essay!
The First-year Students' timetable was very relaxed, probably to give them more opportunities to explore and familiarize themselves with this magical school.
For example, today, their timetable only listed two Transfiguration Classes and two Herbology Classes, and they only needed to attend for one morning to finish all their courses.
Thomas once again pulled out the map that came with the timetable, and he and Severus huddled together, looking for the location of their Herbology Class—the Herbology Greenhouse. According to the map, the Herbology Greenhouse was located outside the main Castle building.
"Severus, we need to walk faster; it looks quite a distance."
If they followed the map's instructions, they would need to start from the main Castle building, cross a wide courtyard, and then navigate several winding paths to reach the Herbology Greenhouse.
Although time seemed ample, with this complex route, who knew what they might encounter in this strange Castle... Severus nodded in agreement and also quickened his pace.