No one had the faintest idea what was going through Draco Malfoy's mind after getting a face full of exploded feathers, but up at the front of the classroom, Professor Flitwick certainly jolted at the commotion.
He hadn't seen what Tom did a moment earlier, but Draco's entire process—now that, he had witnessed with absolute clarity:
"Draco, I'm quite sure I specifically emphasized that the standard wand movement for the Levitation Charm is swish and flick, not smashing downward with all your strength. Were you listening to my lecture at all?
"Because of your recklessness and poor attitude toward learning—Slytherin loses three points!"
"But Professor, the cat just did it like that too!"
Our little dragon—Draco—tried to defend himself with watery indignation.
But to Flitwick, excuses from the one who failed could never be compared to the results of the one who succeeded. His voice rose sharply, tinged with obvious annoyance:
"Mr. Malfoy, did your family teach you nothing besides shifting blame onto others? You claim Tom did the same action—then why did he succeed while you failed?
"If today's props weren't harmless feathers but something hard, you might've ended up as the second Wizard Baruffio!
"For dishonesty—Slytherin loses two more points!"
[Professor Flitwick…]
Tom lifted his little writing board with a guilty look, drawing Flitwick's attention.
[Draco wasn't lying. I really did make the feather float that way.]
As if worried Flitwick wouldn't believe him, Tom raised his wand, wound up like a Beater preparing to whack a Bludger, and slammed the feather again.
And in full view of the professor and every witch and wizard from both houses, the feather trembled… and floated gently into the air once more.
"Oh, Merlin's beard—this is not magic!"
Flitwick's vision darkened; he nearly fainted on the spot.
It took several deep breaths before he could stabilize himself. He rubbed his eyes, shuffled over to Tom, and checked his wand, the feather, even the entire desk. In the end, he was forced to accept one unsettling truth:
Tom had indeed used the Levitation Charm.
But how he managed it? Flitwick couldn't understand at all.
If Tom had done it through silent or wandless magic, Flitwick could almost rationalize it. But what he just witnessed wasn't "technique"—it was pure brute force. Tom simply swung his wand, and the feather obeyed.
The sight cracked Flitwick's entire framework of spellcasting.
He stood silently for nearly half a minute before looking at Tom with a very complicated expression.
"Ah… well… that's certainly a… unique casting method. That said, there are some things I need to discuss with you. Please come to my office after class."
Ignoring Tom's expression—which looked as though the sky had just fallen—Flitwick turned to Draco, whose face was still a mixture of shock and confusion.
"As for you, Draco, it seems I wrongly accused you. However!"
His tone snapped back to stern in an instant.
"This does not mean you may imitate such… unconventional methods.
"Magic must be learned step by step. Trying to skip ahead simply doesn't work. Until you understand the principles, follow the standard wand movements.
"The previous deductions will be canceled. But due to your recklessness, Slytherin will still lose one point. Understood?"
"Yes, Professor… I understand."
Draco opened his mouth but eventually nodded. His gaze at Tom grew complicated—confused, resentful, and tinged with something else… curiosity.
Why had Tom gone out of his way to defend him? Draco had been plotting to expose him just moments before. But that answer would not be his today.
After finishing his explanation, Flitwick returned to the podium in a daze. The earlier scene had shaken him to his core, overturning some of his most fundamental magical assumptions.
Fortunately, Hufflepuff and Slytherin weren't like Gryffindor's energetic troublemakers, so even with Flitwick visibly out of sorts, the students obediently continued practicing their charms—though many pairs of eyes drifted toward Tom, who sat there looking perfectly innocent.
As for Tom, he was breaking down internally.
He'd only been at Hogwarts two days. How had he already been summoned by two professors for "a chat"? This frequency felt downright dangerous.
And this situation wasn't like Potions. His unusual methods in Snape's class hadn't caused any trouble.
But this time? With Draco as the "victim" and Flitwick on the verge of an existential crisis? Tom seriously doubted this conversation would be pleasant.
(‧_‧;) This is bad. I need a way to bluff my way through this.
Tom's little mind spun rapidly. Then he froze, narrowed his eyes, rubbed his paws together, and let out a low, mischievous snicker.
Yes—he had figured out how to cast "properly."
He still didn't understand the essence of magic or why wizards needed spoken incantations, but he didn't need to.
He only needed the formula:
correct wand movement + correct incantation = spell.
The wand movement? Easy—he was practically a conductor.
The incantation… that was the problem.
Sure, he could conjure spells through his bizarre "think-and-it-happens" ability, but he wanted to experience real spellcasting now that he lived in the wizarding world.
And at last, he found a solution even he could use:
[wing–GAR! dee–um lev-ee–OH–sa]
Casting a spell required expression—and expression was simply a form of communication.
Other wizards communicated their intent through spoken incantations.
But Tom? His way of "speaking" was writing.
He couldn't use spoken charmwork because he wasn't choosing the right communication method.
So while others needed to say incantations aloud, he simply needed to write them precisely.
Tom lifted his board with the incantation carefully written out, swished and flicked his wand exactly as instructed—
And the feather rose once more.
He didn't notice that when he moved his wand, his tail swished unconsciously. The feather belonging to the student behind him also lifted into the air.
The poor child stared at it, utterly baffled.
"I didn't even cast the spell yet… Is magic delayed now?"
Tom didn't see this, but Flitwick did.
From the moment Tom began moving, Flitwick's eyes were glued to him. He witnessed every impossible detail.
And in the next second, with his worldview thoroughly shattered…
Professor Flitwick rolled his eyes and collapsed to the floor.