The beginning of the third week of school had arrived, and while most first-year students were still basking in the enjoyment of campus life, Skyler was in a race against time.
He dedicated every moment between classes and even weekends to the library.
He followed a meticulously planned reading list for the past two weeks, greedily absorbing knowledge.
It was a daily routine for him to stay in the library until just five minutes before closing time.
With the watchful eyes of the librarian, Ms. Pince, he would borrow at least ten books each day, rushing to continue his voracious reading journey late into the night using the Hourglass.
These peculiar habits of Skyler finally piqued Ms. Pince’s curiosity.
She had been silently observing the young teenager, wondering how a first-year student could devour more than 30 books every day, maintaining this incredible pace day after day.
What intrigued her even more was the fact that over half of those books covered advanced magical topics typically reserved for seventh-year students, including Transfiguration, Spells, Potions, and defensive magic.
While Ms. Pince was watching Skyler, she remained unaware that he was also observing her.
In Skyler’s eyes, this unassuming Ms. Pince was not as simple as she appeared.
With his unique ability to sense the magical power of others, honed through his growing knowledge, Skyler had developed a rough estimate of the magical power levels of those around him.
On the day of the Sorting Hat ceremony, he had observed that Headmaster Dumbledore had the highest magical power, characterized by fiery and commanding magic.
The four heads of houses, Snape, McGonagall, Flitwick, and Sprout, had significantly more magical power than Lucius Malfoy.
Even Madam Hooch from the Flying class and Professor Sinistra from Astronomy had lower magical powers than Lucius.
Ms. Pince’s magical power fell just slightly short of the four heads of houses, but her magic felt distinctively cold and eerie.
Skyler’s discovery had prompted him to avoid provoking Ms. Pince casually, especially when it came to restricted books.
Time flew by, and two months had swiftly passed, with Halloween fast approaching.
According to the plot of the first year, Halloween would mark Professor Quirrell’s first move.
After two months of relentless studying, combined with nightly practical training sessions against Dobby, the present-day Skyler was no longer the same as the inexperienced student who had started school.
Through Skyler’s carefully planned time management and the use of the Hourglass, he had devoted at least ten hours a day to practicing spells during these two months, a level of commitment far beyond what an ordinary student could achieve.
The results of this hard work were evident—Skyler had not only mastered numerous advanced curses but had also successfully learned Occlumency.
Given Harry’s struggles in the original series, Skyler had initially expected Occlumency to be a challenging branch of magic.
To his surprise, it hadn’t proven difficult at all.
After studying the “Guide to Occlumency” from the library, he followed each step meticulously, achieving a state of mental detachment on his first attempt.
Curiously, Skyler then delved into the field of spiritual magic, seeking out spells like the Confundus Charm, the Memory Charm, the Cheering Charm, and even the Imperius Curse.
He accomplished all of these spells on his first attempts, using Dobby as his experimental subject.
He couldn’t help but sense that something was amiss—spiritual magic, even at its lowest levels, should have been challenging, as it belonged to the realm of at least third-year curses.
Skyler suspected his “Magic Eye” bloodline had more abilities to uncover, hidden deep within him.
On Halloween, during the spell class, Professor Flitwick made an exciting announcement that they would begin practicing the Levitating Charm.
Ever since the students had witnessed Skyler using this spell to rescue Neville during their first flying class, they had been eagerly anticipating the opportunity to learn it themselves.
Professor Flitwick divided the class into two groups and commenced the training. In one group were Draco and Pansy, while Daphne and Meredith were in the other. Skyler, who was already proficient in this spell, didn’t need to be part of a group.
Instead, he assisted by offering guidance and acting as a sort of teaching assistant.
“Remember, don’t forget the subtle wrist movements we’ve been practicing!” Professor Flitwick, perched atop his stack of books as usual, enthusiastically instructed, “A flick and a shake, that’s the key. And don’t forget the cautionary tale of the wizard Barufeo, who mistakenly pronounced ‘f’ as ‘s’ and found himself beneath a buffalo on the floor.”
Over the past two months, thanks to Skyler’s diligent training, the young Slytherin wizards had made significant progress.
Draco, Daphne, and Meredith had advanced the most, although Skyler’s peculiar treatment had certainly played a role in that regard.
On the other hand, Crabbe and Goyle had not improved much, as Skyler had reservations about them.
Skyler believed that Crabbe, despite his outwardly calm and obedient demeanor, harbored darker ambitions.
He quietly delved into dark magic in the original series, including the Fiendfyre curse.
Skyler suspected that Crabbe would reveal his true nature if the situation allowed, particularly if it meant gaining favor with the Malfoy family.
In Skyler’s opinion, Draco’s misguided path in the original series was at least partially influenced by these two friends.
Under Skyler’s guidance, Draco was the first to successfully perform the Levitating Charm, causing a feather to float gracefully in the air.
Following him, Daphne and Meredith also succeeded in their attempts, earning Slytherin five points each.
The fourth successful student was a Ravenclaw girl with long black hair.
Her delicate features and calm demeanor exuded an air of sophistication, which complemented her elegant, meticulously styled hair.
She possessed an intellectual beauty that left a lasting impression on Skyler, who, despite seeing many beautiful individuals, felt inexplicably drawn to her.
Although Skyler had yet to interact with Ravenclaw students, his remarkable memory enabled him to recall the girl’s name from the Sorting Hat ceremony—Murray McDouger.
The remaining students continued their attempts, but the feather stubbornly refused to move.
One of the Ravenclaw boys, Michael Kona, a charming young man eager to impress, waved his wand vigorously in his enthusiasm.
Unfortunately, his overzealous effort resulted in a small explosion, leaving an embarrassing hole in his robe cuff.
The Levitating Charm was relatively straightforward in its simplified form taught at Hogwarts.
It required proper incantation and wand movement to lift objects.
However, Skyler understood that the magical world’s true depth lay in the complexities and theories underlying each spell.
For instance, the PatronusCharm in the original series, originally used for repelling Dementors and Lethifolds, could be advanced to relay messages and even produce multiple corporeal Patronus.
Skyler knew that Hogwarts’ curriculum only scratched the surface of these magical arts.
He recognized that beneath each spell lay a myriad of intricate theories and advanced applications.
For this reason, he was unsatisfied with merely making feathers float.
He understood that these spells were rooted in four distinct components: “Levitation” to counteract gravity, “Hovering” to maintain objects at a designated position in mid-air, “Translocation” to move objects as desired, and “Descent” to allow gravity to reassert its influence.
Skyler’s mastery of these aspects allowed him to make feathers dance through the air, rotating and flipping gracefully.
He even directed a feather to follow a perfect arc into the feather box on Professor Flitwick’s desk.
Slytherin’s young wizards had grown accustomed to Skyler’s impressive demonstrations, while the Ravenclaw students present felt the weight of their House’s performance pressure.
Skyler’s prowess meant that Slytherin was leading by 30 points, with Gryffindor trailing by a daunting 60 points.
After class, Professor Flitwick singled out Skyler and requested that he write a paper on his experiences with the Levitating Charm for publication in his research paper.
Simultaneously, the professor extended an invitation for Skyler to join his Charms & Curses Club—an opportunity Skyler was willing to accept in order to enhance his reputation and further the revival of his family’s name.