Charles watched as Alex carefully cleaned up the remnants of his latest experiment, his expression a mix of curiosity and thoughtfulness. After a moment, Charles headed back to the house, filled a large glass with water, and downed it in one go. Setting the glass down, he called out, "So, how's the experiment going? Last time you mentioned something about sonic magic."
Alex let out a long sigh, running a hand through his hair. "There's been some progress, but I've hit a new roadblock. I need to figure out how to isolate sound waves without completely blocking them. It's... complicated."
"Isolate sound? Why not just use earplugs or a Quietus spell?" Charles suggested, leaning casually against the counter.
Alex shook his head, clearly frustrated. "It's not that simple. Earplugs block the sound you hear, but they don't actually stop the movement of the sound waves. And those waves are what I'm trying to control."
Charles frowned, trying to wrap his head around the explanation. "Okay, so sound waves and sound aren't exactly the same thing? That does sound tricky. You know, this kind of reminds me of calming water. Like, wouldn't it be great if you could calm sound the same way we calm waves? You ever heard of the Wave Repelling Charm?"
Alex's head snapped up, his eyes lighting up with interest. "Wait, Charles, what did you just say?"
"I said... water waves?" Charles replied, confused.
"No, after that! You mentioned a charm?"
"Oh! The Wave Repelling Charm. Yeah, I heard about it from Granda Chitoc back in school. She told this story about a time she was on the Aegean Sea and things got rough. Apparently, some wizard used a charm to calm the waves, and Granda learned it from him."
Alex leaned forward, his excitement building. "So, there really is a charm for that?"
"Yeah, supposedly," Charles said with a shrug. "Granda's a seventh-year now. She's doing an internship and wants to get into wizard radio broadcasting, so I doubt she's hanging around the school."
Alex's excitement faltered. "So, she's not coming back anytime soon?"
"Probably not," Charles admitted, then brightened. "But I'll ask around the Poker Club. Someone there might know her better. I think one of the seniors still keeps in touch."
"The... Poker Club?" Alex asked, raising an eyebrow. "When did Hogwarts get a Poker Club?"
Charles grinned, looking far too pleased with himself. "You wouldn't know, obviously. You're always holed up in your lab. Vivian and I started it ourselves. It's small, but it's catching on. We've already got over a dozen members."
"So… you just play poker?" Alex still looked skeptical.
"Pretty much," Charles said with a shrug. "Actually, you borrowed a deck from us around Christmas, remember? Then you gave us a fancy new one as a replacement. We used to play in the common rooms, but it got so popular we turned it into a proper club. Hogwarts already has clubs for wizard chess, Gobstones, and Thunderbolt cards—so why not poker?"
Alex let out a chuckle, shaking his head. "I guess I've been too wrapped up in experiments to notice. I don't even check the bulletin board."
"Exactly," Charles said with a laugh. "Anyway, leave it to me. I'll dig around and see what I can find out about Granda."
Two days later, Charles burst into the lab, looking energized. Alex glanced up from his notes. "Did you find out anything? Is she coming back?"
Charles nodded, grinning. "Yep! Her internship went great—they even said she might go full-time on wizard radio. But she's coming back next week for some kind of graduation ceremony."
Alex looked genuinely relieved. His experiments had hit a frustrating dead end, and he hadn't dared to attempt the infrasonic spell again. Instead, he'd been fine-tuning his rune disks, hoping to stabilize the spell structure. If the Wave Repelling Charm worked on water waves, it might just give him the insight he needed for sound waves.
"Thanks, Charles. This could be a game-changer," Alex said sincerely.
"No problem," Charles replied, giving him a thumbs-up. "I'll track her down as soon as she's back."
"By the way," Alex added with a smirk, "I've noticed you've been improving a lot in training. I think it's time we step things up."
Charles blinked in surprise. "Wait, you're telling me all that wasn't real training?"
"Not even close," Alex said with a chuckle. "That was basic conditioning—like a warm-up before a workout. If we'd started with the advanced stuff, you might've collapsed halfway through."
Charles groaned. "A warm-up? I felt like I was dying! Between all those running drills and spell practice, I thought you were trying to kill me."
Alex laughed, his tone growing serious. "Progress doesn't come easy. But if you're ready, we'll move to the next level. Don't worry; I'll guide you so it won't mess with your studies."
Charles squared his shoulders. "Let's do it."
"Good," Alex said, stepping back. "We'll start with stance training. Watch closely."
He shifted into a solid horse stance—feet shoulder-width apart, knees bent, and weight evenly distributed. "This is the horse stance. It's the foundation of stability and strength."
Charles raised an eyebrow. "So… you just stand there like that?"
"Exactly. It strengthens your lower body and builds willpower. And trust me, willpower plays a huge role in magic. The stronger your will, the stronger your spells."
"If you say so," Charles muttered, awkwardly copying the stance.
Alex walked over to adjust his form. "Straighten your back. Keep your arms out like this. Now tighten your core and balance your weight—don't strain your knees."
Charles winced as Alex tapped his legs with a stick to correct his posture. After a few minutes, his legs were burning. "So, what now?" he asked, his voice strained.
"Now? Just hold it. Let's aim for five minutes," Alex replied calmly.
"Five minutes?! This is torture!" Charles complained, sweat already forming on his brow.
"Of course it's hard—that's the point. But you'll thank me later," Alex said with a grin.