A Certain Magical Hogwarts

Tywin deeply regretted taking up the position of Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. It had only been a few days, and already, he had faced life-threatening crises—twice!

These students were nothing but trouble!

He straightened up, trying to grab his wand. But it had been kicked by someone with the precision of a professional footballer, soaring across the room, bouncing off a Grindylow's head, and landing near the shattered tank.

Merlin's beard! England's national football team might just be saved with this talent in the classroom.

Tywin wanted to call for help, but words failed him as he watched chaos unfold. Most of the students were rushing toward the door, and the classroom was already half-empty.

Some of the Ravenclaw students remained, not because they had suddenly awakened any Gryffindor courage, but because someone—perhaps inadvertently—had locked the door.

William's roommate, Bradley, banged on the door angrily. "Damn it! The door's locked, it won't open!"

Marcus Belby shouted, "William, what's the unlocking spell again?"

William stood calmly in the middle of the room and replied, "Alohomora. Remember, two flicks of the wand, then a little twist of the wrist."

Marcus raised his wand toward the lock, but he failed to open it.

"William, hurry up! We can't get it open!" Bradley yelled.

The remaining Ravenclaw students anxiously cleared a path, waiting for William to unlock the door and lead them out of this terrifying situation.

But William didn't move. He stood his ground, with Cho behind him. Across the room, Marietta was cornered by two Grindylows, her back pressed against the wall, frozen in terror.

 The creatures advanced, grinning wickedly as they licked their slimy green claws.

"Run! Hurry!" Cho shouted at Marietta.

But Marietta couldn't move. She was paralyzed with fear, her mouth hanging open in a silent scream.

Cho drew her wand, ready to rush to her friend's aid. Marietta was her roommate, after all.

But William stopped her with a hand. If Cho got hurt, Cedric would kill him for sure.

William made a quick motion, and his wand spun into his right hand.

"Ha-sak!"

A beam of light, thick as a thumb, shot out and struck one of the Grindylows square on the head. 

The green horns on its skull were sliced cleanly by the separation charm, and under its effect, the top of the Grindylow's skull was completely removed.

Without the support of its skull, the creature's head deflated like a leaking balloon. Its two yellow eyes popped out of their sockets, falling to the ground like overripe fruit, bursting with a sickening squelch. Green blood splattered across Marietta's robes.

Marietta was so frightened she collapsed to the floor, trembling.

The remaining Grindylows immediately focused their attention on William. He had pulled all their aggro with that single move.

The loud noise also drew the attention of the other Ravenclaw students, who stared in shock at William.

The same spell cast by different people often produced vastly different results. Some could only conjure a harmless beam of light; others might cause a nosebleed or slice off a Grindylow's tentacle. But William had just outright killed one of the creatures.

This was the difference in talent. William had demonstrated a magical ability far beyond that of his peers with a single cast.

But even more important than his talent was his composure.

Standing tall before the remaining Ravenclaws, William raised his cherry wood wand once again and gave it a casual flick.

"Arbustus!"

This time, he cast the same spell Tywin had used earlier on Peeves. Instead of aiming it at balloons, William directed it at the shards of glass from the broken tank.

The large glass fragments shattered further, forming sharp, thin spikes. Under William's control, they swirled into a mini tornado, spinning around before arcing toward the remaining Grindylows.

The creatures, now terrified, backed away quickly.

William had regained control of the situation. He addressed the students with the authority of a seasoned professor. "Stay calm! Everyone, gather here!"

The Ravenclaw students obediently crowded behind him, both excited and in awe.

"Two of you to each Grindylow! Can you handle that?" William commanded, sounding every bit like the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor himself.

"Got it!" everyone responded in unison.

Satisfied, William nodded and left the remaining Grindylows to his classmates.

Grindylows, classified by the Ministry of Magic as XX, were not particularly dangerous creatures. This classification indicated that they were either harmless or easily tamed.

To put things into perspective, creatures like Bowtruckles and house-elves shared the same classification. Even Nifflers were rated XXX, while trolls were considered much more dangerous.

So, under normal circumstances, a few first-year students could easily handle a handful of Grindylows.

The only reason things had descended into chaos was that these children lacked experience, and Tywin had been incapacitated by the Seperation Charm, rendering him unable to help.

Fortunately, the situation hadn't escalated further.

William slowly approached Marietta, who was still huddled in a corner, trembling. Cho was already by her side, comforting her.

"Is she hurt?" William asked.

Cho's pale face regained a bit of colour as she shook her head. "No, just scared."

"Stay here and keep an eye on her," William suggested.

But Cho shook her head, picked up her wand from the floor, and stood up, ready to join the others in dealing with the Grindylows.

William smiled slightly. He had noticed that Cho, aside from himself, was the only one who hadn't hesitated or backed down when Marietta was in danger.

She was brave, after all. Maybe Cedric had good taste.

As for Marietta, she was still huddled in the corner, shivering uncontrollably. William decided not to worry about her. He didn't have the skills to provide emotional support—nor was it his job.

Of course, if there was a pretty witch who could offer therapy, he wouldn't mind pretending to be depressed for a decade just to get some sessions.

William picked up Tywin's ebony wand and walked over to the professor.

"Professor, do you think you can stand?" William asked with a smile as he crouched beside him.

Tywin struggled to sit up, forcing a weak smile. "My leg's missing a bone. Even with Skele-Gro, it'll take until tomorrow morning to heal properly. But you… that was impressive!"

"I just applied what you taught us in class. It's all thanks to your excellent instruction," William replied, a grin spreading across his face as he handed the wand back.

Tywin gave a noncommittal grunt as he accepted the wand, squinting as if deep in thought.

"You've got quite a gift for magic," Tywin mused. "You remind me of a few people I used to know. They were as brilliant and talented as you."

"Were they your classmates, Professor?"

"Hmm, yes… but they were from Gryffindor. Sadly, one of them is dead now, and another ended up in Azkaban."

Tywin gave a rueful chuckle before adding, "By the way, if you're tired of crouching, you could always help me to the hospital wing. We can have a nice chat there."

"I'm fine," William replied with a grin. "Squats are good for lower back mobility, and knees."

"…"

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