Chapter 696: Initiation
Chapter 696: Initiation
At 8 p.m., Albert had arranged to practice the Patronus Charm with his roommates in the dormitory.
Soon, there was a knock on the door.
Albert opened it to find Harry, Hermione, and Ron standing outside. He asked, "What's up?"
"I told Harry that we'd be practicing the Patronus Charm tonight," Fred explained to Albert, winking. "You know how much the Dementors affect Harry. He wanted to learn from you... well, how to repel and resist them."
As for Ron and Hermione, it seemed they had just come along for the ride.
Albert glared at Fred, his eyes sweeping over the already crowded room and then back to the trio at the door.
Hermione, noticing Albert's confusion at their unannounced arrival, quickly added, "Can you teach us the spell to banish Dementors?"
"You should be seeking advice from Professor Lupin, not me," Albert frowned.
"Is that a no?"
"Alright, since you're all here, come on in!"
The already small dormitory became even more cramped with the addition of three more people.
Harry, Ron, and Hermione all sat on the edge of the beds, like obedient students ready to listen to a lecture from their professor.
"The spell that can banish Dementors is called the Patronus Charm," Albert began, imparting some knowledge about the charm to the trio. "It's an advanced form of magic that requires a strong foundation in magic to perform effectively. This is a common trait among complex spells—if your magical prowess isn't sufficient, you won't be able to bring out the full potential of the charm."
Without giving them time to ask questions, Albert asked Fred to demonstrate the effect of the Patronus Charm.
"Ahem, watch closely!" Fred waved his wand in front of everyone and, after clearing his throat, recited, "Expecto Patronum!"
A silvery gas emanated from the tip of Fred's wand, visible to everyone.
"Is that a Patronus?" Harry blinked, feeling that the effect of the charm was different from what he had imagined.
"That's the rudimentary form of a Patronus, and its effect is negligible. It can't banish Dementors, so you can basically ignore it," Albert glanced at Fred and continued, "The incantation is 'Expecto Patronum,' as you just heard."
"Expecto Patronum. Expecto Patronum. Expecto Patronum," the trio murmured, trying to commit the incantation to memory.
Albert waited for them to quiet down before continuing, "When casting the Patronus Charm, you need to concentrate and recall the happiest memory you can think of. At the same time, say 'Expecto Patronum' and wave your wand like this."
He demonstrated the wand movement, drawing a circle in the air so that the three of them could clearly see the motion required for the Patronus Charm.
"Alright, now try it yourselves!"
"Hu...wei!"
"Expecto Patronum," Hermione corrected herself, and thin wisps of silvery smoke appeared at the tip of her wand.
"I did it!"
"Expecto Patronum," Harry said, and a thin wisp of silvery gas emerged from the tip of his wand. He jumped excitedly on the bed and exclaimed, "I did it! I did it!"
"Why am I the only one who can't do it?" Ron frowned as he watched his friends succeed while his wand remained unresponsive.
"That's because you're waving your wand in the wrong direction, you dolt," Fred covered his face with his hand and reminded his younger brother.
"You're the dolt," Ron retorted irritably.
Ron tried again and soon succeeded as well.
"Alright, you've all successfully cast the Patronus Charm. From now on, you just need to keep practicing the incantation until you can summon a fully-formed Patronus. That's what's known as a 'corporeal Patronus,' and it usually takes the form of an animal. Everyone's Patronus is unique," Albert explained.
"So that's it?" Ron looked at Fred doubtfully and asked, "Why are you laughing?"
"You've only truly mastered the Patronus Charm when you can summon a corporeal Patronus," George explained to the trio on Fred's behalf. "What we've achieved so far is called a 'non-corporeal Patronus,' or as Albert described it, the rudimentary form. It's just a puff of silvery gas or smoke without a definite shape."
"To put it in Albert's words, I could blow away your feeble attempts with a puff of my breath," Fred said, and then proceeded to blow at Ron's wand, dispersing the silvery gas.
"I don't recall saying anything like that," Albert said with a slight pout. "What you need now is to spend a lot of time practicing the incantation. Of course, I can't guarantee that you'll definitely be able to summon a corporeal Patronus."
"It's not certain that we'll learn it?" Ron asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Normally, even by the time you graduate in your seventh year, you might not have come across this charm," Albert explained calmly. "And even if you can't summon a corporeal Patronus, it's not something to be ashamed of.
"In fact, the vast majority of wizards in the magical world are unable to summon a corporeal Patronus, otherwise successfully summoning one wouldn't be considered a mark of great magical prowess."
"Well, I think that's a load of bull," Albert interjected.
"This spell is just too difficult," Hermione said dejectedly. This was her first time learning such an advanced spell, and it was quite a blow to her confidence.
Harry tried again but only managed to summon a very faint mist. He couldn't help but ask, "Albert, how long did it take you to successfully summon a corporeal Patronus?"
"About... half a year!" Albert replied.
"That long?" Ron was surprised. He had thought that with Albert's talent, it would only take a few weeks to master the charm.
"Tsk, I told you that you're a dolt, and you still don't believe it," Fred said, his expression clearly saying, 'I told you so.' "You guys shouldn't take Albert as an example. He's always been an exception. We've been learning from him for years, and we still haven't been able to summon a corporeal Patronus," Lee Jordan, who was teasing Tom, guessed what the trio was thinking and decided to give them a reality check.
"What's your Patronus, Albert?" Hermione asked curiously.
"A griffin," Fred answered for him.
"And what about you two?" Ron glared at Fred, annoyed.
"A magpie!" they replied in unison, and then added, "Lee Jordan's is a gorilla."
"Shut up," Jordan muttered.
"Wait, aren't you guys unable to summon corporeal Patronuses?" Hermione immediately realized the problem.
"Albert said so, and we believe him," Fred and George both wore expressions that said, 'You have to trust Albert on this one.' "Did you predict it?"
"No, it's just a guess. The shape of a Patronus varies from person to person and is usually related to one's personality and inner self," Albert explained casually. "Alright, let me summarize this for you:
First: The Patronus Charm requires a strong foundation of magical power. If you want to succeed, you need to practice regularly, which will also help improve your magical abilities.
Second: Don't have the mindset that everyone else fails, so I probably will too. Otherwise, you might never succeed. In my opinion, as long as your magical power isn't too lacking and you're willing to put in the effort, you should be able to summon a corporeal Patronus.
Third: When casting the charm, try to recall the happiest memory you can think of. Usually, the stronger the happiness the memory brings, the stronger your Patronus will be. When training the Patronus Charm, you can try to focus on this aspect.
Fourth: You need to be determined and concentrate when casting the charm. Being able to summon a Patronus in a well-lit place doesn't mean you'll be able to do so when facing a Dementor. They are two different concepts. Dementors feed on happy memories, making it hard for you to recall them. Some people fail to summon their Patronuses when facing Dementors because of this reason.
"Any other questions?" Albert asked.
"Can you show us your Patronus one more time?" Hermione pleaded.
"Alright!" Albert raised his wand and summoned his Patronus once more to fulfill their request.
The silver griffin circled the dormitory before disappearing.
"That's so cool!" Ron exclaimed, his eyes wide with wonder. "I wonder what my Patronus would be?"
"The prerequisite for that is being able to summon a corporeal Patronus in the first place," Fred said cruelly, shattering Ron's fantasy. "I don't think you have much of a chance."
"Potter, if you really want to master the Patronus Charm, I suggest you seek out Professor Lupin," Albert interrupted Harry, who was about to speak, and continued, "Even if you succeed in summoning a corporeal Patronus here, it might not be strong enough to ward off Dementors."
"Why?"
"People who have had negative experiences are easily affected by Dementors and become vulnerable," Albert looked directly into Harry's eyes as he said this. "If you want to overcome their influence, you need to face them head-on."
"Face the Dementors head-on?" Hermione couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"That's the craziest thing I've ever heard," Ron mumbled.
"You dolt, let Albert finish speaking," Fred scolded.
None of them thought Albert would suggest facing Dementors directly.
"Professor Lupin will surely be able to help you find a similar alternative. He's the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and he has more authority in this field than I do. You understand what I mean? Don't be shy about it; I think Professor Lupin would be more than happy to help. He was your father's friend. If you don't believe me, you can always ask Hagrid," Albert said.
(End of Chapter)
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