It’s time to progress to more advanced magic. In this chapter, we will explore a variety of challenging—and occasionally tricky—spells. Keep your wits about you, and soon you'll be able to master new skills, from conjuring flocks of birds and making objects lighter, to extinguishing light and mending broken items with ease.

Bird-Conjuring Charm

The Bird-Conjuring Charm conjures a small flock of birds from the end of the wand. It is important to remember that your conjured creatures are not real animals. The more accomplished you become at the spells that create them, the more real the animals will appear, but you will be disappointed if you try to keep your creations as pets. They are mere phantoms of your own making.

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Incantation

To conjure birds from thin air, you must learn the correct incantation: ‘Avis’.

Gesture

The Bird-Conjuring Charm calls for two smooth bumps from left to right with your wand (see Fig. F).

Notes

Of course, creating any living creature out of thin air is immensely difficult. This spellbook is concerned with practical instruction, and not with theory; but your teacher will be able to explain the Principle of Artificianimate Quasi-Dominance, which will help you understand some of the many things that can go wrong when attempting to conjure animals from nothing. Severed heads, unidentifiable stumps, terrifying frograbbit mutations — all have been created, to the dismay of those who made them (and the horror of those who found them hidden under cushions).

However, for reasons that are still not fully understood (research continues in the Dept. of Mysteries in the Ministry of Magic) two categories of creature are much easier to create from nothing than any other: birds and snakes.

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Feather-Light Charm

The Feather-Light Charm is an indispensable spell for any witch or wizard who frequently handles heavy objects. By reducing the weight of an object to that of a feather, this charm allows the caster to move cumbersome items with ease. Though useful for day-to-day activities, it is particularly favoured by those in transportation and logistics—whether it be helping students haul heavy school trunks or enabling magical creatures' caretakers to manage food supplies.

The charm has a storied history, notably beginning in 1890 with an unfortunate incident involving Cressida Blume, a young witch eager to lighten her load of books. In her enthusiasm, Cressida miscast the spell, confusing the Latin root for "feather" with that for "bird." As a result, rather than simply making her books lighter, they promptly took flight, flapping out of her hands and into the sky. The incident, while amusing to bystanders, served as a cautionary tale about the importance of precision in spellwork.

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Blume’s blunder spurred deeper research into the charm, eventually leading to the refined version we use today. Over the years, many have tried to perfect similar charms, but none have surpassed the simplicity and elegance of the Feather-Light Charm, which has since become a staple for witches and wizards worldwide.

The charm has also seen widespread use in Quidditch, with players employing it to make their brooms lighter, thus enhancing their speed and agility. However, the Ministry of Magic's Department of Magical Games and Sports has since regulated this, after some teams were caught using it to gain an unfair advantage during international competitions.

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Incantation   

The incantation for the Feather-Light Charm is Leviora.

Gesture

To cast the charm, point your wand directly at the object and trace a horizontal figure-eight pattern in the air (see Fig. K).

Notes

While this charm works on most inanimate objects, it should not be used on living creatures. Doing so may lead to unintended side effects, such as making them difficult to control. It is also advised not to cast this spell on objects already under the influence of other levitation charms, as it may result in unpredictable behaviour, including rapid ascent.

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Wand-Extinguishing Charm

The Wand-Extinguishing Charm is the counterpart to the well-known Lumos spell. With a simple flick of the wand and the incantation Nox, the light at the tip of the caster’s wand is extinguished. This charm is essential for controlling the light produced by Lumos, ensuring that it doesn't remain lit indefinitely.

The invention of Nox is credited to the prolific witch Levina Monkstanley, who also created Lumos in the 18th century. While Lumos allowed witches and wizards to light their way in the darkest of places, Monkstanley soon realised a flaw: without a counter-charm, the wand would remain illuminated for an uncomfortable amount of time. Thus, Nox was born, offering a simple solution to extinguish the light at will.

Monkstanley’s contribution to magical spells has been invaluable, and her charms have been in constant use ever since their creation. Interestingly, in early magical practices, some believed the light would fade naturally over time without the need for a counter-charm, a feature seen in various video game adaptations of the magical world. However, in reality, Nox ensures that light is extinguished precisely when the caster intends, providing control over their magic.

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While simple in practice, the Nox charm remains one of the most widely used spells in both domestic and professional magical settings. Whether it’s navigating dark alleys or simply extinguishing light for discretion, this charm has stood the test of time as an essential spell for any wizard.

Incantation

The incantation for the Wand-Extinguishing Charm is Nox.

Gesture

To cast Nox, flick the wand in a small, downward wave, mimicking the movement of a falling tide, pointed to the right (see Fig. L).

Notes

While Nox is typically used in conjunction with Lumos, it can also be useful in any situation where magical light needs to be quickly dimmed or concealed. The charm only works on light produced by Lumos and will not extinguish other forms of light, such as floating magical candles or enchanted lanterns.

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Mending Charm

The Mending Charm will repair broken objects with a flick of the wand. Accidents do happen, so it is essential to know how to mend our errors. However, clumsiet students should remember that mastery of this charm is no substitute for learning not to break things in the first place.

Many repairing and mending charms have been used over the centuries, but the most effective and powerful was invented by Orabella Nuttley in the eighteenth century.

A lowly clerk in the Ministry of Magic, Improper Use of Magic Department, Orabella’s extreme shyness had hampered her in her career. Mousey, almost mute in meetings, and becoming extremely flustered when spoken to, Orabella was given the most mundane tasks at the office, such as filing, dusting and cleaning out the department owls.

At home, however, Orabella spent all her free time experimenting with spells, attempting to improve and strengthen the charms of her youth. A freak chance led to the revelation of Orabella’s hidden talents.

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In 1754, two of Europe’s most celebrated broom fliers — sworn enemies Torquil MacTavish, of Scotland, and Silvio Astolfi, of Italy — agreed to a public broom race from Aberdeen to Rome. The contest would take place overnight, to avoid the attention of Muggles, and representatives of the governments of both men would gather at the finishing line for what looked likely to be a spectacular contest. Orabella was invited along to oversee the luggage and arrange the Portkeys.

The climax of the race was just as exciting as foreseen, but not for the reasons predicted.

At close to daybreak, Astolfi and MacTavish appeared over the horizon, heading towards the Coliseum. It was at this point that a fight broke out among excitable supporters of both wizards. Precisely what happened is hotly contested to this day, but a large explosion ensued, and when the smoke cleaned, Silvio Astolfi had been turned into a chicken, Torquil MacTavish’s knees were on back to front, and the Coliseum lay in ruins.

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For a few horrific minutes, it appeared that the assembled crowd had witnessed the greatest breach of the International Statute of Secrecy ever known. Not only were they at a loss to know how to repair such massive damage, but the sound of the explosion had already woken half of Rome.

It was then that Orabella Nuttley came quietly forwards and, with a few waves of her wand, reconstructed several columns with the use of her own Repairing Charm. Stunned at its efficacy, the governmental Ministers begged her to teach them how to use the new spell, and by the time the first anxious Muggles had dressed and rushed to the scene, they found nothing but the Coliseum in exactly the state they had last seen it, and a few oddly dressed men trying to soothe a distressed chicken.

Orabella received the Order of Merlin, First Class, and her Mending Charm has been in widespread use ever since. 

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Incantation

The incantation for the Mending Charm is ‘Reparo’.

Gesture

To cast Reparo, move your wand in a square, beginning from the bottom left (see Fig. J).

Notes

This simple repairing charm will work on most materials, although certain kinds of damage (caused by rare and powerful curses) are immune to its effects. Please note that the Mending Charm must NEVER be used on humans or animals. Extreme scarring mayresult from attempts to heal wounds with this spell, which is suitable only for inanimate objects.

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Conundrum 2

The Sorry Story of Distractible Douglas

His letter came from Hogwarts and, ob, Douglas was so pleased! He would have read the whole thing, but a boil needed squeezed.

He would have packed his trunk himself, but thought he'd seen a fly Doing loops and backwards flip-flops (it wasn’t, but nice try).

He hiked the thought of lessons, yes, but Douglas didn’t see Why you had to pay attention and not try to jinx your knee

And tentacles were funny, in a tickly kind of way, So why the teachers roared at him, he really couldn’t say.

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It was ‘pay attention, Douglas’ every single place he went But Douglas didn’t want to, and so letters home were sent

And his father wrote him strictly, saying: ‘Douglas, now be warned! You must finish things you’ Douglas put the letter down and yawned.

Douglas liked to be distracted, because he found it much more fun His homework was abandoned and his spells and charms half done,

He never really noticed just how far he'd slipped behind But then someone dared poor Douglas to perform a jinx (not kind).

It went so badly wrong that it is nicer not to dwell On Dougie’s second nose, or on the mess, or on the smell

And nobody could ever say how Douglas came to be Entrapped inside that drainpipe, with a teacup for a knee.

What was it that he didn’t want to do, the silly lad? Answer me, and do it, and you'll make your teachers glad.

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