"Accio!"
The spell hit Ron, and with a flick of Harry's wand, Ron went whooshing towards him.
He flew right to Harry's front, and Harry pointed his wand to gently set him down.
"Professor, I think if we change our approach and cast the Summoning Charm on a person's clothes, we can summon them with the spell — just like I did with Ron just now."
Professor Flitwick was even happier, bouncing excitedly on the desk: "Wonderful! Excellent application of the spell! Gryffindor, twenty points!"
But in his exuberance, Professor Flitwick bounced a bit too much and, overcome with joy, started to topple backward.
Harry quickly drew his wand again, pointing at Professor Flitwick.
"Accio!"
Professor Flitwick was pulled by the spell and flew over to Harry's side.
"Well done, Mr. Potter! I'm going to add another ten points for Gryffindor!" Professor Flitwick called out joyfully.
Just a single spell class, and Gryffindor had already gained thirty points.
When class ended, the other Gryffindor students were puzzled as they looked at the gemstone jar.
Heavens, Gryffindor scored points!
This was their shared thought.
Finally, it's Gryffindor, not "Grassy-dore" anymore.
With Neville's twenty points, Harry's thirty, and points won by other students, Gryffindor now had over a hundred and ten points.
The Slytherins, who were traditionally at odds with Gryffindor, sighed and complained, with Crabbe and Goyle stomping and cursing under their breath.
"Don't worry," said Draco calmly. "Professor Snape will take action—"
And indeed, Draco's words were proven true. That afternoon, Gryffindor's third-year Magic Potion Class saw them lose over thirty points in a big deduction.
The Slytherins were jubilant, remarking how wonderfully strong and effective Professor Snape's visible hand was.
How great, Snape.
The next morning, the second-year students cheerfully attended their first Defense Against the Dark Arts Class of the school year.
No one knew what Lockhart meant, anyway, he said that Mondays weren't suitable for classes, so his lessons were scheduled for after Tuesday.
This caused some changes to the entire school's timetable.
The timetable was handed out to the students, where G stands for Gryffindor, H for Hufflepuff, R for Ravenclaw, and S for Slytherin.
(Thanks to an anonymous book lover for this timetable.)
Big stars, there's no helping it.
Because of this, Professor Snape's gaze towards Lockhart grew even less friendly. On multiple occasions, students noticed him glaring darkly at Lockhart during meals.
But this came as no surprise, since everyone at Hogwarts knew about Snape's thoughts.
His greatest ambition was to become the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor.
Perhaps also because Professor Lockhart had attended a Potion Class for first-year students taught by Professor Snape.
Harry speculated about this over breakfast with Ron and Hermione.
"I bet Professor Snape is after the curse in this class," Harry said, chewing on bread in the Gryffindor seat. "That's why he so persistently chases this subject, hoping to be dismissed because of the curse and be away from us 'silly wand-waving little giants.'"
"Oh my, Harry," Hermione said in amazement, "I never thought you could impersonate Professor Snape so accurately."
"Yeah." Ron chimed in together with Snape.
Snape?!
The three of them turned around and saw Professor Snape standing behind them, looking at them with an amused expression.
"Well, well, Potter," Professor Snape sneered, "Given your admirable impersonation of a professor, one point from Gryffindor..."
With that, Professor Snape swiftly left the scene.
"You really never know where he'll pop up, do you?" Ron shrugged helplessly.
However...
Just one point, not a big deal. Being able to secretly mock Professor Snape like this was quite heartwarming.
Losing that one point was worth it, everyone thought so.
Ron whispered to Hermione that if it were anyone else instead of Harry, it wouldn't be a matter settled with just one point.
After sitting outside the Great Hall for a while after breakfast, they went to their first Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson.
Honestly, Harry was actually looking forward to it, hoping to see what new tricks this new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher could pull off.
Hopefully... he's not possessed by a dark demon again?
But seeing Lockhart with his sunny smile and no garlicky smell, Harry thought he probably wasn't.
The students sat in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, expanded by the Traceless Stretching Spell, buzzing and whispering like thousands of flies creating a stir inside the room.
The classroom was adorned with many portraits of Professor Lockhart, some were portraits; some were full shots; some were with medals; some were like Russian nesting dolls with Professor Lockhart painting his self-portrait.
Without exception, they all covered their ears, trying not to listen to the whispering of the students.
One has to admit, the photos in the magical world truly are remarkable.
Before long, the door opened, and Professor Lockhart walked in from outside.
It should be noted that the students showed respect for this professor; as soon as he entered, they ceased their whispering and gave Professor Lockhart their full attention.