Wands and Wings

Chapter 24 : DADA with Lockhart

The next morning, Maia woke up with a sense of excitement mixed with trepidation. The first day of classes at Hogwarts was always a thrill, but this year, they had a new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher—Gilderoy Lockhart. Maia had heard plenty about him from Hermione, who seemed starstruck by his books, but Maia herself remained skeptical. She knew all too well what kind of man Lockhart really was.

"Can't believe we have Lockhart today," Harry said at breakfast, poking at his eggs. "Hermione's been talking about him non-stop."

"Yeah, she seems quite taken with him," Ron added, rolling his eyes. "I don't see the appeal."

"Maybe it's the perfect teeth," Maia said, smirking. "Or the fact that he's supposedly done all those amazing things."

"Supposedly," Harry echoed. "We'll see about that."

After breakfast, they gathered their books and headed to the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. As they entered, they were met with the sight of Lockhart's flamboyant, toothy grin plastered on dozens of framed photographs lining the walls, all of which were winking and posing.

"Ugh, could he be any more full of himself?" Maia muttered to Harry and Ron as they took their seats.

"Welcome, welcome!" Lockhart's voice rang out as he strode into the room, wearing robes of forget-me-not blue that matched his eyes. "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of Witch Weekly's Most-Charming-Smile Award—but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by smiling at her!"

Maia rolled her eyes, exchanging a glance with Harry. Lockhart was laying it on thick.

"Today," Lockhart continued, "we'll be starting with a little quiz, just to see how well you've read my books. Nothing too difficult, just some harmless fun!"

He handed out the quiz papers, and Maia stared at the questions in disbelief. They were all about Lockhart himself—his favorite color, his ideal birthday present, the exact number of his published works.

"You've got to be kidding me," she muttered under her breath.

"Shhh!" Hermione whispered urgently from the next desk. Maia glanced over to see her furiously scribbling answers.

"Done," Maia said loudly, putting down her quill and crossing her arms, despite barely answering any questions.

Lockhart gathered the papers with a flourish, flipping through them quickly. "Let's see... Hermione Granger—full marks, excellent!" He beamed at Hermione, who blushed.

Maia snorted, and Lockhart looked up. "Something amusing, Miss Potter?"

"Just wondering when we'll get to the actual defense part of Defense Against the Dark Arts, Professor," Maia replied, her tone dripping with sarcasm.

Lockhart's smile faltered for a moment before he recovered. "Of course, of course! Patience, Miss Potter. Learning about your teacher is just as important!"

He turned to the blackboard and waved his wand with a dramatic flourish, causing the words "Cornish Pixies" to appear in elaborate script. "Today, we'll be dealing with these little creatures. Can anyone tell me what they are?"

Hermione's hand shot up, but Lockhart ignored her. "No one? Well, let me tell you. Cornish Pixies are mischievous little creatures that can cause all sorts of trouble."

He opened a large cage and out flew a dozen bright blue pixies, chattering and cackling. Instantly, chaos erupted. The pixies zoomed around the room, pulling books off shelves, overturning ink bottles, and tugging at students' hair.

"Round them up, round them up, they're only pixies!" Lockhart called out, but he made no move to help.

Maia pulled out her wand and shouted, "Immobulus!" The spell froze a couple of pixies mid-flight, and they dropped to the ground with a thud.

"Nice one, Maia!" Harry shouted, trying to catch another pixie by hand.

Ron was struggling with a particularly aggressive pixie that had latched onto his robes, while Hermione was busy trying to stun another group of pixies that had cornered Neville.

Lockhart, meanwhile, was flapping his hands uselessly. "Uh, right, yes, well done, Miss Potter, ten points to Gryffindor!"

After several more minutes of chaos, the students finally managed to subdue the pixies, trapping them back in the cage. The classroom was a wreck—books and papers scattered everywhere, ink splattered on desks, and several students looking frazzled and out of breath.

"Well, that was... educational," Maia said, glaring at Lockhart, who was now trying to regain his composure.

"Quite," Lockhart agreed, a bit too cheerfully. "Next time, we'll continue our exciting journey through the world of dark creatures. Class dismissed!"

As they filed out of the classroom, Maia couldn't help but voice her frustration. "He's a fraud. How did he even get this job?"

"Maybe Dumbledore thinks he can teach us something," Hermione said, though she sounded less convinced than usual.

"Yeah, how not to handle pixies," Ron grumbled, still picking bits of his robe.

Harry shook his head. "Well, it's going to be an interesting year, that's for sure."

"Come on," she said, linking arms with Hermione. "Let's get to Transfiguration. At least McGonagall knows what she's doing."

The rest of the day passed in a blur of classes and catching up with friends. By the time they returned to the Gryffindor common room that evening, Maia felt a mix of exhaustion and anticipation. They gathered around the fireplace, talking about the day's events and what lay ahead.