The classroom was a mess of cushions. Professor Tobias Blade didn’t particularly enjoy clutter, but for once he let it go. He’d arranged the room himself that morning—muted tones of blue, brown, red, and green scattered neatly across the floor. Not a colourful circus, but controlled chaos. It mirrored the energy of his first years fairly well.
He stood at the front of the room with his wand loosely held in one hand, a familiar tiredness behind his eyes, though his expression was softer than usual. There was always something about this batch of first years—bright-eyed, unpredictable, and impossible to dislike, no matter how loud they got.
Once they’d all made it to their seats, he gave a small nod. “Good morning, all. Hope you’ve done the reading—though, if not, we’ll be putting it into practice soon enough.” He gestured broadly to the scattered cushions. “Today’s charm is Accio—the Summoning Charm.”
Blade didn’t waste time launching into a lecture. Instead, he raised his wand, pointing it toward a well-worn navy cushion. “Accio blue cushion.” The object zipped across the room and landed cleanly in his hand. “It’s straightforward magic in theory. In practice, however... well.” He set the cushion down. “If you just say ‘Accio cushion’ without being specific, there’s a good chance you’ll be buried alive in stuffing.” A slight smirk tugged at his lips. “And I don’t fancy digging you out.”
With a flick of his wand, more cushions levitated gently to a few central stacks. “You’ll be summoning these to start. Once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can try with other objects in the room. Nothing too heavy. No desks, no classmates, no pets—assuming someone smuggled one in again.” He gave one student in the back a pointed glance.
“Focus on intent. Picture the item in your mind, point, and call it to you.” Blade stepped aside, arms crossed as he began moving among them, offering the occasional correction or quiet encouragement. A sudden whoosh nearly caught him off-guard as a cushion zipped past his head. He turned, raising a brow at the student in question. “You’ve got power—now try aiming.” His tone wasn’t scolding, just mildly amused. “That goes for the rest of you too.”
As the charm practice began to settle, he clapped his hands together once. “Right. Homework.” A few groans rose from the group, and he allowed them. “I want you to list four practical uses for Accio in everyday life. Think about real-world scenarios, not just ‘Accio my socks’ unless you can convince me why that’s an emergency.” He gave them a tired, half-hearted grin. “Cushions back where you found them, and you’re free to go. Good work today—really.”
Blackboard: — Accio: Summoning Charm. Use to call objects toward you. — Focused intent and specific wording are critical. — Wand movement: direct point at target object. — Practice only on assigned items (cushions, light objects). — Avoid summoning multiple items at once.
Homework: List four everyday uses for the Accio charm. (5 House Points)
OOC Notes: RP your student practicing the spell or interacting with Blade for full marks. Mentioning homework IC = 5 house points. Answering/asking questions in-character = 2 points. Blade is happy to respond to tags with encouragement, feedback, or quiet dad-vibes. No student left behind.