Transfiguration 2:6

Lesson Six: Animare & Wizarding Chess​

As his students sat down, Leif withdrew a large box from under the desk. After removing the top, and on closer inspection, it was revealed to actually be a chess set. The marble pieces stood still, staring blankly out at the class.

"Morning!" He greeted his students with a smile. "Anyone ever played wizard chess before?" He questioned, not too surprised when only a few hands were raised. It wasn't like twelve year olds were generally enthusiastic about chess. Still, it was good some of them had some experience with the game. "For anyone who has never played wizarding chess: it's quite like regular chess, except the pieces come to life to attack each other on your orders." He explained easily. "Before these pieces have minds on their own, they start out as normal, boring, chess pieces that resemble those used by muggles."

"The pieces are transfigured, by a special team of wizarding toymakers, to come to life. Each set generally has its own distinct personality, depending on the preference of the witch or wizard who brought them to life. This type of transfiguration falls under the Inanimate to Animate type of spell."

"This," Leif pointed at the chess set, "Is a muggle chess set. The pieces remain stationary, having no animation or personality of their own, until we grant them that."

Taking out his wand, he waved the mahogany wood toward the marble queen. "Animare!" He incanted, and at once the piece's facial features changed. Her mouth contorted and melted, shifting from a solid line to something more mobile. The piece remained in the clothing that had been carved onto it, but it seemed to come to life, the marble cloth separating from its body somewhat to resemble a more living and free-flowing appearance. The queen loomed over its subjects with an impassive expression, until she seemed to notice the classroom of students beyond her board. "Hmph." She tutted, her brow creasing.

Leif's eyes moved from the queen to the class with a smile. "As you can see, the incantation 'Animare' brings things to life. Naturally, other inanimate objects are brought to life to amuse children. Chocolate frogs are an excellent example that comes to mind. After the chocolate is mixed and set, candy makers use a sort of mild variant of the spell. The result is that they really only get one good jump before -"

"Why are there children on my battlefield, peasant?" The queen cut in, causing him to laugh. He then quickly ttapped her with his wand again and the queen froze back to her inanimate state.

"Anyway, the wand movement," He continued with a grin. "You should tap the object that you are going to animate once squarely in it's center and then aim the wand at the object, speaking aloud the incantation. With the proper visualization and concentration, the correct wand movement, and a firmly spoken incantation, you should find yourself able to cast most inanimate to animate spells. In your cases, you aren't likely to flesh out any sort of faux-personality, but you should give it life. Now one by one come to the front, pick a chess piece, and try to bring it to life in front of the class. Starting with you." Leif pointed at a student sitting on the first bench of the first row.

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Roleplay the lesson, including trying to bring a chess piece to life, for full marks. Extra points might be given for creativity.

 

[Alana Cosgrove]

Alana watched with a mix of curiosity and excitement as Professor Leif demonstrated the Animare spell, bringing the marble chess queen to life. Alana didn’t play much wizards chess so she didn’t have a lot of reference for what the pieces were like. Alana listened as Professor Odegard explained the spell and the effect it would have on the chess pieces they were transfiguring. She might not have played the game before but she was sure the lesson would still be enjoyable for her.

When it was her turn, Alana stepped forward, and selected a marble pawn, steadying herself as she aimed her wand. "Animare," she said clearly, tapping the pawn squarely in its centre. She focused her mind on the idea of the pawn coming to life, visualizing it moving with purpose. To her delight, the pawn began to shift and wiggle slightly, its small marble arms twitching. The success of her spell filled her with a sense of accomplishment, and she felt a surge of confidence as she returned to her seat, eager to see how her classmates would fare with their own attempts.

 

[Sunday Weeks]

Sunday was relieved that the semester was almost over. She needed a break from all of this, from the spells and the pressure and the desire to be perfect. She just wanted to be seen, to be more than just another day of the week. Feeling unbelievably tired, Sunday dragged herself out of her bed, pushing through her usual morning routine with a bit less enthusiasm than usual. Ready, she grabbed her bag and headed for class.

Her smile was a little more forced than usual, especially since it was Transfiguration. She really, really did not want to do this. But it was too late to back out now. She choose a rook, moving back to her seat. She just wanted the thing to move, so she took all of her quills from her bag and set up a doubled square, giving the piece a path to move in.

It took her all of the lesson, a lot of silent cursing and strained smiles, but eventually, she won, and the rook raced along her set path, seeming to enjoy itself as it darted through each section. Relieved, she waited for the professor to collect the piece before grabbing her quills and leaving, feeling worn out from the arguments with her wand.