Thick of it : reboot

James had returned to Hogwarts, and the chill of early winter still clung to the castle's ancient stones .

 Today, he was working with Professor Flitwick—a diminutive wizard whose enthusiasm for magic was as boundless as his height was limited. The room was filled with the comforting scent of parchment and melted wax, and the polished wooden desks gleamed under the flicker of enchanted torches.

Flitwick hovered over James, who was seated at a cluttered worktable with his spellbook open before him. Today's exercise involved practising the Incendio charm—a spell to conjure fire. James was attempting to shape a small fireball from his wand, his brow furrowed in concentration as he muttered the incantation.

"Now, Mr. Dawson," Flitwick chirped, standing on a pile of books to peer closely , "you seem to be applying too much pressure too rapidly. Do take it slow, lad, or you might end up with more than a wee spark."

James frowned, adjusting his grip on the wand. He nodded, though his fingers trembled ever so slightly as he tried to ease off the pressure. Still, his control was uneven, and the fire inside the conjured ball began to grow erratically. A small, flickering flame escaped the confines of his intended shape, dancing dangerously close to the edge of the table.

Before disaster could strike, Flitwick swiftly cast a counter-spell, and with a soft pop the rogue flame vanished into thin air. The professor's eyes twinkled as he cleared his throat. "Nice work, Mr. Dawson. Perhaps we should stick to the illusion charm I demonstrated for now, eh?"

James's eyes flashed with a spark of determination. "Professor, I've already mastered that spell, if you can teach me one that lets me cast illusions repeatedly—I'd be most interested."

Flitwick's tiny lips curled into a knowing smile. "Oh ho, when I agreed to watch over you, I never thought you'd use dangerous spells as an excuse to extract more advanced magic from me!" He chuckled warmly, his tone both teasing and admiring. James returned the smile.

"Now, off you go, Mr. Dawson," Flitwick said, waving his wand as if signalling the end of a delightful experiment. "It appears it's already grown rather late."

"Thank you, Professor," James replied, gathering his books and leaving the classroom with a respectful nod. 

Flitwick ,"Always a pleasure."

Outside, the corridors of Hogwarts were awash with the soft glow of winter twilight. James made his way to the Gryffindor common room via the notorious rotating staircase—a contraption that had a way of wasting precious time. Indeed, it took him nearly half an hour to navigate its unpredictable turns. Finally, he entered the common room with an irate grunt, his breath visible in the cold air.

"I swear I'm going to blast those blasted staircases " he muttered under his breath, shaking his head as he trudged through the hall.

As he passed near a secluded corner of the common room, James suddenly encountered a startling scene. There, in the midst of an otherwise quiet corner, Hermione was standing rigidly with her wand raised, her eyes fixed on poor Neville, who was being petrified by a spell. Neville's features were frozen in a look of terror, his body suspended in mid-motion as if caught in an invisible trap.

"Now, what the bloody hell is happening here?" James bellowed, striding over . His voice echoed in the high-ceilinged room .

Hermione, still with wand aloft, turned sharply, her eyes wide as if surprised by his interruption. "Words?" she snapped, a single curt word laced with frustration.

"Words? You just fired a spell at Neville, Hermione!" James exclaimed, his tone rising. Before anyone could interject, Harry stepped forward, his face pale with concern.

"James, listen to me…" Harry began, but his words were cut off when Hermione's grip on her wand tightened, and in a flash of decisive movement, he uttered, "Expelliem!"

Almost as if by magic, the wand flew out of Hermione's hand and landed in James's grasp. 

James, now holding Hermione's wand, raised an eyebrow and asked, "What on earth did you want to do, Hermione?" His tone was a mixture of disbelief and irritation as he looked between the trio. Hermione's expression was torn with regret, and Harry simply shook his head.

After a brief exchange with the trio, it emerged that they had planned to intervene and stop Snape's .