Week Three – Task #9 – “Break Free from the Bubble”

[Silvana Mandeville]

On a bright noon, you decide to spend some time to relaxing. After going through many lessons in the dueling club, you feel the need to take a break and don't want to review the lessons you've received for now. You're walking along the Black Lake when you hear a faint shout from behind you. Suddenly, you find yourself inside a bubble, and shortly after, you see Silvana, who teaches the Spelling class, standing in front of you with a wand in her hand.

"Oh, I just wanted to test you. If you can get out of this bubble, then I'll accompany you in practice," she says casually.

You keep remembering the spells taught in the dueling class. 'Which spell can destroy this bubble,' you think, feeling a bit frustrated.

After trying to remember all the spells you learned, you finally find that Diffindo can release you from this. You raise your wand and recite the spell. Before long, you are freed from the bubble that trapped you earlier.

"Good job, now let's try another challenge," Silvana says, extending her hand to you.

Task: Decode the message to find the way out of the bubble. Click HERE for the larger size. Send your solution in a Private Message to me, Titled ’Week Three – Task 9 – Break Free from the Bubble’, remember to add Prof. Sindor Aloyarc on the message as well.



Alternatively, please write at least 125 words or more about moment you felt trapped in your life and how you resolved it.

This task is worth 10 Beans/Sapphires, will be due on March 30th, before 11:59 PM HOL-Time.

[Dibyarup James Potter]

Let me revisit the time when I was trying to learn the Patronus Charm during the summer break. My father told me that it is quite an advanced spell and that for me to produce a Patronus in my first year, it would take a lot of effort and magical prowess. So he explained to me the concept of remembering a happy memory and taught me the incantation and wand movement.

And there I was trying to produce my Patronus. I spoke the incantation "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" and did the wand movement. But to no avail. Nothing happened. I tried again, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" but unfortunately nothing happened. I told my father that I needed a break for the day and we stopped.

The next day we tried again. But the same result, nothing. The day after we tried again, this time with a Boggart, but I failed again. At this point, I was starting to think that maybe I was not talented enough to produce a Patronus so early.

My father told me that I could do it if I wanted to. But I started feeling trapped. I felt as if I was being put in a position for which I wasn't ready yet. However, I quickly let go of that notion and focused my mind on my 11th birthday, one of the happiest days of my life when I got my first wand.

I focused my mind on the memory and said the incantation along with the wand movement, "EXPECTO PATRONUM!" and a white light started projecting from the tip of my wand. There it was, the Patronus Charm. I had done it. I managed to cast a Patronus. Although it wasn't strong enough to form an animal, it was definitely a start.


Disclaimer: The graphic is AI-generated and only for representation purposes, not aimed at earning credit. Credit is expected only for the essay/textual response.

[Lex Green]

This is a very literal interpretation of the task, but its a funny story (to look back on, it was NOT funny at the time), so here's the time I got stuck in a friends' bathroom.

My family were with several other families (around 15-20 people in total), at one of our friends' houses for a braai (South African style meal, similar to a barbecue). The teenagers (which at the time, I was one of) were all hanging out in the living room, whilst the adults stayed outside. I needed the bathroom, but someone was already in the downstairs one, so I went upstairs.

No one had thought to let us know that the upstairs bathroom lock was broken. As a result, I locked myself in, and ended up stuck. I battled with the lock on my own for a while, but luckily, I had my phone on me, so I texted another member of the group for help. It took two fully grown men and a variety of interesting, definitely-not-built-for-purpose tools, but eventually I got out.

[Janne Halla]

One such instance happened during a hiking trip in the mountains, where I had decided to explore a rugged trail alone, as I've been quite familiar with the area. As I navigated through the brush and rocky terrain, I encountered a narrow crevice that seemed passable with a bit of careful maneuvering.

However, I misjudged the placement of my foot and ended up wedging it between two large rocks. I panicked when I realized I was stuck, my leg pinned in an awkward position with no easy way out. I struggled, but the more I fought, the tighter they seemed to hold me.

I've calmed down and assessed the situation. I've had it at a weird angle that seemed to twist when I moved around previously in a blind panic. I looked at how I held it and twisted and turned my body as much as it could with my leg stuck.

It was a slow and painstaking process, after another 30 minutes or so, with some pain, I got free. I decided that sometimes, shortcuts were not worth it at all.