Summer is here at last my dear readers and you know what that means? Sunshine, happy days, picnics, and flowers! It might possibly be my favorite season and one of the only times I can be willingly pulled from my library/office at home. So when the editors sent me a missive that this was going to be the theme for August's issue, I was thrilled.
Now the very obvious choices to talk to you about would be the Herbivicus Charm, and Orchideous Spell, but I highly doubt that after the grilling you were bound to get on them from Professors Sprout and McGonagall, you will want to revisit those particular incantations. There are also a few other spells known to Herbologists I am sure, but seeing as I am not one of them, I cannot comment on those either, unfortunately. Gardening has never, and will never be a strength of mine. Something that is evidenced by the slowly dying remains of the Lily I was bought recently that is currently withering away on my bedroom windowsill. Who knew the damn things could be so needy? It really is quite trying. I will be quite glad when I can go back to admiring other people's plants instead of being guilty over my own pitiful attempts.
But I digress. I'm sure you are all fascinated to know what I have to offer you instead? You are? Good!
Well, this month's offering begins on a Quidditch Pitch of all places. It was during the 1994 World Cup I believe and the story goes that the stadium was built in an area that was known to have insanely high pollen counts due to the tulip meadows nearby. The Japanese National team had a particular problem with this due to there being no tulips in their native country at the time. At least not where they were exposed to them. It was all rather unfortunate I hear because who can play well with streaming eyes and snotty noses?
So what was the answer I hear you ask? I will tell you. The team was blessed because they did in fact have one very clever Beater on their side (Yes I know that is an oxymoron but go with me on this). Her name was Keiko Takahashi and according to Tabitha, she was both a brilliant player and an accomplished Charms specialist. In her and her team's misery, she invented what is now known as the "Hayfever Charm". It is a rather simple but wonderful adaption of the BubbleHead Charm that places an invisible handkerchief over your nose and mouth. You can breathe freely through it but pollen and other small airborne particles cannot pass through it to irritate you. Which is excellent if you are suffering. I just wish that our Ministry of Magic would approve it for public use over here. They are just a little.....slow in their movements to ease the suffering of many. It is just a good job that Tabitha's family happen to have learned the mechanics of this spell and were kind enough to allow me to share it with you all. Just make sure that you do not cast it in public. We would not want you to get in trouble now, would we?
To cast this spell effectively, you will need to use the incantation, Kushami Tome. These words come from Japanese for obvious reasons and loosely translate to "Sneeze Stop". The correct pronunciation is K-sam-ee DOH-meh and you will need to make sure you enunciate the "K" in a very short, clipped way as extending it in any way will render the spell useless. In order for the spell to work as well as it should, you must point your wand at your face from about 3 inches away; and draw a square about the size of a handkerchief around your nose, moving from top left to top right, and then down and around back to the top again. If you have cast it correctly, a small blur of silver light should be emitted from your wand tip and settle on your nose for a minute before vanishing. If cast incorrectly, your wand tip will glow bright green and you will start to cough, and no one wants that do they? So please be careful.
With this spell in your repertoire, (Albeit secretly of course), I'm sure you will be able to enjoy summer to the fullest and take as many adventures outside as I certainly plan to! So until next time readers... Have a good summer! - Nikita