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In the original Harry Potter books, Defense Against the Dark Arts mainly focused on three major themes.
First, students learned how to understand and handle dark magical creatures. For instance, in their third year, Professor Lupin introduced Harry and his classmates to a series of dark creatures, such as Boggarts and Red Caps.
Second, the course covered dark curses and basic methods of resistance. A memorable example was when "Mad-Eye" Moody—actually Barty Crouch Jr. in disguise—used the Imperius Curse on Harry to help him train his resistance.
The third theme was dueling etiquette and techniques. Harry learned the Disarming Charm and basic dueling rules in his second year.
Now, De Vere was especially intrigued by all things related to dark curses.
In the original story, Harry and his friends were introduced to the three Unforgivable Curses in their fourth year. However, De Vere had just received Professor Quirrell's Defense Against the Dark Arts syllabus and made an unexpected discovery—those three forbidden spells were actually sixth-year content.
Moody had been teaching beyond the official syllabus.
According to the document, fourth- and fifth-year students focused more on defensive magic and counter-curses. Meanwhile, first through third years concentrated primarily on defense against magical creatures. Although these topics appeared again in later years, they didn't take up as much of the curriculum.
At the moment, De Vere was sitting on a stool outside Professor Quirrell's office, which reeked heavily of garlic. Even so, it was a vast improvement over the inside of the office.
Earlier, when De Vere had entered the room, the stench hit him so hard that he nearly vomited on the spot. Fortunately, he quickly stabilized his breathing using a Zen meditation technique, narrowly avoiding fainting right then and there.
After that, he flatly refused to step inside again. That place was nothing short of hell.
De Vere couldn't understand how Voldemort tolerated such a revolting environment.
Then he remembered—oh, right. Voldemort didn't have a nose.
That thought made De Vere chuckle.
"What's funny, Alexander? Have you made your decision?"
Quirrell's high-pitched voice broke the moment. He was sitting beside De Vere, holding a pot of tea in his hand. Right now, Professor Quirrell appeared kind and gentle—hard to imagine he was a Death Eater possessed by Voldemort.
De Vere subtly shifted away from him without making it too obvious.
The odor radiating from Quirrell was, frankly, terrifying.
"Professor, I've decided. I'd like to take the sixth-year course," De Vere replied, handing back the syllabus.
Quirrell's hand froze mid-pour. He looked at De Vere, surprised.
"Alexander, you're only a first-year student. I've heard Professor Dumbledore speak highly of your magical aptitude, but jumping straight to sixth-year content is rather…"
Quirrell frowned, trying to discourage him.
"If you're interested in spellwork, I recommend the fourth-year course. This year we'll be covering disarming spells and foundational dueling techniques—those might suit your level better."
As he spoke, Quirrell flipped open his syllabus to the fourth-year section.
This surprised De Vere.
Could it be that Quirrell actually planned to teach the course seriously?
When he first received the syllabus, De Vere assumed it was borrowed or faked. But now it seemed like Quirrell was quite familiar with it.
De Vere narrowed his eyes, considering the advice.
Eventually, he shook his head.
"Professor, I still think it's best for me to begin with the sixth-year content. Trust my abilities. If I can't handle it, I'll switch back to the fourth-year material."
Quirrell sighed but didn't insist. Instead, he seemed intrigued. He waved his wand, and the teapot refilled De Vere's cup automatically.
"All right. But I do have one more question, Alexander. Why the sixth year? Why not seventh? If you want a challenge, the seventh-year syllabus includes comprehensive N.E.W.T. reviews. The content is already familiar by then, so the difficulty isn't much higher. Plus, it offers an overview of everything from previous years. It might actually be more suitable for someone like you."
Quirrell spoke with surprising professionalism—like a real teacher.
Even so, De Vere again shook his head.
"Professor, I'm mainly interested in the sixth-year focus on nonverbal spellcasting," he said.
He sipped his tea, eyes sparkling with anticipation.
"Also… I might get a chance to study the Unforgivable Curses, right?"
Clang!
Quirrell's teacup slipped from his hand, crashing to the floor and shattering.
Tea splashed everywhere, even soaking his robes.
Startled, De Vere jumped up, staring at the professor.
Quirrell looked as if his soul had left his body.
His eyes were vacant. The hot tea had scalded his hands and legs, but he didn't react.
After ten full seconds, De Vere cleaned the mess with a flick of his wand.
Quirrell finally snapped out of it.
"Professor, are you all right?" De Vere asked, conjuring a fresh cup of water with the Water-Making Spell and handing it to him.
Quirrell took it shakily and drank it in one go.
"Oh, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, Alexander. It's… it's just some aftereffects from a vampire attack I suffered some time ago. I'm fine now. Really."
He sat down again, holding his head in his hands.
After a brief pause, he straightened up and looked De Vere in the eye.
"I understand, Alexander. When I was a student, I was also fascinated by the three Unforgivable Curses. I wanted to explore them deeply, but…"
Quirrell's tone became serious.
"But unfortunately, the Ministry of Magic issued a new ban last year. We're now prohibited from demonstrating the Unforgivable Curses in class. We can only cover their origin and theory..."
Quirrell suddenly trailed off.
His eyes glazed over again.
That vampire injury excuse seemed increasingly suspicious.
De Vere was clearly disappointed.
He hadn't come across any such ban in the original books.
But on second thought, it made sense.
In the canon, Barty Crouch Jr.—as Moody—was a Death Eater and former Auror. Breaking Ministry regulations was second nature to him.
Quirrell, however, was on a secret mission to steal the Philosopher's Stone. The last thing he wanted was attention.
So it was understandable that he couldn't risk violating such rules in class.
De Vere accepted that he'd likely have to postpone his plan to witness the Unforgivable Curses firsthand.
But then—
Quirrell suddenly snapped out of his trance again.
He looked at De Vere, his expression conflicted, as though wrestling with a tough decision.
Eventually, he took a deep breath and gave a small, tense smile.
"I'm sorry, Alexander. I may have misremembered. There's no such Ministry ban after all. Demonstrating the Unforgivable Curses in class… is, of course, a necessary part of the curriculum."
— —
When De Vere finally walked out, he was beaming.
But back inside the office, Quirrell's face had turned pale with fear.
He trembled violently and muttered, "Master, this… this is too dangerous. If someone finds out, we'll—"
Before he could finish, a cold, commanding voice echoed from the back of his head.
"Quirrell, control your fear. This boy, Alexander… he's special. If he stands with me, the Philosopher's Stone won't matter at all."
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