Without the Fred and George around during the holidays, Alexander found that winter break was quiet and relaxing.
Normally, the twins would barge into his house and drag him to the Burrow.
They would either plan future pranks, talk business, play games, or practice spells.
But this year they had chosen to remain at Hogwarts, leaving Alexander with very few people to interact with.
So he spent most of his time talking with Tom Riddle.
Alexander already knew Tom wouldn't remain forever.
The diary's magic had limits, and eventually Tom would disappear.
Because of that, Alexander had become determined to learn everything he possibly could before that moment came.
Tom's knowledge had proven incredibly valuable.
Through long discussions and experiments this year, Alexander learned something important about spellcasting.
Control and knowledge had a big difference on the strength of spells.
Instead of forcing spells to become stronger by pouring huge amounts of magic into them, Tom taught him how to refine the structure of the spell itself.
With the correct magical control creating Duo and Maxima spells had become simple.
This meant Alexander once he creates his own original spell, then creating a Duo and Maxima for it. He would have a easier time.
With teaching Alexander on better control, he could cast stronger magic while using far less energy.
Just four months of Tom teaching him, he has made huge improvements and progress.
Spells became easier to learn.
Easier to control.
And much faster to master.
Thanks to this training, Alexander had already mastered every spell his friend Kyle had given him.
Most of them were advanced offensive and destructive spells.
One of the most powerful was Reducto.
The curse created an extremely powerful impact, capable of shattering stone, destroying magical barriers, and damaging large creatures.
Alexander practiced it repeatedly in controlled conditions.
Another spell he mastered was Expulso.
This curse produced a focused explosion, blasting enemies away or even breaking through defensive spells like Protego.
But the spell Alexander enjoyed practicing the most was Diffindo.
The Severing Charm.
It allowed precise and accurate cutting.
But the real reason Alexander practiced it so much had little to do with the spell itself.
He had his eyes on something far more dangerous.
A spell created by Severus Snape.
Sectumsempra.
A malicious dark curse.
When cast, an invisible blade shot forward from the wand.
It sliced targets with deep, brutal wounds that were extremely difficult to heal.
The spell was powerful and very terrifying.
Alexander leaned back in his chair as he thought about it.
"If I understand Diffindo perfectly…"
"Maybe I can reverse engineer something similar."
But for now, he still had no clear idea how to learn Snape's secret spell.
So he stopped thinking about it, as he would think about the problem in the future.
Luckily, Alexander had received something else during the holidays.
His father had given him the Chen family spell books.
They contained several unique spells passed down through the family.
Alexander had only begun looking through them, but one spell immediately caught his attention.
Oculus Obscura.
The Blind Sight Charm.
Instead of using eyesight, the spell allowed the caster to sense the world through magic itself.
Movement.
Magical signatures.
The rough outlines of objects and people.
Everything appeared as faint glowing shapes, pulsing movements, and magical auras.
Almost like a form of magical echolocation.
The spell didn't last very long yet.
Only a few seconds.
But Alexander already had plans.
"If I extend the duration…"
"It could be incredibly useful in combat."
Especially in darkness.
Chaotic battlefield, smoke or even against invisible enemies.
Alexander closed the spell book and stretched slightly.
His training plan was becoming clear.
First, master the spells from the Chen family books.
Second, continue improving his knowledge of runes.
And third—
He glanced toward the desk where the diary rested.
Extract every possible piece of knowledge from Tom Riddle.
Because once winter break ended…
Everything would become complicated again.