After dinner and the main events of the evening, the students began to leave the Great Hall, heading toward their respective common rooms.
Extimum and the others were no exception.
It had been a good dinner, and as they made their way through the corridors, the group talked quietly about what to do in the hours before bed. Some talked about their homework, others about the next day's classes, and, as usual, Steve and Mitchell were already coming up with some fun activity to pass the time.
The calm was broken when a figure passed through the corridor wall and appeared in front of the students.
It was Sir William, one of Hogwarts's ghosts.
"Halt. All students must return to the Great Hall."
The conversations died down little by little, though not completely. Several heads turned toward him, and some students exchanged bewildered glances.
Mitchell was one of the first to say what everyone seemed to be thinking.
"Huh? What's going on? Didn't we just come from there?"
"Make way, let me through."
Among the crowd of students trying to figure out what was happening, a young woman pushed her way to the front.
Penelope Clearwater, the Ravenclaw prefect, looked at the ghost with a mix of curiosity and concern.
"Sir William, what's going on? Why do we have to go back?"
The ghost recognized her and continued in his solemn tone.
"Miss Clearwater, something has happened in the castle. By order of the Headmaster, all students must return to the Great Hall as soon as possible. Please guide the others back."
Penelope frowned slightly.
"I understand. May I know what's happened in more detail?"
Sir William hesitated for a moment, but finally leaned close to her ear and whispered something.
Penelope's expression changed immediately.
Among the crowd, Extimum's fox ears twitched slightly. A flicker of recollection lit up his eyes.
Bloom, who was close by, noticed the small change in his expression.
'What's wrong? What did you hear?'
Extimum: 'Someone has broken into the castle.'
Bloom's eyes went wide.
Bloom: 'What? How is that possible? How could they even get through the defenses and the wards?'
Extimum glanced toward the corridors around them.
'There are ways. Hidden passages, for example. If you know them, it's possible.'
He knew they existed, but the word "hidden" in their name wasn't just for show. The secrecy behind them often ranged from the simple to the absurd; sometimes it was hard to tell which was worse.
Still, over time, students had discovered some that had even become common knowledge. Like the shortcut Ravenclaw students used to get to their tower faster. The vast majority, though, remained unknown to everyone.
But that brought another thought to his mind.
The Marauder's Map.
If he could get his hands on it... there wouldn't be a passage or shortcut in the castle that remained hidden from him. The map wouldn't just let him learn routes that would otherwise stay out of his reach; it would also be an exceptional tactical tool.
Meanwhile, the murmurs among the students had grown louder.
Penelope: "Attention, everyone! I know we just came from there, but this is a serious situation. We all need to go back to the Great Hall immediately. The Headmaster and the professors will explain the situation once we're there."
There were a few complaints.
They had already made it to the fifth floor, and several students didn't seem particularly pleased with the idea of turning back. After all, they were already halfway to their common room, and now they'd have to retrace their steps.
Still, all they could do was resign themselves and follow the instructions.
...
By the time they finally made it back into the Great Hall, students from the other houses were already gathered there, waiting with the same uncertainty and confusion about what was going on.
As soon as they arrived, Penelope broke away from the group and went to join the rest of the prefects, who were talking off to one side.
Just then, Dumbledore and the other professors entered the Great Hall.
Dumbledore: "Everyone, your attention, please. I know this is rather unexpected, but something has happened in the castle. Because of this, the rest of the professors and I must carry out a search of the whole place."
As he spoke, all the entrance doors to the Great Hall began to close, one after another.
Dumbledore went on calmly.
"I'm afraid that, for your own safety, you will have to spend the night here. I want the prefects to stand guard at the doors of the Great Hall, and I'm leaving the Head Boy and Head Girl in charge. Let me know of any developments."
The prefects nodded, some more confidently than others.
Dumbledore paused before leaving the Great Hall, as though he'd remembered something.
"Ah, you'll need..."
With a flick of his wand, the long tables rose and slid across the floor until they came to rest against the walls of the Great Hall.
With another flick, the floor was covered with hundreds of soft red sleeping bags.
A murmur of surprise swept through the hall.
"Sweet dreams, everyone."
Dumbledore closed the door behind him.
At once, chatter filled the hall.
The students began talking among themselves, wondering what had happened. Those who had seen or heard something started telling the people nearby, who in turn passed it on to others.
Soon it was clear to everyone what had happened.
Sirius Black had broken into the castle.
And he had destroyed the portrait that guarded the entrance to the Gryffindor common room.
Steve and Mitchell were practically bouncing from one place to another, gathering information and throwing out increasingly outlandish theories along with the other students. Extimum, however, wasn't interested.
He simply looked around the Great Hall.
He searched for a spot that seemed comfortable enough and, just in case, safe. He finally found an open space and dragged a sleeping bag over to it.
Then he lay down.
The murmur of conversation continued around him.
Percy: "Right then, everyone! That's enough talking, into your sleeping bags, now!"
Penelope: "Please settle in quickly."
Little by little, the students began to settle down.
Bloom: 'Aren't you curious about Sirius Black?'
Extimum: 'Don't worry about that. It'll be a night like any other; just try to sleep.'
Everyone finished settling in, but even so, the whispers didn't disappear. They only dropped in volume, fading into low conversations that spread throughout the Great Hall.
Perhaps because Extimum had shown solid combat skills during last year's dueling classes, and always carried that same air of calm about him, his friends ended up settling around him, with his sleeping bag at the center.
Harry's group and the others settled in not far away.
Though Luna had ended up placing her sleeping bag particularly close to Extimum's, almost right against it.
The lights went out once everyone had finished settling in. The prefects remained on watch at the doors while, every so often, the ghosts drifted through the Great Hall, acting as messengers between the professors and the students.
Extimum shifted somewhat uncomfortably inside his sleeping bag. Although he had dressed rather casually for dinner, he wasn't used to sleeping in so many clothes and was starting to feel warm.
He opened his eyes at the discomfort and, surprisingly, found another pair not far away.
A faintly glowing purple in the middle of the darkness, facing a silvery blue hidden in the shadows.
Extimum: "Not trying to sleep?"
Luna: "I was just thinking. Besides, it's still a bit early. I doubt most people can fall asleep that easily, especially with the news."
Extimum: "Don't worry about it. You'll see, nothing's going to happen."
Luna: "How do you know?"
Bloom: 'How do you know?'
Extimum blinked a little.
"Intuition."
"Even if the facts change, the story can't have changed that much."
Luna: "What do you mean by that?"
Extimum: "That Sirius Black isn't as bad as everyone makes him out to be, and even if he were, it's doubtful he'd have any reason to come after us. Besides, Dumbledore's here, one of the most powerful wizards of this age, along with the rest of the professors."
Luna: "Hmm."
Silence settled between them once more.
Extimum closed his eyes again, trying to sleep.
Bloom looked thoughtful, piecing together what Extimum had just said with what he'd told her back at the manor.
...
«So much... prey»
Extimum's eyes snapped open.
His body was covered in sweat, his breathing slightly ragged. For a few moments he stayed still, listening in silence, before discreetly scanning his surroundings.
Everything seemed to be in order.
Most of the students were asleep, or at least pretending to be. The light was dim, barely lit by the glow of the stars adorning the ceiling of the Great Hall and a few candles by the doors, still under the prefects' watch.
He looked down at his chest.
Bloom was sound asleep, oblivious to everything.
He closed his eyes again, trying to fall back asleep and ignoring that murky voice that had just woken him. He was already somewhat used to hearing it.
Just then, something drew near.
On instinct, he stretched out a hand to stop it.
When he opened his eyes, he found he was holding Luna's hand. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing stayed calm and steady.
'Sleepwalking again...'
He watched her for a few seconds, until a thought crossed his mind.
'Last year I never had time to test it, with everything going on. This could be a good chance.'
From beneath his sheets, one of his tails slipped out discreetly, sliding beneath Luna's sheets and coiling gently around her waist.
Extimum stayed alert, watching for any reaction.
Luna's hand still gripped his with some force, and even her other hand seemed to be starting to move.
'Hmm... simple proximity doesn't seem to be doing anything, assuming that's really what it takes. Though it might also need direct contact, like last time.'
After thinking it over for a moment, he moved his tail again.
This time, the fur slipped slightly beneath her shirt, staying wrapped around her waist and coming into direct contact with her skin.
The change was almost imperceptible.
He wasn't sure whether it had just been an instinctive reaction or whether it actually had some effect.
The grip of Luna's hand began to weaken.
Carefully, Extimum slowly eased it back down onto the blanket.
He watched her for a few more seconds, but there was no more movement.
'Did it work? Hmm... not conclusive enough. Could just be a coincidence.'
For a moment, he felt tempted to try it on some of the people around him.
He dismissed the idea almost immediately.
It could end up causing a scandal. Besides, his fur wasn't supposed to have a sleep-inducing effect, just a calming one, so it might not even produce clear results outside very specific cases.
'I suppose I'll have to leave it as a long-term experiment. Although...'
His gaze lingered on Luna's now-peaceful face.
'Maybe I should give it a bit more priority.'
He set the thought aside.
Without realizing it, his gaze drifted slowly down from Luna's face and settled on her neck.
«Drink...»
Extimum looked away at once, almost rolling his eyes at the dark message.
He settled back down among the sheets and closed his eyes, determined to sleep.
«F00l»
.
In the days that followed, the school talked of nothing but Sirius Black.
The theories about how he'd managed to get into the castle grew wilder by the day.
Extimum, however, turned a deaf ear to most of them, only paying attention when Steve and the others brought them up with him. In those cases, he had no choice but to listen and, occasionally, offer his opinion.
Even so, everything at school had gone on more or less as usual. The portrait of the Fat Lady guarding the entrance to the Gryffindor common room had been temporarily replaced with another one, and classes carried on as normal.
** Caw Caw **
Right then, while he was working on his Arithmancy homework, a sharp caw interrupted his calculations.
A second later, a large crow, black as night, landed on the table where he was sitting.
** Caw **
The crow cawed again and twisted its neck back toward its own back, where, to his surprise, it was carrying a kind of pouch. From it, the crow pulled out a thick package and dropped it in front of Extimum.
** Caw Payment Caw **
Extimum looked at the package, then narrowed his eyes at the crow.
He reached into his bag, rummaging for a moment, before pulling out a Crimson Drop and tossing it into the air in front of the bird.
The crow moved at once, snatching it out of the air with its beak and swallowing it whole.
** Caw Caw **
After that, the crow took off again, flying out of the Great Hall at top speed.
Trudor: "A messenger crow?"
Mitchell: "Well, who sends their letters by crow? That seems rather ominous."
Steve: "Then again... they do have the advantage of being able to talk."
Mitchell: "That just makes them creepier."
Extimum ignored their chatter off to the side and instead focused on the package in front of him.
He unwrapped the covering, revealing its contents.
Inside were a book and a letter.
He picked up the letter first.
There was no clear sender written on it, but the handwriting looked familiar.
"
A curious choice of reading. I take it you decided to take more than three elective subjects and now you have a Time-Turner? Surprising. Even I turned it down when it was offered to me. Studying the required subjects is already enough of a burden, so why bother with more?
But I admire your daring, and at the same time, your caution.
I'm sending what you asked for. Be careful with the information.
Fondly, C.
"
He lingered a few extra seconds on the last line before turning his gaze to the book underneath.
It had a plain, greenish-black cover, with nothing on it but a name.
Saul Croaker.
A faint smile appeared on his face, accompanied by a look of interest.
Before Steve had a chance to peek, he put the book and the letter away in his bag.
Steve: "Tsk, so secretive."
Extimum: "I've already finished my homework for today. I'll head off first."
Padma: "Leaving so soon?"
Extimum: "I've got something else to do. See you all later."
He left the Great Hall, heading for the common room, or more specifically, for his own room.
There was a distinct flicker of excitement and anticipation about the book's contents. It was an important piece that would finally let him understand the fundamentals of time magic in greater depth and begin to unravel the secrets of the Time-Turner.
It didn't take him long to reach his room.
It was quiet, since he was alone that day. Bloom had gone off to spend some time with Luna.
Setting aside what he was carrying, Extimum lost no time pulling out the book and settling down to read it at his desk.
...
He only reacted when the room's torches flared to life with blue fire, followed by Bloom's entrance.
Bloom: "Why are you reading a book in the dark?"
Only then did Extimum realize that night had fallen some time ago and that he'd been so absorbed in his reading he hadn't even noticed.
Extimum: "I didn't notice the time passing. But you have to see this. This book is incredible."
Intrigued, Bloom flew closer for a look, finding a book crammed with words, runes, and magical symbols that nearly gave her a headache just from looking at them.
Bloom: "What's it about?"
Though she gave up on trying to read it, she still asked out of curiosity.
Extimum: "This book... has all of Saul Croaker's research on time magic. It's on a completely different level. The depth of detail and knowledge in here is enough for anyone to understand time magic and even delve into its applications."
A little surprised, she looked back at the book with renewed interest, then turned her gaze back to Extimum.
"I wouldn't say anyone... Have you eaten yet?"
Extimum: "No. I haven't left the room since half past three."
Bloom: "I knew it. Here, I brought you something from the kitchens."
She enlarged the little pouch at her waist, making it just big enough for a turkey sandwich to come flying out.
It had been Extimum's first successful attempt at creating an expandable bag. It didn't have much space inside, but for Bloom, that was no trouble at all.
Extimum: "Thanks."
As he ate his sandwich, Extimum set the book aside. Even so, his mind still seemed lost in the subject; Bloom could almost see the ideas racing through his head.
His unfocused stare was proof enough of that.
Bloom turned to fly off toward the bathroom.
Extimum: "By the way, tomorrow... could you do me a favor?"
.
Trelawney: "Take a good look at your partner's hands... palmistry may be one of the reading methods that tells us the least about specific events, but it's one of the ones that can reveal the most about a person's nature and inclinations.
Observe the main lines, their depth, their breaks, their direction, as well as the shape of the fingers and the proportions of the palm. Everything speaks, and everything counts. A single line might say one thing, but it only has meaning when read as part of the whole. Otherwise... you'll only draw hasty conclusions.
Patience. This takes practice, consistency, and, most importantly, interpretation."
The professor moved around the Divination classroom as she lectured, stopping now and then beside a table to look over the students' work or offer some advice.
Daphne: "What do you see in my hand?"
Extimum: "A long life. A very long one."
Daphne: "Come on, be serious about this."
Extimum: "I'm being serious. Look..."—He turned the palm he was holding slightly —"Your main line is long, with no breaks. And the secondary lines seem to support that same conclusion."
Daphne: "Hmm."
Extimum: "You don't look very convinced."
Daphne: "Honestly, I don't even know what I'm looking at. All I see is lines on a hand. At least tessomancy made some sense to me, and I managed a few interpretations, but with this... call me a skeptic, but I just can't bring myself to believe it's real."
Extimum: "I'd call you stubborn more than a skeptic. Tell me honestly, why are you still in this class? A lot of people switched subjects after the first two lessons, especially once several Arithmancy classes got moved to a later slot. And on top of that... I think you'd do quite well in Arithmancy. It even seems like something you'd enjoy."
Daphne: "Am I really that bad?"
Extimum: "I wouldn't say that..."
Daphne: "Sigh... I don't know... It's a lot of things. At first I was a bit curious, so, like a lot of people, I went to the first few classes just to see what it was like and whether it suited me. Then... I just..."
Extimum: "You wanted to find something in Divination that might help cure Astoria?"
Daphne: "Yes..."
Extimum: "In that case, let me help you. Look me in the eyes..."
Daphne followed his instruction without giving it much thought, focusing on the deep purple of his irises and then on the slit pupil at their center.
** Groan **
Suddenly, Daphne brought a hand to her head, feeling a faint ache along with a brief wave of dizziness.
Extimum: "Ignore the feeling, and... look at my hand."
A little disoriented, she followed the instruction and fixed her gaze on Extimum's hand, held out in front of her.
The lines looked blurry, just like everything around them, until...
She saw it.
The lines began to blur further, breaking apart and floating in the air, slowly coming together into what looked like a complex geometric pattern.
The lines that had seemed meaningless before had vanished, while the ones that remained... she could recognize them.
She had seen them in the book.
Daphne: "A dark and troubled future..."
Trelawney: "Hmm, a very good interpretation, Miss Greengrass. Keep it up."
Daphne: "Ah!"
Daphne jumped where she sat and looked, startled, at Professor Trelawney, who had appeared beside her at some point and was now studying Extimum's palm with interest.
At the same time, she came out of the near-trance she'd been in for a few seconds and her vision returned to normal.
Several students stopped what they were doing to look at her because of her sudden yelp, forcing her to quickly recover her composure and sit properly in her seat.
Trelawney remained unruffled. She shot Extimum a glance, then moved off toward another table to keep an eye on the class.
Extimum: "Seems like you really do have it in you."
Daphne: "What was that?"
Extimum: "Nothing. I just gave you a little push. I helped you see where you needed to look."
Daphne looked at him, surprised, still a little confused by the experience. She looked again at Extimum's hand, still held out in front of her.
Though that vision had faded, she could still make out the main lines and details of the palm with perfect ease.
Extimum: "Though I still think you'd do well in Arithmancy. It's a bit complicated, and the homework's a bit of a headache, but... it has its merits. Besides, Tracey's over there."
Daphne: "I know, but I'd still rather stay here while I can. Besides, I'll be taking private Arithmancy lessons with my father at home over the holidays, at the very least. If I change my mind, I'll still have some grounding and won't be completely lost."
"By the way, how do you know so much about how things are over there?"
Extimum: "If you look at that empty table over there... you'll notice almost all my Ravenclaw friends abandoned me in this class. Only Padma stuck around, and from what I can tell, mostly to be near her sister. Seems like the two of them have a bit of a talent for this as well."
"This subject's quite interesting, but for most people it's just an easy pass to get through the school year, or else something dull and pointless. Mitchell, Trudor, and Steve switched over to Arithmancy. Apparently they'd rather deal with numbers than with this. A wise decision, for once."
Daphne: "But still, you said that like it was personal, and now that you mention it, I think Tracey said something about-"
** Dong Dong Dong **
Trelawney: "Very well, children, class is over. You may go."
Extimum: "Well, I've got things to do. We'll talk later, Daphne."
Daphne: "Wait, I still want to ask you about..."
Extimum's figure had already vanished without her noticing, leaving her alone, sitting at the table.
.-.
Outside the castle. Hagrid's cabin.
Bloom hovered near the window of the cabin, waiting patiently...
For what?
She didn't know. Extimum had only asked her to come during the morning hours and keep watch here. In fact, she'd initially wanted to wait further off, near Hagrid's vegetable patch, but...
There was a rather menacing flock of crows guarding the area, and while she could have scared them off with her magic, it would have caused far too much of a commotion, and it would have been a bother besides.
As she floated there, lost in thought and watching the chained hippogriff, she heard a sound.
** Huuu **
An owl flew past at top speed, swooping through the window right next to Bloom and landing inside the cabin.
Hagrid: "Well now, what've we got here? A letter? Who'd be writing to me?"
With one hand, Hagrid untied the letter fastened to the owl's leg, while with the other he grabbed a bit of meat and tossed it to the bird.
The owl fixed its eyes on the piece of meat as it came flying toward it and caught it precisely with its beak, eating it bit by bit.
Once he had the letter in hand, Hagrid wiped off his meat-smeared fingers and opened it. His expression changed at once, turning serious.
That was because it bore the Ministry's seal, which meant it was official business.
His first thought was Buckbeak, but after a few seconds he ruled that out. The proceedings were still under dispute; it couldn't be about that. If it were, Dumbledore himself would have warned him beforehand.
"Wonder what it could be."
Impatient and uneasy, he hurried to open the letter and read what it said.
Without his noticing, not far away, almost hidden by his great beard and mane, Bloom floated there, every bit as nosy*Cough*curious about the contents as ever. Either way, she had no idea what she was looking at, so she might as well take in Hagrid's letter right along with him. Right?
"
MINISTRY OF MAGIC
Department of Magical Law Enforcement
16 November 1993
Dear Mr. Rubeus Hagrid:
By means of this letter, the Ministry of Magic has the honour of informing you of the final ruling regarding Case No. 8579, under which you were found guilty, on 15 June 1943, of the death of Myrtle Elizabeth Warren, as well as of the opening of the Chamber of Secrets and the events arising therefrom.
Following the official reopening of the case on 7 May 1993, a new investigation was carried out in which both the facts and evidence considered in the original proceedings and the new evidence obtained since the reopening of the Chamber of Secrets were subjected to reassessment.
As a result of this investigation, it has been determined that the accusations made against you were without foundation, and that you were not responsible for the acts of which you were convicted.
Consequently, the conviction corresponding to Case No. 8579 is hereby officially annulled, and your innocence and full exoneration from all associated charges are declared. Any reference to said conviction will likewise be removed from your official record.
Accordingly, your permit for the possession and use of a wand, as well as your right to practise magic free of the restrictions arising from the aforementioned conviction, are restored with immediate effect.
Furthermore, in consideration of the injustice committed and the hardships suffered as a result thereof, the Ministry of Magic has resolved to grant you extraordinary compensation of three hundred Galleons.
Finally, as an additional measure of reparation, you are granted special dispensation to resume your studies at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, should you wish to do so.
This ruling shall enter into force as of the date indicated above.
Yours sincerely,
Cornelius Fudge
Minister for Magic
...
"
Hagrid stared at the letter in his hands, stunned, unable to believe the words he was reading. Without noticing, tears had begun spilling from the corners of his eyes. He gripped the letter tighter, nearly crumpling it in his enormous hands.
** Cleared his throat **
** Deep breath **
"Fifty years..."
His enormous frame shook slightly before he finally let out a deep sigh and lowered the letter.
Bloom, too, was left thoughtful and a little moved after reading the letter and watching Hagrid's reaction.
Hagrid: "Hmm? Cough, cough. Bloom? What are you doing here?"
Quickly hiding his emotion, Hagrid noticed Bloom's small figure floating beside him.
Bloom then realized she'd forgotten to stay hidden again. Not that she had to, but it seemed odd for her to be there.
With few other options, all she could do was what she always did.
** Tinkle Tinkle **
Hagrid: "Hmm, maybe you'd like something to eat? I've got a bit of nectar here, the kind fairies tend to like. Come on, sit down..."
Hagrid looked around, searching for somewhere to put her, but everything in his house was too big, even for ordinary people. Where would he possibly have anything suitable for a fairy so much smaller than that?
Out of ideas, all he could do was grab a clean cup from his kitchen and line it with a small scrap of cloth he had lying around. He set her down in it before going off to find the nectar he kept in some bottle or other.
A bit clumsily, Hagrid soon had a little table set with the nectar, some tea, bread, and goat cheese. It was only once he'd served it all that he realized the piece of bread he'd given Bloom was even bigger than she was.
Hagrid: "Huh, maybe if we cut it in half... a quarter... I reckon a third will do."
Bloom looked at the two big chunks of bread and cheese, each nearly half her own size, and then at Hagrid, utterly speechless.
'Where exactly am I supposed to fit all that...?'
Hagrid realized it too, but he'd already cut it into the smallest pieces his big hands could manage. So, ignoring Bloom's look, he brought the nectar over and, at the very least, managed to pour it into a small cup he kept specifically for dealing with tiny creatures.
Bloom eyed the nectar with a mix of curiosity and longing. She'd never tried it before, but it smelled wonderful... like flowers. She could feel her mouth watering.
Without much ceremony, she tore off a piece of the huge chunk of bread and cheese in front of her and ate, washing it down with the cup of nectar.
The moment she took a sip of the nectar, her eyes lit up with surprise.
'This is delicious. How have I never tried anything like this before?'
Hagrid: "Tastes good, doesn't it? Takes a bit of work to gather that much, but it's got a mild flavor, real pleasant, a little sweet. Sometimes it's got different notes to it, depending on which flowers I collect it from."
** Tinkle Tinkle **
Bloom nodded, thoroughly pleased, finding it wonderful, much to Hagrid's delight.
They talked for a while, as Hagrid sipped his own tea. Well, it was mostly Hagrid talking and Bloom listening, occasionally answering with a little chime, but those were just details.
After a while, with nothing else happening, Bloom said her goodbyes and left.
Hagrid put everything away as he watched Bloom's small figure fly off. He fell into thought, remembering the long row of signatures on the letter.
One in particular, not one you'd usually expect to see there, came to mind because of Bloom's presence.
He wasn't like the others. He'd spent his whole life caring for magical creatures, and he could see the intelligence shining in those eyes, and even in the way she carried herself.
He wasn't entirely sure what was going on with her, whatever she was, but he knew at least that it wasn't something simple.
.-.
Extimum's room.
** Fwoosh **
Extimum: "How did it go?"
Bloom: "Not bad at all. Today I tried something delicious I'd never had before. Nectar, we need to get some next time we go shopping."
Extimum: "Nectar? I'll keep that in mind, but I was asking about the other matter."
Bloom: "I know. About that... am I right in guessing it had to do with a letter that came for Hagrid?"
Extimum: "Yes."
Bloom: "Hmm, that was pretty shocking. I had no idea Hagrid had been blamed for Moaning Myrtle's death, but thankfully he was cleared of everything today and his name's been washed clean. They even gave him compensation, and the chance to go back and finish his studies at Hogwarts if he wants."
Extimum: "Hmm."
Bloom: "That actually reminds me... you once said something about 'the corruption of the wizarding world,' and something about not being a crusader for justice, among other things. Is this what you meant, this whole time?"
Extimum blinked slightly.
"You remember that quite well... But yes, this is exactly what I meant."
Bloom: "But I still don't understand. How? And why? And don't give me that line about doing a good deed."
Extimum: "I already told you before. It was simply something I wanted to do; there doesn't have to be some grand reason behind it. Sometimes we just do things... because we feel like it."
Bloom clearly wasn't buying it. Everything in this world had a reason, even if it was obscure or ridiculous; there had to be something behind it, not something as simple as just wanting to, because even wanting to, in her mind, had a reason behind it to her mind, had a reason behind it.
Especially since Extimum and Hagrid weren't close. That was what bothered her most.
Bloom: "Hmm, you've been keeping a lot of secrets from me lately. But fine, you've told me the why, so what about the how?"
Extimum: "That one's simpler, I sent a letter to Mr. Malfoy. Don't-"
Bloom: "Not that. You pulled some strings to get the case reopened, and then, conveniently, things happened afterward that just so happened to prove he'd been innocent the whole time. That's too much of a coincidence."
Extimum looked at her in silence for a moment. A faint smile crept onto his lips, growing more pronounced by the second.
"Aren't you observant."
Bloom felt a sudden chill at the sight of that uncommon smile.
Extimum: "I knew... because I saw it."
Bloom: "A vision?" She immediately thought of it. After her Divination lessons, she'd grown a bit more familiar with things like that.
Odd as it was, it wasn't impossible. Besides, Extimum had been showing some talent in that area.
Extimum stayed silent for a moment before answering.
"Something like that."
Bloom: "But then why did you ask me to go watch near Hagrid's cabin without any more details?"
Extimum: "I simply didn't know how the news would be delivered."
.
Some weeks passed.
?: "This... is electricity."
** Bzzzzt **
An electric arc shot out from the wand and struck an iron rod buried in a plant pot.
A sharp crackle rang through the room. Several students jumped in their seats, and some even leaned back at the sight of the small sparks still crawling over the rod.
?: "We know it simply as lightning, but Muggles have learned to generate it themselves in order to..."
The woman standing at the front of the class walked over to a table crowded with objects that, at first glance, seemed to have nothing to do with each other. There were wires of different sizes, small pieces of metal, a strange box covered in buttons, and, alongside it all, a lamp.
Approaching the lamp, she flipped the switch.
** Click **
The bulb lit up at once.
?: "They use it to make light. This, for instance, is a lamp that runs entirely on electricity. The energy travels along this wire and, when we flip the switch, it makes its way up to this little bulb we see here, and... voilà! The light comes on."
A few students murmured to each other, eyeing the strange device on the table along with the wires.
Burbage lifted the lamp slightly so everyone could get a better look.
"Remember this well: electricity is the cornerstone on which almost all Muggle inventions are built. From the lights in the streets to the most basic devices in the home."
A hand went up among the students.
?: "But Professor Burbage, how do they generate lightning if they don't have magic?"
Burbage smiled.
Burbage: "That's the most interesting part. They have several methods. Generally, they have places they call power plants, where they harness the movement of water, the power of strong winds, burn fuel, or make use of sunlight."
?: "I still don't understand how that generates electricity."
Burbage: "Don't worry, Timothy, the details aren't as simple as they seem. Suffice it to say that even Muggles themselves don't know how most of the things they use work; they just know how to use them."
Timothy: "Ha, so they use electricity but don't know how to make it?"
Burbage: "Oh? Then tell me, Timothy, do you know how to make a flying broomstick? Or a set of wizard's chess?"
Timothy: "No... but it's all based on magic. If I were a few years older, I'd at least understand all the concepts, and with a bit of study, I could probably manage it."
Burbage: "Very well, but then you're not so different from Muggles after all. They may not know how it's generated, but they study too, and by the time they finish, they understand at least the underlying concepts of how their own technology works. And if they specialize, they can even go on to build it themselves."
Timothy: "Ugh."
A few students let out a small laugh.
Burbage: "Well, we've wandered off a bit. What matters here, as we've been covering in previous classes, is understanding the everyday logic Muggles use to get by in their world. The things they use, how they use them, and why they use them. Don't forget that."
Burbage set the lamp back down on the table and picked up one of the wires.
"Now then, as I was saying, electricity is able to power a very wide range of devices..."
Extimum jotted down a few notes, mostly for appearances, though some concepts here and there escaped him. The rest, at least, he already understood, maybe even a bit better than the professor herself.
It wasn't that the explanation was wrong, but Burbage limited herself to explaining just enough for her students to grasp the general idea. Extimum, on the other hand, still held on to a few fragmented memories of similar things, and could recognize several of the objects from the rare visits he'd made to the non-magical world.
Even so, there were too many gaps.
This had been one of the things that originally motivated him to sign up for the class, although... after his little adventure in the cave with Draco, the reasoning behind it had shifted somewhat.
He wanted to understand how wizards saw Muggles.
Then again, he liked the professor's particular attitude. She truly didn't see Muggles as inferior, just different. That was a somewhat novel outlook, and a good one for a professor teaching this particular subject.
It was especially important for young wizards to understand how to communicate with people from the non-magical world, particularly without coming across as complete lunatics, which, to be fair, was partly understandable.
Many of the curricula for teaching this subject were terribly out of date, teaching antiquated customs that came across as bizarre to people of the current era, not to mention the vast cultural gap and difference in worldview that already set them apart.
For someone who'd grown up completely cut off from them, even something as simple as a lamp could look like some strange piece of magic.
And it wasn't as though similar things didn't exist in the wizarding world. On the contrary, they had lamps too, but they ran on a completely different principle.
If someone looked inside the newer models that didn't run on candles or some kind of fuel, they might find Lumos charms carved into the inside, strange magical minerals that glowed at the touch of magic, or any number of methods wizards had come up with.
The very idea of what constituted a mechanism was completely different between the two. This became especially clear whenever a wizard took something from the non-magical world and made it run on magic instead, adapting it to their own methods.
** Dong Dong Dong **
Burbage: "You may go."
Packing up his things, Extimum got ready to leave.
Hermione: "Why do you only pretend to take notes? Doesn't what the professor's saying interest you?"
Extimum: "No, it's just that I already understand it, so there's no need to write it down. Keeping such a close eye on me, are you?"
Hermione: "Hmph, who's keeping an eye on you? I already understand what the professor's explaining too. I come from the non-magical world, after all. I only took this class because I wanted to understand how people in the magical community see the world I come from."
As they talked, they made their way out of the classroom.
The Muggle Studies classroom was on the first floor, a room specially designed and adapted to insulate and make use of Muggle equipment without it getting damaged or ceasing to work because of the castle's high concentration of magic.
Extimum: "Then our reasons aren't so different after all."
Hermione: "Hmm?"
Extimum: "By the way..."—He glanced quickly around the corridor —"it's your turn to keep the Time-Turner. Here."
Taking off the chain that had been half-hidden beneath his clothes, he pulled out the Time-Turner and slipped it over Hermione's neck.
Hermione: "Already? Wow, it feels like time's just flying by, which is ironic, given our days are a bit longer than everyone else's."
She adjusted the chain and also hid it beneath her clothes.
'It's warm.'
Extimum looked into her eyes, thoughtful. His voice came out softly.
"Today…"
«…»
"Today…"
«…»
Hermione: "Today…?" she asked in the same soft tone, caught somewhere between confusion and expectation.
Extimum's gaze lowered from her eyes to her mouth, tracing her lips before lingering for a moment on her neck.
Then it rose again, from her neck to her lips and finally back to her eyes.
One of his hands reached toward her. He took Hermione's hand gently, caressing her fingers before finally bringing their palms together.
Hermione's concentration was torn between that gaze and what was happening between their hands
Extimum: "You look…"
«…»
The distance between them narrowed, and before either of them realized it, Extimum had left a chaste kiss on her cheek, close to her mouth.
He pulled away, taking a step back. His gaze showed a hint of confusion.
Extimum: "Well… see you at dinner. I have some experiments to do."
With that, he disappeared around the next corridor.
Hermione remained there, motionless, entranced and confused. She brought the palm that had moments before been suspended in the air to her face, touching the place where she had felt the kiss.
...
Near the Black Lake, in a secluded spot by the shore.
Extimum sat on a sheet spread across the grass, with a notebook densely filled with words, notes, and drawings in front of him, and his wand lying beside him.
His gaze remained fixed on the notebook for a few moments, but his attention wasn't really there.
'What happened there?'
His gaze drifted slightly towards the lake.
Everything had been very strange. It was as if his mind had... become distracted, as though it had shut down
A look. A touch. A kiss.
But... how did he get there?
Everything had happened too quickly. He felt strange, as though he hadn't been entirely himself, acting on impulse.
His brow was deeply furrowed.
He couldn't find anything that explained what had happened.
Shaking his head, he pushed the matter aside for later. He wouldn't get anywhere with it right now.
Now he had something important to do.
He turned his attention back to the notebook.
"Everything should be fine. Some of these concepts even build on what I've studied in spatial magic, so I shouldn't run into trouble."
He reached out to take his wand, but the moment he touched it, he stopped and finally drew his hand back.
"This is different from spatial magic. According to the book, it's an extremely regulated branch of magic. It wouldn't be wise to cast it with my wand, which still bears its trace, especially not for what I'm about to do."
"Doing it without a wand would make it considerably harder... but... let's give it a try."
He moved his notebook and wand behind him before settling into a more comfortable position on the ground, then closed his eyes.
He brought his hands together as if in prayer and concentrated.
Several magical formulae passed through his mind as he repeatedly revised his understanding of them.
Then, he stopped.
The area took on an almost unnatural stillness. The marine life normally active in the area seemed to have moved away, and the wind had stopped blowing.
He spread his fingers apart and then extended his hands in front of him, while what appeared to be a strange distortion emerged in space.
A sudden gust of wind swept past him, ruffling his hair.
He had given intense thought to how to apply what he'd learned about time magic. At first, he'd seen time as a navigable dimension, one where he could move forward, backward, or even... stop time altogether.
These were the applications that seemed the most logical and immediate, given the nature of the dimension itself, though that didn't make them exactly simple to carry out.
Going deeper still, perhaps he could even stretch time from one point to another by some indeterminate amount, and right there, the applications only started getting more complicated.
There were applications for each of the three simplest aspects. Only, apart from the Time-Turner, which allowed one to go back in time, the other two tended to go unnoticed in simpler things.
Like the Stasis Charm, commonly used to preserve all sorts of things, or the aging cabinet, which, rare as it was, still had a few examples in circulation, capable of shortening time, or rather, advancing the time, for whatever was placed inside it.
Still, no matter how it was presented to him, the underlying principles were too complex for his current understanding.
So... why try to give it shape?
His first experiment with time magic wasn't about creating some spell or charm that did something complicated but rather... about making it manifest.
Yes.
The moment he opened his somewhat heavy-lidded eyes and looked at the space in front of him, what he saw was... magical.
No.
That was perhaps not the best way to put it, seeing as it already was magic.
The space in front of him, no more than a meter or two, seemed to warp in layers.
Beyond it, there was nothing but a few wildflowers before the inevitable slope that descended toward the lake's shore.
But those same flowers, small and white, the kind that would go unnoticed most of the time...
Could be seen now.
No, not just the now.
He could see the now, the before, and the after.
In what looked like overlapping waves, he thought he could see the barren earth, then covered in grass, the sprouting of a seedling, its blooming, its decay, and the tiny particles carried off on the wind toward some other patch of earth, where they would finally take root.
All in the same place.
In the same moment.
They weren't images layered on top of each other. It was as though time itself had become visible, and for an instant, Extimum could behold the different currents flowing through that one place.
Sweat began to cover his body as his outstretched hands grew heavy under the incredible strain of what he was barely able to control.
Finally, he stopped.
He drew back his hands, and then, with a sigh and a gust of wind, Extimum fell backward onto the sheet.
He felt utterly exhausted, but at the same time, pleased.
He'd done it.
He had made time manifest, and beyond that, confirmed his understanding of the subject, giving him the confidence to attempt more.
It took him a while to get up, worn out as he was. Though he was used to practicing wandless magic and had grown fairly skilled at it over time, he usually kept it to simple and intermediate spells, sometimes striving for refinement, not magic this complicated and, at the same time, this demanding in raw power.
He turned his gaze back toward that flower, but then... he stopped.
Because there was no flower there.
He frowned on instinct.
The flower had been there just seconds ago. He was sure of it. He'd seen it well before he'd cast the spell, but now there was no flower to be seen in that patch of Grass.
'Maybe... it just couldn't withstand that much power?'
The idea struck him as doubtful, unconvincing. As far as he understood it, time didn't manifest purely as energy that could, say, blow the flower apart or reduce it to dust.
Then again, it wasn't as though he'd experienced it himself, so he couldn't be entirely sure what the flower had gone through.
Setting those thoughts aside, he got up, packed away his things, and straightened his clothes before walking off with a new goal in mind.
'Let's go do some business.'