The next morning in the Great Hall, Alexander looked half-dead.
His eyes were slightly red.
His movements were slow.
The first thing he did when sitting down was pull out a potion vial.
He uncorked it and drank it.
Within seconds, his eyes sharpened, and his posture straightened.
Cho stared at him with concern.
"Alex… are you okay?"
Alexander nodded.
"Yeah."
"I just didn't sleep much."
Cho frowned.
"You really need more rest."
Alexander waved his hand.
"Don't worry about it."
Then he leaned forward.
"Anyway… I read the Arithmancy textbook."
Cho's eyes widened.
"You did?!"
Alexander nodded.
"Pull out your notes."
Cho immediately grabbed her notebook from her bag.
Alexander began explaining.
Runic number relationships.
Magical arithmetic patterns.
Symbolic number loops are used in spell construction.
Cho's eyes lit up.
"Oh!"
"So that's what this formula means!"
She started writing rapidly.
Even after breakfast ended, she continued asking questions as they walked to class.
Thanks to Tom, Alexander could answer every single one.
Soon they arrived at the greenhouses.
Professor Sprout clapped her hands.
"Alright, everyone!"
"This year in Herbology, we will focus on magical plants with defensive uses and potion applications."
She pointed toward several rows of new planting beds.
"We will also be working outside the greenhouse more frequently."
Students murmured with interest.
Professor Sprout then revealed the first plant.
"Today we will begin with Pink Puffapods."
Inside the trays were small pink pods attached to leafy stems.
"These pods explode into pink smoke when touched improperly."
"Harmless smoke—but still quite messy."
Students chuckled.
She demonstrated:
Proper planting
Care techniques
How to gently harvest the pods without triggering the explosion
"Precision and patience are key."
Students began working.
Small puffs of pink smoke quickly began appearing everywhere.
"Ah! It exploded!"
"Mine too!"
But Alexander worked slowly and carefully.
He adjusted pressure.
Controlled his grip.
Used delicate magical assistance.
One pod.
Two pods.
Three pods.
None exploded.
Professor Sprout walked over and raised her eyebrows.
"Well done, Mr. Chen!"
"You're the only student to harvest them successfully."
"Twenty points to Ravenclaw!"
Alexander smiled slightly.
While working, he began thinking.
Why don't I raise defensive magical plants?
He already had plants for potion ingredients.
But plants used for defense could also be valuable.
Venomous plants.
Exploding plants.
Protective vines.
These could be useful.
Alexander nodded to himself.
I'll research some and ask my parents for seeds or transplants.
When the bell rang, students cleaned up.
Alexander kissed Cho goodbye.
Cho headed to study Arithmancy.
Alexander walked to his next elective.
Study of Ancient Runes.
When he entered the classroom, he noticed something surprising.
Older students were present.
Third years.
Fourth years.
Even fifth years.
In total, only thirty students.
Alexander blinked.
Out of thousands of students at Hogwarts, this was the only Ancient Runes class.
Then the professor entered.
Bathsheba Babbling.
She introduced herself and began lecturing.
"Ancient Runes is the study of magical linguistics and symbolic magic."
"You will learn how runes influence magical objects, enchantments, and spell structures."
She began explaining the Runic Alphabet.
At first, the lesson seemed simple.
But quickly, the complexity skyrocketed.
Symbol chains.
Rune logic.
Magical sentence structures.
Alexander continued writing.
But eventually he realized something.
I don't understand any of this.
Still, he kept writing.
Every word.
Every symbol.
Every example.
When the bell rang, Professor Babbling immediately left the classroom.
Alexander approached an older Ravenclaw student.
"Is this how class is usually taught?"
The upperclassman shrugged.
"It's normal."
"You either keep up, or you fall behind."
Then he walked away.
Alexander stood there thinking.
Interesting.
That night, after practicing spells again in the Room of Requirement, Alexander opened the diary.
"Hey, Tom."
"Let's study Ancient Runes?"
Tom's writing appeared.
Yes.
But the words looked weaker.
The ink seemed shakier and fainter.
Alexander frowned.
"Are you okay?"
Tom wrote slowly.
Lately… I have been feeling weak.
Alexander leaned forward.
"What do you need to feel better?"
Tom was silent for a moment, then he wrote:
Blood from magical creatures.
Dragon blood, if possible.
Alexander raised an eyebrow.
"Interesting. What about unicorn blood?"
Tom immediately replied.
Yes.
That works even better.
Do you have some?
Alexander went quiet, then said:
"…I do, but not too much."
Tom's writing appeared quickly.
Will you give it to me?
Alexander asked calmly.
"If I give you unicorn blood, will you teach me Ancient Runes?"
Tom replied instantly.
Yes.
Give me unicorn blood, and I will teach you.
Alexander frowned slightly.
"What kind of book needs blood?"
Tom answered:
I am a magical artifact.
Each artifact has different requirements.
For me… it is blood.
Alexander thought about it.
"That actually makes sense."
He stood up.
"Give me a moment."
Alexander cast a Disillusionment Charm and quietly left.
He ran to his dorm room.
Inside his briefcase was something he had saved from last year.
There were bottles of unicorn blood that were given to him by Hagrid.
Alexander grabbed a couple of vials and hurried back to the Room of Requirement.
He sat down and placed them beside the diary.
"This is all I have for now."
Tom wrote:
Pour it on the book.
Alexander uncorked the vials and poured them.
Silver blood flowed across the pages.
The diary absorbed it instantly.
Alexander poured all the vials of unicorn blood he had brought.
He waited for a few minutes.
"Alright, you have your blood. Now, are you ready to teach me?"
Tom replied.
Yes.
But if you can get more…
I would like more.
Alexander frowned.
"Unicorn blood is rare and hard to get."
He shrugged slightly.
"I'll see what I can do."
He opened his notebook.
"Alright."
"Let's start."