A Progress Check-In

(Seras POV)

I had been attending Snape's lessons for a few months now. Over that time, the rapport between my godfather and me had changed. I had started to think of him almost like a second father, spending many times as much time with the man as with my own father. I like to think that Snape saw me as something similar to his daughter as well. Draco was always going to be closest with our parents; he relied on them for everything. I doubt my brother would be able to weasel his way into such a great relationship with Snape, and when we get to Hogwarts in the future, this relationship will begin to pay dividends. My father mentioned at the dinner table that a few purebloods of the lesser Hogwarts houses had complained that Snape had acted biased towards their children when giving and taking points, and it was not in their favor. I had a hard time believing that only Snape was biased for his house. If anything, in a school controlled by someone who is in a constant battle with the rich purebloods who had just waged war against him, it would be completely shocking if no punitive actions were taken against the Slytherin house.

I am pretty convinced already that I was going to be a Slytherin. It is said that if you are incredibly ambitious, you will end up in Slytherin; it doesn't matter what other qualities you possess, as all those are a part of reaching your ambitions. I have had the goal to become the strongest since I was born. Painfully dying makes it so that painfully dying again is at the bottom of your goals. I also want the magical world to undergo advancement. For someone whose entire first life was dedicated to engineering and logic, being stuck in a place where neither of those seems to be given importance is maddening. I will be a Slytherin, there is simply no doubt in my mind. Also, pretty much every member of my family on all sides has been a Slytherin. There is clearly some sort of bloodline thing for Hogwarts houses; if there wasn't, then the "incompetent Weasleys," as my father calls them, "who know only to lick the boots of mudbloods," would not have entered any house outside of Hufflepuff. Of course, my father hates them with a passion, and his description might not be fair, but Snape seems to have a similar opinion on the family, and he is much more rational.

The progress I have made over the last few months is clearly shocking to those around me. The patent that my father applied for under a pseudonym was accepted. The name "Nyx" now had a patent under their name. No last name was required, apparently. I guess many wizards who want to get things patented want to keep a low profile. I have mixed feelings about this aspect of wizarding society. There are many "hidden masters" out there who not only have strong personal power due to using mana for long periods of their lives but are currently pushing the wizarding world further through new discoveries. At the same time, they live very private lives, stockpiling knowledge that isn't always shared with the public. This is currently to my benefit in this case, so I shouldn't complain. My father then proceeded to bring up how more lights could improve crime-stopping measures in Diagon Alley. The community, which had just been in a quasi-war for a long time and has since seen mass displacement of dark wizards trying to find a way to restart the lives they lived before, has seen increases in crime. My design for the lamps was chosen as a cost-effective measure, and a Gringotts vault in my name has seen an influx of galleons due to me selling the ability to use this design to the Ministry. The best part for me was that they didn't outright buy the patent and instead just paid to use it. This would allow me to commercialize the patent later on while making money now through a government contract despite me not owning a company.

When it comes to strengthening my own body, I am able to report exponential growth. Despite being a little over 1 and a half years old, I have roughly the same strength as a child closer to 12. My magical strength is on par with 13-year-olds; I could probably compete in the amount of magical power I have with the average student who just finished their 2nd year. I also appear to be a bit older than I am, beginning to look physically like a 4-year-old. The biggest reason for the increase in growth has been due to potion-making. I had spoken to my godfather about the fact that I consume a massive amount of calories compared to a normal child, and this has allowed me to get stronger much faster. With Snape's help, I have created potions that act like condensed meal supplements. I believe that in the future, there may be a market for this. Wizards already go through more calories than the average human, and more powerful wizards will probably need more calories. This potion is constantly being improved by both of us as a long-term project for me. Snape will drop hints on what could maybe improve it, and I will then try to make it better during lessons. This, mixed with my "mastery" over the easier-to-make version of the Wiggenweld healing potion, has allowed me to constantly heal the taxed muscles and features of the body.

The increase in money due to my patent being used in some nepotism project has allowed me to learn how to order materials. Surprisingly enough, I think this is the first thing I have ever learned after Draco. My mother is a bit of a spendthrift. Of course, the mixture of Malfoy and Black fortunes can more than take the hit. There is a near-constant ordering of various knick-knacks, beauty products, and art supplies being sent to our manor by owl. Draco had managed to learn how to order things from mail catalogs before being able to write his own name. In fact, the first thing he ever learned to write was "Malfoy." When two unaccounted-for glow-in-the-dark flying Quidditch figures showed up one morning during breakfast, my mother put two and two together. Draco was sternly talked to about this, but he had finally completed his Quidditch team. He now just needed someone to play against.

I had been ordering materials recently to allow myself to continue practicing my runes and circuits. I had been able to figure out how to make a number counter and, using a time rune, had been able to build a pseudo-digital clock. The problem was learning to create some form of digital display, which would take a lot longer. I also ordered much more paint and the materials needed to start making portrait-based artifacts. I even bought the most up-to-date how-to book on the subject. I had a novel idea for entertainment in this world, and it may be the first step in making millions.