Opening Salvo (IV) (CH - 157)
"Not too shabby, Minerva…"
Olympe Maxime stepped forward and extended her hand in greeting, her eyes drifting up and down Professor McGonagall's sleek attire—quite different from the familiar tartan she remembered.
McGonagall made no fuss about being inspected like a dress mannequin. She accepted the compliment with a polite nod.
"Thank you, Headmistress," she replied crisply. Then, with a quick glance to either side of the towering witch, she added, "Good to see you again, Igor. Volkov."
She offered the two men a cordial smile. "Apologies if we've kept you waiting."
"Nonsense. You're just in time," said Maxime, brushing aside the apology with a wave of her hand. She glanced at Steven and gave him a warm smile before finally letting her eyes settle on Maverick.
The corner of her lips twitched, ever so slightly, as their eyes met—an involuntary smile slipping through.
"I take it... all zis is your idea?" she asked, nodding toward the gleaming Airbus towering behind him. Her gaze briefly flicked over the students, who were exiting in a neat line and assembling behind McGonagall, Maverick, and Steven.
At the same time, a stir of murmurs and exclamations rippled through the gathered crowd, especially at the sight of the fourteen Hogwarts players in their sleek, perfectly coordinated suits. The sharp cuts and matching colors made them look less like schoolchildren and more like a professional team.
Maverick didn't answer the question. Instead, he returned a knowing smirk, matching the one Maxime had given him. Seeing that he wasn't going to respond, Maxime merely shrugged and added, "If you plan to keep that large thing next to my beautiful lawn, I expect compensation…"
Cough!
McGonagall cleared her throat at Maxime's remark. "Well, once all the students have exited, the Muggle machine shall leave," she said, casting a sidelong glance at Maverick. "Right?"
"Sure," Maverick replied casually neither confirming nor denying.
They continued to exchange a few pleasantries as the students filed out of the aircraft. Once the last of them—Bucky—stepped down, Maverick turned without a word and walked toward the towering Airbus.
"Good job," he murmured in passing, giving the Winter Soldier a brief nod before rising slowly into the air. His coat fluttered in the breeze as he levitated upward, one hand outstretched until his fingers touched the smooth metal frame of the A330.
"What's he doing?" Igor Karkaroff asked.
McGonagall glanced at Steven, who simply shrugged and gestured that he hadn't the faintest idea. Her attention returned to Maverick. This wasn't part of the script she had discussed with him.
While feeling the cold, metallic surface of the aircraft beneath his fingertips, Maverick's mind slipped into his independent, expanded dimension.
One thousand cubic meters. That was the volume of space his system had replicated as an extraordinary characteristic from Newt Scamander's magical suitcase. And right now, apart from a few essential items, his 'cheat' space was practically empty.
The Airbus was massive... but not bigger than the volume of space inside. Not even close."
His magic enveloped the metallic titan almost immediately with a thought. Then, in the astonished, wide eyes of all the students, the headmasters, staff, and even Maxime, 'Woosh!'—the sound was sharp, like a snap slicing through the air. One moment the massive aircraft was there, and the next, it had simply... disappeared."
This wasn't the first time he had tested putting large objects into his system space. He had tested the limits of the extraordinary characteristic long ago and knew exactly what he was doing.
Smiling to himself, he turned and began to descend once more. But just before he touched the ground, a wave of exclamations erupted from ahead as everyone finally processed what they had just witnessed.
They saw, but none of them understood. Only the Archmage, with her keen senses, detected the subtle fluctuations in space. Still, she wasn't entirely sure of what had just happened and could only guess.
When Maverick walked back toward them, he saw the group looking at him with a mix of expressions. Mostly, it was shock—mingled with curiosity, implying they all wanted answers.
Fortunately for them, Maxime didn't beat around the bush and asked what was on everyone's mind directly.
"Was that space magic? Surely a ring can't accommodate enough expanded volume for something as massive as a Muggle aircraft."
Maverick gave her a smirk. So nosy.
But he had no intention of hiding it either—well, not entirely. He simply shrugged, raised his hand to show the ring on his finger, and added casually, "As a master alchemist, I happen to be quite good with space expansion magic. So... I made a little something with enough room to carry my stuff."
"Stuff?"
Everyone who heard him twitched their brows.
"You call a two-hundred-foot-long, two-hundred-foot-wide aircraft... stuff?"
Maxime nodded slowly, a glint of intrigue—and just a hint of greed—in her eyes.
"I'm fairly certain that breaks the record for the largest expanded space ever fitted into a ring that size."
Not necessarily... Maverick quickly shook his head. "I've seen objects with much, much larger expanded spaces, like my friend Scamander's suitcase."
When they heard the argument, they nodded. Of course, being influential figures in their own right, they had naturally heard of Scamander's outrageously expanded space suitcase.
But still, expanding the dimensions inside a ring to a volume large enough to accommodate... She paused, smiled, and then added, "You must make one for me, Monsieur."
Maverick shook his head again.
"First of all, it's not even close to Mr. Scamander's suitcase space," he said, gesturing to the ring once again. "This is spacially crafted to fit the Airbus, and the Airbus alone. Even the principles behind it are completely different."
"Oh... rejected so directly," Maxime did not show any dissatisfaction, and just pouted... dramatically.
Maverick didn't care. He was just bullshitting. Master alchemist as he may be, he still didn't have the skill to expand the space of a small rock to such a degree. Suitcases or larger items are easier to expand because their initial size allows for a more stable structure when manipulated, but rings are different. The stone—or whatever material is used—is simply too small initially, making it incredibly unstable to work with space magic on such a scale.
The others, especially Volkov and Karkrof, looked at him in surprise. After all, Maverick was rejecting an Archmage to her face. Even if he was a master alchemist—or perhaps the youngest ever great mage—outright rejecting one was something they would only expect a reckless person to do.
Yes, the two of them had already more or less made up their minds. After what Maverick had done during the descent of the aircraft, they now saw him as a great mage, just like them.
Maxime simply shrugged. She wasn't that petty, and besides, unlike them, she knew Maverick wasn't just a great mage, but a rank higher—her equal.
She finally glanced over at the sea of Hogwarts students, now neatly lined up and quietly whispering things she didn't care to know, before turning her attention to McGonagall.
"Right then… Minerva." She smiled and slipped into the poised demeanor of a headmistress, then turned to the Hogwarts delegation. "Welcome... to Beauxbatons Academy of Magic."
She gave a brief but elegant speech welcoming everyone, then began leading the group toward the others. The Hogwarts supporting students blended naturally into the crowd of supporters from the other schools, while the champions made their way to a separate table to join the other selected players.
Maxime had clearly arranged it that way—Maverick guessed she wanted to foster a harmonious atmosphere by encouraging everyone to mingle and communicate before the competition officially began later that afternoon.
The welcoming ceremony went smoothly. First, the hosting headmistress delivered a speech addressed to all three arriving delegations. She explained how the players from the visiting schools would attend classes at Beauxbatons during the week. This was followed by a brief rundown of the competition rules, along with a few words of advice for the students and supporters.
Finally, she outlined the broader arrangements for the tournament—focusing especially on the Quidditch stadium, the schedule for audience arrivals, and details regarding the official opening ceremony of the competition.
After the welcoming feast, the players and professors from the visiting schools were given a tour of the academy, shown to their dormitories, and granted time to rest.
Meanwhile, the supporting students remained outside on the lawn, where everything had been arranged for them—food, resting, even washrooms—until the competition was set to begin later that afternoon."
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