Chapter 20: The First Days

I found Ariel in the great hall, chatting with a man. To my surprise, I was actually pleased by this. Finally, she was starting to live her own life. Maybe my going off to school had lifted that heavy burden of responsibility from her shoulders. Or maybe I was just imagining things.

"Hello, are you my future dad?" I couldn't help myself — the joke just slipped out.

"Arthur, what are you saying? This is Monsieur Ludwig von Schroeder, he's the 'Care of Magical Creatures' teacher here at Beauxbatons."

The man's surname amused me — it means "tailor" in translation. Not that mine is any better. Ludwig, despite his friendly face, looked more like a blacksmith or a wrestler: broad, sturdy, and his beard only added to his ruggedness.

"Well, I don't mind! I didn't know you liked such big guys," I teased her.

"By the way, what's that on your shoulder? Is that a fairy?" she asked, noticing the little creature chirping in my ear.

"Yeah, she latched on and won't get off. Just keeps chewing sweets," I replied, handing the fairy another piece of Turkish delight. What a glutton — so tiny, but she eats like there's no tomorrow!

Then I extended my hand to Ludwig, which looked like a doll's compared to his.

"Arthur Marlow. I'm a boy, just so you know."

"I already figured that out," he said after I gave him a firm handshake. Not to break his hand, just a normal, masculine shake — which, coming from me, probably surprised him. "And I'd say you're not a boy, but already a man. And since the fairy likes you, your heart must be pure."

"Thanks for the compliment. Pleased to meet you."

Then I turned to Ariel. "Well then, Mom, I'm off to meet my roommates, find Patrick and Apolline, and let you two handle your adult business."

I hugged her and ran off before it could turn into tears and clinging. Mischief accomplished — joy in my heart. They can't always be matchmaking me with Apolline. I'll be a matchmaker myself for once.

This big guy has a pure soul, so he's probably a good man. And his surface thoughts weren't overflowing with lustful ideas, which is rare, considering Ariel is a veela.

My friends found me quickly — or rather, they found me.

"Wow, how adorable! Where did you find that?" Apolline ran up and started examining the miniature girl with dragonfly wings on my shoulder. The fairy squeaked, trying to sound threatening, and hid her candy behind her back. That only made her even cuter.

"No, hands off private property. Where I found her, there are no more — a single specimen. Honestly, I don't even know, she jumped on me herself and started chirping. The prefect suggested feeding her, so she got attached," I explained.

"If you don't need her, maybe you'll give her to me?" Apolline asked, her eyes shining with hope. The fairy immediately hid behind my ear, trembling.

"No, I'm used to being responsible for those I've tamed, even if I didn't want to at first. Since she chose me, I'll take care of her."

I gently took the chirping fairy in my hand and petted her. She started fighting with my finger, but it was a hopeless battle.

"If you want, let's go to the conservatory — maybe someone will like you too. Patrick, you coming?"

"Yeah, let's go." What a sly fox — pretending he wasn't interested.

But neither he, nor disappointed Apolline, nor I had any luck, and soon we headed to the feast, chatting about this and that.

***

The parents had already left, and I sighed with relief. If it weren't for that conveniently timed conversation partner, Ariel probably wouldn't have left until dinner — she's too attached to me.

On one hand, that's good: I could get away with things no other mother would allow. On the other hand, I don't want to be her nanny forever. She needs to live her own life. The fact that she's starting to make friends is a good sign.

I felt no jealousy — what's the point of being jealous of someone who replaced your mother? That's just gross.

***

When we returned to the great hall, I barely recognized it. The room had changed so much. In the center, round tables had appeared, each seating ten. Dishes floated to students with just a wave of the hand.

People divided themselves by all sorts of parameters — blood purity, age, gender — though there were mixed tables too. Ours was one of those.

I was hungry, so I grabbed two steaks, some vegetable salad, and a refreshing drink with mint.

"Arthur, won't you burst?" Patrick joked, sitting to my left. Not many had seen how much I could eat when I wasn't holding back.

"Want to bet?" The others at the table perked up, listening in.

"How much?"

"A galleon?" I didn't want to rob him — that would be unfair. I knew I could eat even more.

"Let's make it ten if you eat four steaks!" my reckless friend suggested.

"Boy, if you eat four steaks, I'll give you twenty!" laughed an upperclassman. Judging by his size, he was either a werewolf or a half-giant. More likely the latter, judging by his aura.

"What's all the noise, but no fight?" a guy from another table called over to the big one.

"This first-year boasted he could eat four steaks on a bet! I said if he does, I'll give him twenty galleons."

"Oh really? This little guy? I'm in too!"

Apparently, entertainment here was lacking, because soon the bet had grown to over 150 galleons. Even the girls were betting, which I hadn't expected.

"Oh, I love easy money," I said, and calmly started eating one steak after another, not choking, not even slowing down. No sign of discomfort. Yoga and metamorphism for the win.

***

"I don't believe it! Where did it all go? He's so skinny and small! Confess, boy, did you use magic?" one of the losers protested.

"I saw everything. The boy didn't touch his wand — he earned it fair and square. Well, you entertained us, little guy. Anyone disagree?"

Everyone ended up smiling. Losing money is never fun, but a bet's a bet, and now they had a new story to tell. As for me? I didn't mind the attention — it was friendly, like, "he's one of us."

After the hearty dinner, the headmistress stood up again and wished us good night and told us not to misbehave. So we went off to bed.

Actually, I never really get tired. Sure, mental fatigue builds up, but I'd have to go a week without sleep for that. I can always replace sleep with lying meditation. It doesn't matter what position I gather ether in or train.

Fortunately, there's a canopy over the bed, and I cast extra attention-diverting spells, sound dampening, and a simple alarm to wake me or warn me if anyone approaches. I won't risk training Sumerian charms at school, but this kind of training shouldn't attract attention.

***

"Did you see?" one first-year asked another on the way to the shower. "A girl went into the shower!"

"That was a guy, I saw the uniform. And did you forget about the prohibition? How would a girl get in here?" the second replied.

"I'm telling you, it was a girl!" the first insisted.

"Then go check, why are you bothering me?"

"How about you go? I'm embarrassed."

"And what are you suggesting? Look at his… thing?"

"No, I mean yes… how about I give you a galleon and you look?" the first offered, curiosity eating him alive.

"Five, and don't tell anyone. It's embarrassing." If the first wasn't his friend, he'd have refused.

***

Five minutes later.

A guy walked out of the shower, towel over his shoulder, shirt in hand. His face was so pretty he could easily be mistaken for a girl, but his strong, sinewy body left no doubt. A minute later, the second boy came out, pale and stunned.

"Well? How was it?" the first asked.

"He's… huge!" the second stammered.

"Who's huge?" the first didn't get it.

"Never mind, he's definitely a guy. One hundred — no, two hundred percent. And you owe me ten galleons!"

"Hey, we agreed on five!"

"For what I saw, even ten isn't enough!"

***

Kids will be kids. Though they really shouldn't try to compare themselves to a metamorph — it's a painful blow to the ego. I was amused by the boy who pretended he absolutely wasn't staring at me.

Back in my room, I quickly changed into my uniform and went to breakfast. It runs from six to eight, and classes start at eight sharp.

I had breakfast — jam sandwiches, bacon, and eggs — then Arthur came over and pointed to the board by the entrance to the great hall. The schedule for all courses for the week was posted there — very convenient. He warned us that the first week might have changes, so it was best to check the board every day. He also led us to our first lesson: the castle is huge, and it's easy to get lost at first.

Our first two lessons were illusions. In first and second year, the subjects are: illusions, astronomy, charms, basics of combat magic, potions, history of magic, herbology, transfiguration, and as electives: flying, etiquette, and dancing.

From third year, you can choose more electives, but more on that later.

I didn't pick any extras: etiquette I can read about, flying — I can do that myself in harpy form, and I'm good on a broom too, nothing complicated there. Dancing? I'd rather take a couple of lessons and, thanks to my coordination and memory, remember the moves than spend a whole year on it. Besides, nothing stops me from taking them later.

***

I was already sitting at a desk in the third row, center, when an old man with a kindly face entered. He had wide sideburns and a mustache. Despite his age, he moved smoothly, like a dancer or a duelist, and you wouldn't call him old — especially with that mischievous gleam in his eyes. He clearly loved his subject, and children too. Later, I'd learn it was both.

"Hello, children, my name is Florentin Umbran, and I teach the wonderful subject of illusions. Maybe it's not as useful as transfiguration, or as formidable as combat magic, but it's beautiful and deceptive in its beauty. Deceive an opponent or delight your friends, turn a hovel into a palace or hide a priceless treasure under a pile of junk — all this and more is possible with illusions.

Now, open your books to page four. I'll tell you about safety in lessons and what to do in case of accidents."

A good teacher — he managed to get the students interested before moving on to the necessary but boring safety rules, which he spiced up with funny and not-so-funny stories from practice. Like the time a student accidentally made his cat invisible and spent a week looking for it.

***

Speaking of pets — the fairy was brazenly sleeping in my chest pocket, and before that, she hadn't wanted to leave me, even in the bathroom. I hadn't had time to deal with her yet, so I decided to put it off until evening.

The lesson was fun, but honestly, useless for me. But I get it — school isn't made for people like me, adult reincarnates who by age eleven have finished the whole course and read almost all the extra literature.

So I just cast a simple illusion of a first-year textbook over "Advanced Courses in Combat Charms" by some Flitwick and read that during the lesson. My trick didn't go unnoticed, though. When I was leaving, I was asked to stay behind.

"I understand, Mister…"

"Marlow. Arthur Marlow, Monsieur Umbran."

"So, I see you're not interested in my lessons, judging by the illusion you used, but I hope you'll be more careful. Magic is not a toy."

"I understand perfectly and didn't mean to offend you." I winced, remembering how many times I'd had to heal myself from burns, torn limbs, and other injuries from failed spells. "I just finished the whole first-year course at home long ago."

"Well, if you answer well in class, help your classmates, and do the homework, I'll turn a blind eye to outside reading during my lessons," he told me.

"Thank you," I replied simply. Only one question nagged at me. "How did you know I was reading another book?"

He just waved his wand, creating a reflective surface in the air. I had to laugh — the simplest solutions are always the best.

***

At lunch, my fairy woke up and started demanding something tasty, so I gave her a bowl of jam. She almost dove in headfirst, but I managed to grab her and tried to show her how to eat with her hands. She just chirped in response.

That annoyed me, so I carefully sent her a mental image of how I eat, replacing myself with the fairy. It worked. She squatted down and started scooping up apple jam with her hands. I poured warm water into a shallow glass for her, sending her an image of washing hands. But the pest just plopped in and started bathing and splashing in the mug.

"Did the girl find herself a girlfriend?" came a voice from behind.

I turned and saw Delacour. I turned back, saying,

"You didn't get the message last time? And where did you find the courage? From your lovers?"

"What did you say?"

"Oh, so you're deaf too? Then I apologize, I don't insult the disabled."

"I'll tear you apart, veela spawn!" he raged, but his buddies held him back. Attacking in public would not go unpunished.

I stood up and walked over, keeping my personal protection ready. It's a complex spell — I can only hold one at a time, and it takes a while to cast, but it's worth it. It can block any attack. Absolutely any.

"Well, come on, attack! Here I am. Why are you hiding behind your buddies? Or can you only talk big, like a girl?" I wanted to punch him for his rotten words, but I held back.

Even if he's stupid, he's still a kid, and we're in public. Delacour is only this brave because the teachers haven't come to lunch yet.

"Jean, he's provoking you!" his friend said. "We'll deal with him later, when he's not so brave."

"Pff, you're right," the little bastard admitted, agreeing with his more sensible friend. He just snorted and left, not getting the reaction he wanted and seeing the prefect watching us, ready to intervene.

If he tries anything, he'll get his ass kicked. Judging by his look, it's only a matter of time and place.

***

A few minutes later, Apolline and Patrick came over, and we chatted about our first impressions. Patrick said the old transfiguration teacher had left, and now there was a new, young teacher. Apolline looked like she was dying to tell me something, but since I don't make a habit of digging through my friends' minds, I didn't find out what.

But the second lesson surprised me. When I walked into the classroom, even I was speechless. All I could manage was:

"Mom?"

***

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Thank you for the help with the power stones!!!