*****
When I opened the door leading to the teacher's office, all my senses were raised to the maximum, perhaps even slightly higher. Looking around, I realized that the bear was absent at the moment. And this means one thing - she is in the "secret" room, because she was not in the hospital wing itself.
Stepping into the gloomy corridor and straining my magical vision, I began to descend. Perhaps some will condemn my actions, while others, on the contrary, will approve, but I could not do otherwise.
To all concerned, I am Pomfrey's student, and not just a simple one, but a personal one. In the magical world, this means not just a lot, but a lot. This agreement includes that the student cannot disobey the teacher. Agree, if I stop communicating with her, it will look at least strange.
Why did a personal disciple decide to go against his mentor? Where is Poppy looking? Is he really a personal student? All these and many other questions may arise in people's heads, but I really don't want that.
But then why am I currently in "combat" readiness? The answer is banal - I cannot trust the elf, certainly not after that ritual. You never know what else she'll do, and I won't even have time to squeak.
If it were up to me, I wouldn't come here at all, but I can't do this for already known reasons. Moreover, Poppy knows a lot of my secrets, and if some of them are worth practically nothing (well, think about the talent, an apprentice of metamorphism at such an early age), but here is an apprentice of healing, as well as my magical vision... And if with the first it's still somehow possible -to decide, then with the last one. I don't want to fall into the clutches of the "sighted" at all.
Too significant trump cards are in the "fragile" hands of this person. Quarreling with her at the moment is more expensive for yourself. But this does not diminish the fact that I began to trust her much less.
The hall greeted me with its usual silence, as well as the strangeness of its structure. I wonder who created him like this? Poppy herself or someone before her?
The person I was looking for was (who would have thought?) in the recreation area, sitting next to a burning fireplace (a new addition to the interior? Why? Or was it here before, just somehow hidden? Hmm...) in an easy chair and sipping something- then from a cup.
Approaching her and standing so that she could notice me (although I'm sure she knew about my appearance, at least when I crossed the threshold of her office), I said:
"Good morning, teacher," he bowed his head slightly, but without taking his eyes off the woman's figure.
— For some it's good and for others it's not, right? — without looking up from the steaming liquid, she said. — Your wariness and a bit of hostility are too clearly felt. You should calm down.
I was silent. I had nothing to answer to this statement. She is absolutely right, in a good way I would relax, but I can't do it. I still don't have enough skills in the magic of the mind for this, even if my emotions are not as vivid as others.
In general, I noticed one interesting fact: if some emotion does ignite in me, it will smolder for a very long time. It's as if the soul itself is feeding these embers, trying to fan out of them long-forgotten, own feelings, and not "drawn" from others.
Alas, so far searching for information about my "problem" has yielded nothing. I spent part of the week searching for a solution to the problem (if anything, I'm talking about emotions. Somehow they went haywire). But it's okay, the answer will be found soon. Well I hope so.
"Okay," the sound of a cup hitting a saucer brought me out of my thoughts. - From your point of view, you can be understood: the "dreams" of the expedition that did not come true, frequent clashes with possible death, and the teacher also used an incomprehensible ritual on you, without your permission. I think you noticed the definition of "truth", right? — the teacher finally asked, looking up at me, this time with green eyes. After a slight pause, I nodded. "Hah, I had no doubt," smiling at something, she lowered her eyes again, slightly shaking the cup in a circle.
She fell silent again, lost in her thoughts. The flames, like prisoners, try to break free, beyond the fireplace, but alas. The only thing they could achieve was the dancing of shadows cast by various things.
- Listen. You won't believe me now, but at least you'll remember. What happened to you in the icy wasteland was not created by my hands. Everything you encountered there was both a series of accidents and the actions of other people. Like, for example, your unplanned training sessions - oh, is she really trying to say that Flitwick is to blame for some of the misadventures? Ha, they have a good friendship, you can't say anything. - Judging by your eyes, this did not surprise you. Why?
"What do you know about our encounter with the Pestilence?" — after thinking a little, he finally decided to tell her some of the events, of course, if she doesn't know about them.
The response exceeded all expectations. The air became heavy, the cup in fragile hands shattered, and the face froze like a wax mask. Horror, fear and a thirst for murder hung in the air. Together with incredibly thick mana, these emotions created such a cocktail that my amulet instantly became red-hot, trying to burn through my chest.
- Repeat. What. You. Now. Said. — with every word the pressure intensified, threatening to drive me into the ground. The last word completely put me on edge in front of the table with incredible force.
"Teaches... kha... el," putting incredible effort (I spent almost half of all my strength on this word! Mana, prana, psi! What a horror! Now it becomes clear, the Lich was just playing with us. If he wanted, we would have died in one moment, simply unable to withstand the pressure of his power) I croaked.
A moment later, invisible (well, for an outside observer it is, but with my magical vision I will never forget this sight) the pressure subsided. As if pushed by the earth itself, I got back to my feet, albeit slightly swaying, but that's already something.
"Repeat what you said," the teacher asked again, no longer exuding that horror. True, her face was still "dead".
"After Ed talked with his comrades and almost killed Sol, he and I headed to one of the upper halls of the crystal castle..." For the next fifteen minutes I told the teacher in all possible detail about part of my journey.
Continuing the story, I thought out of the corner of my mind about what had just happened. The reaction to the name of the dragon was not only not typical, I have never seen such rage in anyone. Even crazy Ed could not produce such results, but his mind was not healthy and was capable of very much. And here from a completely healthy and sane (is it really?) elf?
If we compare the facts, an interesting picture emerges. An ancient city of elves, a giant ice tree (I still haven't forgotten about that illusion), dead elves without visible signs of a struggle, and finally the elf's reaction to the name of the lich dragon. Perhaps this was Poppy's hometown? Well, or she has some kind of story with a dragon. How interesting...
"More," she whispered at the end of my story. "That's how it all happened," then she perked up and looked at me with a gaze, as if assessing: am I carrying some kind of threat? But apparently it passed, since her face smoothed out slightly. - Thank you. Your information has given me a lot to think about.
- And what do you think this could mean? Of course, I'm not talking about the fact that the dragon, with these statements, hinted at the innermost secrets of each of us, (although I still have not been convinced of the dragon's words. It takes time) - I still said after some time. This information interested me very much. And if about the others, at the moment, I wasn't that interested, then about the half-goblin... This interested me in the first place. - Could he forcefully reset my transformation? And if so, why did he need it?
"Perhaps it's too early to talk about this," the teacher smiled softly at me. But in the depths of her emotions, I felt that she had guessed something, but as it became clear, she had no plans to share her guesses with me. I hope so far. "Now I have one piece of news that concerns you directly," she pointed her finger at me. Me? What is it this time? - Oh, you shouldn't make such a surprised face. Believe me, you will like this news. Well, are you ready? - she asked slightly mockingly. I just nodded in response. "From next Saturday, after our classes, you will do an internship at St. Mungo's Hospital," she surprised me with a mischievous smile.
I admit, this news was something incredible for me. Obtaining the right to practice in the main magical hospital in England is worth a lot. There you can get practice in all directions, absolutely in all. And it's true, there are all sorts of patients there: with physical, magical, psychological, spiritual injuries. Cursed, mutating and many others. And it's not even worth talking about the diversity of races (Note in memory: find out the reason for such a diverse intelligent fauna).
Having come to my senses a little, I bowed gratefully to this woman.
"Thank you, teacher," I said calmly. - But how can you agree on this with the director? I'm sure he has some kind of charm that allows him to find out if a student is on school grounds.
"Don't worry," she sharply waved her hand. - At this level everything has already been settled. All you have to do is show yourself well in this practice.
- Thank you again, teacher.
- Come on. That's why I'm a teacher," she smiled softly. - Okay, you should go. Think it over carefully.
Nodding and saying goodbye to the bear, I left her.
Perhaps with this act she is trying to appease me, but I do not forget anything. Once the opportunity for my further development appeared, it would be a sin to miss it. I'll figure out the rest as I go.
However, you should be careful with a half-goblin. Is this just another batch of magicians?
*****
Resurrection, and after it the new week flew by at a gallop. A series of different events brought quite a lot of different information. Also, some actions led to others.
On Monday, as planned, I started another experiment in metamorphism. Remember that flask with ice wyvern blood? But I didn't forget about her, so my hands reached out to her.
I had a theory. In magic, related disciplines are much easier. For example, water magic lends itself much more easily to ice magic. Earthbenders find it easier to work with metals. Well and so on.
Also in metamorphism. I remember that the unicorn genes didn't really want to work without thestrall genes. Yes, these are not exactly related disciplines, but they are the same, they just differ in their poles. And if you add Norbert's genes to them as a stabilizer...
So, what if I don't use the genes of Norbert, which is a subspecies of earth wyverns, but instead take a piece of ice wyverns? Well, they control ice, and my cryokinesis is very suitable. Is it possible that my body will be much better able to tolerate the "draconization" of this particular species? (Although it would be more accurate to say "wyvernization")
No sooner said than done. On Monday, in the rescue room, I began to implement this idea. Well what can I say. Watching your hand become covered in "icy" scales is quite entertaining.
Yes, as it became clear, my theory turned out to be correct. Due to the fact that I was to some extent "similar" to ice wyverns, their genes obeyed me much more readily than the same ones, but from Norbert.
It was a breakthrough! It's true, I still can't walk around in this state all the time. My limit is a quarter of an hour. After which you need a rest of at least three hours. And during these three hours, not only am I unable to control prana, I'm not even able to use metamorphism normally. Just enough strength to maintain a "normal" shape.
However, the advantages that this form provides are much more significant.
The first is body strength. My physical shell becomes almost twice as strong.
The second is the density of prana. Five times. My prana becomes five times thicker! Yes, this is simply incredible! All abilities associated with it (strengthening, power attacks, etc.) also become more powerful. True, not five, but only three times. But this is already incredible.
Third is protection. The scales are much smoother than my body, even in my strongest metamorph form.
Fifth, understanding ice. Every time I contact, my "sense and understanding" of ice grows at an incredible speed. It's like I become one with him. After the reverse transformation, this feeling creeps in, but what I managed to understand stays with me. Overall, this form helps me learn the magic of cryokinesis at an incredible speed.
Sixth and last is mana. All wyverns have an incredible reserve of mana, as well as its regeneration rate. Partially these properties are passed on to me. It's not the same quality, but some of it is welcome. Still, the magical principle depends on the soul rather than on the body. However, as I realized a long time ago, body and soul are interconnected. Therefore, these qualities also pass to me.
After going back and checking my body, I realized an interesting fact. The density of prana, as well as the characteristics of prana, are partially transmitted to my body. It "absorbs" their characteristics. This is incredible! True, the speed of this is incredibly low. After all, I'm getting stronger, give Merlin one tenth of a percent (most likely less).
From this we can conclude that the experiment was a success. Hello to me.