Guest: Thank you! I'm really glad you're enjoying the story.
Regarding the platform you mentioned—I actually post all my stories there! I won't name it specifically just in case it goes against the rules here, but this particular story is currently being published on 9 different sites. You can easily find it by googling the title 'A Rosier Legacy' plus the name of your preferred platform. :)
You're very welcome!
***
Immediately after breakfast, we were all back in the Room of Requirement—except for Draco, who still didn't have the right "grindset" like the rest of us. I decided to help Theodore with his failing Shield Charm. It seemed to me that it hadn't worked for him so far simply because he didn't feel a real threat. But what if he had no choice? Either pain, or a successful Protego.
I stood opposite a pale Theodore, wand in hand, while the others watched us with interest.
"Don't worry, Theo. I'll only put a little power into the Aculeus spell. Simply put—pain will be your teacher," I spoke with a gentle, encouraging smile.
Pale and sweating, but with a determined glint in his eyes, he nodded. We could begin.
"Aculeus!"
A purple beam shot from my wand. Theodore, however, didn't stand his ground or even attempt to conjure a shield—he instinctively dodged.
"Oh, come on, Theo, don't be a coward. Don't be afraid!"
"Right, right... that was just a reflex," he stammered, nodding sharply to shake off his uncertainty.
"Aculeus!" "Protego!"
For a brief moment, a faint blue outline appeared, but it dissolved instantly. The purple beam passed right through it and hit him in the shoulder. Theodore hissed in pain but nodded for me to continue.
"Focus on the defense, Theo! On the desire to protect yourself. In this moment, it's the only thing that matters!" I emphasized, aiming again. "Aculeus!"
"Protego!"
The purple beam passed through the outline again, but this time it hit him squarely in the stomach. Theodore gasped for breath.
"Aculeus!"
This time, Theo chose to jump aside without even attempting a shield.
"Theo, focus. Defend yourself! Stand your ground," I commanded. Agnes and Tobias were watching us intently. It occurred to me whether he was under so much stress precisely because of their attention.
"Agnes, Tobias can't manage Protego either," I reminded them. Tobias paled, but Agnes immediately pulled him aside with a wide grin.
"Aculeus!" "Protego!"
The purple beam passed through the outline again, but it seemed to me that the shield slowed it down slightly, perhaps even weakened it, though Theo still hissed in pain.
"That was better, Theo! It felt like your Protego was firmer," I nodded approvingly.
Theo nodded determinedly: "We can go again. I'm ready."
"Aculeus!" "Protego!"
The spell passed through once more, but again I noticed a slight improvement, so we pushed on.
"Aculeus!" "Protego!" "Aculeus!" "Protego!" "Aculeus!" "Protego!" "Aculeus!" "Protego!"
By now, it wasn't just Theodore hissing in pain, but also Tobias, whom Agnes had taken charge of. It looked almost comical, but what if a war and a truly dangerous situation came one day? They would have a problem with every bruise then... It was for their own good.
We had to rest for a while because I'd hit Theo just about everywhere. There were faint tears in his eyes; after all, we were all still young. While Tobias was patching himself up with Episkey, Theo had to suffer through it all. At least for now.
Theodore, however, was better at magical combat than Tobias. He had the instinct to cause harm, while Tobias visibly lacked it. It was a good thing he wanted to become a Healer.
When I felt the break had been sufficient, I decided to continue: "Shall we?"
Theodore nodded and stood resolutely against me with his wand raised.
"Aculeus!" "Protego!"
I saw immediately that he had done it. His thought was sharp and the shield was blue, solid, and pulsing. He had poured significantly more magic into it than necessary. The purple beam simply splattered against it.
"Excellent, Theo! You did it," I congratulated him. "Now just try putting less magic into the Protego, otherwise you'll exhaust yourself. The thought alone is enough now."
"You mean we're continuing?" he asked with a loud swallow.
"Of course. Your Protego isn't combat-ready yet."
And so I tormented him until lunch. It didn't take long before he stopped being afraid and began channeling a proportionate amount of power into the shield. Thanks to that, I could test stronger spells on him, which only dissipated harmlessly against it. Eventually, he ended up breathless and wrecked on his knees.
By the end of the practice, Tobias only had fifty-percent success with his Protego; he'd manage it once and then fail immediately after. It was strange. How could he have a firm enough thought one moment and lose it the next? It was another quirk of magic and magical theory that I had no inkling of... And although I longed to know more, a day only had twenty-four hours. It seemed more useful to know how to shred someone to salad in self-defense than to be able to explain complex theory to them. Therefore, it was clear where I was investing most of my time, even though I tried to educate myself theoretically as well.
"Lunch?" I suggested to the others.
"Lunch," Tobias agreed enthusiastically at once, while the others just nodded silently.
And so we headed to the Great Hall. On the way, I gave Agnes a significant look. After lunch, it would be time for the rituals—for her and for Potter.
***
For lunch today, I had a roasted chicken steak in a creamy cheese sauce with roasted potatoes and rice. Though it lacked vegetables, this meal was literally heaven in my mouth. I ate contentedly, while Agnes had pancakes and Tobias piled half a chicken with rice onto his plate. Theo was more cautious; he took only a small chicken leg and pecked at it carefully, hissing occasionally.
"Guys, Agnes and I have some minor work to do in the room after lunch," I began. "You two could go to that classroom where we practiced before. You, Tobias, could get some proper practice with Episkey on poor Theodore."
Tobias nodded in agreement with his mouth full, while Theo gave me a textbook scowl.
"Patrik's Aculeus must have hurt more," Agnes laughed, a bit of maple syrup spraying from the corner of her mouth.
Theo looked disgusted and pointed to her lip: "You've got syrup running."
Agnes turned red, immediately grabbed a napkin, and started wiping herself. I couldn't help but chuckle. After a moment of amusement, however, Draco sat down with us, which could cross our plans for after lunch.
"Hi, Draco. What are your plans after lunch?" I asked as he helped himself to a chicken leg with rice and apricot compote.
"Mhm, training?" he ventured curiously.
"In that case, Theo will help you again."
He shot me a slightly grumpy look: "Why Theo again? What will you be doing?"
"You just have to be patient, cousin. You need to master weaker spells before moving on to more powerful ones... And Theo can teach you dueling as well. He's very skilled," I replied. Draco's eyes immediately shimmered with interest.
"Skilled like you?"
"Even more skilled, Draco," I added with a smile. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Theo start to choke on his rice and Agnes spray syrup again, while Tobias continued eating contentedly.
Draco finally nodded, and the rest of lunch continued in friendly peace.
***
I waited impatiently for Agnes and Potter outside the Room of Requirement. Although I had everything necessary for the ritual with me and tried not to look like I was in a hurry, I definitely didn't want to just be "cooling my heels" in the corridor. Who knows if Dumbledore was watching me.
It didn't take even five minutes before I heard footsteps. When they appeared a moment later, I had to chuckle. Agnes was pulling a flushed Potter by the hand; he had a folded nightgown tied over his eyes.
When they reached me, I raised an eyebrow inquiringly. Agnes answered immediately with a shrug: "I had a choice between the gown or a bra."
I thought Potter couldn't get any redder, but I was wrong.
I immediately began walking past the wall, focusing on a small ritual room with running water. After a moment, the door appeared and I slipped inside with the others. The Room of Requirement had prepared a space just right for two rituals—a plain stone floor and a sink with a metal tap were quite enough for our needs.
"You can take that off, Potter," I spoke into the silence. Hogwarts had made the Room of Requirement atmospherically darker, so my words echoed deeply. I could see the tension in Potter; he wasn't entirely at ease.
He obeyed immediately, tore the folded gown from his eyes, and handed it to Agnes, who tucked it into her robes. Then he pulled out a pouch of Galleons and handed it to me.
"A thousand Galleons, as we agreed."
"Thank you." I accepted the pouch and put it straight into my robes. I began taking ritual items out of my backpack: two wooden bowls, two white candles, and a bowl of salt.
"I assume you both have your wands?" I asked just in case, to which both nodded in agreement.
"Good. Agnes, you go first, as we agreed. Here is the parchment with the words you'll read. The opening sentence is at the top, the closing one at the bottom. I'll guide you." Agnes nodded with total trust, while Potter, slightly pale, watched my every move with interest.
"What if I read something wrong?" Agnes asked tensely after a moment.
"Then the ritual will still work. Clǣnsung sāwle and līchaman and its magic basically work so that you see the letters before your eyes, and the intonation of vowels isn't that extremely important. Pronunciation has changed over the centuries. I'm sure I mispronounced some vowels myself during the ritual and it went off without a hitch. According to Morgana, magic perceives—not just the words, but primarily the intent," I reassured her immediately, and I saw that it gave Potter some confidence too.
"Can we start?" I asked. As soon as they nodded, I began to direct them. "Both of you, take one wooden bowl and fill it with water—three-quarters full is fine. Then sit opposite each other and place the bowl in front of you."
As soon as they were seated, I placed a white candle in front of each of them and handed the salt to Agnes.
"Agnes, take a pinch of salt and throw it into the bowl of water."
She did so immediately, so I continued: "Now stir the contents of the bowl three times with the tip of your wand."
When she finished, we moved to the next step: "Now light the candle. Either do it with your wand or I'll light it, it doesn't matter."
Agnes didn't wait, however, and with a quiet "Incendio!" the candle flared up instantly.
"Now dip the tip of your wand into the bowl and read the first text from the parchment. As soon as you finish, wash your face with that water and read the bottom paragraph."
She obeyed immediately and began the ritual: "Ritus purificationis animae et corporis, magiae internae auxilium peto, ut negativum ex me fluens purgetur et pax interior restituatur."
Even at the first words, the candle flared violently with a blue light, and I felt the tingle of magic in the air. Immediately after finishing the introduction, she washed her face and, wand in hand, concluded the ritual: "Pax intus fiat, gratias ago Matri Magiae pro lumine et protectione, et ut purgatio mea plenam harmoniam restituat."
The magic withdrew instantly. Agnes began to laugh softly, but after a moment she stopped and just smiled contentedly. She didn't have the same magical euphoria as I did. Why? Magic was a fucking strange thing, but still enchanting.
"How do you feel, DeMille?" Potter asked suddenly. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, perfectly," she nodded in agreement. That was enough for Potter, and he looked at me expectantly.
I still had the feeling I'd forgotten something important—something concerning him. I couldn't remember what it was at all, though. I figured it probably wasn't important, so I just nodded for us to continue. It was his turn, and he'd basically already paid me.
"Right, your turn, Potter," I began and handed him the bowl of salt. "Take a pinch of salt and throw it into the water." He obeyed immediately.
"You know Incendio?" I asked. Potter just shook his head, but without waiting for me to light the candle, he cast: "Incendio!"
A fine flame came from his wand, immediately lighting the wick. Potter clearly had talent.
"Dip the tip of your wand into the bowl and stir three times," I continued, holding the parchment for him so he could read without trouble. "The top part, Potter."
He just nodded and, with the tip of his wand dipped in the bowl, began: "Ritus purificationis animae et corporis, magiae internae auxilium peto, ut negativum ex me fluens purgetur et pax interior restituatur."
I immediately felt the tingle of magic in the air, but it had a significantly darker flavor than with Agnes. At that moment, I remembered what I'd been so fucking stupidly forgetting. Potter was a Horcrux and also had the sacrificial protection from his mother. What the fuck was going to happen now?
There was no turning back. Interrupting the ritual would be risky, perhaps less so than continuing, but... he'd paid me. And if he got rid of Voldemort's soul fragment, wouldn't that actually be a good thing?
Potter didn't wait for my cue and thoroughly washed his face.
"Pax intus fiat, gratias ago Matri Magiae pro lumine et protectione, et ut purgatio mea plenam harmoniam restituat," he finished the ritual. The blue-burning candle went out instantly and the magic vanished.
At that moment, Potter began to scream. I saw blood pouring from his scar—it was a hell of a lot of it.
"What's happening, Patrik?" Agnes cried out in terror.
"Don't go near him!" I yelled at her as soon as she started toward him. I held my wand firmly in my hand, ready for anything. I had no idea what to expect. What if Voldemort's Horcrux had taken control?
After a while, his agonized screams stopped, and a dead silence followed. I slowly pulled Agnes behind me and waited patiently to see what would happen. If he really had gotten rid of the Horcrux, shouldn't it have disappeared from his scar like dark vapor?
***
Author's note:
Patrik pushed Theo to his absolute limits training that Shield Charm, but it finally paid off—anything worth having comes with a price! Whether it's time, pain, effort, or gold... you get the idea.
Draco's out here expecting Theo to be some legendary duelist like Patrik :D. Also, I can't help but laugh picturing the maple syrup spraying everywhere—it's just such a visual.
But man, our MC forgot one seriously crucial detail. How did he even manage to overlook that?! What do you guys think is going to happen to Potter next?
***
Step into the Restricted Section
The shadows are shifting, and the story goes much deeper... If you can't wait for the next update, Advanced Chapters are already waiting for you.
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Upcoming Chapters – Already Written:
43. Blood and Runes
44. Blood, Sweat, and Special Editions
45. Precision of Water, Chaos of Rage
46. The Unseen Blade
47. The Blood Connection
48. The Ghost of a Friend
49. Hypothetical Questions
50. Ancient Crimes and Modern Recipes
51. The Smell of Teen Spirit and Dark Arts
52. More Than Just a Name
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