Chapter 45: First Meeting the Summer
"Happy late or early birthday, ladies. I bring gifts for both of you." Said Aurelius to his two friends and business partners
"Aurelius!" Exclaimed the two excited girls to finally meet their friend for the first time during the summer.
"What's with the gifts? I get that you said it's for our birthdays, but to be fair, we weren't even friends until around the middle of the year," said a confused Hermione
"We haven't even told you our birthdays," giggled Silvia
"Well, I don't know when your birthdays are, so I decided if your birthday had already passed during the time after we became friends, I thought it would be appropriate to have that corrected. Additionally, these gifts might be the most useful thing you'll ever own, especially during our Hogwarts years." said a boastful Aurelius
"I hope that's confidence rather than arrogance." Joked Silvia
"That all depends on whether my ability matches or exceeds my confidence level. I said while handing them the suitcases. Oh, and by the way, another smaller gift is housed in your suitcases," I said, hiding some smaller gifts commemorating our first meetings.
"While we do joke that we are businesswomen, the briefcase seems like a bit much." said a bemused Hermione
"So what does it do?" asked an excited Silvia
"Well, probably the most important thing is that it is an undetectable expansion charmed briefcase, and wait for it. And a charm that shields from magical detection, so in other words…" he said with a smirk, waiting for them to finish
"Oh my goodness." Said Hermione
"Wait, does this mean we can cast underaged magic at home without getting into trouble?!?" Said Silvia
"Indeed it does. I thought about giving it to you for your birthdays, but I was told it would be more appreciated when it would be most helpful. Also, I have no clue when your birthdays are, which solves the issue of figuring out when that is. By the way, what are your birthdays?" I said to the girls
"August twenty-first," said our silverette.
"September seventeenth, and what about yours?" asked our bushy-haired girl.
"August fourth," said Aurelius.
"Well, it seems that all our birthdays are pretty close and coming up, so it all works out," I said with a chuckle.
"Wait a minute. How much did this cost Aurelius? And from what you said, these things are much more than what you told us." Said a skeptical Hermione
"Nothing much, just some basic security to prevent theft or damage, just some charms to make the space inside livable, some basic sorting and organizing library stuff, that's about it. Also, something to commemorate our first year together. Anyway, don't worry about it. They're just thoughtful gifts, that's all." I said.
"Aurelius Galegold Evans Valriss Aulus." Said Hermione
"Wow you remembered my whole name," I said jokingly, trying to defuse the situation with humor before she started.
"You will tell us how much these things cost before we accept them, or we won't take them." She said firmly.
"Do we have to? And even if they're expensive, he just won't have to give us gifts for a while. Besides, we can use magic during the summer if we use them." pouted Silvia while giving Hermione a pleading look.
Hermione gives her a stern look.
Silvia just huffs. "Fine, okay, Aurelius, how much were they?"
I chuckle. "Now, where is the fun in that? You'll just have to figure it out for yourselves once we go back to Diagon Alley. For next year, but for now, enjoy your gifts. Besides, I don't take returns, so either you take them, or they're going into the trash." I said with a straight face.
Silvia looks at her pleadingly.
"Mmm…. fine," she says with a huff.
"Have it your way. I'll find out eventually, and when I do, you better not have spent an obscene amount of money, or I'll hex you into next week." She said in complete seriousness.
I smile, knowing she won't be able to.
"Why are you smiling? I'm completely serious," she said in response.
"Oh, I know you are, but I know something you don't," said Aurelius
"And what might that be?" Said the increasingly annoyed brunette.
"That is a secret, my fellow bookworm," I said smugly.
"Okay, well, since we've established that you'll beat up Aurelius when you find out that he probably did spend an obscene amount on these briefcases, would it be alright to use them?" asked an anxious and excited Silvia.
"Okay, here," I told them while giving them a pin.
They just look at me with a questioning look. "One of the best charms of these briefcases is their keying feature, so you don't have to worry about anything. Just a drop of blood on the handle will be enough, so the suitcases will be yours and yours with all the safety that comes with it." I said.
Silvia shrugs, while Hermione is more hesitant since she would essentially be accepting the gift. Still, she knows Aurelius doesn't make idle threats, so he would throw away these likely extremely expensive gifts.
"Fine. Give the pin here then," she said.
Aurelius snaps his fingers, cleaning the pins of any bacteria from the pins.
"Okay, they're cleaned. Go for it." I said.
They both go through the procedure of keying the briefcase to them. And to their astonishment, the blood disappeared into the briefcase handle, and their tiny puncture healed while the blood on the pin also disappeared.
"And charmed to heal and clean with a time delay?" Said Hermione.
"I'm a man of many talents. Well, of the things I find interesting." I said with a shrug and a chuckle.
"True." Said Silvia with a nod in acceptance.
"Okay, now that everything is set up. You may open your briefcases. Just open it and tell it what to do. You could use a spell, but it would defeat the purpose. To enter the case, just put your foot into the case. There will be a ladder in the space to climb out, but you could also just think of exiting, and it will do the same thing," I instructed them.
They nod, and both open their briefcases and enter them. To their astonishment, they find that in their small cases was a plot of land with a regular sky that goes as far as the eye can see with a cottage and a setup of practice targets for offensive spells. They enter their cottages to find what you'd find in a fully furnished apartment with a large library and a desk holding their respective smaller gifts. Hermione saw a dumb and cute stuffed troll stress doll and a sheet of paper with the two spells he used to stop the troll: aguamenti charm and aqua volatem charm. While in Silvia's cottage, she sees a small porcupine in a fully set-up cage with food, water, and thick gloves. She squeals and quickly puts on her gloves to grab the little cutey.
Silvia runs out of her suitcase with her new little buddy, and Hermione comes out with the sheet of the two spells.
"Bloody hell, Aurelius. How is that even possible? I couldn't even see the end." Said Hermione.
"Look, look, Hermione, it's a baby hedgehog; I'm gonna name him croissant," she said in excitement.
Hermione cannot fight the urge to pet the little adorable, quilled cutie, but she still looks at Aurelius, waiting for an answer.
"Well, an expanded space can be considered a pocket dimension since it expands past the capacity of the space it occupies. Your briefcase is just the door. Still, it's pretty cool, right? Also, you have to grant access to those you want to let in. It can be done verbally or through magic, and it will know when you speak falsehoods or under threat. Also, have either of you used a computer before?" I asked.
"Yes, what does that have to do with the briefcase?" both said in unison.
"The library has a search function. Just say, Find a book on blank. And it will let you know. Also, the briefcase has a featherlight charm and a size-changing charm, so you can have it shrink to about the size of a deck of cards. Feel free to fill it up since it won't be any heavier." I explained.
"Okay, Aurelius. Do you have a list? I think I'll forget most of this, and I'm sure there is more you'll forget to tell us." said Silvia.
"Sure." I opened my briefcase and entered it to make a list. It takes a few minutes to make even using two quills to list all the abilities without the prices listed from the shop.
I return and hand them the enchantments, and they see how many major and minor enchantments went into making the thing.
"I'm going to beat you up when I find out, won't I?" said Hermione with a blank face and annoyed tone.
"Meh, problem for future me," I said with a shrug.
"Okay, shall we enter yours or mine?" I asked.
"Yours. You've got me curious about what absurd thing is in your case." Said Silvia
"I concur." Said our bushy-haired girl
I just shrugged, and we moved our briefcases aside. I permitted them to enter, and then I followed behind them. They are amazed to find that an entire manor is in his case, and from what they understood, the inside was likely far bigger due to expansion charms.
"Bloody hell, Aurelius. How do you have a manor inside of your suitcase? I swear I've sworn nearly more than I have in my entire life in the past few hours," said our girl bookworm.
"Blood, sweat, tears, magic, and an obscene amount of money," I said with a chuckle, not saying any of the former four were mine.
"The manor has so many expansions that it's about the size of Hogwarts without the Galegold house. So there are plenty of rooms for just about everything you could make a room for." I said with some pride.
"Okay, so I guess we'll go to your library to learn some magic. Do you have any books?" asked Hermione.
"Quite a few," he said with a chuckle. Since his time at Hogwarts, he grabbed quite a large volume of books from the Galegold House library.
"Okay, what do you wish to learn?" asked Aurelius.
"Defensive spells," said Hermione.
"Utility spells," said Silvia.
"We can do both together, but I'm curious: why did you choose those two? I asked in interest.
"Well, if I'm completely honest, our DADA professor was less than satisfactory, so I don't want to be behind for our next year." Said Hermione.
"That's fair. And you, Silvia?" I asked.
"I noticed when you used a summoning charm when you didn't feel like moving, and I thought that spells like that could be handy," she said with a shrug.
"They are, and that's why I don't understand why everyone doesn't learn these spells regardless of year," I said in understanding.
"Well, let's take a look at your library. Then, we can find something for those. Mine will likely be far simpler since I think the only protection spells I'll need to learn are the shielding charm, the stunning hex, and the disarming jinx. After all, it isn't like I didn't study practical spells during my free time at Hogwarts," said Hermione.
"We have time, and you should open your mind to more spells that you can find useful than just the ones that are part of the curriculum, but I suppose it is best to get those out of the way," I said, helping her find a plan of action.
"Very well, and what about you, Silvia? What did you have in mind?" asked the bushy-haired witch.
"Well, first off, whatever charm allows you to mask your magic since Aurelius said this suitcase should mask all forms of magic detection, or at least ours are, but I'd be surprised if his didn't as well. That sounds like I could use magic just about anywhere." Said Silvia.
"Hmm, that's true. Is that a charm possible for us?" asked Hermione.
"For now, it's just a maybe. It drains the magic over time, so depending on your reserves and magic regeneration, or whatever you're using to fuel the spell, will limit what you can cast during that period that it's cast. It would be difficult since you'd need to hide yourself using disillusionment to avoid getting spotted." I said, giving them the bigger picture.
"That's true. Well, I suppose I'll need to strengthen my magic reserves. Also, I have to learn disillusionment, and probably notice me not charm. And the summoning charm, and maybe something to dry my hair. Oh, and perhaps something that could help me finish my homework faster." Said Silvia.
"Hmm, that would be quite helpful. Perhaps I should attempt to find things like that. Although we have the cleaning charm scourgify, it is nice to shower occasionally," said Hermione.
I smile and nod, trying to hide my nervousness using my occlumency to conceal that I intend to use my family quills to do all my homework. 'I'll still need to read the material, but at least the tedious act of writing things down is no longer necessary.' I thought to myself.
"Okay, to the library then. Also, look through the respective choices and look around for things you'd like to learn. We have parchment, so make a list of the pages you'd like to read, and a relevant book with that info. I can make magical copies of those pages. Also, remember our libraries have search functions, so feel free to call for what you need," I said. We entered my library to see that the place was as large as the Hogwarts library.
"What the bloody hell? Aurelius, this is as large as the Hogwarts library. Where did you even get all these books from? Asked a surprised Silvia, who surprisingly never bothered to go to the Galegold house.
"Wait, are those all from your house's library?" asked the surprised Hermione. "I've read a couple of them and recall some of these being in the Galegold house when I visited. Also, Silvia, how are you surprised that he has so many books? Haven't you gone to the Galegold house before?" asked Hermione.
"No, I usually meet Aurelius in classes and the great hall and work separately. I spend most of my time talking with the people in my house," said Silvia.
"Makes sense, I suppose, since your house is the most friendly; however, that begs the question of why hasn't Aurelius invited you to come to the Galegold house." Said Hermione
"Honestly, never really bothered to. If she felt like it, she could come any time she pleased. Since she hadn't come, I assumed she didn't feel like it yet. No point in pressuring her to come. Besides, it's difficult to locate if you aren't familiar with the location of the entrance," Said Aurelius.
"What Aurelius said, if I felt like going, I would have, so don't worry about it," said Silvia.
"Well anyways, what about my previous question," said Hermione,
"Indeed, they are, and they're all by default mine. It's not like anyone needs them when the only people at Hogwarts are some professors since everyone else is at their homes for the summer break." I said with a shrug and an eh look on my face.
"Well, that is true. Wait a minute, aren't many of them in other languages?" Said Hermione
"Yup, but don't worry about that. They're all separated and ordered by language first, and we have a search function so you can find it. The shelf will light up below the corresponding book." I said with a shrug.
They begin to read through their books to find everything they're looking for and more.
They come back with their lists. Hermione's is many pages longer than Silvia's.
"Is that for the rest of the summer?" I asked Hermione incredulously.
"Indeed, after all, I will need to spread out the spells I learn over time to learn as much as possible. That requires knowledge of the total amount." Said Hermione.
"I see…. and you Silvia?" I asked. 'I know I read far more than that in a couple of weeks if I'm heavily focused, but that's a lot for someone who doesn't have an eidetic memory. Wait, does she?'
"Nope, just stuff I wanna learn and master this week. And it is pretty cool. Here, take a look." She said.
"Summoning charm, disillusionment, shielding charm, fat burning charm, and cleaning charm," I said, reading them off.
"What's the fat-burning charm? Like calories?" I asked, unfamiliar with the spell.
"Yup, it rapidly turns fat into energy for the body. Apparently, it is supposed to be used when you need large amounts of energy but don't have immediate access to food." She said while putting down her few books.
"Wait. So, you're telling me you are using a survival tool spell. To make yourself slimmer?" I said with a raised eyebrow.
"Why not? It just means I can eat whatever I want without any consequences of getting fat. Besides, I am a little chubby." She said without an ounce of regret.
I laugh at her response. "You're lovely enough, dear, but if that's what you want, no point in telling you otherwise."
She blushes but smiles in victory.
"And Hermione, what does your list say? Granted, I'm not sure if I want to know since I see at least seven books on your desk," Asked a curious Silvia, trying to change the focus away from her.
"Well, I took Aurelius's advice and your thoughts on spells, thinking I'd also add a few utility spells. I have everything you have except that fat-burning charm, and I might just add that. I wouldn't mind that; also, my mother would likely scold me if I didn't help her with fat loss if she found that spell existed." She said with a chuckle. "I added a few more like hair straightening charm, drying charm, body temperature regulating charm, clothing charm, the locking charm, password charm, and the emotional detection charm for utility. The rest of my list consists primarily of defense spells, a few jinxes, and hexes. I'll likely add more later, but that will have to do for now." She said, not realizing it was already a few months' worth of spells to learn to the advanced level unless she sacrificed a lot of sleep.
"Dare I ask what the other categories of spells you intend to do now?" I asked.
"Well, I was thinking I didn't want to limit myself too much, so I just limited it to about a few dozen spells in each category of defense and offense."
"I guess you're just as much of a workaholic as I am," I chuckle.
"And don't you forget it, mister," She said with pride.
"Jeez, I get that you two love magic and everything, but live your lives a little." Said Silvia.
"Aren't we hanging out?" I asked
"And doing what?" She asked with a deadpan face.
"Magic," said a dejected Hermione and Aurelius.
"But you can't deny that magic itself is incredibly enchanting, and you can't help but desire to be able to do whatever you want with it?" Said a confident Hermione.
"Well, I can't deny that I'd use magic for everything if I could," says a sheepish Silvia, who just chuckled.
"See. You get it." said excited Hermione
"Okay, okay, I get it, but seriously, guys, do you guys do anything other than learn magic?" She asked
"Of course. I read regular books too," said an offended Hermione
"You're not helping our case," I said to Hermione.
"Well, it's what I do for fun, so what's wrong with that?" Said the annoyed witch.
"Okay, new plan, guys. We are going to do what normal people do," said Silvia with a sigh.
"Watch a movie and play board games?" asked Aurelius
"Meh, works for me. Do you wanna play uno? I brought a deck with me." Said Silvia.
"Sure sounds fun," I said
"What's uno?" asked a confused Hermione.
We both look at her incredulously.
"Okay, well, it's a pretty fun card game that has the power to end friendships," I said with a grin.
Silvia nods knowing the power of the draw four card.
"Why are we playing such a game then? Do you not want to be friends anymore?" says Hermione, on the verge of tears.
"Nothing like that. It's just a game where your victory can be easily swept away from you, so it's incredibly frustrating when you think you've won but then get hit with a draw four card." I said.
"Okay, teach me how to play," said Hermione, who was back in good spirits.
"House rules or textbook rules?" I asked Silvia.
"House rules. Textbook rules are boring," said Silvia, and I nodded.
"Alright, the rules…." Said Silvia.
We played, and surprisingly, Hermione won most of the games and was also smug about it. We then watched a movie. We watched the sandlot. A Classic.
"It's been at least a few hours. Our parents are probably waiting for us," said Silvia.
"Probably not," I said to dissuade her worries.
"Oh, right, there is a time dilation charm on this thing. So, what's the ratio? Like 1 hour is two hours here?" Asked Hermione
"It's pretty big. It's 1 hour out there is about 4 hours in here." I said
"Wait, so about an hour has passed? Can I take a nap then? I wish to study some magic and try to do at least a few of these spells competently before we leave." Said Hermione.
"I second that," said Silvia.
"Feel free. There are some guest rooms, four rooms down the hall on the right when you leave the library. You could also use the point-me charm or ask the manor to tell you. It lights up like the bookshelves," I said
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