章 17: Chapter 17
Tony sat up straight, his eyes fixated on the silver necklace resting inside the box. "Uh, no, I found this in the safe at my house. I only opened it for a quick look." Detecting Jamie's concern, he pressed further, "Why? Is there a problem?"
Jamie's gaze lingered on the lifelike snake carved on the necklace. "Good thing you refrained from touching it," she remarked, her tone laced with caution. "Otherwise, you would have found yourself lying in St Mungo's right now."
Confusion washed over Tony, his brow furrowing. "St Mungo? What's that?"
"It's a renowned hospital for witches and wizards," Jamie explained.
"A magical hospital, huh? I hope I get the chance to see it someday," Tony murmured, his interest piqued. He shifted his attention back to the necklace, his curiosity mounting. "So, do you happen to know anything about this necklace?"
Jamie seemed to be deep in thought as she examined the necklace. "I haven't figured out what it is yet," she muttered, her eyes narrowing as she turned the pendant over in her hands. "But I don't think this Slytherin symbol will mean anything good."
Without another word, she called out for Koby, who had been hovering nearby. "Koby, please bring me the box from my nightstand. It's in the third drawer."
Koby bowed subserviently before scurrying off to retrieve the box. Tony watched him go, feeling more and more out of his depth. Despite his experiences in Afghanistan, the word "magic" still posed a challenge for him.
In less than a minute, a plain wooden box was placed on the table in front of Jamie. With a flip of the latch, she raised the lid, unveiling an assortment of trinkets.
"This one's a basilisk fang, not what we're looking for. And this... no, not this either. What a mess," Jamie muttered, her search leaving Tony perplexed. "Ah, here it is!"
Choosing a crystal labeled "Parseltongue," Jamie slowly infused it with a bit of her magic. In an instant, the room was filled with eerie hissing sounds that sent a chill down one's spine.
Tony's hand instinctively brushed against the hairs on his arm. "What in the hell is that?"
"It's a Christmas gift from my Uncle Ron," Jamie replied casually, her eyes fixed on the necklace. "He recorded some phrases in Parseltongue—that's a snake language by the way—for me to navigate the hidden passages at school."
"A school?!" Tony's shock was evident in his voice. The realization that a hidden magical community existed, unknown to the world, was completely mind-boggling.
"Shh, lower your voice!" Jamie hastily interjected, her attention drawn to the necklace's subtle movements, cutting short Tony's train of thoughts.
Both of them locked their gaze upon the necklace as the silver snake slithered along the surface of the emerald gem, tracing an elegant 'S' pattern before coming to a halt.
A luminous glow enveloped the entire necklace, casting a radiant shimmer. Summoning out her wand, Jamie whispered a series of incantations, and then extended her hand to retrieve the necklace from the box, her eyes keenly scrutinizing the gem's inner depths.
"I found a trace of memory inside this. Would you like to see it?" Jamie carefully returned the necklace to its resting place in the box and turned her gaze toward Tony.
"A memory? How is it stored? Is there some kind of memory chip embedded inside?"
Jamie let out a weary sigh. "Communicating with a muggle can be quite challenging at times. Do you recall the memory charm I talked about in Afghanistan? The spell that selectively erases specific memories from an individual's mind?"
With those words hanging in the air, Jamie lifted her wand and directed it towards her own temple. She slowly pulled, and a wispy silver thread emerged, swirling around the wand. From under the table, she retrieved a crystal vial and carefully stored the silver memory inside. She then handed the vial to Tony, saying, "Take a look. This is how we store memories."
Tony examined the vial, giving it a gentle shake that caused the mist inside to swirl with his movements. His eyes narrowed in curiosity as he pondered the contents. "But how can I actually see what's inside this memory?"
Jamie turned to Koby, who was standing on the other side of the room. "Do we have a Pensieve, Koby?"
"We do, Mistress. Koby will go fetch it." He returned shortly after, carefully carrying a shallow stone bowl inscribed with runes from various ancient civilizations and strange symbols, and placed it up on the table.
Taking the vial back from Tony's hand, Jamie unscrewed the cap and carefully poured the memories into the Pensieve. The once-empty stone vessel now brimmed with a silvery thread of memories, resembling a silvery liquid substance.
Jamie tapped her wand lightly against the Pensieve's surface, and like a curtain lifting, a scene began to unfold. It revealed a grim and haggard Tony, locked away in a dim cell, his eyes vacant and devoid of hope. It was the very memory of the first encounter between Jamie and Tony.
Embarrassment tinged Tony's expression as he caught sight of his disheveled appearance. "Erase it! Can't you see I was kidnapped? Kidnapped, I tell you!"
Jamie rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Don't you want to see the memory?"
"Of course!" Tony responded eagerly, his curiosity reignited.
With a flick of her wand, Jamie extracted her own memories from the Pensieve and carefully placed the emerald-green gemstone necklace upon its surface. Injecting her magic into the necklace once more, a hissing sound filled the air as a silver memory emerged from the gem, gradually settling within the memory viewer.
Jamie once again tapped the Pensieve with her wand, causing images to materialize within. "Put your head in," she instructed.
Tony appeared confused. "Where exactly?"
In response, Jamie pointed her wand directly at him. Before Tony could inquire further, his head was abruptly thrust into the Pensieve, with Jamie following suit.
"Ah!!!" Tony screamed, feeling as though he was hurtling through space, watching the ground rush closer and closer. The only thought playing in his mind right now was that he was going to die today, horribly.
"Stop screaming!" Jamie's voice reverberated from above. Tony's descent halted just inches from the ground, but he sensed something snap behind him, causing him to fall flat on his face. Scrambling to his feet, he looked accusingly at Jamie by his side. "Are you trying to kill me?"
Jamie took a deep breath, silently repeating a mantra to herself. Don't lose your composure! Don't lose your composure! Don't lose your composure!
Finally, she managed to regain her calm. "We are inside a memory. It's the safest way to observe without incurring harm. How else would you propose we see the memory when you're so uncooperative?!"
Tony grumbled, wanting to retort but was immediately captivated by the scene unfolding before him. It was a study, reminiscent of his family estate, yet the books appeared fresh and new, not yet aged by time. The absence of a computer on the desk told him that this was around the time when he was just born.
Suddenly, the study door swung open, and a blonde woman entered. Tony gazed at her, compelled to step forward and embrace her, yet his arms passed through her like mist.
"These are memories. Everything has transpired in the past. You can only observe," Jamie reminded him.
Tony appeared lost, his gaze fixated on his own hands. "That's my mother."
Jamie nodded knowingly. To her knowledge, Tony's mother had long departed from this world. "These memories must have been left behind by your mother. Perhaps she wished to convey something to you. Let's follow her."
Tony composed himself and began to mimic Maria Stark's every movement, tracing her steps.
Maria approached the desk and delicately ran her fingers along its edge, seemingly contemplating a decision. She then opened a concealed compartment, retrieving. . . a wand?!
Jamie's eyes widened, and she leaned in closer to inspect it. It was undeniably a wand, not a mere twig. Crafted from silver birch wood, it shimmered with a captivating silvery glow. There was no mistaking its nature.
"Your mother was a Seer?" Jamie exclaimed, astonishment coloring her voice.
. . .
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