Chương 163: The House of Black - The Beginning of a Magical Journey (2)
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Chapter Begins:
The young Arlen Black had short, black hair, black, beady eyes, and a flawless, charming face.
The 11-year-old was over 5 ft tall and was dressed in a black shirt and pajamas. The way he looked her directly in her eyes made Minerva forget the enormous age difference. She felt… off.
Now, for the first time, she could relate to the villagers.
…
The Blacks got an 11-year-old son.
He is odd.
…
He certainly is something… Minerva noted. "Hello," she greeted, looking over her shoulder and smiling. In the end, no matter the case, she was still facing a student; a little boy. "Your father tells me you have been waiting for the letter for quite some time. Is this true?"
Once again, the young Black surprised the old witch.
Instead of answering directly, Arlen Black casually walked to his parents and sat down between them on the large sofa.
Then, he nodded, smiling back.
Minerva somehow restrained a facial twitch.
"Forgive me, Ms. Minerva," Mr. Peter said, chuckling. "A quiet one, our Arlen, yes." To his son, he said, "She's from Hogwarts. She brought the acceptance letter."
Minerva once again noticed the oddity. No matter who spoke, and what the parents did, the young Black had never failed to drop eye contact with her.
"Why not the owl?"
The question was like the strike of thunder. It came out of nowhere, flashed into Minerva's mind, and left behind a white, blinding image.
It wouldn't be so bad if I…
… Have I gone mad?! Minerva shook her head, straightening her old back. "Once you join the Hogwarts, I will be your Professor," she told the young boy. "Asking questions, even before becoming a student, without using the honorifics, is rude at best."
Arlen Black smiled gently in return. "Forgive me."
"…" Minerva was gobsmacked. Was the boy rude or just too eager to know the answers? Any other child of his age could not have overlooked her scolding so easily.
There's only one… Minerva thought, recalling a name. But she's a class in herself.
It felt odd to the old witch.
What's happening… Minerva couldn't help but question herself. Is this the age of families with the darkest background giving birth to prodigies?
The question unnerved her the most.
Meanwhile, Celeste lovingly ruffled Arlen's black hair.
"Please don't mind him," Mrs. Black said. "I think I have spoiled him."
Hmm? Minerva frowned. Was that a smirk she noticed on Mr. Black's face just now?
Before the old witch could ponder over it, the young boy held out his hand. "Can I have it?" he asked, the smile still lingering on his face as if he was facing a child, not an old woman. "The letter, I mean."
Minerva shifted in her seat, a bit unnerved. She took out her wand and flicked it, sending the letter flying to the boy.
And once again… the boy surprised her.
Instead of marveling at the magic, which most probably was his first time seeing it, Arlen Black's eyes reflected nothing but her wand.
"Can I see it?" the boy asked, his voice softer than a falling feather.
Why not? It wouldn't be… "Certainly not!" Minerva McGonagall shouted.
In the next moment, the old witch's face flushed in shame as the Blacks looked at her with surprise on their faces.
"I am sorry," Minerva apologized. "It's the…"
"Never mind." Arlen Black cut her off.
"…"
As the old witch struggled with her anger and shameful emotions, the young Black used the knife to open the envelope, having Hogwarts' wax seal.
Inside, there was a parchment, which read -
…
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Mr Black,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
…
Arlen flipped the letter.
…
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
UNIFORM
First-year students will require:
1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)
2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear
3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)
4. One winter cloak (black, with silver fastenings)
Please note that all pupil's clothes should carry name tags.
COURSE BOOKS
All students should have a copy of each of the following:
1. The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) - by Miranda Goshawk
2. A History of Magic - by Bathilda Bagshot
3. Magical Theory - by Adalbert Waffling
4. A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration - by Emeric Switch
5. One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi - by Phyllida Spore
6. Magical Drafts and Potions - by Arsenius Jigger
7. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them - by Newt Scamander
8. The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection - by Quentin Trimble
OTHER EQUIPMENT
1. 1 wand
2. 1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)
3. 1 set glass or crystal phials
4. 1 telescope
5. 1 set brass scales
Students may also bring, if they desire, an owl OR a cat OR a toad.
PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS
ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICK
Yours sincerely,
Lucinda Thomsonicle-Pocus
Chief Attendant of Witchcraft Provisions
…
"So you are the Deputy Headmistress of the school," Mr. Black observed, smiling. "We have been lacking in playing as the proper hosts, aren't we?"
Minerva shook off the unnerving atmosphere pressing down on her. "Oh, no. Not at all," she answered. "I did arrive unannounced."
"Please," Peter Black said, rising. "Stay for supper."
Minerva was already half off her seat. "No," she said, rejecting the offer. "I will come tomorrow to take the boy to…"
"Diagon Alley?" Celeste asked, still reading the letter with her son.
Minerva's brows rose. Just how much do these muggles know about the wizarding world anyway?
"Haha!" Mr. Peter laughed. "You don't have to trouble yourself, Ms. Minerva. We can arrange it all."
Minerva was about to insist, remembering Dumbledore's grave expression. But she was half ashamed already. Moreover, it didn't feel right to keep bullying a pair of muggles, and a child, just because of some dark actions of very distant relatives.
"Then I will let myself out," Minerva said, nodding. "I will see you at school, Arlen," she said, rising. "You must make sure to prepare yourself well for strict, disciplined lessons."
Arlen Black looked up, nodded at the old witch, and then went back to the letter.
"…"
Minerva walked out of the Alexis Hall.
It had begun raining at some point in time, she noticed. The villagers were running around, each carrying either a sheet or an umbrella.
"I…"
Minerva spun around to say parting words, but Mr. Peter Black shut the door on her face.
The old witch had never hated muggles. But, during such times, she really did question their manners and intelligence.
One thing was certain. Minerva McGonagall would not be coming to this place unless Dumbledore held her hand and begged on his knees.
She took several hurried steps, put on her hat, and just as she reached the street, disapparated with an audible crack, making sure no one saw her.
Yes.
No one saw her.
Just as Minerva disapparated, a man running to bring the goats back into the barn stopped. He looked in the direction where the old witch had vanished.
An old woman crossing the street hundreds of meters away, paused and looked at the same place.
Several children playing in the mud paused. They stood straight and twisted their necks to look in the same direction.
The dogs stopped barking.
Chickens stopped clucking.
Birds flying toward their nests landed immediately.
All animals, from rats to the horses, twisted their necks to look in the direction where Minerva had vanished.
From the village's boundary, the smiling Angela looked up and stared at the same place. Far away from the village, the farmer stopped the ox-Cart, both him and the ox looking over their shoulders in the same direction.
And two yellow crystals bobbed up and down in everyone's eyes, sharing visions, thoughts, and identities in a fraction of a second.
…
Petyr walked back to the lounge and took Minerva's seat.
In front of him, there was Cersei on the larger sofa. But… the child had vanished.
Now seated in Arlen Black's place was Kai Stormborn, dressed in a white night suit, his long white hair trimmed to short lengths. The letter was still in his hands.
"Are we in trouble?" Petyr asked, sharing a glance with Cersei.
Kai had asked Death to add a name to the Book of Admittance across the Multiverse. Even then he had planned to use his homunculus as the prime acting agent in this world, keeping Darcie as the Hero she was meant to be.
But Black was still in the God of High School Switched World, learning martial arts from Jin Taejin himself.
Moreover, the White Serpent Pirates had carefully selected this place as their base of operation for the rest of the Current Mission's length.
There were just… too many dark and insidious things happening under the muddy grounds of this seemingly normal village. They couldn't afford to catch someone's eye, especially Dumbledore's and the Order of the Immortal Lotus', and ruin it all before it even began.
"You are… smiling," Cersei observed, differentiating between Kai's Calm and Kai's genuine joy in an instant. "Don't tell me…"
Kai chuckled.
The list of notifications lighting his pupils up right now… was just too long to not smile over it.
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