Sitting in Hagrid's hut, Lys stared blankly as the giant man's face turned bright red from the candy's effects. Flames shot out of his nostrils, even singeing his beard.
Quickly, Lys conjured a stream of water to extinguish the flames. Hagrid, seemingly startled, froze for a moment before bursting into hearty laughter.
"Oh, Lys, this is absolutely hilarious! Back when I was at Hogwarts, Honeydukes didn't have candies like this. Oh, what a delightful surprise you've brought me," he said, even popping another Pepper Imp into his mouth. This time, the fire burned off another patch of his beard, yet he continued laughing uncontrollably.
After losing yet another chunk of his beard, Hagrid turned his attention to Gobble, the snake, who was scrambling across the freshly cleaned floor, chasing the magical candy as if it were a bug. Hagrid had always thought the snake was adorably clumsy due to its chubbiness.
But soon, the joy faded from Hagrid's face, replaced by a heavy sigh.
"Hagrid, could you sigh a little lighter? You're blowing my books all over the place," Lys reminded him, prompting yet another sigh from the half-giant.
"What's wrong? Did something go wrong with the errand you went out for?"
"I didn't go out on an errand. I just went to buy medicine for the cabbage-eating worms!"
"Hagrid, you don't even grow cabbages. But never mind that—can I help you with anything?" Lys asked. Although she was sure that Hagrid's friendliness would vanish instantly if Dumbledore ever spoke ill of her, she still valued his rare potion ingredients and untainted sincerity.
"It's those little critters."
Oh, those large beasts, Lys thought.
"They've been getting sick and injured. One of the Knarls died in the stream. The cool environment delayed its decay, but it also spread the illness through the water. By the time I found it, it was already falling apart."
Hagrid sniffled. "A few of the critters got sick and weak, which caused them to break their legs. All I could do was splint their legs, but I had no other way to help them."
Lys licked her lips and pretended to focus on her book. She realized she was holding Advanced Healing and Restorative Magic. "If you're willing, maybe I can give it a try," she suggested.
She raised the book in her hand under Hagrid's skeptical gaze. "Just give it a try," she added.
The results exceeded Hagrid's expectations. If he hadn't been afraid of crushing Lys, he might have given her a bear hug.
Although Lys couldn't cure symptoms resembling food poisoning, she did experiment with the broken legs. She peeled back the shattered skin, cleaned the fractured bones, aligned them, and then cast healing spells to mend the flesh.
Hagrid rushed to the hospital wing and practically snatched a bottle of Skele-Gro. He poured it down the throat of what he called a "little critter"—a massive beast in reality. A day later, a perfectly healed leg, free of deformities or future complications, appeared before Lys.
Ignoring Hagrid's slobbering gratitude, Lys touched the fully healed leg again.
A crazy yet obsessive idea took root in her mind.
Eventually, all the injured "little critters" received Lys's special care. She meticulously examined and studied the bones she held in her hands. At times, Hagrid even saw her rubbing the bones and wearing an unsettling expression when blood smeared her face.
In the end, all the animals returned to the forest with their limbs intact. Though there were minor flaws—two of the injuries left silver scars on the bones—this was the best outcome Hagrid could imagine. A crippled animal, no matter how mighty it once was, wouldn't stand a chance of surviving in the forest.
As a token of gratitude, Hagrid gave Lys a pile of random roots, feathers, and various horns, all of which could be excellent potion ingredients when properly processed.
Lys processed some of them and sent them, along with candied jackfruit, to Professor Slughorn.
This earned her some leniency from the professor, who had been critical of her declining essay quality.
Aside from these events, Lys didn't forget her mother's request: the Patronus Charm, to prove that she wasn't as insane as the rest of the Black family.
But she made no progress. Each attempt produced only a wisp of silver mist that quickly dissipated.
Before a Charms class, she brought a book on the Patronus Charm to consult Professor Flitwick. However, his explanation offered nothing new beyond what was already in the book. With no answers, the class began.
That day's lesson was about making a vase sing. Lys flipped through her book frantically but couldn't find the spell. She then realized her second-hand book was missing pages!
Lys silently vowed not to buy second-hand books next year. Missing pages and incomplete information made it impossible for her to prepare in advance, leaving her struggling to keep up with the professor.
As a result, she was encountering the spell for the first time, which caught her off guard. While many students also failed to make their vases sing, as someone who had performed well in previous classes, this was unacceptable.
Lys repeatedly cast the spell, growing frustrated until she accidentally shattered the vase with a burst of magic. Before the class ended, she handed Professor Flitwick a brand-new silver vase.
"Well, my dear, I think we should have a little chat," Professor Flitwick said, amused by her stubbornness. It had been a while since he'd seen such determination—it was almost nostalgic.
He explained once again the importance of intent, emotion, determination, and clarity in spellcasting. "Your magical power is already quite strong for someone your age, but your emotions lack intensity, and your determination isn't firm enough. You need to believe in yourself. Also, it seems you can't quite imagine what the vase would say?"
Lys could only nod, indicating she understood. But understanding and achieving were two different things, and she still needed time.
"That's also why I'm willing to tutor you. You don't seem overly ambitious; in fact, I get the sense that you're learning out of obligation rather than desire."
This feeling was usually associated with Hufflepuffs, who studied just to pass exams.
Standing on a chair to look up at the red-haired, half-hidden child, Professor Flitwick shook the essay she had submitted for that class.
"It's clear you wrote this yourself and gave it your best effort, but it's still a bit short of an Outstanding. Try a little harder, will you? If you can manage, I wouldn't mind giving you an Outstanding at the end of the term."
The wise Ravenclaw head knew that the only thing compelling a child to put effort into a disliked essay was the pursuit of an Outstanding grade.
"Oh, and if you're truly interested in the Patronus Charm, you might want to consult your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. He's the real expert in this area."
Back in her dormitory, Lys hugged the vase Professor Flitwick had let her take for practice and mulled over his words.
What did he mean by her emotions not being intense enough? Determination? She had nearly smashed the vase—how was that not intense or determined?
She rolled on her bed with Gobble, thankful he hadn't eaten anything. Otherwise, he would've thrown up from being squished.
As for her Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, who always seemed exhausted after practical lessons?
She wasn't exactly confident in him.
"""
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