Its been few weeks after the rituals, my magic has grown steadily in quality and a little bit in quantity. My mind continues to grow sharper and sharper along with my body becoming more geared towards combat. My muscles are more compact the, fat is limited to my face making me seem like a child still, albeit one with a very good body.
The classes will start tomorrow again and my friends will come today in the evening. They had given me presents for Christmas while assuring me that I didn't need send one due to my predicament. I couldn't possibly get something for them even if I had the money to do so. I still had house elves cook each of there favourite dishes and send them that.
Henry, the ever Gryffindor got me prank items, which won't be put to use, yet. Elizabeth got me some sweets. Edgar got me some shoes, they were pretty good and comfy, probably laced with many charms. Eleanor got me a book on some of the things my ancestor were famous for. The best present by far.
It was evening time and I was just waiting for my friends to enter the castle. The evening was a bit chilly. I was looking at the sun setting, barley visible through clouds, when I heard many footsteps. Turning I looked among the students coming back and I found my friends, "Edgar, Eleanor, Henry and Elizabeth, welcome back my friends. How was Christmas for all of you?" I called out to them, promotion each one of them to look towards them.
The first to speak was Edgar, "It was awesome mate, I loved the food you sent and I can see you liked my present, seeing as you are wearing them." He smiled at me with those words.
I gave him a nod and looked at Eleanor who answered my question second. "My Christmas was good too, my parents asked many questions. They also liked the food you sent when I shared with them." She also looked happy.
I smiled at her, then Henry spoke up. "My was also awesome, but I got scolded for not doing better at transfiguration, you see my family prides itself in being transfigurations masters." He had a awkward smile.
"You will get better Henry don't push it, it will come naturally." I encouraged him and then the last person spoke.
Elizabeth smiled at me and said, "My Christmas was best this time, my parents were so happy with me. But lets get inside first."
We chuckled at what she said and then moved back to the Great Hall for dinner, before which the Headmaster gave a welcome back speech. With Henry and Elizabeth going to there own house table it was just three of us.
The dinner was delicious as always, but the company of my friends truly made it whole. I realised why I was feeling a bit empty even with such a good progress magically. I was just missing my friends.
After dinner I and my friends went towards the common room quietly. Me thinking about what to do tomorrow and my friends just sleepy with all the exhaustion setting in finally.
Once in the common room they went of to there rooms immediately, while I went to the small library and took a book on transfigurations theory written by professor Dumbledore himself.
It went on to talk about how the magic of transfiguring things worked, how different people argued about it directly affecting the essence of things being the pinnacle of transfiguration. When we do transfiguration, we generally only change the outer shape of it. If one does the matchstick to needle and broke the needle in half it would still break like wood despite having the chemical properties of a silver needle.
It was an interesting read for sure but as the time reached midnight I had to pause it for today. There was one more distinct benefit of the balancing Rituals, my soul being so powerful meant my body had to catch up to it and that catching up made it so that I would only need minimal rest of just 4 hours in 24 hours and it would be equivalent to a 8 hour sleep.
I went to sleep with the text on transfiguration still on my mind it gave me some ideas how to improve my transfigurations, just having magical power doesn't equal to me being proficient in every magic. I had to work for it, not much due the boon I chose but still work had to be done for results.
The next day I woke up at 4 exactly with 4 hours sleep, I have tried sleeping longer but I couldn't no matter what. Getting out of my bed I got fresh and all, putting on my Hogwarts uniform I went down to the common room took the transfiguration text again and sat down starting from where I left yesterday.
My memory boosted from the ritual made it easy to retain every thing so I just did that. Reading the whole text was also unsurprisingly fast, I was done in half an hour. Placing the book back to where it belonged I went back to sit and think about everything it said, it was only theory but a competent wizard does what he can only because it has full theoretical knowledge of its speciality.
Thinking for a while I gradually came to understand the content, I could feel it shaping how I did my transfiguration. Drawing my wand out I the first transfiguration spell that came to my mind on the table in front of me turning in to a giant glass slab flicking my wand ones more I returned it back to the original form. I naturally noticed how it was smoother than my previous ones.
I had thought I was already proficient with transfiguration but this made me realise how mistaken I was, I still had a very long way to go, different theories to learn, many magical to practice.
The other students have already started coming out for the first day of classes after the holidays, some still checking if there assignments where appropriately done. After a while of sitting there I saw Edgar and Eleanor coming down at almost same time, I greeted them placing my musings at the back of my mind and we were of to the Great Hall to have breakfast.
Today was Tuesday and the first class was Transfiguration, we have long since moved past the simple needle problem and were now onto transfiguring beetles in to buttons. It was funny seeing many mistakes my class mates still make, watching a button with beetle legs walking around was amusing.
After the fun class I stayed behind to ask something to prf. Dumbledore. "Professor I came across a text written by you on transfigurations, the one in which you talked about if the transfiguration at Pinnacle was transfiguring the essence of things. Some of the theories in it helped shaping my transfiguration magic in a good way. I even got better results with my spells after understanding the theories. I was hoping sir, that if you could point me towards more such books." I was a bit awkward towards the end because I haven't talked to a professor for this long before but Dumbledore had a small smile which encouraged me complete was I was saying.
"It helped you, you say. Well why not demonstrate, show me what you can do." He said to me. To which I just took my wand out and silently transfigured a table in to a marble slab this time and with another flick back to table. I looked towards him and there was a brief look of astonishment on his face which quickly morphed into genuine bright smile.
"Well done Marcus, truly you were not wrong about what you said earlier, I would definitely point you towards more books like that, even better I should just give the books straight to you, wait here Marcus." He said that and towards his office, and after a while he was back with three different books all different volumes of the book I completed today morning.
"Here take these and return them to me when you are done with them." He said handing me the books.
"Thank you professor, I will make sure to take care of them." I thanked him and went off to the next class it was herbology in which we studied about devil snare. After this round of strict Herbology class, it was time for lunch. But my mind was on something else.
What if there were some books about charms too just like the ones I read about transfiguration. I would have to ask Prf. Beery. Which I did after his class, this class we had to study about the fire making charm.
"Professor I was wondering if you could point me towards some books on charms theory, you see I had read one about transfiguration and it helped me immensely in improving my work." I asked him looking hopeful.
"If course I can Mr Starborn." Saying that he summoned a slip of paper wrote in it the book's name and handed it to me. "Now off you go I have some matters to attend."
I thanked him and went straight to the library after Informing my friends I would be busy for a while with my studies today. To which they shrugged and just whished me good luck. Collecting the book from the library with the recommendation of my charms professor I went to the ROR to study it and practiced till the dinner time. It helped immensely just as I had thought. I could do any charms silently now and the new ones which I learned didn't even need much effort to put into practice.
Satisfied with my progress I went to have dinner, and then back to the ravenclaw common room with my friends where we chatted till it was time for them to sleep.
I chose to stay awake till 2 AM and study different books on transfigurations theory which were provided by Prf. Dumbledore. It was helpful, the theories setting the foundation for more advanced spell work.
After the successful study session I went to sleep at the intended time happy to be able to progress this smoothly in the most important subjects, they would just complement my combat allowing for me to incorporate different things in me arsenal of spells. Today was a productive day.