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Last night's gloomy rain had cast a layer of mist over Hogwarts, and the sunlight passing through the water vapour created a Tyndall effect, adding a touch of fantasy to the early morning at the castle.
Aiden woke early. The excitement of first arriving at Hogwarts seemed to have exhausted his roommates, who were still deep in their dreams.
Lada, sensing Aiden's movement, ran over and stretched beside him, her tail flicking with contentment.
Outside the window, the sun gently caressed the earth with warm, non-dazzling light. A faint warmth permeated the air, making one feel comfortable and peaceful, as if the entire world were wrapped in a soft golden veil—neither overly intense nor lacking in warmth.
It was a rare fine day in England. With two hours until the morning Transfiguration class, Aiden decided to take his cat out for a walk.
Strolling by the Black Lake, the breeze swept through the forest, bringing fresh air. Lada frolicked on the grass, while Aiden leaned against a tree, reading a book. The lake, the cat, and the young wizard reading formed a beautiful scene, but what spoilt the view was that, on the surface, Aiden was reading, but in reality, he was chatting with the system.
[Aiden: System, how did Professor McGonagall discover I was casting spells last night?]
[System: Ding. Wizards themselves do not generate magic; they use the world's magic. It is not surprising that the senses of adult wizards, immersed in the flow of magic for years, develop certain abilities.
[Aiden: Then, will wizards develop organs for storing magic?]
[System: Ding. Yes. In fact, the magicisation of a single organ in the body is a sign of a wizard's adulthood. This process is completed through systematic learning of knowledge and spellcasting techniques. They shift from borrowing the world's magic to cast spells to using their own magic in conjunction with the world's magic. This process reduces the power of spells and requires a wand, but it greatly increases the safety of a wizard's spellcasting.
[System: Ding. When a wizard accumulates vast knowledge and spellcasting experience, the magicised organs in their body will increase and form a connected system. This is also a sign that they have entered the realm of masters in their respective fields.
[Aiden: What about me? Does taking potions to gain extraordinary power also count as organ magic-isation?
[System: Ding. The process is similar, but you achieved magical organ transformation through a shortcut. After that, you taught yourself magic to fill in the gaps. Now the only thing lacking now is spellcasting experience.
Just as Aiden was absorbed in his conversation with the system, Lada, having finished her playtime, trotted back. Noticing Aiden lost in thought, a human-like look of mischief appeared on her cat face.
"Oi, litter scooper, I'm done playing. It's time to go back. Stop spacing out. Honestly, do you ever do anything useful all day?" She meowed, her tone laced with a strong northeastern accent.
Aiden, startled by the sudden Chinese, looked down at Lada. "Good heavens, Lada, you can talk? With that strong northeastern accent, you really are from that place, aren't you?"
He helplessly picked up Lada and stroked her fur.
"Of course, a purebred northeastern leopard cat, and bilingual in Chinese and English," Lada said, yawning.
"Alright, you're impressive," Aiden said, holding Lada as he walked back to the castle.
*****
Back in the dormitory, his roommates were also up. Aiden distributed the breakfast he'd brought back and the copied class schedule to them.
"Godfather!" the three chorused, grinning.
"Stop messing around; hurry up. Don't be late for class later," Aiden said, rolling his eyes.
After eating and drinking their fill, the four walked through the corridor to the stairs. There were a total of one hundred and forty-two staircases in Hogwarts, some wide and clean, others narrow and prone to wobbling. Some would turn into a different place on a certain Friday, and some hid vanishing steps, forcing you to jump up to go higher.
After some effort, Aiden finally arrived at the Transfiguration classroom. There weren't many young wizards in the classroom yet, but a tabby cat sat on the podium in the centre of the room.
After exchanging a glance with the tabby cat, Aiden quickly pulled his roommates to find a place to sit.
"Aiden, why the rush? Professor McGonagall isn't here yet," Oliver said, still unfamiliar with the subtleties of the magical world.
Aiden looked at Edmund, then glanced at the tabby cat again. Edmund quickly understood.
"Alright, let's review first. Don't fall behind in class later," Edmund said, smoothing things over.
So the few of them took out their books, and other young wizards entered the classroom one after another. As class time drew closer, Ron and Harry were visibly going to be late. Aiden silently mourned for them in his heart.
Finally, Harry and Ron burst into the classroom. Professor McGonagall revealed her Animagus form, transforming from the tabby cat and issuing a stern warning.
"Acute observation, Mr Prewett," she said, her eyes sharp. Then she addressed the class: "Transfiguration is some of the most complex and dangerous magic you will learn at Hogwarts. Anyone who messes around in my class will leave immediately and never come back."
With a flick of her wand, she turned her desk into a pig and back again. Everyone was stunned by her amazing skill and eager to try for themselves.
After explaining a long section of theory, Professor McGonagall gave everyone a match. "Your task today is to turn this match into a needle."
Aiden received his match, looked at it, and, without even using a wand, turned the match into a needle.
"Excellent wandless casting, Mr Prewett. I will award Ravenclaw ten points, but since your progress is far ahead of everyone else, you won't have this opportunity next time."
Professor McGonagall was still very fair. Aiden's display also aroused the interest of the other young wizards.
Seamus from Gryffindor waved his wand with too much enthusiasm, causing his match to explode and blackening Neville's face. Professor McGonagall sighed helplessly and went over to help clean up.
As she left, Edmund, Ethan, and Oliver gathered around Aiden.
"How did you do that?" Oliver asked on behalf of the other two.
"Belief, my friends. The power of belief is your magic," Aiden said with a grin, though no one seemed to get the joke.
[System: Ding, heh.]
"Oh, this is too difficult. The match is made of wood, and the needle is made of metal. How can these two things possibly transform into each other?" Oliver, coming from a scientific background, was clearly struggling.
"Then, look at me," Aiden said.
He looked into Oliver's eyes, snapped his right fingers, and planted a suggestion in Oliver's mind.
"Now try again," Aiden encouraged.
Oliver waved his wand, and the head of the match turned silvery-white and sharp.
"Wow, how did you do that? It wasn't working just now." Oliver snapped back to reality, immediately breaking the suggestion.
Indeed, modifying common sense is still too unnatural. Aiden thought, then answered Oliver's confusion.
"I just made you temporarily forget the material of the match and the needle and believe that they are the same type of object."
Edmund and Ethan, who were standing by, also wanted to try. Aiden gave each of them a suggestion.
Soon, their matches also changed.
"Hmmm, look there; Miss Granger's match has also changed," Ethan pointed out.
Professor McGonagall finally found a subject to demonstrate and held up Hermione's match for everyone to see.
"Gryffindor gets five points," Professor McGonagall generously awarded.
It was a pity that Professor McGonagall did not return to check on Aiden and his group, causing Ravenclaw to miss out on the opportunity for more points.
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