Magic is a mysterious thing.
One moment, it seems anything is possible, and the next, it can vanish like a mirage.
I was currently experiencing that firsthand.
Of course, my magic hadn't vanished like a mirage at all.
On the contrary, if I focused and meditated for even a moment, I could feel a torrent of magical power, so excessive it was almost overwhelming, multiplying within my body. It was less a mirage and more an oil gusher.
Still, in the sense that I couldn't properly use that magic, perhaps it wasn't so different after all.
The mere act of lifting the Elder Wand brought forth a shimmering afterimage of an old connection.
It wasn't enough to throw my mind into chaos, but the distinct stir of emotion told me that I was far from a state of peace.
For an ordinary wizard, such emotional turmoil might even enhance their magic. In my case, however, enhancement would be a disaster.
As practice, I tried to lift a single pebble from the floor.
*'Wingardium Leviosa.'*
The pebble lifted, just as it should have. So far, there seemed to be no problem.
The problem was the clump of earth that rose with it, a mass that, at a glance, was clearly larger than my own body. I quietly pushed the clod of dirt back into the ground.
With a sigh, I shook my head. At this rate, I couldn't risk using magic carelessly.
*Tsk, Albus is going to give me an earful about this soon.*
As I sighed, a strange thought occurred to me.
Even if my magical power had swelled to double its usual amount, did it make sense for me to be this disoriented by its strength? It might sound like boasting, but this was *me* we were talking about.
In fact, the current increase in power wasn't even quite double. Of course, since my baseline magical power was already immense, even a twofold increase was an unimaginable surge, but in terms of multiplication, that was the figure.
So, how had I come to possess such vast magical power in the first place?
Having started learning magic five years later than my peers, my total magical capacity had initially been less than that of my friends, to say nothing of a great archmage.
The reason I came to possess such immense power was due to a certain incident. The power I gained then was a several-hundred-fold increase.
Even when my strength had multiplied by hundreds, I had skillfully reined it in and mastered its use in a matter of days.
And yet, the fact that I was now struggling to control this much lesser increase struck me as odd.
Could there be a reason? No matter how I thought about it, it didn't make sense.
After pondering for a long time, I came up with the most plausible hypothesis. It dawned on me that my body's physical age was thirteen.
The age of thirteen is a time of great physical and mental change.
And in the human body, change means hormonal fluctuations.
Testosterone, androgen, growth hormone, and various other hormones whose existence wasn't even known in the 19th century.
No matter that I possessed an adult mind, the body's hormonal changes inevitably lead to mental ones.
It seemed the wide range of emotional shifts this caused was amplifying the fluctuations in my magic.
Even so, this level of uncontrollability was still beyond comprehension, but for now, it was hard to think of any other explanation.
There was definitely another factor at play.
Still, having found a theory that offered at least a partial explanation, I felt a little better.
*Perhaps I'll go for a butterbeer. It's been a while.*
In any case, the stormy emotions of adolescence were truly a fickle thing.
***
And here was another girl, swept up in the raging storm of adolescent emotions.
*Wriggle.*
In the Great Hall, where everyone was asleep, a single sleeping bag began to squirm.
With over a hundred students sleeping there, one or two moving sleeping bags wasn't a major event.
It was only natural for a few students to toss and turn, unable to sleep.
That is, if the owner of that particular sleeping bag hadn't had her eyes wide open, searching for someone in the dark.
1 AM. At an hour when most students were sound asleep, Hermione Granger's eyes snapped open.
Hermione let out a small sigh, thinking back.
She was remembering the unfamiliar expression she had seen on Aisen's face in the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom that afternoon.
The bitter smile he wore as he faced his own Boggart was… how to put it? It was different from his usual cheerful self. He was definitely hiding something.
But when she considered asking Aisen about it directly, Hermione's face flushed. She hadn't learned of it through honest means, so she couldn't bring herself to ask.
Knowing Aisen as well as she did, she could perfectly predict his reaction.
First, he would be slightly taken aback, then a shameless grin would spread across his face as he turned the question back on her.
*'What's this, Hermione? Were you spying on me? Oh, this won't do. You do know you still have one Wish Ticket left, right?'*
And then he would proceed to tease her relentlessly.
Therefore, Hermione decisively eliminated 'conversation' from her list of options.
In any case, Hermione was curious about Aisen. Very curious.
*'It was… over there, right?'*
Hermione scanned her surroundings. Her eyes fell on the spot she had mentally marked before getting into her sleeping bag.
It was where Aisen was supposed to be sleeping.
Naturally, the boys' and girls' sleeping areas were separated, so even though they were both Gryffindors, their spots were some distance apart.
From here, she couldn't check if he was sleeping soundly.
Of course, if someone were to ask why Hermione needed to check if Aisen was sleeping soundly, she would have been at a loss for words.
*'I-I'm just checking if he's sleeping well!'*
Hermione's face was flushed with shame at her own sophistry, repeating a self-suggestion that even she didn't believe.
But to proceed with the plan despite a blushing face—wasn't that a privilege of youth?
Anyway.
She could use magic to check on Aisen's spot, but the risk of getting caught was higher.
How many professors were patrolling and watching over this area?
To use magic without being caught by their sharp eyes, she would need, at the very least, something like Harry's Invisibility Cloak.
However, there was another way to avoid the professors' eyes.
Professors, who had spent more of their lives using magic than not, often overlooked one particular blind spot: Muggle methods.
After all, more than a few magically sealed locks had been opened by a simple physical punch.
So, what Hermione had to do was simple.
*Wriggle.*
*Wriggle.*
In a word: crawl.
Moving little by little in her sleeping bag as if she had become a caterpillar, Hermione squeezed through the gaps between other students. After inching her way across the floor, she finally reached Aisen's vicinity.
She poked his sleeping bag with a finger and whispered, "Aisen, are you asleep?"
But there was no response, not even a stir. Hermione felt a premonition and tugged at the sleeping bag.
The bag followed her pull with a light whoosh. It was far too light to contain a person.
Just as she thought.
As Hermione had expected, inside the sleeping bag was not a person, but a pile of bundled-up blankets.
Come to think of it, Aisen had always enjoyed midnight strolls. Still, she had never imagined he would go out for one even when the professors had confined them all for their safety because of Bellatrix's attack.
But still.
Where could he have snuck off to in the middle of the night?
Could he be up to something bad? No, of course Aisen wasn't that kind of person.
On the contrary, could he have gotten himself into trouble? Yes, that was it. As a friend, Hermione felt the need to know what Aisen was doing. Purely as a 'friend'!
Once again, Hermione reached for the Time-Turner around her neck to begin her pursuit, but then she paused.
Even blinded by the storm of her emotions, the lingering vestiges of her model-student persona stopped her.
Professor McGonagall's stern warning came to mind.
*'You must never use this object for personal reasons.'*
While she had already used it once for personal reasons—though she herself would deny it—the model student in Hermione still hesitated.
Using the Time-Turner to follow Aisen like this was, no matter how she thought about it, problematic…!
Of course, she didn't even consider that the act of following him was a problem in itself.
In any case, our diligent Hermione decided to save the Time-Turner for when it was absolutely necessary and began to move cautiously.
She crossed the boys' sleeping area and headed for the corridor.
Just as she was about to follow Aisen outside, a voice she had been thinking of just moments before came from behind her.
"Miss Granger. What are you doing here at this hour?"
It was Professor McGonagall's voice. Hermione jumped like a startled cat, its back arched, and spun around.
"Ah, haha. Professor. Good evening. You must be tired, patrolling at night."
"Indeed I am, Miss Granger. It's a necessary precaution, with Lestrange about. But what, may I ask, are you doing up at this hour…?"
"Oh, that… the loo! I suddenly had to use the loo…"
"…Dressed like that?"
*Flinch.* Only then did Hermione realize what she was wearing.
She was in her pajamas, without her robes, still wrapped snugly in her sleeping bag like a caterpillar.
Hermione answered awkwardly, "Ah, haha. Well… it's a bit chilly."
"Is it, in this weather…? Hmm. In any case, I shall accompany you."
"Wh-what? No, you don't have to do that…"
"Nonsense, it is for your own safety, Miss Granger. Let's go."
At Professor McGonagall's firm tone, Hermione's face fell, but she nodded nonetheless.
***
The next day.
Hermione woke with dark circles under her eyes and looked around.
The other students were already up and packing their sleeping bags, watching as the professors magically summoned the dining tables once more.
It was the price she paid for trying to catch Aisen returning, even after her attempt to follow him out had been thwarted by Professor McGonagall.
If he had snuck out, it was only common sense that he would sneak back in, right? So if she could just catch him coming back, she would have him cornered!
With that in mind, she had even used a Wakefulness Charm to keep a hawk-like watch for Aisen's return, but morning came, and he never appeared.
*'Where did he go…? I hope he's not hurt. No, with his skills, he wouldn't get hurt. But why isn't he back? He'll be in big trouble if he's caught, what's he so confident about?'*
The answer was obvious. Because after returning from the Forbidden Forest, Aisen had gone straight to Dumbledore's office and slept there. Why would someone under the Headmaster's protection fear getting demerits?
Unaware of this fact, Hermione had simply exhausted herself waiting for Aisen.
With hollow eyes, she sat at one of the newly appeared tables and waited for her food. Dishes prepared and sent by the house-elves appeared on the table.
As she was eating, Harry and Ron soon came and sat opposite her.
With Aisen still nowhere in sight, a seed of worry began to sprout in Hermione's heart.
*Why isn't he here? Is he hurt? Did he suddenly decide he doesn't want to see us? Did a professor catch him?*
Just as she was getting lost in all sorts of wild fantasies, Aisen sat down in the seat next to her with his usual mischievous grin.
"Eating breakfast already?"
Hermione stared at Aisen with her mouth agape for a moment, then, as if in a fit of pique, poked him sharply in the side.
"Oww, what was that for?"
"You don't need to know."
Behind her sulky expression, a small smile played on Hermione's lips.
***