62Chapter 5
It's Sunday of week 2 of my time here in Hogwarts. After this morning's drama with the Slytherin's, Harry and Draco get into an argument. Draco overhears us speaking about Quidditch and headed over to our group. He probably wants to escape the death glares the girls are sending the boys way. I do note that he has some of the first year girls join him as he heads our way. I guess it makes sense, the first year boys and most of the girls are not as affected by the situation.
Just after we finish breakfast. I ask, "Hey Harry, do you want to go look up the rules, for Quidditch I mean, in the library?"
"Yeah mate. I have no idea how to play the game. I mean I've only flown during our first lesson."
This is when Draco hears us and cuts into our conversation, "What's this Heir Potter? You don't even know the rules to Quidditch. How can you call yourself a wizard?"
Harry shies away from Draco's aggressive questions and demeanor. But he answers anyway. "I never heard of the sport until recently. Now that our head of house wants me to play I have to learn quickly."
"What do you mean you're going to play? First years aren't allowed to. If any first year should be allowed, it should be a pureblood like me."
I speak up at this comment hoping to diffuse a potential argument, "Have you spoken to your head of house? I'm sure that if you have the talent he will also make an exception for you."
He scowls at me and venomously replies, "How else would I know about that ridiculous rule? He told me." His attention switches back to Harry. "You don't deserve to play you filthy halfblood." Although Harry flinches at the name calling he doesn't truly know what it means yet.
So he stands up for himself. "Well I'm clearly more deserving than you." And with that comment Draco's face reddens and I feel waves of anger and embarrassment come off him. I'm happy Harry is becoming more confident but I hope his anger doesn't cloud his judgement in the future.
Then a conniving smirk flashes across his face and his expression changes to a sneer and in a haughty tone he says, "Well if you're so much better than me, you can prove it in a duel. Crabbe here can be my second." Crabbe steps forward with a nod. I legitimately didn't notice him there. He is so boring and uninteresting he melted into the background for me. My parents would kick my ass at being so inattentive.
Before Harry can speak Ron shouts, "You're on snake. I'll be Harry's second, as his best friend. You have no chance against the legendary slayer of a dark lord."
Looking remarkably unfazed by Ron's out burst Draco gives Harry the details, "We'll meet in the trophy room at midnight then. If you lose you won't go to the tryout." He quickly turns trying to leave with his group that consists of Crabbe, Goyle, two girls I haven't met personally but I know who they are, Pansy Parkinson she has the face of a pug and Millicent Bulstrode she honestly looks like a beefy dude. If I didn't know better I would have assumed she was.
Before he can get to far I call over loud enough for most of the people nearby to hear, "What does Harry gain from this? As far as I see he has no reason to show up."
He turns back around and sneers at me. "What do you want Potter?" he spits out at Harry but his venomous gaze is still on me.
Harry contemplates for a second and says, "You will have to call yourself a dirty half blood as loud as possible at breakfast tomorrow morning." With that said Draco leaves.
After they leave we continue where we left off. It seems some events are fixed. Even though this argument and duel was supposed to happen differently it still happened.
Quest Alert
Main Objective: Make sure your friends survive the night.
Bonus Objective 1: Your friends don't get caught.
Bonus Objective 2: You stay hidden your friends included and don't get caught.
Rewards
Main Objective: Unlock healing magic.
Bonus Objective 1: Familiar stone.
Bonus Objective 2: Assassin shroud.
Later that night, it's about 11:50 PM and I'm hidden in the shadows outside the Gryffindor entrance. Neville is sleeping in the corridor for some reason. I quickly check his mind and find that he has forgotten the password and everyone was asleep by the time he got back. He apparently injured himself again, he sprained his ankle when he tripped in a courtyard.
Harry, Hermione and Ron exit their dorms. Ron is whisper shouting, "You can't come with us. You're not Harry's second."
"I'm just coming along to make sure you two don't get into any trouble and lose us any more house points. That mind you, I earned during most classes." Just then they notice Neville stirring at their terrible attempt at sneaking.
He stands up and smiles at them, "Thank you for coming. I thought I would have to sleep outside." He then frowns at their shocked expressions. "Where are you going?" He wasn't with us this morning when Draco and Harry argued.
Hermione answers him, "We're going to watch Harry and Draco duel…. You want to come with?"
Ron looks like he is about to blow a gasket, his face is so red. He whisper shouts again, "He can't come either! It's supposed to be just Harry and I!"
I see the paintings near them stir and some even grumble about kids making noise at all hours. That is another weird thing. The paintings sleep at night. Like the ghosts that I've seen only exist here it is an unexplained occurrence. The wizards just accept that these things are facts. I'll definitely look into it at some point. The ghosts may help me with my research into souls. While I was busy thinking the group decide to head off. I follow them with my sneaking skills and normality aura activated in case I get spotted.
When they reach the trophy room, they go inside and look around. It's almost midnight and the duo of Draco and Crabbe is nowhere to be seen. While they wait they look around. Harry finds a moving picture of his dad when he won his last Quidditch game securing their victory for the house cup. He stares at it like he is trying to memorize every detail. At about 12:10 PM Mr. Filch comes into the corridor that the trophy room is in. He is holding a gas lamp in his right hand of all things in one hand and his cat under his left arm. Since he isn't trying to be quiet about it the group in the room all hear him and scatter to different hiding spots. I hide myself deeper into the shadows behind a pillar. Then thinking better of it, I scale the pillar too, until I can hold myself in the corner of the wall, pillar and roof. My reasoning is simple, unless someone is a trained professional in searching, people generally don't look up.
Filch enters the trophy room and looks around but it seems the others also found good hiding spots. He is by the entrance when I hear him talk to his cat. "Well it looks like that Malfoy brat lied to me Mrs. Norris. At least he paid me these two Galleons first." He pats his pocket with the arm holding his cat and I hear the coins jingle. She is clearly annoyed by the motion as she yowls at him. Right after, in the quiet that follows her yowl, someone moves in the trophy room and it's loud enough for me to hear clearly in the corridor. Filch is about to turn when I quickly enter his mind and make him forget he heard the sound. He stops mid turn and looks confused for a second but shakes it off and leaves. Mind arts makes things with most people so easy.
Once his footsteps fade and his light is no longer visible the group comes out the room. "That was a close one. Draco, that bastard set us up!" Harry softly exclaims.
"What do you expect from a slimy snake?" Ron comments. Although Neville doesn't say anything he nods in agreement.
"We should get back now. The problem is we can't go back the way we came since Mr. Filch went that way." Hermione brings up their current dilemma.
They decide to head the other way unknowingly heading for the third floor corridor that is off limits. I'm a little conflicted right now. I know where they are going and that it's dangerous. I don't want my friends to get hurt but I know they need to go. To start their investigation that eventually leads to the confrontation between Harry and Quirrell/Voldemort. That is actually why I'm following them in the first place. To make sure this happens and that none of them get hurt in the process. However I'm not all powerful and I can make mistakes. This is the first time I've had to protect someone like this. Whenever I'm with my parents or Ruby I know they can take care of themselves in a dangerous situation. However these 4 are just kids with no real combat awareness or training. I look around the pillar and see the group is turning the corner into the forbidden corridor already. I need to be less distracted in these situations as well. I hurriedly catch up, making sure the sound of my steps is muffled with an interesting application of air I recently learnt. I make the air around my feet vibrate slightly and the sound muffles and doesn't travel as far. It's not perfect but I can run without making too much noise.
As they make their way down the corridor in front of me, we hear footsteps coming up behind us. Filch is probably coming back to patrol this corridor specifically. The group begin panicking and rush to the closest door but it's locked. They keep trying doors until they hear he is almost rounding the corner.
Hermione takes out her wand from her waistband and mutters, "Alohomora." As quickly and quietly as possible. She gestures over with a whispered, "In here." And the boys rush over and through the door.
I activate my dome ability and get within 10 meters of the room their in. I can see the Cerberus sleeping behind them. Teleporting myself to the corner of the room, I'm just in time to see Hermione cast, "Colloportus." And the door locks them in the room. While they intently listen to Filch's footsteps through the door, I observe the massive death dog behind their backs.
Name: Fluffy
Species: Cerberus
Tier 6
HP 3000
MP 750
SP 3000
Vit 300
Str 300
End 300
Agi 100
Dex 100
Int 25 25 25
Wis 25 25 25
Cha 150
Luc 100
This thing is huge and that is just my first impression while it is laying there. It's my current height of 1.52 meters flat on the ground. The mouths look big enough to chomp me in 2. It's charcoal fur helps it blend into the surrounding darkness. It's paws were the size of my torso, I noticed one was half covering a trapdoor. It's claws have left gashes throughout the room. I could probably beat it easily with magic or defeat it in strength and skill or run from it with my speed but god damn does it look intimidating as fuck. Reacting quickly I make a wall of vibrating air mid way between us, to prevent our scents and sounds from reaching this monster. Thank god it didn't stir at the others relatively loud entrance.
The others finally relax when the footsteps fade. Neville turns and slumps against the wall. He is the first to notice the giant three headed dog in the room with us. Through the dark surroundings he squints at first them his eyes widen in horror. He grabs onto the closest person's robe, who happens to be Ron. Ron looks down at Neville and when he sees his expression, he breaks out into a cold sweat. Ron looks in the same direction as Neville and he also gets a horrified expression at the sight of Fluffy. At this point Hermione and Harry take note of their friends reactions and turn to see what they are scared of. As soon as they see what it is they all hurriedly try to get out the room. Hermione quickly casts alohomora and they rush out and shut the door with a loud bang. They clearly forget any stealth with the fear running through their system. Before I leave I see where Ron and Neville were there is a puddle of piss. I don't know if it was just one or both of them that it came from but I can't leave any evidence of our time here. Hardly believing I'm doing this I make the puddle evaporate with a small use of my new steam manipulation. I really thought I would be using my powers to battle fearsome creatures and deadly enemies but here I am cleaning piss. Fuck my life. Quickly snapping out of my melancholy, I create a clone and have him stationed practically invisible in a corner, his job is to let me know when Quirrell/Voldemort comes here. I only know he came on two occasions but it was implied he came here on more than those occasions. I then teleport back into the corridor. The group of my 4 friends are almost at the end of the corridor and I rush to catchup. Nothing else happens and after I followed them back to their dorm, tired from the nights excitement I make my way back to my own bed.
Quest completed.
In my bed I observe the skill and two items I got from the quest.
Healing magic level 1/100
Can heal any physical injury with enough time. Older injuries are harder but not impossible. The better your understanding of biology of the person or creature the easier and faster it is to heal.
1000 MP per minute
Familiar stone
Place this stone against any non-sentient being head and they will become your familiar. A familiar grows in equal physical strength and speed as their master.
Assassin shroud
When worn no one can notice you. Although it's ability is extremely powerful if you draw attention to yourself you can be noticed. This item can also be destroyed as it is normal cloth.
Happy with the nights gains I put the items in my inventory and fall asleep with a smile.
It's Friday of week 3 and Hermione's birthday is today the 19th of September and she is turning 12. She is the oldest person in our year because of how close her birthday is to the start of the school year. Since we can't really throw a party yet I've only been able to organize a present for her. Hopefully by this time next year I'll be settled in enough that I can throw her a party. The gift I bought for her is a book bag. It has two enchantments on it. The first is a weight reduction and second spatial expansion. It's not very large but enough to fit a hundred books neatly next to each other. I've filled the bag with all my books, textbooks and notebooks, that I used for regular school subjects for grades 6 to 12. This will hopefully help her keep up with her mundane subjects while here.
I'm waiting in the grand hall when I see Hermione come in for breakfast. She still looks half asleep and she's rubbing her eyes to wake up. She must have read late into the night again. I keep telling her to pace herself but with all this new and interesting knowledge around her I can't really blame her. I've just been lucky that my clones are taking care of my thirst for knowledge. I even found the unlocking charm, alohomora or thief's friend and it's counterpart the locking charm colloportus, last night. After I saw Hermione use it I wanted it in my repertoire too. I can't believe it's a spell available to first years or mischievous teens in general.
As I think about the absurdity of wizard magic and those who wield it, I approached her. Giving a bright smile I loudly pronounce my presence with a shout of, "Happy birthday Hermione! I see you are wide awake this lovely morning." Before she has a chance to respond I pull her present out of my inventory but disguise it by putting my hand in my robe. I hand it over to her and she takes it by instinct alone. "This is the present I got for you." She looks down at the wrapped present dumbly for a few seconds. Her sleep deprived mind still trying to catch up. Then a massively happy smile spreads across her face.
We quickly make our way over to an open bench by the Gryffindors. As soon as we sit she starts tearing off the wrapping paper. The bags design is a brown leather satchel with embroidered floral patterns in black. The strap is adjustable too. I explain the enchantments to her once she looks inside and is shocked to see the quantity of books inside.
She happily gives me a tight hug and says into my ear, "Thank you for this."
While we are eating an owl drops off a box for her but we have to leave for class before she opens it.
I spend most of the day trying to catch some time with her between classes that we don't share and partner up in classes like charms that have all the houses together. We joke around and tease each other with fleeting touches when no one is looking. She is very shy about PDA (public displays of affection) but she initiated it today so I played along. I'm definitely not going to complain, I enjoy this close physical contact. We almost get caught a couple times by our friends, classmates and teachers. I'm sure Susan saw us holding hands once. She gave me a knowing smile. It was a very fun day and I am glad Hermione got to enjoy it.
After classes are over for the day we snuck off together to our abandoned classroom. I look around at the dusty room and think about how I can't wait to learn more about transfiguration. I want to transform this room into something more comfortable for us. I move quickly to open a window and blow all the dust out with an application of aerokinesis.
I've decided recently that I need to be more aware of the people around me. I don't have the greatest social skills since I grew up rather isolated. So I've set my telepathy and empathy to the surface level. That's why I can feel a bittersweet joy coming from her and that she is thinking about her parents.
The only way I see that I can help her feel better is to talk about it. I want her to be as happy as possible, not just because I have feelings for her but also because we are friends.
So I ask her directly, "What's bugging you Mio?" She looks up at me with a start of surprise and guilt wafts off of her after. She clearly didn't expect me to pick up on her mood.
"I had an amazing day today but I feel sad and guilty."
"You want to talk about it?"
"Yes it might help to get this off my chest. I think I'm feeling sad because this is the first time I've spent my birthday away from my parents and I miss them. I'm also feeling guilty because I've had such a fun time with you and our friends that I barely noticed most of the day. Only in quiet moments in class and when we weren't together."
"Maybe it's because you see me like family already." I half joke to lighten the heavy atmosphere. She playfully swats my arm. I give her a soft smile and continue, "You don't have to feel guilty about being happy Mio. I'm sure your parents would rather you had a wonderful day rather than mope about them. What did they send you? I know they couldn't send anything to big via owl."
"My mom sent me a really cute jersey and my dad sent a packet of unique and interesting 3D bookmarks. The one I'm using first has this amazing view deep in the ocean like you're looking out a submarine window with colorful fish that look like they are swimming from border to border." She starts explaining the others excitedly while we sit and cuddle. We spend the rest of the night till just before curfew chatting and cuddling.
3 days later 22nd September
It's Monday of the fourth week and the Quidditch tryouts are starting this week. Harry is going to tryout for Gryffindor seeker. This came about because Prof McGonagall saw his flying skills. It was when he and Draco were chasing after each other during the second week flying lesson unsupervised. She gave them both detention for it but the whole time she was smiling brightly at Harry and told him, after giving them a punishment and sending Draco away, that he had to show up for the tryout today. Personally I'm not going to involve myself in the Quidditch scene. It holds no benefit for me but I'll support any of my friends that play. That is why I helped Harry research the rules for today. What we found is that this game is extremely dangerous and it's also impractical. There is no timer, the game only ends when the snitch is caught. We even found that there was a professional match that lasted 3 months. The both the teams became sick and couldn't play the rest of the season. The point difference between normal goals ten and the snitch hundred and fifty is way to large. That makes all the positions besides seeker in a short game useless. Honestly I find it's all very silly. I'm not saying it doesn't have thrills and isn't fun, just a bad thought out sport and it needs a serious revision.
Harry has been practicing flying after classes every day since the night of the almost duel. He seems very motivated. I think it's because his dad was on the team and he wants a greater connection with him.
Monday is the Gryffindor tryouts on the Quidditch pitch, so that is where my group of friends and I are currently heading to watch, after classes. Harry looks nervous as he walks between Mary and I. So I speak up, "You've got this Harry. I'm sure McGonagall wouldn't have looked so excited if she didn't think you could do it. Have you ever seen her so happy? She is so stern usually." He looks up at me and gives an unsure smile. He is less nervous but I can see he'll need more encouragement.
Hermione hits my head and says, "It's Professor McGonagall." But carries on her own conversation right after with Megan.
I'm about to continue to encourage him but because of my short distraction Mary gets to speak up first, "You don't have to worry Harry. Whether you make the team or not I'll be here for you. You can always try next year if you still want to." Her words have a greater effect on him. His shoulders visibly relax and his smile is more genuine. Ahh young love.
We split up when we get to the Quidditch pitch. Harry goes down a dark tunnel and the rest of us climb wooden stairs to the bleachers. When we reach the top of the stairs behind the seats there are already some students mulling about. They are all from the higher years and don't even bother looking at us. We all find seats near the front, so we can have a better view. While we wait we pair off to chat. Hermione and I start to discuss the lectures of today. Susan and Hannah were talking about trying out different hairstyles and winter fashion. Mary and Megan are gossiping about a rumor that the Slytherin boys are being targeted by the girls with hexes and curses when no one is looking. Neville is quietly listening to Ron complaining about how long we have to wait and the cold weather. We are all bundled up in our thickest coats. It snowed the night before and the temperature hasn't risen since. I made a mental note to learn the warming charm because even if I'm immune to temperature changes, my friends are not. I expand my temperature manipulation ability to it's max of a meter radius around me and Hermione, Megan and Mary who are closest to me, each give me an appreciative smile.
The current Gryffindor captain comes flying out from the stadium below. Once in the air he calls out for any keepers and chasers that want to tryout. No keepers come but six chasers do. Three boys and three girls. The boys are fourth years, one of them doesn't look very steady. He nearly falls just climbing to the same height as the others. Two of the girls are third years. I believe their names are Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet. The third and final girl is a second year and her name is Katie Bell. All the girls a very beautiful and the boys in the air and audience get distracted by their entrance. The boy who was struggling falls, only to be caught by a spell. McGonagall seems to be the one responsible as she stands up from the teacher's bleachers and sternly reprimands him for his recklessness, once he is safely on the ground. He slinks off the pitch after the verbal lashing. Now Oliver Wood, the captain, calls out to the remaining chasers to come one at a time. They get ten shots at the goal each. The three with the most will get on the team. Because Angelina and Alicia played for the team last year they get to go first. Angelina gets 8 out of 10. Alicia gets 5 out of 10. The boys go next. The first only gets 2 out of 10 and the second gets 4 out of 10. Katie looked nervous until she had the quaffle in hand. Her whole demeanor changed, she became confident and focused. She was the fastest flyer we've seen so far and she got 6 out of 10.
Next it's the beaters tryouts. Fred and George come flying out first. They are followed by six other boys. The bludgers are released and the last two left standing will become the beaters. Even with all the boys targeting the twins they work excellently together. They weave around any attack and send back the bludgers with great force. They knock two opponents off their brooms within a minute. The rest were slowly whittled down because they became more cautious but it doesn't help, in the following 10 minutes they are decimated. Most of them bruised and battered including the grinning twin redheads.
Lastly it's the seekers turn. Harry and a fourth year come onto the pitch. The golden snitch is released and they chase after it. The snitch is very fast and it takes both boys some time to catch up. Even when they do, the snitch would either stay just out of reach or make sudden sharp turns. This went on for nearly 20 minutes. Harry suddenly drops back and the other boy reaches out for the snitch only for it to evade by dropping downward. However that is when Harry makes his move and catches it. Our group began to loudly cheer at that. Oliver then told all the people who tried out that he would put up who made the team and practice schedule in their common room tomorrow.
Most of us are happy to finally get out of the cold air we all quickly made our way out the stadium. Once Harry joined us we practically jogged to the castle. Fred and George jog along with us. "Congratulations little Harrkins..." Fred says first.
"…For making the team." George finishes.
"We look forward to…"
"…Playing Quidditch with you this year."
"You were incredibly fast. You should go check…"
"…The trophy cabinet room…"
"…Your dad was a legend too."
"I've actually done so already." Harry tells them. "Thank you though. I know I caught the snitch but I don't know if the captain will choose me."
They continued to chat while we all head over to the grand hall for dinner. It looks like they will make fast friends. The twins are funny but I'm hopeful that they get over this finishing each others sentences quickly. It's creepy but I don't mind if they only did it on occasion. When we arrive in the dinning hall I look over at the Slytherin table the girls and boys are sitting separately with at least a gap seat between them. It's been like this since the incident last week. I don't blame them honestly but I always read about how Slytherin is united outside their dorms and they deal with any issues in house. Doesn't seem like this is something that will blow over anytime soon.
Thinking about the incident reminds me that none of my friends have their minds protected. I'll have to organize a study group session soon for that. Maybe this coming weekend. I'll start with the basics of how to meditate properly and organize the mind. Since I'm to advanced and I don't want them to rely on me I'll have them learn naturally and practice against each other. I went around to my friends just before dinner ended and invited them all to the study group I wanted to start for every Saturday.
Harry tells us during dinner how he and Katie were talking during the beater tryout and how he admires how confident she looked when she was playing. I see Mary has a jealous expression on her face. I just chuckle to myself.
5 days later
It's Saturday and I'm sitting here in a secluded section of the library, at a table with Harry opposite me, Hermione on my right, Susan on my left, Sally next to her, Neville on Harry's right, Hanna next to Neville, Mary next to Harry on the left and Megan at the end of the table on my right. I first introduce Sally to those who don't know her yet, since she hasn't joined us for lunch time before. I then put up privacy wards and start off by saying, "The reason for this study group is to learn and practice the mind arts. The mind arts include a way to defend your mind from being read, attacks and manipulation. It is called Occlumency in the wizarding world. Then there is the way to attack with your mind using psychic attacks, mind reading and manipulation. The wizarding world has a name for psychic attacks and mind reading called Legilimency. I don't think they have anything for mind manipulation besides the spells obliviate, which is a spell used to make someone forget and the unforgivable curse, which allows the caster to make someone do anything they say. What I'm about to teach you stays with us and those who you can put your full trust in. The reason is multifaceted, first to practice this is to trust who you use it with because the only way to test your defenses is for someone to try break into your mind. Second you wouldn't want a potential enemy to know you have this ability and use it against you if they become more powerful at using it. Third any information they learn from your mind during the practice they could use against you. Fourth it can be dangerous if you go too far too fast. I want you all to learn so you can be safe however you need to know the risks involved before we continue. Now if any of you are uncomfortable learning this you can leave? And please don't tell anyone about this meeting and what we have discussed." Although I trust them that doesn't mean I'm not cautious. That is why my last sentence was a mentally reinforced command rather than the request it sounded like. None of them leave.
Most of them are looking at me with skeptical or disbelieving expressions. Susan, Hannah and Neville look like they know about this. Susan is the first to speak up, "Hannah and I already practice occlumency and legilimency with each other. My aunt taught us last year. She said that we needed to be prepared for anything and that this isn't something that is taught here." Hannah nods along while Susan explains.
I look over at Neville and he starts speaking when he sees my attention on him, "Well I don't know how it all works. My grandmother told me that it exists. She didn't have a chance to teach me." 'and she thought I was a squib until recently.' His thoughts come out loud and clear to me. He looks down at the table with depression rolling off him.
Wanting to move on and hopefully give Neville a confidence boost I speak again, "The first step into the mind arts is meditation and patience. During your meditation I want you to block out all your distracting thoughts and focus on your inner mind. Once you have reached a complete void space you need to start building. The first thing you need to build is an area you can store and organize all your memories. That should take you guys a while. When you complete that come to me and I'll tell you the next step. I want us to do this every Saturday. Practice meditation and building your defenses on your own after today though. I recommend during history class and at night after you finish your homework and before you sleep." I turn to Susan and Hannah and continue. "How far are you two?"
Hannah speaks up this time, "I have already done what you spoke about. Then I made a wall and soldiers that protect that space. Susan attacks feel like a battering ram against it. Every time she breaks in I make the wall stronger and have more defenders. But it's never enough. I also can't get into Susan's mind, my attacks are too weak."
I turn my attention to Susan and she nods. "What issues are you having?" I ask her.
"I don't have issues defending or attacking from Hannah but when my aunt practices with me it's different. My defenses fall apart like wet paper and my attacks feel like I'm literally hitting my head against a wall. It hurts quite a bit."
"You're probably stronger mentally because you practiced with someone more powerful for longer. It doesn't seem like your aunt has finesse either. You can practice with me for now. Hannah can you help the others to create their mindscapes? I think it would be best for you to practice with someone new." She smiles and turns her attention to Neville to begin explaining in more detail. She tells him how important visualizing was for her to get it right. While Susan begins to attack my mind I use a partitioned mind for her. I lower its defenses to that of a single fortress. Her attacks are like battering rams against immovable walls. The fortress is designed like a perfect cube. It has no obvious openings. Her attacks are to simple and head on to break this design. I give her tips on different ways to attack. "First visualize yourself in the mindscape." She does so with little effect. "Good. Now you can directly influence the area near your image. Try approaching the wall and imagine it crumbling from old age or you can look for a weak point in the defenses." As she gets to work I take up a book on elder futhark runes. It's on runes used in ward stones. I'll finally be able to make my own.
During the session I learn that depending on the material used, amount of mana put in and the design of the array, all effect the time a ward stone lasts, strength and the effects it'll have. The materials used could be stones of various kinds, metals except ones that contain iron and precious stones like rubies, emeralds and diamonds. How much mana a ward stone can take depends on the other two categories, better material more mana and depending on what effect you want also only takes that much mana. The arrays I learnt were the most basic barrier that prevents anyone outside the creator to enter, one where it reflects magical attacks of mana power up to the amount stored in the ward stone and a physical attack repelling one of similar effect.
By the end of the session Susan hasn't broken in yet but her attacks were now causing damage and she found that the corners of the cube had weak points. She'll probably get through next session and have a new idea for her defenses. I'll make a more difficult defense each time she succeeds. Megan and Mary are having trouble getting into a meditative state. I'm sure once they get it right they will have creative ways to shape their mindscapes. Neville could meditate almost right away and with Hannah's guidance began building it up but it was slow going for him. Harry had been visibly freaked out about the possibilities of this and was trying the hardest. He succeeded quickly in meditating and to build his mindscape. He would be ready to make and test his defenses next session. Hermione was similar to Harry in progress, if not slightly faster. Sally had obtained the state to start building her mindscape by the end of the session.
Clone Pov
4 days later 26th September
Ruby has come today, it's the first time I've seen her since her and Jaune got back together.
She bounces over to me, her small breasts jiggling in a tight red turtleneck jersey, her beautiful black hair swaying from side to side and calls to me, "Yeaya Wesley I've missed you." She practically jumps onto me for a hug with her arms around my neck and a broad happy smile on her face.
"I've missed you too." I genuinely reply to her enthusiasm.
When she steps back, her expression becomes serious but I can see the excitement in her eyes as she says "Today instead of your usual lesson, I'm going to take you to The Guild. Go get dressed in something nice and I'll tell you more when you get back." Doing as she asks I head into my room and dress in my black three piece suit I bought months ago. I put on a charcoal tie and polished black dress shoes. When I come out my room and into the lounge, I can see Ruby checking me out from top to bottom. I fake a cough and she blushes but quickly collects herself. She starts to talk to hide her embarrassment, "Before you ask, The Guild is the organization that your parents and I work with the most. It's actually how we met. The Guild isn't a major faction but they do have the strength of a minor faction. It is run by the highest ranking members and has a set of rules that even they can't break. The Guild's purpose is to act like a middle man and shop." We start to walk to the car while she continues the explanation. "They get contracts from clients and assure them it will be done. We can then take the contracts from them. So even if the first person or group fails the contract The Guild will send someone else, most probably a higher ranked person or group. The contracts can be for acquiring various items, information or people and once we complete the contract, we bring it or them into the closest branch building then we get paid by The Guild. The Guild is run on a rank system, with rank 10 being the lowest and rank 1 being the highest. Your rank determines what contracts you are allowed to take. Your rank is also important as it shows your standing and reputation within the organization. Your rank is effected by how well you do on contracts. You can only raise your rank by consistently completing contracts of your current rank." We get into her car and I hope she doesn't distract herself too much with this explanation. "If you take a lower than your rank contract it won't count towards your rank up amount of completed contracts. A lot of people do this, even when they rank up because they are easier to earn money from." She continues on to explain more fine details on how to register and take contracts. I never really wondered where my parents worked or how they had access to all that supernatural information and those black market items before. It turns out they bought it from The Guild's shop. It just shows how much more I have to learn. I wonder what kinds of contracts I can take once I've registered. They will probably be low level because I'll be the bottom rank when I join. However even with my current power level I'm not experienced so I will use this as a learning experience and to refine my skills. I feel like I need this after how nervous I was during the other nights adventure. Hopefully I'll be more confident and know how to protect those I care about.
We arrive an hour later and park in an underground parking garage, below a hotel called The Corinthia. It looked amazing from the outside. It was on the corner of two roads and is five stories high. The first stories walls are a creamy white color, the next three are royal yellow and the top floor is a navy blue. The architecture from the outside screams luxury and money. With beautiful arches and intricate designs.
We enter the underground elevator and Ruby taps a panel next to where the regular buttons are and I feel a pulse of mana go through the air. As the elevator moves up Ruby sees my questioning look and answers my unasked question, "Only Guild members know how to access the floor we are going to. It's where you will take anything physical. The only other way to access this floor is through designated rooms used to teleport in on this floor but they are reserved for members of rank 5 and up. All members of The Guild are connected to the supernatural in some way. There are other security features like scanners and barriers of various kinds. Obviously I don't know them all or The Guilds security would be compromised."
When the door elevator opened it showed a modern looking lobby and reception area sitting against the opposite wall. Stepping out onto the marble floor I look to my left and see a bar and restaurant with customers of various races. I was at first shocked that there wasn't only humans but quickly got over it. I should have expected as much. Looking to my left there is four sections. The first is closest to the elevator and is busiest. Above it there is a sign that read Complete. It must be where you hand in your contract items and people because I see the people in the line holding boxes and people in chains or knocked out. I notice most of the people in chains are from magical races. I can see that some of them are vampires, catgirls and many more I don't recognize. The section after that is setup like a shop. It has many shelves and aisles with magical devices and weapons from mundane guns to magical staffs and swords. The sign above reads Item Shop. The next section has its own reception counter with a few beautiful women of various races standing behind it. There are ten doors at the back of the room and the women are directing who should go where. There are signs on each door which are of the ten ranks. The sign above this section reads Information Centre. The last section looks fairly small in the front but has a corridor that extends rather far, with evenly spaced out doors on either side. A single person helping customers into private back rooms. The sign above this section reads Auction House. I'm quite curious about that but we arrive by the reception on the opposite side and my attention turns to that.
I'm given a tablet by the pretty receptionist with forms for me to fill out before I go to sit down I thank her with a small smile. She gets a light dusting of pink on her cheeks before I turn my back on her. The form on the tablet is mostly asking for my basic information like name and birth date but there is also a section on abilities where I pause to read. It says I don't have to list any abilities but the more I do, the more clients they can recommend me to, that fit my abilities. I wrote that I could control air and fire effortlessly, I'm a swordsman and I have been trained in stealth arts. I don't want to give away all I can do but I want to come off as powerful and versatile as possible. The last section is about what kinds of contracts are available and whether I'll be comfortable taking any from those categories. I just have to put a checkmark next to the ones I wouldn't mind taking.
The List
Information gathering of civilians.
Information gathering of criminals.
Information gathering of monsters.
Information gathering of magical species.
Information gathering of supernatural species.
Information gathering on companies.
Information gathering on criminal organizations.
Information gathering on governments.
Information gathering on supernatural factions.
Raw mundane resource gathering.
Raw magical resource gathering.
Mundane unique and antique item gathering.
Magical unique and antique item gathering.
Crafted equipment.
Crafted one use items.
Crafted magical devices.
Monster hunting.
Civilian slave capturing.
Skilled civilian slave capturing.
Criminal slave capturing.
Specialized slave capturing.
Sacred gear slave capturing.
Magical species slave capturing. (Monster girl encyclopedia and Harry Potter sub races)
Supernatural species slave capturing. (DXD races)
Bodyguard CEO or similarly wealthy clients.
Bodyguard Government Officials or facilities.
Bodyguard low class to high class beings.
Civilian assassination.
Criminal assassination.
Corporate assassination.
Criminal in organization assassination.
Government official assassination.
Supernatural unassociated assassination. (Without faction or organization support)
Supernatural associated assassination. (With faction or organization support)
I honestly thought about this and realized I don't care about anyone that isn't precious to me, so I ticked all the boxes. I must be morally bankrupt but it's not like I have to take every one of those jobs. The section after that mentions how most of these options are only open to higher ranks.
Since this document is setup like a contract with rules and regulations I pay close attention. Because of what happened last time, I've done my research. I'm not an expert yet but I could probably past the bar for contract law. I'm 98% sure I won't be tricked again but I'm looking into unorthodox contracts now. There is way too much double meaning in legal talk. It even differs in different languages so I'm going to focus on that next.
The rules are pretty basic, first no fighting on The Guild's property, second complete the contract you have as quickly and carefully as possible and third The Guild won't interfere if you get involved with other factions. Those are the main ones but there are more along those lines. If you break the rules, depending on how badly, the consequences range from a temporary suspension to an assassination contract from The Guild itself.
I confirmed all my information one last time and took the tablet back to the pretty receptionist. She is wearing a very nice uniform with a tight white shirt that hug her curves. She gives me a smile and checks over my information. She then took out something from below the counter, "This is your private smartphone. It only has one app that you can access contracts through. You can also contact your clients when you're a higher rank."
System Alert
You have joined the minor faction The Guild through a contract. All missions taken from them will be counted as quests.
The Guild Rep: 5/100
Hidden Quest completed.
Main Objective: Join a faction.
Reward: Big book of politics skill book.
Quest Alert
Faction Quest
Main Objective: Rank up to rank 9
Bonus Objective: Break record for fastest rank up (current fastest 1 month) completed contracts 0/100
Completion of contracts rate 100%
Rewards
Main Objective: 100 Galleons, 10000 EXP
Bonus Objective: Massive rep gain with The Guild 25 rep, random monster girl slave
Well I wasn't thinking all this will happen but it will be good for my progress.
"We are going to go now or do you want to check out the stores?" Ruby asks me after I spaced out to read the messages.
"I don't need anything right now and I didn't bring money with me so let's head home. We can come back some other time." She nods at my statement and we leave.
I look through the contracts available for my rank. The contracts are information gathering of civilians; acquisition of legal raw materials both mundane and magical. The materials can be found yourself, imported, bought or stolen The Guild doesn't care. They will pay the price listed on the contract.
Soon after we arrive by my house Ruby gets a call and tells me she has to leave. Since I'm alone now I'm going to make some clones to train.
The first clone was set to work on runes. His job was to research more runes, runic arrays and the ways runes interact with each other to make new and unique runic arrays.
The second clone was set to improve CQC to see if it can be improved to cultivator levels.
The third clone is tasked to learn blacksmithing. Since I have no knowledge on the occupation I send him to a place to learn and practice. As soon as I assign him the task I get a notification.
Occupation chosen Blacksmith.
Occupation quests now available.
First quest in blacksmith occupation quest line.
Objective Craft a knife.
Reward highest quality steel.
The fourth clone's job is to learn how to make magitech like those devices that can be bought at The Guild. I may be able to sell the products to them and make better equipment for myself. The fifth and last clone was sent to learn construction. The reason is because I want to make my own place in the future and I need these skills to do it. He will learn everything from foundations, plumbing, electrical infrastructure, everything to make a perfect place. While they do that I'm going back to my work on souls.
Before I reach my room my parents come in and call out for me. I join them in the lounge. They look like they have news but they first ask about my day. I tell them how Ruby came over and took me to get registered at The Guild. When I'm done telling them about my day I ask, "Okay you guys are sitting on the edge of your seat and it's not because of my amazing story telling. So what did you want to talk about?"
They give each other an indescribable look then turn to me and my mom starts to speak, "Well honey. We went to the doctor today…"
And Cliffhanger-kun slaps you.
Relationships
Irina – 75/100 Affection and 32/100 Obedience
Hermione – 70/100 Affection and 20/100 Obedience
Ruby – 55/100 Affection and 26/100 Obedience
Susan – 30/100 Affection and 10/100 Obedience
Sally – 20/100 Affection and 5/100 Obedience
Minerva – 15/100 Affection and 0/100 Obedience
Sue Li – 10/100 Affection and 10/100 Obedience
Padma – 5/100 Affection and 0/100 Obedience
Megan – 30/100 Reputation
Hannah – 30/100 Reputation
Harry – 30/100 Reputation
Mary – 30/100 Reputation
Neville – 30/100 Reputation
Fred – 5/100 Reputation
George 5/100 Reputation
Draco – 0/100 Reputation
Ronald – -10/100 Reputation
Jaune – -25/100 Reputation
The Guild 5/100 Reputation