77 Dumbledore's Masterclass
The Patronus horse trotted down cheerfully from mid-air, circling Lockhart.
Voldemort's curse had vanished at some point, but he was too lazy to dwell on it.
Lockhart's attention was completely drawn to the Patronus.
It was truly a marvelous experience. He gently stroked the horse's mane, vaguely sensing that it wasn't a living creature, or something akin to the grey wolf forest spirit.
It was the beauty within his own heart.
Yes, its nature was that simple.
Empowered by magic, it had materialized before him, guarding him.
No wonder people always said that the Patronus Charm was the most effective magic against dark forces. When the beauty within a wizard's heart had materialized to such a tangible degree, the malice, darkness, and ferocity of dark magic would all be dispelled by that beauty.
Not many ancient spells continued to be used in modern wizarding society. Too many spells had been either abandoned or gradually modified by wizards over the long river of history for various reasons. Only a handful of spells still retained their original ancient form.
The Patronus Charm was one of them.
His little companions also jumped out, curiously sizing up this interesting fellow.
They weren't afraid of Lockhart's Patronus, which was interesting. They could sense a soothing and peaceful aura from Lockhart's Patronus Charm, which made them feel exceptionally comfortable.
Everyone curiously tried to interact with the Patronus. After a while, the bold Snidget had already jumped onto the horse's head, curling up like a tiny golden hat.
Just then, a voice suddenly came from the corner of the Headmaster's office, "I can sense your heart through your magic."
Lockhart turned his head in astonishment, finding Dumbledore had appeared there at some point, observing his Patronus with great interest.
"Full of spirituality," Dumbledore commented on his magic, filled with admiration, "That dark magical creatures can coexist so harmoniously with a Patronus, I never would have imagined such a scene before."
Lockhart paused, pointing at the Patronus horse and asking, "Can't your Patronus Charm do this?"
Dumbledore smiled and shook his head, inviting him to sit down at the desk to talk. He clapped his hands, and two steaming cups of tea appeared on the table.
He picked up a teacup, took a sip, and then explained, "This is a characteristic of you gifted wizards. In the eyes of us ordinary people, magic is just magic."
Good heavens.
When Dumbledore said he had no talent, Lockhart couldn't tell if this was just a humblebrag.
Dumbledore seemed to be in a talkative mood, elaborating on the differences, "I've heard the lessons you give to the young wizards. You say, 'Magic chooses the wizard, and the wizard adjusts their mindset and behavior to accept magic, so the heart and magic perfectly resonate,' and you also say, 'Step into the fairy tale, and magic will naturally bloom'..."
He seemed to savor these words, shaking his head, "Very insightful, very inspiring to me."
"I sometimes have difficulty understanding some of my old friend Newt Scamander's behaviors. Unlike you, he isn't good at expressing himself clearly, which causes great difficulties in our communication... but I understand somewhat now."
Dumbledore's voice had a unique warmth, "You open your hearts to this world, but you also pay more attention to your own feelings, integrating into this world yet remaining independent of it. This is an extraordinary life experience."
Dumbledore stroked the strange ring on his finger, raising his eyelids to look at Lockhart, "I am different. I choose magic."
He chose magic, rather than magic choosing him.
Lockhart felt somewhat surprised, listening to Dumbledore elaborately explaining the differences in this regard.
"We pay more attention to this world, but in fact, we close off our own hearts," Dumbledore smiled somewhat self-deprecatingly, "We expect to change the world, but we fear the world changing us, afraid of magic influencing us."
"Whether it's the negative emotions brought by dark magic..."
He waved his hand, gesturing towards the Patronus playing with the dark magical creatures in the corner of the office, "or the overly positive emotions brought by ordinary magic."
"Paying more attention to this world, but sometimes right and wrong, good and evil, morality, rules, and everything else are blurred, because that's just how this world is. So we don't let ourselves go to extremes. Dark magic doesn't bring the viciousness that affects us, and the Patronus doesn't bring the happiness that affects us. We don't let magic influence us."
"Closing off our own hearts, so we become more self-centered, an extreme self-centeredness that isn't extreme, allowing our magic to possess a strong will—using an unwavering 'I' to exert powerful force and change the world!"
These were two completely opposite paths of magic.
Neither was right or wrong, neither was stronger or weaker.
It only varied from person to person.
The light in the office shone on Dumbledore's half-moon spectacles, glittering brightly, making it difficult for Lockhart to see Dumbledore's eyes.
But he seemed to sense the complexity in the old man's heart across the desk.
"The reason I'm discussing this with you is to say that Harry Potter is not suited for your path."
Lockhart was stunned, a somewhat absurd thought inexplicably flashing through his mind. He looked at the man known as the greatest wizard of the age in disbelief.
Hesitating for a moment, he finally bit the bullet and asked, "You didn't catch him?"
Him, Voldemort!
The office suddenly fell silent.
A very strange atmosphere drifted in the air, as if filled with dust, making one involuntarily hold their breath.
After a long while, a sigh finally came.
"Yes, nothing gained."
Dumbledore leaned back in his high-backed chair, looking somewhat weary, "He was clearly cautious enough. The moment you used the Portkey, he immediately realized that only I had the authority to create Portkeys that would work within Hogwarts, and he left there immediately."
Dumbledore was also human, and he would also feel frustrated, especially such a powerful and proud figure.
Lockhart had risked being killed to give him the information, yet he had gained nothing.
No one knew what it felt like for him to look at the empty spider lairs, having cast numerous powerful spells and still unable to find any trace of Tom's departure.
In fact, this state might have occurred much earlier.
Perhaps it was during the long years of waiting for the so-called savior Harry to grow up on Privet Drive, perhaps when Voldemort killed his students James and Lily, or even perhaps when he stopped trusting the wand in his hand and began to place his hopes on Professor Trelawney's prophecy.
He was old.
Not physically old, but his mentality was old.
Full of weariness, scarred. Perhaps his life had stagnated the day he locked Gellert in Nurmengard.
Who knew?
Life always continued forward, but the heart could remain forever in the past.
Just like Severus.
Dumbledore could sense Lockhart's astonishment without Legilimency. His life experience was rich enough to read the disbelief, shock, and pity in the young man's eyes before him.
He didn't need pity!
This made him somewhat embarrassed.
He simply continued speaking, changing the subject, "I've heard your lectures, and your discussion of the three stages of the Patronus Charm was very insightful, but you actually got one thing wrong."
"The state of mind you described as 'beauty is everywhere in life,' I haven't encountered many such people in my hundred years of life, but those people are not easily integrated into this complex society."
Seeing that Lockhart's attention had been caught, he spread his hands, "Life is always complex. People who are too positive and people who are too negative are always seen as outliers."
"Arthur's life is also very complex. Although his heart is also full of the ability to perceive beauty, he can't reach the level you described."
"The reason his Patronus can speak and transmit messages over long distances is actually because I invented a spell and taught it to the members of the Order of the Phoenix."
He drew the Elder Wand, performing a complex casting motion and chanting, "Animus Communicatio!"
Next, seeing that Lockhart was very interested, he began to guide him on how to cast the spell correctly.
The guidance of a master was different. Dumbledore could always clearly find the reasons why Lockhart couldn't cast the spell successfully, constantly correcting him.
Just as he had said, magic was just magic. He chose magic and didn't need to resonate with it.
"Animus Communicatio!"
Lockhart waved his wand at the Patronus horse, suddenly feeling a strange sensation of his five senses being twisted and extended.
His five senses seemed to connect with the horse.
"Whoa~"
Such an exclamation came from the horse's mouth, startling the Snidget and the others.
Lockhart waved his wand again, severing this mental extension, carefully sensing the subtleties within. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he gestured for Dumbledore to look at the wand in his hand.
"It, it's it that's working, extending my will!"
This time it was Dumbledore's turn to exclaim in surprise, "My judgment was indeed correct. You are truly very spiritual. Many members of the Order of the Phoenix cannot grasp the essence of this magic."
Grasping the essence of magic was a completely different level.
Lockhart waved the entire complex casting sequence from just now again, having a deeper understanding, "The set of movements you designed, does it amplify our self-will? Oh, no, no, no, it should be that it makes the connection between me and the wand closer?"
Without waiting for Dumbledore to answer, he tried combining this set of movements with the Scouring Charm's casting movements, "Scourgify!"
He cast it on the clothes he was wearing, and the effect of the magic was still to clean them thoroughly, but he truly felt a difference.
It was a state where self-will was forcibly imposed, and the casting strength had increased by more than one level!
"Truly marvelous!"
He excitedly said to Dumbledore.
But he saw Dumbledore looking at him in disbelief, staring intently for a long while before smiling and nodding, "Regarding these kinds of magical tricks, I know many more. If you have time in the future, you can come to my office and sit for a while. I'd be happy to share them with you."
Heavens!
Lockhart couldn't help but get excited.
Magical tricks? You call this magical tricks?
He began to look forward to the masterclass of Dumbledore, the most powerful wizard of the age.
....
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