Chapter 9 "Rückblick" – Retrospection
[St. Benedicts Chapel]
[Dinner]
Mouth open. Spoon in. Mouth shut. Spoon out. Swallow.
'Relax, I need this nourishment If I want to grow up and be a big boy. Remember, there are thousands out there who have it worse' Leonhard thought to himself as he was eating his dinner. He never liked soup, but 1600s end-of-month chapel stew was something else entirely. Throwing food out was unimaginable in this day and age, and somehow the nuns and monks working the kitchen always stretched the soup with enough water to just be able to feed everybody.
If only they stopped comparing it to Jesus sharing the bread and feeding over 5000 people…
'Nothing about this is holy or sacred' he mused whilst robotically eating the sloppy soup, a sludge somewhere between green, gray, and brown. But when in Rome…
The good part was that during this solemn meal, he had plenty of time for introspection. So, he made list of the pros and cons of his current living situation. Being a Clint Eastwood fan, he started a mental checklist following the order of "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly". One of his favorite spaghetti westerns. He remembers watching them with his Dad, long ago…
He tilted his bowl to get the last of his soup whilst considering his situation.
He scooped up another spoonful of the drab gray green sludge but paused before eating it. Something didn't seem right.
He blinked.
The soup wasn't quite that color a moment ago… was it? It had shifted. Barely noticeable. But enough. The grayish undertone had softened into a more neutral dimmer, almost creamy in appearance. The greens were a little warmer. Still sludge, still repulsive, but slightly less so.
He subtly looked around the room. The bowls near him still held the same swamp-colored slop. Bart's hadn't improved.
Leonhard leaned forward, squinting. Was it the light? Had he gotten too little sleep the night before?
No. It was the soup.
A sudden awareness crawled up his spine like a spider. He hadn't meant to change anything. But now the taste lingered on his tongue differently, less metallic. Less grim. Still gross, but... better.
He frowned into the bowl, tension rising in his chest. Had he done that? Subconsciously?
If he had, it meant something deeper was stirring beneath his control. Something that responded to want, to will.
He couldn't decide whether it made him feel proud or nervous.
A comfort spell disguised as hunger, powered by his dislike of soup and joyful memories of his dad? A classic case of accidental magic? Either way, he filed it away. He'd need to remember this. Magic listened, even when he wasn't speaking. Something to keep in mind, considering that Ezekiel sat maybe 10 paces away from him.
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After taking a deep breath Leonhard calmed down and went back to his mental list.
'Ok, first, what is good about my status quo? Definite pros are that I have a roof, food and education secured for my immediate future. Peasants in this day have nearly none of that. This Chapel is clean; there are no diseases and the adults as well as children are mostly genuinely good people. A bit too religious for me personally, but since they are my guardians, I can't really complain.
And yes, of course, magic. The absolute best thing since sliced bread. It's awesome! Weird, fun, new and I can't wait to properly start my journey to explore the depths of it. I for one won't take it for granted. On this positive note I must mention that I am able to actively use it! A rare feat if I understand that correctly, my only sources are from fading memories of the movies and books, and the occasional questionable fanfic… but hey! I can clean, manipulate my environment in subtle ways and have an unnatural attunement to weird mirror voodoo stuffs – ugh, I really need a better name for that. Hmmmm, maybe food for thought.'
Leonhard offered to finish Bart's bowl too. Poor guy looked like he was in a boss fight and the soup was winning.
'Ahhh, the things I do for lo- wait. Wrong fandom. The things I do for my gains. Nasty soup better have some good nourishment. Hopefully here soup equals XP, right?
The chores can be physically strenuous, and I need to be physically fit if I want to improve my odds of a happy and long life. The last positive thing I can think off the top of my head is Edward starting his investigation. I pointed him in the right direction, now all that remains to be seen is whether it was for better or worse.
Alrighty then, the bad: I am living in the 1600s. That kinda sucks big time. No real toilets, or showers. Warm water takes forever to heat up. Obviously no modern luxuries like internet or all that stuff. No point in dwelling on this either, it's not like I can change it. Time magic, or Chronomancy as I would like to call it, is something forbidden for a reason and only maybe, perhaps, possibly for in the distant future. But I probably should not touch it with a ten-foot pole… I am getting off topic again. Bad, what is bad…
Ah yes, being effectively a muggleborn in the wizarding world. One that lives in an institution of the church. Which in all likelihood hates everything magic. Lovely right? Another bad thing is that I have no clue what I am doing when it comes to magic. Some things work out well, like my emotion mirror trick. But that's only applicable on defenseless non magical people. I don't want to know how a trained wizard reacts to mind probing from clueless amateurs. Probably with a lot of violence. When it comes time to join the magical world, chances are I won't have a penny to my name. Not only will I be socially at the bottom, but I will also be there and I will be broke. But with enough entrepreneurial effort that may be subject to change.
Now, the ugly. Ezekiel. His total hate towards magic. I don't see a way for him to change his mind. Old dog and new tricks, or so they say. His proximity to me is concerning. All it would take is one slip up from me and that's it. Game over. I felt his fear. Fear which leads to hate. Hate which leads to my suffering. Irrationality accompanies fear like an old friend, and I would have to bear the brunt. No thank you. I barely have one offensive spell, but its drawbacks are enough to put me out of commission. And this magical stun grenade only works around the mirror in the storage closet. Without it acting as a reflective surface I am empty handed. No mirror, no spell. Not good. But I have ideas to improve for the future.
Another problem plaguing my mind was my fellow wizards: I have zero defense against magical attacks. Although Harry Potters life was anything but normal, threats of magical nature are something to think about. When it comes to active combat, I can only hope to quickly learn at an educational facility how to do so. Since I live in London, chances are I will get my Hogwarts letter. Which brings me back to Ezekiel. Ugh. No fun, let's think about magical defensive options.
Launching spells at people will have to wait until after I have a wand. The "mirror Flashbang" needs a mirror in immediate proximity and half a minute to activate. No practicality. Any minor tricks also take too long and have no combat potential. When it comes to defense, I can only think of one thing. It would be a passive approach, but in the wizarding world one of immense importance. Active spell use for defense will have to wait for the future. What I can do now however, even without a wand, is to learn how to protect my mind.
Occlumency.
My way forward. Yet again, mirrors. This time though, I would need to learn how to manage without being physically near a mirror. Good thing I have an idea-'
"Hello!!! Anybody there? Leo, you were staring off into the distance… it was weird watching you scoop empty spoons of soup and put them in your mouth… hehehe…. Still can't believe you like that slop" Bart interrupted his mental monologue.
"Oh, thanks for the heads up. I hadn't noticed."
He stood up to go to his room. A man with a mission.
Daniel inquired: "What's up with Leo? He already full?"
Bart replied "I don't know, he was acting weird all dinner, but you know he sometimes gets all caught in his own thoughts. Don't you remember? Brother Edward told us to give him enough space after…."
Leonhard could not hear the rest of the gossip as he had left the dining room to head towards his own personal dorms on the second floor.
'Time to practice Occlumency'
He headed upstairs, a flicker of resolve burning in his chest. No wand, no books, no mentor. Just instinct and a handful of creativity.
Tonight, he would teach his mind to watch itself. And maybe, just maybe, learn to catch the shadows crawling in.
He sat in his bed, legs crossed, eyes shut and tried to silence everything. The room, the world, himself. For a long time, there was nothing, yet understanding that the mind arts required patience he kept his calm. For now, time was his ally.
Then he felt it. Upon slowly opening his eyes, he discovered that he wasn't in his room anymore.
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Authors Note:
"The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" is a classic 1966 Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood. It's widely regarded as one of the greatest Westerns ever made and the final film in Leone's "Dollars Trilogy", following:
A Fistful of Dollars (1964)For a Few Dollars More (1965)The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)
I watched these movies with my dad. They are a lot of fun, I can definitely recommend. It's a shame that modern movie making took a turn with Marvel. Did Marvel movies save theaters from financial ruin? For sure, no doubt. Did the entire Endgame-Saga bring childhood dreams, including mine to life? Definitely. But it moved a lot of modern production to take a fast pace in storytelling.
In these movies listed above the intro alone was a few minutes of simply names of the people involved during production and some shots of a cowboy in the western dunes, doing a whole lot of nothing. I remember being impatient at first. It was a stark reminder of the media I was used to consuming daily. TikTok and YouTube are great and have phenomenal algorithms, but being used to watching what I want immediately, or being able to skip to the good parts is a blessing as much as it is a curse. My idea: Take 2 hours of your evening. Watch "A Fistful of Dollars" without pause or fast forwarding. Enjoy! Life may be complicated, but it can still be so simple.
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Thanks for reading!!! Nearly 2000 words… I'm in the big leagues now!
Did you like it? I tried to make this "filler" fulfill the purpose of his decision to learn Occlumency and show clearly what dangers may lie ahead of him. Hope y'all got that 😊
Should I do authors notes and intermission in between paragraphs or at the end?
Leave some love :D
Danfictions over & out