He tried all sorts of small magical creatures—but without exception, they all just got a little smarter, a little stronger… yet none showed changes anywhere near Tom's.
In other words, Tom's transformation must have been the result of some accidental step Wade had taken…
To figure out what the key factor was, Wade deliberately entered the dream realm to consult his busy senior.
"Oh? Let me check."
After hearing about Wade's discovery, she took a keen interest and examined Tom's body and his dreams.
She even once again possessed Tom Cat's body with her consciousness to experience it directly.
"It's the power of ancient magic and nightmare magic… Wade," she finally concluded.
"Ancient magic and nightmare magic?" Wade was a bit surprised. "I did use Transfiguration enhanced with ancient magic on him, and I also used nightmare magic. Could that be it?"
"It wasn't you—it was me…" the senior replied. "When I possessed his body, I had to use his brain… So, intentionally or not, my power ended up strengthening both his brain and his soul. If you check, you'll find that his brain capacity is now far more developed than that of any other kneazle."
"Really? Then this potion…"
"That's the most fascinating part. Your potion can make magical creatures stronger and smarter… but the traces of ancient magic and nightmare magic I left in his brain happened to amplify the effects of your potion."
The senior said with a smile. "In fact, even without the potion, if I had possessed him often enough, he would've gradually become more intelligent. Your potion simply accelerated the process. It's truly remarkable… Wade, it seems you've accidentally created a miracle of life."
Wade observed Tom Cat's consciousness, now asleep within the dream realm, and noticed that his soul really had become much more solid than before.
"Then him walking upright, opening cupboards and jars like a human…"
"You did enhance his body with ancient magic through Transfiguration, didn't you? And when I possessed him, I also left traces of ancient magic," his senior said with a smile. "Which means his body was strengthened as well…"
...
It took a while before Wade jolted awake from the dream. He stared blankly at the ceiling, still feeling a bit disappointed inside.
So it turned out that Tom's brain had gradually taken on his senior's structure from repeated possessions, making him smarter over time. Then, under the effect of the potion, he'd reached his current state.
Which meant Tom's situation would be very difficult to replicate. After all, it wasn't like he could ask his senior to go around possessing every magical creature one by one.
Wade was sure that if he dared to even suggest such a thing, his senior would have no problem making him suffer through ten years of nightmares…
My magical creature army…
"Meow?" At that moment, Tom also woke up, staring at Wade with a face full of longing—as if asking for more potion.
"I'm not in the mood. Go brew it yourself. You've watched me do it so many times, you should've learned by now…" Wade said offhandedly.
And then… he stared in disbelief as Tom efficiently set up the cauldron, lit the fire, prepared the ingredients, and started stirring the potion.
Wade fell silent. What the fuck!?I was just saying that offhand—you're actually doing it!?
Just then, the door to Wade's room opened, and Tom walked in.
"Did you die in here or what? School starts tomorrow, have you even—" Tom's words began to trail off near the end.
Because he was now staring at a cat brewing potion like a person…
Tom turned to Wade. "So… did you do something to me again?"
"What?"
"Don't play dumb! I'm hallucinating already!"
...
Early the next morning.
Wade had already packed all his belongings.
Of course, all of it, when placed in front of Toby, amounted to nothing more than a small suitcase.
Wade's recent practice with the Undetectable Extension Charm hadn't been for nothing.
Although he wasn't fully proficient yet, expanding a suitcase's interior to about one cubic meter wasn't a problem.
Because of that, even after stuffing all his books inside, the suitcase still had plenty of space left.
"All right, Toby. Once school starts, you'll stay here. Take care of the plants in the yard for me. I've already taught you all the methods."
"As you command, Master Wade! Toby will definitely carry out all the tasks you've assigned!" Toby responded loudly, wearing a large gold ring on his finger.
Wade nodded in satisfaction, then looked once more at his compact suitcase. At the very least, he no longer had to drag a massive trunk to school.
Tom, off to the side, rubbed his chin as he glanced at Wade's little suitcase, then at his own large trunk.
"I think I heard somewhere… the Undetectable Extension Charm is strictly regulated by the Ministry. Private use by a student isn't exactly allowed."
Wade glanced at him. "What? You planning to report me?"
"Well, you never know…" Tom said, hinting at something.
"Tom… you're just trying to provoke me into enchanting your suitcase with the Extension Charm too, aren't you?" Wade smiled. "You think that if you say something like that, I'll be worried about being reported and just go ahead and cast the charm on your trunk. Right?"
The smug grin on Tom's face instantly disappeared.
"Really now… was all that necessary? You could've just come up to me and said 'please,' and I might've considered helping you," Wade said with a smile.
"Hmph… childish…" Caught completely, Tom couldn't bring himself to admit it. He stiffened his expression, pushed his suitcase, and walked straight toward the fireplace without looking back.
"Tom, it's really not that hard to say 'please,' you know. Why don't you give it a try?"
"I'd rather be burned alive by the fireplace flames, smashed to death by my trunk, or splattered in a Floo Powder accident than say 'please' to you!" Tom snapped, both embarrassed and annoyed.
"This kid sure is stubborn…" Wade shook his head and sighed, then sat back down at the dining table. "Still, no matter how stubborn you are, you've got to finish breakfast first. It's not time to leave yet."
Tom, who had been planning to leave right away, slowly came to a stop—he was feeling hungry…
"I was just pushing my luggage to the fireplace to make things easier later. Who said I was leaving now?" he said with a straight face as he sat back down and started eating the breakfast in front of him.
"Meow~" Tom the cat suddenly came over to Wade, placing his "hands" on Wade's thigh, drooling as he stared at the sausages on Wade's plate.
Wade set down his fork and rubbed the top of Tom's head. "You're a grown cat now. If you're hungry, you need to learn how to cook for yourself."
Tom Cat: "Meow?"
Tom Human: "..."
…
On the Hogwarts Express.
Wade sat by the window, reading a book.
Beside him was a thermal box—Nagini was hibernating inside.
Tom the cat was sprawled out, fast asleep in a makeshift bed set up nearby.
Only… Tom the cat was starting to look more and more like a person.
He used to curl up when he slept. But now… he lay on his back, limbs spread out in all directions.
Tom had been keeping an eye on this cat's behavior for a long time.
"So… what exactly did you do to it?" Tom finally broke the silence.
"A little experiment… though, well, there was a slight accident."
"A slight accident?" Tom sneered. "The way it is now, it's practically human—only thing it can't do is talk!"
Wade set down his book and replied helplessly, "It was a one-time, unrepeatable fluke. Otherwise, I'd have already given it a few companions."
He glanced at Tom and added, "After all, most of the time, animals are far more trustworthy than people…"
At that, Tom put down the quill in his hand and grumbled, "Do you always have to talk with thorns in every word?"
"Can you blame me? Writing a report to turn me in is one thing—but writing it right in front of me? I may be reading, but I'm not blind," Wade said calmly.
"You're slandering me," Tom muttered, silently crumpling the letter on the table into a ball and setting it on fire with his wand.
"No, seriously, I'm not blind—"
Before Wade could finish, the compartment door slid open.
Anne strode in quickly. "I need to talk to you both."
"Hello to you, too, Anne. What is it?" Wade asked.
Anne hurriedly sat down beside him. "Aren't you even the least bit worried?"
Wade and Tom exchanged a glance, then asked, "Worried about what?"
"Didn't you both write to me earlier saying you received a gift from… that man? That gift is exactly what we've been desperately searching for!"
"It is, yes…" Wade nodded. "Though we have no idea where he got it from…"
"I suspect he found it in the Forbidden Forest!" Anne said urgently. "We've searched several locations before, but we only ever found that 'thing' in one spot, didn't we? What if… that man took everything before we got there, and only a few places still have some left?"
Heh~ Look at her.
"Hmm… that's definitely possible. But more than whether he took everything, I'm more curious how he even knew we were looking for that in the first place," Wade said calmly.
Anne's previously eager expression froze.
_____________
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P^treon: Captain69