Spinner's End was always gloomy, even in summer; the clouds shifted like they couldn't make up their minds.
While the rain hammered down again, Sean was still wrestling with one big problem.
He hadn't fully mastered his Animagus transformation.
That wasn't just because the system panel hadn't given him any completion notice; it was because no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't shift into his pure Kneazle form anymore.
Animagus transformations are supposed to be limited to non-magical creatures. Trying to turn into magical ones (phoenixes, dragons, hippogriffs, etc.) usually ends in disaster.
For Sean, the disaster showed up as extreme difficulty switching forms. Getting into Kneazle-cat was hard. Getting back to human was even harder.
After a bunch of failed attempts, he quietly pulled out a Kneazle biscuit.
Sometimes a wizard just needs a little cheat code.
Almost instantly, a very wobbly black cat appeared on the book-covered wall. Its paws looked way too big for the rest of its body, and it staggered around like it had knocked back three firewhiskies.
Firelight flickered over its fur, turning it a warm amber. Snape, sitting on the couch, noticed, slowly lifted his newspaper to block the light, and pretended he hadn't seen anything.
For nearly a week straight, Sean kept practicing switching forms.
Sometimes he'd stay Kneazle-cat for days at a time, trying to get comfortable in that body. He'd leap from shelf to shelf, brush his whiskers against the doorframe to "read" the humidity and predict the weather.
"Tomorrow will be sunny," the black cat declared one morning before springing up and turning back into a tall, black-robed wizard.
Snape, still buried in his newspaper on the couch, gave a soft, mocking snort and flicked his wand. The potion ingredients drying on the balcony flew back inside.
That cat had predicted the weather wrong for seven days straight.
In a way, it was kind of impressive.
But this time Sean was sure he'd nailed it, because the panel finally spoke:
[You have mastered a special branch of soul transfiguration. Master-level proficiency +100]
[One special form unlocked. Check details.]
Sean's eyes went wide. Ever since Transfiguration hit Master level, he'd been grinding one or three points at a time. A hundred at once? He opened the panel immediately.
Transfiguration Categories:
- Matter Transfiguration: Beginner (10/300)
- Magical Transfiguration: Beginner (30/300)
- Soul Transfiguration: Apprentice (60/90)
Overall rating: A wizard who has just stepped into the realm of Master in transfiguration. Combat power within the Master tier: a solid 5 points.
Sean ignored the "solid 5 points" jab and focused on the newly unlocked soul transfiguration section.
He reached out slowly. In the blink of an eye, his hand became a sleek black paw, and a second later he was fully a black cat again.
No biscuit required.
The cat sat on the floor, tail flicking thoughtfully.
Name: Sean Green
Unlocked special forms: Kneazle-cat
Not yet unlocked: ???
Not yet unlocked?
So he really did have more than one soul body?
That tiny wording difference sent his mind racing.
At the tail end of July, under the bright golden sunlight of summer, Sean finally returned to Hogwarts Castle.
The castle was quiet; no students, just most of the professors still around.
The peace and quiet of the holidays let Sean sit in the sunshine and lay out his next big plan:
Basilisk biscuits.
To pull that off, he needed two things: the ability to take on a basilisk himself, and a way to upgrade the fairy-tale biscuit ritual so the user stayed fully conscious.
An uncontrollable basilisk was only useful in very specific situations.
His rapidly improving transfiguration skills would handle the first part. Soul transfiguration suddenly looked like the key to the second.
He had to finish this before the basilisk hurt anyone else. The sooner the better.
So the very first day back, Sean went straight to Professor Tela's office in the alchemy wing.
"Delighted to see you, my dear apprentice. You've completed your Animagus training?" Professor Tela spotted the missing badge instantly and smiled with quiet pride.
"Yes, Professor, but I have questions."
"Transformation isn't smooth? Animal instincts too strong? Can't change without your wand nearby?" She rattled off the usual issues like she'd seen them a hundred times.
"Those are all normal, my boy."
"That's good to hear, but… what if the Animagus form is a magical creature?"
"Magical creature… magical creature?!"
Professor Tela leaned in so fast her braids nearly whipped him. Her voice came out in a raspy whisper: "Show me."
A long moment later, the fire in her eyes could've melted steel.
She flicked a white paper airplane memo out the door, then spoke in a trembling voice:
"I should've known… but to master it this fast… You entered the dream, didn't you? Tell me exactly what you saw."
Describing the dream had been part of Sean's plan all along. He answered carefully:
"I saw vague shadows, lots of mist, and one very clear black Kneazle-cat. Then I became that cat."
He gave her every detail he could.
"Good… excellent. You've already stepped into one of your soul bodies while in the dream. That place you were in, that's the most wondrous part…"
She leaned forward, voice soft with awe.
"Listen closely, child. Even the wizards of Uagadou don't fully understand that realm. It's a place where time doesn't flow; just pure existence, flat and empty.
Very, very few wizards ever glimpse it. It lies beyond the Veil of Death, where souls reside.
Normally, a wizard only gets there after death. If they refuse death, they become ghosts. If they accept it, they move on to whatever great adventure comes next.
But those who practice soul transfiguration can peek into the corners of that world while still alive. That's where some of their unique powers come from: staying clear-headed in animal form, mastering self-transformation almost instantly…"
A quill scribbled furiously beside Sean, recording every word.
"Reaching even the edge of that place is extraordinarily difficult. Ordinary Animagi almost never manage it," she said, putting heavy emphasis on "ordinary" while staring right at him.
"But the benefits are enormous. So, my brilliant apprentice… have you figured out the method the Uagadou wizards use to get there?"