Chapter 195. Nicolas's Christmas Gift
After dragging Fred and the other two onto the cushions in the corner and laying them down peacefully, Duncan strode back to the center of the room and bent over to observe the crystal ball on the shelf.
The white mist inside kept surging without pause, and from time to time a blurred human face would emerge, but apart from his own face, the rest could not be made out.
"Mr. Flamel."
Duncan straightened up a little, turned his head and asked, "When a person's face appears rather clearly in a crystal ball, what exactly does that mean? Is it a good thing or a bad thing—can you tell me?"
Nicolas was bent over a long table, gripping a graver in his hand. He pressed it hard against a blue-and-white jade stone, repeatedly scoring it according to the design in his mind, leaving winding marks that crossed and combined into an exquisite and orderly pattern.
Hearing Duncan's question, Nicolas did not answer at once. He waited until he finished the carving, brushed the stone's surface clean of fragments with a small brush, then straightened up and said, "It could be a good thing or it could be a bad thing, Duncan. How should I put it... fate and the future are too mysterious. Even now I haven't fully grasped their secrets. But if I make any new discoveries later, I'll write to you at once."
With a broad smile, Nicolas shuffled to Duncan's side and pushed the freshly carved jade pendant into his hand.
"This is my Christmas gift for you—just a little late. Wear it when you can. It might bring you good luck."
"Alright... thank you."
Duncan smiled his thanks, moved his fingers, and wound the pendant's cord around his hand. He raised his arm and let it hang in mid-air. The jade swung back and forth, and the sunlight upon it bloomed with a dazzling brilliance.
Duncan's gaze followed the pendant's movement, and an inexplicable feeling rose in his heart: Nicolas seemed not to have told the truth, perhaps hiding some secret. But that was only his guess.
Duncan fell silent for a moment, cast off his scattered thoughts, and hung the pendant around his neck. Then he took out the book he had obtained from the Restricted Section—perhaps left by Rowena Ravenclaw—and handed it to Nicolas.
"Mr. Flamel, can you crack the secret on this book?" Duncan asked with great expectation.
If Nicolas could do it, he would no longer have to wait miserably to answer one question a month on the book. Perhaps he could reach the end in one go.
"Oh? Where did you get this book?" Nicolas asked with interest as he leafed through it.
"The Restricted Section of the school library," Duncan chuckled. "I suspect it's connected with a treasure trove from long ago."
"Already wandering around the Restricted Section in first year? If Dumbledore finds out, he'll have a terrible headache and regret admitting you to Hogwarts."
Nicolas teased Duncan with a laugh, then said, "There is indeed a sense of ancient magic on this. I've seen it in some magical texts. But unfortunately, I still can't completely break it now. It's a special method those ancient wizards used to guard secrets. As soon as it suffers a strong external attack, the information recorded on it will be destroyed at once, and the magic in the book will also explode. However, almost no one uses this magic anymore, because the casting is extremely troublesome and the conditions harsh. It's far less convenient than later magics."
"Alright, then I can only answer the questions on it properly." Duncan nodded, speaking with regret, and put away the book Nicolas handed back.
"Don't be too disheartened. Perhaps the treasure is not very far from you already." Nicolas smiled and patted Duncan lightly on the shoulder. "The person who left this book doesn't seem keen on making things difficult. The magic on it is very weak. Even if it's frugal, it can at most ask four or five more questions."
"That does count as good news," Duncan replied with a smile.
At the current pace, he could finish answering all the questions during the holidays, and might obtain another key to the treasure in the Black Lake.
In the time that followed, Duncan accompanied Nicolas, touring the magical devices in the room while chatting with him and telling amusing stories from school. The wrinkles on Nicolas's face seemed to glow with life, and his spirits were much better than at the start. Whenever he heard something funny, he grinned from ear to ear.
No one knew how long had passed when the three sleeping in the corner all groaned at the same time, slowly opened their eyes, and sat up.
"George, Neville, you've both gone back to normal!" Fred said in delight; their features had obediently returned to their original places.
"Brilliant!" Neville wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes in excitement. "I've finally turned back, so I don't have to worry about frightening Gran with how I looked!"
Nicolas put the device in his hands back on the shelf and said with a smile, "Mm, the recovery is good—twenty minutes earlier than I'd estimated."
Duncan quietly rolled his eyes. Wasn't it because you didn't tell them the potion's dosage, so they gulped down several big mouthfuls like cattle?
The three of them celebrated for quite a while, and then Fred's eyes rolled about—some new hare-brained idea seemed to pop into his head. Rubbing his hands like a fly, he sidled up to Nicolas with a fawning grin on his face.
"Mr. Flamel, we'd like to ask you something..."
"Go on," Nicolas said amiably. Through Duncan's introduction, he'd grown very fond of these lads full of creativity and vitality.
George crowded in as well and continued from Fred, "Is there a way to turn us into how we looked just now again—but controllable?"
"For example, make two kinds of sweets," Fred said. "Eat the first to transform, and eat the second to return to normal."
"Is it doable, Mr. Flamel?"
George and Fred stared with big watery eyes, gazing at Nicolas hopefully.
"Mm..." Nicolas deliberately furrowed his brow. Only when the two looked disappointed did he say, "This sounds as though... it isn't a difficult matter."
"No can... what? You can do it?" Fred blurted automatically, then yelped in shock as he realized.
"Fantastic!" George exclaimed, so excited he nearly knelt to hug Nicolas's leg. "Can you teach us?"
"Of course," Nicolas nodded with a smile. "I can help you put together a potion recipe. You can go back and brew it by following along!"
"Mr. Flamel, you're simply the best person in the world!"
Fred and George leapt high, hand in hand, capering round Nicolas in celebration. Seeing their arms almost flinging into Nicolas, Duncan couldn't help but remind them, "You two blokes, be a bit careful!"
"Yes, most respected Mr. Scamander!"
In an instant, Fred and George transformed from rough country lads into elegant, gentlemanly nobles. They bowed to Duncan with impeccable form, speaking in perfectly proper tones—only to earn Duncan's disdainful eye-roll.
"What an ill-mannered fellow! You really ought to attend wizarding etiquette training," Fred and George snorted, folded their arms, side-eyed Duncan, and said in unison.
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