Changed Dream

Clutching his dizzy head, Tom staggered to the bed. His vision went black, and he was somewhat grateful that he had fallen onto the bed rather than the floor. Once again, he found himself in the familiar mist. Tom stood still. Something was wrong—today seemed different.

Black tulips had never appeared in his previous dreams. Tom narrowed his eyes and carefully examined everything in the dream, tentatively trying to wake himself. He closed his eyes and repeatedly told himself to wake up, but after quite a while, he opened them again in frustration.

Since he was a wizard, perhaps this was not an ordinary dream? Tom sniffed at the intoxicating floral fragrance in the air and chuckled softly. He had been right—dreams did not come with a sense of smell. Yet he still could not understand why everything had suddenly changed. Was this one of a wizard's abilities as well?

Carefully avoiding the vivid, alluring flowers on the ground, Tom walked to where his mother had been before. He was surprised to find the place empty. He cautiously reached out and discovered that the barrier blocking him before had vanished. Pressing his lips together, he stepped forward.

Reason told him that he should not be so reckless, but a voice in his mind told him to go over and take a look, or he would regret it for the rest of his life.

As his foot came down, Tom discovered that the scene around him was spinning rapidly. The mist around him kept shrinking, gathering into something the size of a locket before bursting apart right in front of him. It was as though he had suddenly stepped into a night sky filled with stars.

Looking at the faintly glowing specks of light around him, Tom followed the thought that had surfaced in his mind and reached out to touch the nearest one. A gentle glow swallowed him whole. Tom panicked for a moment, then, in a daze, saw a blurry figure.

The person whose features he could not make out turned around, standing against the light and extending a hand toward him. Tom reached out, trying to grab it, but a tremendous, irresistible pull dragged him back.

Tom sat up in bed and glanced outside. It was already the middle of the night. Apparently, he had slept for quite a while. But...

Carefully recalling the strange dream, Tom realized that no matter how hard he tried, he could not remember what had happened in it. He only remembered smelling the flowers; he had no recollection at all of what came afterward. That feeling of being out of control made him extremely irritated.

"What was it...?" Tom murmured softly, pressing a hand to his chest. He did not understand. Was there something wrong with his heart? It had never beaten at this rhythm before.

Shaking his head, Tom decided not to dwell on it anymore. Learning magic was his top priority now. He needed to use this month to familiarize himself with the contents of the textbooks. He was not sure whether he could keep up with everyone else's progress. Even if he was an orphan, he would not allow himself to lose to anyone else. If he was going to do something, he would do it perfectly.

Thinking of the History of Magic he had been reading before falling asleep, Tom recalled that he had found clues about his origins in the four founders. Unfortunately, the book contained too little information about them. Perhaps he would find more clues at school. He had read that Ravenclaw possessed an enormous collection of books.

"Hmm... should I join Ravenclaw? Or would Slytherin suit me better?"

Covering his mouth as he yawned, Tom rubbed his stomach and got up to pour himself a glass of water. There definitely would not be anything to eat this late. What a pity. If he had known, he would have eaten more when Professor Dumbledore treated him to dinner...

Lying back down, Tom curled himself into a ball and drifted back to sleep. This time, however, he did not smell that intoxicating fragrance.

The next day, Tom got dressed and tidied himself up. After casually eating something, he returned to his room. Time was far too important to him; he had to speed things up. Setting History of Magic aside for the moment, Tom took out his wand and tentatively cast a spell according to the book's instructions.

After successfully making the clutter on the tabletop float, Tom raised an eyebrow. Compared to having to focus his mind to move objects before, using a wand really was much easier.