Teaching Lily the Shield Charm

The weather was perfect on the first Friday of October.

Sunlight streamed in through the Library's high windows, etching streaks of light onto the tabletops and casting a warm glow upon us.

Outside the window, the surface of the Black Lake shimmered with light. On the lawn by the lake, many young wizards were strolling, chatting, and playing around.

Regulus sat in his usual spot, in the corner by the window, with a thick book open in front of him.

Britain Magical Plant. Bestiary

He turned to the page about the Whomping Willow, read a few lines, and then turned back.

The book contains only standard information: origin, morphological characteristics, maintenance tips, and hazard level.

When and by whom it was discovered, in which regions it is distributed, what kind of growth environment it requires, and what precautions should be taken when attacking it.

There wasn't a single word about the nature of Magic Power.

This is normal.

Just like the book "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them," it doesn't describe the Magic Power properties of the Magical Creature.

Newt writes about habits, distribution, and methods of raising animals; he never writes about the Magic principles of animals.

Newt not to write those things was probably intentional.

If Newt had written down the Magic Power properties of every Magical Creature, it might have inspired some wizards, like himself.

If you find a particular animal's ability useful, or develop targeted Magic, it could be a disaster for those animals.

Without buying, there would be no killing.

Without research, there is no targeted approach.

The same principle applies to Magical Plant.

Regulus could only guess.

Regulus flipped through the pages, his gaze sweeping over the familiar plant names, reviewing their characteristics in his mind, before continuing to flip through the pages.

Those that are less common are only briefly described in books, including their names, locations of discovery, and basic characteristics.

But for him, that was enough; the descriptions of his characteristics often contained clues of Magic Power nature.

The Frost-Weeping Tulip blooms only when the first snow falls each year. Its petals freeze but do not wither, and a cool liquid drips from them in the sunlight. Touching the liquid evokes the saddest memories of the past.

Regulus speculated that its Magic Power properties were related to frozen memories, and that it was the ability to seal away a certain memory.

If it can be extracted, it might be used to seal away painful memories, or conversely, to plunge someone into an inescapable sadness.

Silent Moss covers the stone tablets of Ancient Ruins; anyone who touches it will temporarily lose the ability to speak, and will be unable to cast Nonverbal Spell.

Regulus believed that its Magic Power properties were related to language, and even directly rendered the act of Spellcasting ineffective.

If we can extract it, we might be able to develop methods that prevent opponents from Spellcasting.

The Shadow-Light Grass glows only in absolute darkness; the dimmer the light, the brighter it shines, but it will immediately extinguish if there is even the slightest other light source.

Regulus thought that this must be Magic Power tendency that is sensitive to light or exclusive, it only wants to exist in a pure environment and cannot tolerate any interference.

If it could be extracted, it might be used to create detection Magic, or conversely, to create darkness that could block all light sources.

Regulus memorized the names of these plants and his guesses.

If we had the chance to get our hands on the actual object, we could use our Magic Perception and Natural Magic to verify it, but for now, we'll have to leave it for later.

He continued flipping through the pages, searching for more potential targets.

As the sunlight slowly slanted westward, the ray of light on the table shifted its position, moving from the corner to the center, and then to the other side.

Footsteps approached, Regulus looked up.

Lily stood across the table, holding several books in her arms.

Regulus looked up and nodded at her. "Lily."

Lily sat down opposite him and placed the book on the table. "Regulus."

Then neither of them spoke again, and they each opened their books.

The Library was quiet, with only the occasional sound of turning pages, footsteps, and Madam Pince's cough coming from a distance.

The sunlight outside the window grew increasingly oblique, eventually turning orange-red as it shone in, casting a warm glow on the tabletop.

Lily closed her book, Regulus closed his as well. They both looked up at the same time, their eyes meeting.

Lily laughed first, "You've become quite famous lately."

Regulus's gaze was gentle, and he remained silent.

Lily blinked. "You really did what they said, letting a first-year student cast the complete Shield Charm directly?"

Regulus hummed in agreement. "If you insist on saying so, yes."

He continued, "But you should have heard that it's just a shortcut, a way to get a taste of things beforehand, not a real teaching."

Lily had heard about it, of course.

The professors practically grabbed the young wizards by the ears and told them, "Don't even think about trying this method."

But these past few days, her roommate Marcia Fawley has been constantly talking in her ear about how amazing Regulus, saying that her father said it was something no little wizard could do.

Marcia's eyes were shining when she said this.

Lily didn't really understand.

She couldn't fully cast the Shield Charm either; in fact, she could hardly cast it at all.

At most, a wisp of silver light emanated from the tip of her wand, a thin layer that didn't even qualify as a formed barrier.

She asked the older students, those who could cast the full Shield Charm, and they said that being older was enough.

When the Magic Power is stronger, when the body has grown more, and when the will is more resolute, it will naturally be able to be used.

Some say it requires the belief to refuse harm, and the genuine desire to protect something, ideally oneself.

Lily analyzed that she might indeed be lacking this.

Although her family wasn't wealthy, her parents loved her, and her sister... her sister loved her too.

During my two years at Hogwarts, although there were occasional unpleasant incidents, I didn't suffer any real harm.

She couldn't imagine that feeling.

Lily looked at Regulus and asked curiously, "I heard Professor McGonagall say that method doesn't seem suitable for young wizards?"

Regulus said, "Yes, at least not for young wizards who don't have skilled wizards in their families."

Lily fell silent; she understood— Regulus was referring to resources.

If you have a skilled shaman in your family, you can do this; if you don't, you'll just have to endure it slowly on your own.

Her family didn't have any skilled wizards, and she was the only wizard there; that's the difference in their backgrounds.

She remembered her parents' last letter, which was full of concern, asking if she needed anything, if she had enough money, and if she was eating well at school.

Lily was quite happy when she saw it, but now, listening to Regulus's words, she suddenly felt a little uneasy.

Is the difference in background really that big?

She didn't say it aloud, but Regulus noticed.

He could sense Lily's Magic Fluctuation; her tone had noticeably lowered after his earlier statement.

He didn't rush to offer sweet words of comfort. These things are objective realities; this is the reality that Muggle-borns have to face.

He had talked to Lily before about how birth is important, but talent is equally important. Pureblood families can produce incredibly useless individuals, Muggle-borns can become powerful wizards.

But there's no need to repeat those words over and over; ultimately, you have to figure it out for yourself.

Regulus didn't disturb Lily; he simply sat there, watching her with a gentle expression.

After a long while, Lily finally raised her head again.

She looked at Regulus, at his expression—gentle, tolerant, like looking at a child who needed care.

Lily glared at him, annoyed. "Why aren't you comforting me?"

Regulus raised an eyebrow.

Lily continued, "You know perfectly well that there are no other wizards in my family, and you know what I'll think when you say those things, so why don't you comfort me?"

There was a hint of complaint in her tone, but her voice was soft.

Regulus's lips curved into a smile, "Because I know you're a strong witch."

Lily paused for a moment.

Regulus continued, "You won't be defeated by these things. You'll figure it out yourself and keep moving forward."

Lily stared at him for a long time, then she laughed to herself, as if she had remembered something funny. "You did that again."

Regulus didn't know what she meant, but he didn't intend to refute it.

He simply nodded, his expression unchanged. "Yes, I did it again."

Lily looked at him without speaking, but her eyes conveyed the message: "Tell me, what have you done this time?"

Regulus cleared his throat. "Lily, would you like to experience what the Shield Charm feels like?"

Lily's attention was indeed diverted; she frowned and said, "Didn't you say that little wizards aren't suitable?"

Regulus smiled. "But as I just said, if there's a sufficiently skilled wizard, then it's possible."

Lily lowered her head, seemingly lost in thought. After a while, she looked up and said, "Come on, here?"

Regulus said, "This will do."

Lily glanced to both sides, then lowered her voice, "Do you need a wand? I mean, Madam Pince doesn't allow wands in the Library."

Regulus shook his head. "No need, I'm just showing you around."

He gestured for Lily to move forward a little.

Lily leaned forward, closing the distance between them slightly.

Regulus reached out, his fingertips hovering about two inches from her brow.

A wisp of silver light emanated from his fingertips, soft and not dazzling, like a small ball of moonlight.

It drifted towards Lily's brow, and the moment it touched her skin, it dispersed and merged.

Lily's eyes widened, her body stiffened for a moment, then relaxed.

Two seconds later, Regulus withdrew his finger, and the silver light dissipated.

Lily remained in the same position, motionless, her eyes open, but her focus was elsewhere.

A few seconds later, she blinked, her gaze refocusing.

She looked at Regulus, her eyes widening in surprise and disbelief.

Regulus said, "Remember this feeling, try it again when you get back to the Dormitory, practice a few more times."

He added, "But remember, you need to have your own. This feeling just lets you know in advance what the Shield Charm looks like. The real Shield Charm has to be your own."

Lily nodded several times, then asked somewhat cautiously, "Regulus, is it a secret?"

A hint of satisfaction flashed in Regulus's eyes, but Lily, unusually, didn't glare at him.

"If she's a friend you trust, you can tell her," Regulus said. "After all, there has to be a reason, doesn't there?"

Lily thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "I understand."

She began tidying up the books on the table, and Regulus did the same; the two walked out together.

Stepping out of the Library, the Corridor dimmed, torches were lit, and their dim yellow light flickered on the stone walls.

Lily suddenly said, "Thank you, Regulus."

Regulus shook his head. "No need to thank me between friends."

Lily muttered softly, "You're the one who's helping me."

Regulus turned to look at her, and Lily smiled.

"Goodbye!"

After saying that, she hugged the book and ran off with light steps, her braids swinging behind her.

Regulus stood there, watching her figure disappear around the corner of the Corridor.

Then he turned and walked in another direction.