Are You Ready to Take the Stage?

"Where is Damon?"

Faced with Dumbledore's question, Professor McGonagall suddenly felt a little embarrassed.

"I left him in my office."

She realized that she should have brought Damon along. After all, he was the creator of this theory and the person who understood it best—she had been so excited that she had actually forgotten something so obvious.

"Oh? What did he say?" Dumbledore asked, his gaze profound.

Professor McGonagall did not notice his expression. Once her emotions had settled somewhat, she recalled Damon's reaction and found it rather amusing.

"He said he wanted House Cup points."

"House Cup points?" Dumbledore's eyes suddenly became clear. "You mean—he wrote this paper for House Cup points?"

"Yes, House Cup points. He said I should give back the points I deducted from his House."

Seeing Dumbledore's slightly blank expression, Professor McGonagall comforted him.

"Do you find it absurd too? This child still doesn't seem to understand the situation. At a time like this, he is still worrying about House Cup points. He has no idea just how—"

"Why didn't you give them to him?"

"—What?"

"The points. Why didn't you give them to him?"

Professor McGonagall, who had only just begun to calm down, became bewildered again.

Was it her imagination? Why did Dumbledore's tone seem somewhat strange, as though there was a trace of reproach in it?

"Of course I will give them to him. But more importantly, what are you planning to do with his paper? Are you really going to publish it in Transfiguration Today? I'm afraid the owls delivering letters would drown Hogwarts."

"Why not—if he wishes to publish it."

"Actually, this paper is not as terrifying as you think. Leaving aside the fact that even I do not quite understand some of its contents, even if someone could understand all of it, as long as Damon keeps those two Charms confidential, even those with ulterior motives will never be able to use their power."

Dumbledore looked at his pet beside him and said gently,

"Fawkes, could you please bring Damon here?"

The phoenix nodded and vanished into the flames.

"Then, while we wait, Minerva, I hope you can tell me more about the details of your interactions with him. How exactly did this child come up with such an idea?"

"To be honest, I'm surprised as well. Although his progress has indeed been remarkably fast, he had never mentioned anything related to this topic to me before."

A quarter of an hour later, there was a knock on the door.

"Come in."

Damon pushed open the door. Phoenix Fawkes stood on his shoulder, diligently preening its feathers, which surprised the already-prepared Dumbledore.

He had never seen Fawkes approach anyone else.

Even Newt Scamander had only managed to establish some basic connection with Fawkes. Such intimacy was simply impossible.

"Thanks, buddy. I'm here."

Fawkes nodded, rose from Damon's shoulder, and flew back to its perch.

"I rarely see Fawkes so close to someone."

"Oh, it said I smell nice and give it a different kind of sense of peace."

Dumbledore merely assumed Damon was talking nonsense and asked,

"Would you like tea or pumpkin juice?"

"Black tea, thank you."

Dumbledore waved his wand, and black tea and pastries appeared before Damon. Although he had already eaten once in Professor McGonagall's office, he did not refuse out of politeness.

"Then, shall we get straight to the point?"

"I have no objection."

"Regarding your White's Transfiguration Law, I have some questions I would like you to answer."

"It's already been named, Professor?" Damon smiled. "Ask away."

"What are molecules and atoms?"

"They are microscopic particles that make up objects. You could say that everything contains molecules and atoms; our naked eyes simply cannot see them.

Damon pointed to his eyes.

"It's fine if you cannot understand it. I merely used a convenient analogy. Strictly speaking, the essence of this theorem is understanding the composition of all matter—Muggles call all objects matter.

Actually, it does not matter if you do not understand the principles of molecules and atoms. You can also understand this from a magical perspective."

"Could you explain in more detail?"

The more Dumbledore listened, the more interested he became. This child seemed to understand the Muggle world very well. Was it the constant collision and fusion of thought from two worlds that had given rise to such an extraordinary idea?

"Of course."

Damon casually levitated a sheet of paper with his wand and asked,

"Professor, what do you think is the most important thing in magic?"

"Hmm—what a difficult and complicated question. If I had to give a less-than-perfect answer, I would say love."

"A meaningless answer."

Damon rolled his eyes. He did not believe that was what Dumbledore truly thought.

Dumbledore simply responded to his eye roll with a smiling face.

"Love is partly correct, perhaps. But I believe that the foundation of magic still depends on a wizard's cognition and will."

"In my understanding, this sheet of paper is not merely a sheet of paper. Its interior contains more complex components, and by altering those components, I can achieve the fundamental transformation of Transfiguration."

"But is my idea necessarily correct and unique? I do not think so."

"My lifelong understanding has forged my unwavering belief. It is something akin to faith. The Muggle world calls this understanding science, but I believe science is actually the most fanatical faith in the world."

"And when this faith acts upon magic, it becomes the miracle of making one's wishes come true."

"In short, this is the power of 'belief.' Mere thoughts, no matter how firm, are like castles in the air. Yet with a great many thoughts—or even rigid patterns of thinking—they can instead bring about this miracle."

Damon spoke calmly and eloquently, his reasoning clear. Dumbledore watched him with a smile and nodded continuously.

"A remarkable idea. I can see that you already have a complete personal understanding of magic.

I have no more questions. It has been an honor to hear you share these things with me today."

Dumbledore paused, then continued.

"Then let us discuss how your theorem should make its debut. I heard from Minerva that you wish to send it to Transfiguration Today?"

"That's right. Actually, I did not come up with this idea entirely on my own. An issue of the journal gave me inspiration, and that was how I thought of doing all this. Since I gained something from it, I naturally want to give something back."

"Oh—I like that warm way of putting it."

The smile on Dumbledore's face brightened, and even his eyes narrowed slightly.

Although this child, like Tom, had come from a Muggle orphanage, was equally outstanding and courteous, and was equally obsessed with power, at the very least, he had far more warmth than Tom did now.

"However, just as Minerva said, let us wait a little longer. Such a remarkable, era-defining theory deserves a stage worthy of it."

Dumbledore stood and walked over to Damon. He placed one hand on Damon's shoulder as a sign of respect.

"I will vouch for you. The next issue of Transfiguration Today and the Daily Prophet will both promote and build anticipation for your era-defining theory. Before long, the entire magical world will know your name.

Are you ready to take the stage, Damon?"

"It would be my honor, Professor."

I noticed that some readers seemed disappointed that Transfiguration could only alter appearances and could not change essence. Honestly, when I first read the complete Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration, I felt the same way—if it cannot even change essence, what is the point of hyping Transfiguration up so much?

But let me clarify: I wrote this according to the source material. This is not my own setting; the current change is my own setting.