I Am Breeze

As the final day of the Christmas holiday arrived, Breeze concluded his research into Natural Magic. By now, he had abandoned the idea of fundamentally altering most functional spells, as those could only use natural magic to amplify their intensity; only elemental magic possessed a high degree of compatibility with natural magic.

Breeze prepared to conduct preliminary research on basic elemental spells—such as Lumos, Incendio, Aguamenti, Growth Charm, Ventus, Glacius, and the Earth Charm—and categorize them into a magical system exclusive to him.

Currently, Breeze had only touched upon these spells superficially. He knew that by continuing his research and strengthening his ability to channel surrounding natural forces through his own magic, he could enhance the power of these Natural Magic spells.

In a sense, Natural Magic was more akin to mastering the elemental forces of the natural world, communicating with nature through the magic within one's body to cast a wide variety of spells.

"Ah!" Faner let out a yawn, spitting out a large puff of sparks.

"Breeze, you've been cooped up in this room for days, and you haven't even been eating on time. If you keep this up, you're going to get sick..."

"Sorry, Faner, for making you worry." Breeze smiled gently, causing Faner to freeze in a daze.

Although Faner had seen this kind of smile several times over the past few days, it still felt unbelievable every time—that this was actually Breeze!

Yes, Breeze had changed. He had become more carefree, choosing no longer to hide so many things. The pretense was gone from his eyes; perhaps this was confidence. While those unfamiliar with him might not notice any change, Faner, having stayed with Breeze for so long, could not possibly miss it.

Faner felt this was a good thing. At the very least, Breeze's smile was genuine, no longer as hypocritical as it once appeared on his face.

Breeze was also clear about his own situation... the disappearance of An Qing was his greatest relief, and his greatest help.

No longer shackled, no longer worried that he might vanish at any moment, Breeze no longer needed to disguise himself to blend into this world.

"Help me put the books away, Faner, I'm heading down now." Breeze meticulously straightened his wizard robes and silently cast a Scouring Charm on himself to clean the hem of his clothes.

Breeze needed to find Professor Sprout, though now was not the time to enter the Forbidden Forest. That monster was a nuisance, and even though Dumbledore clearly knew about the situation with the centaurs and the Unicorn, he hadn't taken any action.

"Oh, Breeze?" Professor Sprout didn't seem particularly happy. She turned to fuss over a pot of orchids and said unhurriedly, "If I didn't know you had signed your name on the list of students staying for the holidays, I would have thought you had already left Hogwarts."

Breeze gave an awkward smile. He had been a bit obsessed with his research into Natural Magic—who could blame him, given how powerful this force was? Perhaps Breeze could become a scholar in the future, bringing a magical revolution to the wizarding world; in that case, Breeze might very well become another Merlin.

"Sorry, Professor, I've just been a bit busy. Magic always takes up most of my time, though I am more than happy to indulge in it."

Breeze smiled softly, looking exceptionally amiable. As if affected by his good mood, the surrounding plants seemed to brighten, their leaves and branches unfurling one by one.

"Oh!" Sprout stared at Breeze intently and pinched his small cheek.

"You wouldn't happen to be a descendant of some special Elf, would you? Legend has it that Elves are the race closest to plants, or perhaps a Druid?"

"Legend says Druids are the messengers of nature, capable of borrowing the power of the natural world."

Breeze pondered this in his mind. He didn't know his own origins, and An Qing had never mentioned them before disappearing. Perhaps it wasn't important, but now was not the time to speak of Natural Magic.

"I suppose wizards have special talents too. Perhaps I would have been a Hufflepuff if I had been sorted differently..."

Hearing Breeze say this, Sprout quickly interjected, "Let's go find Dumbledore and change your House!"

"Oh, no, Professor, please don't tease me. I understand that I am a Slytherin, and I, too, wish to pursue glory and fame."

Breeze looked quite helpless, and Sprout shrugged in disappointment.

"They all say you're a Ravenclaw; your drive for learning is stronger than anyone's."

Sprout said with a smile, but Breeze's next words made her frown.

"I think I pursue wisdom for the sake of power..."

But Breeze's following sentence made Sprout relax again.

"Because power can give me a sense of security. You know I am an orphan; relatively speaking, I only have myself left in this life. Perhaps friends will leave marks on my life, but they cannot stay by my side forever. They have their own lives to lead, and many things I can only rely on myself for."

Breeze spoke with great sincerity. Professor Sprout felt a pang of heartache; she stroked Breeze's head, preparing to pull him into an embrace.

"Oh, Professor!"

"Actually, I don't like being hugged, nor do I like people touching my face or hair."

As he pushed her hand away, Sprout looked into Breeze's clear, unblemished black eyes and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

"Yes, I must respect a young wizard's choices. However, I believe that at this stage, I can help you as your professor. You are right—no one will look out for you at every moment. You need to become strong on your own."

Sprout caught the subtext in Breeze's words. Without beating around the bush, she said directly, "Tell me, what is it you need from me? Seeing as little Breeze has finally spoken his heart to his Herbology professor, I think the Herbology professor will do her best to help him."

Breeze knew Professor Sprout would help him.

"It's the Trance Grass, the one I mentioned before." Breeze said without hesitation.

"You know I often stay in The Owlery. It was the territory of a master alchemist who left behind quite a few alchemy books. I want to try my hand at some alchemical items. I discovered a method there to create an infinitely reusable and highly confidential alchemy journal, so... you understand, I still lack the final ingredient: the Trance Grass."

Breeze had become unreserved, speaking only the truth. Yet, Breeze hadn't become someone who trusted everyone. Perhaps Professor Sprout was trustworthy, but Dumbledore was not. If asked, Professor Sprout likely wouldn't be able to refuse Dumbledore.

Keeping some secrets was also a way to maintain relationships. Breeze knew what could be said and what could not; not lying didn't mean revealing everything.

"Trance Grass, is it?" Professor Sprout finally recalled the situation from her memory.

"Oh, I remember saying that if you performed well, I might take you to the Forbidden Forest to find it when you were in a higher year."

Professor Sprout smiled kindly and said, "But I didn't expect you to need it so badly."

"I think I can take you, but you must guarantee that the alchemical items you create are not dangerous. That is my only requirement."

Breeze nodded upon hearing this. Creating an alchemy journal wasn't dangerous; it just cost a bit more, but that wasn't an issue—Breeze had already bought the materials.

"Of course, the alchemy journal is completely harmless. I can swear it by the name of Order; I have no reason to pay a price for such a thing."

Professor Sprout nodded and, ignoring Breeze's resistance, ruffled his small head.

"Then let me think. I must first report this matter to Headmaster Dumbledore. You will need to wait; I will come find you once I have handled it."

"Of course." Brie was overjoyed; he could finally start working on his alchemy notes!

Sprout looked at Brie with a teasing glint in her eyes. Although she wasn't sure why Brie had suddenly become so... authentic, as if he had opened his heart to the world, she was happy to see it. It only made her deeper resentment toward his placement in Slytherin grow.

Brie, with his love for plants, was clearly a perfect fit for Hufflepuff, though... perhaps this was also a way for him to gain power and satisfy his own sense of security.

Professor Sprout felt a slight headache coming on, wondering if she should inform Dumbledore about Brie's situation...

Better not. Brie would be a good boy. Sprout thought to herself that she would take good care of him; educating young wizards was her duty after all. What did Dumbledore know? All he did was eat candy all day.

"Then, would Mr. Breeze Order please help his Herbology professor tend to the plants? They would be delighted."

"Of course, I would be happy to help, Professor Sprout."

It wasn't until Brie walked out of the greenhouse that he eased his smile. Although his smile was never flamboyant—merely a shallow curve—it was still enough to draw attention.

At the entrance of the snow-covered Hogwarts castle, there were still quite a few people walking about.

"Brie?"

Hermione looked at the smile Brie had just tucked away, feeling a bit strange, as she sensed something different about him.

"You look a bit odd today. It wouldn't be someone who drank Polyjuice Potion, would it!"

Hermione knew that Polyjuice Potion was a concoction that allowed one to transform into a specific person, requiring only a hair from the subject as a catalyst.

"I am Brie, Hermione... I don't think anyone would choose to wander around Hogwarts disguised as me."

Hermione's expression turned peculiar. She said without thinking, "I think Breeze Order wandering around Hogwarts is the odd thing itself. You should be in the library or hiding somewhere reading a book."

Fair enough, the image of Brie as a bookworm was already deeply ingrained in everyone's minds, but that wasn't important.

"Hmm, you can speculate as you please." Brie smiled and didn't take the bait, instead saying, "Welcome back, Miss Granger, returning a day early from a wonderful Christmas."

Hermione blushed; Brie's attempt to change the subject was terrible.

"I was just worried that those two idiots, Harry and Ron, wouldn't be able to find any information on Nicolas Flamel."

Thinking of Nicolas Flamel, Hermione felt a bit angry.

"Those two didn't take a word I said to heart; they spent the entire holiday playing!"

Without Hermione's guidance, the other two wouldn't obediently go to the library—that was a struggle for them, and Hermione knew it, but she hadn't expected them to fail to last even the first day.

"Don't be angry. If you want to know about Nicolas Flamel, I can tell you."

Brie's gaze was profound. He didn't want to know too much about why the Savior was involved in this matter; it was likely Dumbledore's arrangement, though the reason was unknown... unknown?

"Hermione, why are you all trying to stop... Snape from seizing the Sorcerer's Stone?"

Brie stared intently into Hermione's eyes. His serious demeanor caught her off guard, and she began to think it over carefully. Right, why were they trying to stop Snape?

Brie looked at Hermione with a strange expression.

"Is it just because everyone says Harry Potter is the Savior, so he really thinks of himself as an emissary of justice, and you and Weasley have also cast yourselves as partners of justice? Don't you think that's childish?"

"If you ask me, Harry Potter just wants to be an ordinary student; that would be the greatest happiness for him."

"Besides, this is Hogwarts, and Dumbledore is the greatest white wizard of this century."

Without waiting for Hermione to speak, Brie revealed that Nicolas Flamel was an alchemy master who had lived for six hundred years.

"The Sorcerer's Stone was created by Nicolas Flamel, and Dumbledore is his friend. The Sorcerer's Stone can turn stone into gold and create the Elixir of Life..."

Having said that, Brie didn't wait for Hermione to react; he walked past her, crossed the corridor, and entered the Great Hall.

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