I was awakened by unbearable pain that drilled into my head. A thousand tiny needles seemed to pierce my skull (metaphorically, of course), making me groan in agony.
Suddenly, memories of a five-year-old boy named Aurelius Shafiq were shot into my mind, causing me to groan again.
I saw Aurelius speak his first word.
Take his first steps.
Learn to read – which, given his age, was quite impressive.
How he spoke to an elf-like creature.
A thousand other memories flooded me, and my vision went black.The realization that I had transmigrated into the world of Harry Potter hit me quickly, because, if I was not mistaken: the Shafiq family belongs to the sacred twenty-eight pureblood families. Naturally, these memories supported this, though they seemed disordered.
The brief glimpses of magic made me tremble with excitement.
When my vision cleared, I quickly opened my eyes.
I was lying on a soft bed with navy-blue sheets. Opposite me were two large windows offering a view of a beautiful garden.
The room seemed about 25 square meters in size.
To my right was a door leading to the bathroom. Mahogany cupboards filled with books adorned the room. From Aurelius' memories, it seemed he was an avid reader and could even perform a bit of wandless magic.
By the standards of my previous world, that was impressive.
I quickly jumped off the bed, nearly slipping due to the small body I now inhabited.
Once I regained my balance, I looked up and saw a small, silver-haired boy – Aurelius Shafiq – in the mirror.
Sapphire-blue eyes stared back at me. Silky silver strands fell over his eyes, giving him a charming appearance. Thick, long eyelashes, full lips, and incredibly pale skin completed his delicate features.
"Holy shit, he's adorable."
Instinctively, I brushed my hair back, as it fell over my face.
Before I could lose myself in my new appearance, I began exploring the room.
Every corner of the room screamed wealth, though in a magical world, that was not surprising.
The carvings in the wood were so precise that only magic could have created them.
I opened the door, ready to explore the rest of the house.
It opened silently, revealing a corridor with golden wallpaper.According to the previous owner's memories, a staircase led down to the ground floor.
Windows lined the hallway, displaying the garden's diverse flora and fauna. Flowers of every color seemed to vibrate with magic. Trees, which could only be described as magical, soared skyward.
"What a view," I thought, wide-eyed.
I passed enchanted portraits, carefully avoiding their gaze so they might not speak to me.
At the staircase, I descended.
Downstairs, the lounge was furnished with luxurious sofas, but my eyes were drawn to the magical artifacts on the shelves.
All were adorned with runes, giving them a mystical appearance.
Before I could admire them further, a loud noise interrupted me.
I turned my head toward the sound and saw green flames emerging from an elaborately designed fireplace.
A figure appeared. By the silhouette, it seemed to be a woman.
She was Aurelius Shafiq's mother.
Long, curly silver hair tied into a bun. Golden eyes framed by thick, long lashes. Full red lips and an hourglass figure. Without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I had ever seen.
Her name was Morganna Shafiq. She worked in the Ministry of Magic, in the Department of Mysteries.
Seeing me in the lounge, she smiled warmly and said, "Aurelius, how are you? Did you sleep well?"
With a grin, she asked, "Didn't you miss me?"
A strange feeling washed over me, and I instinctively replied, "No, of course not, you haven't been gone that long."
Before I could react, she suddenly approached, lifted me up, and hugged me.
A warmth spread through my chest. I wondered what it was.
Instinctively, I wrapped my arms around her, and warmth filled me.
Morganna and I stayed like that for fifteen seconds before she gently set me down and brushed my hair from my face.
Grinning, she said, "So, you did miss me after all."
Due to my childlike body, my face turned red. I quickly thought of a childish response.
"Yes, but only a little."
She didn't reply, but I could see her smile, amused.
Suddenly, she snapped her fingers, and a parchment appeared in her hand, which she handed to me.
"As I told you this morning, your classes begin tomorrow: Etiquette, Dance, History, Languages, and Basic Magic."
I opened the parchment and saw my timetable:
Schedule
Monday: 11–13 Etiquette with Sophie Grey
Tuesday: 9–13 Latin, Greek, French, English with Grandfather
Wednesday: 10–11:30 Dance with Sophie Grey
Thursday: 9–12 History with Grandmother
Friday: 18–19 Basic Magic with Morganna Shafiq (your mother whom you always missed)
After reading, I asked her, "Was that last line really necessary?"
She ignored me, inspecting her silver-manicured nails.
I sighed and focused on the schedule. Thursday and Friday would likely be the highlights of the week. The other classes hopefully wouldn't be too boring.
My thoughts were interrupted as my mother sent me back to my room to sleep. I escaped only after two kisses on my cheek, which made me blush.
"Damn this childlike, emotional body," I cursed internally as I went up the stairs.
Up in my room, I brushed my teeth with a magical device and took a short, cold shower to wash away the stress from my conversation with my new mother.
After the shower, I was magically dry.
"What luxury."I put on pajamas folded at the side and walked barefoot from the bathroom.
Although tempted to jump straight into bed, I wanted to try something important first.
I stretched out my hand, focused on the navy pillow on the bed, and tried to lift it telekinetically.
After twenty seconds of no movement, I sat there like an idiot.
Frustrated, I tried again, imagining the pillow floating.
Still, nothing.
My last hope: emotions.
In my previous life as Arlo Flord, I had read fanfiction where characters relied on emotions when wandless magic failed.
By channeling feelings like sadness, joy, guilt, fear, anger, and love, a wizard could increase the strength of a spell.
I focused again, this time channeling the shame I felt when Aurelius' mother kissed my cheeks, visualizing the scene in the grand lounge.
Waiting for a blush…
Nothing.
"Could it be that Aurelius Shafiq also has autism?"
I scanned his memories and analyzed his behavior in intimate situations.
After a brief analysis, I concluded he did not.
Since autism relates to neurons and I was now in a different body, it made no sense that I couldn't summon shame.
Annoyed at my wandless-magic failure, I pinched my brow and ran a hand through my hair.
"Then I'll try meditation."
I sat cross-legged, closed my eyes, and practiced box breathing.
Focusing, I tried to sense a particular feeling in my body.
Ten minutes passed…
A warm, tingling sensation spread through my chest.
Slowly but surely, it flowed through my entire body.
Unconsciously, I floated ten centimeters above the ground, golden light surrounding me.
The tips of my silver hair turned gold, moving with my breathing.
The intense feeling receded into my chest.
I opened my eyes, stood up, still immersed in the sensation of magic coursing through me.
"What a surreal feeling."
Now feeling magic within me, it was finally time to apply it.
I raised my hand toward the pillow a fourth time, channeling the magic from my chest.
The pillow began to move…
Magic flowed from my shoulder down my arm to my hand, which hovered over the pillow.
Focused, I imagined the pillow rising.
Centimeter by centimeter, it lifted. Shocked, I saw it float a meter above my bed.
I moved it left and right – it worked!
A smile spread across my face, and I laughed aloud.
The pillow swooped through the room, performing tricks at my command.
After some time, sweat formed on my forehead, and maintaining the flow of magic through my hand became harder.
After thirty seconds of performing pillow acrobatics, I collapsed to the floor, exhausted from wandless magic.
Dragging myself to bed, I crawled under the cool sheets.
After a brief silence, the even breathing of five-year-old Aurelius Shafiq could be heard – he was already asleep.