Infinity and Magic

*Anos’s POV*

“Well? Are you going to answer or not? Anos asked, looking up from the parchment in his hand, containing the most simple questions for Potions in the first year book.

Or at least that’s what he wished for Simon to believe, since in actuality they were decent questions for a First Year student regarding the subject but then again letting Simon know that currently wouldn’t have worked.

“I’m thinking damnit!” was the reply he received from his friend, sitting across the room on a chair.

The room had a Helion candle lit in a corner shining light on every wall and floor, while a crescent moon was high in the sky reflecting sunlight back down.

“Okay here…” Anos began after a moment, ready to throw a slight hint to his friend but was caught short when Simon shook his head.

“I know this, let me think.” He replied, scrunching his eyebrows and making the scar on the right one all the more prominent.

His hands fiddled around with his necklace as he thought the question over and Anos tried to wait patiently for him to answer.

To him the answer to the question would’ve been instantaneous but then again his Dad had taught him Potions alongside teaching him how to read and write so, and after that he himself had been interested in the subject and had started working his way to theories and recipes that people a decade older than him would have trouble with.

Hence, to Anos the answer of why you never mixed powdered leaves from Banewood into a cauldron that has used Horned Honey of any kind was easy enough, but Simon who while being proficient in knowledge of edible herbs and some healing salves wasn’t entirely too bright in the subject of Potions struggled with it even after half a dozen minutes had passed.

“It’s something related to the thickness of the honey isn’t it?” Simon said with a defeated sigh and Anos answered with a kind but tired smile.

“You were almost there, yes it’s related to the thickness of the honey.” He explained but stopped, waiting for Simon to speak first.

“How?” he asked and then nodding, Anos began to explain.

“Horned Honey is never used in Draughts, and for other smaller amounts of Potions in which it is used it has a tendency to stick to the Cauldron no matter the amount of water used. It’s okay to use that cauldron after a thorough wash for almost all Potions but some ingredients like Banewood powder that they stick to the honey and then it all clumps together and sours almost any Potion you do make in the future with the Cauldron.” He finished and Simon thought the words over.

“So they are both fine being separate but not together due to the thickness of the honey?” he asked after consideration.

“Well yes that’s the gist of it, they can work together for some Potions but as a general rule of thumb they aren’t.” Anos replied carefully and Simon nodded in understanding.

“See, it wasn't that hard.” He continued, trying to reassure Simon who yawned.

“ ‘Not hard’ my foot, Potions will kill me.” Simon answered, despairing as Anos walked over and patted him on the back.

“You’ll be just fine.” He said, pushing a chair to sit next to him and staring through the roof at the moon, alone in the sky today, without any stars to accompany it. But then again it was early into the Night, barely 9 PM so maybe he just couldn’t see them.

“ It’s not even April yet, why are you so worried about exams?” Anos asked after a while, Simon for the most part was carefree about many things, even taking his ineptitude at flying on a broom with a smile and a joke while most others took to it much better than he did.

But he was also weirdly fixated on many things, good marks being one of them. Especially in some of the more….theoretical subjects, even though it was clear to almost everyone by now that he was much better at subjects like Defense Against the Dark Arts and History.

In fact Anos would go as far as to say that Simon excelled in those subjects compared to almost every other student.

For a moment Anos had considered if asking about it had been too blunt as Simon remained strangely quiet. But then to his relief Simon spoke wistfully.

“I haven’t talked to my Dad in a while.” he replied as if that explained everything.

Anos was put off but decided to persist anyway.

“Are the owls not getting messages back or something?” Anos asked, standing up.

“No it’s not that, we just haven’t written to each other.” Simon replied as Anos was already halfway across the room, walking to his bedside.

“Here, catch.” He said throwing an object towards Simon who caught it easily.

“Just call him, idiot.” Anos said, walking back and sitting down on the chair next to Simon.

Simon just stared at the phone in his hands, flipping it sideways with nimble fingers.

“Wait, does he not have a phone? Ah sorry.” Anos said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

‘Well atleast, there was a chance of it working.’ he thought disappointed.

Simon just remained silent, having stopped flipping the phone and was now just staring at his face on the closed screen.

“Well we still can send a Messenger for it, it’ll be a bit expensive with those idiots and their winged shoes but I use them to talk to the Yeti I mentioned, remember that? Yeah they can get messages over to your dad really quick.” Anos said, already planning to write a letter to his Uncle Lucius, which would guarantee good service and privacy as well.

“He told me not to write to him.” Simon said in a whisper.

“What?” Anos asked, thinking he had heard it wrong.

“My dad asked me to not write to him, before he sent me here.” Simon answered with a level voice.

“Oh.” was all Anos had to say in answer to that, he didn’t want to pry anymore, it didn’t feel like his place to ask.

He did know there were less Belmonts nowadays than there ever were before, but Trevor Belmont was highly famous even if secretive and the Belmont family had always had few individuals, they weren’t in the habit of making branch families and even when they did those families would always die in some sort of massacre by Monsters like BloodWraiths, Bonejaws or some other.

Such things were relics of long ago, during the late medieval times but the Belmont family seemed to have become stubborn with their insistence of remaining low in numbers not that anyone in their right mind had tried to question them about it, and if they had then they hadn’t remained alive to write it down.

“Ah well fuck it, you’ll pass those exams with flying colors, I’ll make sure of it. You’re thickheaded enough to continue to try and that’s all that matters to me.” Anos said awkwardly, hoping that the words didn’t sound as awkward as he felt.

Simon wrapped an arm around Anos’s shoulder in reply and for a moment they both pretended everything was alright.

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