the Horcrux Thief, james potter

xiii. unexpected conversations

He pulled away, sitting back on the couch as he sprawled her legs along his lap, and saw the hint of disappointment on her face before she just smiled at him, sitting up too.

"Speaking of being marvelous, I finished my homework assignment," he informed her, changing the subject.

He'd spent every free time he found during the day trying to do what Amaya told him to, find his magic and enhance it. And she was right (of course) it wasn't so hard to get a grasp on his magic, it was just tricky to bring it to the surface.

Her eyes lit up and her face split into a smile as she tucked her legs beneath her, and looked at him excitingly; and just like that, all the tension from before was gone. "Show me."

James fought the smile threatening to take over his face at her enthusiasm. He turned his body so he was facing her, and just like she had when she first showed him what to do, he grabbed her hand in his. Amaya raised an eyebrow.

"You do know there's no need to hold my hand. I'll be able to feel your magic."

James waved her off as he closed his eyes, pushing his glasses up. "Moral support, Maya," he muttered and his heart skipped in his chest when she squeezed his hand, before interlocking their fingers.

With that, he took a deep breath and calmed down, feeling the simmering feeling of magic dancing through his body, following its path until he could feel his magical core calling for him.

Like Amaya had told him he grabbed onto the feeling of his magic, not letting go, before he willed it to move, to show itself clearly to the world—just like he'd felt when the breeze of Amaya's soft and fierce magic went through him, urging his magic to float to the surface.

When he opened his eyes, Amaya was grinning, still holding onto his hand. Seemingly realizing it, she let go but the smile on her face didn't waver. "That was impressive, Potter."

"Impressive enough to move on to sobering spells?"

She rolled her eyes. "Not nearly. Especially if you're calling them spells ."

"Aren't they?"

She shook her head, twisting her lips before saying, "I never learned spells or incantations, jinxes, or hexes. The way I use magic is different from wandless magic. Yes, we don't use wands, but usually wandless magic is just using the same spells and incantations only without the tool that allows you to funnel your magic. Which, yes, requires a certain grasp of magic to make them accurate. But what I learned to do was sense magic around me, recognize it, and shape it, modify it. I don't have a sobering spell, I merely quicken the process for your body, you see. There's no real spell, it's just control. I can't explain—"

"I get it. It makes sense."

Amaya smiled before shrugging. "I can teach you that, but for now try just normal wandless magic, you might find better results. I'd gather it's more powerful in a way too."

James nodded, it made sense, after all. But then he paused, frowning her way. "So, you don't know any spell?"

Her face paled in the slightest and she gave a brisk shake of her head, looking away, and for some reason, James was sure she was lying—why he wasn't sure. "Not really. Never had a wand either."

"We'll get you one."

"What—Why?"

He grinned. "Because, Ms. Santoro, you need proper magic classes in incantations."

"And you'll be my teacher, will you, Professor Potter?"

Humming, he nodded. "I quite like that. Makes me sound fancy. Say it again."