Requiem for an Unpublished Novel

'Black' Wizard

The 'old wizard' visited her foster parents' house twice before the start of 'the school' year: first alone, then with her future 'head'. 'He looked at me as though I were some fairy creature whose presence he did not believe in, about the existence of which he regretted.' This was the next person of his own, that is, the 'mentor'. The 'headmaster' said that 'I shouldn't be afraid of him - he is strict, not evil - the first impression could be deceptive. It wasn't deceptive. He wasn't evil, just extremely sad. Intuition could read it in his eyes. ... When I shared my opinion with two visitors, the head was bewildered but touched, and warmed a bit towards me.' (Chapter 1 Two wizards). Unlike the 'old sorcerer' he did not immediately understand the reason for the child's insight. He learned it when the girl told him about it herself ("But I heard them! ... with some inner hearing."), and when he realised how strong she was in this area, he was horrified: 'I wasn't going to give up, I wanted to understand. "The dark depths... this pain, it had a form. The form of two people: a dead woman and a man embracing her... Who was this woman?" He couldn't hide his shock. "Who killed her?" He turned away abruptly and clenched his fists. "Did you use this reminiscence to arouse your enmity for that person, and then route it to me so that I would think that you wanted to kill me?" ' (Chapter 5 Empathy).

His discipline '... intrigued me, and I tried very hard not to disappoint him, but I always lacked attentiveness. Starting with constantly neglecting some ingredient or the time when it should be put, ending with confusing volume with weight. In fact, I was tempted to do everything by sight, by smell, by ear, and the professor kept remarking at me that we were not cooking soup here. The outcome wasn't that bad.' (Chapter 4 First year). The girl had also managed to intrigue him, of course, not by the above. But by the fact that on the third morning after receiving the books (on Sunday) she sat in his office and talked about her research on the subject of the wand, and about an attempt (as it turned out, successful) to directly use magic to find out its components, additionally demonstrating awareness of her mother's origins and the destiny of her family. ' "You have done a huge job, and in such a short time. In spite of this, you have a lot more to do. I can't say that you have everything you need." He explored my face broodingly. "The headmaster encourages your aspiration..." He pondered a little more, looking aside, and then unexpectedly stood up. "Follow me. I'll show you one chamber, you can train there and stay inconspicuous." ' (Chapter 3 Wand). Perhaps this was one of the few decisions he made about her before discussing it with the 'headmaster'. For her, this 'room' later became a real refuge: 'Whenever I needed to meditate on something that others shouldn't know about, I would go to the chamber on the eighth floor. There was always everything you needed, and never anyone you didn't have necessity in.' (Chapter 6 Heir). Much was made possible by this decision, including her meeting with the 'army': "How did you get here?" "Just like you... It's a strange question. Is there any other way to get here?" "Yes, but... How did you find out about this room?" "It was shown to me." ... "What for?" "Here we go again. We are in the same environment, which implies that our needs are the same." (Chapter 17 Unicorn).

He also did not understand that he was the 'friend' who ultimately convinced her of the house, and also only found out about it when she told him that. More precisely, she showed it, much later, when their extracurricular activities began. When she couldn't imagine anything she wanted to hide from him ('ignoring the leak'), and followed the question: ' "And if you were in front of your father, what would you want to hide from him?" After a few seconds my face displayed a fright. "Great." At the same moment our eyes met: mine - trustingly open, his - as sharp as the tip of a needle. I physically felt as though this thinnest needle entered me through the pupil, passed through the brain, and aspired to the heart. Scenes began to flash in my head. Black eyes hiding pain behind emptiness. 'You said you chose this house because of a friend, who is it?' 'Were you ready to die?!' An empty auditorium with a couple dozen steaming cauldrons; we are passing each one; he's eliminating the contents and telling me about the intricacies of nonverbal magic; I'm conjuring water in them and checking for cleanliness (...). A white hand with a dreadful black mark on the forearm. A wax figure on the stadium stand, meeting with the resurrected past. 'Are you sick? You have a fever and blood on the shirt...' A quiet laugh, dissolving in the semi-darkness...' (Chapter 14 Head). She knew his past as well as his present, and the question was not at all hypothetical. At that moment, she realised what role this man played in her life, and if this situation became a reality, what danger he would be exposed to. At that time, there was no one so vulnerable.