Chapter 25: The Great Magic Formation Project (Part 2)
"The first step to engraving a magic formation is to take a deep breath..." Lyra muttered, taking a deep breath herself. She slowly picked up the quill.
The tip of the quill dipped lightly into the red ink, which was made from Veela blood.
"Is that blood?" Luna asked curiously. "Can I taste it?"
"It's Veela blood... wait!" Lyra quickly grabbed Luna's outstretched hand. "You... you can't eat this."
"Why not?" Luna tilted her head. "I'd quite like to know what Lyra tastes like."
Don't just say strange things like that! And I never said it was my blood!
Lyra's face flushed red. She snatched the inkwell and pulled it close to her chest. "Anyway... you... you can't eat it."
"Oh, alright." Luna shook her head, looking a little dazed. But for some reason, she smacked her lips lightly... as if she had already tasted it.
"Phew..."
After taking a few deep breaths to steady her emotions, Lyra slowly raised the quill.
Drawing the magic formation was the first step, just like a rough draft for a painting. It marked the positions for the engraving that would follow.
Lyra held the quill lightly, its faintly red tip deftly sketching a perfect arc on the book's cover.
Just as Lyra remembered, a magic formation was composed of Ancient Runes and spells. Lyra first drew the 'Energy Storage' rune in the center of the cover. This was the heart of the Energy Storage Formation and would be the power source for all the subsequent formations.
Then, Lyra dipped the quill in the ink again and began to write around the rune. She wrote out the original incantations for various spells, the Latin-like letters arranging themselves around the Ancient Rune, connecting seamlessly head-to-tail to form a circle.
Her practice over the last few days really paid off... Lyra felt that her movements in drawing the formation were not rusty at all, just like fifty years ago.
The Energy Storage Formation was the simplest and easiest one to draw.
Lyra pressed her lips together and slowly opened another ink bottle. This one contained a black, matte pigment.
"Is that..." Luna muttered curiously.
"This... you can't eat this one either..." Lyra said instinctively.
"I wasn't going to," Luna's lips curled slightly. "I just recognized what it is."
"It's Ashwood sap, isn't it?"
"Y... Yes." Lyra gave Luna a surprised look. She actually recognized Ashwood sap... Could it be... she's drunk it before?
It was said that wizards chosen by Ash wands were not easily swayed by others. Lyra, who didn't know much about wands, just treated this as a rumor. But Ashwood sap could indeed be used to insulate different magic formations from one another.
She used the black pigment to outline the edges of the Energy Storage Formation, preventing subsequent formations from overlapping with it.
This process was much faster than drawing the formation itself, finished in just a few minutes.
She compared it to the diagram she had copied from Newt's case and nodded lightly. No problems. With the Energy Storage Formation as the core, the combination formation now had its anchor.
Next up was the engraving...
Lyra raised her wand and gave it a light flick. The magic book in front of her floated into the air, along with a small, exquisite knife.
Under her magical control, the knife drew close to the book's cover. With every movement of her wand, it began to carve along the lines of the formation.
Lyra wasn't just skilled at casting spells; she also had extremely fine control over her magic. As a student, she had once earned the praise of a Durmstrang professor for her ability to carve carrot-flowers with her wand.
This had earned her a pastime during detention, rather than being locked in a dark cell, unable to move, like the others.
"..." Luna's wide eyes were fixed on the knife as it floated, elegantly shaving off fine slivers from the cover.
"Phew..."
As the knife made its final pass, the engraving of the Energy Storage Formation was complete.
Lyra let out a soft breath and ran her hand over the cover.
"You're amazing, Lyra..." Luna's voice came. At some point, she had come to lean on the table right next to Lyra, one hand lightly twirling a strand of her hair.
"Ah!" Lyra yelped, jolting backward so violently that she and her chair almost toppled over. Luna, reacting quickly, grabbed the armrest and steadied her.
"S... Sorry!" Lyra quickly apologized for her jumpiness. "I was just... a little too focused..."
"I should be the one apologizing," Luna said, straightening the chair. "But it's rare to see you so focused, Lyra."
"And it makes you seem especially... interesting."
"Interesting...?" Lyra really felt that wasn't a word used to describe people... It was more for... some kind of animal...
Wait, does Luna actually think I'm a magical creature? Thinking about it, the way she was just twirling my hair... wasn't that different from petting an animal...
No... I have to prove I'm a person...
Lyra pressed her lips together and opened her mouth slightly. "Th... Theia... come..."
"Hoo?" At her command, the owl perched on the ceiling lamp tilted its head, then flapped its wings and glided down.
"Ngh." Lyra, her hand trembling as she held out her arm for the owl, lifted her chin slightly. See? I tamed an owl. No other animal can do that, only humans!
But when she met Luna's smiling eyes, Lyra immediately felt awkward...
Showing off about an owl... to a little girl fifty-seven years younger than me... Isn't that just pathetic?
"Ah... Miss Lovegood, this is my owl..." Lyra said, "I just wanted to introduce you..."
"In case I ever write you a letter..." Her voice trailed off. She didn't think she'd ever have the courage to write to anyone. Just worrying about whether the letter had arrived would be enough to keep her up half the night.
"I understand, Lyra," Luna nodded. "I won't eat her."
"And I won't pluck her feathers to make a quill."
"You..." Lyra's mouth twitched. She instinctively hid the arm with the owl behind her back.
"Let's... let's just... keep drawing the formation..." she stammered, stiffly sitting back down and picking up the quill.
Miss Lovegood was joking just now, right?
After all, if you eat owls, you probably can't receive your school acceptance letter, right?
After comforting herself, Lyra picked up the quill and began to draw again.
Crafting a magic formation item was a long process. This was especially true since Lyra was attempting to combine multiple formations, something she had rarely tried before.
Because of this, it took even longer. She hadn't finished by the time night fell on the first day. It was only when Mr. Lovegood arrived that the two of them ended their work for the day.
Watching Luna leave, Lyra felt a little worried that she'd be too bored to come back the next day. But to her great surprise, she had only been awake for a few minutes the next morning when Luna knocked on her door.
And so, after this continued for about three or four days, the creation of Lyra's magical storage book finally reached its conclusion.