❝ MERLIN'S GHOST! ❞
❝ I MEAN, YOU'RE NOT WRONG. ❞
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Albany Bronwen was no Chosen One by any means, but being haunted by the ghosts of the greatest sorcerer of all time and a former king had to count for something, right?
❃ in which a lone...
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"I CAN'T DO THIS."
Albany stepped back, slouching against the wall of the classroom with a heavy sigh. She felt exhausted, physically and mentally. She hadn't expected learning old magic to he easy, but Merlin's (lack of a) beard, was it draining. She'd spent the best of the last two days holed up in a spare classroom she'd found not far from the common room, and had been using various transfigured objects to practice reversing spells. She hadn't been completely unsuccessful; just today, she'd managed to turn a quill back into a sheet of paper for the first time without any damage to the paper. Her current challenge was larger and more difficult — turning a cauldron back into a mouse — and she hadn't had any luck with it. It had been tricky enough transfiguring the mouse with her normal magic, nevermind changing it back wandlessly and wordlessly.
"It's alright," Merlin assured her, unfolding his arms as he approached her with a light smile. "You've made good progress today. I never expected you to get it straight away."
"The Yule Ball is tomorrow," Albany lamented, letting her shoulders slouch hopelessly. "I can't even change the mouse back, how am I supposed to reverse this big huge spell that George is under?" She made a dramatic gesture with her arms before letting them drop with a sigh.
Merlin raised an eyebrow. "You don't necessarily need to fix it before then," he informed her. "I don't think George is being harmed by the spell. Even though you do need to lift it, don't stress yourself with an impossible time limit."
Albany frowned, dropping her gaze. "I know, it's just..." she trailed off, shaking her head. "Nevermind. I guess you're right, I'll never have this down by tomorrow."
"Don't beat yourself up over it," Merlin said with a gentle smile. "You're doing well so far. Keep practicing, and you'll get it in no time."
"How'd you learn all this stuff?" Albany asked him, slightly frustrated at how long it was taking her.
Merlin shrugged. "It came as naturally to me as modern magic came to you," he explained. "I was born with it. And so were you, but given the few centuries that have passed since, it's going to be a little more difficult to tap into for you."
"A little more difficult," Albany scoffed, rolling her eyes. Merlin smiled in amusement at her, and she sighed, unable to stay mad forever. "This poor mouse is going to be stuck as a cauldron for a while. I hope his family didn't want to celebrate Christmas with him — oh, Merlin's hairy armpit, it's Christmas Eve!"
Her eyes widened with the sudden realisation, while Merlin's narrowed, not entirely impressed with the remark.
"My armpits are not that hairy—"
"I haven't bought presents!" Albany cried, and stared at Merlin helplessly. "I haven't bought a dress — the ball is tomorrow, what am I doing?!"
