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Chapter 6: Notes, Myself and I
DONG … … DONG … … DONG
"Midnight? Already?" moaned Hermione after counting the final chimes from the Hogwarts clock tower. She yawned, stretching her arms up into the air and stood. The resident bookworm of Gryffindor may have been doing what she loved, but even she had her limits to sitting in one place for too long.
Hermione maneuvered around the table she claimed as her own. On it were various books and old scrolls she had spent the better part of the last two days tracking down and reading thoroughly. On a small nightstand purposely set off to the side, courtesy of Dobby and to offer incentive to get up and move, she poured herself a hot cup of tea to help revitalize her tired mind. It always amazed her how a little sip of warm liquid could do her wonders.
While by no means an alternative to sleep, tea and Hermione were inseparable when it came to long study sessions. She leaned comfortably against a nearby bookshelf, smiling softly at the good old days when all that mattered was getting from page one to five-hundred and forty seven before the night was out and memorizing everything in between.
She sighed softly and allowed the whimsical smile to harden, forming her lips into a thin line. The good old days were gone now and far more important matters were in front of her. Hermione glanced to her side, looking over the various collected materials sitting on her desk.
'So much to consider,' she thought to herself.
Coetus.
In Latin it meant 'to join' but there were other terms like 'linking' or the more popular and perhaps more literal: merging. No matter what you called it, Hermione found it to be a dangerous sort of business. While it had a fairy tale essence about it, what with connecting to another in ways far more intimate than usual, there was nothing enchanting about the reality.
From what she had gathered, courtesy of her own research and talking to Mai and Luna, Coetus was an archaic form of magic. It predated the spell theory and application of Legilimency, along with its counter, Occlumency. Hermione wasn't surprised the two forms had been the progression of something much older, by rights that was the natural way of the world. What had surprised her was how difficult and risky it actually was.
The original idea dated back to the time of the first Pharaohs in Egypt, who believed temporarily connecting aspects of a living being to another would allow both to have godly experiences. These moments of ascension would then offer glimpses to the 'truth behind truths' of the world they lived in. While it sounded wonderful the Egyptians would come to discover, along with various other mega-cultures of the Old World, magic could be very unforgiving.
Hermione finished her tea, placing the cup on the nightstand and went back over to her seat. After getting comfortable, she reviewed her notes again, which had already been condensed over several iterations.
Summary:
Coetus as it is known today can be divided into three sects: Mind, Magic and Soul. The whole idea behind the process is to temporarily connect one of the three centers of two separate beings. The resulting connection and the abilities it brings are the basis for the categorization.
Background:
Coetus has evolved from the countless attempts by Wizarding civilizations over the past 5000 years, at the least. It is believed to have originated from Egypt and is considered to be one of the first attempts to use the structured form of magic (staffs/wands with incantations etc.). Passages from the Archival of Magical Progression Registry (Section 729; Para 4; Line 26) notes that Coetus was 'officially' transcended by the forms Legilimency and Occlumency in 1206. Since then, the use of this magic has become a sort of taboo among most cultures and was forbidden shortly thereafter. The British Wizarding Community, along with the Americans, Russians and several minorities were the only ones who openly practiced it until the early 1400s. By then, all above mentioned cultures outlawed it, with the British holding out until 1414 when they too declared it forbidden.
She paused, huffing in annoyance. The outlawing of any type of magic automatically put it in the 'forbidden' section of the Library. It had taken far too much time in her opinion to locate books on the subject, even though most of the time wasted was in her running to the dorms to grab Harry's cloak.
Hermione scanned the rest of her background information and looked over the Casting section as well. Mai mentioned she knew of a way around the 'it takes years to learn' bit so Hermione only filled out her template for the sake of being thorough.
She moved down her parchment several more feet to an area she was currently working on, specifically application and dangers. These sections were the most important and she wanted to know for sure what it was they'd be risking.
In short, by linking, they could share anything and everything. Thoughts, memories and emotions: all of it could be shared with the other and experienced the same. Even without doing the research she was, Hermione knew this was a very powerful magic. The implications were staggering and the possibilities of what this magic could have done for wizards and witches made her wonder why they shelved it during the last few centuries.
Knowledge, teachings, emotions, all could be conveyed within a very short amount of time. Theory of Transfiguration and the runic equations to support it? Minutes to share, as opposed to the weeks they spent on it in class. Understanding and using this information might take a bit longer but still! To pass along knowledge instead of having to learning it like they were now meant the ones who learned could then spend more time on discovering new things.
She had sat and stared at the wall with a hungry gaze in her eyes on more than one occasion. To learn all of a year's worth of magical study in just a few days...
Hermione shivered, 'That would be amazing.'
Shaking her head free of the desire, she continued jotting down some notes, making cross-references and gathering all she could. After another hour or so she set down her quill and breathed a sigh of relief. "Done," she mumbled, cracking her neck before standing up once more.
She was dead tired, but it was worth it. A lot of what she found was recommended and pointed out to her by either Mai or Luna and they both encouraged her to verify their explanations. The findings weren't exactly uplifting, but it was certainly better than utter 'doom and gloom' she was used to.
'It is dangerous, that's for sure. Luna and Mai swear by the safeguards they know so if I can show Harry what it's like…'
Hermione sighed, swaying slightly as she reveled in the memory of the short merge with Mai.
The spirit offered to show her what knowledge 'felt like.' Mai's explanation centered on the fact she wasn't human thus magic and knowledge were experienced in entirely different ways then what Hermione knew. She had been skeptical at first, however five seconds later after the connection was cut, her eyes were wide open with her mouth in the shape of a little 'o'.
Glorious! That was her only way to describe it.
She didn't understand what Mai was 'saying' to her but she could feel it. If that was what it felt like with Mai, then what would it feel like sharing her knowledge with Harry?
Hermione pinked at the thought but it reminded her of one of the dangers she had encountered in her readings. There were 'unconfirmed' issues stating Coetus could alter the personalities of those who connected together. She hadn't written it down since only two or three reports mentioned it off hand but still, that was something to think about and it would be brought up in her discussion with Harry.
Hermione sighed, crossing her arms and frowned. There was so much to consider and so many ways for things to go wrong. She was surprised at how often this magic was used in the past and how little it was talked about today.
'Why are these reports so well documented? I haven't heard anything about studies on any type of magic since I've started Hogwarts and yet these records suggest at one time, researching and experimenting was a common occurrence. What changed?'
"Hermione?"
A stroke of luck prevented Banshee-Hermione from making an appearance although her heart did skip a few beats. She looked in the direction of the sound, "Merlin, Mai. You could kill someone out of fright with the way you pop up on people."
She smiled weakly, "Sorry about that. I wanted to check in on you and ask for some help. Harry could use it right about now."
Hermione tensed. "Are they finished, is he okay?" she asked and quickly cleaned up.
Mai shrugged, "More or less. He could use a wake up call is what things currently amount to."
Hermione shook her head with a sigh and checked over her parchment one more time before rolling it up, "Ready."
"Find everything you wanted to look up?"
Hermione yawned, "I believe so. There are a few things I haven't found and wanted to ask more about, otherwise I have what I want to start." She slung her backpack over her shoulder and followed Mai towards the back of the library.
"What else did you want to know?"
Hermione looked thoughtful, "You mentioned something about how Harry and I are compatible but I didn't find anything regarding that."
Mai ducked underneath the 'restricted' sign and Hermione hesitated only a moment before following.
"Ah, that. Have you ever noticed how well you two complement the other? How you seem to know what he's thinking or feeling and how he is able to tell when you're upset even though you hide it?"
Hermione bit her lip. This was crossing into uncomfortable territory and she wasn't prepared to face it just yet. "Uh, yes I suppose we do that. What does it mean?"
Mai hid a smirk, "It means you're both receptive to one another. It takes more to perceive and react to someone's temperament than to simply account for your own. Magic is very reactive to this and although you can't see it, your auras intertwine beautifully." Mai struggled to control her giggles as Hermione's face glowed, "The more receptive you are, the easier it is to perform certain magics, like Coetus. Believe it or not, that fact alone can mean the difference between success and failure."
"Oh," was the soft reply and they remained silent until Mai stopped them in front of a door near the rear of the restricted section. "Where does this go?"
Mai smiled, "This will take us to Harry," and she knocked three times before opening it.
Hermione stepped inside to find a large empty room in the shape of a hexagon. The floor was recessed, with several steps leading up the walls on all sides. A golden chandelier hung above her head and Mai followed in from behind and closed the door. The Gryffindor scanned the room and nearly shrieked when she saw Harry unmoving by the far wall.
"Harry!"
She ran to him as Mai followed casually behind. Hermione got down and checked him over and by the time Mai reached them, she was satisfied that he didn't appear hurt.
"I thought you said he just needed a wake up call? He's out cold!"
"It is a wake up call, just not in the traditional sense. I was going to tell him about the Oath and everything when he woke up but I never got the chance..."
Hermione grit her teeth. When Mai was able to come around, she quickly brought Luna to the library so her story only had to be told once. To say the Gryffindor was angry at not being able to go to him right away was an understatement but by that time, Harry and the castle were already 'conversing.'
Hermione fawned over him a little more before huffing, "What do I do, how can I help him?"
Mai smiled, "You already are."
XX
White.
The world was white, whiter than any white Harry had ever seen before. There was also nothing in this world but himself. No rooms, no tables, not a hint of darkness and perhaps the most interesting: no clothes.
He was naked as the day he was born and wandering about in an empty white void.
"Where am I now?" he grumbled as it must have been hours since he woke up here. He didn't struggle to 'come to' or anything like it; just opened his eyes and here he was, standing in this place. He didn't even have any trouble remembering what had happened either: Room of Requirement, Hogwarts, Heartbeat, Pain, Black then White and here he was.
He stopped walking, "Really, where should I go when there's nothing here?"
"You could just ask, you know."
Startled, Harry whirled around to come face to face with… himself?
Who was also, he noted, completely starkers.
"Uhh…"
"Yup," replied the twin.
"Who are you?"
"I'm you, of course, and you're me."
"I'm you?"
"Yes."
"And you're me?"
"That's right."
"Uhh…"
His clone laughed, "I say, 'Yup' and you say?"
"What the hell?"
"The hell indeed," chuckled his clone. "We really have trouble with taking things slow, don't we?"
Harry felt another headache coming on, "Right. So, where am I or we, so you say?"
"We are inside us. I wasn't ready nor allowed to connect with the castle but you decided otherwise and here we are."
Harry blinked several times, "You weren't allowed? I thought it was 'we'?"
"It is 'we' and yes, I wasn't allowed. You were, but not me."
If this was what talking to a twin was like, Harry had newfound respect for Fred and George. He rubbed his temples, "Okay, new approach. What are you?"
"Ah," he replied with a smile, "now we're getting somewhere. I am you, as we've discussed but as for what part of us I am, that is far easier to understand: I am our magic."
"You're my magic?"
"No, I'm our magic. As you can see, we are one and the same even though we are different, although only different enough to be considered so. At least, that's how you perceive me. It doesn't have to be this way, but there is some work to do before we can get to that."
Harry honestly didn't know what to say.
"It's okay, take our time. We have plenty of it for now."
A tick mark formed and Harry silently counted to ten. "You said you weren't able to connect to the castle. I can follow that. Can you tell me why?"
Magic-Harry nodded, "Two reasons although one is more responsible than the other. You're not aware of this yet but there's a binding in place which is limiting our interactions with Hogwarts. Snape put it there but don't get too frustrated. There was no way you could have known about it. Mai almost had an opportunity to say something on the matter but then our old friend intervened."
"Marvelous."
"Oh stop being a prat. If you weren't so angry lately, he probably wouldn't have wormed his way in."
Harry shivered in disgust, "I didn't need the visual. I thought you were me?"
"I am, but I wasn't angry. I can't get angry; you on the other hand can be, were and still are."
Harry exhaled loudly.
"There's also a semi-excuse for that, which is our second reason as to why the castle couldn't open herself up to us entirely. Merlin knows she tried though."
"Oh?" he replied curtly, "What might that be?"
Magic-Harry pointed behind him. As Harry turned around he recoiled at what he saw.
On the ground just a few steps away was a mass of horribly disfigured flesh. Bones jutted out and skin was broken in several places yet there was no blood. Bile danced in the back of Harry's throat; the sight of missing skin and exposed tissue was almost too much.
"What. Is that?"
Magic-Harry frowned, "What it is now, I do not know. Who it was is the being we refer to as Voldemort. What part of him this is, or was, also lies beyond my understanding."
Something clicked in Harry's mind, "Is this the connection we have with him?"
His clone nodded, "It was, yes. As I said, I don't know what it is anymore. One of the outcomes of butting heads with a being as old as Hogwarts lies in front of us: anything not supposed to be here gets mashed up in the crossfire."
Harry studied it briefly before turning back to his clone, "What do we do with it?"
He shrugged, "I honestly don't know. I'm not sure how it got here nor do I know how to get rid of it. For the time being though, I don't see it causing any more trouble so we might as well leave it be. I get the feeling Dumbledore will be able to say something on the matter."
Harry frowned, "How could he know about this?"
Magic-Harry shrugged again, "Beats me; I can only tell you what I feel."
The white void they both stood in flashed and grew bright.
"What's happening? What's going on?"
Magic-Harry ignored him however and closed his eyes in bliss, "She's here…"
Harry watched frantically as his counterpart began to fade.
"She's worried," he said absentmindedly. "You should go back now, Harry. She's worried. And tired."
The world grew brighter until white was all he knew.
XX
"Can you explain it one more time?"
There was a pause and somebody yawned.
"The long and short of it is I'm not human. Never was actually, so I'm limited in the ways I can help Harry or you for that matter. Magic isn't as universal as some people think. A true ghost, such as Sir Nicholas, has memories of his past life and knows what it means to have been alive."
There was another pause but this one felt heavier.
"I have no such comparison and until recently, I had no concept of physical pain either. What knowledge and magic are to me are two completely different things to you. At this point, you can appreciate what that means almost as well as Luna."
Silence again. 'What are they talking about?'
Harry had come to but decided to stay still. His head was resting on something soft and he felt warm so instead of disrupting such a nice feeling, he tried to figure out what it was while listening to the conversation.
"Recently you said, are you okay?"
'That's Hermione.'
"Yes, I am now. A little rest works wonders."
'And Mai.'
Harry decided now would be the best time to intervene; he still wasn't sure where his head was though. "Indeed it does and I'm inclined to stay here and rest a bit more. What time is it anyway?"
"Harry!" both girls cried and the warmth around him increased while brown drowned out his now open eyes.
"Hermione?" he mumbled through her hair and good thing too. Unknowingly, he set her cheeks ablaze and Mai was snickering. She pulled away from him, looking down and Harry realized he was lying in her lap or at least his head was. He frowned slightly when he noticed the tears at the corners of her eyes. "No need to cry, right?
She smiled warmly, "These aren't tears of sadness you berk. I'm just tired and happy."
Mai watched the two interact and despite the cuteness of the moment a part of her felt hollow. 'How could these two find anyone else but themselves? Why would Luna not try to nudge them together? I think it's something I'd do so something she'd probably do too.' After watching their auras dance with each other, she didn't want to disrupt them, "It's after midnight, Harry. Probably close to 1 o'clock."
The two teens snapped out of their daze and looked to Mai. Both of them, she noted with satisfaction, were blushing. 'I am so totally going to nudge.'
Harry sat up and stretched while Hermione looked him over, "Mia told us about what happened. Are you okay?"
He stood up, "Yeah. I have Mai to thank for coming out of it unscathed and she made dealing with it a whole lot easier."
Harry and Hermione sent a smile her way and it was her turn to flush slightly, "You did the majority of the work, Harry."
He waved her off, "Even so, you helped and I feel a lot better because of it. Why are you still up though? Little late to just be studying for exams, isn't it?"
Hermione looked horrified, "Oh no! I completely forgot about them! I haven't studied at all!"
Harry gawked at her, "What have you been doing then?"
She flushed, "I was, um, looking for ways to help you. Luna and Mai taught me about Coetus and it's something I think we should look into. You know me, something new to study and off I go."
His smile quickly became a yawn.
"Oh, well, sorry to bother you then."
He laughed as she poked him in jest, "No, no I'm still tired. Could we save this for later today?"
The two others looked to each other briefly and nodded in agreement. Silently, they all started walking towards the exit of the empty room. Harry grabbed the door handle just as a voice tickled his ear.
'Call upon me when times are dire.'
Without a moment's hesitation he answered with a smile, 'Such is our way.'
XX