Time Skip from November 18th, 1990 to August 31st, 1991

Around ten months have passed since the first meeting of Professor McGonagall and Marcus. During this time, Marcus decided to focus on the theoretical aspects of magic (he didn't want to break the professor's trust; after all, he would be living in a castle with her for the next six to seven years). He also tried to perform wandless magic (after all, he had seen it done in many fanfictions, so he thought he should try it as well).

Unfortunately for Marcus, while his studies of magical theory went well (he discovered he was interested in charmwork and its intricacies primarily), his attempts at wandless magic only managed to fill him with that same rushing warmth again. He was unable to produce even a Lumos, although he swore he saw a spark in his palm once.

He also finished primary school with stellar grades, and while his professors in primary school tried to get him enrolled in the local prestigious secondary school, he informed them that he had a prior arrangement, which disappointed the professors, but ultimately they understood and wished him well.

McGonagall also kept her word. She visited Marcus every few weeks to check in on him and make sure that he wasn't doing practical magic just yet. She heavily approved of his studying, however.

One such encounter went like this:

"Good morning, Professor. How have you been since we last spoke?" said Marcus.

"I have been well, Mr. Castle. I see you have progressed very well in your study of theory, based on the copious notes you appear to have taken. I hope you haven't practiced anything practical just yet?" replied McGonagall.

"No, Professor, I have not. I do like charms so far, though; it just seems so fascinating to me."

"Hmm. Keep up the studying for now, Mr. Castle. I can see you have a sharp mind so far, and I expect high performance from you in my classes."

"Professor, before you depart, I have a question about transfiguration."

"Oh? What is it, Marcus?"

"Well, while reading Switch's book on transfiguration and looking at his explanation on object-to-object transfiguration, I noticed something peculiar to me that I wanted clarification on. Switch states that transfiguration is about imagination and willpower; however, does transfiguration also respond to the emotional state of the caster at the time of the cast?"

McGonagall, smiling, inquired further about what Marcus meant,

"What specifically do you mean, Marcus?"

"Well, imagine you are trying to change a matchstick into a needle. One time you cast, and you are feeling happy. Another time you are feeling sad. Would there be any effect on the result? Switch does not give much clarification on this."

McGonagall clarified, "In my experience and from what I have seen from over two decades of teaching young witches and wizards, the emotional state of the caster can have slight variations on the end product. To use your examples of happiness and sadness, the needle produced with the first emotion would be slightly more springy, reflecting the happy mood of the caster. The needle produced with sadness would be slightly more brittle and prone to damage. For this reason, it is recommended to cast with a clear and calm mind to produce the results that you require with no unexpected variations. This will be covered more thoroughly in your later years at Hogwarts, but for now, that is the basic explanation. Does this suffice?"

Marcus, nodding, added this addendum to his notes.

"Thank you, Professor. I appreciate the answer," he replied, smiling.

This was the trend for visits the professor would have with Marcus.

Also, Marcus started to do physical training. Nothing much, of course, since his body was physically eleven, but he did cardio and played soccer (football) with the other children at the orphanage. He was still getting used to British expressions.

Other than that, over this period of time, Marcus also processed his emotions of grief and loss and found solace in the fact that he had a new chance, a chance to help characters, now real people to him, and to use real, honest-to-Merlin, Magic.

Marcus also practiced meditation to try and clear his thoughts and 'clear the mind' like Snape had told Harry in book five. He had no clue how successful he was at this, as he had no legillimens to check his mind.

His biggest worry was the Sorting Hat and what it would read about him. Would it be able to detect that he was a reincarnate? He was scared, but he knew destiny was approaching, and he would persevere and face it. Also, he worried, would Dumbledore be evil like in some fanfictions? Would Snape read his thoughts? He calmed himself.

"Keep calm and carry on, indeed," thought Marcus.

Finally, the evening of August 31st arrived, and Marcus was looking at the train ticket. He had informed the orphanage staff that he was to be dropped off at King's Cross around 10 am the morning of September 1st at the station to meet with a representative from Hogwarts School to be transported to the school.

Marcus, after making sure everything he needed was packed, fell into a deep sleep.

He dreamed of magic, dark lords, and a chance to grow, and above all, adventure.