Hogwarts Loan Magic System!!!! Chapter 12: Can I Experiment with Scabbers? The Trio’s Shock

"It's because my wand's not in good shape—that's why the spell failed!"

"Oh, is it, Mr. Weasley? Then maybe you should take it back to Ollivanders for a refund," Hermione teased.

Ron's face and ears turned as red as his hair under Hermione's sarcasm.

He'd just tried to show off so magic, claiming he could turn his pet rat, Scabbers, yellow.

Of course, it didn't work. His older brother Fred had taught him that spell as a prank.

Scabbers, a scruffy, balding rat missing a toe, was currently burying his head in a snack wrapper, munching away happily.

He didn't notice soone eyeing him with keen interest.

Lucien, his erald-green eyes narrowed, studied the mangy rat.

This rat was no ordinary rodent—it was Peter Pettigrew, an Animagus.

He'd been hiding with the Weasleys for over a decade, even serving as Percy's pet rat before Ron.

Tch, tch. Didn't the Weasleys ever wonder how a rat could live that long?

Lucien's thoughts wandered elsewhere.

Animagus—the pinnacle of Transfiguration.

A wizard could transform into an animal while retaining their magical abilities.

To fulfill his goal, Lucien needed to master this skill and successfully perform it within a year.

Having a subject to observe would surely speed things up, right?

Registered Animagi were rare—at least, those officially recorded with the Ministry were.

Pettigrew, along with Harry's father and his friends, were all unregistered, illegal Animagi.

Professor McGonagall was a highly skilled Animagus, and Lucien could ask for her guidance, but he couldn't exactly study her transformations at will to analyze the process.

But Peter Pettigrew—Scabbers—was different.

Not only was he an illegal Animagus, he'd betrayed Harry's parents and frad Sirius Black.

If Lucien used him for observation experints, who could Pettigrew possibly turn to for help?

A sly smile crept across Lucien's face.

He levitated a piece of pumpkin pasty to hover in front of Scabbers.

The rat glanced at the treat, then up at Lucien.

Despite Lucien's friendly smile, Scabbers felt a sudden chill run through him.

For so reason, he didn't want to eat the food Lucien offered, but refusing as a rat might look suspicious.

Reluctantly, Scabbers nibbled at the pasty.

Harry, watching Hermione and Ron bicker, caught sight of Lucien's spellwork and felt a pang of envy.

Sure, he was called the "Boy Who Lived," but Harry had never formally learned magic.

He couldn't even cast the simplest spell!

Raised by his Muggle aunt Petunia and her magic-hating family, no one had ever taught him a thing about wizardry.

Self-study from books? Harry got dizzy just looking at them. The books Hagrid bought him at Flourish and Blotts were still pristine, stuffed in his trunk.

So, Harry envied Lucien and the others.

He envied Hermione, who'd taught herself spells through books. He envied Ron, who'd grown up in a wizarding family surrounded by magic.

Most of all, he envied Lucien's effortless skill with spells.

Harry didn't know much about magic, but he could tell from Neville and the others' reactions that Lucien's abilities were exceptional for their age.

They were all around the sa age, yet Lucien wielded magic so smoothly.

"Lucien?" Harry pushed up his glasses and leaned toward him, asking softly, "You're so good at casting spells. Did a wizard in your family teach you?"

Lucien, preoccupied with thoughts of borrowing Scabbers from Ron later, answered casually, "Oh, no, I'm from a Muggle family. I learned all my magic from books."

His offhand reply stunned Harry.

It also stopped Hermione and Ron's argunt in its tracks.

"You're Muggle-born too?!" Hermione stared at Lucien, wide-eyed.

His effortless spellcasting had convinced her he was from a pure-blood family—or at least half-blood, with a wizard relative guiding him.

But Lucien was Muggle-born, just like her, and had taught himself magic from books.

They were in the sa boat, yet why was there such a gap between their skills?

When Hermione used Reparo to fix Harry's glasses, she hadn't been entirely confident—it was Ron's taunting that pushed her pride to try it.

Still, her shock gave way to a sense of camaraderie. After all, among the four young witches and wizards here, Ron was from a Sacred Twenty-Eight pure-blood family, and Harry's parents were both wizards. Hermione had thought she was the only Muggle-born.

From reading wizarding books, she knew so pure-bloods looked down on Muggle-born witches and wizards.

But her proud, determined nature refused to let her feel inferior. She'd practiced spells from books for ages, barely mastering Reparo.

Now, learning Lucien was also Muggle-born and self-taught made her feel a kinship.

Her gaze softened, her friendliness toward him even more apparent.

Ron, anwhile, gaped at Lucien in disbelief.

"Self-taught? Magic?"

"That level of skill… from books?"

As a Weasley, raised in a pure-blood household with five older brothers, Ron had grown up steeped in magic.

He knew exactly how impressive Lucien's Accio was—summoning an unfamiliar object from a distance, out of sight, with perfect accuracy.

If Lucien had been trained by a wizard relative, Ron could've understood. But to learn that from books?

Ron's brothers included a dragon tar, a Gringotts employee, and a Hogwarts prefect. He'd seen what "talent" looked like.

But Lucien's skill…

Compared to Ron's complex expression, Harry's reaction was simpler—pure admiration.

He didn't know much about wizards or magic, but he just thought Lucien's self-taught mastery was incredible.

Harry even felt an urge to ask Lucien to teach him magic.

But since they'd only just t a few hours ago, and they'd soon be at Hogwarts learning magic properly, he held back.

Lucien was pleased with the trio's reactions.

Building a good relationship with them was key, as was establishing himself as reliable in their eyes.

That way, when they learned about the Philosopher's Stone and set out to find it, they'd think to ask him for help.

Planning ahead to access the Stone was one thing; ensuring he could actually get it and use it to brew a potion was just as crucial.

Woo-woo!

A loud steam whistle pierced the air.

"Children, please change into your wizard robes quickly."

"You've arrived at Hogwarts!"