"Lucien, can I learn from you how to make those chanical animals?"
Lucien turned around, eyeing the red-haired boy.
"Ron, are you… interested in alchemy?"
Ron scratched his head, his tone a bit uncertain.
"Alchemy, maybe? I've seen Fred and George use it to make so cool little gadgets."
"Oh, Fred and George are my older brothers, two years ahead of us," he added.
Lucien nodded. The Weasley twins—Hogwarts' resident pranksters, always bringing mischief and laughter. They were quite skilled at crafting magical items, so they must have so talent for alchemy.
"Ron, are you looking to learn alchemy itself, or just how to make those chanical creations?"
If Ron said he wanted to dive into alchemy, Lucien would have to politely decline, just as he had with Hermione.
But if it was only about chanical constructs, that was more about Transfiguration—turning one inanimate object into another, maybe with so semi-permanent charms. If Ron just wanted to make chanical creations for his own use, he might not even need to master permanent transfiguration yet. As for the potions involved, Ron might not be able to brew them himself, but he could always ask his good mate Harry to whip so up.
Lucien didn't mind teaching Ron how to craft those alchemical machines. In return, maybe Ron could borrow so of the Weasley family's magical tos, just like Harry had done. No matter how strapped for cash the Weasleys were, they were still one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight pure-blood families, with a long history. Surely they had so magical knowledge passed down through the generations.
Well, Ron would need to check with his parents first about borrowing those books.
No rush—Lucien could teach him once the books were available.
"Er, I'm really just interested in the chanical stuff," Ron said.
Lucien nodded. That was doable.
"You probably know this already, but alchemy does require a decent grasp of Transfiguration and Potions."
At that, Ron's face turned sheepish, his ears slowly reddening to match his hair.
"I—I know I'm not exactly gifted. I'm slow at picking up magic, but… but I…"
Ron's fumbling made Lucien shake his head. Ron's talents weren't exactly standout, especially compared to his brothers. One was a Curse-Breaker for Gringotts, another studied dragons, and another was a Gryffindor prefect. On top of that, Ron's laid-back attitude didn't help—outside of rare monts of bravery, he mostly coasted along. Lucien figured it wasn't just Ron's nature; constantly being compared to his high-achieving brothers probably made him feel inferior, leading him to slack off even more.
"Alright, never mind," Lucien said.
His short remark stopped Ron's mumbling in its tracks, his ears now fully as red as his hair.
Ron was about to crack a joke to cover his embarrassnt when Lucien pulled out a handful of small pebbles, drew his wand, and gave them a tap. The pebbles transford into various parts, which then began to whirl and assemble themselves in an orderly fashion. Lucien tossed a cross-shaped puzzle, like a magical version of a Chinese puzzle lock, to Ron.
"Give it a go. Take it apart, then put it back together."
Lucien had made the puzzle on a whim to test whether Ron had any knack for chanics—and whether he had the patience for it. If Ron was only interested in chanical crafting on a passing whim and gave up on the puzzle quickly, there'd be no point wasting either of their ti. Lucien could just find an excuse to say no.
He watched as Ron studied the cross-shaped lock carefully. After a minute or two, Ron started trying to unlock it. His movents were slow and deliberate. When one approach didn't work, he thodically backtracked, trying another.
Huh, he's actually pretty patient, Lucien thought. Why doesn't he show this kind of focus in Herbology or Potions?
Was it only when sothing truly caught his interest that he put in the effort? Co to think of it, Ron was quite good at Wizard's Chess. A chess player shouldn't lack patience.
Ron eventually disassembled the lock. Before he could celebrate, he realized he had to put it back together. This ti, he worked much faster, which raised Lucien's eyebrow.
Maybe this kid's got so real talent for chanics after all.
When Ron handed back the fully assembled lock, Lucien nodded approvingly.
"Not bad."
The praise caught Ron off guard, and he flushed slightly. It wasn't often soone told him he'd done sothing well.
"Oh, by the way, Lucien," Ron said, "about the potions… do I have to brew them myself? Could I maybe ask Harry to help? He's been getting pretty good at Potions lately!"
Lucien couldn't help but chuckle.
Clever move, Ron. So he does think fast when it's sothing he cares about.
It felt oddly satisfying to hear soone praise a student he'd taught, maybe even more than being praised himself. So this was the thrill of teaching?
"No problem," Lucien said. "But you'll still need to learn Transfiguration yourself."
Teaching Transfiguration? Lucien was confident he could handle that. Even if it involved more advanced chanical transformations, he believed he could explain it well. If Ron didn't get it, that'd just an Lucien needed to refine his teaching or deepen his own understanding.
Ti to step up his ga as a teacher!
Ron nodded eagerly. If it ant learning to make those fascinating alchemical machines, he was willing to put in the work for Transfiguration.
"Ron, I can teach you how to make those machines, but I'm not doing it for free," Lucien said. "If you've got sothing to trade, like so long-standing family knowledge…"
Before Lucien could finish, Ron's face lit up with realization. He dug into his pocket and pulled out an old wand, its tip showing a bit of unicorn hair.
"This is a family heirloom," Ron said, looking pained. "But could you maybe wait until I save up for a new wand before—"
"Hold on," Lucien interrupted, exasperated. "What am I supposed to do with your wand?"
Was this kid's sense of humor just… weird? What was he going to do with an extra wand—use it as kindling?
"Oh, right!" Ron said, stuffing the wand back in his pocket. "I get it. You don't have a pet yet, do you? Well, I've got…"
He reached into his pocket again and pulled out a scruffy, listless rat.
"Scabbers here loves pumpkin pasties and a bit of red wine, but you can't let him have too much—"
Lucien quickly raised a hand to stop Ron's rambling.
"I don't want your wand, and I definitely don't want Scabbers. I'm talking about borrowing your family's magical books. Borrowing. Books."
"Ohhh," Ron said, nodding slowly. "When you said 'family legacy,' I thought you ant this wand—it was my brother Charlie's—and Scabbers was Percy's."
"For books, I'd have to write to Mum and ask. I'm not sure if we've got any."
Lucien was speechless. Harry might not have known about magical legacies, having grown up outside the wizarding world, but Ron? He'd been raised in a magical family! How did he not know what his family had? Weren't pure-blood kids taught magic before Hogwarts?
Apparently, Ron hadn't paid attention to any of it.
This teaching gig might be tougher than he thought.
Lucien glanced up at the moon.
Here's hoping the Weasley family's magical knowledge is worth the trouble…
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