Harry Potter: Beyond the Parselveil

The summer vacation was about to end in one week, and the family would not get much time to visit the sect—especially the kids, as school was about to start. Simon and Edwina had been going back to Britain frequently as they had duties there.

Today, Elder Huo had convinced Simon to give a lecture to the disciples of the sect about British alchemical processes, with the aim of integrating the sect's methods with them.

Simon stood on an elevated podium as the disciples formed a semi-circle around him. He had a board and a cauldron to teach.

He first started by teaching the British method in simple terms.

"The ingredients used are selected for their magical properties as well as their symbolic meaning in society. For example, plants that are symbols of bonding are used in potions to bind two elements together. In your method, the balance between light and dark elements is used for that purpose, reducing the requirement of some rare ingredients—but also reducing the potency if the skill is not up to the mark."

As he explained the methods, the disciples listened and took notes without making a sound. Aaric was also there, learning. Harry was not interested in alchemy, though.

One disciple raised a hand tentatively. "Does that mean our methods are less stable?"

Simon shook his head. "Not at all. Your approach assumes discipline and elemental sensitivity. Ours relies more on structure and intuition. Both are valid. But when combined... we might cut down on wasted reagents and produce potions more reliably."

Edwina, at this time, was with Selene Greengrass in their mansion as they chatted about healing and other topics.

"I thought you would have told me by now," Edwina said cryptically.

Selene stiffened. "About what?"

Edwina sighed. "I know there is someone who needs healing in your family. I won't force you to tell me who it is. I do implore you to tell me the kind of affliction they have, so I can at least guide you in a way that leads you to the cure sooner."

Hearing that, Selene looked down in contemplation and told Edwina about a blood curse in their family, and its symptoms and effects on the person's magic.

After chatting with Selene, Edwina came back to the sect and was going to her courtyard when she met Harry on the way. She ruffled his hair as she asked about his day, but he seemed to be in deep contemplation.

"What is it?" asked Edwina.

Harry looked up at her. "How long will Pyra live?" he asked. Pyra was the name of his salamander.

"She... will at most live another six months." Edwina's response was blunt, but it was what Harry needed at the time.

"I don't want her to die. I don't want flame powers. I just want her to stay with me," Harry broke down as Edwina hugged the boy. She thought about it and then said, "Come with me."

She took Harry by the hand, and they went to their courtyard.

She gave some potions to Pyra. "These potions will make her healthier and extend her lifespan. I will now upgrade the link you have with her through the marking. And if she accepts, she will be connected on a deeper level with you and live even longer."

She used ink made from the blood of a giant and crushed dragon bones to add to the marking on Harry's hand and Pyra's forehead.

She had asked Shenlian to procure the ink, and as she finished her inscribing, Harry was laid on his bed and fell asleep with Pyra in his arms.

Later that night, the Hawthorne family arrived at Nightshade Castle to plant the Huǒlóng Yùlán tree seeds, as Aaric nourished them with Moonlight Essence. The family then went to the ritual room at the top of the castle.

They would be performing a ritual to upgrade their wands.

The first was Edwina, as she sat in the middle of the circle with her wand in her lap. She had two vials with her: one was the poison she had extracted from the Sect Master mixed with Basilisk venom, and the other was a healing potion made from Graphorn Horn, Unicorn Hair, and Phoenix Tears, mixed with the Serpentwood Resin potion.

She poured both vials into a wooden bowl and placed her wand in between. She then chanted in Parseltongue and infused her magic and some of her blood into the bowl. The mixture began to seep into her wand as she continued to hold it. It absorbed the materials and gained a faint greenish hue that formed some runes on it—they were faint and hard to spot, but they were there.

Simon stepped into the ritual circle next, his face composed as always. Aaric and Edwina moved to opposite sides of the room, each lighting the runes that encircled the chamber.

Simon's wand was placed delicately in a silver bowl carved with Glacier Dragon scales—brought from a long-ago expedition into the Fjord Cliffs. Around it, he set his chosen materials.

First, he poured a vial of Mist Essence, given to him by Shenlian—she had condensed it over a hundred years.

To tie the elements together, Simon added three drops of Cloud Serpent bone marrow, a rare mist-creature secretion that deepened magical focus and attunement.

Lastly, a fragment of a Geysir Heartstone—a stone formed from boiling subterranean springs, long since hardened into a fiery core surrounded by mist-veined rock.

He placed his palm over the wand and whispered a personal invocation, and also held his sword as the ingredients dissolved in the bowl. His sword and wand both gained blue runes as the essences flowed like water toward them, crystallizing like ice and giving off a faint mist.

Simon lifted the sword and wand. They remained the same in length, core, and materials, but the surface shimmered faintly like frost over glass. Veins of soft mist shimmered in the grain—powerful, understated, precise.

He nodded once in satisfaction.

Aaric stepped forward next, drawing his wand slowly.

He didn't carry a bowl—he conjured a shallow basin of stone, carved instantly with runes as he whispered in Parseltongue. The bowl pulsed silver.

He first placed a delicate pinch of Ashes of Rebirth—taken from a phoenix that had been reborn only hours earlier. They were faintly warm to the touch and radiated immense heat, as he had infused some fire-type materials into them.

Next came a sliver of Frostsilk Serpent fang, found only in magical tundras where creatures had adapted to subzero environments. The venom had been neutralized, but the cold essence remained—unnaturally piercing, yet clear and focused.

Then came Crimson Ice Petals, flowers grown atop enchanted peaks that bled flame when struck with wind. Their magic danced between both elements—fire and frost.

He placed his wand in the center and whispered a ritual phrase in Parseltongue.

The air rippled around him.

The ingredients melted into the wand as Aaric's magic pulled them in, layer by layer. His silver flame stirred faintly at his fingertips but did not ignite. This was a quiet process.

When he lifted the wand again, its surface had shifted. The wood remained dark, but now faint frost fractals lay under its surface, radiating heat. A thin line of silver ran along the grain as fire and ice balanced and complemented each other.

A/n : the second years will start in the next chapter.

Thoughts and stones please