He eliminated the second category spells, the spells that sense magic as he didn’t see a use for them in the near future. So, Leon had to decide between the Stealth of Demiguise, the Eyes of Sphinx, and the Unicorn’s hearing.


    Demiguises are precogs and avoid danger by turning invisible, invisibility cloaks are made from Demiguises'' fur.


    After a quick debate, Leon decided to choose Eyes of Sphinx. If it was Eyes of Demiguise, he would have chosen that spell in a heartbeat, but it seems peering into the future is a tough task even for the supposed genius ancestor.


    A wizard/witch is known for their versatility, so Leon knows that most of the spells offered to him have effects similar to those of the more well-known ones.


    Invisibility charm for Stealth of Demiguise, a dark curse for a breath of Nundu, and such.


    While he does not doubt that his narcissistic ancestor’s spells are more powerful, or versatile than the commonly known spells, choosing a rare spell was the best choice even if he didn’t consider his upcoming jaunt into the forbidden forest for the Hufflepuff quest.


    With some luck, the Eyes of Sphinx spell would allow him to see camouflaged and lurking creatures in the forest.


    And unlike Unicorns which are said to be as fast as light- an exaggeration of course- Leon isn’t that quick, so he had eliminated the Unicorn’s hearing spell.


    He didn’t know how hearing could relate to the concepts of purity or kindness. But If the spell was Eyes of the Unicorn or if he didn’t think the Eyes of Sphinx had better potential and immediate use, he would have hesitated more. After all, knowing about anything that is associated with purity is a good thing, especially considering the evil theme, Voldemort and his death eaters have going on.


    ‘Yeah! Let’s go with Eyes of the Sphinx, it’s not like I can’t choose other spells in the future.’


    Just as he finalized his thoughts, words started to appear, replacing the list of spells.


    Ha! So, you chose the Eyes of Sphinx spell, I guess with my blood flowing through you, you will have at least a little bit of my intelligence if not talent.


    The narcissist started prattling.


    ‘Calm down, Leon. No need to be angry at a dead man…. Is he dead?’ Shaking the disturbing images of this narcissist in a suit, sitting in a skyscraper, writing about his greatness for this book’s next volume sent chills down Leon’s spine.


    ‘You don’t know how many secrets of my newly created branch of mind magic I had to trade just to get a chance to observe a Sphinx’s eyes as they use them.


    While they certainly knew my work’s worth they didn’t show any respect to its creator. Hmph! But that didn’t stop me.


    Do you know how tough it is to peer into abstract concepts such as karma without depending on rituals? Still, I converted the innate magic of Sphinxs into a spell. If it wasn’t for my new branch of magic, the spell would have been only used by Sorcerers or masters of Occlumency, the burden on the mind is that huge.


    Even with my new and better branch of mind magic, only someone in the second stage can use this spell.


    But you don’t need to worry, because your ancestor is my awesome self. I made an extra-long spell chant to let an Un stage newbie use it. You can’t use it for more than a second, don’t even try to use it for longer than that. Just blink quickly.


    This is the chant:


    Oculi Sphingis Vincula Karmica Videte


    It becomes Oculi Karvidete when you reach the second stage. Now try to reach the third stage quickly, which I believe is quite far away from you unless, of course, you are talented like me… which is impossible. So, get to practice.


    Shaking his head, Leon looked up the wand movements and pronunciations.


    “Oculi Sphingis Vincula Karmica Videte.” He cast the spell and blinked.


    The Hufflepuff didn’t notice any change.


    ‘More practice.’


    Nodding his head, he spent some time on the spell.


    “Oculi Sphingis, Vincula Karmica Videte.” Just like every time, he quickly blinked his eyes. But this time, after 30 minutes of practice, he succeeded.


    Leon saw multiple ethereal threads wafting off him towards the Hufflepuff common room.


    To get a better look, he cast the spell again and quickly blinked.


    Some type of repulsive force made it difficult for him to identify the threads.


    He knew they were different from each other but somehow, he couldn’t pinpoint the difference between the threads that originated from him.


    ‘Let’s see how much use this spell will be in the Forbidden Forest.’ He hurried towards the common room, and cast the spell, selecting a corner to stare at.


    And boy was he surprised.


    His vision was covered with threads, even insects and plants have small threads wafting off them, not to mention the Hufflepuffs.


    The threads of his fellow witches and wizards were thicker and more attention-grabbing even though he couldn’t pick details about them. While he couldn’t see the threads of someone not in his vision i.e., he couldn’t peer through a wall, the spell was enough to see if any creatures were lurking in the bushes and shadows of the forbidden forest.If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement.


    Satisfied with himself and the spell, he cast the spell again to get a better look at his fellow Hufflepuffs.


    Leon played around with the spell multiple times, trying to see if he could push through the repulsive force and see how each thread was unique.


    He wasn''t successful and he got a light pain in his eyes and head for his efforts.


    “Got something in your eyes, Astraeus?” Cedric asked him, surrounded by a group of students who were playing spell cards.


    “Nothing! My eyes are fine!” Leon waved his hands at the older boy.


    The older Hufflepuff hummed at that.


    “Why don’t you join us for a game of spell cards,” he invited him.


    The students surrounding him nodded, looking way too excited to have a firstie in their midst.


    As he struggled to think of a reason, Cedric quickly ended the ongoing game and started to shuffle the cards.


    Sighing Leon joined the older students.


    “Now! What is this about a duel I hear?” Cedric slowly asked after everyone got their cards.


    ‘Oh! That’s why!’


    ………………….


    Days went by as Leon searched for the supposed noble of plants that was guarded by a badger. It was clear from the clue that he had to go into the forbidden forest and search for a badger den, the words ‘dauntless striped’ easily gave that away.


    He started with mundane plants as he was not in a hurry.


    Venturing into a magical forest riddled with man-eating giant spiders requires caution, especially if you want to make it out alive.


    He wanted to accumulate more spells and artifacts, so he stuck to his schedule, mainly preparing for the upcoming duel.


    The Hufflepuffs'' fervor continued to increase as the day duel neared.


    Many older students- sixth years- sought out Leon, telling him that they could sort out whatever problem he and Smith had by talking.


    He didn’t know what Smith said to these students, but Leon assured them the duel was friendly and a good way to avoid escalating the problem between him and Smith.


    Some stubborn seniors became less stubborn after Susan got Tonks to talk with them.


    “Ha! Good! There is nothing wrong with duels to establish a pecking order, firstie. Good job!”


    That was Tonk''s response after Susan asked her to be the referee.


    While Leon wanted to spout gibberish that the duel wasn’t about pecking order and such, he didn’t. Because he knew that Tonks wouldn’t buy it.


    While it was not about pecking order, the duel was about showing Smith the difference between them, so Smith could forget his need to prove that he was better than Leon and leave him alone.


    After all, rivalry- in Smith’s case, toxic rivalry- could only be between two equals.


    Not between a pet dog and a Cerberus.


    Leon didn’t just want to win; he wanted to crush whatever notions of superiority Smith had in mind.


    All to nip future problems in the bud.. and maybe also to see how far he come along.


    After all, seeing the results of one’s hard work is never a bad thing.


    Finally, the day of the duel was upon him.


    The Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors were sitting in the Transfiguration class.


    Leon didn’t know who spread the news about the duel to the students outside of his house, but it looked like every Hogwarts student knew about it. He thought only Tonk''s friends or in the worst case the whole Hufflepuff would know.


    But now, he wouldn’t be surprised even if professors knew.


    As McGonagall entered the class, Leon ignored Weasley and his friend whispering about his upcoming duel while sitting on a bench beside him, like he couldn’t hear them.


    ‘Damn! These people are bored enough to gossip about a first year’s duel in a world of magic.’


    As Leon’s mind went on a tangent from social media to its good and bad to some shows he watched, the professor''s voice brought him back to the present.


    “Does anyone know what a Rabicorn is?”


    Unlike in every class Hermione''s hand wasn’t in the air, no one’s was.


    As silence enveloped the classroom, Lavender Brown slowly raised her hand, prompting the professor to nod at her.


    “I heard that Rabicorns are not real. They were ever only sighted by kids and were described as fluffy rabbits with horns of Unicorns. The kid, Mathby Macree, was the first to report it, and the magazine, Creature Furor, published a drawing of his description rendering the reports of subsequent sightings baseless.” The whole class was looking at the giggly, gossipy girl in shock as she continued.


    “Many thought the Rabbicorn was just someone’s charmed pet rabbit. The drawing of the first Rabbicorn supported this theory as the Rabbicorn was depicted with squishy cheeks, golden eyes with soft golden fur, and a squishy horn that rose out its forehead.”


    “Good! 5 points to Gryffindor. The magazine as promised found the Rabbicorns and is opening a conservatory for them.”


    Everyone ignored the Lavender’s squeal of ‘Now, I’d love to see my dad wiggle his way out of buying it for me.’ and listened to the professor.


    “Until now, you got to transfigure small items and recently living mice. Do you think you can transfigure a Rabbicorn to a snuffbox?”


    With a wave of her hand, a rabbit with golden fur buffeting in the unseen wind became visible on the professor’s desk.


    “It’s a baby Rabbicorn, the same size as the mice you practiced on. Now, you students will come one by one and try to transfigure this creature.”


    Professor McGonagall''s voice cut through the excited chatter and loud squeals of the students, especially Parvati and Lavender.


    “They are supposed to only appear in places untouched by humans and only to innocent kids, they vanish if they come across any adults,” Lavender explained to her friend eyeing the baby Rabbicorn with unconcealed desire.


    The Rabbicorn, even as a baby had droopy squishy cheeks, and looked harmless with its little silver horn, no more than a nub, on its head complimenting its golden eyes.


    “Mr Leon, why don’t you give it a try? They are generally more sensitive to us, but I took care of it, so our class won’t be inconvenienced. I heard that they can even sniff out magic done way back in the past.” The stern professor’s eyes softened the little magical rabbit on her desk before they vanished as she looked at him.


    He shrugged and made his way toward the adorable creature which was lazily sniffing on the table.


    7 meters in the baby ball of fluff zeroed in on Leon, its ears and tail erect, its body stiff.


    3 meters in, the rabbit continued to switch between looking confused and twitching its body.


    Leon ignored it and took out his wand before trying to transfigure the Rabbicorn.


    Nothing happened.


    The little ball of fur stopped twitching and ran away from him.


    But whatever magic the professor cast, had it running in circles.


    The rabbit always ends up in its starting position before it notices him and starts to run away again.


    “Next!” The professor sent him away after the rabbit completed its second lap.


    The Rabbicorn ignored most of the students while it jumped into Hannah’s bosom in her turn.


    The students got to see the Rabbicorn panic when Smith walked towards it glaring at Leon.


    The Rabbicorn stumbled on itself, its back towards Smith before it tried to dig into the table, its soft paws continuing to scratch at the table until Smith left the seven-meter radius.


    After he left, the bunny looked around confused and started to bounce on the table, likely trying to get a better look at its surroundings, making people laugh.


    “The little rabbit decided the people’s chosen for the upcoming duel,” Lavender commented in a not-so-loud voice.


    The Rabbicorn ignored Lavender too, an invisible shield stopped the girl from trying to smother the ball of fluff.


    ‘I guess it detects bad emotions?’ Leon thought eyeing Smith. ‘Or can it sense people who are likely to hurt it? No way, it senses people’s personality, right?’


    “Now, why was no one successful in transfiguring the Rabbicorn, Mr Weasley?”


    “Uh! Because it''s magical?”


    “Correct! While transfiguration is very useful in large-scale battles, transfiguring your enemies is nearly impossible if they are wizards/witches and are of the same age as the caster. Any transformation hexes aren’t used in any duels, for a competent wizard/witch can revert instantly.”


    “Now I need a 7-inch parchment on why you think magicals can’t be transfigured while Muggles and mundane animals can be.”


    With that, the professor dismissed the class.


    “Wait up!” Rose called.