Turkish Delights
Professor Fig had not woken Leo up the next morning as Leo had expected. Instead, Leo woke to the sun slanting through the windows, and the sound of the wind whistling through the trees outside. He looked around with blurry eyes, unsure where he was for a moment, before reality settled in. He had been expecting Sister Beatrice to bust down his door, truthfully, waving a wooden spoon and shouting about missing chores. But, as Leo sat up in bed, she never came.
No one did.
Leo swung his legs over the side of the bed, planting them firmly on the misshapen wood floor. He could feel the knots in the planks under his toes. Leo’s hands were gripping the mattress below him, and he had to take a few deep breaths to mentally force himself to stand. Today was a big day. A monumental day. A terrifying, please-don’t-screw-it-up-Leo-for-goodness-sake day.
He was going to start learning magic.
He meandered over to the shaving table, doing an inventory of his face. Leo had stared at it for a long time before going to bed last night, taking note of his freckles (when did he get those?) and how green his eyes were (have they always been this green?). It made him feel a little wrong-footed, when he had looked last night, hardly recognizing the person looking back at him. This morning, though, he feels a little more sure of himself. A little more comfortable. That was him after all. His freckles, his green eyes, his scar on the bridge of his nose.
He remembers the fall from the tree that had earned that scar. Leo had been trying to impress a few of the older boys at the orphanage, when he had first arrived. So he set about climbing the ugliest, tallest tree he could. He hadn’t accounted for the mangled branch to snap under his weight, nor the terrifying fall that had followed. He hit his face on limb after limb on the way down, miraculously surviving, and with only the one scar on his nose to show for it.
The other boys had not found his actions impressive, rather they thought Leo was completely insane. They avoided him like the plague after that.
Leo squinted at the scar in the mirror now, rubbing it with his thumb as if he could make it disappear. It just manages to make the skin around it a more noticeable red. He turns away from the mirror, noticing some clothes, neatly folded, laying on the chest of draws. Leo moves to inspect them, noting they look rather similar to the garb Professor Fig wears. He supposes these are his transfigured clothes to wear. He’s careful as he puts them on, noticing they’re oddly loose in certain areas, while being tight in others. He wonders what it means to transfigure clothes, remembering now he forgot to question Fig on what the word meant. Still, the outfit fit, the pants a little ill-fitting, and the shirt bunching in peculiar places.
Catching a glimpse of himself in the mirror, he grimaces, pulling at the material in hopes to fix it somehow. He doubts if he even had a stick (wand) that he would be able to fix them properly. He sighs, bemoaning the odd clothing, but deciding to make do with what he has.
Saint Cecilia’s had said Leo’s clothes belonged to the orphanage, not Leo, so they refused to relinquish them. Auror Higgins had looked thunderous at the explanation, but Leo said he didn’t really care. Technically, the clothes really didn’t belong to him, and they’d likely just go on to the next boy they fit at the orphanage, so why fight to take them? No, Leo had decided to just let them go.
He might have fought a little harder for them if he knew this was his alternative.
Leo scooped up his parchment and quill, the few words he learned yesterday written, rather scrawled, on the top page. He had made sure to write down the new words, with their explanations if he had them, before sleeping. Leo glanced at it now, making a note to ask Fig what transfigure really meant. He also needed to ask for more parchment, to practice writing on. He grabbed the ink jar on his way out the door, walking carefully down the stairs with his meager possessions.
He finds Fig sitting on the couch, tea in hand, the small table in front of him sporting breakfast for two. Fig turned upon hearing Leo enter the room, and gestured for him to join.
“Good morning, good morning. I’ve prepared breakfast for us, though I apologize for the lackadaisical nature of it all. My wife and I preferred to dine rather informally when we were home, you see? Now, let’s set our things down, and eat up! I have your porridge right here.”
Fig waited until Leo had set his items down on the counter in the kitchen, and had sat down properly on the couch, before handing him his porridge. It smelled delicious, sugar and butter wafting from the steam to further wake Leo up. Professor Fig had started pouring him a cup of tea, and pushed him a plate full of bread and fruit. Leo eyed it all, wondering what little William was eating back at the orphanage. What they all were eating.
Though he didn’t have to wonder, having eaten enough morning meals to know they’d all been served their portion of broth, and bread that bordered near a rock.
And Leo was here. Eating hot porridge, with soft-looking bread, and fresh-smelling fruit.
Suddenly Fig’s words caught up to him, and all terrible, no-good thoughts came to a screeching halt. “You’re married?” Leo questioned.
Fig’s hands still, midway to bringing his cup to his lips. His eyes dart to the side, catching sight of Leo, watching, waiting. He slowly lowers his hands, turning slightly to face Leo.
“I… was. I was married,” Fig says, quietly.
And oh, Leo feels like a pillock suddenly.
He adjusts himself on the couch, leaning from one leg to the other, rolling his lower lip between his teeth. He isn’t sure how to proceed, not really. The only adults Leo has ever spoken to have been nuns, and he’s always known their marital status. This is completely new territory.
“I’m sorry,” he settles on, feeling rather dumb.
Fig lays a gentle hand on his shoulder, lips forming a barely-there smile. “Nothing to be sorry for, my boy. We had many great years together, and I cherish everyone.”
Leo nods, feeling a bit off-kilter, not at all knowing how to change the topic of conversation. Fig takes pity on him, hand dropping to reach back for his cup. “I see you brought down your writing supplies with you. I have a spare bag you can use. It’s charmed, bigger on the inside and all that, you could get a lot of use out of it.”
Leo had taken the reprieve to shove a rude amount of buttery sweet porridge into his mouth, and so he was left to silently wonder what that meant. Charmed. Bigger on the inside. Surely Fig didn’t mean literally. But Leo glances down at his clothes, seeing the fabric stretching around his thighs, and decides perhaps Fig does mean it literally. As if Fig understands his thoughts, he says, “Oh, yes, let me fix that for you. It was rather poorly done, on my part. I just wanted to size them to fit, but it seems I miss a few details, didn’t I?”
He has an amused smile on his face as he says it, Leo notices. He takes a leisurely sip of his tea, waves his wand with his other hand, and suddenly Leo’s outfit fits as if it was made for him. The black trousers loosened slightly at his thighs, and crept further down his ankles. His button-up puffed around his chest, tightening around his wrists. He felt immensely more comfortable in his attire, and offered a smile as he said, “Thank you, Professor Fig.”
They eat in relative silence after that. Fig gives Leo more bread, and more fruit, and more porridge. Finally, Leo motions no more when Fig makes a move to give him another grapefruit.
“I can clean this up,” Leo says, making a move to father the dishes, but Fig gives a swift shake of his head.
“There is simply no need, Leo.” And with a wave of his wand, the remaining food is gone, and the dishes are piled neatly together. With another wave, they go floating into the kitchen, right past Leo’s head. At Leo’s gobsmacked impression, Fig simply smiles, and says, “Magic.”
It reminds him of watching Auror Higgins levitate Sister Beatrice out of the room, and Tilman offering a similar exclamation.
“Shall we start our lessons?” Professor Fig stands, wand still in hand, gleeful smile coloring his face. Leo’s smile mirrors his, and together they make their way outside to the shining sun.
They started with charms work. Which, as Leo learned, were spells that added properties to an object, or person. He had quickly noted that on his parchment, laying it carefully atop the bag Fig had given him. It was more of a satchel, weathered brown with a frayed strap. But it was Leo’s, and that was all that mattered to him.
It was late in the morning as they began in the front garden, starting with the levitation charm. Fig had handed him a wand, and explained the charm as he paced between vegetable patches. “The words you will repeat are wingardium leviosa. This charm serves to make an item fly, or levitate. You saw this happen with the dishes earlier. If you’d like some history, this charm was invented over 300 years ago, by a warlock named Jarleth Hobart. He had initially thought he had finally managed to master the art of flying, you see. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Fortunately, he created the best levitation charm and spell. Now, pay attention to my wand movement, this is very important!”
And on it went.
Leo tried not to feel silly as he copied Fig’s movements, and then his words. He felt stiff in his arms, and the words were unnatural as they fell past his lips. Still, he couldn’t help the childish smile that overtook his face as he made a rock levitate in the air. Fig gave a hearty few claps, and then promptly demanded he keep going.
By mid-afternoon, Fig had decided Leo had confidently learned the levitation, softening, and wand-lighting charm. It was rushed, and Leo wasn’t near as confident in his abilities as Professor Fig seemed to be.
“You’ll learn more with time, my boy, trust me. You will continue to practice these charms throughout the summer, so do not fret so much about perfecting them. Most children have the entire year to practice these spells, and asking you to master them in a few months' time is ridiculous.”
With a sigh, Leo drops the hand holding his wand, and lets Fig lead him back into the house. “Now, I believe it is time for a snack,” Fig says, pushing Leo to the couch.
A moment later, Leo’s hands are full of tea and a small plate of Turkish delights. He stared down at the plate of sweets, setting it down gently on the table in front of him. Professor Fig sat with him, grabbing a sweet and eating it rather quickly. “I will admit, these are my favorite, so I keep them well in stock. Now would be a good time to tell me your favorite sweet, so we can be sure to grab it next we go to the city.”
Fig had already reached for another one, motioning for Leo to do the same.
“I’ve never had Turkish delight. The nuns had it a few times, around the holidays, but they never offered us any,” Leo murmured, eyes never leaving the plate of sweets that was slowly dwindling as Professor Fig continued to eat his fill.
Though the box-shaped sweets were covered in powdered sugar, the red inside was shining through as if it was lit up. Fig forced the delight into his hand, taking a moment to drink more of his tea. Leo was hesitant in his bite, but once it hit his tongue, he was happy to eat the rest of it. The sugar and lemon hit Leo suddenly, and he understood why Fig was so eager to eat more than one.
“Is it typical to have a sweet for a snack?” Leo asked, reaching for his second.
Fig smiled goofily at him, sipping his tea, seeming more than a little smug as he watched Leo practically devour the Turkish delight. “I’d say you earned it, Leo. Most first years don’t learn three charms all in one day, mind. You deserved a sweet.”
Leo’s eyebrows furrowed, “But I’ll be learning multiple things a day every day, won’t I? To catch up to the others by this fall?”
Fig nodded, waving his hand away as if that didn’t matter.
“So we’ll have sweets every day. Perfect for you to learn your favorite, hm?”
Leo smiled, eyebrows still drawn, a little unsure but willing to go with it. Fig seemed to be that way, a little off than the other adults. Even magical adults. After all, he doubts Auror Higgins would indulge Leo in this way.
They continue eating their ‘snack’, and Leo is left to wonder if this is how the rest of his summer will go. It wouldn’t be a bad way to spend it, he decides.