Younger students are huddled in a corner of the common room, working on casting the Patronus charm. Damien, who is sitting in an armchair nearby, thick book about plants opened on his lap, can't help the wave of nostalgia that washes over him as he watches them from afar.
Slowly, his surroundings fade away, mind shifting away from the scene, away from the common room, and taking him back to the memory of the time he first casted his own Patronus.
The teacher had said that happy thoughts were required to successfully cast a Patronus. At the time, Damien couldn't think of any. The death of his parents still felt too fresh even though a few years had already passed. He had also not yet opened up completely to his new family, despite their unending patience and love. He was quiet, withdrawn and there was this constant desire to destroy something, to release all the feelings he kept bottled up. So when the time came to cast his Patronus, nothing came out of his wand and he knew that practice, in this case, wasn't going to fix the problem.
So he let years pass without trying again. During those years, he had matured and made friends. He had opened up to his adoptive family and grown more comfortable around them. Memories of his biological parents had become fond ones. They weren't painful anymore, instead bringing a gentle smile to his face whenever he remembered them.
So on November 22nd, during his 7th year at Hogwarts, after celebrating his birthday with Perseus and his friends, he had retired to his dorm room. There, sitting cross-legged on his bed, he had closed his eyes and taken a deep breath.
This time, happy memories came flooding in. Spending time in the garden and dancing with his biological mother, his biological father telling him stories, days spent playing with Perseus in the backyard of the family house in Glasgow, the smell of the Mei wand shop, the smiles of his adoptive parents, the warmth of their embrace, etc.
For years, he had wondered about what his patronus was going to be. In the beginning, back when he was still hurting, he had been afraid that it would end up being a snake. Back then, he already had trouble accepting the fact he had been sorted into Slytherin, thinking that it was a terrible thing and that he must have been a terrible person for being sorted into that House. Not only that, but the fact he was a Parselmouth and that he had to keep it a secret had also been difficult to deal with.
Then, as memories of his biological parents stopped being painful, he thought that maybe his patronus would end up being a butterfly. Something about going through a transformation and coming out of it changed for the better. Also, there used to be plenty of butterflies in the garden and he really liked them.
When he had reopened his eyes though, after reciting the spell, it wasn't a snake or a butterfly that had taken shape from the light pouring out of his wand, but a shark. It had started peacefully circling him and Damien hadn't been able to do anything but gape at it because what the fuck? What did it mean, what was a shark supposed to represent?
He had asked his teacher the next day.
He blinks as he lets his memories of that time fade away, the ambiant noise of the common room reaching his ears once again. He smiles as he closes his book and stands up, his teacher's answer from back then still echoing in his mind and the image of the wink he had thrown at him after still vivid.
"Shark patronuses often belong to wizards or witches who are great leaders and who are sometimes intidimating. Also, the people who have shark patronuses, tend to have really good skin and a great set of teeth."
