Chapter 105: Glasses to Protect Against the Basilisk  

Irina remembered how to use the Disillusionment Charm. She said the spell words, tapped her wand on her head, and a wave of magic spread out, making Irina's body disappear from sight.

"Hold my hand," Lynn said. 

Feeling a soft little hand grab his fingers, Lynn also waved his wand, hiding his own body.

This way, the two walked towards the Whomping Willow tree. Along the way, the invisible Irina held Lynn's hand, walking as he led, her face a bit red. Hermione's teasing words from that morning still echoed in her mind - was this like a date with just the two of them?

"We're here." Lynn reached the Whomping Willow's base and pressed the knot on the trunk, causing the violently swinging branches to freeze. They saw a passage big enough for a person to crawl through.

Lynn entered first, canceling his invisibility charm. Irina followed closely behind, letting go of his hand and removing her own charm as they headed towards the other end of the passage - the Shrieking Shack in Hogsmeade village. 

"The castle grounds should be clear of teachers patrolling this early," Irina remarked, not seeing any teachers or students along the way.

Lynn chuckled and handed her the Marauder's Map, indicating for her to check it herself. 

Irina glanced at the map in surprise, noticing Professor Sprout's dot coming from the castle, heading straight for the Whomping Willow! She had forgotten that on the first day, Harry and Ron had crashed the flying car into the tree, requiring Sprout to tend to it daily. 

If they had arrived later, they might have crossed paths with the professor!

After a long time, they reached a room in the Shack filled with old dusty furniture. This was the legendary "haunted" Shrieking Shack, though Lynn and Irina knew the truth - it was where Professor Lupin transformed during full moons while at Hogwarts, thanks to Dumbledore.

"This is quite big. I'll teach you the Shield Charm here when we return," Lynn said casually. 

Like the Disillusionment Charm, the Shield Charm was very useful yet too advanced for second-years. It was rumored that even among Aurors, few could truly master it.

Irina nodded eagerly, following Lynn out of the Shrieking Shack and into Hogsmeade village.

"Head that way, straight to the end, and you'll find Honeydukes. Get what you need, then meet me back here," Lynn instructed, heading towards the alchemy supply shop himself.

This year's biggest threats were the Basilisk and Voldemort's diary Horcrux. The few things that could destroy a Horcrux were extremely limited - aside from Gryffindor's sword and a Basilisk fang, Lynn could not yet use Fiendfyre.

Fiendfyre, being very powerful dark magic only slightly less dangerous than the Unforgivable Curses, was something even Lynn's mentor Professor Green refused to teach him, despite his great control over fire. The lure of dark magic was too risky, even for Lynn, his only student and final hope. 

So Lynn focused on dealing with the Basilisk directly. Having equipment to protect against its fatal stare and paralysis abilities was essential - glasses being the perfect form for such an alchemical creation.

This Hogsmeade trip was to get materials for making those very glasses that could block the Basilisk's deadly powers.

"I need 10 inches of bark from the Whomping Willow tree, 2 dried Billywig stingers, 20 grams of powdered Basilisk fang, 10 ounces of Fire Salamander blood, 10 feet of Dragon hide, 10 grams of powdered Dragon claw, and 20 grams of Murtlap tentacles," Lynn requested from the shopkeeper.

These were for the base material of the anti-Basilisk glasses. Like most advanced alchemy products, they required one alchemy branch to create the base, then another for enchanting it.

The Whomping Willow bark could protect the wearer from dark creatures. Billywig stingers and Basilisk fangs were for clarity potions, useful in alchemy too. Fire Salamander blood enhanced fortifying things, potentially strengthening alchemy symbols. Dragon hide resisted physical and spell damage, used in making gloves. Powdered Dragon claw gave energy, its properties used separately. Murtlap tentacles helped resist curses and misfortune.

These mostly potion ingredients could have their special effects taken out and fused into Lynn's new material creations - the core of the alchemy branch!

Of course, these weren't all the materials needed. Things like unicorn horn and mandrake, easily obtained from Hogwarts, didn't need purchase. 

Why pay when you can get them from Herbology or Hagrid for free?

The shopkeeper looked at Lynn oddly, never having heard of any potion using such a mix of ingredients.

Indeed, no single potion used them all - but alchemy did, taking advantages from unrelated components to merge into something new.

"98 Galleons," the old wizard stated flatly after boxing Lynn's materials.

Lynn paid and stuffed the box into his expanded bag, then headed for the meeting spot - except Irina was nowhere. The path to Honeydukes was shorter than the shop he visited, more than enough time for her to browse its treats while he gathered materials. 

But she was still missing when he arrived.

"Damn, did something happen to her?" Lynn's face paled as he hurried towards Honeydukes.

(end of chapter)