But For A Stone (A Matou Shinji Series AU)

[alfheimwanderer]

[x] An amulet which draws / nullifies magical attacks intended for the wearer, so long as its pool of magic (magical energy regenerates over time) (5k Galleons) - For Sokaris
[x] A set of glasses which essentially allows those wearing them to use legilimency, and can be used to store the memories/information one gathers (enchanted to seem like normal glasses/with functions that can be locked down) (10k Galleons) - For Himself

Remaining Balance: 7.4k Galleons

---

The proprietor of Corbenic's Curious Creations, a wizened wizard long past his dueling days, is delighted to find the...unique glasses he create in the hands of such a serious young man, one who reminded him strongly of an old colleague of his, one who had worked for Borgin and Burkes before leaving for parts unknown.

"I do wonder what became of him," old Corbenic muttered. "Promising lad, though his past was quite...a riddle. So, the glasses then? Do you need lenses? For your eyes?"

"Um. No. My eyes are fine," Shinji stated, feeling slightly nervous as the proprietor just looked at him.

"So they are..." the old man noted. "So they are."

"Why?" the boy added after a beat. "Are these no good?" He gestured to the glasses he'd picked up.

"Are you saying my life's work is of no worth, Matou Shinji?"

"No, that's not--" And then the boy's jaw clicked shut. "Wait. How did you know my name?"

"...I listen, lad."

Old Man Corbenic glanced over at where Natsumi and Amber were admiring a certain pocketwatch,one of the man's other creations, which had been made for a customer, but apparently, had gone unclaimed.

"Ah."

"And since I listen, and you spent a fair bit at my humble shop, perhaps you would like to buy the little trifle your friends are examining? A pretty bauble can sometimes get you out of trouble with a girl - or into trouble, if that's your fancy."

Corbenic smiled, somewhat unpleasantly.

"...how much? I don't have 8000 Galleons," the boy admitted, thinking perhaps the man might be sympathetic to a declaration of poverty. "I'm not very rich you see."

"And yet you spent 10,000 on those glasses, and another 5000 on what I recognize as Henderson's work?" the old man questioned, eyebrow arching slightly. "Curious."

"...it is what it is."

"So it is, when young men seek to impress young women," Corbenic nodded sagely. "Perhaps...five thousand will be more palatable to you? I won't be going any lower than that, so don't waste my time, or yours, trying to bargain."

Does Shinji buy the pocketwatch for 5k Galleons?

[ ] Yes
[ ] No

[shanagan]

[X] Yes

[apsalar]

Hmm. A discount of 37.5% is significant, especially on an item that cost so much already, but that would put us back at almost broke (2.4K Galleons, if memory serves). Admittedly, this item would likely be useful on a number of occasions. Tentatively, I'm going to say [X] Yes, but that may change based on further thinking or others' arguments.

[Skull Leader]

Admittedly, this item would likely be useful on a number of occasions.

I am sure it would be but based on how this choice was presented to us and my own gut feelings is that if we buy the watch it will go straight to Miyuki. Considering that we decided to not gift his mother's wand to her and that so far we only gave a really nice wand holder to the most important girl to Shinji, its hard for me to think otherwise. I am somewhat amused to think about what this watch might show or indicate when Shinji transforms into his devil form.

So much money gone but if one thinks about it, Shinji has received a lot out of selling his basilisk skin and the invisibility cloak. I think he came ahead here in the end, even if he missed out in having some armor and a stealth option. Sure Hermione might have armor now but Shinji has done so much with his resources that I think that Quirrell might approve of his choices (well for the most part).

• New Muggle Wardrobe picked by Amber
• Super Fancy Wizard Wardrobe
• Presents for all his friends (awesome wand holsters)
• Two amazing wand holsters for both wands with some great features and allows him to communicate with Miyuki and Natsumi
• A Goblin Throwing Knife (its no Goblin Rapier but still)
• Two tickets to the Ministry Ball event
• A House that allows Shinji and the twins to practice Magic during the summer that they would not have been able to had he not bought it
• A House Elf
• Mind Reading[/S] Glasses so that he can see better....yep
• Magical Pocket Watch for Sempai
• Magical Amulet for Sokaris

Sure Shinji is mostly poor again or at least now limited in spending money like an average student. But really we invested a lot into Shinji here as well as invested into his important friends/allies. At this point his friends/allies is the best resource he has.

[X] Yes

And with that I am just going to somewhat sad that the money gravy train is over and that Shinji will now have to go back to working for his loot drops. He can no longer afford to buy pay-to-win loot boxes.

[alfheimwanderer]

[X] Yes, buy the Pocketwatch

---

Some updates to the Matou Shinji Year 1 Midterm Report:

Matou Shinji, Age 11
Unbound Obscurial

Current Mentor: Quirinus Quirrell
Current Idol: Tsuji Miyuki
Closest Friends: Amber Noel, Natsumi Suzuki
Current Places of Residence: Hogwarts, Fuyuki City, Matou Cottage

Selected Comments:

Quirrell: Some would call my student a spendthrift and wastrel. I know Miss Granger thinks of him as quite a scoundrel and a cad, but I think he has the potential to be somewhat more. Take that wand of his, for instance, the brother of which did great things in the world. Terrible, but great. It will be fascinating to see how things turn out.

Natsumi: Matou-kun can be a little surprising sometimes, even to his friends.

Amber: After seeing him over break, I worry about Matou. He seems to have troubles with his family that he can't/won't speak of, and hearing him wake up screaming...what has he seen that his heart is gripped by such fear?

Hermione Granger: The Professor warned me about Matou. Told me that I hadn't thought through what stopping him would entail. And he was right - Matou is dangerous and cunning, a monster who uses people - especially girls - and tricks them, somehow. For the Greater Good, he mustbe stopped.

Possessions: Worm Wand (Cherry wood + Grail Worm core), Holly and Phoenix feather wand, Willow and Unicorn Hair wand (a gift from "Sokaris"), duelist robes/formal robes, dress Robes (hand-made by Senpai), Outfits from Twilfit and Tattings (selected by Amber), Handy Haversack, Books (Snape's old potions book, Digging Two Graves, Occlumency Tome, Cast-a-Spell Kit, Theoretical Necromancy Tome, Russian Hero's Journal), Curse-Absorbing Seeds, Hogwarts Chest, Gringotts account (Balance: 2400 Galleons), Felix Felicis (2 hour), Legilimens Glasses, Apparition Jammer Pocketwatch, Wand Holsters x2, Goblin-forged knife, Cottage

Unlocked abilities: Gemino, Basic Occlumency, Obscurus Transformation [Treat as Mad Enhancement EX]

Obscurial Form: Physical Transformation unlocked. Unable to be controlled at current level of ability, but can be suppressed with help.

Special Locations Unlocked: Hogwarts (Kitchens, Forbidden Forest [forgotten], the Special Projects Greenhouse), Exton Hall, Cottage

---

Give Miyuki the Pocketwatch?

[ ] Yes
[ ] No, give her... (choose from items he owns)

Also...begin wearing the glasses immediately after leaving the shop?

[ ] Yes
[ ] No

[Daiki]

[x] Yes.
[x] Yes. (Never know when a seemingly insignificant detail in the background might prove useful later)

[shanagan]

[x] Yes.
[x] Yes.

[apsalar]

[X] Yes.
[X] Yes. (unless Natsumi and Amber express discomfort with this, as they might not want their minds read)

[Skull Leader]

...but Shinji is outnumbered by Amber and Nats as well as has a severe handicap due to being a boy in understanding the girls. He needs these glasses to even the playing field, and even then it is doubtful that he would be on a truly even playing field with them.

Then again, Amber has a sword as well as will train Shinji in its use in the near future and Nats is a inspired Dark Lady with a Lightsaber...maybe it is best that you do not piss them off Shinji.

[alfheimwanderer]

[x] Yes
[x] Yes

---

Glasses, as it turned out, took some getting used to, even when they weren't fitted with corrective lenses. No, especially because they weren't fitted with corrective lenses in this case. Had they been so, Matou Shinji would have understood why he had a headache, but as it was...

'People's thoughts...I can see them...'

The information wasn't flooding into his mind, thankfully, just on the inside of his glasses (which would have caused him some anxiety, save that the crafter had explained that only the wearer could see the information on them, via a magical effect similar to that evoked by the Hand of Glory), but it was still overwhelming. People's thoughts - even their surface thoughts - were so incredibly rich, complex, and contradictory - often at odds with what they said or did. It changed how he saw them, though not the point of eroding his trust, since he wasn't a very trusting person to begin with.

And then...

"What's so fascinating about everyone else, that you won't spare a glance for us?" Amber chided, with Shinji turning, despite himself, towards her, finding himself feeling a frisson of trepidation at what he might see.

...only, as he looked upon her - and Natsumi - the glasses remained blank.

'Huh?'

...was something wrong with his glasses? No, that wasn't it, since when he turned, he could see the thoughts of others pop up on them, but why did they show nothing for Amber and Natsumi?

"Something on your mind?" Amber questioned

[ ] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds
[ ] Offer some other explanation

[apsalar]

[X] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds

They did hear the shopkeeper's explanation of the glasses' function, yes? If not, we might consider whether to tell them our new glasses let us read peoples' minds.

[Skull Leader]

[X] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds

They are Shinji's friends as well as his biggest allies at this point. No reason not to tell them. Its not as if they would not like this sly tool and its possibilities. They both are cleaver girls that like to skirt into trouble.

Nats is fairly easy to on figuring out why it does not work on her but I am curious about why not Amber. Still the glasses are like a passive version of reading someone's mind. Any barrier at all likely stops it where as its harder to stop a full mind act from a expert mind reader, as that is a more active scan.

[shanagan]

[X] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds

[Daiki]

[x] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds.

Nats is fairly easy to on figuring out why it does not work on her but I am curious about why not Amber.

A better question would be; what does Natsumi not share with her old friend? If Sion taught her how to make sure her superficial thoughts (or what's on her mind at any moment) do not leak out, you can be sure she would at least share that trick with Amber.

[alfheimwanderer]

[X] Be honest, say that he can't read their minds

---

"It's just..." the boy trailed off, feeling uneasy for some reason. "You heard the shopkeeper talk about what these glasses do, right?"

"Yes, I heard," Amber noted, with a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"Well...they don't work."

"Ehhh?" Natsumi interjected, blinking. "Even though you paid ten thousand galleons for them? You should get a refund, Matou-kun!" The chestnut-haired girl seemed unusually emphatic about this, but then, maybe that was to be expected from the daughter of a prominent lawyer.

"Err, that is, they work on other people," the boy temporized. "Just not on you two."

"...heh," Amber noted with a smirk. "Haven't you learned by now that girls are supposed to be mysterious?"

"Urk. Well..." Shinji trailed off, unable to think of a good response. "...it works on other girls though," he mused after a moment. "But why not you two...?"

"Matou-kun, you're not the only one who studies Occlumency, you know," Natsumi commented wryly.

"...huh, but where...?" He'd had a book to work off of, not to mention help from Miyuki-senp...oh. "Senpai taught you how?"

"We practice together," Natsumi admitted. "But it was Sokaris who taught me how."

'Sokaris?' But why would she know how...? The boy frowned. Well, given that the Ravenclaw had stared down his monstrous form without flinching, there had to be a trick to it, he supposed. "What else...ah, what else did she teach you?"

"Just a few things here and there," Natsumi replied with a sly smile. "Probably nothing you don't already know, from all those books of yours."

Accept Natsumi's answer - or press for specifics?

[ ] Ask for more details - though this will require laying out what he can do
[ ] Ask if she shared what she knew with Amber
[ ] Agree that he probably does know, and move on to something else

[shanagan]

[X] Move on to something else

[Skull Leader]

[X] Ask for more details - though this will require laying out what he can do

Got this far might as well go all the way. And really this Shinji is not nearly as secret with his skills or at least to his friends. I see no reason not to compare notes. Especially if he wants to get better at the skill.

[alfheimwanderer]

One more choice. It appears there are several levels that the glasses can operate on:

- Privacy Mode, in which the only things it shows are a "!" if someone has something urgent to say or do, a "?" if someone has information to offer or clues for what one is working on, or a "..." if they're not finished with a thought.

- Passive scan mode, in which surface level thoughts appear above people's heads like word bubbles, allowing you to see what a crowd is thinking

- Active scan, which focuses on the person one is looking at/focusing attention on, and provides a fairly in depth reading,if possible, including access to visual data

- Interrogation Mode, which is optimized to break occlumency barriers and retrieve information in as much depth and detail as possible. May be more easily detected.

Which mode would Shinji like to set as default?

[ ] Privacy
[ ] Passive
[ ] Active
[ ] Interrogation

[shanagan]

[X] Privacy

[Skull Leader]

[X] Passive

Sounds about right for the level Shinji should/would use on a everyday use when not really caring about the thoughts around him. Enough details to help him interact with people but not overload of information with a risk of getting caught. Now when he doing something that more...risky, I can see him bumping it up to active. You have to really piss him off or having need to know information for Interrogation to be used.