Closed Seeking Guidance

[Felix Carnahan]

Felix felt like he was drowning, metaphorically. But his head did feel like it was spinning most days and he wasn't sure how he was supposed to balance everything on his plate, metaphorically. Last year had been hard with his prefect duties on top of his quidditch practices and lessons. Now he was basically taking a whole additional class with all the work Aeon had given him. He knew it would all be worth it but some days he just wanted a break. It made him think of Harper and how she had managed it all while in school. She had seem so much older at put together when he was younger and if anyone knew how to handle it was her.

Dear Harper,

Hi, it's Felix. Sawyer's brother in case you didn't remember. But we talked about becoming an animagus before and I've finally started my training. Do you remember Professor Summers? Or well he's just Mr. Summers now. And well sometimes I just call him Aeon. But that's not important. He also owns the Magical Menagerie, where I work, and he's started training me over the holidays. He also gave me a lot of stuff to read while I'm at school and, well it's a lot. Was It like this when you trained? Was Professor Abberline any easier?

I guess I'm really just writing to ask if you had any advice on how to handle it all? There's just so much to learn. How did you do it? Or am I just being dramatic? Would love to hear if you have an advice?

How's adult life by the way? Sawyer doesn't have a job yet. Hope you're doing well!!

Thanks,
Felix

 

[Harper Alston]

Now that Harper was spending more time in the magical world, she was getting more of her correspondence via owls. She didn't mind too much. It had been a pain while she was at Hogwarts, but there was something admittedly nostalgic about writing letters by hand. She still had all the letters she'd received during her school years tucked in a box somewhere. Harper had never gotten a letter from Hogwarts, however, and when one came for her, she was intrigued.

After giving the owl a treat, Harper immediately slit open the envelope and started to read. She grinned as she read the first paragraph, though she was a little surprised to hear that Professor Summers was Felix's instructor. The line about Sawyer made her chuckle. That was one friend she really needed to catch up with, and Harper made a mental note to send him an owl later. But first, she had to write Felix back.

Hi Felix,

Of course I remember you! It's great to hear from you again, and I'm so glad you decided to begin animagus training. It's a lot of work, but it's so worth it when you're finally done. You're in good hands with Prof Mr. Summers. He's a great teacher, although he does assign a lot of reading though. I remember getting a new stack of books every week when I was training with him. I can't say if Professor Abberline would be any easier since I'd finished learning all the theory by the time I started training with him. But if you ever have any questions and need an immediate answer (or just want some extra guidance), he's a good resource, and I'm sure he'd be happy to help you.

You're definitely not being dramatic. I think I spent pretty much all my free time sixth year practicing transfigurations. It probably helped that I didn't really do any extracurriculars at Hogwarts, so I had more free time than most people. But that doesn't mean you can't become an animagus if you're more involved. You just have to be a little stricter about time management. I would treat your training as an extra class and try to block out some time every day to study. It's a lot easier than trying to cram all the material right before your sessions with Profess Mr. Summers. I kept a separate notebook for all my animagus stuff, and after each reading, I tried to summarize the main ideas in a short paragraph. (I used to take detailed notes, but that got to be pretty time-consuming.) If you want, I can send you a copy of my notes.

This won't help until you finish all the theory, but if you can, try to spend a few minutes every day meditating. Or even just a few minutes a week. It'll make the next part of your training go a lot faster.

Adult life is good! It's a lot of fun, and it's nice having more free time (and no classes). I actually started a new job at the Ministry with the Department of Magical Law Enforcement recently, and I'm hoping I'll get to use my animagus skills at work. I'm sure Sawyer will also find a job soon. How are things at Hogwarts? I know training's a lot, but hopefully you've still been able to enjoy school.

Anyway, I hope some of that helped. Tell Mr. Summers I said hi. And if you ever need more advice (or just want to talk), don't hesitate to reach out!

Best,
Harper

 

[Felix Carnahan]

Felix was reeling after his break up with Molly. Was it a break up? He had said they should take a break but it wasn't like he had been able to face her since to work it all out. Maybe it was for the best. Besides he had to focus on quidditch. Even if they weren't in the running for the cup he didn't want to let anyone down. Not to mention the stack of transfiguration books he still needed to get through before he got back to the menagerie. When he got an unfamiliar letter delivered to him he had almost forgotten about the one he had sent to Harper and he eagerly opened up and started on an reply.

Harper!

Thanks for writing me back! I'm still struggling a bit with all the reading on top of everything else but it is reassuring to know that I'm not over reacting. I'm just not sure how it all piled up. It was like one day everything was fine and now I'm staying up half the night just to finish assignments. And I would love to see you're notes if you don't mind!

I've never tried meditating before but I guess I could try. Is it as boring as it seems?

Wow that's so cool! Did you know you wanted to do that when you were doing your training? I guess it's kind of hard to plan for that before you know what animal you'd be. You could have been a rabbit. Not sure how helpful that would have been to law enforcement. I have no idea what my form will be or if I'll be able to use it for anything. It does make me feel selfish sometimes to think I might be putting in so much time into something that won't be useful... Is that crazy? I think I'm just tired.

School had been fine. Doubt things have changed much at all since you've graduated. There was a fight during the prefects meeting but other than that it's been business as usual. I did break up with my girlfriend so...maybe not that usual. But it's whatever.

Anyway, those notes would be great! And I'll definitely pass the message on to Mr. Summers!

-Felix

 

[Harper Alston]

Harper had naively assumed that she would be done with homework once she graduated. Maybe that would've been true if she had taken almost any other job, but as an auror, she had four more years of classes to look forward to. And that meant four more years of homework. Harper was in the middle of a very dense text on antidotes when an owl tapped its beak against her window. She glanced up in surprise and took the letter, smiling when she saw it was from Felix. On one hand, she probably should get back to her reading — her instructor had rather ominously hinted that he might poison them during their next lesson. On the other hand, Harper thought she deserved a break after her hours of reading. She picked up a pen and began to write.

Hey Felix!

I've attached all my animagus notes, so hopefully that saves you some sleep. I doubt Mr. Summers is giving you different books to read. Animagus theory isn't the most dynamic branch of transfiguration. I won't lie, I found meditating to be pretty boring, but some people find it relaxing. It does get more interesting once you get better at it and you're actually working on transfigurations. I got visions that helped with my transformations, and I know it sounds corny, but I did eventually feel like I had a better sense of self.

I actually had no idea what I wanted to do when I started my training. That's not true. I wanted to be a professional footballer. (I'm not sure what animal would've helped with that.) It's not crazy to want your form to be "useful." I definitely spent a lot of time wondering about my form and hoping that it wouldn't be something like a sea cucumber. That being said, it's unlikely your form will be completely useless. Whatever your form is, you'll be able to communicate with other animals. And being able to turn into an animal at will is an amazing skill in and of itself. There are very few people who can do that. At the very least, all this training means you'll be prepared for the Transfiguration NEWT. Trust me, it's a breeze compared to training.

I was going to say that the prefect's meeting is the last place I would've expected a fight, but my year had some pretty unconventional prefects, including yours truly. I guess the professors just like to keep things interesting. Congratulations on getting the badge though! (Apologies if I'm a year late. Sawyer doesn't tell me anything.) I'm sorry to hear about the breakup. That's rough, and with everything else you have going on, I imagine it doesn't make things any easier. I know you're busy, but I hope you get to take some time for yourself. Let me know if there's ever anything I can do to help.

-Harper