 Wowza!
The rune did not... work... even a little bit? Deprimo was dodged by the snake, which Levi could accept, but the rune was seemingly of no help at all? It had glowed gold and then white, which signified it was done and ready. Should have worked, and yet--nothing. He stared, seeing the left head come out of the jinx and propel itself forward with the help of the right one. Ancient Runes were meant to help when regular magic just wasn't enough; how on Merlin's beard had it failed?
And just how many times did he have to tell the labrador to attack? Was his understanding of oppugno not accurate? For those in the back who didn't hear the first time, then: "OPPUGNO."
Especially since the snake was now approaching, even if the middle one appeared to be deep in the daydream charm.
One day, when he didn't have a runespoor about to charge at him, Levi was just going to sit back and congratulate himself on his charm work. First finite had been strong enough to lift a disillusionment charm and now this.
So, no runes. No play on words. What, then? Nature, just nature. Just that word to cling to.
The frustration, the heat, the need for drink made his steps back sluggish and Levi knew that if he were to cast aguamenti it'd immediately end whatever was left of the daydream charm. And the dog would cease to exist, too. He clutched the rune close to his chest, as if to ward the creature off, and found it strange that he felt no fear. Only exhaustion and the need to lay down.
He should have cast an atmospheric charm while he had the chance. Not like anything he'd done had been of any help, anyway, though he'd been sure it would help.
'Optimistic Gryffindor nonsense', his father would have said. Always go for the kill--end things as quickly as you can.
Nature.
N A T U R E.
"Nature. N-A-T-U-R-E."
He was so thirsty.
"Nature. Subdue."
More steps back, wand pointed at the runespoor's middle head.
"Ooooohhh." Levi cleared this throat, licked his lips and stopped retreating. "I got it, I think." And possibly it had taken him this long to get it because he could not ever be quite so literal. Over-thinking, once again, had made him miss the bigger picture or, in this case, the obvious answer. Assuming he was right, it wasn't like it had been difficult to understand the instructions--they had been right there on the second line of runes.
He had just expected... something else.
Flicking his wand down south, the boy pointed at where legs would sprout out of the runespoor if it had any and thought of roots and the earth itself willing the serpent to stay still, to become one with it. And so he cast the Take Root spell at it. If it worked the serpent would become, partly, a plant; rooted to the earth of the African forest. And if it didn't, well; he'd just used all his concentration on one spell and completely neglected the rest.
It would be a good story to tell, at least. To get bitten by a runespoor and survive to tell the tale later on.
Assuming he did survive, anyway.
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