 Rhibear ~ Madam Solo ~ Dark Brooding Girl ~ Accio Jedi ~ Gryffinclaw ~ Just a doll
Tina wasn't the least bit surprised to learn that Excalibur was the subject of today's lesson. What did surprise her was getting house points for an answer that wasn't directly related to that topic, but it was the good kind of surprise. She beamed, giving Professor O'Hara a nod of thanks so as not to interrupt the lesson. Listening with rapt attention, she had just enough time to jot down a few notes before the instruction came to remove the cloths on the desks. Already? Wow, this class was moving fast!
She lifted the cover and - she was right! It was a miniature version of the sword in the stone. The points from earlier already had Tina feeling pleased with herself, but correctly guessing the object made her feel even more smug. Now if only she could correctly guess how to get the sword out of the stone… She thought for several moments. The most obvious solution was to just pull the sword and see what happened, but that seemed a little too easy. There was probably more to it than that.
Then she recalled that Professor O'Hara said they could use magic. Maybe that was the answer, but which spell should she use? Could she try summoning the sword? Probably not. If there were enchantments on the real stone, it stood to reason that there were enchantments on this stone that would prevent summoning (or else summon the stone along with the sword). Then she thought of trying to break the enchantments on the stone, but it was a longshot. It would be hard to guess the correct counterspell when she didn't know what kind of magic was used in the first place, and it seemed unlikely that a simple Finite Incantatem would work.
More thoughts ran through Tina's mind, each one more far-fetched than the last. Transfigure the sword into something that wouldn't fit the stone… shrink the sword and hope it would slip out? No, no, no! That sounded ridiculous! Come on! Think, Tina, think! she told herself sternly. She remembered what O'Hara had said. Only Arthur could pull Excalibur from.the stone because he was worthy to be king, but how did the stone know he was worthy? Did the stone's magic function like that of the Sorting Hat where it could see into one's mind? Or maybe it was more like a patronus charm, and good thoughts, like those of a worthy king, fuelled its magic?
That was it! Maybe by thinking like a worthy king, Tina could budge the sword. Now the question remained, what made a worthy king? She thought about it carefully. Compassion for sure, and dedication, courage, honesty… and humility, none of that thirst for power or popularity nonsense. A lot of leaders overlooked that part. Tina searched her memories for times in her life when she'd shown those qualities, and channeling all her focus into those thoughts, she stood up and gave the sword a firm yank. Did that work? Did she do it?
__________________ Old voices I had thought long since dead whisper of another life I might have led
If I could take that second chance, If I could make my life anew, If only dreams came true... |