"You're right," Dumbledore said, his expression complicated. "She's Ariana—my sister. And she's the one holding the alchemy item Tom made for her."
"——Well, at least she's back with you now, isn't she?" Nicolas said after a short silence. He gave Dumbledore's shoulder a reassuring pat.
"You're right. At least we're together again. And there's still a chance she could come back for real."
Since everyone in the room could be trusted, Dumbledore didn't hold back. He kept the details light, though.
Then his gaze landed on Tom. "Tom, this is Nicolas Flamel. The Philosopher's Stone you're currently 'borrowing'? He made it."
[Of course I know who he is. But what the hell does that have to do with my reward?]
Tom steered the conversation fast. If he didn't, Dumbledore might actually ask for the Stone back. Not that Tom planned on keeping it forever—he'd return it eventually. But borrowing it for a couple days to churn out some extra gold? Harmless fun.
"Of course it's related. But first, Ariana, show Nicolas your gloves."
"This——"
Ariana glanced at Tom. He gave her a tiny nod. She slipped the gloves off and handed them over.
Nicolas took them without thinking. The second his fingers brushed the fabric, he froze. "It actually breaks the boundary between life and death? Incredible. Absolutely incredible."
His fingertips traced the material, feeling the faint magical hum. He tried to identify it—nothing matched. No known substance even came close.
"Brand new techniques. Brand new materials. Brand new processes. You were right, Albus. There's still so much worth exploring in this world."
Light sparked back into Nicolas's eyes.
[So your big "reward" is letting him look at gloves I made? Or are you planning to sell this thing commercially?
If that's the case, hard pass. Pure handmade work. Total pain in the ass to make.]
"Of course not. What I meant by reward is——"
Before Dumbledore could finish, Nicolas cut in. "Are you sure you want to do that? I don't think it's a good idea."
"I actually think it's a solid plan," Dumbledore said with a smile, turning to Tom. "You've got serious talent in alchemy. So I recommended you to Nicolas. You're going to be his student and learn real alchemy."
"Sigh."
Nicolas sighed. Honestly, the gloves alone proved Tom's skill was already on his level. He wasn't sure he had anything left to teach. But since Albus had asked...
"Little guy, want to take me as your master? I'm not sure what I can teach you, but we can explore the mysteries of alchemy together."
[Not interested.]
Tom curled his lip, looking thoroughly unimpressed. Alchemy? No thanks. He'd rather spend that time making Galleons.
And did this stuff really need special lessons?
In his opinion, alchemy was just like brewing potions—throw random crap in a pot, smack it around, and if it worked, great. Theory was optional.
"I told you so."
Nicolas had expected the refusal. To him, Tom was already a master. Swapping notes would be plenty.
Dumbledore blinked at the blunt rejection, then grinned. "You sure? Nicolas Flamel is the authority on alchemy. With him as your mentor, anything you sell could easily have an extra zero on the price tag.
Plus, the Philosopher's Stone is an alchemy product. Learn it and you might make one yourself someday!"
Tom's eyes lit up for half a second—then went flat again.
[Eh, even without learning alchemy I've got ways to make plenty of Galleons. No point wasting time on this.]
If this conversation had happened earlier, the pitch might've landed. But now? He had Norberta dumping endless materials in the Forbidden Forest and the actual Philosopher's Stone sitting in his paws. Turning stuff to gold wasn't a joke. Tom was already rich.
The only reason he still "worked" was because it was fun and stupidly easy.
Chasing money by studying alchemy? Not happening.
"Since that's how you feel, then never mind. I was only mentioning it because Albus asked. Honestly, with the gloves you made, I don't have much left to teach you anyway.
But if you're open to it, we could just be friends and bounce ideas off each other."
[We'll table that for now.]
Tom looked at Nicolas and suddenly had an idea.
[How about we talk about something else first? Like... do you need any magical creature materials?]
He had plenty of stock but no good way to move it. He'd thought about asking Snape, but now...
Nicolas Flamel had been sitting on the Philosopher's Stone for centuries. The guy had to be loaded. And alchemists burned through ingredients. He could probably clear Tom's entire inventory.
"? What do you mean?"
The sudden topic shift left Nicolas confused.
[I've got some magical creature materials from the Forbidden Forest. Thought you might be interested.]
Tom pulled a pouch from his fur and dumped everything out—
Acromantula venom and silk, Billywig stingers, Thestral tail hair, unicorn horn shards and tail hair, a Bowtruckle, plus a few of Norberta's scales.
[Wait, these aren't——]
Tom quickly snatched back the Bowtruckle and Norberta's scales. He wasn't ready to reveal the fire dragon yet.
He moved fast, and since Norberta didn't look like a typical dragon, Nicolas didn't notice.
But the other old man Dumbledore had brought along caught the sleight of hand. Curiosity flickered in his eyes, though he stayed quiet.
"Where the hell did you get all this?!"
Even Dumbledore looked surprised. Usually only Hagrid could produce this much stuff. How had Tom managed it while he was gone?
[Oh, you know. The magical creatures just gave them to me.]
"Mm, gave them to Norberta, which basically means they gave them to me~"
Tom thought smugly.
[So? Want to buy some? Fresher than anything on the market.]
"This——"
Nicolas was genuinely tempted. Alchemy burned through materials fast, and those gloves had reignited his passion. For real research, he needed stock.
Just as he was about to answer, the office door swung open. A half-human-tall silver figure walked in.
Tom stared. It was a pure metal construct——a robot?!
No, not just a robot. It wore a fancy butler uniform and carried a small brown leather suitcase. Carved face, reflective skin—100% metal.
"Sorry to interrupt."
The metal man stopped in front of Nicolas and bowed. "Master, where should I put your room? I'll go prepare it and unpack your luggage."
Its tone was respectful, movements perfect. If you ignored the metal skin, you'd swear it was a real butler.
"This can wait. After I finish chatting with my friend."
Nicolas smiled and patted the metal butler's shoulder.
"Understood. I'll wait outside for your instructions."
The metal butler bowed again, picked up the suitcase, and left, quietly closing the door.
"Sorry about that. My wife and I are getting on in years. A lot of things are harder to manage, so I built a butler to handle the day-to-day. Didn't expect him to be this eager."
Dumbledore said something after that, but Tom didn't hear a word. His brain was stuck on the metal butler.
He could feel it was pure metal—no life—but it moved, talked, and handled tasks exactly like a human.
In an instant, Tom was hooked.
[Is this a spell? Can you do this to anything and make it come alive?!]
"This isn't a spell. It's an alchemy golem I created,"
Nicolas explained with a smile, seeing Tom's interest. "It can talk. It can think. And it's surprisingly easy to power.
Theoretically you can make these golems out of any material, but metal's stronger and more durable. Less maintenance. That's why I went with it."
[Teacher, I want to learn this!]
Tom's eyes lit up like Christmas lights. He had a bold idea.
Sure, he was a cat. But don't forget—his name was Tom. Being a horny little bastard was just part of the package.
It wasn't that his soul was into catgirls or anything—he had zero interest in actual cats, and as a cat himself he wasn't about to date humans. So he'd kept those urges locked down.
But if he learned how to make these things——
Silicone. Latex. TPE. Just thinking about it got him excited.
Still, Tom kept his face neutral. No way he was letting that show.
Nicolas had no idea what was going through the cat's head. He just looked surprised. "You're sure you want to learn this?"
[Absolutely.]
Tom nodded hard. This was every shut-in's ultimate dream!
"Since you're that enthusiastic, I won't say no."
Nicolas nodded. "I'll teach you everything I know about alchemy."
You don't have to teach me everything. Just how to make that metal butler thing.
Tom thought privately. But with his learning speed, he'd probably digest six hundred years of Nicolas's knowledge in no time—and maybe even improve on it. So he kept that part to himself.
"Tom, you flip faster than a Snitch," Dumbledore teased from the side.
Tom didn't care.
[I suddenly got interested in alchemy. That a problem?]
"Of course not. If anything, having a student like you would be my honor."
Nicolas smiled as he handed the gloves back to Ariana. "Just these gloves you made have given me so many ideas. And those materials—they're all top quality. I'll pay double the market rate for them."
[Damn right they are. Fresh off the creature.]
Tom grinned proudly. Price? Nicolas had offered a premium himself. And hey, as his new "master," a little bonus for the apprentice was only fair~
Nicolas shook his head, amused. "We can hash out the exact numbers and quantities with my butler later. I'll tell him the price."
[Then it's a deal!]
Tom was thrilled. Lifetime "companions" secured AND his money problems solved? Why wouldn't he be happy?
"Oh, right, Albus. Your sister's an Obscurial, isn't she? How's she doing now? Did you sort out the problem?"
At that, Ariana's face fell. Before anyone could answer, the other old man Dumbledore had brought along spoke up with a smile. "I'm guessing not yet. Otherwise the professor wouldn't have dragged this old retiree all the way from Dorset."
"You are——"
The man standing next to Nicolas looked thoughtful, then uncertain. "Newt Scamander?"
"That's me. Didn't expect you to know my name, Mr. Flamel."
Newt smiled and nodded at Nicolas.
"Of course. The first wizard to successfully capture Grindelwald. Your name still carries weight."
Nicolas smiled back. "Though I know you more for that famous suitcase of yours. No ordinary Undetectable Extension Charm could pull that off."
Newt just smiled and didn't elaborate. Nicolas didn't push.
Seeing the conversation shift to Newt, Dumbledore stepped in. "Ariana, this is Newt Scamander—an old friend of mine. Like Hagrid, he loves working with magical creatures. He's even kept an Obscurus before.
If anyone understands Obscuri, he's the expert. He's also the teacher I mentioned—the one who can help you control that power."