Regrets

If the old man noticed this he made no mention of it which Nick was grateful for as he approached the small professor and produced Slugbane from Greed. The small man eagerly received the ring and began looking over it curiously. "Ha ha ha! Yes that does seem like something Hagrid would want , a slug repellent ring." he said with a loud laugh after looking over the ring carefully. "The enchantment is a bit unusual but the piece itself is quite good , thank you for showing me!" Flitwick said happily while handing the ring back to Nick.-

Nick nodded at the praise before walking over to the end of the table where Hagrid was sitting and waiting impatiently. "Here you go , one slug repellent ring. Remember to hang it up in your hut and to clean up the dead slugs from your garden afterwards." he said while handing the ring to the half giant who was quite happy the get it. "Thanks Nick I appreciate it!" the large man said with a wide smile. "Now if you'll all excuse me I am simply famished and there's a plate of food calling my name." Nick said with a smile before walking back to the Gryffindor table while many sets of eyes were on him.-

Dinner was much like usual with Nick devouring a bit more than normal though no one noticed since he usually ate a lot. He of course restocked his depleted snack stores during the desert portion of the meal but that too had become a normal sight so no one cared. A few girls tried to suck up to Nick after the meal in order to try and get free jewelry but he coldly dismissed them with his best resting Snape face.-

All the girls who thought those ones shameless smirked and giggled at how ruthless Nick was in getting rid of them. Padma Patil even apologized on behalf of the female side of Gryffindor for the others actions but Nick merely shrugged it off. He made it clear already that he didn't work for free unless he meant it as a gift and even then it has to be a special occasion. His work becomes worthless if he just goes around handing out rings like candy after all. Nick wasn't surprised to find out that a certain elf had shown up in his dream again when he turning in for the night.-

"I'm not upset about the way you've used my inheritance you know." the elf said with a sigh and Nick was confused "you aren't?" he asked in disbelief. The elf chuckled and shook his head " No , quite the opposite really. Unlike me who was so fixated in leaving my name in history and only used my knowledge to make true masterworks , you have chosen to embrace the true potential of the craft and help all who request your services for an acceptable price. I honestly could not be happier about this." the elf said with an honest smile.-

"Back when I was still alive I was arrogant and wasted my gifts on useless things like pride and vanity. It was only when I was betrayed and my family was slaughtered before my eyes that I realized my mistakes , but it was too late." the man said with a melancholic sigh. "You chose the path I myself should have taken and it sets my spirit at ease to see it. But enough about all that , you have questions I take it?" the man said while waiting patiently for Nick to speak.-

"How do you forge organic rings?" Nick wasted no time at all asking a big question. "Hahahaha , I have no clue! Exciting isn't it? That despite all my knowledge and skill I know less about the subject than you do!" the man laughed happily. "I have no doubt you'll eventually figure it out but when you do it'll be because of your hard work , not me." the man said with a proud smile. "Well since that's a bust what about lembas bread , each session takes a heavy toll on my energy reserves and it could really help." Nick said not really minding that he couldn't skip all the trial and error.-

"Ah wayfarers bread , a truly marvelous thing really. Did you know there is actually three versions of it?" the man said with a look of nostalgia. "Really? I only know about the one kind that can serve as food for a day per bite." Nick said surprised. "Indeed , the truth of the stuff is that while they all do that the benefits of each type are different. What you need is the soldier ration bread that is packed with proteins and vitamins so you can fight or in your case forge on an otherwise empty stomach , I myself used it often." the man then explained how to create the stuff before the dream ended and Nick awoke.

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