Withering

[Qingying]

He nodded, smiling. “What sorts of things is he interested in? I hear from other teachers he does well in his classes. Have you noticed whether he prefers certain subjects or topics? Or whether he’s shown interest in topics in conversations or books?”

[Daniel Russo]

"Honestly?" Dan asked with a scrunched brie. "I am not sure how to answer that. If he prefers one subject more than another I have yet to notice any preference. He seems to have a knack for solving problems though, and puzzles."

[Qingying]

Qingying considered his words, and then took out a small ball from a pouch.

“Do you think it’d be appropriate to ask him whether he would like to try this? This was made by Haixiu – professor as Ilvermorny. He develops magical tools, some of which aim to assist people with difficulties moving, hearing, or with speech or sight, for example. It can connect with the user and read their intended meaning, and translates that into speech. It has worked for most of the people who has tried it so far – a high rate of success – but it’s not one hundred percent guaranteed to work for Patience. He does not seem… obviously frustrated. I will not assume this will ‘help’ him simply because it may work. It may not be suitable for him, or he may not want to use it.
What do you think?”

[Daniel Russo]

"I think--" he paused, considering, thoughtful. "--it could not hurt."

[Qingying]

“Okay,” he nodded. “I’ll ask the parents what they think, and then we can ask whether he’d like to try it.”

Qingying and Daniel parted ways. The next day, Qingying returned to the same spot to inform Daniel that they had said yes, and decided to seek Patience’s opinion after class that evening.

As the class concluded and the other students exited, Qingying asked Patience and Daniel to remain and take a seat at a table.

[Patience Juneau]

Patience had spent the whole class silently taking everything in, or maybe not. When asked to remain behind, he did, his arms by his sides in his chair.

[Daniel Russo]

Daniel stayed as more of general support/backup.

[Qingying]

“You’re not in trouble,” Qingying began with a smile as he joined them and sat on a chair. He took out the small, off-white ball with a matte texture from a pouch and showed it to Patience.

“This was designed by a friend of mine – Professor Haixiu at Ilvermorny. He develops magical tools. This is called ‘White Bell’.” He paused and placed the ball on the table in case Patience wanted to pick it up. “It translates people’s intended meanings into audible speech – so far, it has worked for most people who have tried it, but everyone is different, including the reasons why they use this, so I cannot guarantee it will definitely work. If you would like to, we can have a try. I’ve asked your parents and they’ve expressed we can try it and let you use it if you want to.”

[Patience Juneau]

Patience picked it up! It glowed, and then transmitted an effusing sense of warmth throughout the room before fading. Other than that, it didn't seem to translate anything else.

[Qingying]

Qingying didn’t seem puzzled or disappointed.
The warmth was something, though.
“How about you hold it a bit longer,” he said with a smile, “to let it calibrate.”

[Patience Juneau]

He stared down at the device!

[Qingying]

All of them stared down at the device.
It grew slightly warm in Patience’s fingers, and he discovered that despite its rather solid appearance, it was a little soft to touch, and fitted comfortably in his palm.

It wasn’t… working, though.

Qingying attempted to calibrate it some more, but other than emanating that same warmth another time, there was no audible reaction.

He took it in his own hand, and it chirped – so reconfirmed that it did work – but not for Patience.

“Well,” he said as he cupped the ball in his hand. “You’re welcome to hold onto it for a couple more days, Patience, in case it reacts.” Usually it didn’t need that long. “You can carry it on you – in this pouch, if you’d like.” He offered Patience the pouch and ball. “You don’t have to be touching it.” He paused and smiled softly. “I’ll contact Professor Haixiu to ask if he has additional tips, and methods to personalise it to you.”

[Patience Juneau]

He closed his hand over the device and its pouch, staring off to the side.

[Qingying]

Patience was allowed to go, and Qingying attempted to adjust the Bell again the next day, to no avail. Two days after that, Professor Haixiu came to Hogwarts, along with a box of prototypes, but even after starting with one that was almost just a frame and customising it for Patience (they did get better than just warmth), the results were not satisfactory enough to warrant using it.

Throughout, neither Qingying nor Haixiu ever guaranteed something would work, or displayed particular excitement or disappointment – they didn’t want Patience to be disappointed, in case he hoped to use it. Sometimes, the devices didn’t work, but Haixiu would continue to try to make them functional for as many as possible.