"Congratulations. What does it do, or are they not there yet?"

"I'm not sure what you'd do with it. It's the same thing as lightning so perhaps you could set things on fire? And electrical animals kill things with it."

"Maybe that's why it doesn't work in Hogwarts. Though destructive magic does, so..."

"What about lightning?"

"You know, I have no idea. Perhaps I'll ask someone."

"I haven't paid particular attention when there've been storms over the castle but I think would have noticed if I heard thunder and didn't see any lightning overhead...."

"But it might be prevented from striking or something."

"Yeah, that I wouldn't have noticed."

"I am glad the experiment was interesting, at least."

"It was fun! Thanks for the token."

"It sounds like my trust was well-founded."

"No shenanigans occurred," she says.

"Shenanigans are not an abuse of my trust as long as you win at them."

"Noted."

"Take care."

"I will."

Dear Father, 

Hogwarts is a horrible place. I wasn't allowed to leave for Hogsmeade to try the experiment, though there's a girl in my year who was, because she is in Slytherin and has Timothy as a prefect and obviously she therefore merits more rights than I do. Anyway, batteries work in Hogsmeade and not in Hogwarts. I am a little concerned for the wellbeing of the eels (when are the eels arriving?) but I still want them. Notes are attached. I went to the library and looked at accounts of all of the magical protections documented on Hogwarts, looking for ones that might interfere with electricity. There are a few candidates. The problem is that not all of Hogwarts' magical protections are documented. Zachariah asked me what I was doing. I told him that I was having an unpleasant conversation with a stranger who had interrupted me with rude questions. 

...

I'm conversant in Mermish. I would be fluent if the learning process was more compatible with breathing. Gillow says maybe I should try gillyweed; can you send some? Transcription of Mermish is apparently much easier than Chinese, I haven't encountered any distinctions that are hard to write out yet. 

...

Aaron sends his regards. I told him to write his own letters but he said I enjoyed it so it was more efficient for me to do it. There's something suspect about the argument but I didn't have time to refute it before bed. All in all, a disappointing Saturday.

Your loyal son,

Minor Finis Way

"Someone," he says to Fredrick, "tested whether lightning was electricity by running around with a kite with metal attached. They didn't die but my father says by rights they should have died."

"So you're going to try it?"

"You're okay, you know that?"

"You're the only one who ever had any issues believing that."

"Gonna help me figure out how to build a kite?"

"Seems like that ends with your father accusing my father of orchestrating the death of one of his sons."

"I'm not a Muggle, it won't kill me."

"Oh, like your father's not capable of accusing my father of orchestrating the murder of one of his sons with all seven of you perfectly whole and healthy."