The insides of the Shack were exactly as Darcie had imagined them to be.
Other than the obvious creaking of wood, there was a rotting smell to the place, too. It was so deeply infused within the old walls that it felt like no amount of magic would be enough to make it go away. Then there was a feeling… of something extremely dark and deplorable.
"Yes." Lord Black Phoenix's eyes shone, catching onto that feeling as well. "It's here."
The Headmaster and student were already standing in the middle of the hall, with two more, much smaller rooms lost in the darkness, only a few steps away.
Darcie looked around as Dumbledore closed his eyes as if listening to something.
There was absolutely nothing left in the Shack, she noticed.
No signs that people lived here. Once.
Yet, she could sense a weird touch of remembrance attached to these old, rotting pieces of wood. Voldemort's mother used to live here, the Professor had told her. Perhaps it was her ghost that still haunted this place?
Darcie's eyes narrowed, sensing the urge to keep searching for that ghost… for eternity.
"Hmm…" Dumbledore's eyes snapped open, flashing black. "More enchantments, targeting the mind. Ever so cautious and subtle, Tom. Under the layer of a massive display of power, he also added a touch of the Confundus Charm. That's the real danger. He was always an exceptional Legilimens. And you can't be that without being even better in Occlumency. Rare… Rare, indeed."
Darcie raised her brows.
"So…" she said, realizing what the Headmaster was trying to say, "if anyone else had come here after dealing with the charm outside, then…"
"… then they would have found themselves utterly helpless against this magic, Darcie," Dumbledore admitted. "A physical exertion also leaves the mind exhausted. Voldemort had meant to take advantage of that exhaustion."
Sadly, neither of the two standing in the Shack at this moment possessed an ordinary Mindscape.
Darcie's Mindscape was carefully planned with the help of none other than Madam Villanelle, who had the Order of Immortal Lotus to guide her.
With her status as the future Indigo Seat, and her delicate potential of being an Obscurial, the Six hadn't held back, either, letting her access all they had to offer on the matter.
Dumbledore's case was even simpler.
If he had come here before ascending to the status of Lord Black Phoenix, even then, he would have easily overcome the charm.
So, with the deadliest part of today's adventure becoming a mere trick, all that was left to do was to get their hands on the object they had come here for.
"It's under your feet," Darcie suddenly said, alerting Dumbledore. "I can… hear it."
The Headmaster looked at her and found her staring dead at his feet, the Slytherin's Wand in her hand, trembling… with a distinct rhythm.
Dumbledore stepped back and stared at the same place, then.
The rotting floorboard, held together by his magic, exploded… again!
Hundreds of wooden splinters suspended themselves midair around Dumbledore and Darcie, revealing the object they had been hiding within — a golden box!
With one thought, Dumbledore made the box levitate in the middle of the room and opened it.
And HISSES flooded the Shack, making even Lord Black Phoenix wince.
Dark.
Terrible.
Monstrous.
Utterly murderous.
The black robe Dumbledore donned, with its end flickering like tongues of fire, trembled as those Hisses shook the Despair he carried.
Slowly, from the box, a ring floated out, gently rotating on its axis, and…
… carrying a stone in its socket.
The moment Dumbledore had thought about Voldemort having Horcruxes, he had asked the Phoenix.
The Half-Deep One had outright rejected his request, though.
Not only that, but the Phoenix had also told him that asking the same of the Six was even more pointless.
Revealing the future to anyone in a particular timeline was one of the greatest taboos.
Not even a Half-Deep One would remain unscathed once the blade of Karmic Backlash fell.
Not only that, even if somehow Dumbledore managed to learn the future from someone, as long as that someone didn't belong to the timeline itself, the Timeline would erase his memory of the said future right away, simultaneously obliterating the other existence.
That meant the idea of making another deal with Yellow Warlock wouldn't work, either.
In fact, Contestants suffered even more by breaching this rule, Dumbledore had learned.
So, as he saw the ring, Lord Black Phoenix experienced as great a shock as he could ever experience in his life.
It was less to do with the hisses that troubled Darcie so, and more to do with the stone itself, the Elder Wand in his hand, trembling… just like the Snakewood one.
Feelings surged within Dumbledore as they had never before.
As if controlled by strings, he reached out toward the ring with his left, magical hand, ignoring Darcie's call to stop.
The Phoenix's presence in his mind receded to mere chirps, too, as Death arrived to witness the event.
Darcie lunged to grab Dumbledore's elbow, but he wasn't an old man anymore.
His hand, controlled by unseen strings of fate, slithered faster… and, in one swoop, his fingers wrapped around the ring, emanating a golden, blinding flash.
Darcie, whose ears exploded with strange, unnerving hisses, stumbled back.
It was like the flash possessed a physical force to it, slamming right into her the moment the Headmaster grabbed it.
Then, together, Darcie and Dumbledore heard a strange hum — a piece of metal vibrating right next to their ears, its pitch gaining intensity with every passing moment.
Then, as abrupt as the hum had appeared, it vanished.
A silence engulfed the two of them, their vision returning gradually.
When they could finally see, Darcie's pupils widened to the extreme, a heart-sinking gasp escaping Dumbledore's mouth.
In front of Lord Black Phoenix stood a woman, eying him back with a blank face.
It wasn't Darcie's unfamiliarity with the woman that had widened her pupils, though.
It was the woman's appearance, translucent, almost transparent, carrying a halo like a ghost, but thinner. Much, much thinner.
And, only Dumbledore, holding the Resurrection Stone in his hand, knew how to make the woman solid…
… how to resurrect his sister…