As Douglas rifled through the shelves in the Ravenclaw common room, searching for any book that might be the diary, he couldn't help but recall an old adage: the most dangerous place is often the safest. The best way to hide a drop of water is to let it vanish into the sea...
So, all he could do was search for a needle in a haystack—specifically, for any notebook that looked old and unremarkable.
But no matter how carefully he searched, he came up empty.
Accio?
Of course he'd tried it, but no matter what name he called, nothing responded.
Just as he straightened up and glanced out the window, he froze.
A hunting owl soared past in the night.
Douglas smacked his forehead, feeling as dense as a troll.
How could he have forgotten about the owl?
Suddenly, Snape and Dumbledore's parting words echoed in his mind.
Now it all made sense—no wonder Snape had suggested looking for clues with Malfoy.
They must have guessed the truth.
A wave of frustration washed over Douglas.
He'd twisted himself in knots, imagining Voldemort hollowing out a book to hide the diary, or stashing it somewhere clever—
But in the end, the magical world was often much simpler.
With enough time, you could just send a book away by owl, unless someone had set up a magical dragnet to intercept it.
No wonder those two had left so easily...
If his deduction was right, the diary was already gone, the Chamber entrance was under surveillance,
and even if Malfoy tried to bring the diary back, it would be nearly impossible to open the Chamber again.
So, for now, the danger at Hogwarts was over—
or so Douglas believed.
He left the Ravenclaw common room without heading to the Great Hall, and went straight back to his office.
He collapsed onto his bed and fell into a deep, exhausted sleep.
His mind and body were simply worn out.
Meanwhile, Dumbledore hadn't expected events to take such a sharp turn, either.
In the hospital wing, after a consultation among the school's top wizards, Madam Pomfrey herself administered the potion.
Tom Cruise drifted into a heavy sleep.
Then Dumbledore personally set to work, erasing the portion of Tom's memory that had been tampered with.
"It seems someone made subtle changes to his memories concerning Tom," he said quietly.
"Unless Tom himself intervenes, there's no way for us to recover that lost fragment..."
There were things Dumbledore didn't mention aloud.
While modifying memories, it was inevitable to glimpse a few stray images—
a secondhand bookstore in Diagon Alley, a fleeting glimpse of Douglas among the shelves...
Those fragments were enough to tell Dumbledore that Douglas knew more than he let on, otherwise he wouldn't have guided events so precisely.
It made Dumbledore even more confident in entrusting the matter to him.
So the headmaster and the four Heads of House left the hospital wing and returned to the Great Hall to reassure the students...
Among the students, seeing the headmaster and professors return—but not their Defence Against the Dark Arts professor—
the rumors exploded.
"Oh, poor Professor Holmes—he didn't even last a single term..."
"But I thought he was really strong?"
"This curse has nothing to do with strength..."
The Ravenclaw students also noticed that one of their own hadn't come back,
but since Professor Flitwick said nothing, no one dared mention it.
With the students growing restless, Headmaster Dumbledore had no choice but to step forward and explain—
after all, how else could he hope to hire new professors next year?
"Oh, don't worry, everyone.
There's been a bit of trouble in the castle, but your beloved Professor Holmes is handling it.
He's perfectly safe—nothing has happened to him.
Just wait patiently. I have every confidence that Douglas will resolve this,
and then you'll all be able to return to your common rooms..."
And so, everyone waited—until half past ten at night.
Some of the younger students were yawning, some even dozing off at the tables.
At the staff table, the professors began muttering among themselves.
Professor Sprout voiced her concern:
"Albus, you don't think something's happened to Douglas, do you?
After all, the opponent is...
Well, I do believe in his abilities, but it's been such a long time without news..."
Professor McGonagall nodded.
"The students have classes tomorrow..."
Truth be told, even Dumbledore and Snape were growing uneasy.
Douglas had seemed so confident—why was there still no word?
So Dumbledore raised his wand, and a flash of silver-white shot across the hall.
The students perked up instantly—after all, seeing Dumbledore cast spells was a rare treat.
But most of them couldn't make out what it was.
What surprised Dumbledore was that his Patronus didn't fly toward Ravenclaw Tower—
it seemed to be heading for the Defence Against the Dark Arts office...
In his office, Douglas was fast asleep when a voice startled him awake.
"Douglas, whether you've found anything or not, come to the Great Hall!"
He blinked, staring at the silver-white phoenix summoned by the Patronus Charm, carrying Dumbledore's voice.
After repeating the message twice, the Patronus faded away.
Douglas rubbed his eyes, trying to shake off the drowsiness.
It had been ages since he'd gone to bed so early—he glanced at the clock.
It was already half past ten; he'd only slept two hours.
He was confused. Hadn't the danger already passed?
Why call him to the Great Hall so late?
He straightened his clothes—though, truthfully, he hadn't even changed out of them.
Yawning, he opened his office door, ready to see what all the fuss was about.
The moment he stepped out, he nearly collided with a group of senior professors hurrying down the corridor toward his office.
They all stared at each other for a moment.
Seeing Douglas looking freshly woken, still yawning,
the professors all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Professor Sprout hurried over to check on him, leaving Douglas thoroughly bewildered.
Unlike the other professors, Snape's eyes were sharp and guarded.
"Douglas, why are you in your office? Where's the artifact?"
Douglas could hear the mocking undertone—so they'd guessed before he did.
Did they really need to come all the way here just to show off?
So he replied, not bothering to hide his irritation:
"Didn't you already figure it out?"
"Er—!"
This time, it was Dumbledore and Snape who looked stunned.
Wait—what did we figure out?
Douglas was puzzled by their expressions, but quietly assured Professor Sprout that he was fine—just a bit groggy—
and ushered everyone into his office.
Snape and Dumbledore exchanged a look and followed him in,
the other professors trailing behind.
Apart from Professor McGonagall, none of the others had visited Douglas's office before.
The moment they entered, they could sense it had a completely different atmosphere from their own.
Not better or worse, just... unique.
Only Professor McGonagall seemed perfectly at home, taking her seat at the tea table.
Professor Snape surveyed the room with a hint of disdain, then stood beside a chair rather than sitting,
his voice cold:
"What did you mean by that just now?"
The other professors turned to Douglas expectantly.
After all, Dumbledore had just told them Douglas would resolve the rest of the matter soon.
Douglas frowned, glancing at Dumbledore and Snape in confusion.
"Didn't you already guess that the diary was probably sent away by owl?
That's why you both left so confidently and left me there, tearing the place apart like an idiot."
By the end, there was a trace of grievance in his voice.
Was this some kind of hazing ritual?
And now they'd come back just to rub it in!
The other three Heads of House stared at Dumbledore and Snape in shock.
Professor McGonagall scolded them:
"Albus, Severus, how could you?
Leaving all those students waiting—you do realize what time it is?
The children have classes tomorrow!"
A flicker of embarrassment crossed Dumbledore and Snape's faces.
At that moment, Douglas caught on, studying the two men closely.
Snape asked in a low voice,
"You're sure it's no longer in the castle?"
Douglas shook his head.
"Not sure.
But I've searched everywhere I could—there's just nothing left..."
Professor Flitwick pressed for confirmation:
"Douglas, does that mean there's no more danger in Ravenclaw Tower?
I don't want another incident like what happened to Mr. Cruise..."
Douglas hesitated, but finally said,
"For the most part, there's no more danger.
The only real risk left is the Chamber entrance, but that's already..."
Satisfied, Professor Flitwick finally relaxed a little.
Of course, he wasn't about to leave everything to Douglas—as Head of Ravenclaw, he resolved to conduct a thorough sweep of the tower for any hidden Dark Magic items.
Dumbledore shrugged, then picked up a sweet from Douglas's tea table and stood.
"Well then...
It's getting late. Minerva, please help everyone get the students back to their dormitories.
Douglas, sorry to disturb your dreams.
Good night!"
With that, he and the other professors filed out of Douglas's office.
Douglas watched them go, his mouth twitching.
Who gave them the nerve to trust him this much?
He was now certain—those two hadn't guessed about the owl at all.
It was all in his head.
In the corridor, Dumbledore and Snape trailed behind the others.
Snape asked, still suspicious,
"You're sure he isn't under anyone's control?"
Dumbledore swallowed his pastry with a hint of regret.
"A bit dry. I really should have asked Douglas to brew some tea...
Ah, I mean, I can't see any sign of it.
You must have noticed, Douglas is always guarded around people. Every time we interact,
I sense a trace of Occlumency about him.
Not just today—he was like that as a student, too.
All these years, he hasn't changed. It's a little heartbreaking, honestly..."
Snape's mouth twitched—he knew all about that Occlumency; he'd taught it himself.
Dumbledore continued mysteriously,
"But from what I've heard, Douglas is quite the expert in Defence Against the Dark Arts.
Heh... If anyone tried to control him, they'd soon find it impossible.
You should have a little more faith in him."
Snape gave a dismissive snort.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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