💤 Midnight Wandering
It was just past midnight.
Most of Hogwarts was asleep, save for a few snoring portraits and a ghost or two rehearsing their deaths again.
Aarav, of course, was wide awake, lounging on a hammock made from moonbeams in the Gryffindor common room.
The stars outside whispered something strange.
Curious and barefoot, he floated out through the Fat Lady's portrait (who didn't even ask for the password anymore) and strolled through the halls, humming a sitar melody only gods remembered.
He wasn't searching for anything.
But Hogwarts had a way of revealing things to those who weren't looking.
🏚️ A Room Full of Dust and Destiny
He followed a soft hum—a pull, really—through ancient stone halls until he reached a door he hadn't seen before.
The moment he touched the handle, it disappeared into mist.
Inside was a cold, silent chamber, lit only by a single moonbeam spilling from a cracked window. And at the far end stood a tall, forgotten mirror.
Its gold frame was etched with strange writing.
Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.
Aarav smirked. "Classic mirror reversal trick. No magic degree needed."
He whispered, and the letters rearranged themselves to say:
I show not your face, but your heart's desire.
He stepped closer, barefoot echoing across the ancient floor.
👁️ The First Reflection
Aarav gazed in.
He expected something dramatic: maybe himself as a cosmic emperor, ruling galaxies with Shiva's trident in one hand and Bhuvaneshwari's lotus in the other.
But what he saw made him… blink.
Inside the mirror, his reflection sat on the floor — eating pani puri with Ganesh Ji and laughing with a six-armed Shiva while Parvati refilled their plates.
The gods were casual, not majestic.
They joked, spilled chutney, and wiped their hands on celestial dhotis.
There was no throne.
No war.
Just family. Food. Peace.
Aarav stood in silence for a while. Then chuckled.
"Of course. My biggest desire… is not to need one."
🧠 Layers of Self
But then, the mirror rippled.
A second layer of reflection appeared — Aarav as a kid, wide-eyed, watching Ramayan on a tiny TV in a tiny Mumbai apartment. No powers. Just awe.
Then another — teenage Aarav meditating under a banyan tree while monkeys stole his Pringles.
Then another — Aarav as a cosmic being, made of stars, but still holding a paper cone of roasted peanuts.
Each version of him smiled at the next, as if saying,
"You're doing okay, bro."
For the first time in a long time, Aarav sat down — quietly, calmly — and just watched.
🧙♂️ Dumbledore Appears
"You've found it," came a voice, warm and ancient.
Aarav didn't need to turn. "Took a wrong turn near the Charms corridor and landed here."
Dumbledore stepped beside him, peering into the mirror.
"Most see ambition. Glory. Love lost or never found. But you… seem unusually content."
Aarav shrugged. "Contentment's underrated."
Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "It's also rare. Especially in someone so powerful."
They stood in silence for a moment.
Dumbledore finally asked, "What do you see?"
Aarav replied, "A future where I don't need to save the world. Just share a plate of samosas with it."
The old headmaster chuckled. "Wise. And delicious."
🪔 A Blessing for the Mirror
Before leaving, Aarav touched the mirror gently.
It shimmered under his fingers.
He whispered a Brahma mantra, and the mirror lit softly — not brighter, but warmer, as if relieved.
He added a little rose tikka to its base.
Now, when others came to see it, the mirror wouldn't just show desire.
It would also whisper,
"Don't forget who you already are."
Because sometimes, the hardest magic wasn't summoning lightning —
It was being enough.
🔙 Return to Common Room
Aarav returned to Gryffindor Tower by levitating gently past Filch and Mrs. Norris (he bribed them with fish-flavored laddoos).
Back in the common room, he found Ron and Harry asleep mid-chess game.
He floated to the window and looked at the stars.
Then reached into his sleeve, pulled out a cup of chai, and sipped.
From far off in the night sky, the stars twinkled back.
Almost as if they'd seen the mirror too.