Chapter 66: The Third Prophecy
Do you remember Sybill's prophecy?
Of course I remember. And it seems that her prophecy and my intel are pointing to the same event. By the way, Headmaster, when are you going to teach me that little Legilimency trick? I have a feeling it's destined to be mine.
The connection to Dumbledore's mind abruptly cut off, but not before Ryan heard a distinct note of sputtering shock. He tried to re-establish the link, but it was gone.
The entire mental exchange had taken place in an instant, and Sybill was none the wiser. "Headmaster," she said, "you can ask Ryan directly. I've already given him my interpretation."
"Thank you, Sybill. Your help has been invaluable," Dumbledore said, his voice full of a practiced sincerity that Ryan recognized as his own brand of motivational speaking. "I am very glad to have you as our Professor of Divination at this crucial time."
Sybill was overjoyed. Today was truly her lucky day. First, she had been validated by the greatest Seer of her generation, and now by the greatest wizard. "It is my duty as a professor," she said, her voice now firm and confident.
Excellent. Very spirited, Ryan thought. This Divination professor was remarkably gullible.
"Well then, I won't keep you. Don't you have a class to teach, Sybill?" Dumbledore said, and with a polite smile, he led Ryan out of the office.
As they left, a new version of Professor Trelawney began to circulate through the halls of Hogwarts: one who spoke with a new, confident authority. The change was so drastic that a new rumor began to spread, a rumor of a strange, ghost-like entity that possessed professors and altered their personalities. The students began to call it "The Professors' Bane." It wasn't long before a group of enterprising young writers, the same ones who were compiling The Adventurer's Handbook, began a new volume: The Hogwarts Book of Monsters.
Dumbledore, meanwhile, led Ryan back to his office. "Headmaster," Ryan began the moment the door was closed, "you've received a prophecy as well, haven't you?"
"I imagine you've already figured it out," Dumbledore said, a weary look on his face. "I was speaking with Gellert last night. He saw something… a vision of a dark future. He showed me the memory. I saw a darkness, like maggots on a corpse, spreading across the land. Muggles and wizards alike, struggling to survive, but with no hope, no future."
This was Ryan's worst fear realized. Grindelwald's prophecy aligned perfectly with his own and Sybill's. All three contained the same keyword—"darkness"—and none of them gave any indication of what it was, or when it would happen. He recounted his own vision, and Sybill's, to the Headmaster.
When he had finished, a heavy silence fell upon the room. "Headmaster," Ryan finally said, "are all three prophecies pointing to the end of the world?" The thought was so absurd that he was almost certain his own superpower had malfunctioned.
Dumbledore didn't have an answer. After a hundred-plus years of service, on the verge of retirement, and this happens? What was this "darkness"? Harry Potter was a weapon specifically designed to defeat Voldemort. He was useless against this new, unknown threat. Perhaps… he thought, looking at Ryan, at his strong, capable shoulders, it is time for the older generation to step aside and let the young take on the responsibility.
"Don't worry too much about it, Ryan," he said.
He already has a solution? Ryan was impressed. He really is a genius. To deduce a plan from three such vague prophecies… it was the work of a true master. "What should we do, Headmaster?"
"Relax," Dumbledore said with a smile. "Continue with your work. I have a plan." He then changed the subject. "I hear you're developing a new communication device. How is that coming along?"
"The blueprints are complete. Now it's just a matter of seeing if the production process works as intended," Ryan replied. He assumed Dumbledore's "plan" involved a secret team-up with Grindelwald, a reunion of the legendary duo, which would be a PR nightmare for the wizarding world. So Dumbledore couldn't speak of it openly. He just misses his old boyfriend, Ryan thought with an inward smirk.
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