"Mr. Owl—…"
Sean murmured.
So it really was Mr. Owl.
The blurred memories surged back like a tide.
The troll tapestry, the Room of Requirement, the secret of Ravenclaw's diadem—
none of it was shrouded in white fog anymore.
But… what was Mr. Owl trying to accomplish?
Was it simply to keep him from entering the Room of Requirement?
Sean suddenly realized: if it was Mr. Owl, then yes—there was a chance.
As for whether Mr. Owl was dangerous, Sean thought that was unlikely—unless Ravenclaw meant to harm students.
But… why him?
Or rather: what secret was the room Mr. Owl guarded really hiding?
Sean knew that the room the owl guarded—the place they called the "Hope Room"—had always been magical.
When Justin asked Mr. Owl for a fireplace, Mr. Owl produced one.
When they wanted that fireplace to connect to the outside world—like linking Hermione to her family via the Floo Network—it somehow gained that function too.
In that sense, the Hope Room wasn't that different from the Room of Requirement.
Sean frowned slightly and carefully recalled what he knew about the Room of Requirement:
The Room of Requirement—also called the "Come and Go Room" by house-elves—was one of Hogwarts' most mysterious, most powerful magical spaces.
It wasn't always there. It only appeared when someone passed its wall with a genuine need.
The method of entry was unusual: the user had to focus on their need and walk past the blank stretch of wall three times.
If done correctly, a smooth door would appear in the wall. The interior would configure itself entirely around the user's request.
For example, when Albus Dumbledore urgently needed a lavatory, he found a room full of chamber pots.
Its history was unclear, but it had plainly existed for centuries. Some house-elves knew it well; later, Dobby recommended it to Harry Potter.
According to Dobby, countless students and staff had used it over the centuries to satisfy all kinds of needs—from hiding things to seeking shelter.
As a young man, Tom Riddle discovered and used it to hide the Ravenclaw diadem he'd found, and he turned it into a Horcrux.
If Sean had to explain it, the Room of Requirement was like artificial intelligence—
a wizard makes a request, the room receives it, then uses transfiguration magic to reshape whatever's inside into what the requester needs.
It just couldn't distinguish between users properly—otherwise Harry probably wouldn't have struggled so much to find the Ravenclaw diadem.
"Artificial intelligence…"
Sean felt as if he'd caught hold of something.
If the Room of Requirement was an AI that couldn't identify witches and wizards, then what was Mr. Owl?
A real AI—complete, intelligent enough to understand instructions and act on them?
As his thoughts spiraled, Sean understood that when he returned to Hogwarts, he would have even more to do.
First: practice Occlumency.
Second: find out what Mr. Owl was really doing. What was the relationship between the Hope Room and the Room of Requirement? What instructions had Ravenclaw left Mr. Owl?
And the last point: destroy Ravenclaw's diadem.
Sean didn't want to touch that thing—but he could animate a statue and use a basilisk fang to destroy it.
"Come on, dear."
At that moment, Professor Tayra pushed the door open.
"Professor—yes."
Sean snapped back to the present.
The fireplace in front of them had long since been connected to Hogwarts' Floo Network—though only to a specific destination.
"Mr. Green," Quirrell suddenly spoke from the side. "To practice Occlumency, you must handle complicated sensations and memories. And further still, perhaps you can try… reversing the trick. Deception."
He fell silent for a moment.
"I believe you'll need that soon."
Because— you are the great Green.
"Oh? You've finally decided to learn Occlumency?"
Professor Tayra's interest ignited instantly.
"You know Mr. Owl?"
Sean froze, then immediately connected the dots.
"A delicate magic, used so crudely—learn Occlumency for one month and any wizard could spot that sort of deception.
"Of course I'd care. I want to know which idiot dared do it."
Professor Tayra narrowed her eyes. "As for what Quirrell just said—that's a very advanced way of using Occlumency.
"I'm not skilled in it, and I don't need it."
Sean couldn't hide his eagerness. "Has Mr. Owl done this before? Why would it do something like this?"
The fire roared; Quirrell listened with great care.
"As far as I know—no. To everyone else, it's just like an ordinary portrait.
"Or perhaps it has, but no one ever cared if some student forgot something."
Professor Tayra thought for a moment.
"Then you—"
Sean paused, but still asked.
"My dear apprentice, you will never understand an old alchemist's fear. If Dumbledore didn't forbid it, I'd cast protective magic on you every day."
Professor Tayra even managed a rare joke.
At the start of January, Hogwarts was no longer a distant symbol in Sean's senses.
The cold snap still raged, the wind still bit to the bone—
but the castle's fireplaces were still gentle.
Soon the hearth surged into tall green flames, and two figures stepped out.
"So," Professor Tayra said, her robes still dusted with snow, "how long did you study Occlumency before you finally saw through that amusing little prank?"
"Just now…"
Sean answered.
"Mhm. I saw that—you only learned it just now, I mean—"
As she spoke, she set a heavy trunk on the floor.
But then she paused, as if struck by a thought. "An unsettling talent… Hogwarts is a good place. I should have come sooner."
She looked into Sean's eyes and saw the impatience under his calm.
"Go," she said. "If you decide to set the portrait on fire, tell me.
"But think carefully, my dear apprentice. That would mean… you're joining faraway Uagadou.
"That old panther would be so thrilled he wouldn't sleep for a week—hm, and he'd finally forget all about the last time Dumbledore came knocking."