Chapter 346: Confusion
Sean walked through the corridors and arrived at the Room of Hope.
Today, the Owl Gentleman in the portrait was uncharacteristically silent. Instead of his usual bluster, he simply opened the door for Sean with a polite nod. Inside the room, the hearth burned cheerfully, and the modular wooden cabinet was busy rearranging itself, categorizing Sean's latest acquisitions.
Sean tapped the wood. With a rhythmic clicking of shifting panels, a stone basin was eased out from a hidden compartment: the Pensieve.
Wisps of silver thread swirled within the basin. Sean leaned over and allowed his face to break the surface.
In an instant, his feet left the ground.
He plummeted through the darkness once more, falling into a sea of fragmented memories.
"Ravenclaw's..."
When Sean finally withdrew from the memory and returned to the Room of Hope, he stood in a daze. He realized with a jolt that he couldn't remember what heirloom Rowena Ravenclaw had left behind.
He knew of Hufflepuff's Cup, Gryffindor's Sword, and Slytherin's Locket... but what was Ravenclaw's?
He summoned a silver thread from his temple and dropped it into the basin. The voice of the Sorting Hat echoed in his mind:
"The Diadem of peerless wisdom, the Cup overflowing with sincerity, the Sword called forth by courage—"
The Diadem. Ravenclaw had left a diadem... but why was the memory so difficult to grasp? Even as he recovered the word, the associated details remained obscured, as if hidden behind a thick, grey veil.
He knit his brows and looked up. The portrait of the Owl Gentleman had somehow migrated to the interior wall and was watching him with wide, unblinking eyes. Caught in the act, the owl quickly scurried out of his frame and back to his original spot outside the door.
"Mr. Owl?" Sean called out.
"Clever little wizard—" the owl muttered, keeping his back to Sean, before going perfectly still.
Sean watched the portrait for a moment. The bird was acting very strangely today. But since the Owl Gentleman clearly wasn't in a talkative mood, Sean returned to his thoughts. Was he simply forgetting the details of the Diadem, or was something else at play?
There was one definitive way to find out: Occlumency.
Whether he was being influenced by an external charm or simply suffering a lapse in memory, the art of closing one's mind would allow him to sort through his thoughts with surgical precision.
Groups of upper-year students were streaming out of the castle for their weekend in Hogsmeade. In the corridors, younger students were pressed against the windows, watching their older peers with undisguised envy.
Sean consulted his Project Map. A red exclamation mark was pulsing over the Staff Room. Below it, a line of Ancient Runes read:
[Professor Flitwick: Undetectable Extension Charm]
This weekend, Sean was scheduled to learn the Extension Charm from Flitwick to facilitate the crafting of his own storage items. Learning from the Charms Master was a straightforward task, but Occlumency was a different matter entirely.
Sean knew the list of accomplished Occlumens: Albus Dumbledore, Gellert Grindelwald, Voldemort, Horace Slughorn, Severus Snape, Barty Crouch Jr...
Could he ask Snape to teach him? And if he did, how would he explain his sudden need to protect his mind without raising the Potions Master's suspicions?
Wrapped in these thoughts, he arrived at the Staff Room.
The Staff Room was a long, paneled room filled with mismatched, ancient darkwood chairs. Two talking stone gargoyles flanked the entrance. Inside, the elderly Professor Binns was dozing in a corner, presumably recharging for next week's lectures. He had been doing exactly that for several centuries.
Sean knocked.
"Come in, child."
The voice didn't belong to Flitwick, but to someone Sean knew just as well.
"Professor McGonagall." Sean quickened his pace as he entered.
"Learning the Undetectable Extension Charm requires a great deal of patience, Sean," McGonagall said. she was holding a cup of tea, the steam fogging her square spectacles.
"Indeed it does! Come in, young Green!" Professor Flitwick squeaked enthusiastically, beckoning him over. "I'm not the least bit surprised you want to learn this. But tell me, child—what is the definition of an Undetectable Extension Charm?"
"An Undetectable Extension Charm expands the internal capacity of an object without altering its external dimensions or increasing its weight," Sean answered after a brief pause. "When cast, it typically requires a sealed container and specific magical reagents to maintain the effect. Theoretically, it works by restructuring the spatial dimensions of the object to allow for geometric expansion."
"Brilliant!" Flitwick nodded with delight.
"Then you are likely aware," Flitwick continued, "that performing this charm for private use without authorization is a serious breach of Ministry law. Violators risk a sentence in Azkaban."
Sean nodded. He knew the charm was strictly regulated because it could be used to hide large numbers of people or illicit goods from magical detection—a nightmare for the Ministry's stability.
"However," Flitwick said with a mischievous grin, "Ministry approval can be quite swift for the right candidate." He handed Sean a formal-looking parchment.
Sean was genuinely taken aback. He had only expressed interest in the charm recently; he hadn't expected the paperwork to be handled so efficiently.
Professor Flitwick was a titan in the field of Charms. Under his guidance, even with Sean's "Blue" tier talent in this branch, the lessons proceeded rapidly. It wasn't long before he grasped the fundamental trick of the spell.
"Undetectable Extension!"
As Sean flicked his wand, the interior of a small cardboard box on the table seemed to shimmer. When he dipped a finger inside, he found that the shallow box—barely an inch deep—could now swallow his entire hand.
[Alert: You have practiced the Undetectable Extension Charm at an Apprentice standard. Proficiency +1]
[Undetectable Extension Charm: Locked (1/30)]
Sean gripped the box, a small smile touching the corners of his eyes. Now that it was on his system panel, the only obstacle left was time.
However, even though the charm had been successful, the box soon snapped back to its original dimensions. Without the proper materials to anchor the space, the magic was temporary. To make it permanent, he would need Occamy skin.
Inside the Staff Room, Sean's Project Map suddenly unrolled itself. A light-blue quill began scratching away, adding a new objective to the list.
Professor Flitwick peered over at the map, his eyes widening at the sheer density of the notes and the layers of folded parchment representing future plans.
The Charms Master stood in stunned silence for a moment before letting out a dry laugh. "Is this your plan for the rest of the term, young Green?"
"No, sir... it's for the week," Sean replied absently, rolling up the map.
Sean exited the Staff Room, leaving Professor Flitwick staring at the closed door.
"Minerva... tell me, did you actually give him that item yet?" Flitwick asked, turning to his colleague.
"That's the problem, Filius," McGonagall said, her eyes reflecting the warm glow of the fire. "I haven't had the chance."
She knew that for a wizard as determined as Sean, the path was never easy, but he would walk it nonetheless.
[End of Chapter 346]
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