A man who was supposed to be dead had appeared at Hogwarts—and even attempted to abduct the school's most outstanding student. This made Dumbledore furious.
"Weren't you killed in an explosion during your fight with Black?" Professor McGonagall asked in shock.
"Tell the truth. Don't make me force it out of you," Snape said coldly, his eyes glinting with menace.
Wormtail wished he could just die on the spot—but he didn't have the courage. Lying clearly wasn't going to work. Standing before him were Snape and Dumbledore—one ruthless, the other shrewd. After a brief but intense internal struggle, Wormtail convinced himself that Dumbledore wouldn't kill him.
At worst, he'd be sent to Azkaban. And at least there, he could still live.
Grinding his teeth, he finally spoke.
"I tricked everyone. I caused the explosion myself. I left behind a finger to mislead the Ministry, to make them think I was dead."
Snape immediately realized the implication—Black had been framed. Though Sirius Black had been his enemy, the revelation made Wormtail far more disgusting in comparison.
Wormtail continued, spilling everything in one breath.
"It was me! I framed Black! I betrayed James and Lily! I told the Dark Lord where they were!"
Everyone present, except Sean, glared at him in fury.
This traitor had destroyed his friends, killed key members of the Order of the Phoenix, and turned Harry into an orphan.
"You turned into a rat and hid with the Weasley family all this time?" McGonagall asked.
All the Weasley children had been in her Gryffindor House. She knew their pets well. From Charlie, to Percy, and now Ron—Scabbers had followed three generations of Weasley children into Hogwarts.
Wormtail's Animagus form had never been registered. Aside from his former friends, no one knew what animal he transformed into.
"The Weasleys were kind. They took me in. And through them, I could keep track of everything happening in the wizarding world," Wormtail said.
Dumbledore cut him off.
"What was your purpose tonight? Why abduct Sean? And how did Barty Crouch Jr. escape from Azkaban?"
Three questions in rapid succession.
Wormtail hesitated.
If he answered, he would expose Voldemort's presence at Hogwarts. Betraying Voldemort… he didn't dare.
"Speak! Why were you trying to capture me?" Sean demanded.
Wormtail clenched his teeth.
If he told them everything… if Voldemort was destroyed, then there would be no retaliation.
"I'll tell you," he thought.
"Voldemort is searching for someone named Hoff Stark."
Wormtail turned his head slightly toward Hoff. Everyone else followed his gaze.
Only Dumbledore fully understood the situation—he had the most complete picture, far beyond even Sean's knowledge.
Wormtail continued.
"He believes Hoff possesses another Philosopher's Stone. Sean knows information about Hoff, so Voldemort sent me to extract it from him."
Another Philosopher's Stone.
Aside from Hoff and Dumbledore, no one present had known this.
Even Dumbledore had only learned it the night Hoff arrived.
"Another one? Can those things be mass-produced?" Sean thought in disbelief.
Under everyone's gaze, Hoff—who had remained silent until now—finally spoke.
"Dumbledore… can they be trusted?"
Dumbledore looked at Hagrid, McGonagall, Snape, and Sean, then nodded.
"They are all trustworthy."
"Then I'll explain."
"Wait," Dumbledore interrupted suddenly. "Let him sleep first."
With a wave of his hand, he knocked Wormtail unconscious.
Only then did Hoff begin.
"My teacher did indeed create two Philosopher's Stones. The other one… is inside me."
He slowly raised his hand and pointed to his chest.
Sean couldn't help but speak. "Don't tell me… it's literally inside your body?"
Hoff nodded solemnly.
Everyone stared at him in disbelief—even Snape's cold expression cracked with shock.
"Twenty years ago, during an alchemical experiment, I made a mistake. The resulting explosion split my body in half. My organs were destroyed, and toxic substances entered my system. I should have died instantly… but my teacher saved me."
His eyes grew distant.
"He replaced my heart with the second Philosopher's Stone… and transferred my soul into it. That's how I survived."
"So that's why the Killing Curse didn't kill you," Hagrid said.
"Yes. My soul resides in the stone. Unless the stone itself is destroyed, my soul cannot be separated from my body. But my body depends entirely on the stone. When its power runs out… that will be my end."
Sean frowned.
It sounded similar to Horcruxes—but also very different.
The Killing Curse instantly tears the soul from the body. Hoff's case meant that if the stone in his chest were destroyed, he would die.
But Horcruxes weren't affected by the Killing Curse in the same way.
And Hoff's life would end once the stone's power was exhausted.
"A true alchemical masterpiece," Sean thought.
It sounded simple—transfer the soul into the stone, rebuild the body—but the process must have been unimaginably complex.
"That explains how he healed instantly after being scratched by Jerry."
With the Philosopher's Stone sustaining him, Hoff was essentially unkillable—as long as his "heart" remained intact.
"At dawn, I will leave Hogwarts," Hoff said.
"Before that," Dumbledore said calmly, "we will deal with the one behind all this."
He woke Wormtail with a spell.
"Where is Voldemort?"
Wormtail, now beyond caring, immediately sold him out.
"In the Slytherin Chamber. He's possessing a black rat."
Sean slapped his forehead.
He had grown complacent, relying too much on his knowledge of the original story.
Voldemort had already infiltrated the school again—and he hadn't noticed at all.
Dumbledore frowned. "How do we enter the Chamber?"
Everyone knew of the Chamber of Secrets—but it was said only the Heir of Slytherin could open it.
"Voldemort is a Parselmouth. He's the Heir of Slytherin. Only he can open the Chamber," Wormtail said, breathing heavily.
"There's a sewer pipe in the school that leads to the underground chamber. But the entrance itself… only the heir can open."
Dumbledore fell into thought.
Sean suddenly remembered the day Jerry was found—the strange stench clinging to it.
Now he realized—
That was the smell of the sewers.
"How did Barty Crouch Jr. escape from Azkaban?" Snape asked.
"I don't know. He never told me. But the Crouch family must know," Wormtail replied.
Sean's heart skipped.
Only then did he recall how distracted Chris had seemed during dinner.
So something really had happened in her family.
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