Due to the anti-Apparition charms on Hogwarts, they couldn't return directly to the castle.
Instead, they arrived on the same road to Hogsmeade they had started from.
All was silent. The night was deep, with only a few streetlamps and lit windows in the upper floors visible.
"We accomplished our mission brilliantly?"
Dumbledore said, tapping his wand on Sean's arm. The still-bleeding wound healed considerably.
As they had expected, the cave was filled with Voldemort's magic designed to torture intruders, hence the persistent bleeding.
"Yes."
Sean looked up and saw a star shining brightly. He recognized it as Jupiter.
"Let's go. I hope Madam Pomfrey is still awake..."
Dumbledore led the way down the path lined with purple flowers.
Following the winding road, the wilderness and fields around Hogsmeade came into view.
There were only a few small cottages here, but they had large gardens attached.
They walked toward the foot of the mountain, the path back to Hogwarts hidden within its shadow.
"Do you have something for me?"
Dumbledore, holding Sean's hand, suddenly asked with a smile.
Sean nodded. His Book of Wizards unfolded instantly and spat out a peculiar little gadget.
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Looking at the mirror in his hand, Dumbledore's smile slowly froze.
"This is..." he asked.
"A Magic Hand Mirror. It can initiate calls regardless of distance. It's a variation of the Two-Way Mirror, supporting up to seven people in a group call.
You can talk face-to-face, or just use audio," Sean explained in detail.
"Oh, nice. Very nice."
Dumbledore took the mirror. A tiny version of Sean soon appeared on the surface.
The tiny Sean was reading a book in the mirror. Only when the lake-like surface rippled did he close the book.
The real Sean quickly appeared in the mirror.
"If you want to say something now, you can just say it, Headmaster Dumbledore."
Sean "hung up" the hand mirror. On his screen, the tiny Dumbledore, who had stopped eating a sherbet lemon, started eating candy again.
This was an animation Sean designed to show the call status. Using principles similar to magical photographs, he modified the internal magic circuit to trigger different animations based on the call status of the hand mirror.
At the same time, the tiny Sean went back to reading his book.
"Ah—"
This discovery piqued Dumbledore's interest.
He looked at the characters in the mirror:
Minerva McGonagall had turned into a tabby cat grooming herself; Severus Snape was brewing potions; Filius Flitwick was about to climb onto a podium made of books...
"Oh, an interesting creation."
The hand mirror rippled again. Dumbledore had evidently dialed someone else.
"Is Minerva asleep?"
He seemed to be talking to himself, but his gaze fell on Sean.
"The remaining ones haven't been delivered yet..." Sean explained.
"...A rare occurrence. I must tell you, perhaps someone was looking forward to this even more than I was," Dumbledore said, somewhat surprised.
"I was pulled into your office before I could," Sean finished his earlier thought.
The air soon fell silent. In the quiet, even the shouting of patrons from the Hog's Head in the distance could be heard.
"Let's go. We should hurry back to Hogwarts."
Dumbledore acted as if he hadn't asked anything, and didn't even try to ask Sean about the locket anymore.
They passed through the dark, winding alleys from before, the night breeze brushing past Sean's ears.
Pukwudgie the butler was currently inside the half-open Book of Wizards, guiding the animals to where they should be.
"Go on, go on, little heroes! You have completed a great task!"
Sean could hear William muttering excitedly to himself.
"Except for you, you greedy pig!"
Then Sean heard a loud thud and the grumbling squeal of the warthog.
Voldemort's potion was designed to cause immense pain to wizards, while the potion Sean had taken from the vault induced excitement, euphoria, and hallucinations.
Therefore, aside from the potion possibly tasting terrible, the animals were actually fine. This was the conclusion Sean reached after checking them.
"Hogwarts has anti-Apparition charms against Pukwudgies, but the cave did not... I am glad you realized that."
Dumbledore's voice sounded slowly.
"Of course, Voldemort would have been dismissive of the ways of house-elves, just like many pure-blood wizards... It would never occur to them that a house-elf might have magic that he did not.
He filled the lake with Inferi, but there is nothing to fear from a dead body, Sean, any more than there is to fear from the darkness.
But Voldemort didn't think so; he must have secretly feared both.
Once again, he revealed his lack of wisdom. It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more."
Accompanied by Dumbledore's drifting voice, they finally returned to the familiar Hogwarts Castle.
Madam Pomfrey hadn't rested yet, and Sean found himself rarely admitted to the hospital wing.
Voldemort had always gone further than any other wizard in the branch of curses.
Even Dumbledore couldn't completely remove the weakness caused by the curse. Madam Pomfrey was astonished and secretly asked Sean where he had gotten such an injury—she had never seen such vicious magic before.
Madam Pomfrey forbade Sean from leaving the ward. For a week, he had to cooperate with the curse removal treatment.
Headmaster Dumbledore, on the other hand, cheerfully announced that he had approved a two-week leave for him.
The leave didn't actually affect Sean's studies.
Since the creation of the Book of Wizards, many of Sean's study tasks could be completed inside the Wizard's Hut.
The only downside was that his Magic Hand Mirrors had to be delivered by Bai.
As for the locket...
Sean took it out and placed it in a magically enchanted box within the Wizard's Hut.
His plan was proceeding steadily. With the locket in hand, he could use it as leverage to get Kreacher to help him find the real one.
As for how to find Kreacher, that would depend on Harry...
The hospital wing was always quiet.
Moonlight seeped in through the window, sprinkling over the locket on the young wizard's chest and his cheek.
Like a dusting of salt.
Occasionally, injured Quidditch players let out low groans, and mechanical devices clicked and clacked as they adjusted.
Mist slowly began to rise, enveloping the beds one by one.
Sean opened his bright eyes.
It seemed... it was time...
He had a lot to do in the Borderlands today—
Talk to Headmaster Dumbledore... investigate the influence of the threads of the Castle Spirit Cat Club... and most importantly, Lady Ravenclaw...
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