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As the three Heads of House disappeared into the trees, Hagrid shouted that he wouldn't wait for them. Shouldering the stretcher, Ian transformed and plunged directly into the depths of the Forbidden Forest.
The noise he made was indeed quite loud; in this regard, Snape was not being overly critical.
"Prince! I warned you not to cause me any more trouble! Look at what you've done! You actually had the audacity to provoke the Dark Lord!"
Snape immediately unleashed a tirade against Ian after the others had left. It was as if he had suppressed his anger for far too long, and now it all came pouring out onto Ian.
"What were you thinking, and why are you so eager to die? So desperate to create one shocking incident after another, to tell us, to tell everyone, that you intend to take the place of the last Dark Lord? I've never seen such an arrogant brat!" Snape roared angrily, his tone laced with a hint of fear.
"I don't want to be the Dark Lord, Uncle." Ian looked up at the black-clad figure before him, and his sincere words softened Snape's expression just a bit.
At least this declaration was a step in the right direction.
"You should be thankful that the Dark Lord's situation is precarious! Otherwise, I think I would have to collect your remains... no! Perhaps the Dark Lord wouldn't even leave you a corpse!"
"He knows better than anyone how to devour children!" Snape seemed intent on frightening Ian with this ominous statement, and Ian immediately pretended to be frightened, feigning disbelief.
"The worst-case scenario did not happen; everything is fine. Snape, you don't need to be too harsh on Mr. Prince; at least he showed the courage to protect others in a critical moment." Dumbledore, leading the way toward the castle, spoke softly in defense of Ian.
"He could have simply notified us after driving that fellow away; look at what he did, chasing that man for miles through the Forbidden Forest!"
Snape still felt somewhat aggrieved.
"I was indeed a bit reckless." Ian immediately admitted his fault; he knew how to smooth things over with Snape.
And so, Snape's expression shifted from dark to slightly brighter.
"You must be confined; you will clean those foul-smelling toilets." Of course, he still insisted on punishing Ian to teach him a lesson and ensure he remembered this incident.
"..."
Ian believed this was definitely not the kind of confinement Hogwarts should impose, but he also understood that Snape, as one of the Heads of House, had the right to enforce such punishment.
"Don't use magic! I will keep an eye on you!" Snape continued to emphasize, breaking Ian's train of thought. Dumbledore did not offer Ian any help in this regard.
Just as Ian was pondering whether he could spare a few Galleons to have his good roommate drink a Polyjuice Potion to take his place and endure Snape's wrath instead, the castle came into view.
"Follow me!"
Snape looked up and saw students at the windows still using enchanted binoculars to peer toward the Forbidden Forest. He grabbed Ian and intended to take him on a detour through a secret passage back to Hogwarts.
"Snape, I need to borrow Mr. Prince for a moment to understand more about the situation in the Forbidden Forest." Dumbledore suddenly raised his hand to interrupt Snape's actions.
Snape's expression changed several times.
"You are the Headmaster; you have the final say."
He glanced deeply at Dumbledore and decisively released his grip on Ian.
"Mind your mouth; don't let me hear you boasting about your so-called achievements at school." Snape issued a stern warning to Ian.
He particularly emphasized the word "achievements," dragging it out. After finishing, he flicked his sleeve and turned to walk toward the castle.
"What is he going to do?" Ian is somewhat confused by Snape's actions.
"Who knows?" Dumbledore shrugged.
"I think we should go to the Headmaster's office to discuss my troublesome student." With that, Dumbledore led Ian into the castle and up to the Headmaster's office on the eighth floor.
"Honeydukes." Dumbledore recited the password to enter.
Ian knew that writing it down would be pointless, as the password changed far too frequently; sometimes, he felt Dumbledore had a touch of paranoia.
Following Dumbledore inside, they ascended the spiral staircase and pushed open the heavy wooden door. Ian did not see Fawkes the Phoenix, but sunlight streamed through the windows at just the right angle.
The sunlight filtered through the curtains like finely polished golden threads, warming the room as it danced with the movement of the fabric, casting shifting shadows on the walls.
In the spacious office, a pot of hot tea was steaming on the desk, filling the air with its fragrant aroma. Beside the teacup, there was a peculiar pastry that Ian could not recognize.
It looked somewhat like a pancake roll, but it was filled entirely with jam.
"Would you like a cup?"
Dumbledore poured himself a cup of tea and, without waiting for Ian's response, poured another cup for him, drinking the seemingly scalding hot red tea in one go.
"I still prefer honey lemonade."
Ian did not touch the tea on the table; it wasn't that he distrusted Dumbledore, thinking he might have added Veritaserum to it, but he was worried that drinking the tea would keep him awake at night and lead him to sneak out for a midnight adventure.
Snape indeed looked furious.
Ian felt he needed to lay low for a few days— he was also a bit aggrieved; he had only gone out to pick some ingredients, and who would have thought he would stumble upon this poisonous ingredient named Voldemort?
"Then you can make some yourself." Dumbledore gestured to a jar of honey not far away as he sat down, looking a bit weary.
"I can hold off; dinner is coming soon."
Ian's response made Dumbledore nod noncommittally. Just as Ian was curiously watching Dumbledore drink tea, having downed three cups without speaking, Dumbledore suddenly asked, "Is that stone with you?"
The question was quite abrupt, and Ian was momentarily stunned, having been pondering why Dumbledore had called him in.
"Of course, it's still here."
Ian had thought Dumbledore would discuss matters related to Voldemort or even take him on another memory tour, but instead, he was concerned about the Resurrection Stone that Grindelwald had given him.
His answer brought a hint of joy to Dumbledore's expression.
"I need to borrow it for a while..." Dumbledore's eyes suddenly sparkled in a somewhat unsettling way, and his hands trembled slightly. Realizing his own loss of composure, he quickly added, "This is for a specific purpose... I can't tell you the details just yet."
This explanation was not particularly convincing; it was clear to anyone that it was an excuse.
"Headmaster Dumbledore, that thing cannot resurrect anyone; I think we all know that." Ian frowned slightly, not immediately pulling out the Resurrection Stone.
"I certainly know that." Dumbledore's eyes flickered continuously.
"Trust me, I won't be like those fools who go astray; I just... have a plan, yes, a plan." His voice carried a deeply meaningful tone.
It still had that inscrutable feeling.
However, Ian's frown deepened further.
"Alright."
Ian did not continue to say anything else, nor did he reveal any of his thoughts to Dumbledore. He directly took out the Resurrection Stone ring, which shimmered with a deep luster.
"It's right here." Ian pushed the Resurrection Stone ring towards Dumbledore.
"Thank you, thank you." Dumbledore quickly raised both hands to cover the Resurrection Stone ring, his voice trembling as he thanked Ian. The expression that seemed to be suppressing some emotion made Ian instinctively stand up.
"Shall I take my leave now?" Seeing Dumbledore nodding like a chick pecking at rice, Ian quickly walked toward the door of the Headmaster's office. Soon, he completely exited the area of the office, following the spiral staircase down.
"Didn't even notice."
Looking back at the enormous Gargoyle that had returned to its guarding position, Ian's gaze flickered slightly. Without a second thought, he reached into his pouch and pulled out the Marauder's Map.
There it was.
The Marauder's Map displayed the little black dots representing wizards in the school, which naturally included the Headmaster's office. The only little black dot in that room stood out prominently.
Aberforth Dumbledore.
(End of This Chapter)