Chapter 32: Mr. Riddle
"Hello, my name is Lyra Hamilton." Lyra deliberately wrote her name on the page, then quietly watched it disappear.
She had to admit, this was actually quite nice. It was so much more comfortable than talking to someone face-to-face. If only all her interactions could be this simple.
"Hello, Miss Hamilton. May I ask... where did you get my diary?"
"You mean... you're a living person? I didn't steal this! I just suddenly found it in my bag..." Lyra hurriedly explained. If he thought she was a thief, would he come and kill her?
"I am already dead." The diary's owner, Tom, had handwriting that was far more fluid and elegant than Lyra's. Just by looking at the script, Lyra could tell he must have been a brilliant wizard...
A wizard like that was already dead? Then who was she talking to?
Lyra felt the hairs on her arms stand on end. Could it be... a ghost?
"Do not be afraid. I am a memory," Tom seemed to guess her thoughts, his words flowing smoothly onto the page. "My memory from when I was sixteen."
"A sixteen-year-old's memory? Inside a notebook?" Lyra felt a subconscious... thrill.
This Mr. Riddle must have been a genius!
Lyra gripped her quill and wrote, "You could create Magic Formation items when you were sixteen?"
"And such a complex combination formation, at that!"
"You know of Magic Formations?" Tom seemed surprised, too, and his reply came much faster. "Can you identify the formations in my diary?"
"Some of them..." Lyra wrote, her hand trembling with excitement.
This was the first person she had ever met, besides her father, who she could actually discuss Magic Formations with. Even Miss Lovegood was only interested; most of the time, she just watched Lyra do the engraving.
But this Mr. Riddle was different! He had independently created this diary at just sixteen—a product of multiple, complex, layered formations!
How could a genius like this have left no name in history? When was he born? During those fifty years? Or long before her?
"Some of them?" Tom's writing paused for a few seconds. "Which parts?"
"Are... are you going to teach me?" Lyra instinctively asked, then remembered she was talking to a diary and quickly wrote, "Only the Energy Storage Formation and the Spatial Formation, and also this communication formation... I don't understand the others."
Lyra pressed her lips together and added another line: "Can you teach me?"
"No."
Tom's reply came almost instantly. "I am not your teacher."
"And... I do not remember the content of the formations."
"You... don't remember?" Lyra was surprised. But you're the one who made it?
"I am the sixteen-year-old memory. I was placed within the diary before its creation was complete," the diary continued. "I only remember parts of it."
"For example, the meaning of the Ancient Runes in the communication formation."
Is that so... But that was more than enough. Lyra only knew the two runes meant communication, but the specifics were still a blur... She hurriedly wrote, "Can you tell me?"
"I'll trade you anything for it!"
"Anything?" Tom seemed interested in her offer. After a short pause, he replied, "Then I have one request."
"If you can do one thing for me... I will not only tell you the meaning of the Ancient Runes, but I will also share with you a secret room of Ancient Runes."
"A... a... a... a secret room!"
That was beyond cool! Lyra subconsciously wanted to jump out of her chair!
"What do I have to do?" she wrote excitedly.
"It's simple," Tom replied quickly. "I was a student at Hogwarts."
"I have been away from my alma mater for a long time... It is a place I miss dearly."
"I miss the first time I stepped onto the Hogwarts grounds." His script was filled with a nostalgia that made Lyra press her lips together.
"I miss the first time I walked into the Great Hall at Hogwarts and saw those beautiful candles floating in the air." His thoughts seemed to have returned to the school, his writing so infectious that Lyra felt her eyes grow damp.
"I even miss my first Defense Against the Dark Arts class. I miss Professor Albus Dumbledore and how he..."
SLAM!
Lyra instantly slammed the diary shut, gasping for air.
D-D-D-D-Dumbledore!
Why are you everywhere!
Do you know that feeling when you're reading a heartwarming comic and a jump-scare suddenly pops up? Seeing that name, Lyra broke out in a cold sweat.
The somewhat nostalgic atmosphere had instantly turned terrifying.
"Mr. Riddle... please don't mention that person..." She carefully opened the notebook, and only after confirming the words had vanished did she write, "Every time you mention him, he appears!"
It was true. Lyra felt that every time she mentioned Dumbledore, he would materialize in front of her. She was starting to get... PTSD.
"I understand," Tom was silent for a long time before asking, "What should I call him, then?"
"Just... 'that person' will be fine..." Lyra carefully wrote. "'That person' refers to Dumb—"
"Very well," Tom continued. "Therefore... I desperately want to return to Hogwarts. It is my greatest wish before I died."
"Miss Hamilton, can you help me?"
Of course... Of course, she could. This was nothing for Lyra. After all, she was about to go to Hogwarts as a professor.
"Alright, I promise," Lyra wrote, then added, "But you'll have to wait until September."
"September? Are you a student?"
"N... No." Lyra's quill paused. After thinking for a moment, she felt there was no harm in telling a dead person she was a professor.
"I'm going to Hogwarts in September as a professor," she paused, then wrote on the next line, "The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor."
"That's perfect. I..." The diary replied quickly. Lyra could see the joy in Tom's script, but she wasn't curious about Hogwarts.
Especially if it was going to lead back to that person... Dumbledore.
So she cut him off and continued writing, "Can you tell me the meaning of those Ancient Runes first?"
Tom's writing stopped, as if he were annoyed at being interrupted.
After ten seconds or so, he finally replied, "These two Ancient Runes are a pair. They can only be used when engraved simultaneously."
"One of them, the upward-opening semicircle, represents 'Connect.' The other, the downward-opening semicircle, represents 'Transmit.'"
"Regarding 'Connect,' the specific arc of the semicircle's opening is the pairing key. Only two items engraved with formations of the exact same arc can be linked."
"And once the 'Transmit' rune is engraved, you can make a change in one of the linked items transmit to the other."
I see... so the two formations work in tandem... Lyra instantly had many ideas. For example, she could create a necklace where if one wearer was in danger, the other would be alerted... Or it could be used for communication.
For example, she could give one to Dumbledore... That way, if he needed something, he wouldn't have to show up in person. He could just write to her. That would probably be much better for her health.
Though, it was really only a little faster than an owl... But then again, Dumbledore didn't seem to be in the habit of using owls anyway.
"Thank you, Mr. Riddle!" Lyra wrote, overjoyed, thanking Tom in the diary.
It would be even better if you remembered more of the formations.