Chapter 42: The Pensieve and Tom
"Miss Hamilton, if you wish, Bibi can take you..."
"Ah, no... no thank you!" Lyra quickly shook her head, rejecting Dumbledore's offer. She was a little afraid of that house-elf who popped in and out of existence.
"The fireplace... the fireplace is fine..." She preferred the more traditional wizarding method of travel.
Dumbledore chuckled at her words. "As you wish." He led Lyra toward the Headmaster's office.
Along the way, Lyra carefully observed the Hogwarts environment... It looked much warmer than Durmstrang, but also much livelier.
There were portraits everywhere, but fortunately, most of the people in them were busy with their own affairs... unlike the ones in the Headmaster's office who just sat there staring.
This made Lyra feel much more comfortable...
Of course, there were also things Lyra couldn't get used to: the moving staircases. The giant, shifting stairs were a bit too dangerous... Lyra, who was afraid of heights, felt dizzy just standing on them.
Especially when the darn things moved on their own...
Is the purpose of these things to prevent students from getting to lunch quickly? Lyra could only guess, as she really couldn't think of any other reason for such staircases to exist.
And it was easy to get lost... fortunately, she could follow Dumbledore... so the journey was fairly smooth.
Soon, they returned to the entrance of the Headmaster's office, which was guarded by a gargoyle statue. Lyra, who had just been brought here by Bibi, still remembered the password.
"Sherbet Lemon," Dumbledore said softly. With a soft click, a spiral staircase slowly appeared.
It was worth mentioning that the door to the Headmaster's office was also engraved with a Magic Formation. Lyra guessed it was likely a combination of an Energy Storage Formation and a Locking Formation, but the "key" wasn't a traditional sword shape, but rather a spoken phrase that was reset daily.
If one understood Magic Formations, they could actually deduce today's password from the formation itself... Lyra even knew what yesterday's password was.
"Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans"
Does the fact that the house-elf is named Bibi have something to do with those weird candies...?
So do house-elves have flavors?
While Lyra's thoughts were wandering, the two arrived in the Headmaster's office.
"Miss Hamilton, do you need to rest in the office for a moment?" Dumbledore asked casually. "Or would you like to leave now?"
"I... I can leave... now..." Lyra had no habit of resting under the gaze of dozens of people... Dumbledore might, though.
However, as she walked to the fireplace to use the Floo powder, her eyes suddenly caught sight of a stone basin placed beside it.
This is... Just by glancing at it, Lyra realized something.
"Is this a Magic Formation item?" she asked, walking quickly to the basin.
That's right! It's a formation item! To think there would be one in the Hogwarts Headmaster's office... Oh, what am I thinking, there were plenty in the Durmstrang Headmaster's office too...
I wonder what this basin does. Will I lose a finger if I touch it? Lyra subconsciously touched her right index finger.
"Ah... that is a Pensieve," Dumbledore froze for a moment, then walked to Lyra's side.
"Pensieve...?" Lyra had never heard of this item, nor had she seen one... It seemed to be a rather rare magical artifact.
Lyra had no intention of chatting with Dumbledore. She had already drawn her wand and was circling the Pensieve, examining it.
This formation... She looked at the engraved formation, deep in thought for a few seconds, then felt a wave of surprise.
"Does the Pensieve have something to do with memories?" she asked, looking at Dumbledore. "It must, right?"
"Miss Hamilton truly knows her formations," Dumbledore nodded, a bit surprised. "The Pensieve is indeed related to memory."
"Have you seen something similar before?"
"N... No?" Lyra paused, then quickly shook her head.
She had seen the same formation, but it was on Riddle's diary.
But that genius gentleman didn't want others to know of his existence.
Thinking about it carefully... as a Hogwarts student, he must have known about or seen the Pensieve, and created the diary based on the formation on it.
Mr. Riddle truly was a genius...
"Would you like to try it, Miss Hamilton?" Dumbledore suddenly asked. "The Pensieve can be used to view other people's memories, or your own."
"I..." Lyra knew that firsthand experience was the best way to understand a formation... but she didn't want Dumbledore to see her memories.
Memories from the last few days were fine... but if he saw memories from fifty years ago involving Lord Grindelwald, it would be dangerous...
"You can view mine," Dumbledore said calmly, seemingly having nothing to hide. "There are some memories I've poured into the Pensieve from the past."
"They are just trifles about Hogwarts," he said with a smile. "And some of an old man's leisure time..."
"Maybe... maybe not..." Looking at Dumbledore's smiling face, Lyra suspected he had some trick up his sleeve... This man is full of bad intentions.
The Bertie Bott's beans he eats must be Bad Intention flavored.
Lyra examined the formation on the Pensieve one last time. After confirming it was the same as the one on Riddle's diary, she nodded slightly and walked to the fireplace.
There was no need to study it here under so many gazes... Wouldn't it be better to go back to the tavern and study the formation quietly by herself?
Besides, if she started muttering to herself again, it would be utterly humiliating...
With this thought, Lyra lightly tossed the Floo powder and whispered in a voice only she and the fireplace could hear, "Diagon Alley."
WHOOSH!
Miss Hamilton vanished before Dumbledore's eyes. The Hogwarts Headmaster was silent for a few seconds, then frowned slightly.
He walked to the Pensieve, examined it carefully, then shook his head.
"Albus." In a portrait, a former Headmaster of Hogwarts, Armando Dippet, spoke up. "Didn't you say this Miss Hamilton couldn't tear herself away from Magic Formations?"
"I did say that..." Dumbledore seemed a bit surprised as well. "I expected her to delay for a while..."
"But she seemed to leave in a hurry."
"Perhaps it's because of us old folks?" Dippet laughed and shook his head, sitting comfortably in his chair and looking at the dozens of other Hogwarts Headmasters.
"No..." Dumbledore shook his head gently. He knew how absorbed Miss Hamilton could get when faced with formations...
Unless she has actually seen this formation before, or... she possesses a similar formation item... But Miss Hamilton's reaction clearly suggested it was her first time seeing a Pensieve...
Dumbledore shook his head gently and sat back down in the Headmaster's chair.
Perhaps I'm overthinking it?
Thinking of Lyra's behavior in front of Snape just now, Dumbledore suddenly smiled and chuckled softly.