The Lumos spell cast a silvery, veil-like glow as Professor Melvin tilted his head, searching for the sapphire diadem he remembered. Instead, he saw only dust-covered trinkets.
Certain the diadem was in this room, Melvin stepped aside to continue his search.
The Room of Requirement was a chaotic jumble of old, discarded items, piled into heaps that seemed to block the eye at every turn. Metal armor and knight statues were half-buried in the clutter, their surfaces caked with dust that dulled their original forms. The dim light made it hard to distinguish anything clearly; you had to get close to make out whether an object was a diadem or a mask.
Some of the armor and statues did have diadem-like adornments, but Melvin needed to check for the telltale Ravenclaw eagle emblem.
He paused to inspect a pile, then moved on to another.
Dumbledore, meanwhile, was gazing into the Mirror of Erised, reluctantly pulling his eyes away from the reflection. He wasn't sure why Melvin was acting so oddly but followed him unhurriedly.
Truth be told, he rather liked the look of those woolen socks in the mirror—their color and pattern were lovely, especially when Ariana wore them.
"Looks like you're searching for something specific. Got a target in mind?" Dumbledore asked.
"Just browsing," Melvin replied, carefully examining the trinkets on a nearby pile. His footsteps left a trail in the dusty floor. "You ever thoroughly searched this place, sir? There could be some unexpected treasures hidden here."
"I come here sometimes when I can't sleep," Dumbledore said, scanning the room without noticing anything unusual. His attention stayed on Melvin. "But I prefer stargazing from the towers or grabbing a hot cocoa in the kitchens."
"A thousand years of Hogwarts students and staff hiding things here—it's no small task to catalog it all."
"…"
Dumbledore nodded, curious but not pressing, his patience unwavering.
After about ten minutes of wandering, Melvin stopped in front of a nondescript pile of junk—old wooden furniture, yellowed books, a broken Sneakoscope, a faintly twitching Quaffle. It looked no different from the other heaps.
But as Dumbledore approached, a strange sensation prickled at him, honed by nearly a century of magical instinct.
Melvin paused beneath a dusty suit of armor, looking up at a lance propped upright and the diadem resting beside it. "I've always wondered," he said, "why Ravenclaw's name comes from 'raven,' but her symbol is an eagle?"
Dumbledore followed his gaze, his eyes widening slightly.
There it was—a dust-covered diadem with an eagle's wings spread wide, a gem at its center glowing with a misty blue light. Faintly etched words were barely legible, but Dumbledore didn't need to read them to know what they said:
"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasure."
The diadem sat quietly atop the armor.
Dumbledore's usual calm demeanor shifted. Sensing an unusual magical presence, his expression turned serious. He approached cautiously, waving his wand to summon a gust of wind that cleared the dust.
The sapphire gleamed, clear and radiant, though its core held a shadowy depth, like the abyss of the Black Lake.
Dumbledore studied it closely, casting several spells in quick succession:
"Revelio!"
"Finite Incantatem!"
After confirming no malevolent curses or poisons lingered, he carefully lifted the diadem and placed it in a silver-threaded wooden box, then turned to Melvin, weighing how to explain.
"I owe you thanks, Melvin—on behalf of Rowena Ravenclaw and all of Hogwarts."
"Let me guess," Melvin said with a wry smile, "you'd rather not explain why?"
"That was my first thought…" Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled as he made up his mind. "But you found this diadem, lost for a millennium. Keeping the truth from you would probably keep me up tonight."
He gave a relieved smile and winked. "Have some pity on an old man's sleep. For the sake of meeting Lady Luck again, I'll share a bit of the story."
"I'm all ears," Melvin replied.
"It's a long tale," Dumbledore began, choosing his words carefully. "Hogwarts' four founders achieved extraordinary feats in their magical fields. After the school was established, they crafted special artifacts to pass down their wisdom. Hufflepuff's cup, Ravenclaw's diadem, Slytherin's various relics—though most of his have been lost to time."
"And Gryffindor?" Melvin asked.
Dumbledore hesitated, as if reluctant to answer. "Gryffindor commissioned Ragnuk the First, king of the goblins, to forge a sword symbolizing unyielding courage. It remains at Hogwarts, usable only by those with true bravery."
"That doesn't add up," Melvin said, already familiar with the sword but curious about the details. "Goblins claim ownership of anything they forge. With their greed, would they really let the sword stay at Hogwarts?"
"Gryffindor secured a twenty-year right to use it," Dumbledore explained.
"And after that?"
"After twenty years, the goblin king sent his subjects to reclaim it. They failed."
"You sure know how to skip the juicy bits," Melvin said, chuckling at the very Gryffindor-esque tale.
"So, each founder left an artifact. Then what?"
"Gryffindor's sword has stayed at Hogwarts. Ravenclaw's diadem was lost long ago. The other founders' relics were passed down through their heirs, mostly without incident—until about fifty years ago."
Dumbledore's gaze lingered on the wooden box, his eyes distant. "This story's complicated, Melvin, so bear with me. Let's start with Hufflepuff's cup.
"It was owned by Hepzibah Smith, Helga Hufflepuff's last direct descendant. In the winter of 1950, poor Hepzibah was poisoned in her home. The Ministry's Aurors quickly pinned the crime on her house-elf, Hokey.
"Hokey was elderly, her eyesight failing. She mistook a rare, deadly poison for sugar and added it to Hepzibah's cocoa. The Wizengamot convicted her, sentencing her to life in Azkaban.
"But Hepzibah's family soon noticed her two most valuable possessions were missing: Hufflepuff's cup and a locket of Slytherin's. How Slytherin's locket ended up with Hepzibah is another story for another time.
"The disappearance of these artifacts puzzled everyone, myself included. I visited Hokey in prison and gleaned a vague memory from her, which led me to someone I once knew.
"He was a wizard obsessed with dark magic and fanatically devoted to Slytherin. His soul was utterly corrupted. I have strong reason to believe he murdered Hepzibah for Slytherin's relic and framed the innocent elf.
"He acquired several artifacts through foul means—Hufflepuff's cup, Slytherin's locket. I suspected he might have Ravenclaw's diadem too, but I had no proof.
"For years, I've searched for these artifacts. Today, thanks to you, we've made real progress.
"You've earned the gratitude of all Hogwarts, Melvin."
"…"
Dumbledore's storytelling was as selective as ever.
From the clues about the house-elf and the innocent victim, Melvin pieced together that Dumbledore was talking about Voldemort, fresh out of Hogwarts, working at Borgin and Burkes. He'd learned of Hepzibah Smith's artifacts, poisoned her, framed her elf, and stolen Slytherin's locket and Hufflepuff's cup.
Melvin gave a neutral smile, feigning ignorance about Horcruxes. "Did you notice, Headmaster? That diadem seems tainted by dark magic."
"Yes," Dumbledore nodded. "I initially thought this dark wizard was merely collecting these artifacts as trophies. Now it seems he's tampered with them using sinister magic. I'm not yet sure what he's done, but I'll conduct some preliminary studies to try reversing it and hopefully uncover clues about the other artifacts."
"Can I observe?" Melvin asked.
"Not advisable," Dumbledore replied.
"Fair enough."
Melvin wasn't disappointed. Tonight, he'd earned Dumbledore's trust. In the future, if he needed a legendary wizard to back him up—barring anything involving Voldemort or Horcruxes—Dumbledore would likely agree.
"…"
Dumbledore bid farewell and left, leaving the Room of Requirement silent.
Melvin stood beneath the knight's armor, his shadow stretching across half his shoulder. He studied the dusty imprint left by the diadem, wondering what else might be hidden in the room.
The piles of junk were overwhelming—most magical items had faded with time, their magic long gone. Some century-old trinkets might work with minor repairs, but finding them would be a massive, thankless task.
If the diadem had stayed here, it would've been destroyed by Fiendfyre in six or seven years.
Melvin's gaze swept over the nearby objects: a towering, tarnished suit of armor, a green-tinged copper cauldron, a cobweb-draped cabinet in the corner.
"That's the Vanishing Cabinet, isn't it?" he muttered, a sudden idea striking him. If he needed a weakened, mildly alarming dark magic item, wasn't there a shop in Knockturn Alley with decades of reputation?
---
Headmaster's Office, Inner Chamber
A sleepy phoenix perched on a gilded branch, its eyes half-closed, eyelids drooping lazily.
Fawkes glanced at Dumbledore's expression, then at the diadem. That thing gave it a bad feeling.
The phoenix shuffled sideways, climbing over the perch to the Sorting Hat, burrowing its head inside and tucking its vibrant red feathers. Only its beady eyes peered out from a tear in the fabric.
The tattered hat twitched, annoyed at being used as a bird's nest but powerless to protest.
In the center of the room, the diadem hovered under a Levitation Charm.
Dumbledore applied all 197 detection methods he knew, layering alchemical wards and his own legendary magic to shield both the diadem and his mind. Slowly, he probed the sapphire's magic.
"…"
The artifact, a millennium-old relic of the founders, still thrummed with potent magic. The blue energy wasn't overwhelming, but touching it brought a strange clarity, sharpening his mind and strengthening his resolve.
Dumbledore narrowed his eyes, savoring the sensation.
It was like being young again, brimming with curiosity, with the energy and intellect to tackle complex, esoteric knowledge and explore uncharted magical realms.
It confirmed the legend: Ravenclaw's wisdom lived in her diadem.
But now, it wasn't just Ravenclaw's gift. It was tainted by Tom Riddle's vile dark magic.
What had he done to these artifacts?
Dumbledore delved deeper into the sapphire, cautiously probing its core.
Suddenly, a strange magic stirred, accompanied by a faint hum. The gem shimmered with a faint, crystalline glow.
A dark, blue-black light rose from the sapphire, distorting the air. The hovering light twisted, shapeless like smoke yet viscous like liquid, shifting from blue-black to a grayish substance, forming a vague silhouette.
After about thirty seconds, a blurry bird-like figure emerged—sleek feathers, a curved beak, and hollow eyes glowing red. It had avian features but no clear species.
Dumbledore watched the gray shadow, meeting its ethereal gaze.
Melvin's earlier question echoed in his mind: Ravenclaw's symbol was an eagle, yet this was warped into a raven.
The bird's beak opened, its voice heavy and rasping, echoing in the quiet office. "This is… Hogwarts?"
"Yes," Dumbledore replied.
"And you are?"
"Albus Dumbledore, current Headmaster," he said, his tone calm, his expression unreadable.
"…"
"My turn," Dumbledore continued. "Who—or what—are you?"
"I am the raven dwelling in the diadem, bearer of Ravenclaw's wisdom," the shadow said, its beak moving, its red eyes narrowing as if trying to pierce Dumbledore's mind. But it met only an empty void. The shadow lowered its head. "Wear the diadem, and with a spark of magic, I can grant you unparalleled wisdom."
"I'm over a hundred years old," Dumbledore said. "Time has dulled my thirst for knowledge."
"…"
The shadow fell silent, its red eyes fixed on the faint smile curling Dumbledore's lips, sensing mockery in that expression.
Fifty years ago, that same smile. Fifty years later, still that smile—condescending, guarded, as if it saw through everything. Infuriating.
"But…" Dumbledore spoke again, raising his voice slightly, drawing out his words as if teasing. "Lately, I've been curious about the world of the dead. Old age does that—clinging to life, fearing death.
"If I could understand death better, it might ease my fears. Surely, the wise Rowena Ravenclaw studied this. Do you know of any such research?"
The shadow's red eyes flared brightly. "Of course, of course!"