Chapter 21: Joining Group Activities
“I’m such an idiot, really…”
Melvin sighed at the tightly shut stone door: “I only knew that there are many secret passages in Hogwarts Castle, one of which connects to the Honeydukes cellar. I didn’t know that opening the secret passage requires a password.”
Half an hour ago, he had a sudden idea to enter the tunnel from the candy store cellar, passed through the narrow, damp, and long tunnel, but got stuck at this end of the tunnel.
The dim tunnel was filled with cold damp air, and a locked stone door blocked the way.
Melvin held his wand and tapped around, trying to explore the mechanism, then tried several unlocking spells, his technique professional and precise, clearly having deliberately studied the relevant skills.
The stone door showed no reaction.
“A Blasting Curse or a Piercing Spell might work, but how would I explain breaking the door to the headmaster…”
Melvin fell into thought.
His contemplation yielded no results.
So he put away his wand, was about to head back the way he came, and before he could turn around, he heard a sound from the other side of the stone door.
He listened carefully to identify it; the footsteps were leisurely and slow, so he tentatively called out: “Headmaster Dumbledore?”
“So it’s Melvin…”
The wand tip tapped the stone door twice, and he heard the other side cast 【Splitting Charm】, then the stone door rumbled open, and Dumbledore was standing outside.
“Headmaster, good thing you were right outside.”
Melvin felt somewhat relieved, walked out of the secret passage and looked back; the entrance to the secret passage was the hump on the back of the one-eyed witch statue.
“First time using this tunnel, I didn’t know the opening spell, almost got trapped inside. If it weren’t for considering the terrible influence of a professor leading the way in destroying public property, I would have used an Explosive Curse to break the door.”
“I think you wouldn’t do that.” Dumbledore smiled mildly.
“It could also be Transfiguration or Splitting Charm; these two spells make less noise when breaking a door.” Melvin shook his head with a laugh. “A lesson learned from the first weekend at Hogwarts: a prudent wizard shouldn’t crawl into an unfamiliar secret passage.”
“Finding a hidden secret passage in just one week—I’m more curious about how you discovered it?”
“A chance opportunity, just a coincidence.” Melvin didn’t answer in detail.
“I see…”
Dumbledore paused briefly, winked at him: “Please keep it a secret. The castle’s secrets should be explored independently by students.”
“I promise you.”
Melvin made a solemn promise, then changed the subject: “Headmaster, what are you doing here?”
“A guest is temporarily staying in the fourth-floor corridor. It’s almost lunchtime, so I came to deliver its meal. I happened to hear the sound nearby.”
“I thought some students had discovered this secret passage again and were using it to procure candy from the Honeydukes store… Since we ran into each other, come on, come meet that friend with me.”
“…”
Melvin followed behind the headmaster, vaguely guessing something in his heart.
Most rooms on the castle’s fourth floor were abandoned, with only three areas in use: the Charms classroom was in another direction, the display of awards was several miles away, and the remaining area was that forbidden corridor.
Based on the information sorted from those distant memories in his mind, the room at the end of the corridor connected to the secret space storing the Philosopher’s Stone, guarded by a three-headed dog at the entrance, with protective measures set by several main course professors inside.
The protective effect was not as good as the stone door in the hump of the one-eyed witch statue.
“Click…”
Twisting the spherical doorknob, accompanied by the sound of the old lock turning, the door opened.
A giant beast was crouched inside the room, three heads, three pairs of scarlet eyes with ferocious glints, three bloodied maws, and menacing canine teeth somewhat yellowed.
The three-headed dog looked ferocious on the outside, not very smart, lying motionless on the floor. Its six eyes rolled around once, then locked onto the two who had just entered, its constricted pupils indicating it was gradually coming to its senses. Just as it was about to open its mouth to roar, the headmaster interrupted it.
“Fluffy, it’s lunchtime.”
Fluffy then recognized one of them as the keeper, its eyes quickly livening up. Its four claws scraped as it rushed toward Dumbledore at the door, sharp nails leaving shallow scratches on the floor. It crashed into Dumbledore’s arms, its three heads vying to nuzzle and act cute, the collision of bones making a muffled sound.
Melvin’s eye twitched as he watched. With the physical condition shown by the old headmaster, if there were no Voldemort, he could live at least a few more centuries.
Dumbledore nearly toppled over, rubbing his sore chest, somewhat helplessly. Ignoring the three-headed dog’s drool, he reached out to pet its nose, smiling brightly.
“Fluffy was bought by Hagrid at the Hog’s Head Inn. Originally planned to keep it in the Forbidden Forest, but the centaurs disagreed…”
Dumbledore somehow produced half a slab of raw beef, feeding it while introducing: “So it’s temporarily boarded at the school, helping with some guard work. It’s always diligent; I’ve grown fond of this little guy.”
“…”
Little guy?
Melvin stayed silent.
Whatever you say it is, it is.
“Come, say hello.” Dumbledore stepped slightly aside: “This is Fluffy… Fluffy, this is Professor Levent.”
Fluffy was focused on tearing into the raw beef, paused for a moment, then the leftmost head stretched over to sniff, and extended one front paw toward Melvin.
“Woof…”
Melvin was stunned for a moment, then placed his hand on its paw: “Hello?”
Fluffy shook its paw, as if shaking hands in greeting, indicating that the man and dog had met.
Who says three-headed dogs are dumb?
Three-headed dogs are very smart.
Dumbledore rubbed its heads that were focused on eating: “Fluffy, move aside a bit. Melvin and I need to go below.”
Fluffy’s heads were buried in the beef, not lifting up, its two hind claws digging as it shifted its entire body to the side, revealing a trapdoor on its belly underside: “Mmm…”
“Let’s go.”
Without giving Melvin time to react, Dumbledore pulled him and jumped right in. What followed was a long free fall; Melvin then realized how deep the foundations of Hogwarts Castle were.
No torches or oil lamps, pitch black with nothing visible.
The passage was very quiet. Listening carefully, he could hear faint sounds, rustling, like tiny things slowly moving.
After nearly ten seconds, Melvin suddenly felt a gentle force buoying his body, slowing the rapid descent. His feet soon landed on solid, cold floor.
Looking around, this was a carved one-way passage, with rough stone walls on both sides covered in thin, blackened vines. Seeming to detect intruders, the delicate tendrils slowly writhed toward them, rubbing the walls to make faint sounds.
Juvenile Devil’s Snare, a magical plant of the vine family, prefers dark, damp environments, fears light and heat.
“I didn’t know there was a Herbology classroom below the castle.”
Melvin waved his hand, conjuring a few blue flames that emitted a soft glow and just-right warmth to dispel the Devil’s Snare without being too scorching.
“Pomona wouldn’t want to hold class here. These Devil’s Snares were just transplanted and need a few more weeks to mature.”
Dumbledore led him deeper: “This is an abandoned underground classroom, conveniently connected by a passage to the fourth-floor corridor. It was temporarily renovated to store the Philosopher’s Stone and still needs time to be completed.”
“Philosopher’s Stone?”
“During the summer vacation, Nic and I met alone in New York to discuss this matter.” Dumbledore’s voice echoed in the passage. “For some reasons that can’t be disclosed yet, the Philosopher’s Stone needs to be temporarily stored at Hogwarts. I’ve received intelligence that a powerful and cunning dark wizard is plotting to seize the Philosopher’s Stone.”
“These are the protective measures?”
“Set up by several main subject professors.”
“…”
Their footsteps gradually went deeper, revealing the four rooms the passage pierced one by one.
Professor Flitwick’s Charms room, currently just a heavy wooden door.
Professor McGonagall’s Transfiguration room, currently just a few stone pedestals.
Professor Snape’s Potions room, already stocked with several bottles of poison.
Finally, Quirinus Quirrell’s Defence Against the Dark Arts room, piled with several stacks of hay.
“…”
Compared to these half-finished products, Professor Sprout’s progress was far ahead.
Melvin looked at the last wooden door, knowing these checkpoints were to test students, but still felt the headmaster’s acting was too crude.
The four deans had clean backgrounds, absolutely reliable; their designed checkpoints were placed on the outside.
Quirinus Quirrell had just been promoted to required course professor this year, went to Albania where dark wizards gather during summer vacation, full of suspicions; his designed checkpoint was placed deepest inside.
And you’re using this to test the Dark Lord?
“Headmaster Dumbledore…”
Melvin pursed his lips, couldn’t help but complain: “This powerful and cunning dark wizard must have some physical defect, right? Missing limbs and unable to wave a wand? Or a mute who can’t cast spells?”
Thinking carefully about Voldemort’s condition, this didn’t seem wrong.
Dumbledore laughed: “So I hope you can join in and strengthen the protective measures for the Philosopher’s Stone.”
Melvin observed his surroundings while casually brushing it off: “I suggest putting up a sign next to the Philosopher’s Stone saying 「This is not the Philosopher’s Stone」; maybe the dark wizard will leave upon seeing it.”
“An unexpected idea. If you were to design it, it might actually work…”
Dumbledore seemed to notice his curiosity, turned to stare into his eyes, and softly invited: “Want to go in and see the legendary Philosopher’s Stone?”
“Can I?” Melvin was indeed a bit curious.
“Of course.”
So the two pushed open the door and entered the room.
Inside was a circular hall with steps around the perimeter, a pool in the center, and a crude stone statue platform built in the middle of the pool, embedded with a ring of crimson halo on top.
Melvin stared and examined it for a while, then withdrew his gaze: “Looks pretty ordinary.”
“Indeed, nothing special.”
Dumbledore smiled brightly, his deep blue eyes narrowed into slits.
…
“Sodium metal isn’t necessary…”
“We can handle the explosion ourselves.”
“That’s right, that’s right.”
“But ammonia water is important.”
Two red-haired students huddled together, whispering as they walked down the stairs.
Autumn hadn’t officially arrived yet, days were still long, and at dusk, it wasn’t dark yet; the castle torches and lights hadn’t lit up.
Students were chatting in the courtyard, gathered in twos and threes; the corridors were relatively quiet. After walking a stretch along the dim passage, near the courtyard, it suddenly became cooler.
After handing in summer homework, the second week’s classes weren’t so intense; the little wizards enjoyed the leisurely late summer.
A Hufflepuff student wobbled along holding a teapot, pouring iced pumpkin juice for friends. Listening carefully, they were planning to play in the water with the giant squid tomorrow; by October, the Black Lake water would be cold.
The Weasley twins found a step to sit on, doodling on a notebook. They were worrying about how to buy sodium metal and ammonia water—both Muggle items, chemical supplies; ordinary Muggle classmates had no channels.
Best to get the raw materials during term time; delaying until holiday at home would be trouble. If mum found out, breaking brooms would be minor; crucially, their father worked in the Office for the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts—if discovered, he might disown them for righteousness.
While worrying, they saw a figure coming down the stairs.
The twins perked up and immediately crowded over: “Professor Levent!”
“Do you two need something?” Melvin slowed his steps.
The twins hurried closer, faces piled with eager smiles: “Professor, does Muggle Studies class have chemistry lessons? Will it provide raw materials?”
“Well…”
Melvin paused: “Sixth-year courses include foundational subject knowledge. I do plan to use some materials for demonstration, but definitely not sodium metal or ammonia water—one’s dangerous, the other’s smelly; you might not wash it off even after bathing.”
George and Fred exchanged a glance, eyes flickering.
“I advise you to drop the idea early. If you cause trouble, Mr. Filch will make you clean it up yourselves, and Professor McGonagall absolutely won’t stop him.”
“Underestimating us?”
The twins puffed out their chests: “We’ve cleaned bathrooms, even real feces and urine, and you’re worried about that?”
“…Is there anything proud about that?”
George and Fred chuckled twice, sticking close behind: “Cleaning is cleaning, we’re not afraid. Tell us more about chemistry…”
The two followed Melvin, chatting along the way about explosive reactions of active metals, smells of various chemical reagents. Hearing that indole is the source of fecal odor, their eyes lit up, chuckling nonstop.
A few minutes later, they passed through the courtyard to the Great Hall. Unlike usual, the Great Hall was noisy today; crowds around the Gryffindor and Slytherin house tables were arguing loudly.
George and Fred glanced at the crowd, eyes narrowing: “Isn’t that little Ron? And Harry—what happened to them?”
The two squeezed over; Melvin finally had some peace, glancing at the high table—no sign of Professor McGonagall.
These two guys hadn’t even elected Muggle Studies; if they caused trouble later, the deputy headmaster shouldn’t blame him, right?
“Heard about this afternoon’s flying lesson…”
Melvin passed between the house tables; the surrounding students’ discussions drifted into his ears, and he impassively pieced together their topic.
In the second week of term, house Quidditch teams began player tryouts; first-years’ schedules added flying lessons—today’s afternoon was their first broomstick experience.
Not sure which professor scheduled it, but Gryffindor was grouped with Slytherin again—no surprise, there was a little incident in class.
Potter clashed with Malfoy, immediately starting an aerial duel.
Rumor was the match didn’t have a winner because Malfoy was too injured to finish—
Three broken ribs, one dislocated arm, fractured leg bone.
