Chapter 47: The Figure in Black
He cast another Disillusionment Charm on himself. The system panel quietly appeared before him, then faded just as quickly. However, he managed to catch the information it displayed.
[Disillusionment Charm Proficiency Increased]
[Disillusionment Charm LV1 (1/4)]
In the two months since starting school, Warren had never slacked off in his spell practice. Naturally, his main focus remained on Potions. Consequently, he concentrated on mastering a limited number of spells.
Among the basic ones, he had raised his Shield Charm to LV4 (0/16) and his Disarming Charm to LV3 (2/8). Of the advanced spells he had learned from Snape a month ago, he focused on Reducto, the Disillusionment Charm, and Sectumsempra.
About a week ago, all three had reached LV1. He had achieved basic proficiency and could cast them effortlessly. After that, he had not practiced them excessively. He simply maintained a certain level of daily training.
Raising his proficiency further would require a significant time investment, especially with Sectumsempra. Although Snape had developed this Dark Arts spell as a student, it was quite complex and profound. Warren suspected Snape had drawn on some family knowledge of the Dark Arts.
The Disillusionment Charm, by comparison, was much simpler. It was a standard spell. Given Warren's talent for Charms, he could master it relatively quickly.
Feeling the subtle shifts in his own Disillusionment Charm, Warren kept his footsteps as light as possible while moving through the staircases and corridors. Hogwarts was empty and silent now. Any sound would be amplified by the gloomy, intersecting passageways.
He tapped his wand lightly against his ear to sharpen his hearing. It was a trick he had picked up in the library. One never knew when an obscure little spell might prove useful. Such spells were usually not very powerful, and some were more like pranks. The Message Charm he had used on himself and Ron, along with the Ear Trumpet Charm he was using now, came from a yellowed piece of parchment titled Ten Spells for Cheating on Exams. Below the title, a note was written in florid handwriting.
"Thank you, Mr. McLaggen, for your diligent compilation. I shall instruct Miss McGonagall to add these to the anti-cheating protocols. Yours faithfully, Albus Dumbledore, Transfiguration Professor."
Warren felt a pang of sympathy for the man from decades past as he put the old parchment to a new use. He listened intently and soon caught the sound of hurried footsteps. The steps passed overhead, ascending to the third floor and then the fourth. Warren quickened his pace, but when he reached the third floor landing, he stopped short. A strange noise caught his attention. The sound of teeth chattering and hushed whispers drifted down from the Charms classroom on the fourth floor. Quirrell's hurried footsteps had just swept past.
"Harry, what is wrong?"
"Pain. My head hurts so much."
It was Harry and Hermione.
Five minutes earlier, Harry and Hermione had set out to find Warren and Ron, assuming they were unaware of the troll. At first, everything went smoothly. They managed to slip away from Percy unnoticed. However, they were soon lost. No one knew where Warren had taken Ron. They wandered aimlessly from the second floor to the third. As the initial impulse faded, Hermione regained her senses and began trying to convince Harry to turn back.
"We should tell Percy. Let him get the professors. It is better than us wandering around like this." She crouched at the top of the stairs leading to the fourth floor and whispered to Harry.
Harry hesitated. He knew Hermione was right. But for some reason, his mind was in turmoil. He could not stop thinking that he needed to go up one more floor. To the fourth floor. He had to see. The thoughts came out of nowhere, suddenly appearing. They seemed to come from deep within his consciousness, a voice telling him that he would find something on the fourth floor. He even felt a thrill of excitement, anticipation, the joy of nearing a goal. The feeling was so strong he could barely resist it.
"Just one more floor," he urged. "Let us check the fourth floor. If we do not find anything, then we will go get the professors."
Hermione had no choice but to agree. To Harry's disappointment, they searched the fourth floor for a while and found nothing. He was about to give in to the increasingly urgent thoughts and go back with Hermione when they heard footsteps approaching from the stairs. In the dim light, they exchanged a glance. Whoever it was, Percy or a professor, they could not be seen. Gryffindor would lose even more points.
Hermione noticed the Charms classroom and quickly pulled Harry inside. They crouched behind the door, peeking through the narrow crack. In the gloomy corridor, a blurred figure in hooded robes hurried past. Who was that? In the dim light and with their limited view, it was hard to tell. But with all the students back in their common rooms and the professors searching the dungeons for the troll, who could be on the fourth floor? And what were they doing?
Harry's thoughts drifted to the room at the end of the fourth-floor corridor, where the three-headed dog, Fluffy, and the trapdoor were housed. That was likely where the Philosopher's Stone was hidden. He glanced at Hermione. She seemed to have reached the same conclusion, her hand flying to her mouth in shock.
Harry wanted to see who it was. Ignoring Hermione's frantic attempts to shake her head, he eased the door open and peered out. The hooded figure was already halfway down the corridor. Harry could only see his back. The moment that dark silhouette came into view, excruciating pain exploded from the scar on his forehead and radiated through his entire head. It was blinding, burning, and sharp, feeling as though someone were cleaving his skull open with a red-hot axe.
Harry collapsed, twitching. His vision blurred from the agony. He heard Hermione's worried whisper. "Harry, Harry, what is wrong?"
Pain. His head… Harry barely stifled a scream, though a groan tore from his throat. He felt Hermione grabbing at him, frantically trying to drag him back, terrified of being seen. But it was too late. Through his blurred vision, he saw the hooded figure stop.
Maybe it was the tears of pain, but everything in Harry's vision seemed to twist and stretch like a nightmare. Light and shadow writhed and danced around that dark silhouette.
Hiss. Hiss.
Harry heard a hoarse, ugly sound escape the figure, reminiscent of a snake. The figure turned, and the distorted light vanished instantly. Harry gasped. He did not know what had happened, only that the pain in his head was gone. But their situation had not improved. He saw the figure hastily raise his wand.
"Stupefy."
A split second before the spell could strike, Harry spotted someone materializing beside him. A clear, young voice rang out: "Expelliarmus."
Warren.
A blinding red bolt streaked through the air and slammed into the hooded figure, forcing him to abandon his spell and raise his wand in defense.
"Protego."
The red light crashed against the translucent barrier. Yet the force behind Warren's spell clearly caught the figure off guard. The shield flickered and trembled, its glow stuttering between bright and dim.
-----------------
-----------------
Read ahead on Patreon!
Harry Potter: The Accidental Dark Lord is currently available up to Chapter 80 on Patreon.
Support me for instant access to 30+ advanced chapters:patreon.com/Fanfic121
If you cannot find my Patreon on Google yet, please type or paste the direct link into your browser. New Patreon accounts may take some time to appear in search results.