Chapter 17 - Discussion

"What do you think Armando?" asked Dumbledore facing the giant portrait in the middle of the office wall.

The man on the portrait opened his eyes slowly. "He's keen, that's for sure. Although it seems he seeks knowledge, he knows his limits."

"Or, that's what he wanted us to see." said a man with a pointed beard.

"You're too cautious Phineas. It's not from your house." said a woman.

"And you're too carefree, Dilys." answered Phineas.

"What do you think Albus? I doubt he can fool you." asked Armando.

"Oh, he's genuine about the things he said. While Alder has all the reasons to hate muggles, I've seen no hate in him. Although it probably felt like an interrogation for him, I hope he understands how important this process was with time." said Dumbledore calmly.

"While I don't disagree with Phineas completely, I also think you were too cautious. Even though he has similar circumstances with 'Him' and has his own reasons to hate muggles, you can't exclude his personality. Also, staying at Hogwarts is nothing." said Armando.

"Yes, I also think showing signs of doubt will only have a counter effect. But Tom was not the only one shared a similar past with Alder. Only thing I can say is, Alder is lucky to be the way he is right now." said Dumbledore.

"I see, while I'm not familiar with the one you're talking about. I can say you're thinking too much about Tom. And you can't change every person, sometimes bad things happen for no reason." said Dilys.

"Yes. But Tom is yet to leave us completely." said Dumbledore.

"You said that before. But you also said you didn't know how. And there is no sign of him for years. Why do you think he is alive?" said Armando.

"He was less of a human being when I saw him last time. He may be trying something, or worse, achieved something." Dumbledore pulled open his drawer of his desk and fixated his gaze on a black covered book.

"So you think he actually created that kind of thing?" said Armando thoughtfully.

"Well, if one can make it, or someone is mad enough to make it, it would be him I suppose." said Phineas.

Dilys frowned. She refused to accept anything that praises Voldemort.

"Don't look at me like that Dilys. He did terrible things; you know the best since you have a portrait in St Mungo's. But you can't deny his skills. Especially in dark arts." said Phineas to which Dilys grunted.

Dumbledore closed the drawer and said "Then I see no reason to not let Alder stay at Hogwarts. I will talk to Pomona for final arrangements.".

…

When Alder arrived at his room, it was almost curfew.

"Are you in trouble?" asked Casper worriedly. Stephen and Thomas were also looking Alder with concern.

Alder shook his head. "It was because of my request. I want to stay at Hogwarts for the whole year."

"Can you do that? Can I do that?" asked Casper.

"Huh? And why would you want that?" asked Alder.

"Stephen said we are not allowed to use magic outside the school. So I thought if I could come here from time to time." said Casper embarrassedly.

Alder shook his head and said "While Stephen is partially right, it's important to spend time with your family. I know magic is good and all but your family won't be around you forever. It's good to cherish these moments.".

Casper nodded thoughtfully, if another person said it, he could ignore them but Alder's circumstances were known to anyone in the room.

"What do you mean partially right?" said Stephen puzzled.

"You're right about that we are forbidden to use magic outside, but detection of the magic is not reliable. The ministry only detects a certain magic is used in the area, but they can't be sure of the identity of the caster. Of course, if you're living with your muggle families, it will be obvious." said Alder softly, glancing at Casper.

"But that's not fair." said Casper with wide eyes.

"The world is not fair." said Alder, shaking his head.

"Well, enough with the depressing stuff. Are you allowed to stay at school full time now?" asked Thomas. Although he was also excited about the news, he tried not to show them around Casper.

"Not sure yet, but I don't think Professor Dumbledore would refuse. Nevertheless, I have other options, so don't worry about it." said Alder waving his hand.

"But man, I'm already bored of these classes. Potions class was not that bad but what was that history class?" said Thomas sighing.

"You should have seen the classes in the muggle schools." said Casper shaking his head.

"Well, you really didn't say anything good about them. But I think we have a similar class, right?" asked Thomas.

"Yeah, Arithmancy…" whispered Thomas, it was the lesson he was the least curious of.

"We couldn't find enough time to ask but what was the questions in the history class about, Alder?" asked Stephen. Although he looked calm, he was also interested in exploring the castle.

"The four founders' offices?" remembered Thomas.

"Yeah. You know, I have a theory that the four founders left their studies in their offices. Of course they were teachers and they had enough chances to teach their ways to their students. But a certain existing example made me thought otherwise." said Alder softly.

"Chamber of Secrets?" asked Casper.

"Precisely. Has anyone of you have read about the history of Hogwarts?" asked Alder back.

They shared a look with each other and shook their heads.

"It's a chamber shrouded in mystery. Legends say that Salazar Slytherin left a room behind during his departure. You see, he had some controversial ideas that didn't sit well with other founders' vision. This led to his departure from the school which made him unable to realize his ideas. Thus a legend surfaced a certain chamber was built deep down the castle to help his descendants achieve his vision. It says one day, his descendants will arrive at school and release the horror within the room." said Alder slowly.

"Are you mad?" blurted Casper. "You're searching for a dangerous place left by one of the greatest wizards of his time. Are you his descendant or something?"

"No way." Alder shook his head. "Well, at least it shouldn't be, I'm not quite sure about my origins but I would be probably placed in Slytherin if that was the case. It would be funny if the long waited descendant turned out to be a Hufflepuff." said Alder smiling. Then he continued "But also no, I'm not searching for that place. But there is a good chance that other founders also left some stuff behind. Even if their leftovers were turned out to be nothing, you know what they say 'One man's trash is another man's treasure.' Besides, I have nothing to lose, as long as I stay away from the chamber of course.".

"But I don't understand how come teachers keep such a dangerous place still in school? We all know the vision of Salazar Slytherin." said Stephen.

"Yeah…" muttered Casper. Since his arrival at the school, he asked his seniors about the behaviours of some Slytherin students towards him. And shocked to learn such a thought could be still around at this age and time.

"They don't 'keep' it. The school has been searched for hundreds of years by the brightest minds but nothing was found as Professor Binns says. In the end, it's regarded as a legend. But there is also a rumour, it says the chamber was opened over forty years ago. Don't worry, the culprit who opened it has been caught. But it's yet unknown what lies within the chamber, so it wouldn't be such a bad idea to keep that in mind." said Alder, reassuring Casper.

They all nodded and delved into their own thoughts. Seeing they were all too tired to continue about the topic, Alder also dropped it and grabbed his book "Unfogging the Future".

The curtain of the night fell slowly while the students said goodbye to their first school day in Hogwarts.