Chapter 315: An Unexpected Outcome

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling. I own nothing but the original characters I create.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 315: An Unexpected Outcome

Moving around the castle at night was no issue for Harry. After all, the castle elves, ghosts, and paintings were on his side.

The only one he had to avoid was that nasty man and his cat.

"This way, My Lord. It is close to Miss Williams' cottage." A middle-aged man dressed in elegant clothing from the 1800s pointed to his left from within his painting.

Harry didn't know where the dormitory of the new professor was located, so he had to ask for help.

He thanked the man inside the painting and continued walking.

After taking two more turns, he arrived in front of a painting depicting a beautiful landscape of a grassy meadow with a wooden cabin on one side. At the front stood a young woman in a yellow tunic.

"Ah, My Lord. Did you come to visit me this late at night?" she asked in a flirtatious manner.

"I'm afraid it's not that kind of visit, Miss Williams… Is he here?" Harry asked.

She made a face of disgust.

"Yes… why did they have to put him next to my painting? That man creeps me out!" She pointed to her right.

There was an old wooden door right next to the painting. This corridor only contained two rooms, and if he recalled correctly, the one at the end was used for storage.

'Hmm… did the Headmaster give him this room on purpose?' Harry considered it for a moment. This was not a usual area for professors' offices or bedrooms.

This part of the castle was very isolated and rarely visited.

'Well… it's good for me, anyway.' Harry thought.

"Thank you, Miss Williams. I'll talk to the Headmaster about moving you to a different location, perhaps closer to the main hall?"

"Oh, that would be lovely!" she answered excitedly.

"Okay… now…" Harry activated his invisibility and walked toward the first door.

He first checked for any extra security the new professor could have added.

There was nothing.

'He's either very confident… or very careless.'

All Hogwarts' private bedrooms were well-protected with anti-unlocking charms and more. But none of those worked on him and no additional security has been added.

With the full authority of a Headmaster, there was no door in this castle that would not open to him.

He grasped the copper handle and began to twist it very slowly. The door opened with a soft click… and he began to move inside.

The charm on his shoes prevented any noise from being produced, and his 'cloak' of invisibility protected him from all sorts of detections, but he still moved with a lot of caution.

The inside of the room was very dark, but the moonlight coming from the window on the other side gave him just enough to know where to step next.

Not much was in this room. Basic furniture, and a small bed next to the only window, which was carelessly wide open.

The dim light illuminated the surface of the bed…

'Wait… where is he?' The bed appears to be completely empty.

The sheets were still intact, making it obvious that no one had used this bed yet.

Harry could feel a faint magical presence inside the room, so he looked around.

"Hmm!" His eyes widened, and he had to stop himself from making any noise by covering his mouth.

Professor Rookwood was standing next to the wardrobe, with his eyes open and not moving an inch. He was looking right at him.

'Did he see me?!...' Harry took a few steps to one side, but Rookwood's eyes remained in the same position.

'Is he?... He can't be sleeping like that…' This situation was too strange.

'No matter… let's just do what I came to do… I need answers.' He decided to ignore the bizarre behavior and push forward.

Harry pointed his wand at the strange man.

"Imperio."

As the Forbidden Curse hit Rookwood's chest, Harry knew something had gone very wrong.

Normally, when you use this curse, you feel an immediate connection with the other person as you try to get past their defenses.

This time, he only felt a powerful backlash that almost made him drop his wand and push him back.

'What is this?...'

There was something blocking him from accessing his mind. It broke the connection so fast that he didn't even feel it form.

'This is not Occlumency! … This is more like… uh oh…'

Rookwood's brown eyes changed color until they became completely red and shone with enough intensity to stand out more than anything else inside this dimly lighted bedroom.

"Who dares?!" The still body of the new professor came to life in an instant.

He pointed his wand directly in front of him.

"Avada Kedavra." The deadly flash of green light passed a foot away from where Harry was standing.

'I need to leave…' he decided immediately.

When he moved his foot slightly, the wooden tile beneath him let out a mild creaking noise. His charm only affected his shoes and not the floor beneath.

"There!" This time, Rookwood used a silent curse for more speed and accuracy.

Harry almost tripped on the bed while trying to avoid what looked like an organ-dissolving curse.

There was no room to fight here.

He lifted his wand up and was about to Apparate away when he realized that it would be a mistake.

Only the Headmaster can Apparate inside the castle. This would put the blame directly onto Dumbledore, and the Ministry is only looking for an excuse to expel him from the position.

With no other choice, Harry got onto the bed, and before Rookwood could fire again… he jumped out of the window.

Rookwood held his wand firmly and walked to the window. He then poked his head outside and glanced down.

There was nothing to be seen or heard at all. The night was completely quiet once more.

"Hmm… I can only feel faint traces of their magic… not enough to find the source. A skilled one, huh?... Interesting."

The red light in Rookwood's eyes disappeared, and they returned to their previous lifeless state.

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