In the room where the Mirror of Erised was kept, Harry Potter once again sat alone quietly in front of it.
Inside the mirror's world, Harry's parents stood by his side, smiling at him. Though they couldn't speak or touch, for Harry—who hadn't seen his parents in over a decade—even one more glance was worth everything.
Ron had said he saw himself as a prefect, Quidditch captain, and holding the Quidditch Cup.
It was from that moment Harry understood that the mirror reflected the deepest desires of the heart—revealing what one most longed to see. His deceased parents could no longer be by his side; he could only look at their faces through the mirror.
"You're here again, Harry."
That night, after Dumbledore had deflected responsibility onto Regulus Black and Quirrell, he personally came to find Harry.
"Like some before you, you've discovered the enchantment of the Mirror of Erised. I believe you've figured out what it does. Let me give you a clue: only the happiest person in the world would see themselves exactly as they are."
Dumbledore launched into his usual lecture and explanation, though Harry had already grasped the essence of it.
Desire—the Mirror of Erised reveals the desires buried deep in one's heart. Because Harry had never seen his family before, the mirror showed him their images.
"This mirror... it doesn't give us knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away in front of it, even gone mad because of it."
Harry wasn't entirely convinced by those words, but Dumbledore was about to say the thing he least wanted to hear.
"Tomorrow, I'll be moving the mirror elsewhere. Please, Harry, don't go looking for it again. People can't live in dreams."
Harry shot him a faint look of protest, but he knew Dumbledore wouldn't harm him. Though he didn't want to, he had no choice but to let Dumbledore deal with the Mirror of Erised. After all, he hadn't gone mad yet—had he?
Regulus Black, meanwhile, was sneaking in a break from work to read in his room—Snow White from the Grimm's Fairy Tales.
A prince like a savior, a beautiful and naive princess unaware of the world's dangers, a wicked stepmother who also happened to be a witch—and of course!—seven dwarves. These story elements often appeared in other fairy tales as well.
What fascinated Regulus Black most about this particular story was the magic mirror.
In fairy tales, magic mirrors often serve as prophets. When a witch asked the mirror a question, it responded immediately. Only a fairy tale's vain queen would ask a mirror such a silly question as "Who is the fairest of them all?"
Besides the Grimm version, there were many other versions of Snow White.
Yet, despite that, this story continued to spread far and wide. Girls all wanted to be Snow White.
If one were to name the most iconic magic mirror, it would surely be the round, bronze one from Snow White and the Huntsman.
A mirror that could answer questions, manifest a humanoid form to communicate, and even preserve the owner's soul for the sake of extending life.
With some alchemical reworking based on the Mirror of Erised, much of the material and procedure could be simplified.
Next to Regulus Black sat a copy of The Alchemical Compendium by the great master Nicolas Flamel.
Strictly speaking, alchemy in the wizarding world was simply the process of making better foundational artifacts. Only when appropriate and matching magic was added could the creator's original intent truly be brought to life.
Just like Regulus Black's own series of iron golems. Yes, models [Zero] through [Seven] were already in operation.
Each golem in the series was handcrafted by Regulus Black, and numerous subtle design differences existed between them. Even [One] and [Two], who could be considered twin models, had slight variations—let alone [Three], [Four], [Five], [Six], and [Seven].
And this was despite Regulus Black using a production line–like standard for making the components. If only a single model were made, these differences wouldn't even be noticeable.
As winter turned to spring, Hogwarts was once again approaching the end-of-term exams—though there were still a few months to go.
On several cold winter nights, Regulus Black would suddenly drag Harry Potter out of bed and bring him to Professor Quirrell's office to study three specific spells. Since the effects had already been predetermined, all of Quirrell's spells had undergone subtle modifications.
Clean and Fresh: Removes Personal Odor
Silent and Unnoticed: Puts the Caster into a State of Complete Silence
Muddle the Senses: Adds a Confusing Effect to Objects Touched, Obscuring Them from the Perception of Others
Each of these spells was slightly different from the original versions, but each was more suited for Harry Potter to use on himself.
During the learning process, Harry was quite diligent—clearly, he wasn't thrilled about being dragged out of bed right after falling asleep.
Quirrell, to his credit, taught earnestly—likely because Snape would occasionally drop by unannounced, scoffing coldly before leaving.
Thanks to the combined efforts of Harry and Quirrell, the three modified spells were quickly mastered.
Though… would Harry become more skilled at these than at his signature spell, Expelliarmus, the Disarming Charm?
Due to the absence of a brain like Hermione's, Harry's little group was now entirely boys: the loyal Ron, the scatterbrained Neville, and explosive Seamus Finnigan. The four of them happened to share the same dorm room.
So, living amid random explosions, forgetfulness, and endless flattery, Harry's mind hadn't exactly been sharpened.
However, during his time studying under Quirrell, his spellcasting improved faster than ever before.
One day in the library, Regulus Black was suddenly called out by Hermione.
"Mr. Black! Look—look! I found the information you mentioned!"
Hermione clutched a massive book, struggling to open to a specific page before pointing excitedly at the contents.
Regulus Black smiled faintly. Finally, the moment had arrived. In the film, the change of seasons from winter to spring was marked by Harry releasing Hedwig into the sky, followed by the scene where Hermione, clutching a heavy book, finds Harry and Ron in the library. That, of course, was when Hagrid's dragon egg was about to hatch.
Since it was hard to pinpoint exactly when that moment occurred, Regulus had come up with a roundabout solution.
Back on the train, during his conversation with Hermione and the other three girls, Regulus had asked her to keep the information about Nicolas Flamel a secret—unless she could find a more detailed written source. That way, she could use the book itself as proof when revealing it to Harry and the others.
Regulus had explained that Harry and his clueless male friends wouldn't take her seriously without solid, credible evidence. If it was just him relaying a few vague details and Hermione passing them on, it wouldn't be enough to convince them.
So over the past few weeks, Hermione had been combing through books, and Regulus wasn't at all worried about her uncovering the information too early. Due to the "timeline of history," Hermione was meant to find the right book on the day the dragon egg was due to hatch, and the three of them would then go to Hagrid together to verify it.
"So you did it, Hermione! I hope you found more during your research than just this old man."
Regulus closed the book, pointed toward a corner of the library, and gestured for Hermione to bring it to Harry.
Hermione, recalling their conversation on the train, lifted her chin confidently and carried the heavy tome over.
"This is a book I borrowed a few weeks ago for light reading."
She slammed the book down in front of Harry, startling both boys.
"You read this for fun?!"
Ron was at a loss for words—only to be silenced by a sharp glare from Hermione.
"Look here—Nicolas Flamel is the only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone. The Philosopher's Stone is a legendary magical object with astonishing power. It can turn any metal into pure gold and can also produce the Elixir of Life, which grants immortality. The only known Philosopher's Stone in existence belongs to Mr. Nicolas Flamel, a famous alchemist who celebrated his 665th birthday last year. That's the treasure being guarded by Fluffy on the third floor. Beneath the trapdoor... is the Philosopher's Stone."
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