Tver's astonishment didn't last long; he didn't even have time to properly process their disappearance.
Because as soon as Rowena Ravenclaw vanished, the room once again filled with joyful magic and a soft, milky-white glow.
Strangely, the light seemed to spread in all directions without a single gap. Yet it wasn't blinding. Instead, it felt like a passing breeze, brushing gently over his face, his limbs, his entire body.
The wind grew stronger. Before long, he could barely keep his balance, swaying as the currents surged in from every side.
In one particularly violent sway, his heart seemed to stop for a second. In that instant, the entire room shattered into nothingness.
No—when he came back to himself, he realized he was floating as if in outer space, surrounded by pure emptiness, yet able to move freely wherever he wished.
If he wanted to jump, his knees could still bend, his feet felt as though they pressed against solid ground, and a single push sent him upward.
If he wanted to descend, a casual shift of his body was enough to send him gliding down.
This was a void completely under his control.
In this environment, he suddenly understood the insight Rowena had left him.
Control.
If Hufflepuff's weight and stability could be described as "stillness," then Ravenclaw was "control."
Control over his body, his magic, his will…
He was like both observer and participant at once, grasping everything, holding it all in his palm and turning it over at leisure—
Then releasing it as he pleased.
Tver suddenly realized his wand was in his hand. Guided by pure instinct, he flicked it.
A simple Disarming Charm shot from the wand's tip—but what wasn't simple was the speed.
It was incredibly fast.
Not as fast as the pure beam of light from before, but still a full thirty percent faster than the spells he'd cast in the past.
Given his current level of power, his spells were already extremely fast. Even a ten-percent increase would count as a massive breakthrough.
And this was thirty percent.
More importantly, he could feel that his control over magic itself had sharpened. Casting now felt smooth, natural—almost casual.
Magic felt like a servant at his side, waiting quietly for his next command.
The feeling didn't last long.
Just as realization settled in, the surroundings snapped back to the familiar form of the Room of Requirement, and that godlike sense of assistance vanished along with the void.
"Insight doesn't disappear," Tver said to himself, delighted.
What had just happened was very much like when Helga had shown him the Earth, except this time there'd been no magic for him to absorb. If he wanted to turn this understanding into real strength, he'd have to practice it himself, slowly.
And the harvest from this trip wasn't just that.
He raised the badge that had appeared in his hand. The Ravenclaw eagle portion was now fully activated.
Judging from the dense life force pulsing inside it, just as Ravenclaw had said, he wouldn't need to worry about the curse for at least a few centuries.
Tver walked out of the Room of Requirement, going over everything he'd gained in his mind.
Thinking back to how he'd actually been dissatisfied earlier, he felt his cheeks heat up in embarrassment.
Luckily, it was already completely dark. The castle was silent, and students weren't allowed to leave their common rooms.
No one was around to see his moment of self-consciousness.
"Professor, I… finally found you!"
Ginny ran up to him, panting heavily, sweat shining on her face as she struggled to get the words out.
"Me?" Tver looked at her in surprise. "What did you need me for?"
Ever since he'd learned the diary was no longer in Ginny's hands, he'd stopped paying much attention to her.
After all, in the original story, Ginny had just been Tom Riddle's vessel. Without the diary, she wasn't much of a threat.
So why would she suddenly come rushing to find him—and in such a panic?
Before she even caught her breath, Ginny blurted, "The Chamber! The Basilisk from the Chamber appeared!"
Tver's expression shifted sharply. He grabbed her by the arm and locked eyes with her.
"Was there another attack?"
He remembered there being another attack around this time in the original timeline—but that had happened during a daytime Quidditch match.
Wait. Could the Basilisk have moved at night instead because the Quidditch match had been canceled?
He didn't have time to think it through.
He immediately cast Legilimens. Reading her memories would be much faster than waiting for her to explain.
...
A diary had been found on Percy, and when he didn't return to the common room that evening, a worried Ginny decided to ask Professor Fawley for help.
On the staircase, she ran into Harry and Ron, who happened to be heading the same way, so they went together toward the third floor.
But at the office door, they encountered Snape—and Hermione wrapped in an oversized cloak—talking there.
Then Harry and Ron appeared, and the four of them were immediately herded into a tight cluster under Snape's glare.
The Basilisk suddenly appeared. Hermione accidentally met its gaze, but the light from her badge weakened the effect, leaving her only petrified.
Snape stepped forward, and they fought the Basilisk together.
Ron was hit by his own spell (he had given his badge to Ginny)… and Snape, shielding Harry, was caught by the Basilisk's gaze…
Fortunately, Harry and Ginny's badges reacted, so he was only petrified.
Also fortunately, the Basilisk had been badly injured by Snape and retreated back into the bathroom.
Panicked, Harry and Ginny banged on Tver's office door, but he was still in the Room of Requirement and obviously unable to respond.
After discussing it, Harry decided to stay behind to guard the unconscious Ron and the petrified Hermione and Snape, while Ginny went to find a professor for help.
Ginny actually argued with him—"They won't get into any trouble here. Ron would only end up petrified at worst. Can't we go find a professor together?"
But Harry refused to leave his best friend alone in such danger. When she couldn't persuade him, Ginny shoved her badge into his hands and ran off through the castle searching for a professor.
She happened to run into Tver, who was on his way back to his office.
...
Before Ginny even opened her mouth, Tver had already read through her memories of the night.
To be honest, he broke into a cold sweat.
It was surprising enough that the whole group had shown up at his office door, but Snape had actually fought the Basilisk!
If not for the number of badges—especially the twins' linked badge activating—this dutiful professor might have become the Basilisk's next victim.
Although they clashed often, Tver truly did admire Snape.
People with obsessions often held great power.
He absolutely didn't want Snape hurt, and explaining such an incident to Dumbledore would be a nightmare.
A surge of dread hit him. He quickly stopped Ginny from speaking and hurried with her toward his office.
Harry was still waiting there. If he also ended up harmed right outside his office door, Tver would have no way to explain any of this to Dumbledore.
...
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