Seeing there was no more drama to watch, Tver was about to leave.
He still had to go comfort poor, heartbroken Uncle Lucius~
But before he could take a step, Dumbledore suddenly called out to him.
"Tver, do you know where I've been all this time?"
Tver turned back in surprise.
This… wasn't heading in the right direction.
Feeling the shift in atmosphere, he reined in his earlier enthusiasm.
"Did you… take a trip to relax?"
Dumbledore shook his head, amused, and gently set down the sword Harry had left behind. Only after doing so did he speak, sounding almost reflective.
"Yes… and no."
He suddenly turned around, facing Tver, his expression now serious and solemn.
"I went to Austria."
Austria.
The word made Tver's pupils contract instantly, though he kept his face perfectly calm, even pretending to be more casual.
"Austria is wonderful. I used to visit quite often. The food there is great—surprisingly suited to my taste."
"And the music, of course. Austria's famous for it. You can see bands performing in the streets all the time."
"And the parades, they…"
Tver rambled on, but Dumbledore's eyes only grew more and more amused. He even sat leisurely in Professor McGonagall's chair, as if silently saying:
Go on. I'm listening.
Please. Continue.
Tver could no longer pretend. With a resigned sigh, he simply sat down in front of Dumbledore.
"Judging by your face, your trip to Austria wasn't pleasant?"
"No. Not pleasant at all," Dumbledore said, giving him a look that was half-smile, half-accusation. "In fact, I was very unhappy."
"I thought for days. Hesitated for days. I had to prepare myself mentally before I finally decided to go there again."
"After more than fifty years, I went back to Austria. And then to…"
He paused.
"Nurmengard."
(It might not be exactly fifty years, but ever since Grindelwald was imprisoned, Dumbledore never returned—not once. So it can only be more than fifty, not less.)
Tver's heart dropped.
The moment he heard Austria, he'd already suspected Dumbledore had gone to look for his teacher, Grindelwald.
He knew this day would come eventually, but he didn't expect it to come now.
Just last year, Dumbledore had still been drowning in old grief. Tver had honestly thought it would take him several years to fully confront it.
Years he believed he could still run around freely under Dumbledore's nose.
He didn't expect Dumbledore to gather his courage so soon—and actually go see his teacher.
And then, after all that emotional preparation… to arrive at Nurmengard and find it empty.
No wonder he was furious.
"I want an explanation," Dumbledore said through clenched teeth. "An explanation for why Grindelwald is no longer in Nurmengard!"
His bright blue eyes blazed with anger, practically shooting sparks at Tver.
Tver gave a strained smile, desperately trying to smother the flames roaring off him.
"Since you've already been to Nurmengard, you should know the place is practically falling apart. It could never hold the Headmaster anymore."
"That is still no reason for him to leave Nurmengard," Dumbledore said coldly.
"Ahem… maybe he just stepped out for some fresh air?" Tver offered weakly.
"Staying cooped up in one place for too long is terrible for your health. And Nurmengard is cold and damp—perfect for developing joint problems."
"You wouldn't want the Headmaster catching something, would you?"
"Hah." Dumbledore let out a short, humorless laugh, some of the fury fading from his expression. "You certainly seem very… considerate of him. But I need to know where he is now."
"I really don't know. The Headmaster's always been the type to do as he pleases. For all I know, he's already left Europe and gone off somewhere to have fun." Tver said bluntly.
He'd always wanted the two of them to meet again, but looking at Dumbledore's blazing temper right now… if he handed his teacher over, Dumbledore would probably drag him straight back to Nurmengard.
And then his teacher would absolutely murder him.
Dumbledore leaned back in his chair, his eyes hidden behind the gleam of his spectacles.
"Truth be told, I don't care where Grindelwald is, or even what he's planning."
"Oh?" Tver blinked, thrown off.
"But I do care what you are planning."
"Tver, from the moment you first set foot in this castle, I have been watching you."
"Last year, you told me you needed the Philosopher's Stone to save your life. I gave it to you."
"But this year? I saw you allow Voldemort to control Ginny. I saw you allow the Basilisk to roam the castle and attack students."
"So tell me—what excuse do you intend to give me this time?!"
Dumbledore slammed his hand onto the table with a sharp crack.
Fawkes, startled, jerked awake on his shoulder, then quickly tucked his head back under his wing, pretending to sleep again.
Tver's expression stiffened instantly.
This was bad. His performance last night—and Ginny's testimony—must have tipped Dumbledore off to some of the things he'd been doing over the past year.
"The Headmaster is staying at Room 10, Leon District, near the University of Vienna," he blurted out immediately.
Honestly—if he didn't sell out his teacher now, what? Wait for Dumbledore to burn him instead?
The office fell silent for one beat…
"…I'll go," Dumbledore said at last, shaking his head with a helpless smile. "But I'm still concerned about your intentions, Tver."
"What you do in the castle doesn't matter all that much to me. But you cannot harm the students. They are innocent."
By the end, his voice held a faint sadness.
Tver dropped the playful act, straightened, and looked at Dumbledore seriously—more serious than before.
"My intentions are the same as yours."
Dumbledore raised his head in surprise.
"The Chamber of Secrets wouldn't open without a reason. So even when I learned the monster was a Basilisk, my priority was figuring out who was manipulating everything."
"Isn't that exactly what you were trying to do?"
"But I had no way to flush the Basilisk out," Dumbledore replied.
From the moment Colin was attacked, he had known the creature responsible. He simply hadn't discovered its movements yet and couldn't risk alarming it.
"Same here," Tver said with a grin.
"That's why I distributed the badges—to protect every student from the Basilisk's gaze."
"At the same time, I was secretly investigating the Heir."
"When Ginny told me about the diary, I realized it must have been slipped onto her during the summer—most likely during that scuffle between Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley."
"So at Christmas, I worked with a reporter to test Malfoy's reaction."
"As I expected, he reacted far too strongly. It confirmed my suspicions—he was the one behind everything."
"So after that, all I needed was to figure out where the diary was, and the entire case would resolve itself."
"Of course, what happened last night was my fault too. If I'd noticed Percy's condition sooner, if I had stayed in my office… Hermione and Snape might not have been petrified, and Harry and Percy wouldn't have ended up in the Chamber."
Tver lowered his head, sniffed once, looking exactly like a remorseful little house-elf who'd done something wrong.
But in reality, he was hiding the spark of triumph rising in his chest.
Dumbledore's stance had softened. He believed him.
It was the most perfect kind of lie—every detail was true. He even included parts Dumbledore didn't know yet.
He simply left out his actual goal. (≖ᴗ≖)✧