Thomas made a 'be quiet' gesture to Severus, intending to quietly leave the restroom, following the principle of 'the less trouble, the better'.
The two tiptoed forward.
However, due to the books he was carrying obstructing part of his view, Severus accidentally stepped on a puddle, making a slight sound that was like pressing a pause button.
The girl's crying stopped instantly, and the entire restroom fell into an eerie silence.
"Hello, madam, no offense, we just accidentally stumbled in here and will leave immediately," Thomas quickly explained.
As soon as he finished speaking, the door of one of the stalls was violently pushed open, and a white shadow zipped in front of them.
Thomas and Severus were startled by the sudden appearance.
"Let me see, two young wizards from that Chamber of Secrets, what horrible things are you planning to do?"
This was a girl with thick, black-rimmed glasses and pigtails, wearing the uniform of Hogwarts, clearly a student of the school.
Or rather, a former student.
Her body was semi-transparent, and she floated in the air in an unnatural posture.
Thomas rubbed his forehead: Good heavens, not only is this a ladies' restroom, but it also houses a female ghost!
Severus looked at Thomas in confusion, seemingly disbelieving what he saw: "Thomas, is this a ghost?"
Well, actually, with talking portraits, a female ghost doesn't seem that strange.
Her words made Thomas even more curious: "You know about the Chamber of Secrets? Are you a Hogwarts student?"
"You actually don't know me! Moaning Myrtle! Oh, sure enough, no one cares about my existence." She angrily accused Thomas, accompanied by eerie wailing, making the scene both terrifying and comical.
Severus had already silently covered his ears.
Just as Thomas was about to do the same, Aegis slithered out from his collar and climbed onto his shoulder.
The cold, slimy touch made Thomas shiver involuntarily: "Aegis, next time, can you come out from outside my clothes?"
The Basilisk pressed against his ear, its voice tinged with guilt and urgency: "Thomas, quickly help me tell her I'm very sorry, looking into her eyes was not my intention."
"Aegis, what do you mean by that?" Thomas asked, puzzled.
This girl's death was related to it, but didn't it say it wouldn't harm Hogwarts students?
Myrtle also saw the miniature Basilisk and heard the same 'hissing' sound from Thomas's mouth as a snake.
Her eyes widened, another black-haired, black-eyed Parseltongue Speaker!
Myrtle shrieked and flushed herself down the toilet, splashing water everywhere.
Thomas now knew why this seemingly abandoned restroom was covered in puddles.
A few seconds later, she reappeared from a dilapidated ceiling, looking distraught: "I forgot, I'm already dead."
After saying that, she returned to the same stall and began to sob, no longer paying attention to them.
"..." Thomas took Aegis off his shoulder: "It looks like she doesn't want to talk to us right now, and we don't have time to waste."
He put the small Basilisk into his pocket: "Aegis, don't run around anymore, and don't speak, otherwise I can't guarantee I can get you out of here."
Thomas vaguely sensed that in this world, being a Parseltongue Speaker didn't seem to be a good talent.
He and Severus exchanged glances and quickly left the restroom with a tacit understanding.
Reaching the door, before they could even breathe a sigh of relief, they heard a clamor of voices: "Look, it's those two young wizards!"
Looking closely, the voices came from the portraits in the corridor, and Thomas felt a headache: "Everyone, we're leaving soon, please, don't talk anymore."
"No!" A majestic voice rang out. Thomas looked in the direction of the sound, and a white-haired man with a pipe appeared in the nearest portrait: "Two young wizards, Headmaster Dumbledore wants to invite you to the Headmaster's Office for a chat."
"...We want to go home," Thomas struggled, and Severus pursed his lips, showing support for his brother.
"Mr. and Mrs. Brown are already waiting for you in the Headmaster's Office," the man said, looking at them with a gentle yet sharp gaze.
It's over! Thomas lamented in his heart.
At the entrance of the Headmaster's Office, Thomas looked at the imposing stone beast statue, much taller than them, and the statue opened its mouth and asked, "Password."
"Cockroach Clusters."
Ascending the stairs, as soon as they entered the office, an excited Anne hugged them: "You two, you scared me to death!"
"We're sorry, Anne, for making you worry," Thomas and Severus apologized sincerely; they hadn't expected so many unexpected events.
The books in his arms had long since been knocked to the ground by the impact, freeing his hands, and Thomas gently patted the excited, trembling back of the old woman, comforting her.
After a while, the old woman calmed down, stood up, smoothed her dress, and smiled at Dumbledore: "I'm sorry, Headmaster Dumbledore, the children caused you trouble."
"You know, Anne, Hogwarts welcomes all young wizards," Dumbledore even winked playfully at Thomas and Severus: "It seems you two have gained a lot at school."
"These are our books," Severus immediately picked up the books that had fallen to the ground, holding them in his arms, the two thick books stacked together covering his entire face.
Anthony, seeing this, quickly put a hand on his shoulder, afraid that the child would lose his balance and be crushed by the books.
"Don't worry, children, can you tell us what exactly happened?" Dumbledore's voice remained calm, and he smiled, gesturing for them to sit on the nearby sofa.
"Have some honey lemonade and candies; young wizards all love them." After he spoke, two new cups of lemonade and an exquisite porcelain dish full of colorful Honeydukes candies appeared on the coffee table.
A sweet aroma subtly diffused into the air, instantly easing the atmosphere.
"Thank you, Headmaster Dumbledore," the two thanked him, but neither of them touched the food, a silent agreement.
Severus still held the books tightly, clearly refusing to communicate.
Thomas cleared his throat and briefly recounted their experience, including the secret passage to Honeydukes, being discovered by the portraits, fleeing into a Chamber of Secrets to avoid the crowd, finding two blank notebooks in the Chamber of Secrets, and finally taking a long time to find their way out.
Of course, he cleverly omitted the part about discovering Hogwarts' consciousness and the Basilisk recognizing him as its master.
"So that's how it is," Dumbledore's deep blue eyes gazed at them through his spectacles.
Severus's face was hidden behind the books, making his expression unreadable.
He had known he couldn't hide his emotions, so he had deliberately held both books in his arms, concealing the feelings on his face.
Thomas, however, met Dumbledore's gaze without fear, a perfectly appropriate smile on his face.
Black hair, black eyes, deeply hidden emotions—this reminded Dumbledore of an old acquaintance... "Headmaster Dumbledore, if there's nothing else, I'd like to take them home," Anne's hand also rested on Thomas's shoulder, a gesture of both support and protection.
Thomas looked back at Anne and smiled, signaling that he was fine; this time, his smile reached his eyes.
Dumbledore noticed this scene, his eyes flickering: Oh, they are different... He stood up and approached Thomas and Severus: "There's one more thing, may I see these two books?"