The torches lining the walls flickered as Harry followed Dumbledore down the dimly lit corridor. His mind was still racing, trying to make sense of what had happened.
The headmaster remained silent as they climbed the spiral staircase leading to his office. The stone gargoyle had moved aside without Dumbledore uttering a password, as if it sensed the urgency of the moment.
The door to the office swung open. The familiar sight of whirring silver instruments and the warm glow of candlelight did little to ease the weight in Harry's chest.
Dumbledore motioned toward a chair. "Please, sit."
Harry hesitated for a moment before sinking into the seat. He knew this conversation was coming, but he still wasn't sure what he was supposed to say.
Dumbledore settled into his own chair, his fingers steepled. His piercing blue eyes studied Harry for a long moment before he finally spoke.
"You disappeared, Harry." His voice was calm, but there was something unreadable behind it. "Vanished without a trace. And now, you have returned… with something new."
Harry tensed. "What do you mean?"
Dumbledore's gaze flicked briefly to Harry's hands. He followed the headmaster's line of sight and realized the faint glow of the symbols was still present. It was weaker than before, but still there.
Harry exhaled slowly.
"I don't know what happened," he admitted, flexing his fingers. "I was with Professor Lupin… and then I wasn't. I was somewhere else."
Dumbledore nodded, encouraging him to continue.
"It was dark. But there were… symbols." He hesitated, trying to find the right words. "And a voice. Something—someone—was there."
For the first time, a flicker of something unreadable passed over Dumbledore's expression.
"A voice," he repeated. "Did it speak to you?"
Harry swallowed.
"You are not yet ready."
"Yes," he admitted. "But I don't understand what it meant."
Dumbledore leaned back slightly, as if considering something. "Harry, do you recall what was said?"
Harry hesitated before nodding. "It said… I am not yet ready."
A moment of silence stretched between them.
Dumbledore's gaze drifted toward the bookshelves lining his office, as if searching for an answer among the endless tomes. Finally, he sighed.
"Magic is a vast and mysterious force," he murmured. "There are some secrets that even time has forgotten." His eyes met Harry's once more. "Whatever happened to you… I do not believe it was by accident."
Harry shifted in his seat. "You know something, don't you?"
Dumbledore offered him a small, knowing smile. "I know that magic has a way of finding those who are destined for more."
Harry frowned. That wasn't exactly an answer.
But before he could press further, a knock at the door interrupted them.
It creaked open, and Professor McGonagall stepped inside, her expression as sharp as ever.
"Headmaster," she said, her eyes flickering toward Hadrian. "Professor Lupin has been found."
Harry sat up straighter. "Is he alright?"
McGonagall gave a tight nod. "A bit shaken, but unharmed."
Dumbledore sighed in relief before turning back to Harry. "It seems, for now, that the immediate danger has passed."
Harry wasn't so sure.
He could still feel it—the whisper of something ancient lingering at the edge of his mind.
Something had changed.
And he knew this was only the beginning.