"Minerva, is there a reason you're here so late?" Dumbledore's voice was calm but carried a trace of exasperation. He leaned back, deciding to deal first with the only "outsider" present—his most capable assistant, the Deputy Headmistress of Hogwarts: Minerva McGonagall. If she couldn't provide a reasonable explanation for barging into his office at this hour, she would be reminded of the consequences. Even if he had personally given her the password.
McGonagall froze for a moment, taken aback by Ariana's previous outrageous remarks, before quickly composing herself and explaining: "It's like this—just a short while ago, a new name appeared in the Book of Admittance."
"Isn't that normal? The more names in the book, the more it shows the wizarding world is flourishing," Dumbledore replied, raising an eyebrow.
"If only that were the case," McGonagall murmured, her expression serious. She glanced at Dumbledore and then at Tom, gathering her courage. "The problem is that this person's birth year is 1885."
Dumbledore froze. "1885?" he repeated, stunned. That would make this individual about the same age as him! An elderly man or woman suddenly being accepted by Hogwarts? How could that be possible?
"Are you sure you didn't misread it? It's not a Young Wizard born in 1985?" Dumbledore asked, trying to grasp the absurdity.
"Yes. It's 1885," McGonagall said firmly. The situation was so bizarre that she had rushed to the Headmaster's Office in the middle of the night, having overheard a conversation that nearly made her wish she hadn't.
'Who is this girl?' McGonagall thought. 'I don't recall seeing her at Hogwarts before, yet she looks oddly familiar.' But try as she might, she could not place the young girl's face.
"Minerva, what is the person's name? I intend to pay a personal visit to understand how someone so… aged… could awaken magic," Dumbledore interrupted her thoughts. Given the unusual circumstances, a personal visit seemed appropriate.
"Dumbledore…" McGonagall's voice wavered slightly. She had no idea Dumbledore was referring to Tom and Ariana. "Rest assured, Minerva, they are both reliable people," Dumbledore added, still unaware of her true concern.
"No," McGonagall said, shaking her head and raising her voice slightly. "The new name appearing in the Book of Admittance is… Dumbledore, Ariana Dumbledore."
"Ariana?!" Dumbledore gasped.
"Meow?!" Tom squeaked.
"Me?!" Ariana herself exclaimed. The three of them, including McGonagall, turned to stare at her in disbelief.
"Um, brother, is there some mistake? I'm not even human!" Ariana floated slightly above the floor, attempting to prove her status as a ghost. Though she appeared fully corporeal, she was indeed a ghost—a genuine ghost!
"This… might not be impossible," Dumbledore muttered, glancing at Tom. After all, if Hogwarts could enroll a cat as a student, admitting a ghost didn't seem entirely out of the question.
'Wait… what did I just witness?' Dumbledore thought, suddenly noticing Tom's expression. But by the time he looked closely, Tom had already regained control over his jaw—it had practically hit the floor. Compared to enrolling a cat, a ghost student was a minor shock.
"Wait, Albus… are you saying this Miss Ariana is your sister? And she passed away a hundred years ago? She was fourteen when she died?" McGonagall's tone was filled with disbelief. "Merlin's beard! Is this world going completely mad?"
The Deputy Headmistress was struggling to process it all. She could accept a cat enrolling at Hogwarts, but a ghost student? That was unprecedented.
"Principal, have you considered the consequences? If this sets a precedent, what about other ghosts? Never mind them—what about Myrtle? Do we allow her to return to Ravenclaw, or keep her in the bathroom as before?" McGonagall asked, feeling her vision darken at the chaotic possibilities.
"I'm sorry, Minerva, but I still hope you can give Ariana this chance," Dumbledore said gently. "Not just because she's my sister, but more importantly because she has never experienced life with peers her age."
He had noticed the flicker of longing in Ariana's eyes when McGonagall mentioned her name in the Book of Admittance. She wanted friends, to interact with others, to truly live. That desire was the reason Dumbledore wanted to help her.
"Merlin's beard… she's also an Obscurial?!" McGonagall nearly fainted. If it were just a ghost student, it might have been manageable. But a ghost Obscurial? That was a whole different level.
"After becoming a ghost, she should be rid of the Obscurus," McGonagall added, incredulous.
"No, Principal. The Obscurus inside her remains," Dumbledore confirmed. He had wanted to defend his sister, but a warning from the portrait of Madam Margaretha, who had silently observed, cut him short:
"Back in the Painting World, I discovered the Obscurus inside her was about to erupt. I don't know why it has been suppressed this time, but it cannot be contained forever."
Dumbledore fell silent. As a brother, he wanted to fulfill Ariana's wish. As a Principal, he could not risk a dangerous Obscurial on campus. It was different from a werewolf like Lupin—whose condition, though serious, was predictable. The Obscurus, however, could erupt without warning.
'Perhaps Newt could help,' Dumbledore thought. 'And this special Young Wizard might be very interested in him.'
Tom, sensing the heavy mood, finally spoke up. With two people present who could understand cat language, there was no need to resort to a whiteboard.
The room seemed to hold its breath as the gravity of Ariana's enrollment settled in. Hogwarts had accepted many unusual students before—a werewolf, a half-giant, a cat—but a ghost Obscurial? That was a first, and it would change everything.
Yet, for all its dangers and uncertainties, Dumbledore's heart ached to give his sister the chance she had long been denied: to learn, to grow, and to experience the magical world alongside peers who could understand her.
After a long pause, Dumbledore finally spoke, a mixture of resolve and worry in his voice: "Then we will find a way. Ariana will come to Hogwarts."
McGonagall's tail twitched nervously behind her, the weight of responsibility pressing heavily on her shoulders. A cat could handle being Deputy Headmistress, but a ghost Obscurial? That was another story entirely.
Tom glanced at Ariana, whose spectral form shimmered softly in the lamplight. He thought of the many unusual students he had encountered, and one truth became clear: Hogwarts, for all its rules and traditions, was a place for the extraordinary.
And perhaps, just perhaps, even a ghost Obscurial could find her place there.
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