As Harry and Ron rifled through Lily Evans' notes in the Room of Requirement, elsewhere in the Hogwarts towers, Quirrell was curiously flipping through the Book of Admittance.
The book was densely packed with names, chronicling the countless wizards and witches who had left their mark on the magical world. As Quirrell turned its pages, names of great significance appeared before his eyes.
"Found it!"
At last, with another turn of the page, the name Wentworth emerged before him.
"Wentworth Grindelwald... Grindelwald? GRINDELWALD?!"
Quirrell's entire body trembled involuntarily at the sight of the surname. His voice quivered with disbelief as he muttered,
"M-Master... This Grindelwald... Could he be related to that one... the one before you...?"
Before Quirrell could finish his sentence, a chilling laugh erupted from behind his head.
"Heh... Haha! What a stroke of fortune! So this is what Dumbledore has been so desperate to hide—a child of the Grindelwald family!
"I don't know why that old fool took in the child of his greatest enemy, but this time, I must thank him! He's given me an opportunity!
"If Wentworth Grindelwald pledges allegiance to me, if the Death Eaters and the Alliance unite—then tell me, who in the wizarding world could stand in my way?! WHO?!"
Hearing these words, Quirrell did something rare—he interrupted.
"Master, but how do we make him submit? You saw what happened that night—Wentworth is nothing like those foolish boys he keeps company with!"
At Quirrell's concern, the voice at the back of his head let out a cold scoff before responding with disdain:
"Fool. No matter how talented he may be, he is still just a child! We have ways to deal with him. Our only concern is avoiding Dumbledore's attention."
At the mention of Dumbledore's name, Quirrell nodded in solemn agreement.
Now that he had found the answer he sought, Quirrell wasted no time lingering. He carefully placed the Book of Admittance back in its place and left the Hogwarts tower.
But just as he descended the stairs and had taken only a few steps inside the castle, a dark figure suddenly lunged from the shadows.
Before Quirrell could react, a strong hand seized him by the throat and slammed him against the stone wall.
Being ambushed within Hogwarts—this was something Quirrell had not anticipated! After all, if there was anyone in the castle most likely to engage in such an act, it was him.
Instinctively, he reached for his wand, but his attacker was faster. Before Quirrell could retrieve his wand, the tip of another wand was already pressed against his forehead.
Realizing his disadvantage, Quirrell froze. He slowly raised his hands above his head in a gesture of surrender.
For under the pale moonlight, he had recognized his attacker—Severus Snape.
With a resounding thud, Snape tightened his grip and shoved Quirrell harder against the wall. His head hit the stone with force.
"Argh!"
A cry of pain escaped Quirrell's lips.
Meanwhile, back in the Room of Requirement, as Harry flipped through Lily Evans' notes, he suddenly clutched his forehead and let out a sharp cry of pain.
Startled, Ron turned to look at him, only to see Harry collapsing onto the floor in agony.
Alarmed, Ron rushed to his side and helped him up. "Harry! What's wrong? What happened?!"
Through gritted teeth, Harry managed to speak. "I... I don't know. Just now, my scar burned—it felt like... like I slammed my head into a wall!"
Concerned, Ron helped him sit up. "Maybe everything that's happened tonight is just getting to you. Maybe we should call it a night and head back."
Harry nodded, still pressing a hand to his forehead.
As they made their way to the exit, just as Ron opened the door, a shadow flitted past, making them both jump.
Their eyes darted toward the movement, but all they saw was the tip of a tail disappearing around the corridor.
Ron gulped. "P-Professor M-McGonagall?!"
Harry rolled his eyes. "If that was Professor McGonagall, we'd already be in detention for tomorrow. That was Mrs. Norris."
Ron exhaled in relief. "Oh, it's just Filch's cat..."
Then his face twisted in realization. "Wait a second—Mrs. Norris?! Filch's cat?!"
Harry didn't bother answering. Instead, he quickly pulled out his Invisibility Cloak and threw it over them both.
Just as they vanished, the hallway ahead lit up with the glow of a lantern. Moments later, Argus Filch emerged from the corner, his lamp in hand, with Mrs. Norris at his feet.
Harry and Ron exchanged glances before hastily heading in the opposite direction.
From behind them, Filch's voice rang out:
"Aha! I saw you! You sneaky little rats! Running about in the middle of the night! You can't escape! Stand still!"
Harry and Ron quickened their pace.
But neither of them noticed a small paper crane slipping from between the pages of Lily Evans' notebook, drifting silently to the floor.
Meanwhile, Snape, who had been glaring at Quirrell, suddenly furrowed his brows. A strange sensation prickled at his mind—he thought he had just heard two distant cries of pain.
Before he could dwell on it, Quirrell, still struggling against the wall, gritted his teeth and snapped,
"Professor Snape, what exactly do you think you're doing?!"
Snape remained calm and coldly replied,
"Professor Quirrell, I believe the real question here is—what are you doing skulking about so late at night?"
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