Chapter 752: Showing the Professor a Different World
Chapter 752: Showing the Professor a Different World
"What? Did you say you want to take a leave of absence?"
In her office, Professor McGonagall stared at Kyle, wondering if she had heard him wrong.
"Yes," Kyle nodded. "Probably for a month or two. During this time, I'd like to be able to manage my own time."
"Well..." Professor McGonagall frowned and didn't answer immediately. Instead, she asked, "Does Professor Sprout know about your plan to take a leave?"
"She does," Kyle replied. "I went to her first, and she agreed, but only for my absence from Herbology classes."
"And she also told me that for a long-term leave, I must get the signature of the headmaster," Kyle added.
"That is true," acknowledged Professor McGonagall.
"But Professor Dumbledore hasn't been at the school recently," Kyle shrugged. "So, I had no choice but to come to you."
As Dumbledore was often busy, most of the school's affairs fell to Professor McGonagall, the deputy headmaster, and signing documents was well within her purview.
"I can agree to your request," Professor McGonagall said as she glanced at the application form that Kyle handed over. She hesitated only briefly before signing her name and adding, "However, I must remind you that even if you don't attend classes, you cannot leave the school grounds. Leaving Hogwarts requires a request from your parents, and students themselves cannot make that decision. This is non-negotiable, no matter how excellent your grades are."
"Of course, I understand," Kyle said. "I'll stay within the castle and won't go anywhere else."
Seeing Kyle's agreement, Professor McGonagall returned the application to him and casually asked, "Can you tell me the reason for this leave?"
"Ah, during this time, I may need to attend an important tutoring session. It's quite time-consuming, so I have to give up my regular classes," Kyle explained.
"What did you say?" Professor McGonagall exclaimed, her head shooting up in surprise.
She had assumed that Kyle wanted to spend the rest of his time in the library until graduation, which wasn't uncommon at Hogwarts.
Many outstanding students, especially in their seventh year, became less concerned about attending classes and often chose to study on their own in the library.
"Who's going to tutor you?" Professor McGonagall asked instinctively. "Professor Dumbledore?"
In her opinion, only the headmaster would be capable of tutoring someone like Kyle.
"No, it's Rowena Ravenclaw," Kyle replied calmly, his words almost causing Professor McGonagall to jump out of her seat.
In her moment of excitement, she even snapped the quill in her hand.
"You said...who?"
"Rowena Ravenclaw," Kyle repeated. "Professor Dumbledore must have mentioned her. The Ravenclaw Diadem is here in the castle, and it carries some of her memories."
Professor McGonagall stiffly nodded, her face a mask of disbelief.
Indeed, Dumbledore had shared that they had scoured the castle in search of the diadem to no avail, and the professors had even disagreed among themselves, with some believing Dumbledore's words and others thinking he was getting senile.
While Professor McGonagall hadn't explicitly taken a side, she had leaned toward the latter belief...at least until the diadem was found.
"I met her yesterday," Kyle continued. "I did a small favor for Lady Ravenclaw, and as a token of her gratitude, she arranged this tutoring session."
Professor McGonagall took a few deep breaths, unsure if she should believe what she was hearing.
For a moment, she wondered if Kyle had been hit with a high-level Confundus Charm.
The idea of someone from a thousand years ago not only coming back to life but also tutoring someone...it was preposterous, and surely no sane person would utter such nonsense.
But the person in front of her was Kyle, and that gave her pause.
In Dumbledore's stories, it was Kyle who had brought back the Ravenclaw Diadem to Hogwarts.
Professor McGonagall pressed her lips together and asked, "Are you serious?"
"Of course," Kyle assured her.
Kyle had no intention of keeping the tutoring sessions with Rowena Ravenclaw a secret, especially not from the professors of Hogwarts.
They all shared a common goal, and even Rowena Ravenclaw herself didn't mind, so he saw no reason to hide it.
However, this information was only for the professors, not the students.
Firstly, there were too many students, and the tutoring sessions primarily focused on Ancient Runes, a subject that very few students at Hogwarts had ever studied.
Even among those few, most could only manage a rough translation of the ancient language, and attending the sessions would be of little use to them. At best, they would get a chance to visit Hogwarts as it was a thousand years ago.
Additionally, Rowena had mentioned that the "tutoring sessions" would only last for a limited time, and Kyle didn't want to waste time giving tours.
Seeing the doubt still lingering in Professor McGonagall's eyes, Kyle spoke directly, "If you don't believe me, I can take you to the place where the tutoring will take place."
"Very well," Professor McGonagall stood up immediately, ready to go. But before she could take a step, Kyle continued, "However, not now..."
"Why?"
"Because I don't have the key with me at the moment, so I can't get in either," Kyle spread his hands in a helpless gesture. "If the professor doesn't mind, how about after dinner?"
Professor McGonagall had no choice but to agree.
This matter was simply too bizarre, and it was challenging her decades of knowledge and understanding.
The idea that Rowena Ravenclaw from a thousand years ago had returned to Hogwarts through her diadem and was offering to tutor a student was mind-boggling.
Each piece of information that Kyle revealed was a test of her sixty years of cognition and an even greater test of her sanity.
Professor McGonagall felt a pressing need to hear another person's opinion, and Dumbledore was the best candidate... perhaps he knew something about this.
However, to her disappointment, the office was empty, as Dumbledore was currently engaged in a battle of wits with Voldemort.
Professor McGonagall instinctively reached for a piece of parchment to write him a message but hesitated and put it away.
She was well aware of the dangers of dealing with Voldemort, and she didn't want to disturb Dumbledore over something that hadn't been confirmed.
It was just dinner, after all. She could wait.
Instead of returning to her office, Professor McGonagall decided to go for a walk to clear her mind, as she knew she wouldn't be in the right frame of mind to grade papers.
With a sense of purpose, she made her way towards the greenhouses in the grounds.
...
Time flew, and soon it was afternoon.
Sometime around three o'clock, a door suddenly appeared out of thin air on one of the corridors on the eighth floor of the castle.
This strange occurrence startled a third-year Gryffindor student passing by, causing him to run off in a panic.
However, when he returned to the same spot ten minutes later with his classmates to investigate, the door had mysteriously vanished.
"I told you, Dennis, you were lying," one of them said loudly. "I've walked down this corridor countless times, and there's no way I wouldn't know about a hidden door."
"No, I'm not lying!" Dennis Creevey insisted, frantically gesturing at the wall.
"It was right here, I saw it, and there was even a doorknob!"
"Oh, come on," said another. "You're just trying to get Harry Potter's attention..."
"Well, you succeeded, because here he comes."
As he spoke, Harry came running towards them, breathless.
However, he was unable to open the door of the Room of Requirement.
...
Meanwhile, by the shores of the Black Lake, Connor returned the Raven Door Knocker to Kyle.
"Why are you out so soon?" Kyle asked.
"I couldn't understand," Connor sighed. "It felt like attending an advanced Ancient Runes lecture. I could understand each sentence the professors said, but when they were put together, it became incomprehensible.
"Also, Qiu couldn't understand either, and she said her head was hurting, so she left early and went back to the common room."
"Alright," Kyle said, taking the Raven Door Knocker from Connor.
This was the reason why he had said he didn't have the key earlier.
Before going to Professor McGonagall to request a leave of absence, Kyle had given the key to Connor and asked her to go to the Room of Requirement.
Connor then suggested that they bring Qiu along.
As Kyle had to go and speak to Professor McGonagall, he didn't join them but made sure to repeat Ravenclaw's previous instructions to Connor, telling her not to force herself to understand if it conflicted with what they had learned before.
And now, here they were.
Connor hadn't delved deeply into Ancient Runes, and although she could barely understand the lessons, it was a struggle.
As for Qiu, it went without saying... Kyle remembered that the last time she had a headache was during their first Ancient Runes class.
However, this also proved that the lessons were not meant for just anyone, as Qiu's grades were among the top even within Ravenclaw.
"What about you?" Connor asked. "Did Professor McGonagall approve your leave of absence?"
"Of course," Kyle said, taking out the application form with Professor McGonagall's signature. "Starting next week, I won't have to attend classes until the end of the school year."
As they were chatting, they spotted Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout hurrying back to the castle, looking like they had something urgent to attend to.
It made sense, as ever since Dumbledore had stepped back, Professor McGonagall, as the deputy headmaster, had been making all the decisions for the school, and she was naturally very busy.
Kyle, who had been about to call out to them, lowered his hand.
He had intended to take Professor McGonagall to the Room of Requirement since Connor had already come out, but since she seemed occupied, he decided to wait until after dinner as planned.
Kyle sat back down next to Connor and enjoyed the cool breeze blowing in from the Black Lake while listening to her recount her experience in the Room of Requirement.
"I saw Helga Hufflepuff, and she looked exactly like her portrait!"
"Also, there were so few people back then, even fewer than there are in a single year now."
...
For some unknown reason, dinner that day was served about half an hour earlier than usual. By the time Kyle received the message and rushed over from the grounds, dinner was already well underway.
Professor McGonagall, Professor Flitwick, Professor Sprout; all three Heads of House were present, except for Snape, who had been mysteriously absent since yesterday.
Professor Babbling, the Ancient Runes teacher, was also among them.
As soon as they saw Kyle, they all turned to look at him in unison.
"Professor McGonagall, what's going on?" Kyle asked, raising an eyebrow.
"We're just curious," Professor McGonagall replied, looking a bit embarrassed. "I initially wanted to ask about the diadem, but before I knew it, I ended up sharing a lot more. By the time I realized, everyone seemed to know about your leave of absence."
"Of course, it's also for your safety," Professor Sprout added.
"No problem, follow me," Kyle said nonchalantly.
He had no qualms about bringing them along since they were all trusted faculty members.
And so, the four professors and Kyle made their way to the eighth floor in a grand procession.
Their journey attracted the attention of many, prompting whispered speculations about their purpose.
Some students even tried to discreetly tail them, hoping to gather first-hand information.
But a single sweeping glance from Professor McGonagall was enough to make them abandon their covert mission.
Upon reaching the eighth floor, Kyle expertly navigated through the corridors, coming to a stop in the middle of one. He placed the Raven Door Knocker against the wall.
Then, to the professors' astonishment, a door materialized out of thin air.
"Is there another place like this in Hogwarts?" Professor Flitwick blurted out, his eyes wide with wonder.
He had been a professor at the school for decades, yet he had never known about this place.
However, no one answered his question.
Instead, Kyle opened the door and stepped inside, with Professor McGonagall close behind, followed by Professor Babbling...
When they saw what was inside, they were once again struck with awe.
It was the entrance hall of Hogwarts, with the Great Hall to the left and the staircase straight ahead. Aside from some differences in decor, everything else was identical, down to the students roaming the halls.
Was there another Hogwarts within Hogwarts? It was almost too incredible to believe.
But these professors were seasoned individuals who had seen their fair share of marvels, and they quickly regained their composure. They also noticed the subtle differences between this place and the school they knew.
Everything here looked brand new, as if it belonged to a different era of Hogwarts.
"This is incredible," Professor Babbling murmured, her hand resting on the wall as she squinted at the surroundings. "This place is almost like a magical construct... sustained by the castle's magic... What a grand project, truly remarkable!"
As young witches and wizards went about their daily lives or cast spells, they inadvertently produced excess magic.
This excess magic permeated the castle, nourishing it and giving life to things like talking portraits, moving armor, and revolving staircases.
The Room of Requirement was also sustained by this very magic.
In other words, without students, there would be no Room of Requirement.
"This is just the basics," Kyle said, leading the way up the stairs. "The real wonder is on the second floor."
And with that, they entered the classroom where Kyle had previously attended lessons. It was then that the professors fully grasped the meaning of "supplementary lessons."
There, they saw a professor they had never met before, teaching with great enthusiasm. Upon noticing the group at the door, she even paused to admonish them sternly: "What are you all doing loitering outside? Don't you know class has started?"
These professors, who had dedicated decades of their lives to Hogwarts, never imagined that they would one day be chastised in such a manner.
It was as if they were students being scolded for being late to class.
What made it even more awkward was that they didn't know how to respond. Professor Flitwick, in particular, subconsciously stepped into the room, his eyes widening as he realized it was a Charms class.
"Did Rowena Ravenclaw create all of this?" Professor McGonagall asked, her eyes shining with curiosity.
"Yes," Kyle nodded. "This is the school as she remembers it—Hogwarts a thousand years ago. I can study here for a while."
At that moment, Professor McGonagall truly believed.
The idea of crafting a real, tangible world from memories was so extraordinary that even Dumbledore himself might not have been capable of it... Perhaps only the four founders could have achieved such a feat.
With that thought, the remaining three professors exchanged a meaningful glance before discreetly splitting up and beginning to search through the various classrooms, each seeking their own answers.
"What about my safety that you mentioned?" Kyle drawled, a wry smile tugging at his lips as he found himself left alone.
However, he had expected as much, so he simply shrugged and strolled into one of the classrooms.
Strangely, even though he and the professors had lingered outside for quite some time, the lesson inside had seemingly just begun, and he hadn't missed a thing.
...
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
