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Chapter 823: The Inflexible Lady of the Hourglass
Chapter 823: The Inflexible Lady of the Hourglass
As the sun rose, its morning rays bathed the Hogwarts castle in warm light, awakening the students who were still enjoying their slumber.
In the Headmaster's Office on the eighth floor, Kyle put down his quill after a sleepless night, organizing the thick stack of parchment in front of him.
This was his experience over the past half a month, from being forced to impersonate Dumbledore at the start of the school year, to his decision to go to France, meeting Professor Viktor at Beauxbatons, and their conversation...
Following Professor McGonagall's instructions, Kyle spent the night meticulously recalling and recording the timing of these events, down to the hour... and even the minute.
Of course, there were bound to be inaccuracies, as he couldn't have checked the time before every action. But Kyle felt it didn't matter much, as long as the key moments aligned.
As he wrote, the portraits of the Headmasters behind him watched, also having spent the entire night awake... though they didn't need sleep, and their spirits were much better than Kyle's.
"Wait, let me see the seventeenth page of the parchment."
Kyle had just put down his quill when he heard a voice from behind.
It was a witch dressed in medieval attire, a stranger to Kyle, who was certain he had never met her before.
This was normal; there were over thirty portraits in the Headmaster's Office, but not every Headmaster was like Armando Dippet or Phineas Nigellus Black, who enjoyed spending long periods here...
About half of them usually stayed in other portraits, only coming to this one when significant events occurred at Hogwarts.
With Headmaster Dumbledore trapped in a time loop, this was a significant event, so they all came.
This was the first time Kyle felt the Headmaster's Office a bit crowded... not physically crowded, of course, as they couldn't leave the portraits, but it felt that way.
"What are you daydreaming about? Get on with it," the medieval witch said sternly, her tone even more rigid and dogmatic than Professor McGonagall's when she was angry.
And from the expressions of those around her, she wasn't someone easy to get along with.
Kyle didn't say anything and, as instructed, moved the parchment to reveal the seventeenth page.
The content on this page was about his arrival at Beauxbatons that afternoon and Professor Viktor's words in the Alchemy classroom.
"The difficulty levels of Alchemy... The prerequisites for studying Alchemy... Alchemy textbooks..."
Though he had only read a single page, the Headmaster's face had already turned sour.
"Tell me, what are you trying to achieve with these questions?" she demanded.
"Nothing, just curious," Kyle replied.
"Curious?" The witch narrowed her eyes, not believing Kyle's words.
"Yes, curious," Kyle smiled. "This class is quite popular among students, so I asked a couple of questions."
"It's best if it's just curiosity." The witch spoke coldly. "Remember, you're only impersonating the Headmaster, don't do anything unnecessary."
"Of course not," Kyle said with a smile.
The witch looked at him.
"I've heard that the current Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, holds you in high regard. Perhaps one day, you will truly become the Headmaster of Hogwarts."
"You flatter me," Kyle said humbly. "Headmaster Dumbledore treats everyone with such kindness."
"But I must warn you," the witch said, her lips pressed into a thin line. "Even if you do become the Headmaster, you must not arbitrarily change the curriculum at Hogwarts... This curriculum was established by the greatest witch, Rowena Ravenclaw. No one can change it."
"You're right, the Hogwarts curriculum cannot be altered. There's no doubt about that," Kyle nodded repeatedly.
"It's good that you understand," the witch's expression finally softened a little. She glanced around, "What are you all doing here? Why aren't you looking for a solution?"
Several Headmasters immediately ran out of the portraits, and the remaining ones also remained silent, showing no sign of disagreement. Even the usually rowdy Phineas Nigellus was unusually quiet, not uttering a word throughout.
"Forget it, I'm going to find Miller. In my opinion, she's more suitable to be the Headmaster than Dumbledore," the witch said before disappearing into her frame.
After that, Kyle clearly saw everyone around him breathe a sigh of relief.
"You scared me," Armando Dippet patted his chest and said to Kyle, "I thought you were about to argue with the Inflexible Lady of the Hourglass."
"Wait, what's her name?"
"The Inflexible Lady of the Hourglass," Armando repeated. "She's a stickler for rules, just like a clock, always following a set path and never allowing herself or those around her to deviate."
"She's also an extreme admirer of Rowena Ravenclaw," Phineas added from the side. "If Ravenclaw were to say that Hogwarts is round, she'd believe it without hesitation and accept it as the truth."
"That's normal," said another Headmaster. "During Helga Hufflepuff's time, it could be said that Hogwarts faced its most challenging period. With her personality, if it were any other individual, Hogwarts might have ceased to exist long ago."
"The most challenging period?" Kyle asked curiously. "Could you elaborate?"
"Let's see, it was probably seven centuries ago."
After a moment of silence, she continued, "Influenced by the times, dark magic was extremely prevalent, and wizards were obsessed with creating dark magical artifacts with bizarre abilities. It even became a trend... The Hand of Glory and the Crystal Skull, those were products of that era. You should know about these two items."
Kyle nodded.
The Hand of Glory was a desiccated hand that, when lit with a candle in the dark, only revealed its light to the holder.
As for the Crystal Skull... it was a divination artifact and one of the earliest crystal balls, but its effects were greater than a regular crystal ball, and its creation method was more brutal. It was a prohibited item by the Ministry of Magic.
"This is just the tip of the iceberg. During that time, more dark magical artifacts were invented and improved, and Hogwarts faced immense pressure from both dark wizards and the Muggle community."
Another Headmaster spoke up, "Dark wizards viewed them as heretics and did everything to capture Hogwarts. Then, they would preach their terrible theories to the students.
"Muggles, on the other hand, treated them as accomplices of dark wizards and would not hesitate to kill any child they discovered with magical abilities."
Kyle fell silent. If this was truly the case, Hogwarts might not have attracted many students back then.
After all, pure-blood wizards only made up a small portion of the magical community, with most being half-bloods or Muggle-born wizards.
After they finished school, Hogwarts was not far from closing its doors.
"Fortunately, Rowena Ravenclaw seemed to have anticipated this. She left a book in the Headmaster's office, detailing how Hogwarts should respond to dangers.
"So, that Headmaster followed the content of the book, ensuring Hogwarts safely passed through the crisis?" Kyle asked.
"Yes, strictly following the plan, allowing no room for error."
"Although Hogwarts successfully navigated the crisis, her personality gradually became what it is now... Treating everything related to Rowena Ravenclaw as an ironclad rule."
"I understand," said Kyle. "Anyone would do the same in that situation."
"What surprises me is that you didn't argue with her," said Armando. "I thought you'd stand your ground."
"Why would I argue?" Kyle laughed. "She's not wrong, and I'm not the Headmaster. These matters have nothing to do with me.
"Arguing with her would only waste time, even if I won, with no benefit. Following her lead ensures some peace."
"So, you truly intend to introduce Alchemy at Hogwarts?" Phineas raised an eyebrow and asked).
"It's just an idea," Kyle corrected. "I'm not the Headmaster, and I don't have the authority. It's merely a suggestion." Kyle shook his head, "Alchemy is becoming increasingly important in other countries, with more related artifacts. Hogwarts shouldn't fall behind."
"But these decisions require the Headmaster's approval. I'm just putting forward an idea and the initial groundwork. If approved, at least we'll know what to do."
"So, do you oppose adding a new Alchemy class?"
"I don't mind," said Phineas. "It doesn't concern me anyway."
"I think adding a new class is necessary," said Armando. "Hogwarts' curriculum has remained unchanged for a thousand years. Some changes are welcome."
"It's indeed necessary," said another Headmaster, Delores. "You should see Hogwarts' ranking among the eleven schools. Even without a Headmaster, Durmstrang is ranked higher than us."
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"We're ranked tenth among the eleven schools, and even Durmstrang, without a Headmaster, is ranked higher than us. Don't you feel ashamed?"
"It's not my concern," said Phineas. "When I was Headmaster, Hogwarts was at the top. Blame Armando."
"You're full of it!" Armando DiPetre exclaimed and pulled out a 'club' from somewhere.
"You stay there and don't move. Let's have a good discussion about the school's ranking."
"Stop... No, stop your feet, don't come over...!" Phineas took off running, his skilled movements surprising the Headmasters who witnessed this scene for the first time.
Now, are they all this lively?
For Delores Delacour, however, this was nothing new. She continued to observe Kyle, saying, "Your idea is good, but it's not easy to implement."
"Do you mean that Headmistress Helga Hufflepuff will oppose it?"
Delores shook her head. "That's not the issue. We former headmasters only have advisory power, not decision-making authority. As long as the current headmistress agrees, her opposition doesn't matter. At most, she might just stop coming, but that also has no impact. The difficulty I'm referring to is something else."
"Like funding issues," she continued. "I also wanted to add a new healing course, as Hogwarts only has Herbology and Potions. But these are just the basics; to become a qualified healer, one needs much more.
"If there was a healing course, students aspiring to be healers could directly enter St. Mungo's after graduation, saving a lot of time."
"That's great," said Kyle. "I remember Madam Pomfrey also had the same idea."
"But the school doesn't have enough startup funds," Delores sighed. "The cost of opening a new course is far more than you can imagine. The Board of Governors is content with the status quo, and they aren't keen on spending extra Galleons on something they see as offering no benefit to them."
"Learning alchemy requires even more funding and is undoubtedly more challenging than becoming a healer."
"I know," Kyle nodded.
In alchemy, dragon scales and blood are common materials, used as frequently as ginger root and fishbone powder in potions. Even with Busbaron's financial resources, they have to go to dragon reserves to acquire the subpar leftovers that others don't want.
But this is easily solved by lowering the standards. If they can't afford dragons, they can use materials with dragon lineage. Or they can modify the alchemical items into magical ones... like the items they sold during their school days, which also fall into this category.
However, these are just plans. Whether they can be put into action depends on Dumbledore's return.
If this rescue mission for Dumbledore fails, even the best plans are useless.
Kyle rearranged the scattered parchment and asked the headmasters to call for Professor McGonagall, who was about to start her class.
Soon, the door to the Headmaster's Office opened, and Professor McGonagall entered briskly.
"Here's what you wanted," Kyle handed the parchment to her.
Even though class was starting in a few minutes, Professor McGonagall carefully examined the parchment and tried to memorize every detail.
Kyle didn't disturb her and watched from the side.
"What are you planning to do next?" she suddenly asked after a few minutes.
"I'll just wait at the school," Kyle thought for a moment and replied, "Until Nicole repairs the Time Turner."
"I think you can do something else as well."
Professor McGonagall lifted her head, her gaze deep as she looked at him. "Everything is normal at the school now, and Dumbledore doesn't need to be present often. You can leave and do what you enjoy... like sleeping until noon, as you mentioned on the Hogwarts Express."
"Oh?"
Kyle hadn't expected Professor McGonagall to say this. "But you wanted me to stay at the school, ready to step in as Professor Dumbledore to handle any unexpected situations, didn't you?"
"That was just my previous thought. It's not necessary now."
Professor McGonagall calmly said, "It's normal for Dumbledore to be absent from school, and your presence here might even increase the risk of exposure.
"Go back or travel elsewhere to relax... I recommend Germany. The academic atmosphere there is excellent, quite different from the UK, and they have a strong Quidditch culture. You'll see exciting matches everywhere."
"Really?"
"But I feel like you don't want me to stay at the school and are intentionally pushing me out," Kyle said.
"Since you've noticed... I do have such thoughts," Professor McGonagall nodded frankly. "The parchment mentions that Nicole Lemay will send the repaired Time Turner to Hogwarts. This also prevents you from taking independent action."
"Is there a possibility that Nicole will send the Time Turner to me instead of the school?" Kyle asked.
"Then I'll wait at his place."
Professor McGonagall's tone remained calm. "Yes, without a doubt. I know Mr. Nicole Lemay, and I visited his home when I was younger, although that was decades ago. But I know how to meet him."
"What about the Transfiguration class at the school?"
"I'll find a suitable replacement for me in advance. It's not difficult."
"I must remind you again, Kyle," Professor McGonagall said seriously. "Rescuing Dumbledore is our professors' responsibility, not yours. You don't need to take risks for this."
...
(End of Chapter)
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