Room of Requirement

"Merlin, there's so much stuff!"

Ron gaped at the sea of clutter stretching out before them. As he stared wide-eyed, a thought suddenly occurred to him, and his face flushed red: "There might be antiques here that are thousands of years old…"

Hermione rolled her eyes at him. "In front of such a magical room, that's the first thing that comes to your mind?"

Ron scratched his cheek awkwardly and mumbled, "That's a normal person's reaction…"

Vaughn chuckled, amused. Once the three had gradually adapted to the space, he turned to Harry and asked casually, "Harry, what do you feel?"

"Huh?" Harry blinked, a little thrown off, but answered anyway. "Er… It's incredible."

"What else?"

Harry looked puzzled. "What else should I feel?"

Ron and Hermione also turned toward Vaughn curiously.

"Nothing, just curious," Vaughn said, waving it off with a smile. Then he added, "Go ahead and explore. Who knows, maybe Ron really will find some thousand-year-old antiques."

Ron immediately dragged Harry off to start rummaging around with excitement, while Hermione, drawn to a glittering pile of objects, headed off in the opposite direction.

As their footsteps faded into the clutter, Vaughn's expression shifted—his eyes grew sharp, serious. "So… the pull and resonance of the Horcrux never existed to begin with…"

He had discovered the Room of Requirement on the third day of school last week. Not by accident, nor because he needed a place to hide, but because he had known that this place hid something extraordinary.

Ravenclaw's Diadem.

A marvel of alchemy, it was said to grant wisdom to those who wore it. Vaughn didn't know what exactly this 'wisdom' entailed, but there was no question—created by one of the four great founders, worn by the legendary Rowena Ravenclaw herself, the diadem likely contained the most esoteric and advanced magic from the ancient world.

And more than that… it had been turned into a Horcrux by Voldemort.

At the thought of that man, Vaughn's expression turned cold. A fractured soul. Completely deranged. Unworthy of following, let alone cooperating with.

But undeniably, Voldemort was a terrifyingly powerful wizard.

In his previous life, many had underestimated Voldemort—insisting that he was no match for Dumbledore, who, after all, was over a hundred years old.

But what those people failed to understand was that Dumbledore had the Elder Wand—and was a Transfiguration master.

As the books showed, the Avada Kedavra Curse wasn't unstoppable. It could be deflected, especially by objects created through Transfiguration. Such conjured things could be animated momentarily, sometimes even intercepting a killing curse.

Even a man like Voldemort, who had studied the Dark Arts his entire life, had been forced to retreat in the face of that brilliance.

Yet… Dumbledore had never truly defeated him.

"I need time," Vaughn murmured. "And I need to weaken Tom. At the very least, I must make sure he doesn't rise early like in the original timeline…"

He twirled his wand between his fingers, eyes scanning the endless debris. Of course, he didn't plan to destroy the Horcrux himself. That wasn't his job.

But there was no reason he couldn't find them… and deliver them to Dumbledore. The great white wizard was still puzzled about why Voldemort hadn't died. Vaughn could do him a little favor.

Surely, old Dumbledore would be grateful.

Originally, Vaughn had wanted to use Harry's connection with the Horcruxes to locate the diadem. But clearly, it wasn't the right time yet.

So, for now, he'd rely on himself, sifting through the debris piece by piece.

The magic of the Room of Requirement had the trio utterly captivated. They had originally planned to come back and play for several more days.

But the next morning, news spread like wildfire across Hogwarts—Harry Potter had joined the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

Team captain Oliver Wood was furious. He had explicitly asked Harry and the others to keep it secret, intending to unveil Harry as their surprise weapon.

But Harry, "tight-lipped" as ever, had immediately spilled the news to his friends.

And Fred and George, already on the team, had taken it a step further, shouting across the castle: "Harry's our new Seeker! This year's House Cup is as good as ours!"

That night, Wood sat on the Quidditch pitch, holding his head in his hands, wondering how he was going to manage a team full of loudmouths.

Harry, meanwhile, had his own regrets. He'd completely forgotten that his detention with Malfoy would last a full week.

Compared to what came next, polishing trophies was practically a vacation—his next task was helping Professor Snape with medicinal herbs!

With that, the trio's plans to explore the Room of Requirement had to be postponed.

Vaughn searched the room for two more days but found nothing. Frustrated, he returned to Professor Snape's office over the weekend.

The moment he opened the door, he heard Snape's biting voice: "Tsk tsk… Potter, I'd love to crack open your skull and see if it's filled with slug mucus instead of brains."

Malfoy snorted with laughter.

As the door creaked, Snape looked up from where his face was almost nose-to-nose with Harry's.

Seeing Vaughn, he opened a drawer and handed him a slip of parchment. Short and sharp as always, Snape said, "The book's in the library. Here's the note. Read it first."

"Thank you, Professor." Vaughn gave a courteous nod, then shrugged helplessly at Harry's pleading look.

That's Professor Snape's way of showing love, Harry. Outsiders can't interfere.

At the library, Vaughn handed the note to Madam Pince—the stern, sharp-nosed librarian feared by nearly every student.

Anyone who dared whisper too loudly in her domain risked being chased out with a feather duster. She read the note with narrowed eyes, then looked Vaughn up and down, grumbling:

"The Restricted Section? Why would Professor Snape authorize this? These books are not for first-years!"

"The professor believes I'm qualified, ma'am," Vaughn said politely.

"Hmph." She snorted like an irritated hippogriff, but didn't argue further. "Follow me. Be quiet. Be careful."

Madam Pince led him to the back of the library, then cast a few spells to unlock the Restricted Section. She stepped inside alone. When she returned, she was carrying four books:

Advanced Potion-Making, Powerful Potions, Encyclopedia of Advanced Magic, and—

"This one… An Introduction to the Dark Arts. This is the book Professor Snape has permitted you to borrow."

"Thank you, ma'am," Vaughn said as he accepted the stack.

Madam Pince gave him a lingering look and warned, "The contents of these books are dangerous. If you have questions, speak to Professor Snape or me. Immediately. Do you understand?"

Vaughn nodded solemnly, and only then did she let him go.