The kind smile that used to seem to be embedded in his face has disappeared.
The Spark of joy had vanished from the eyes behind the lenses.
Every twitching muscle on that young face conveyed a chilling rage.
A power began to radiate from his body, as if he were burning and generating heat.
But her body began to involuntarily emit mournful cries and she lost control.
Yellow liquid soaked the sofa, just as fear had soaked her Mind Stone.
She finally realized that she might have made an irreparable mistake.
She wanted to beg for mercy, but she couldn't make a sound; her mouth could only open and close like a dead fish.
"Pain!" Dumbledore's cold voice rang out.
An inexplicable pain began to rise in Skeeter's heart. At first, it felt like a branding iron being inserted into her brain, but as the pain spread, it felt as if an ant was tearing at every inch of her flesh and her internal organs.
The pain that could have taken her life could not take it away at this moment.
A gentle magnetic field enveloped her body along with the radiation, making her feel healthier than ever before.
She was also unable to faint.
Because this pain originates in the heart, it can only be clearly and futilely felt.
"Stop." It was another command, but this time it was directed at the curse that had caused the woman in front of him to bulge her veins and foam at the mouth.
But as if on purpose, the lines of the fading curse appeared on her body, flowing with an undeniable heat, surging into her physical heart.
This made her acutely aware that the curse had not yet faded and was still alive with her heartbeat.
The wand moved from his neck, Dumbledore's voice no longer had a metallic quality, nor did it echo.
"You can try to recall and consider the idea of spreading the news about that girl."
Rita Skeeter's eyes rolled ugly, but in an instant, pain surged again.
An armchair slid automatically behind Dumbledore, and he sat down, saying gently, "You should understand now."
Skeeter's head was pounded like garlic.
She was able to survive the torment of that curse just now because Dumbledore kept her alive.
When Dumbledore wasn't by her side, it meant that she was headed for death.
Boom! Raging flames replaced Dumbledore's figure.
He set the armchair and the parchment on fire.
The restrictions on the room were also broken with Dumbledore's departure.
Skeeter lay on the ground, panting softly.
His eyes were filled with lingering fear.
Then, a thick stack of documents fell from the sky and hit her in the face.
The front of the document featured a picture of a blond wizard who was blinking, revealing dazzling white teeth.
Rita Skeeter, lying on the carpet, seemed to have seen something and burst out laughing.
This is what Basil saw at that time.
He also learned that Gilderoy Lockhart had been removed from the list of candidates for Defense Against the Dark Arts class.
Could the new consumable be Sirius (Basil is unaware that the curse in Defense Against the Dark Arts class has been lifted)?
Therefore, he wasn't too surprised when Dumbledore asked him to go to France.
In his view, Dumbledore at that time was capable of anything.
He might even travel to Nurmengard, Austria, to release Grindelwald if necessary.
Fortunately, Dumbledore seems to have returned to normal now.
They even tacitly approved of Basil's relationship with his beloved sister, Ariana.
It's only 9:30 now. There are still 11 and a half hours until 9 p. m.
In the community space, besides Basil, only Bellatrix, Zoe, and Ariana are present.
Madison went shopping for clothes.
Sophie and Beatrix are currently in class. As members of the Witch Club, they are exempt from the academy's morning assembly at 9 a. m., Monday through Friday. However, skipping class is still not allowed.
Now, Zoe's long legs have replaced Beatrix's shapely and firm legs as his pillow.
Bellatrix and Ariana were sitting a short distance away, reading books.
The only difference was that Ariana was reading "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone," while Bellatrix was reading a compilation of "Twilight."
Ariana watched and complained, "How Albus do this? How could he let poor little Harry stay with the Dursley family?"
He's really getting senile.
Bellatrix has now envisioned the chapters where she and Edward have a child, Volterra Family vampires cause them trouble.
Suddenly, she exclaimed, "What? Jacob and the others aren't Werewolf? They didn't even know that themselves?"
"No, the real Werewolf are all extinct, so it's normal for Jacob and his group to be called Werewolf."
"Hmm?" This caught Basil's attention. He stood up, put his arm around Bellatrix, and looked at the book.
"Transfiguration? A supernatural race inherited from their fathers? Choosing to transform into a wolf was purely accidental? The first Transfiguration can become a bear, an eagle, or a leopard."
"That's outrageous. The Werewolf in your world are called the Children of the Moon. It seems that they can only Transfiguration at night, more likely when the moon is out, and they can't control themselves. Like the Werewolf in our world, they perpetuate their species by biting people to spread infection? But they have been Carnage by the Volterra Family vampires."
Zoe's ears twitched, and she leaned closer. "Transfiguration? Sounds a bit like the skin-changing people from Lord of the Rings."
"This sounds like druids. Can they only Transfiguration regular animals? What about dragons and unicorns?"
Basil's fingers glowed, instantly reading the information in the book in Bellatrix's hand.
After a moment of thought, he shook his head. "The Quileute tribe, also known as the Transfiguration, are a minority group among the Native Americans. In their daily lives, the large creatures they encounter are wolves, bears, eagles, and leopards. Their world doesn't have dragons or unicorns."
"And vampires, the Coldblood race in their eyes, is it because they are more like living corpses than living beings, so they cannot be etched into the past? Or is it because of a psychological aversion?"
"However, it is truly peculiar. Jacob and his group seem to have the wolf's form etched into their blood, possessing the characteristics of wolves, and uniting like wolves, extending to the strange ability of sharing thoughts."
"And Animagus, apart from having an animal body, does not provide any additional benefits to the original body."
"I'm really curious, if the Quileute tribe can truly inscribe Magical Creature, what kind of abilities will their bodies develop?"
Basil couldn't wait to travel to another world.
Having been a wizard for 11 years, he wasn't particularly interested in the magic and Magical Creature of the Harry world. While interesting, it paled in comparison to the magic and wondrous creatures of other worlds.
For the first time, he felt that time was passing too slowly.
He really wanted to see the books in the witch academy.
Although the magic within is heavily dependent on bloodline, and cannot be used without meeting the requirements, it's more like a technique for better controlling one's own talents—invoking the names of gods or demons through incantations, or perhaps hinting at oneself.
For example, the Coven possess the magic to reverse time. However, it is completely unusable except by the next Supreme Witch, Mallory.
But Basil was still very curious.
He began planning what he would do once he arrived in Madison's world.
In the American Horror Story, it seems there can only be one vehicle through which Satan devours the world.
In the original timeline, after time was reversed, a new Son of Satan was born five years after Michael Langton, the unawakened Son of Satan, was killed in a car accident caused by Mallory.
He thought to himself, "So, should I kill him cleanly while he's still a mortal, or..."
Basil is considering absorbing the negative emotions emanating from Michael Langton.
In the original timeline, although Langdon enjoyed killing, he still retained kindness towards his family.
This includes his grandmother Constance, who raised him; his adoptive father Ben; his biological father Tate; and his later adoptive mother Mead.
He only truly turned to the dark side after his grandmother, his adoptive father who was also his psychologist, and finally his biological father all abandoned him.
Even so, he had no intention of destroying the world; he simply enjoyed killing.
He only began to act because of the Satanic church led by his later adoptive mother, Mead.
In fact, from beginning to end, he preferred to hunt down the culprits who prevented him from resurrecting his adoptive mother— the Coven.
It could be considered that his inner goodness was driving him, because of his longing for maternal love.
Therefore, Basil, who already possesses the power to guide a person towards good or evil, should also be able to lead this son of Satan onto the path of goodness.
As long as Langdon lives, the next Son of Satan may never be born.
Madison and her friends could live peacefully without facing the end of the world.
Basil can also obtain a large number of gems and high-quality emotional energy.
While he was thinking, he went online mainly to confirm whether Basil would distance herself from Ariana.
After achieving his goal, he left with the words, "I'm leaving now. I need to talk to Albus."
He disappeared onto the sofa.
The moment she opened her eyes, she met the gaze of her own portrait hanging above the fireplace in the living room.
Aberforth rested his chin on his hand and sat quietly to the side.
"Albus?" Ariana asked.
Basil said it would surprise her; she had assumed Albus was here too. But it seemed only Aberforth.
"You met with that Granger family kid again?" Aberforth took a deep breath, suppressing his anger. "He didn't do anything to you, did he?"
"He... him... me?" Ariana's gaze lowered, her hands twisting together. "He's very good to me."
His blue eyes and eyebrows suddenly arched upwards, and he put his hands on his hips. "This has nothing to do with you, Aberforth. Albus? You weren't involved in arranging for Basil to go to France, were you?"
Aberforth immediately distanced himself from his brother.
"Of course not!"
"You know me. I've always been a liberal."
"In our family, only that Albus likes to meddle in everything and has a very strong desire to control."
He's in his office right now!
He suddenly pointed to the portrait above the fireplace.
"Without the phoenix, we cannot manifest ourselves in the castle."
"And the fastest way to get into the castle is through it."
His voice suddenly softened as he looked at Ariana in the painting, "Can you help us?"
It seems that even Ariana's resurrection did not affect his feelings for Ariana in the painting.
Ariana, standing beside her, also clasped her hands together and bowed, saying, "Please! My other self."
The girl in the painting smiled slightly, turned around and left. Unlike people in ordinary portraits who disappear beside the frame, she seemed to walk along a long tunnel behind the painting.
Her frail figure walked further and further away until she was swallowed by the darkness.
About a minute later.
A small white dot appeared at the end of the tunnel in the painting, and Ariana walked back towards them, getting closer and bigger.
The figure grew larger and larger until her head and shoulders filled the entire portrait.
Then the portrait on the wall opened like a small door, revealing the entrance to a real tunnel.
"Come on, let's go." Aberforth leaped onto the fireplace mantle like a nimble monkey, disappeared into the tunnel, and stretched out his right hand to Ariana.
Ariana lifted her skirt and leaped onto it.
Then, the tunnel suddenly closed, under the control of Ariana in the painting.
On the other side of the tunnel were smooth stone steps that looked quite old.
Brass lamps hung on the wall, and the dirt ground was flattened by footsteps.
It stretches as far as the eye can see.
Aberforth led the way, saying as they walked, "This passageway was built at the very beginning of the school's establishment."
"The exit of the passage, which is your portrait, used to be a blank picture frame."
"The principal's portrait can be placed inside to control the switch."
"But after I became the owner of Hog's Head Inn, the portrait in the frame was replaced with yours."
Ariana suddenly realized, and shook her head cutely, "So, the owner of the Hog's Head Inn is actually considered a Hogwarts faculty member."
Aberforth nodded. "Yes, but only the headmaster knows their identities."
Ariana then asked, "And the entrance? Where in the castle is the entrance?"
"You just said the principal's portrait is in the Headmaster's Office, right?"
She had only just read "The Philosopher's Stone," so she didn't know yet.
Aberforth shook his head and turned a corner. "No. But it's on the Seventh Floor too."
"That was in a very magical room— the Room of Requirement, also known as the Room of Requirement."
"It only appears when people really need it, and when you go in, you will find that it is arranged to meet your needs perfectly."
"I discovered this place when I was looking for someone to duel with. It's a complete Duel Arena. But the most valuable thing is the books about dueling inside. It's connected to a library, which moved the books I needed to the bookshelves in the room."
"This passage also relies on it for its existence. When the school is truly in danger and needs refuge, it will continuously optimize itself according to the needs of the refugees."
"This passage will appear when the refugees can no longer cope with the dangers outside, need food, and need to leave the school."
"After all, food is one of the five exceptions to the 'Gamp's Law of Elemental Transfiguration.' It cannot conjure food out of thin air."
"It's amazing," Ariana said, panting. The road was now very steep, and her fair forehead was slightly sweaty.
Then, a silence fell between them. Their minds gradually became preoccupied with the action of taking a step.
All that's left is to move forward and reach the destination—the end of the passage.
Finally, after turning the last bend, we reached the end.
It was just another short stone staircase, and a door exactly like the one behind Ariana's portrait.