Nicolas Flamel's Story

Nicolas Flamel's Story

Loren could never have imagined that five minutes ago, he had still been at Hogwarts, yet now he was walking down a street in Devon. It had just rained, and the air carried a damp freshness.

That morning, Professor McGonagall had found Loren in the library and taken him to see Dumbledore. Loren had thought there would be news about Peter Pettigrew, but in the blink of an eye, Dumbledore had brought him here.

"Nicol wants to meet you." Dumbledore took a deep, contented breath, clearly enjoying the weather.

Of course, Loren knew who Dumbledore meant by Nicol. "Nicolas Flamel? Why does he want to see me?"

"He does not want his legacy to remain sealed away for too long."

"When he met you in Hampshire, he already knew you would attend Hogwarts, so he asked me to take a good look at what kind of child you were."

"He said that if I thought you were suitable, I should bring you to him. But if you were not, then you would have to explore the mysteries of those two books on your own." Dumbledore explained as he led Loren onward.

"So he really was the one who sold me those two books?"

Loren understood that Dumbledore already knew Complete Guide to Hieroglyphs and The Book of Abraham were in his possession. He still was not sure whether the person he had encountered in that little town had truly been Nicolas Flamel.

If it had been him, why had Nicolas Flamel gone all the way to that remote town, set up a bookstall, and sold the books at a price Loren could just barely afford?

"Why not ask him yourself in a moment?" Dumbledore seemed to sense that Loren had more than one question on his mind, and his words carried another meaning.

"Then why now?" Nicol had suddenly wanted to see him without any warning. Loren did not believe Dumbledore had played no part in it.

"Of course, it was not just now, Loren."

"From the moment you told me about Scabbers, you had already proven yourself. After that, you brought me even more surprises."

"You were willing to place your trust in others, you thirsted for knowledge, you cherished friendship, and most importantly, you held love in your heart."

"These are all precious qualities."

After what had happened with Tom, Dumbledore had become more cautious and more attentive to examining his students' hearts. Dispelling darkness and guiding them toward the light—this was what a qualified headmaster ought to do.

Loren curled his lip. It had plainly been surveillance and investigation, yet Dumbledore had made it sound so respectable.

The person behind that mirror last night had definitely been Dumbledore. His Magic Power had been so abundant it had nearly blinded Loren. He had probably made up his mind after hearing that Loren had seen his family in the Mirror of Erised.

"Though sometimes, you can be a little mischievous," Dumbledore added. The two stopped before a small courtyard, and he stepped forward to ring the doorbell.

There was no magic here at all, just like the other Muggle houses along the street. The courtyard had a green lawn, and the windows were spotless.

An elderly woman answered the door. Dumbledore stepped forward and lightly brushed his cheek against hers. "It has been a long time, Perenelle!"

The woman nodded and gave Loren, standing behind Dumbledore, a gentle smile. "Come in." She stepped aside and welcomed them in.

They crossed the courtyard and entered the house. The living room contained all the usual furnishings of a Muggle family: a sofa, a color television, and a refrigerator.

The white-haired old Bookseller Loren had seen before was sitting on the sofa watching television. An opera was playing.

The old man looked up at Loren, a warm smile on his face as well. "I told you we would meet again!"

Perenelle invited them to sit down, made some black tea, then went into the inner room.

Dumbledore sat quietly to one side, as though none of this had anything to do with him, watching the opera on television with great interest.

"Hello, sir." Looking into those eyes, Loren had a bellyful of questions, but did not know where to begin.

Nicol saw Loren's confusion, but did not mention it. Instead, he began speaking on his own. "I am going to tell a long story. You may have heard some of it before..."

In fourteenth-century Europe, the Black Death was raging. After graduating from Beauxbatons, Nicolas Flamel obtained The Book of Abraham under the guidance of The Dark Lord in a dream. He spent decades studying it yet gained almost nothing, until he finally understood its contents with the help of a Hebrew scholar.

"The Book of Abraham bore a severe curse. Aside from the High Priest and scribes, anyone who looked upon it would invite death. I thought that merely recounting its contents would allow me to avoid the curse. That thought was truly arrogant!"

"I hope you remember this lesson. Do not reveal the contents of the book, or you may bring disaster upon others..."

After that Hebrew scholar died, Nicolas Flamel happened upon the means to create the Sorcerer's Stone. Though incomplete, it could already turn stone into gold and brew an elixir of immortality.

"It only grants immortality. My body still ages normally, and my bones will break if I am not careful." At that, the old man burst into laughter, as though it were something amusing.

Seven hundred years was a very long time. He had lived enough. Nicol had already decided that after some time, once he had settled his affairs, he and his wife would return to France and sleep forever.

Before that, Nicol wanted to pass on his knowledge. Over centuries of exploration, he had achieved more than merely creating the Sorcerer's Stone. He had made considerable accomplishments in many fields.

"You know, with enough time, anyone can become a scholar."

Nicol compiled the alchemy he had explored over the centuries, along with his other knowledge, travel journals, and autobiography, ultimately gathering them into Complete Guide to Hieroglyphs.

Originally, he had planned to place the book in Beauxbatons's library, hoping that someone would discover it someday and continue exploring along the path already laid out. As for the cursed book, fate would make its own arrangements.

That plan had remained unchanged until a year ago, when Nicol once again dreamed of the same Dark Lord from six hundred years earlier. The Dark Lord told him to go to Hampshire and pass the books on to a ten-year-old child.

Nicol believed this was fate's arrangement, so he picked a town at random. Like a street vendor, he sold books and intended to entrust both books to that lucky child, letting him explore them on his own. After all, anyone with the Sorcerer's Stone would never lack time.

Not long after sitting down, before he had even finished a cup of coffee, he encountered Loren.

"Just like six hundred years ago, Loren also did some copying work. It was like fate." Nicol's voice suddenly rose, and he sounded very excited.

After selling the books, Nicol had not relaxed. Loren was too young, and he did not know whether Loren could truly reach the point where he himself had stopped.

Nicol did not want those who came after him to end up like him, going in circles only to create a half-finished product. That would be far too regrettable. It might even be worse, because when he looked back on how he had created the Sorcerer's Stone, the process had been full of lucky accidents and could not be replicated.

"You know, old men always overthink things and hesitate." Nicol chuckled. "The last time I did something a little out of line was decades ago."

In the end, he asked Dumbledore to bring Loren here if Loren proved to be a suitable candidate. He would give this lucky boy a little help.

As he spoke, Nicolas Flamel took a card from his pocket, one like a Chocolate Frog card. "Take this back and stick it onto the cover of Complete Guide to Hieroglyphs. It will help you avoid some detours."

Loren reached out and accepted it. It bore a portrait of Nicol in his youth, his eyes closed and unmoving.

"We are not master and apprentice. Neither of us owes the other anything. This is merely a small kindness from one who came before to one who comes after."

"If you are grateful for this small kindness, then help me look after Beauxbatons."

"Lastly, remember this: the key to creating the Sorcerer's Stone is to redeem a despairing soul!"