In the Headmaster's Office at Hogwarts, Professor Dumbledore watched the first-year students board the boats by the Black Lake, then gradually disappear from view.
Afterward, he returned to his desk and sat down. A mirror appeared in his hand.
Professor Dumbledore tapped the mirror lightly a few times. It immediately began to glow, and a face appeared inside—
A gaunt, elderly face, covered in wrinkles and bearing the unmistakable look of someone who had weathered countless hardships.
The old man was the famous master of Alchemy, Nicolas Flamel.
"Albus, what brings you to contact me?" Nicolas asked with a smile. "Wait, don't tell me. Let me guess...
"Did that nearly useless Philosopher's Stone manage to catch a fish?"
"It caught one, and a big one at that," Dumbledore replied with a smile. "My student Tom, who strayed down the wrong path, has appeared.
"He possessed another of my students, Quirinus, who was weak-willed, and completely took over his body, trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone.
"But he failed. Harley stopped him."
"Oh?" Nicolas raised an eyebrow. "How did she stop him? Was it what you suspected?"
Dumbledore gave a rueful smile.
"I'm old and no longer up to the task. I'd thought Harley would defeat Tom with the magic her mother had left her at the cost of her life.
"But I was wrong. I saw with my own eyes as Harley confronted Tom head-on and forced him to burn up Quirinus's body in an attempt to take them both down.
"I suddenly realized that Tom had had too great an influence on Harley.
"That influence might even have combined with Harley's own talent, giving rise to powers and traits that Tom himself didn't possess.
"Harley used those powers to defeat Tom."
Nicolas's curiosity grew more evident. "Albus, now you've