"Phew..."
Avada had already lifted the Disillusionment Charm before running up to the Seventh Floor. When he reached the stone gargoyle, he panted a couple of times. At some point, the back of his clothes had become soaked with sweat.
"Good grief, that was intense..."
Using Occlumency to deceive the once-mighty Dark Lord had felt like walking a tightrope over a cliff. Every step had to be taken with the utmost care; every hint of mental activity had to be disguised perfectly, and controlling his facial expressions and tiny movements had required even greater attention to detail... But in the end, his Occlumency and acting had won out, and he had successfully earned Voldemort's trust.
But absolute trust was impossible. Voldemort had always trusted only himself, treating his servants as tools.
Wiping away his cold sweat, Avada walked up to the gargoyle and tentatively said, "Fizzing Whizzbees."
The gargoyle didn't budge.
"Lemon Pomelo Tea?"
"Cockroach Cluster?"
"Chocolate Frog?"
"Butterbeer?"
"Mint Ice Cream?"
"...You can stop trying."
The stone gargoyle rolled its eyes and said, "This time, the sweets were imported from abroad. Their name is a rather obscure Italian word."
Avada: ...
"Fine. I'll just ask another professor."
Avada turned to knock on the door of the Ravenclaw head of house's office—Flitwick's office was on the same floor as the Headmaster's Office.
"Wait."
The gargoyle suddenly called out to Avada, looking rather odd. "Dumbledore has allowed you to enter."
With that, it hopped aside. The wall behind it slowly opened, revealing a staircase that led upward.
Dumbledore knows I'm coming? What's going on?
Avada was startled, and tried to remember if he had given himself away at any point. But whether he was releasing the Troll or casting the Imperius Curse on it, he had been using Magic Sense to