The Mirror of Erised

With Quidditch Matches to liven things up, time seemed to be spurred on by a whip, racing by in a flash.

Before they knew it, December had arrived. One morning, people awoke to the delightful surprise of finding the world outside turned white by a whole night of heavy snowfall.

A thick layer of ice covered the Black Lake. Some energetic young wizards would run out onto the frozen surface to play, only to be scared half to death when the Giant Squid suddenly broke through the ice, hoping to join them. Chunks of ice pelted them, leaving bumps all over their heads, and the whole group fled with cries of alarm.

"I'm kind of craving grilled squid."

Watching the chaos outside the window, Ezio suddenly felt a little hungry.

Just as he was about to leave the library and head to the kitchens to order something, Harry came hurrying over, slightly out of breath. His pocket bulged, with a bit of silvery fabric poking out.

"Why didn't you come back to the dormitory last night?"

Ezio asked, eyeing Harry's swollen black eye. Ever since Ezio had taken Harry to meet Fluffy, Harry seemed to have awakened some kind of innate talent. Every so often, he would sneak out after curfew, then creep back around midnight. Nighttime wandering had become part of Harry's daily routine.

It didn't affect his classes the next day, though. Ezio wasn't his father, and he couldn't be bothered to police him.

"Yeah, I didn't go back."

Harry nodded. After taking a few deep breaths, he beckoned to Ezio.

"You've got to come see this!"

"Silence in the library!"

Though it was only six fifty in the morning, Madam Pince was already at work. She loved books and had come to work at Hogwarts with the dream of reading every single one. As a result, she detested any behavior that broke the rules and disturbed her reading.

"Sorry, I'm really sorry!"

Harry immediately turned and apologized, then sheepishly tugged Ezio along and hurried out of the library.

"What's going on? Why the rush?"

Ezio asked unhurriedly, already having guessed a little. They headed toward the kitchens. The castle was practically deserted at this hour, and even Filch was nowhere to be seen. After patrolling all night, he was surely asleep now.

"I went out last night to sneak around—uh... I've been going out to practice magic lately. Well, duelling, actually. After our Duelling Club started, Gryffindor set up one too. Neither side wanted to back down, so we've been practising against each other at night. The Weasley Twins found a secret room behind the clock on the second floor, and we hold matches there."

"But that's not important." Harry waved a hand.

"Last night, when I was sneaking back, Filch's cat found me. The Invisibility Cloak couldn't hide my smell. I was covered in sweat, and the little pest chased me for ages. So I got lost and ducked in here to hide—and that's when I found this."

"Over here!"

Harry quickened his pace again and led Ezio into an abandoned classroom, something quite common at Hogwarts.

No one knew what they might find when they opened a door at Hogwarts. It could lead to a pile of junk, a wall, or even a secret bathroom where a Black Lake mermaid was bathing and might hurl his fork at you.

But this room was unusual—not because of the tables and chairs piled in one corner, but because of a grand mirror. It stretched all the way to the ceiling, framed in ornate gold and supported by two claw-shaped feet. At its very top was a line of small writing that anyone could clearly read: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi.

"I'm not really sure what this thing is called, but I thought you might need it, Ezio."

Harry hesitated, then paused before speaking. "Last night, I saw lots of people in this mirror—more than a dozen. They must have been my family, my ancestors. My mum and dad were among them."

When they reached the mirror, Harry drew a deep breath. "I don't know if it'll show you your family, but I want you to try."

Harry knew Ezio was hurting over the loss of his father. They were both children without parents. Even though they knew that what they had lost could never come back, being able to see it again, even just for a moment, might bring some comfort.

"The Mirror of Erised."

Ezio spoke very softly. His steps remained steady as he slowly approached the side of the mirror and touched its frame.

"You know what this is?" Harry asked, surprised. But then he realized it made sense. Ezio knew far more than other people, whether about his studies or anything else. He always seemed to give off an air of learning without even meaning to.

"Yes, the Mirror of Erised. A magical mirror that shows you the thing you desire most in your heart. Countless people have lost themselves in the illusions reflected in it. They know those dreams are out of reach, yet they still can't bear to look away."

"I really do need it, Harry."

Ezio spoke earnestly, though not simply because he wanted to see Giovanni again. He had other hopes and plans for the Mirror of Erised.

Magic was a matter of the mind. It bore repeating: magic was a matter of the mind. This wondrous power, so mysterious that even the wizards who used it could hardly explain it, was frightening.

It was as though it recorded everything in the world, and nothing could escape its grasp.

If Harry had only seen his parents, there would have been nothing unusual about it. He had seen photographs of them, so he knew what they looked like.

But Harry had definitely never seen his other relatives—for example, his grandfather, his grandmother, or his maternal grandparents.

Harry had seen so many people, all of them family members he had never met.

Unless magic had recorded all of this, Ezio couldn't think of any other explanation.

That meant the Mirror of Erised could show images of things beyond one's own knowledge, yet which truly existed.

And what he wanted most desperately to see now...

He missed the happiness of the past, but what mattered more to him was fulfilling his greatest obsession: killing his enemy with his own hands and avenging Giovanni.

"Let me see."

Ezio gripped the frame, his knuckles turning pale.

"Show me! Giovanni, where did you die?"

"Who killed you? Who was involved in all this?"

Ezio stood directly in front of the mirror and let out a long breath. Then he lifted his head and looked into it.

There was nothing but darkness—

He stood alone in the dark. Then a figure emerged from it. The man had bright golden hair, completely unlike Ezio's, with a slight natural curl. His face, naturally stern, wore an apologetic smile that said, "Sorry, I accidentally overcooked the steak again."

I'm sorry I left without saying goodbye, Ezio.

The person in the mirror couldn't speak, but it seemed as if he had silently uttered those words.

Ezio turned his head slightly and looked at his shoulder. A slender hand, callused in places, should have been resting there, but he couldn't see it. His shoulder was empty.

He stared at the mirror in silence for a moment.

"I forgive you," Ezio said softly, for him to hear. "After all, there won't be a next time, will there?"

"But I still need to see where you are, right? At least let me dig a hole and bury you with my own hands. Then this will finally be over, won't it?"

"You really are a bastard, Giovanni. So I'm going to see for myself how you managed to get yourself killed!"

Almost grinding his teeth, Ezio forced out a few words. "Where the hell did you die?!"

Giovanni's shadow vanished, and darkness filled the entire mirror.

Ezio froze. Was the Mirror of Erised broken?

"The mirror cannot show images that have been hidden by magic."

A quiet voice came from behind them. Ezio knew it was that nosy old man, Dumbledore, without turning around.

"Thank you for explaining, but right now I really feel like finding something to take my anger out on."

Ezio spoke coldly. The room, already chilly, grew colder still.

"Anger won't solve anything, Ezio."

Dumbledore walked over to Harry and gently shook his head. "At least we can be sure now that your father died somewhere connected to magic. It could have been some ruins, or an area sealed off by magic. If his death had nothing to do with magic, then you would have seen whatever you wanted to see."

"But how could a Muggle like him get mixed up with magic?" Ezio said through gritted teeth, his emotions still unsteady. "He was an assassin, sure, but there's no way he could have taken a job from a wizard, right?"

"It can't be that he once found some scraps of magic, mistook them for some kind of mystery, and went mad trying to track them down."

"How could anyone die in such a... such a damned way?"

"The Mirror of Erised can show wizards, right?" Ezio suddenly asked.

Dumbledore said nothing. A sudden sense of foreboding washed over him.

"It should be able to. Harry saw his parents and relatives." Before Dumbledore could answer, Ezio had begun muttering to himself.

"Then, Mirror, tell me—show me which wizards Giovanni came into contact with."

Harry felt a sharp pain in his shoulder. Dumbledore's hand was unexpectedly strong, gripping him so tightly it hurt.

But after a moment, Ezio still stood motionless before the mirror. He didn't seem to have seen what he wanted, and Dumbledore felt slightly relieved. But before he could fully relax, Ezio spoke again.

"Then who were the wizards connected to the place where Giovanni died?!"

"Which wizards have been there before?"

A flash of sharp insight crossed Dumbledore's face as he sensed that something was wrong. In the Mirror of Erised, Ezio seemed to have seen what he wanted.

"Which of these people are still alive?"

"Thank you for the Christmas present, Professor Dumbledore. I really like it."

Ezio turned and gave Dumbledore a slight bow. Although the Mirror of Erised had been intended for Harry, Ezio was grateful to him too, as someone who had benefited from it.