Invisibility Cloak

Behind a broad desk, Dumbledore was bent over some documents by candlelight.

He wore snow-white pajamas beneath a crimson velvet dressing gown, yet looked thoroughly alert.

On a shelf behind him sat the battered, crumpled Sorting Hat, and beside it, in a glass case, lay a silver sword gleaming brightly.

Dumbledore looked up.

"Oh, it's you, Professor McGonagall. And James and Severus. It's good to see you both again."

"Professor Dumbledore," Professor McGonagall said angrily, "the two of them were just using magic to fight each other in the Girls' Lavatory. What disgraceful behavior!"

"It wasn't a fight," Snape immediately said. "I was defending myself."

Professor McGonagall turned to look at Snape, her brow faintly furrowing.

"Was James hurt?" Dumbledore asked.

"I wasn't!" James answered quickly, sounding both annoyed and indignant.

Snape inwardly rolled his eyes. Who exactly did he not trust?

"Tell me what happened." Dumbledore set down his documents, his sharp blue eyes moving between Snape and James. "Who wishes to go first?"

"Oh, I don't mind," Snape said with a shrug.

James looked both resentful and uneasy. "Headmaster, I found him sneaking into the Girls' Lavatory on the second floor in the middle of the night, so I wanted to see what he was doing in there."

"By secretly using a Stunning Spell?" Snape said bluntly.

He drew a liquid-like, silver-shimmering Invisibility Cloak from inside his robes.

"Mr. Potter, do you know who this little thing belongs to?"

"Give it back!" James snatched the Invisibility Cloak from Snape's hand.

Dumbledore's gaze fell upon the silvery-gray Invisibility Cloak. One brow rose slightly, and an imperceptibly complicated emotion flickered through his eyes.

"Sir," Snape said, "do you believe Potter needs to use an Invisibility Cloak on school grounds?"

"Certainly not," Dumbledore said calmly. "I trust Professor McGonagall will give you an appropriate punishment."

He turned to Professor McGonagall. "Minerva, what is your opinion?"

Professor McGonagall nodded and recounted what she had seen, along with her proposed punishment.

"Fifty points from Gryffindor and fifty from Slytherin, plus one week of detention, beginning tomorrow evening at six."

"Very good," Dumbledore said. "Magic is meant for protection, exploration, and learning, not for fighting among classmates. I hope you will learn from this and not make the same mistake again."

"Headmaster," Snape pointed out, "I have read Mr. Filch's list of prohibited items. Invisibility Cloaks are listed as item one hundred and twenty-eight."

He had no intention of letting James keep an Invisibility Cloak that spells could not see through. Otherwise, he would have to spend every day on edge.

"Severus, even as Headmaster, I cannot simply confiscate a student's precious belongings at will." Dumbledore gave a slight shake of his head. "This is an exceptionally valuable Invisibility Cloak."

"You cannot uphold the authority of school rules only when ordinary students break them," Snape said discontentedly. "Does a valuable Invisibility Cloak cease to be an Invisibility Cloak?"

"Sir, he went to the Girls' Lavatory in the middle of the night. He must have been up to no good," James said urgently. "I couldn't just ignore something like that. I only used it to—"

James tried to explain, but Dumbledore raised a hand and cut him off.

"Young people are always full of curiosity and a spirit of adventure." Dumbledore still wore a smile as he looked gently at Snape. "Severus, what did you intend to do in the Girls' Lavatory?

"Please do not say you were there to chat with Moaning Myrtle. You and I both know you are not familiar with her."

"Later, I hope to tell you privately. I trust you will find it interesting," Snape said neither humbly nor arrogantly. "Of course, after Potter's Invisibility Cloak has been dealt with appropriately."

"Sir, my father passed this down to me." James shot Dumbledore an anxious glance. "If I lose it, I won't be able to explain it to him."

Ignoring James's angry, threatening glare, Snape said to Dumbledore, "You can certainly keep the Invisibility Cloak for him temporarily and return it to Potter at the end of the term."

"Hmm... that is a reasonable suggestion. Let us do that, James," Dumbledore said. "I will keep it for a while and return it when you go home."

James hesitated for a moment, then nodded helplessly and handed the Invisibility Cloak to Dumbledore.

"It is getting late. You should return and rest," Dumbledore said with a wave of his hand. "Perhaps Severus still has something to tell me."

"Wait!" James suddenly said. "There is one more thing. He has one of my Parchments."

"That blank parchment? Perhaps you heard that I threw it into the toilet and flushed it away not long ago."

"What?" James stared at Snape in shock. "What did you say?"

"I'm truly sorry, Potter. How about this? I'll buy you a whole stack of parchment as compensation."

"That's completely different!"

"Oh, I know. A stack of parchment is obviously more, but to show my apology, there's no need to stand on ceremony."

Snape's words seemed to push James to the brink of fury. His cheeks reddened, and his lips trembled so badly that he could not speak.

"That is enough. Professor McGonagall, take James back to the tower," Dumbledore said, dismissing them.

After nodding respectfully to Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall led the unwilling James out of the Headmaster's office.

"Silencing Charm." Before Snape could ask, Dumbledore cast the spell himself. "Now you may say whatever you wish."

Through his half-moon spectacles, he studied Snape carefully with pale blue eyes.

For some time now, Snape had been considering how to break the deadlock.

On one hand, he had no reason to ignore a "White Demon King" like Dumbledore, whose magical power and intellect were both at the very peak. He needed Dumbledore's help.

On the other hand, it was difficult for him to take any unconventional action at Hogwarts without Dumbledore noticing. After all, every portrait in the castle served as his eyes and ears.

Therefore, he had decided to tell Dumbledore part of what he had discovered, in exchange for his trust and assistance.

Naturally, he had no intention of revealing everything. Deep down, he still had his reservations.

"Professor," Snape said as he sat in the chair opposite Dumbledore, "I went to the Girls' Lavatory to find Moaning Myrtle because I wanted to learn something about Tom Riddle. Did you know him?"

Dumbledore shot to his feet so swiftly that Snape was startled.

He stared at Snape, his gaze so sharp that it seemed like an icy arrow trying to pierce straight through Snape's eyes.