The Unchanged Outcome

Professor Tywin wanted to tell Dumbledore something, and he was very insistent.

This gesture surprised William somewhat.

Dumbledore glanced at the Quidditch Match that had already begun and gestured, "Since Professor Tywin is in such a hurry, let's talk in my office."

William breathed a sigh of relief. If Tywin had gone to Dumbledore's office, he probably wouldn't have had a chance to commit the crime for the time being.

However, William had some doubts.

Judging from Dumbledore's words, he was originally going to Ravenclaw Tower, so how did Tywin manage to commit the crime right under the Headmaster's nose?

The three of them returned to the third floor the way they came, but William did not go in after reaching the door.

"Professor Dumbledore, I'll wait until you've finished talking."

Dumbledore nodded and led Tywin inside.

William stood at the window, continuing to watch the game.

He had watched the entire match yesterday, but he was still enjoying it immensely.

After an unknown amount of time, the monster suddenly came to life, jumped to the side, and the wall behind it split in two.

Tywin came out from inside, a smile on his face. He glanced thoughtfully at William, then turned and walked towards the first floor, as if he were going to watch the game.

After a moment, Dumbledore face grim. He said, "William, as you can see, Professor Tywin didn't steal the door knocker, nor did he attack..."

He had barely finished speaking when a flurry of footsteps sounded, and Professor Snape, wand in hand, rushed down from upstairs.

He was covered in blood.

"Headmaster," Snape said urgently, "Something has happened, a student is dead."

William gasped, his fingers clenching the ring on his index finger until they turned white.

Who died?!

Snape was uncomfortable with a student speaking to him like that, but he still replied, "Robert Hilliard, the Prefect of Ravenclaw."

William stood frozen for a long while, his mind beginning to race.

Professor Tywin had just left Dumbledore's office; he didn't have time to commit the crime, yet Robert still died?

Who did it? Did William guess wrong?

William had been to the Ravenclaw Common Room countless times, but never before had he sprinted there with such full force.

As William ran to a spot not far from the Ravenclaw wooden door, he felt himself moving forward in a daze.

Robert lay there on the ground, his left eye socket empty, the bloodstains dried. Apart from that, there were no other signs of violence. A look of terror crossed his face, as if he had seen something horrible before he died.

Not far from Robert, a large hole appeared in the wooden door, and the eagle-shaped door knocker disappeared again.

William knew he was still wearing a ring.

Dumbledore knelt down and examined Robert's wounds.

"It's Avada Kedavra, Headmaster." Snape wiped the blood from his face.

"Yes," Dumbledore's serious voice came, then turned puzzled, "But how could this be...?"

Dumbledore stared at Robert's empty eye sockets and turned his body over.

The missing left eye hung intact above the wooden door, hidden by Robert's body.

A large pool of black blood, swirling and twisting around the eyes, looked like messy graffiti, but upon closer inspection, it formed a long outline pointing towards the earth!

Dumbledore's voice rang out, seemingly explaining to William.

"The Eye of Horus, this symbol is now very rare, but it has appeared many times in history and is the most coveted and mysterious symbol of ancient sorcerers."

Professor Snape, equally puzzled, asked, "Then what does it mean that they left this mark?"

"In the traditional sense, Severus, this is used for the resurrection."

"Resurrection... what?" William asked.

Dumbledore gestured to Snape to move Robert's body, and straightened up, saying, "For thousands of years, the Eye of Horus has been associated with resurrection."

In short, this symbol represents the resurrection of a great figure—an ancient sorcerer, pharaoh, emperor, or, of course, Voldemort.

Snape's hand holding the wand trembled slightly; his face was hidden in shadow, making his expression impossible to discern.

"Alright, Severus, things aren't necessarily so bad," Dumbledore said. "Get the boy's body to the Hospital Wing and wait for me there."

"But..."

"Tell me about what happened to you later; I have other things to do. Let's go, William."

Dumbledore put his arm around William's shoulder and led him downstairs.

"Where are we going, Professor?"

William could still see the Quidditch pitch, where a fierce match was taking place, but the noise seemed like a distant memory.

"Let's go check on Professor Tywin. You said Robert would be killed, and now that it's happened, Professor Tywin's chances of survival are Elphias Doge..."

"But I don't understand..."

"Why was Robert killed even though Tywin was in my office?" Dumbledore seemed to be able to read William's mind.

William nodded and said, "Also, Professor Tywin just went downstairs, how could he...?"

Dumbledore whispered in a calm, gentle voice, "My child, I think this is why you have been summoned here."

"Summoned?" William stroked the ring, at a loss for words.

Dumbledore stopped talking and strode ahead.

The two quickly arrived at the Defence Against Dark Magic office.

Dumbledore pulled out his wand, tapped the lock, and the door was blown open, along with half of the wall collapsing.

William's eyelids twitched; he felt Dumbledore could have been a little gentler, less violent.

Dumbledore walked through the smoke, glanced around, and then headed straight for the bathroom.

Unlike Tywin yesterday, he is not completely dead yet, but he is on his deathbed.

Tywin's chest heaved violently, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, and he could no longer utter a single word.

However, his elbows were straight, and his fingers were gripping the edge of the toilet tightly, as if he still wanted to struggle to get up.

Tywin's pupils began to dilate, and his vision blurred, but for some reason, he still recognized Dumbledore.

He tried to speak, but couldn't utter a single word; instead, the blood from the corner of his mouth flowed out even more profusely.

Dumbledore reached out and gently pressed his hand against his chest. Where his hand touched, bones were broken and the robes were soaked in blood, yet still warm.

Dumbledore bent down and gently shook his head.

"We're late, William."

William remained silent, his brow furrowed; things were beyond his expectations.

"This means Quidditch needs to end." Dumbledore raised his wand and summoned a silver phoenix.

"The final match is paused. Everyone, under the professor's protection, returns to their respective common lounges."

The large silver creature circled William twice, making him feel warm and cozy. Then, the phoenix smashed through the glass and flew towards the Quidditch arena.

"Let's go to my office. We need to have a serious talk."

Dumbledore turned and left, not even glancing at Professor Tywin's corpse again.

(Second update, third update this afternoon. Please vote!)