The Secret of Magic

After struggling with herself for a long time, Rose finally decided before the start of the school year that she would find the only Horcrux at Hogwarts that term: Ravenclaw's Diadem.

She stood in front of the tapestry on the Seventh Floor and concentrated on imagining a huge storeroom where things could be hidden. Just as described in the original story, she walked back and forth in front of the tapestry three times, feeling rather silly. A large, smooth, beautiful door appeared in the wall.

The Room of Requirement.

Rose looked around to make sure no one had noticed her, then quickly opened the door and slipped inside.

The room that appeared was as large as a church. Piles of objects lay beneath a thick layer of dust, stretching as far as the eye could see, like a city full of towering buildings. Finding a small diadem in here would be no easy task.

Harry Potter had been able to locate it quickly through the resonance between their souls, but she had no such ability. She could only search bit by bit, starting from the beginning.

By the time she emerged from the Room of Requirement, covered in dust, two and a half hours had passed.

"Rose? Where did you come from?" James Potter's voice sounded unexpectedly beside her. "It's already past curfew. Are you out wandering at night too?"

"No—I just stayed in the library so late that I lost track of time." Rose's long, light brown hair was a mess, and her face was marked with gray fingerprints where she had wiped it haphazardly with her fingers.

Her disheveled appearance made her story rather unconvincing, and James looked skeptical.

"Next time, you can say you were helping the House-elves clean the broom cupboard," he joked. "Hurry back. The prefects are all on the sixth floor."

"Going out for a nighttime wander?" Rose asked. They looked as though they were about to get up to no good.

"Of course! Don't you think the castle is more appealing at night?" James winked at her.

Rose nodded. "Be careful," she cautioned, then headed toward the portrait without looking back.

"Aren't you afraid she'll tell Professor McGonagall?" Sirius Black asked quietly once Rose was far enough away.

James shook his head. They carefully avoided Pringle's search, and only after hearing his footsteps head upstairs did he speak. "She always says we should follow the school rules, but she doesn't really care that much about them."

The two exchanged a glance. James saw the disagreement in Sirius's eyes and went on, "Last year, we secretly used Madam Hooch's broom to practice lots of times, and she never told on us once."

"That was because she needed to practice too."

"That's part of it, but don't you think she's actually the same kind of person as us?" James said softly.

"Claude? Like us?" Peter Pettigrew made a dismissive noise.

"Don't say that. She has a spirit of adventure deep down too, but she's always suppressing it," James said. "He's a lot like you, Sirius, but you're a little bolder."

Sirius Black dismissed what he said. As far as he was concerned, Rose Claude was a conventional girl who always listened attentively in every class, kept her notes neat and tidy, and hardly ever broke a single school rule.

They were completely different.

But she really wasn't a bad girl. He thought of the box of cookies she had given him last Christmas. They had been his only reminder of Gryffindor in that house.

Before long, they stopped dwelling on what kind of person Rose Claude really was. They had evaded the patrol and reached the Forbidden Forest, and that had completely captured their attention.

The Room of Requirement was simply too big. Rose had spent several hours checking only the tip of the iceberg, and not only had she found nothing, she also had to make up an excuse for returning to the dormitory so late.

After finally reassuring Lily and the others, she lay down on her bed, exhausted, and comforted herself with the thought that she only needed to find the Diadem before graduating in her seventh year. She felt as though she had only slept for a little while when Lily woke her.

All day Tuesday, when she wasn't in class, Rose had to start writing her Defence Against the Dark Arts assignment. That evening, she racked her brains over it in the library, only to discover, to her dismay, that she was merely halfway through. This greatly diminished her fondness for Professor Bosde. It also forced her to sneak out her half-finished essay during History of Magic on Wednesday afternoon, and for the first time, she failed to take proper notes.

On Wednesday evening, she spent another full three hours in the Room of Requirement. This time, she brought a notebook to clearly record her search route and landmarks, so she wouldn't repeat her work later.

After she returned late again, Lily pressed her about what she had been busy with lately. Rose guiltily kept some of it from her, promising only that she was in no danger and wasn't breaking any school rules. Though Lily worried about her, she respected her friend's wishes and didn't press further, which made Rose feel even guiltier.

So, for the next few days, she didn't return to the Room of Requirement.

The second-year lessons were considerably more advanced than the previous year's. Professor McGonagall began having them practice transforming objects into animals and vice versa. Lily was once again the first to succeed; she had an extraordinary grasp of Transfiguration.

After a year of studying magic, Rose discovered that she was better at rote memorization. She was always the first to remember History of Magic and the essentials of Charms, but whenever she had to put things into practice, she struggled.

After one Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson, Professor Bosde stopped her.

"You should be exceptionally capable, Miss Claude, but your performance doesn't reflect that," Professor Bosde told her regretfully.

Rose was delighted to have a chance to speak a little more with her favorite professor, but his words made her feel both happy and sad.

"No, no, don't be sad just yet. We can look for the root of the problem together." He waved his wand playfully. "Orchideous-" An orchid emerged from its tip, brightly colored and exquisitely delicate.

"A rather clever spell. I once used it to win a young lady's favor-for you." Professor Bosde handed the orchid to Rose. "Now, you try."

Rose copied his pronunciation and movements. She succeeded, but the result could hardly be called a healthy flower. Its leaves were slightly yellow, and its petals were not as bright.

"Excellent memory and understanding, but something seems to be weakening your ability to perform magic," Professor Bosde said. "Are you Muggle-born?"

"Yes, Professor." Rose nodded.

"Do you believe in magic?" Professor Bosde asked abruptly. He seemed completely unaware of how ridiculous the question was to a witch.

"What-Professor? Of course. I mean, I'm a witch, and this is Hogwarts." Rose didn't understand what he meant.

"That's right. Now, the strength of a spell is often closely connected to the caster's inner thoughts. Deep down, do you believe you've truly become part of this place?" Professor Bosde spoke softly, his voice leaving Rose in a daze.

"Magic cannot be suppressed." The professor's voice echoed softly through the empty office. His voice was distant, as though he were recalling something from the past. "Suppressed magic turns into something terrible-"

"An Obscurus," Rose said instinctively.

"You know about that, Claude. You're even cleverer than I imagined," Professor Bosde said. "I trust you can overcome your difficulties, can't you?"

"I think so, Professor." Rose nodded and walked out of the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.