A Solution?

Clara watched his retreating figure disappear beyond the curtain. She opened her mouth, but in the end, she said nothing.

She still had a question she wanted to ask him.

Why wasn't he going after Cho Chang anymore?

He had liked Cho so much in the dream.

She had already made a rough guess, really.

Witnessing death firsthand and feeling guilty toward someone could drastically change a person's view of love. At the same time, he might try to ease his guilt by expressing other feelings.

She wanted to tell him that he didn't have to give up the chance to pursue someone he liked because he felt guilty toward her.

That wasn't fair to either of them, or to Cho.

But she didn't dare say it. She had to admit that she was a little reluctant to give up the way things felt now.

She was afraid that if she said it, things between them really would never be the same.

People were strange creatures. Once they had possessed something, it seemed they could never accept losing it again.

She turned over and pulled the blanket up over the lower half of her face. Moonlight streamed through the Hospital Wing's arched windows onto the sheets. She stared at the ceiling, wrestling with herself.

He's a sixth-year student, Clara. He should know better than you what choice he's made. There's no need to overthink it.

She decided not to ask, even though she knew it was selfish. She closed her eyes and decided to be selfish for the time being.

The next morning, Clara ate the patient's breakfast Madam Pomfrey brought her in the Hospital Wing-a bowl of oatmeal and a glass of Pumpkin Juice. After confirming that she was no longer dizzy and her legs were no longer weak, she was immediately cleared to leave.

Before she left, Madam Pomfrey reminded her not to stay up late or put too much pressure on herself. Clara agreed to everything, then carried her school robes out of the Hospital Wing and took a deep breath of the crisp morning air in the corridor.

The familiar portraits on the stone walls were still yawning, and morning light slanted in through the arched windows. She didn't return to the common room, instead heading straight for the Headmaster's Office.

The stone gargoyle was waiting for her at the end of the third-floor corridor.

She gave the password she had gotten from Cedric-"Sherbet Lemon"-and the gargoyle slowly sprang aside, revealing the spiraling staircase behind it. She went up and knocked on the heavy oak door. It opened of its own accord.

Dumbledore sat behind his desk, which was covered in silver instruments, his blue eyes gleaming gently behind his Half-moon Spectacles. Two steaming cups of black tea and a small dish of Sherbet Lemons sat before him. Apparently, he had been waiting for her. Fawkes gave a soft cry from his perch, as if greeting her.

"Good morning, Miss Albert. Would you like a cup of hot tea?" He pointed to the seat opposite him, inviting her to sit. "Mr. Diggory has already given me a general account of your situation, but I would still like to hear it from you."

"Professor, I think I traveled back through time." Clara thought for a moment and settled on a fairly suitable explanation. "Before, I don't know what prompted it, but I learned that Cedric would die during the final task of the Triwizard Tournament. Then I told you, and you made a Gabriel Amulet for us and arranged special training for me."

Clara pulled back her sleeve, clearly revealing the Gabriel petal on her wrist.

"Perhaps because I died in the previous timeline, I traveled back to a time before the Quidditch World Cup. I lost all my memories, but my muscle memory remained, so I used Sectumsempra to protect myself that night. I also know the three Unforgivable Curses."

"The Dark Mark and the Defence Against Dark Magic Class gradually helped me piece together some memories from the previous timeline. I think they're a fairly important part. When I woke up last night, this tattoo on my hand became very distinct, so I wondered if there was a strong possibility that the amulet had sealed away my memories. Or is there some connection between the two?"

Dumbledore listened to her questions and laid his wand over the tattoo. A faint silver light appeared for an instant.

"There is indeed some kind of power still present in it. Truly incredible," Dumbledore murmured. "I have never seen this strange phenomenon before. Although this amulet is rare, someone I knew once used one, and it did not seem to have this effect."

"Then is my headache related to it too?"

Dumbledore nodded.

"Your headache is evidently a little different from what I initially expected," he explained. "At first, I thought it was the effect of the Killing Curse or the Dark Mark, but there are no scars on you. Now it seems more likely that your headache was caused by your memories breaking through the seal. The Dark Mark and the Unforgivable Curses were etched too deeply into your memory, so they made you recall your sealed memories faster. So, if I am not mistaken, once you remember everything, it will stop hurting."

Clara looked down at her wrist. The Gabriel petal mark gave off a very faint silver glow in the morning light, standing out sharply against her skin.

She suddenly remembered something. That day in Knockturn Alley, the mysterious wizard had said, "Defying heaven and changing fate can't come without a price."

So this was probably the price.

There were two soft knocks at the door. Clara looked up, a little surprised.

"Oh, I believe our other protagonist has arrived too. As for Voldemort's resurrection, I think the three of us need to talk."

Dumbledore waved his hand, and the office door opened automatically. Cedric stood in the doorway, the collar of his school robes a little crooked, probably because he hadn't had time to straighten it in his haste. He greeted Professor Dumbledore first, then his gaze fell on Clara, and he smiled at her.

"Please sit down, Mr. Diggory." Dumbledore pointed to the empty chair beside Clara. "You have probably already discussed quite a lot, but I think we can go over it together again."

"Voldemort never died back then. He merely became very, very weak, so he had to disappear. That is also what puzzles me: why was he able to survive after suffering such a backlash?"

Dumbledore said the name in a matter-of-fact tone, in stark contrast to Minister Fudge's panic upon hearing about it. "His current form should still be very weak, so he needs to rely on someone else to help him regain his strength-Wormtail, as you called him. According to the information Cedric provided, his resurrection plan depends on three elements: Harry's blood, the flesh of a loyal servant, and his father's bone. Each of these three things must be obtained at a specific time and place, and the most crucial step is the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament. The Portkey in the maze will take Harry to him."

"So what we need to do now is stop it from happening before the Third Task," Cedric continued. "But the problem is, we can't let Voldemort find out that we already know his plan. Fake Moody is at the school. If he finds out we're prepared, he might change tactics. Other dangers could arise then, and if someone else who doesn't know gets caught up in it, they could very well end up like I did at first, dying completely unprepared. After all, in the previous timeline, even though Clara made plenty of preparations, we still weren't a match for them."

"Mr. Diggory, don't be upset. You are only children. Last time, it was because we didn't know what happened after you touched the Portkey. We never expected you to encounter Voldemort directly. But this time, we know what lies on the other side of that Portkey. None of it will happen again. This is the chance Merlin has given us."

Clara and Cedric exchanged a look, each seeing confusion in the other's eyes. Evidently, Dumbledore had already found a solution.

"However, I won't tell you the solution just yet. I think we may need an element of surprise."

Dumbledore's eyes gleamed with wisdom behind his glasses. "And I believe, Mr. Diggory, that even if you were transported there this time, you would get hold of the Portkey as quickly as possible and return immediately, wouldn't you? Of course, that is the worst outcome we can imagine."

Cedric nodded. A major reason for all his previous deaths was that he hadn't known what was going to happen.

That was his own fault too. After all, Clara had told him so many times, but he had never questioned her about it seriously.

If he had known what was going to happen, he and Harry wouldn't have spent so long after being transported trying to work out where they were, until Wormtail came out of the house.

"Actually, Mr. Diggory, I'm very glad you were willing to come and tell me about this." Dumbledore handed each of them a Sherbet Lemon. "You could have simply stood by and done nothing. As long as you didn't touch the Goblet of Fire at the end, you could have returned safe and sound and taken second place in the Goblet of Fire. You know Harry Potter would not die because of it, and to a large extent, Miss Albert would die because of you. So, as long as you weren't transported, no one would die. That would already have been a very good ending, but you still chose to tell us the whole truth. That may help us resolve a great crisis that the wizarding world could face, or at least allow us to prepare for it in advance."

"So we're not absolutely certain we can kill him, are we, Professor?" Clara caught the meaning of those last two sentences and the helplessness on Dumbledore's face.

"I regret to tell you that you are right, Miss Albert. As I just said, none of us actually knows why he survived after being hit by that curse more than ten years ago. So we cannot guarantee that we can kill him this time, but we will do everything we can to delay his resurrection plan until we discover the whole truth."

"But for now, my two brave Hufflepuff Champions, these are not the problems you need to worry about."

Smiling, Dumbledore placed another pile of Sherbet Lemons in front of them and gave them a playful wink.

"I think what you should do now is enjoy the upcoming Triwizard Tournament. This is, after all, a chance that comes only once in a century. The students from the other two schools will arrive at Hogwarts next week. I think you will enjoy their performances."