"What if we give Mabel some Felix Felicis?" Wade asked. "Wouldn't that help?"
Lupin and Steven exchanged a glance and sighed simultaneously.
"Wade." Lupin's voice was gentle, full of fondness and patience. "Mabel has an Obscurus inside her. If she drinks Felix Felicis, that means the Obscurus drinks it too — the potion doesn't distinguish between who it's serving."
Steven tried to reassure him. "Don't worry. Mr. Scamander may have just arrived, but he's had Dumbledore's letter for quite a while — he's been preparing for months. He's definitely going to succeed."
He was trying to comfort both Wade and himself.
Even the thick walls and solid doors couldn't fully block the magical disturbances. From the outer room, the three of them could sometimes hear howling winds, see bursts of brilliant light, or hear crackling noises like popping beans — all of which made their hearts uneasy.
After a long while, sudden banging noises came from inside, followed by Madam Pomfrey's startled exclamation: "What's going on?!"
Lupin immediately stood up, but hesitated at the doorway, afraid that going in might interfere with the treatment.
Wade also went to the door and knocked gently. "Professor, is everything all right in there? Do you need us to do anything?"
A moment later, the door suddenly opened.
The three of them stepped cautiously inside. Dumbledore was sitting in an armchair, and he took off his glasses and was pinching the bridge of his nose, looking exhausted.
Scamander was at the table, flipping through stacks of notes and muttering to himself with his brow furrowed tightly.
Only Madam Pomfrey remained by Mabel's side, and she was waving her wand as healing spells lit up and fell onto Mabel's body like pebbles into a deep pool — vanishing without a trace, with no visible effect.
And Mabel, who had just been speaking and smiling earlier, was now laying pale on the bed with her eyes tightly shut, unconscious.
"The treatment… failed?" Lupin's face turned pale as he asked with a trembling voice.
He had been acting as Mabel's guardian during this time, and through constant companionship, had come to see this strong yet unfortunate girl as family. Seeing her now lying there with her life or death uncertain, made his heart clench with fear.
"I… I'm very sorry," Scamander said softly and glanced at him before looking away, unable to bear it. "The separation failed… and her condition is deteriorating rapidly."
"How could this happen… How could this happen?"
Lupin asked in disbelief, and then turned his pleading gaze toward Dumbledore.
Madam Pomfrey lowered her wand with a sigh. "It started off well. The Obscurus was almost separated from her, but…"
Dumbledore put his glasses back on. His blue eyes, seen through the lenses, rested on the sleeping girl.
He asked, "Remus, did you ever talk to Mabel about why the Obscurus needed to be separated?"
Lupin was confused. "Of course."
"At that time, how did Mabel react?" Dumbledore asked.
"How did she react? Of course, she agreed…" Lupin trailed off, stuck mid-sentence. He thought for a long while before saying, "She hesitated for a long time, then finally said… said she'd follow our arrangement."
To Lupin and the others, separating the Obscurus — a dangerous dark entity — from Mabel to make her soul whole and pure again was clearly the right thing to do. They couldn't imagine her disagreeing.
The Obscurus didn't just consume its host's life and soul — it also turned Mabel into a fugitive from the Ministry of Magic, forcing her to live in hiding, with the constant risk of being captured and possibly executed.
Moreover, once an Obscurus loses control, it causes massive destruction and can harm many innocent people.
Mabel was a kind-hearted girl. After Lupin explained the consequences to her, she naturally agreed. She never showed any resistance afterward.
Only the night before, she'd tossed and turned sleeplessly, and in the morning she had told Lupin: "Remus, if I die… can you look after Haley for me? It won't be too much trouble — just visit her once in a while."
Lupin had, of course, agreed, and then reassured her:
"Dumbledore said before that if the separation doesn't go well, we'll stop for now and try again once we find a better solution. Don't worry — in the worst-case scenario, when you wake up, everything will still be just as it is now."
Lupin briefly repeated that conversation to Dumbledore, then asked, "So the reason the separation failed was… Mabel resisted it? She was too afraid, and that's why it didn't work?"
"That seems to be the case," Dumbledore said slowly. "Her soul is entangled with the Obscurus. If she doesn't want to let go, no one can separate them — forcing it will only kill her along with it."
"But now," Scamander said guiltily with anxiety etched on his thin face, "the separation spell has agitated the Obscurus. We managed to suppress it before it could explode, but… its rate of consumption is accelerating."
Lupin said nothing. He walked to the bedside and saw that the girl's face was as pale as paper and her lips were drained of color.
It had only been an hour since he last saw her, yet the once-spirited child was now visibly on the brink of death.
He didn't have the strength to blame Dumbledore or Scamander — he knew that in their place, he wouldn't have done any better.
All he could do was blame himself — for persuading Mabel to undergo the Obscurus separation in the first place. He wanted her to live openly and freely in the world, but underestimated the danger of it all.
He was far too optimistic.
Lupin slowly sat down, not daring to touch the fragile girl who now seemed as delicate as porcelain. His cold fingers trembled slightly.
Wade watched silently, then gently touched the stone necklace in his pocket. For the first time, he felt a strong sense of something called fate.
"Wade, it's time to use the golden dust," Dumbledore said. "We'll temporarily freeze Mabel's time — stabilize her condition — then look for another solution."
"I brought it with me."
Wade took out a crystal vial and placed it on the table. The golden dust inside looked strikingly similar to what was found in a Time-Turner's hourglass — glowing brilliantly even in the dim light.
"Also, Professor," Wade said, "I want to try talking to Mabel — try convincing her to let go of the Obscurus."
"How will you convince her?" Dumbledore asked calmly. "As you can see, she's unconscious. No matter what you say, she won't hear it."
"I know. I meant… by entering her spiritual world."
Wade took out the stone necklace again and quickly explained its magical properties. Then he added, "Actually, Haley would probably be more effective — but she's a Muggle, and I'm worried the magic might be too much for her to handle."
"That's nothing to worry about," Dumbledore replied. "Whether Muggle or wizard, the soul is equally resilient. And with Mabel deteriorating this quickly, we don't have time for repeated attempts."
Dumbledore took the necklace, examined it briefly, then uncorked the crystal vial. With a graceful wave of his long fingers, the golden dust floated out and gently settled over Mabel's skin.
Almost instantly, the sharp-eared werewolf noticed that the girl's breathing and heartbeat had slowed to the point of being nearly imperceptible.
"This way, we've bought ourselves more time," Dumbledore said as he turned to Wade and Lupin. "Remus, Wade, go find Haley. Explain the situation to her and try your best to convince her to help."
"Understood." The two of them set off immediately.
"Um..." Steven stood awkwardly at the door. "Is there anything I can do to help?"
"Of course there is," Dumbledore, holding the stone necklace in his hand, looked into the big man's earnest eyes and asked. "Steven, may I visit your spiritual world?"
"Huh?" Steven looked confused.
"I want to test the necklace's effect first," Dumbledore explained. "I didn't detect any traces of Dark Magic on it, but to truly confirm it's safe, I have to enter this so-called spiritual world myself."
To enter Mabel's spiritual world and persuade her to let go of the Obscurus she was clinging to, it had to be someone she deeply trusted.
No one felt comfortable letting Haley — just a young girl — shoulder such a heavy responsibility alone. If she got lost in Mabel's spiritual world, it wouldn't be a rescue — it would be a tragedy.
Someone had to go with her.
Although Lupin had spent more time with Mabel, Dumbledore believed Wade had more persuasive power in this case.
To Mabel, Lupin was a guardian, a trustworthy elder, while Wade was a comrade in life and death. He had saved Mabel's life, and she had once risked everything to save him. The emotional bond between them carried a different kind of weight.
Wade could safely exit his own spiritual world — but could he, along with Haley, enter Mabel's and still return unscathed?
Would the Obscurus inside her spiritual world attack them?
If they were attacked in that realm, would they be able to pull out in time?
All these questions needed to be tested beforehand.
Among everyone present, Steven had the simplest background. If there was anything dangerous in his spiritual world, it would be the easiest to deal with.
Steven didn't think that deeply. He was just embarrassed remembering some awkward moments from his past.
But knowing this was to save someone's life, Steven hesitated only briefly before agreeing. "What do I need to do?" he asked.
"Sit down and give me your hand," Dumbledore instructed.
He wrapped the necklace around both their wrists like a pair of cuffs, then turned to Scamander and said, "Watch carefully. If anything goes wrong, wake us immediately."
Scamander nodded seriously.
Dumbledore then recited the incantation Wade had shared earlier. Steven, who had been curiously studying the runes on the stone, immediately slumped to the side — fast asleep the moment the spell ended.
Beside him, Dumbledore had also bowed his head and was breathing steadily and evenly.
Scamander watched them for a moment, then stood up and cast various protective enchantments around the room before sitting back down across from the two to quietly observe.
Madam Pomfrey remained by Mabel's side and occasionally administered a potion, then glancing at the two sleeping figures with a worried frown.
…
Dumbledore stood on a gravel path and raised his eyebrows in surprise at the suddenly transformed surroundings.
Steven, standing beside him, looked around curiously and exclaimed in amazement, "This is my spiritual world?"
Unlike the endless corridor Wade had described, Steven's spiritual world turned out to be a garden—one that, upon closer inspection, bore some resemblance to the one at Murray Manor.
The difference was that all the trees here had fist-sized crystals hanging from their branches, and among the flowerbeds were crystal orbs of various sizes growing like fruit. It was dazzling at first glance, yet incredibly peaceful.
The two walked along the garden path for a while and discovered that each crystal orb contained fragments of Steven's memories from childhood to the present—arranged in no particular order.
On a single tree, there were memories of him babbling as a baby, studying in school, and caring for magical creatures.
Whenever Steven touched one of the crystal orbs, that particular memory would vividly resurface. Seeing the silly things he had done as a child, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Dumbledore turned his gaze away from one of the babyhood memory orbs and looked at him gently. After a while, he said, "Steven, try feeling hostile toward me."
"Huh? …Oh!" Steven remembered they were conducting an experiment. He widened his eyes and tried his best to imagine Dumbledore as someone he truly disliked.
Suddenly, a wind rose in the garden.
The crystal orbs began clinking and clattering against one another, and the sound grew increasingly urgent. Dumbledore looked around—and suddenly staggered without warning!
When he opened his eyes again, he was back in the room. In front of him, Scamander asked quickly, "How do you feel?"
"I was expelled," Dumbledore said after closing his eyes to assess for a moment. "But I wasn't harmed."
"Sorry, Professor Dumbledore," Steven had also woken up. He scratched his head and said, "I don't really know what happened… Would you say the experiment was successful?"
Dumbledore thought for a moment and decided it couldn't be considered a success.
Steven's spiritual world was too harmonious—his attempt to feel hostility had been so mild it was ineffective. That kind of resistance couldn't compare to the very real and dangerous presence of the Obscurus.
"I think we'll need to verify it once more," Dumbledore said. "Have Remus and Wade returned yet?"
Just as he finished speaking, the sound of the door opening came from outside. Wrapped in a small cloak, Haley appeared in the doorway and her voice trembled slightly as she asked, "Where's Mabel?"
…
The necklace was once again wrapped around Dumbledore's and Lupin's wrists. Lupin shifted slightly, as if the chair beneath him had suddenly turned into a prickly porcupine.
"Sorry, Remus," Dumbledore said suddenly before casting the spell.
Lupin was briefly stunned, then smiled and replied, "This is for Mabel. I'm happy to help."
Moments later, both of them fell into a deep sleep simultaneously.
—So this is my spiritual world?
Lupin looked around, a bit surprised.
It was a labyrinth, with crisscrossing and winding paths. Lupin stood at a fork in the road, momentarily unsure which direction to take.
Dumbledore wasn't beside him—he had probably gone to another part of the labyrinth.
Soon after, Lupin noticed that the maze walls were embedded with mirrors of various sizes. He casually approached one and saw reflections of himself at different stages of life.
He walked along the maze for a while when his steps suddenly halted.
In one mirror, tarnished with greenish-blue copper rust, Lupin saw his younger self lying in bed. His mother leaned over to blow out the candle and kissed him on the forehead.
"Good night, Remus," she said with a smile.
"Good night," the child in bed whispered.
His mother left with the lamp. Outside the window, a shadow flashed by quickly. Immediately after, a rough and hideous face appeared at the window with a cruel smile on the corner of his mouth. He opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth.
Lupin suddenly realized which memory this was. He couldn't stop himself from shouting: "No… no!"
He lunged forward, touching the mirror—and tumbled inside. But the werewolf crashed through the window, passed through Lupin's body as if he were a ghost, and seized the terrified, screaming boy on the bed, sinking his teeth into his neck!
"Die!"
Without thinking, Lupin hurled a spell. He hadn't noticed he had already fallen back out of the mirror—nor that the werewolf, Greyback, had also appeared in the labyrinth corridor.
The spell's light shot toward "Greyback." The entire labyrinth seemed to tremble, and an overwhelming force roared toward him like a tsunami, making his figure instantly vanish on the spot.
Lupin's limbs trembled as he gasped for air. Before he could react further, the labyrinth world suddenly shattered.
He woke up with a violent jolt.
"Relax, Remus, relax," Dumbledore held his shoulders and said with a voice tinged with apology. "It's all in the past. You're safe now."
Lupin gasped, and lifted his head to look at Dumbledore. The confusion in his eyes gradually cleared.
"…It was you?"
"It was me," Dumbledore nodded. Seeing that the magical surge within Lupin was slowly calming, he released his grip and repeated, "I'm truly sorry."
Only then did Lupin understand why Dumbledore had apologized in advance—
It wasn't just because he would see Lupin's deeply buried memories. It was because, even before entering, Dumbledore had planned to take on the appearance of Greyback, in order to test whether a hostile soul would be harmed in the spiritual world.
Lupin sat in the chair, unable to calm down for a long time. He wanted to yell, but didn't know what to say.
He touched his neck, and his expression darkened.
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