Dumbledore's story alone could fill seven books and form an entire series.
But the Headmaster was unwilling to share it with anyone, and William chose not to press further.
With William's gentle comfort, Dumbledore finally regained control of his emotions.
William hesitated for a moment before deciding to change the topic and continue questioning about Hagrid.
"What's the connection between the opening of the Chamber of Secrets and Hagrid?"
"You should know that Hagrid was expelled from school back then, right?"
William nodded slightly. He had known this since his first year at Hogwarts, though Hagrid had never told anyone the reason behind it.
"Fifty years ago, Hagrid was just like you, an inexperienced, naive third-year wizard. But he was raising... an Acromantula in school."
"...That really sounds like something Hagrid would do!"
Though William was close with Hagrid, he had to admit that getting expelled was not exactly unjust in this case.
An Acromantula? Seriously? That's the kind of creature you think you can keep at school?
William was no longer the clueless young wizard who had just entered Hogwarts. He still remembered how, years ago, Hagrid had tried to convince him to pet Aragog's leg hair... Pet its leg hair?
Oh, for Merlin's sake!
If William ever encountered an Acromantula, he would probably hit it with a powerful Fiendfyre spell and enjoy some roasted spider legs!
"But I still don't understand, how is Hagrid's expulsion related to the Chamber of Secrets?"
"Fifty years ago, the Chamber of Secrets was opened. A girl died... No one knew at the time that the monster was a basilisk. Then, a student reported Hagrid, claiming that his Acromantula was responsible. Hagrid became the scapegoat."
"Fifty years ago... Was it Tom Riddle who reported him?" William asked in shock.
"That's right." Dumbledore nodded, "Looking back now, it's easy to spot the inconsistencies in the story.
"But at the time, aside from me, everyone believed that Hagrid was the culprit."
William nodded again.
It made sense.
Back then, the situation looked like this: On one side, there was a top student, a prefect whom all the professors admired.
On the other side, there was a big, goofy guy who loved raising strange creatures... and had indeed been keeping a dangerous monster at school.
If you were a professor, who would you believe?
But looking at it from today's perspective:
On one side, you have a murderous Dark Lord; on the other, a dedicated Keeper of Keys and Grounds who's loyally served Hogwarts for decades.
The answer was obvious.
The reason why Hagrid's name had never been cleared was simple. There was no proof.
How could you put Voldemort on trial?
Even if they did catch him, Voldemort could argue, "You can't accuse me of crimes I supposedly committed as a student just because I turned evil later! Don't shove every accusation under my nose!"
Besides, most of the people who had witnessed those events were already deceased... And those who were still alive were at least in their seventies or eighties.
No one wanted to reopen a case from half a century ago.
Wait a minute...
From a certain perspective, Hagrid's arrest wasn't necessarily a bad thing. With him out of the school, any new attacks would naturally prove that he wasn't involved.
So far, there had been five victims. And that diary with its obsessive tendencies? It would probably insist on reaching seven.
William shared his thoughts with Dumbledore, but the Headmaster simply shook his head.
"William, I believe the sixth victim has already been attacked."
"Who?"
"Lockhart."
"How is that possible?"
Dumbledore spoke calmly: "There aren't many people who know I used to write poetry. Tom Riddle, fifty years ago, happened to be one of them."
"How would he know that?"
"Tom went out of his way to learn about my preferences, trying to ingratiate himself and flatter me."
"That sounds... odd."
More than odd, it almost sounded like Dumbledore was one step away from saying, 'He was trying to suck up to me!'
So, even Voldemort back in the day was a bootlicker.
"It wasn't exactly how you're imagining it, William." Dumbledore squinted slightly, "The Tom of that era was completely different from the Voldemort he later became, almost like two different people.
"Tom knew every professor's interests. He enjoyed digging for information, developing connections, and using his exceptional looks and astonishing talents to craft an impeccable image of himself.
"I've said it more than once, the young Voldemort was far more terrifying than the later one... Not because of his magical prowess, but because he was far better at manipulating people and weaving his schemes."
William nodded in agreement.
That was true. Brute strength wasn't terrifying, what was terrifying was a brute with brains.
"So, you believe Lockhart knew about your poetry because the diary told him?"
"That's just one reason," Dumbledore replied in a low voice.
"And the spell Lockhart cast during Valentine's Day... was a modified version of the Dark Mark."
"Of course, many wizards know how to cast the Dark Mark, I can cast it myself."
Dumbledore's expression didn't change as he continued, "During the Wizarding War, one of my favorite tactics was using the Dark Mark to lure the Death Eaters out."
Bloody hell... ruthless!
William could only imagine the Death Eaters' reaction. Rushing to the Dark Mark, only to find Dumbledore standing there waiting for them. That must have been... an unpleasant surprise.
"Tom Riddle invented that spell when he was still in school.
"To add a sense of ritual, after their pranks, they would cast that mark around the campus."
"So, you think the diary is reminiscing about the past?"
"Exactly. Old objects love to do that, don't they?" Dumbledore shrugged.
"And then there's the fact that Lockhart reported Hagrid to the Ministry, claiming that he had captured the one responsible for the Chamber of Secrets attacks..." William continued.
"It's likely the diary's doing, manipulating him to use the same old trick, framing Hagrid to divert attention."
William had received Rita Skeeter's report, which confirmed that Lockhart had gone to the Ministry, accusing Hagrid of being the one who opened the Chamber.
This also explained why Lockhart had been so confident during the Christmas term that he would catch the culprit. The diary had been feeding him information.
"That's right, all the signs indicate that the diary was once in Lockhart's possession..." Dumbledore clasped his hands together and let out a quiet sigh.
"Which means, judging by what happened with Ron, Lockhart might very well be the sixth victim."
William raised an eyebrow, noticing the Headmaster's choice of words—'once.'
"I suspect it's in the past." Dumbledore's eyes darkened with a grave expression.
"The diary left such an obvious clue for me, it has no reason to stay with Lockhart.
"Just like how it abandoned Ron as soon as it exposed him... The diary is cautious."
"It's just a diary... How could it leave?" William asked, baffled.
"That's precisely the question we need to pay attention to," Dumbledore replied, "How did the diary leave Ron? And now, how did it leave Lockhart?"
"This suggests that... there's another traitor inside Hogwarts?!"
"Exactly, it's very possible!" Dumbledore nodded. "There could be another wizard working for the diary."
Both of them fell into silence.
They didn't know how much time passed before Dumbledore suddenly spoke. "William, when the phoenix appears, I need you to go to the Chamber of Secrets and save Harry."
"Um... what?!"
William froze for a second. What the— Was he about to become the Headmaster's errand boy again?
Sure enough, it was bound to happen eventually!
There was no escaping Dumbledore's plans, no matter what William wanted!