Chapter 76. Pumpkin Pie
"Ah, this really is a good place to put things," Professor Dumbledore said slowly. "But it's a pity so few people ever discover this room."
In fact, it wasn't surprising that Adrian Wesson knew about the Room of Requirement.
Throughout Hogwarts's history, many teachers and students had stumbled upon this magical room.
For example, Dumbledore himself had. One hurried night, he'd found a great many exquisite chamber pots inside the Room of Requirement.
"You could spread the word about this room, Professor," Wesson said with a nod. "I'm sure the students would be delighted."
Dumbledore shook his head. "Oh, that won't do! We must preserve a little sense of surprise, mustn't we? That's one of the fun things about Hogwarts—you never know where a hidden room might be waiting for you."
Wesson nodded in agreement.
Indeed, this thousand-year-old castle hid many rooms, some useful and some not.
Exploring those rooms was one of the students' great pleasures.
"By the way," Wesson glanced at Dumbledore and asked with mild curiosity, "Professor Dumbledore, what brings you here so late at night?"
Dumbledore smiled slightly and adjusted his half-moon spectacles. "Oh, Professor Wesson, much like you, I've come to look for some… old things."
Looking for something?
Wesson froze for a moment.
Surely Dumbledore wasn't here for the Diadem of Ravenclaw as well.
No—that shouldn't be possible. He shouldn't know the diadem existed.
Then, just as Wesson had done before, Dumbledore paced three times back and forth before that stretch of wall.
As expected, an identical door appeared in the wall.
Dumbledore pushed it open and turned back to Wesson. "Care to have a look with me, Professor Wesson? Perhaps you can help me find the item."
"All right."
Wesson followed Dumbledore through the door.
To his surprise, it was still the same junk-filled storeroom.
In other words, the version of the Room of Requirement that said, "I need a place to hide things."
"Professor Dumbledore," Wesson asked tentatively, "the thing you're looking for is…?"
Dumbledore swept his eyes over the chaotic surroundings and spoke in a light tone. "Oh, just a mirror. It may be buried under these odds and ends, or tucked away in some corner. I haven't used that mirror in such a long time… I scarcely even remember what it looks like."
A mirror?
Wesson thought for a moment. Could it be the Mirror of Erised?
If there was a mirror worth Dumbledore coming in person to find, that was the only one Wesson could think of.
"All right, Professor. I'll keep an eye out," Wesson replied, then began to search the room carefully.
In truth, the mirror was very easy to find.
Dumbledore needed barely a dozen seconds to spot it in a corner.
It was an exceedingly tall mirror, nearly reaching the ceiling, its surface covered by a ragged old cloth, set unobtrusively against the wall.
Dumbledore flicked his hand, and the cloth flew to a nearby table and folded itself neatly.
The mirror's true face was revealed: a golden frame, two claw-shaped feet at the base—most imposing to behold.
"Eldra."
[Name: Mirror of Erised]
It was indeed the Mirror of Erised. Wesson nodded inwardly.
"Seems my memory isn't so bad after all," Dumbledore said cheerfully. "We can be off now, Professor Wesson."
As he spoke, Dumbledore drew his wand and gave it a little wave toward the mirror.
The two claw-shaped feet beneath the mirror suddenly began to move with a faint clicking sound, as if they had come alive.
The Mirror of Erised walked all the way to the doorway; because it was so large, Dumbledore cast another spell to make it smaller, and only then did it manage to squeeze through the door.
Back in the corridor, Dumbledore introduced the Mirror of Erised to Wesson.
"Allow me to introduce it—the Mirror of Erised," Dumbledore said with mock solemnity. "Hogwarts's most honest mirror. It won't tell you if your hair is messy, nor will it tell you if you're wearing your robes inside out. But it will tell you… what your heart most longs for."
Wesson first looked up at the top of the mirror, where there was a string of characters which, read backwards, says: I show not your face but your heart's desire.
"That doesn't sound like a mirror," Wesson said.
"I wouldn't say that," Dumbledore replied, winking at Wesson. "It's like a mirror all the same—only, one reflects your appearance, and the other reflects your heart."
Wesson instinctively resisted looking into it.
The Mirror of Erised reveals the deepest desire in a person's heart—a naked truth that unsettles.
Once you see what's inside, however you deny it, you cannot change the fact—that is your truest thought.
In the end, Wesson couldn't help being drawn to the glass.
"Do you see anything?" Dumbledore asked lightly. "Would you care to share it with me—of course, you don't have to. It's your secret."
"A pumpkin pie," Wesson shrugged. "It looks quite delicious. I suppose I know what I'll be having for breakfast tomorrow."
This was not a lie.
Just as he'd said, he did see himself in the Mirror of Erised holding up a pumpkin pie.
But when he looked closely, he found many people standing behind him—his father, mother, and sister, as well as others he knew well.
What Wesson wanted was just that simple.
Dumbledore paused for a moment at Wesson's answer. "You're fond of pumpkin pie, Professor Wesson?"
Wesson shrugged, his tone steady. "I'm fond of all good things, Headmaster. Pumpkin pie is simply one of them."
Dumbledore nodded, a hint of approval in his eyes. "So am I. Beautiful things can be intoxicating. And that is the most frightening thing about this mirror—it makes you doubt, makes you obsessed, even drives you mad.
"I once spent far too much time in front of it…"
He stopped suddenly, then smiled apologetically. "Forgive an old man his rambling."
"Very true," Wesson said sincerely.
He did not ask Dumbledore what he had seen in the mirror—peeking into another's privacy was not right.
Though he could more or less guess.
After the two of them had stood before the mirror for a while—
"All right," Dumbledore rubbed his eyes and, after one last glance at the mirror, turned away. "Professor Wesson, we should be going. Sufficient sleep is of paramount importance—especially for a man of my age."
"Good night, Professor Dumbledore."
Then Dumbledore gave his wand another wave. The mirror's supports turned once more into two short little legs and pattered after him along the corridor.
This made Wesson somewhat afraid it might tumble down the stairs.
After they had gone some distance, Dumbledore seemed to remember something. He turned and called from afar to Wesson: "Nearly forgot—Professor Wesson, do come to my office tomorrow morning."
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