"Helena, think back carefully. Try to remember the time you spent with Ms. Ravenclaw. Did she ever mention anything related to this?" Ted asked, his tone steady yet urgent.
Helena's gaze became distant, lost in thought. "Thoughts... clustered thoughts..." she murmured, her translucent form flickering slightly.
For ghosts, who had no real concept of time, this kind of meditation could take hours.
And it did.
When Ted returned from dinner, Helena was still in the same spot, staring blankly as if searching through memories long buried.
By the time midnight arrived, Ted couldn't keep his eyes open anymore.
He was about to suggest they continue the discussion tomorrow when Helena suddenly gasped, her eyes lighting up with realization.
"I... I think I remember! My mother, she did say something like this before..." Her voice wavered, excitement mingling with sorrow, and a deep sense of nostalgia flickered across her ghostly face.
Without hesitation, she floated toward the statue of Rowena Ravenclaw, reaching out with trembling hands. "Mother? Mom! It's me, Helena. I'm back... please, open the door!"
A powerful magical pulse rippled through the air.
Ted felt it immediately, his instincts screaming at him.
He swiftly cast a detection spell, and sure enough, the statue began to glow with an intense, radiant blue light.
Then, to Ted's astonishment, the statue's eyes blinked open.
"Helena, my daughter, is that you?" The voice was gentle and elegant, yet filled with wisdom—exactly what one would expect from Rowena Ravenclaw herself.
Pearl-white tears rolled down Helena's face.
She reached out, desperate to embrace her mother, but her hands simply passed through the statue's surface.
After all, she had been dead for almost a thousand years.
"Mom... Mom, I'm so sorry! I never meant to—!" Helena choked, unable to form the words through her sobs.
The statue's expression softened. "Do not cry, my child. My poor, lost daughter..."
Helena collapsed onto her knees, her ghostly form flickering violently as grief overwhelmed her.
"It's all my fault. I stole the diadem. I left you alone. If I hadn't run away... you wouldn't have... wouldn't have died."
"No, Helena. It was my failure. I was so blinded by knowledge and legacy that I lost sight of what truly mattered—you." The statue's voice trembled.
"I should never have sent the Baron to find you. His soul had already been tainted by dark magic. I should have known better... I should have protected you."
A statue that could not weep.
A ghost that could not be held.
And yet, mother and daughter stood before each other, sharing a grief a millennium overdue.
Time passed—perhaps minutes, perhaps hours—before Ravenclaw finally spoke again, her voice once more steady.
"I knew the pain would be unbearable. That I would not have time to set things right. But I feared even more that you would be lost, afraid to move on.
So I left behind a fragment of my magic. It is incomplete, imperfect... but perhaps, Helena, it will help you find your path."
A sphere of soft blue light emerged from the statue's chest, floating gently toward Helena.
"Come with me, my child," Ravenclaw whispered.
Helena hesitated, glancing back at Ted. "Ted... thank you. Please, come with me. I don't know where this leads, but I need you as my witness."
Ted nodded solemnly and followed without a word.
As the light led them through the castle, Hogwarts itself seemed to awaken.
The portraits stood eerily still, their inhabitants frozen in place.
The suits of armor saluted as they passed.
The shifting staircases glided into position before they even needed them, forming a seamless path through the grand, ancient corridors.
This was magic unlike anything Ted had seen before—far beyond the usual quirks of the castle, as if the very foundation of Hogwarts was responding to Ravenclaw's presence.
Soon, they arrived at the seventh floor, in front of a familiar tapestry.
"Ah... this one is quite amusing," Ravenclaw's voice mused from the glowing orb.
It was the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, depicting his ill-fated attempt to teach trolls ballet.
On the opposite wall, a door materialized out of nowhere—a magnificent wooden door, three meters tall, adorned with golden edges and the emblem of a raven at its center.
"Enter, Helena. And you, young one," Ravenclaw's voice beckoned. "This was my sanctuary... my original research chamber."
Ted's eyes widened.
He remembered this place—the Room of Requirement.
He had heard of it but never thought he would enter it so soon.
And certainly not like this.
Inside, the space was nothing like what he had expected.
It wasn't cluttered with ancient artifacts, bookshelves, or potions bubbling on tables. Instead, the room was eerily empty.
A curved desk, a few chairs, a tattered old sofa, and a single bookcase lined the walls.
But the most striking feature was the massive network of glowing blue runes covering the far wall, their golden outlines forming an intricate, almost celestial pattern.
The ball of light floated into the wall, and suddenly, the intricate web of blue magical lines flickered to life, spreading rapidly across the chamber.
The energy surged into the very foundation of the castle, flowing through the hidden magical veins embedded in the ancient walls.
Meanwhile, in the headmaster's quarters, Albus Dumbledore's eyes snapped open.
Instinctively, he reached for his half-moon spectacles, placing them on the bridge of his nose as he scanned the dimly lit room.
Something was amiss.
His hands twitched as he reached out to cast a detection spell—nothing happened.
His brows furrowed.
The authority of Hogwarts' headmaster, the very essence that allowed him to sense and control the castle's defenses, had momentarily vanished.
Dumbledore's expression darkened.
He rose swiftly from his bed, discarding his pointed nightcap, and made his way down the spiraling staircase of his office.
His gaze flicked toward the portraits of past headmasters lining the walls—most of them snoring peacefully, oblivious to the disturbance.
His authority had returned just as quickly as it had disappeared, but the implications were troubling.
"What in Merlin's name just happened?" he muttered under his breath.
Back in the Room of Requirement, the gathered blue magic swirled, coalescing into the luminous form of a regal woman draped in flowing sapphire robes.
Her ethereal presence exuded wisdom and power. Ted and Helena stood frozen, wide-eyed, as they recognized the figure before them.
"Mother?" Helena whispered, her voice trembling.
Rowena Ravenclaw—her form shimmering with raw magical energy—extended her hand.
Ted gasped as he witnessed the impossible: she was touching Helena, a ghost.
"But… that's not possible," Ted murmured.
Ms. Ravenclaw smiled gently. "Ordinary spells cannot affect spirits, but advanced magic can.
By momentarily borrowing the authority of the headmaster, I've channeled the castle's magic to grant myself a temporary form—just long enough to hold my daughter's hand once more."
Ted felt his head spin.
'Borrowed headmaster authority? Advanced spectral interaction?'
He was witnessing ancient magic far beyond anything taught at Hogwarts.
Swallowing hard, he found his voice. "Then… are you truly back?"
Ms. Ravenclaw shook her head. "No, my dear boy. I am but a memory, an echo infused with magic. True resurrection is beyond even my reach. But I have just enough power left for one final farewell."
She turned to her daughter, her eyes brimming with sorrow and warmth. "Helena, my love, are you ready?
Helena hesitated for only a moment before nodding. "Yes, Mother. I'm not afraid anymore."
She then turned to Ted, offering him a bittersweet smile. "Thank you, Ted. For everything."
Ted bowed slightly. "May your journey be a peaceful one, Helena."
Ms. Ravenclaw gave Ted an approving nod. "You have done a great thing today, young wizard. May this knowledge serve you well."
With a wave of her hand, a large tome materialized on the curved table.
The pages turned by themselves, revealing intricate diagrams, ancient spells, and handwritten notes.
A warm, non-glare white light enveloped the mother and daughter.
Helena waved one last time. "Goodbye, Ted."
"Goodbye, Helena. Goodbye, Ms. Ravenclaw," Ted said softly.
As the light dimmed, they were gone.
The room remained unchanged, but the glowing blue lines had faded into nothingness.
Ted exhaled, feeling the weight of what had just transpired.
He turned his attention to the book Ms. Ravenclaw had left behind—a thick, ancient tome with bronze-edged pages so heavy it could probably knock someone unconscious.
His fingers brushed the cover. He had gained something extraordinary tonight, but it had come with the loss of a friend.
A familiar chime echoed in his mind.
______________
Ding! Hidden Quest Completed: [Ravenclaw's Secret Chamber (Epic)].
Rewards: 3000 XP, Random Card Drop…
______________
Ted blinked. "An epic quest? 3000 XP and a card drop?!" His heart raced at the unexpected windfall.
He cast one last glance at the spot where Helena had disappeared.
For now, he wouldn't disturb the chamber further.
It was time to leave and process everything.
Pushing open the door to the Room of Requirement, he stepped into the corridor—and nearly collided with none other than Albus Dumbledore, still in his night robe and a rather eccentric nightcap.
The headmaster's piercing blue eyes studied him over his moon-shaped glasses.
"Mr. Epifani," Dumbledore said, his tone both amused and inquisitive.
"Would you care to explain why Hogwarts' authority just momentarily slipped out of my control?"
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Word count: 1547
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