Standing before the two girls, wand in hand, I was not in a mood to be patient. Not wanting to talk? Standing there and just looking at me? Okay... then, onto phase two.


    "Stupefy!"


    After both of them were knocked out, I decided to start by invading Fleur''s mind first. The moment I used Obliviate, I realized it wouldn''t be that easy. As soon as my consciousness slipped into hers, it was as if I ran into a brick wall. It repelled me so violently that I was flung a few meters back, knocking my head against the forest ground.


    "Damn it... They are being protected...? I should have guessed it..." I groaned, scrambling back to my feet, trying the same with Celine, but the result that welcomed me was identical.


    There was no time to play around, so I forcefully transfigured the two into ferrets, bringing them back to the castle in the dead of night, hurrying straight to Professor Lockhart''s office.


    "What is it, kiddo?" He welcomed me with a yawn, woken up by my constant kicking at his door. "I still didn''t-"


    "I am not here because of that!" I brushed past him just to drop the two ''ferrets'' onto the ground before they turned back to the two girls. Fleur was already waking up, so before she could regain her consciousness, I blasted her with another stupefy.


    "Oh no... no, no, no..." I couldn''t help but shrug, hearing the panic murmuring of Lockhart. He was quickly slamming the door behind me, walking up and down next to the bodies, biting at his thumb. "What have you done?"


    "Nothing. I just killed two others and brought these girls to you. I need the charm on their minds to be broken! I am too weak to do it quick enough or without damaging them."


    "You did what...? Oh, my young friend... this is not good! Very, very not good!"


    "We don''t know that yet. But it will be if they wake up and see you, Professor." I continued calmly, and to my own surprise, I didn''t feel nervous at all.


    "You will be my death!" He cried, pulling at his golden locks, looking exceptionally panicked. "Okay... they need to go, fast!"


    "I can kill them." I shrugged, picking my wand out, but he stopped me at once.


    "No, no, no! Not here! Geez! Okay, let me think!"


    "Sure." I smiled at him encouragingly, but I wasn''t kidding before. If nothing else, I will trigger Lord Voldemort''s plans and do as he wishes! Hells... I will deliver the bodies to Flamel myself and feed them to their dragons!


    "Okay, I will unlock their memories and extract whatever I can! I will only focus on the past few days when she disappeared! Is that good?"


    "Perfect, Professor." I nodded, crossing my arms, "Also, we should erase their most recent memories and replace them with the fact that these two sneaked out to finish their tasks."


    "What were they doing in the forest- wait, don''t answer! I will learn it soon enough anyway!" He shrugged and began working.


    The ease with which he blasted through the defense erected around the girl''s mind was incredible. Even if most of his spells backfired in our classes, he knew how to fiddle with others'' memories! I watched his face twitching multiple times, frowning and grimacing before tiny, white swirling energy began to appear around his wand, coming straight out from Fleur''s forehead.


    "Here!" He gasped, placing it into a vial and giving it to me. "You will need a pensive to watch it... damn!"


    "Couldn''t you tell me?" I asked, surprised and unsure why he didn''t say anything and simply looked more nervous than when I brought the unconscious girls into his room.


    "No! I won''t say it here! Too dangerous! Go, watch it yourself! Fuck..."


    "...?" Now, I was both nervous and excited. What did Fleur know that made Professor Lockhart swear? I couldn''t wait to see it for myself.


    "This one knows nothing..." He sighed, and I could feel a kind of relief in his voice.


    "I see. Then-"


    "Don''t be hasty! I need to construct new memories for them and rebuild the defenses! It will not be as good as it was originally, but it shouldn''t be evident that it was tampered with! Not until the one who planted it in them starts probing around in their heads! Damn... DAMN!"


    "So... bad news?" I asked, not wanting to hear his answer but I had to know what had happened to Quincy. NOW.This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.


    "Your girlfriend is okay, and she won''t be hurt! You will understand when you watch it! But this is bad... Conrad, this is extremely bad! If this develops into what I fear their goal is, I will be in deep trouble! It will count as my failure, and I will be killed! Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuuuuck!"


    "Professor?"


    "Sssh... let me focus... then I will cry... Then drink myself to bed! And think about it later! Conrad, my boy, you truly will be the DEATH of me!"


    Okay... now I was sure the memory in my pocket was invaluable, not just because of Quincy. I never saw the Professor this distraught. I thought I saw his golden hair turn white for a moment, but it was probably only the dim lighting playing tricks on me. For the next hour, Lockhart worked maybe the hardest in his life, and when he finally finished it, he almost collapsed.


    "Done! I made it so that when they wake up, they will remember fighting a big snake. I made it so that they don''t remember bringing helpers along, so... just dispose of their bodies somehow!"


    "No worries. One was smashed into pieces, and I will deal with the other when bringing the girls back! Won''t they ask questions why can they see thestrals now?"


    "I added that they think it''s because they experienced death when witnessing the death of their grandparents. No worries there!"


    "Professor, you thought of everything, huh?" I smiled for the first time since Quincy disappeared. The news that she wasn''t in mortal danger significantly eased my mind.


    "I am an expert... tsk... go! Hurry before the sun rises! Use your giant snake form... Shit! Kiddo, you are hiding some evil things under your friendly smile!"


    "Only for my enemies," I answered before bowing respectfully and leaving, turning them back into little ferrets.


    ...


    ....


    .....


    "If you think I will start calling you ''Daddy'' and hug you, you are sorely mistaken."


    "I just want you to listen to me a little..."


    "No."


    It was a discussion that had been happening multiple times in the past two hours, deep below Hogsmeade, where Quincy was now confined to an underground cell, sitting on a small cot behind bars.


    "Quincy..." Regulus tried again, but she just spat at his feet.


    "You locked me up. Thanks... Regulus, I am so grateful! I have only one father, and his name is Angus Anguine! And the only man I will ever call Daddy is Conrad! So go and lick a goblin''s bedside chamber clean!"


    "So this is your daughter? She has a fiery temper... it probably runs in the family, hm?"


    The new voice immediately made Regulus stiffen, and Quincy felt her blood freeze briefly. Although it was a kind, old voice, it was also filled with unmistakable power, so much so that she had never felt someone''s voice being this oppressive. No... She did it but only once. When Voldemort appeared at school, she felt the exact same way.


    "Dumbledore..." She murmured, only that single name coming to mind, and as soon as she opened her mouth, the legendary figure stepped into the light before her ''cage.''


    "Good to meet you, Miss Anguine."


    "..." This time, Quincy didn''t find it easy to talk back, and it was impossible to keep looking into those piercing, blue eyes behind the half-moon spectacles for long.


    "Regulus,"


    "Yes, Professor?" He asked, quickly straightening himself, feeling as if he was a student in Hogwarts once again.


    "We will talk about this later... But punishment will come. What you two did now was not just reckless and dangerous but outright treacherous. We have no time to discuss it at length, but I will remember this."


    "..." Regulus had no answers and could only lower his head while Dumbledore turned back to Quincy.


    "Now, Ms Anguine. You must understand that you must stay here for the time being. I will instruct some people to take care of all of your needs, so please don''t be afraid to state your wishes!"


    "I wish to be released!"


    "I understand..." Dumbledore answered with a friendly smile, gently clapping and holding his hands together, "Sadly, I can''t make that happen, not yet. Don''t be mistaken; we will set you free, but not before our mission is completed. I just ask you to remain calm and endure the time in here until everything is settled. Then you will be reunited with Mr Anguine."


    "T-" Regulus almost opened his mouth to speak, but just one quick, sharp look from Dumbledore made him nearly fall down, forgetting to even breathe.


    "So you want to kill me?" Quincy snorted with searing hate in her eyes, "I am contracted to compete in the tournament!"


    "The magical contract binds you to it, yes." Dumbledore nodded, smiling and speaking kindly, "But as you were kidnapped while participating in one of its tasks, the magic contract is still valid and won''t punish you. Your inability to participate comes from an outside source, not within yourself. You won''t suffer punishment!"


    "Really?" Regulus whispered as he turned deathly white at first, but after Dumbledore''s explanation, he couldn''t help but let out a big, relieved sigh.


    "Why are you still here?" The leader of the Order asked coldly, and before long, Regulus turned into a dog, quickly scurrying away. "Now... what happened right now is unfortunate, Ms Anguine, but it is what it is." Dumbledore sighed, but Quincy didn''t feel that it was an honest opinion. She remained silent and simply watched him conjure a stool with a wave of his wand, sitting down. "I would be glad if you would tell me everything that happened so I can get a clearer picture."


    "I won''t say anything. You can interrogate me, but my lips are sealed!"


    "No, no, Ms Anguine!" The old wizard laughed, but his wrist moved gently, flicking his wand. "This is not an interrogation... we are just talking. Now... please. Tell me everything..."


    ...


    ....


    ......


    "Ah... ?a va, Céline?"


    "Oui! C''est juste que... j''ai l''impression que ma tête va exploser! Ce serpent a explosé beaucoup trop violemment!"


    "Je pense que nos sorts ont fusionné quand ?a a frappé cette bête! Heureusement, car je n''avais jamais vu un monstre aussi redoutable! Allez, rentrons! Le bruit a s?rement dérangé les autres; on ne réussira pas ce soir! Essayons à nouveau plus tard!"


    "Good..." I whispered, watching them leave, making sure the Professor''s spell worked perfectly. Now, there was only one thing to do... get myself a pensive, and I already had an idea how to do that. "Time to visit the Room of Requirements once again..."