There was no mistake.
Based on what Lee had been paying attention to, he had definitely used a Time-Turner to return to the past,
And become Avery, who had already died.
Looking at the reports in front of him, Dawn's thoughts were once again pulled back to the events of last year's Felix Felicis ritual.
There was no doubt about it.
On January 16th, at the Quidditch pitch, he had completely killed Murphy Avery.
His Killing Curse was not some childish trick that merely caused nosebleeds.
And yet,
A year later, this dead man had suddenly occupied another person's body and crossed paths with Dawn again in an almost miraculous way.
Why?
Dawn began to think.
He couldn't help but speculate about all the possibilities behind this "resurrection."
At that moment, the Weasley twins' earlier conversation echoed in his mind again and again.
A dream.
A very real dream.
Dawn naturally connected this to the Resurrection Stone powder.
In the future, he had mixed the powder into a mist and released it in class, letting students inhale it.
And he had done this for an entire week.
That naturally included fourth-years like Lee Jordan.
So,
The vivid dream Lee had experienced a few days ago was likely the result of the Resurrection Stone powder connecting him to the thoughts of a dead person.
That much was easy to conclude.
Then, taking it one step further, Was the current situation happening because he had connected to Murphy Avery?
And, for some reason, Avery's consciousness had reversed the process and taken over his body?
Dawn narrowed his eyes.
This seemed extremely likely.
In fact, it was the most plausible explanation.
But, Why hadn't this happened during his previous experiments?
Could it really be that inhaling the powder and drinking it produced different ritual effects?
Dawn found the idea absurd.
The reasoning was weak, even he couldn't fully convince himself.
But was there any better explanation?
Clinging to Lee's shoulder, Dawn frowned in thought.
Then suddenly, he remembered something from Research on the Resurrection Stone.
At the end of that book, the author, who had tried to escape death by entering an eternal dream, had written a final line after grinding and consuming the entire stone:
Everything turned out completely different from what I expected.
This clearly meant the author had encountered something unexpected. And most likely something bad.
So... Had the author also experienced the danger of having his body taken over?
Dawn's eyes flickered.
If that were true, then combining all the information he had, a more reasonable conclusion than "different usage methods" would be:
Once the Resurrection Stone was fully consumed, connecting to the thoughts of the dead might allow those thoughts to follow back into reality.
The moment this idea surfaced, even Dawn himself was startled.
By Muggle scientific logic, intelligence is closely tied to brain capacity. Yet here he was, in the body of a beetle, forming complex and bold theories.
Magic truly was something remarkable.
His thoughts had briefly gone off track. But he quickly refocused.
His gaze returned uncontrollably to Lee. There was a hint of amazement in his eyes.
Was this... resurrection?
For countless generations, wizards had pursued it in vain. And now it had suddenly appeared right before him?
If Snape knew about this, he would probably dissect Lee over and over again in research.
But after thinking rationally, Dawn shook his head.
No.
If resurrection were this simple, then all those Egyptian pharaohs who spent thousands of years chasing it would be nothing but fools.
Even with the information he had now, Dawn could conclude, This so-called resurrection must have flaws.
For example, the consciousness you connected to through the Resurrection Stone was completely random.
And even if a connection was made, it didn't guarantee a return to reality.
Otherwise, with so many students inhaling the powder over several days, the castle would not still be this calm.
Beyond that, Dawn recalled the author's final words again.
Everything turned out completely different from what I expected.
If the author had been completely taken over, he wouldn't have had the chance to write that sentence.
Which meant, This "resurrection" might only be temporary. Or perhaps it came with other unknown consequences.
Dawn pondered this.
Gradually, his focus shifted away from the resurrected Avery, And back to himself.
After all, he was the one who had ground the Resurrection Stone into powder.
Everything happening now was directly connected to him.
Then, Could the phrase from the fortune slip, [Go with the flow, and you will gain something unexpected], Be referring to this?
But, What did this have to do with him? Or rather, what did it have to do with World Correction?
Could it be, that a dead person, someone tied to his past or capable of answering his questions, would return in this way?
Dawn's thoughts grew tangled.
This year at Hogwarts felt completely chaotic.
First Voldemort had split himself across others. Now even the dead were joining in.
By the end of the term, the "composition" of these students would be unimaginable.
.....
In the Room of Requirement, the sound of turning pages continued.
Lee flipped through copies of the Daily Prophet, one after another.
He paused over every report related to Dawn and the Avery family. His expression grew darker and darker.
Until about half a month after January 20th last year, When public interest shifted away from the Averys.
The newspapers returned to praising the Minister of Magic, reporting on new broom developments, and spreading gossip.
Only then did Lee stop.
He stood silently in front of the shelves, lips pressed together, eyes struggling with something unseen.
After a long time,
He let out a deep sigh. Then turned and left.
Click.
The door closed.
The handle disappeared. The wall became smooth once more.
Standing in the corridor, Lee glanced out the window. He wanted to find somewhere to clear his thoughts.
Because of past experiences, he didn't like staying in the Room of Requirement.
However, just as he turned a corner,
He ran into someone.
Albus Dumbledore.
"Mr. Jordan?" Dumbledore paused slightly, then smiled in greeting.
Hearing the voice, Dawn frowned slightly and climbed higher, hiding himself within Lee's hair.
"Good day, Headmaster," Lee responded politely.
He stepped aside to let him pass.
But Dumbledore stopped in front of him. "Mr. Jordan, have you been having any difficulties recently?"
"No, Headmaster. Why do you ask?" Lee replied immediately after a brief pause.
From where he clung to his back, Dawn could feel Lee's heartbeat quicken.
So, Avery didn't want Dumbledore to know.
That worked in Dawn's favor.
"Then why did you resign from being a Quidditch commentator?" Dumbledore asked gently. "Wasn't that your dream?"
"I just felt my commentary wasn't good enough," Lee answered calmly. "I want to improve."
"I see," Dumbledore said with a smile. "I'm sure Professor McGonagall would be happy to help."
They spoke briefly about Quidditch. Then Dumbledore excused himself and left.
But after passing each other, He stopped.
And looked back at Lee's retreating figure.
On the way back earlier, McGonagall had told him more about the practical lesson, And had specifically praised Lee Jordan's performance.
But she had also said, with concern:
"This child has changed a lot recently. Could it be Voldemort's influence?"
Dumbledore knew Lee Jordan well.
He had always been cheerful, humorous, and passionate about Quidditch commentary.
But now, He seemed troubled. His enthusiasm was gone. It was as if he had become a different person.
Dumbledore had to admit, McGonagall might be right.
'I need to find a solution soon.' He silently resolved to keep a closer watch on Lee.
This term had been exhausting.
Having just identified Dawn, he was now immediately back to dealing with Voldemort.
There was no rest.
And currently, his only lead was, The castle's consciousness.
If the Room of Requirement and Peeves were both connected to it, Then this was worth investigating.
Dumbledore turned toward the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy, who waved cheerfully at him.
Smiling faintly, he began pacing the corridor.
"I need a room that allows me to connect with the castle's consciousness. I need a room that..."
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