Chapter 308: Dreams and Endings
"What?"
Dudley stared, utterly stunned.
At that moment, Malfoy was not to be outdone. He raised his wand with his right hand and swung it fiercely.
"Basilisk, move!"
Bang!
In an instant, a massive basilisk appeared on the field, opening its bloody maw and lunging at Harry.
Within just a few breaths, the Quidditch pitch had become a battlefield. Everyone was casting spells wildly, dangerous curses flying everywhere. Some even headed straight for Dudley.
"This dream is too crazy," Dudley muttered, quickly manipulating the dream to pull Harry and Ron away from the chaotic magical duel.
The scene shifted. They now stood in the living room at 4 Privet Drive. Harry and Ron sat on the sofa, playing a game. They were having a great time, not at all confused by the sudden change.
"Uh... hello," Dudley tried to greet them.
"Hello," Harry and Ron replied, as if just noticing someone else was there. They looked at Dudley, but their eyes were blank, as if they had no idea what was going on.
"Harry, I have a few questions," Dudley said.
Dream entry was not very useful in combat, but it was excellent for investigation. In dreams, a person's subconscious replaced their conscious mind, and they were essentially defenseless. Someone entering the dream could easily extract the information they wanted. Dudley wanted to see if this ability worked perfectly.
"Okay," Harry answered, his gaze blank.
"Who is the person you hate most?"
"Draco Malfoy," Harry replied almost without hesitation. That answer was expected.
"But that's after I turned eleven. If you asked about before that, the person I hated most was Dudley Dursley," Harry continued.
Dudley's mouth twitched slightly.
"Looks like the Nightmare effect is working. He's not lying," Dudley said.
"So now, do you still hate Dudley?" Dudley pressed.
"No, I don't hate him anymore."
"Why?"
"Because he's really a good brother now," Harry said, barely pausing to think.
Dudley's expression shifted slightly. "And what about the old Dudley?"
"The past is past. Dudley realized his mistakes, and I've been thinking about it. I'm happy with how things are now."
Dudley nodded and did not press further. He turned his attention to Ron.
"Ron, have you been worried about anything lately?" Dudley asked.
"A bit," Ron said, his eyes still blank.
"Such as?"
"Being around people as good as Dudley and Harry, I feel a lot of pressure. They're my best friends, but I feel like I'm living in their shadow. I'm afraid of losing myself," Ron said.
Dudley narrowed his eyes. Ron's situation was exactly as he thought. At home, he had lived in his brothers' shadow. At school, he was now living in the shadow of Harry and Dudley. That was not an easy feeling.
"Do you want to change that?" Dudley asked.
"No. I don't want to lose them," Ron said.
"I see," Dudley nodded.
The space around them began to tremble. Dudley knew the spell's effect was about to end, so he released the dream entry.
Hum!
Dudley opened his eyes, looking at the shimmering surface of the Black Lake.
"Oh! Did we fall asleep?" Harry sat up, blinking.
"Seems like it, but why do I feel so tired?" Ron frowned.
Harry stood up and stretched. The stones by the lake were digging into his back.
"It feels like I fought a battle in my dream," Ron said, also standing up.
"How was it? Did the spell work?" Harry asked Dudley.
"It worked. The effect was good," Dudley said.
"It feels just like a Stunning Spell," Ron said, scratching his head.
"Do you remember what happened in your dream?" Dudley asked cautiously.
Harry and Ron frowned, trying to recall what had happened in the dream. They felt like they had experienced a lot, but could not remember clearly. They only vaguely remembered being at the Quidditch pitch.
"I can't remember much. Something about Quidditch?" Harry said.
"I don't even remember Quidditch," Ron said. He had no memory at all.
"Yes, you played a Quidditch match against Slytherin in your dream," Dudley nodded.
"Really? Who won?" Ron immediately perked up at the mention of a match against Slytherin.
"Uh... wait, how do you know we played Slytherin?" Harry suddenly asked. Wasn't this just a Stunning Spell?
"How come you know what we dreamed about?" Dudley said, "It's not just a Stunning Spell. I can also see your dreams to some extent," he explained, not mentioning the part where he asked them questions.
"I see. So you improved the spell? That's impressive," Ron said, amazed.
"Yeah, I made some improvements," Dudley said, a little sheepishly.
Harry and Ron asked more about the spell's details, but concluded it did not seem very useful. Just seeing dreams—what was the point?
Dudley said no more and continued his research. Today's experiment proved his idea was feasible. Using magic to achieve the abilities of the Darkness Pathway Sequence Seven was only the beginning. He could use spells to achieve more Beyonder abilities.
Though these abilities would not be as powerful as the real thing, and only low-sequence powers could be replicated, they were enough for special situations and greatly expanded Dudley's magical arsenal. Some low-sequence Beyonder abilities were very useful. As long as he could cast the spell, it was a huge boost to his power. It was also a revolution in the magical world.
In the following days, Dudley continued his spell research. The end-of-term feast arrived as scheduled. Thanks to the special contribution awards, Gryffindor won the House Cup without a doubt.
When the feast ended and everyone returned to their dormitories, the school year was finally over.
"I hope I don't run into Voldemort again next year," Dudley thought to himself. These two years had been exhausting.