Chapter 101 - Face to Face
I readied my wand, took a deep breath and entered the next chamber.
I could feel the three kids behind me. I could only find them with my senses because I knew they were there and only when I focused on them. The Silencing Charm I had placed on them was active. They could see and hear everything but they could not make a sound.
As I entered the next chamber, the view opened before me.
It was a large chamber, much larger than any of the previous rooms. The ceiling rose several stories above us. The room was completely empty, making it feel even larger than it really was.
Only one thing stood inside.
The Mirror of Erised.
I had seen it once before in a hidden room inside Hogwarts. Now it stood alone in the middle of this chamber.
Standing before the mirror was the person we had been looking for.
The thief.
The first thing I noticed was the familiar purple turban which instantly gave away his identity.
It was Professor Quirrell.
Thankfully, the children behind me could not make any noise. Otherwise, I was certain that Harry, Ron, and Hermione would have gasped in shock at this revelation. None of them had ever imagined that the timid, stuttering Defence professor was the one behind everything.
"Welcome, Har..." he began, as he slowly turned around, before stopping halfway.
For a moment, surprise flashed across his face and his eyes narrowed.
'He probably thought it would be Harry here', I mused internally.
"Oh... look who we have here. Mr. Arthur Dursley."
A smile slowly spread across his face.
"One of the brightest students in Hogwarts. One of the very few who skipped years of study by passing extra examinations. Quite an impressive young wizard."
"Welcome, Mr. Arthur Dursley."
I kept my wand lowered but ready, and made a surprised expression.
"Professor... how is it you? I thought..."
Quirrell interrupted me in between and chuckled.
"You thought it was Snape, didn't you?"
Of course, I already knew the answer. I had known from the very beginning that Snape was innocent and Quirrell was the real culprit. But I still had to act, so I remained silent as he laughed loudly.
"Everyone thought it was Snape. It was perfect. While everyone watched him, no one bothered to notice poor, frightened Professor Quirrell."
His smile became colder.
"It was the perfect disguise."
I nodded slowly.
"So... it means that it was you who cursed Harry's broom during the Quidditch match."
"Of course it was me."
His eyes filled with annoyance.
"But Snape ruined everything. He kept muttering his counter-curse the whole time. I was so close."
"So Professor Snape was protecting Harry."
Quirrell gave an irritated snort.
"He follows Dumbledore's every order. He is little more than Dumbledore's loyal dog now."
I continued calmly.
"And the troll on Halloween?"
"My work."
He almost sounded proud of himself.
I looked at him for a moment and asked
"But why Professor?"
His smile disappeared.
"Because of Potter."
His voice became hard. He spat the last word with disgust.
"An accident happened yet the wizarding world worships the child as some great hero. They think our Lord was defeated by a baby, a mere infant. "
He sneered.
"The Boy Who Lived."
"What a ridiculous title."
I quietly nodded.
"So..., You are serving Voldemort."
The room instantly became colder. Quirrell's face twisted with rage.
"Do not speak His name with your filthy mouth, Mudblood!"
I blinked in mock surprise.
"Ah. I am a Mudblood?"
"Thank you. I didn't know that."
His face turned red.
I continued before he could answer.
"You just called Professor Snape Dumbledore's dog. What does that make you?"
His fingers tightened around his wand.
"You are not even Voldemort's dog. You are simply his servant."
His breathing became heavier.
"I told you..." he hissed.
"Do not speak His name!"
He suddenly raised his wand.
But before he could cast anything, another voice echoed through the chamber.
It was cold, hoarse and grating voice.
"Let... me... speak... to... him."
The voice did not seem to come from Quirrell's mouth.
I already knew where it came from.
It came from behind him, the back of his head.
Quirrell immediately lowered his wand.
"B-but, my Lord.... You have not recovered enough. You should rest."
The hoarse voice answered again.
"I... have... enough... strength..."
"Turn... me... around."
Quirrell bowed his head immediately.
"As you command... my Lord."
Slowly, he reached for the purple turban wrapped around his head. Layer after layer came loose and the cloth slowly fell to the floor.
I could see the bald head from the mirror's reflection.
Then something moved in it.
A face slowly rose from the head. It was not a normal face.
It looked pale and almost wax-like. Its eyes were red and sunken, nose was nearly flat and its mouth was thin.
It looked less like a living man's face and more like an abomination.
Even though I had expected it, seeing it in person was far more unsettling than reading about it.
Behind me, I could sense the children freezing in horror. None of them could make a sound because of my charm. Perhaps that was for the best. At least they would not accidentally distract me.
For one strange moment, an absurd thought crossed my mind.
Back in my previous world, people joked that bald men always looked powerful.
Many action heroes and villains were bald. Apparently baldness came with extra aura and handsomeness.
Now, before me, was perhaps the darkest wizard in recent history, and his face was growing from the back of someone else's head.
Completely bald head.
What a bad mascot Quirrell is for bald people.
I almost laughed but controlled myself at the last moment. Still, my face twitched a bit.
Quirrell immediately noticed. His eyes narrowed.
The face behind him also stared at me.
"So..."
The high, cold voice spoke again.
"You find... me... amusing?"
I quickly shook my head.
"No. I was thinking about something unrelated. Nothing important."
The red eyes studied me carefully.
"I wonder..."
"You are... surprisingly calm."
"Most people... tremble... when they see me."
I smiled faintly.
"But fear has never solved a problem."
The face became silent for several moments. Then it spoke again.
"You are... different... from Potter."
"I can feel... your magic."
"It is... unusual."
"You possess... talent."
His red eyes seemed to look straight through me.
"You could become... great."
"Far greater... than Dumbledore... ever allowed."
"I know talent... when I see it."
Quirrell stood perfectly still, acting like nothing more than a body carrying his master.
The face continued.
"Join me."
"You are intelligent."
"You are powerful."
"You understand... this world."
"Serve me."
"I shall teach you... magic... beyond your imagination."
"Power."
"Knowledge."
"Immortality."
"Everything... can be yours."
The chamber became silent again.
I looked at the face for several long seconds.
Then I sighed.
"You know..."
"There is one problem with your offer."
The red eyes narrowed.
"And what... is that?"
I smiled.
"You are asking me to follow someone who cannot even stand on his own two feet."
"You are literally living in another man's body."
"I'm afraid that does not make a very convincing recruitment speech."
Complete silence filled the room. Then Quirrell's whole body began shaking with fury.
Even the face on the back of his head stared at me without blinking with its expression on the verge of fury.
I had a feeling that negotiations were officially over.
And shit was about to hit the fan.
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End of Chapter 101 - Face to Face