𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐩𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞 || 𝐓𝐨𝐦 𝐑𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐥𝐞

𝐏𝐑𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐆𝐔𝐄

"What do you want me to do?" Elias Alderton asked, his features were evident of exhaustion. His brown hair was quite messy as if he had just woken up from a nightmare, his eyes were dull, and there were dark eye bags underneath his eyes. A Gryffindor in his year named Romilda Vane thought it made him look more attractive and decided to tell him that a few days ago in the morning. If he was in the right state of mind that time, Elias would think of it as a compliment and awkwardly thank her, but the nightmares that were haunting him at night was draining him both physically and mentally, and he felt quite offended from her words. He snapped and insulted her for saying that, and the poor girl ended up leaving the Great Hall with tears running down her cheeks and a confused Ginny Weasley had to check up on him.

He was slumping in the Headmaster of Hogwarts's office, which made him look shorter than he actually is. This wasn't the first time he went to Dumbledore in the middle of the night due to his nightmares and it certainly wouldn't be the last.

Albus Dumbledore stood by his desk, a concerned look on his face, as he observed Elias quietly and carefully. His behavior changed almost immediately when Elias asked that question and gave him a warm smile in an attempt to give the boy comfort and perhaps even give himself comfort. Dumbledore walked towards Elias as he replied, "At the current moment? Nothing at all."

Dumbledore stopped when he was right in front of the boy and handed him a flask. Elias noted that the flask resembled greatly to the one Alastor Moody also known as Mad-Eye Moody owns, before he took the flask from Dumbledore, inspecting it with curiosity and confusion. "Except taking care of yourself," Dumbledore paused for a moment to look at Elias in the eye. "When the time ever comes, you'll understand why i'm giving this to you and when you do, i want you to do what's right and not what's easy."

Dumbledore took an object out of the pocket of his robes and placed it into Elias's hand. Elias wasn't sure what it was, since a white cloth was covering it, but he held it tightly, knowing that it was very important. Dumbledore walked away from Elias as he told him, "The potion in the flask will help you sleep better. You may ask Professor Snape for more when you finish it."

Elias didn't pay much attention to Dumbledore, his eyes were fixed on the small object in his hand. "I dreamt of the boy again," he informed the headmaster, causing him to stop his movements. "He– he was wearing a Prefect badge on his school robes and judging by the uniform's colour, he was a Slytherin."

"He was attractive?" Elias's cheeks turned into a light pink shade at the question, but he shrugged it off and said, "He was alright, i suppose."

A smile appeared on Dumbledore's face, his eyes twinkling in amusement and wrinkles showing due to his smile. "What was he doing?" He asked him, curiosity filled his eyes, his tone sounding more serious than it was before.

"He was reading a book in what appears to be the Slytherin common room but then a snake came from behind him and the dream ended there. I screamed in fear and woke my friends up, they thought i was being attacked," the old wizard listened to him carefully and closely. When he was finished, Dumbledore stared at his desk with a blank expression, thinking deeply about Elias's dream while Elias stared at Dumbledore, waiting anxiously for him to speak. "You should go back to your dorm now, your friends must still be awake out of worry for you," was the first thing Dumbledore told Elias after he moved his eyes away from the desk.

Elias nodded and opened his mouth to say something, but as if he was reading his mind, Dumbledore added, "Do not worry, the potion will not let any dreams or nightmares interrupt your sleep."

Elias nodded again, putting the flask in the pocket of his pajamas while his other hand was still holding the mysterious object Dumbledore gave him tightly.

As Elias walked out of his office, feeling better than when he came into the office, Dumbledore watched after him, his eyes filled with interest and hope. "Maybe, just maybe," he hummed, before he took out a quill and parchment.

Unbeknownst to him, after Elias closed the door to his office, he placed his ear to the door and heard what Dumbledore had said. Elias felt as if Dumbledore wasn't telling him everything he knows or everything he suspects about the nightmare.

Dumbledore was a mysterious man, after all, but Elias had the right to know what his nightmares meant or what they could potentially mean.

Elias sighed and looked down at the object Dumbledore had given him. His lips formed into a thin line as he started to debate whether or not he should uncover it. Eventually, his curiosity got the best of him and he took the white cloth away from the object, his eyes widening when he realized what it was.

"A time turner?" He muttered under his breath, inspecting it with delight and confusion.

Elias looked around him to make sure no one was watching him, before he placed the time turner gently into his other pocket. "What the bloody hell do you want me to do with a time turner, Dumbledore?" Elias questioned quietly, before he hurriedly walked away from the office to go back to the Ravenclaw common room.

••••

Author's Note: Hello everyone! How are all of you doing? I'm currently on vacation and the weather here is bloody freezing. It kept on raining! Eid Mubarak to those who celebrates it! I am feeling unwell today, so i apologize if there are any mistakes in the prologue.