Miss Holmes, A Harry Potter Fan fiction

Chapter 26: Philosopher's Stone

Something was wrong with the dark arts teacher. He just seemed...odd. My subconscious was telling me that he was someone to watch out for, but he was just a stuttering fool who seemed more afraid of the students than the students were of the subject.

It wasn't often I made decisions purely based on gut instinct but I knew that your subconscious often notices things before you do. This was the reason I stood outside his classroom at 1 am, with a disillusionment charm.
These observations only made me more certain of my instincts. He stood alone, facing a wall, and was muttering to himself. At this distance I couldn't hear, and getting closer was too risky. Who was he talking too? Himself? It didn't seem so. I had seen many patients who talked to themselves in such a manner, but Quirrell just didn't seem to match.
He seemed at least sane during his lessons, if a little paranoid- so what was triggering this kind of reaction.
I knew it wasn't safe to linger too long, if Quirrell realized I was spying on him he would be far more cautious.

Retreating away from the door, I met someone I didn't expect at all- Dumbledore was stood in the shadows of the corridor, looking at me directly.
I knew my disillusionment charm wasn't fooling him, so I followed him away from the door.
We didn't talk until he opened the door to his office, and he sat in his chair.
I sat opposite, knowing what conversation was about to occur. I was just waiting.

He sighed, little humor in his eyes.
''You noticed the peculiarities surrounding Quirrell too?''
I simply nodded.
''It is my belief that he is connected to Voldemort in some way. All occlumency bears a certain mark to the wizard that uses it, and Quirrell's mind has the mark of Voldermort- there is no denying it.''
I nodded again, spurring him to continue.
''I am keeping a close eye on him, but it would be unwise to act upon these feelings, and I urge you to do the same.''

This had me confused,
''But Sir, with Harry and that other object at Hogwarts, is it really wise to let Voldemort do as he pleases? Voldemort wants both of these things, so why are we letting him have access to them? It seems absurd, we have nothing to gain by letting him be.''

He sat for a moment, he didn't seem surprised at my knowledge of the object, but did seem to be questioning if he should tell me.
Luckily for me he said, ''The object in question is the Philosopher's Stone, but there is no need to worry. The stone is highly guarded by all of the teachers.''

My eyes widened slightly before I regained my composure. The Philosopher's Stone? I had heard of it of course, even before I knew the truth about magic, yet for such an object to be in Hogwarts seemed absurd. If Voldemort was to get such an object there was no way anyone could stop his return.

I glanced at the time from a clock on the wall, it was almost 2am.
''Ah yes, you should be getting back to your dormitory now. I can trust that you will keep all of this information entirely secret.''
I gave him a short glare, he of course knew that I wouldn't be as stupid as to tell anyone.

He gave a short smile.
I was about to leave before I turned back around.
''There was one thing I wanted to ask, Sir,'' I asked with a charming, persuasive smile. ''I was wondering if you could teach me occlumency. With Voldermort coming back it would only be smart to be able to protect my thoughts.''
Dumbledore seemed wary at my words. My request wasn't outrageous, and I'm sure students have requested similar things before. So what was it that made him so anxious. So many questions.

''It would seem to be a good idea. Though with your workload you wouldn't want to overwork yourself. Then again, you did have time to become a successful animagus.''
My eyes flicked away and my teeth gripped at my lip. I didn't realize that he knew. I shouldn't have been surprised, he was Dumbledore, but I had tried so carefully to hide this. Unless...
''Yes, maybe occlumency would be a good idea,'' he chuckled lightly. 
Knew it.
''I would like to see your animagus form though.'' He spoke, the mischievous glint back in his eyes.

I hadn't used the form since the day I'd achieved it. Honestly, it terrified me. Not just because dementors were scary, but because of the repercussions.
Nevertheless, after a deep breath I found myself shift back to the shadowy form. It felt a lot more comfortable this time, it didn't exhaust my bones as deeply.

Dumbledore's face seemed neutral, yet fear crept up behind his eyes. It was the same look as when I mentioned occlumency. He knew something.

I shifted back, once again collapsing into the chair. This time however I managed to keep my consciousness and composure.
''Yes, Miss Holmes, I will teach you occlumency. Come to my office after dinner every Tuesday and Friday. It shouldn't take you too long to master, given your track record.''
I smiled a controlled smile. After thanking him, I headed back to the dorm room.
I had a lot more to think about now.

Wooo. Another chapter finished. I hope you enjoyed, please vote if you did.
I'm happy with the direction the story is going in now. I stuck to my schedule, technically ( it's 23:58 on Sunday).
Thanks for reading :)