After finishing what seemed like a lifetime's worth of classes the next day, I made my way down towards the map chamber.
I was definitely nervous about telling them what was happening, but I tried to remind myself they were just pieces of canvas. No matter what sort of power they hold, they are still at the mercy of the fact they are trapped. That much was clear last year, given how reluctant they were to trust a child with their secrets.
However, a new fear was nagging at the back of my mind.
And that fear was walking not so quietly behind me.
"Where in Merlin's name are you taking me?" Sebastian asked, which caused some people walking past to look in a suggestive way.
I turned around to give him a glare and elbowed him in the stomach, causing him to grab it in slight pain.
"What part of discrete didn't you get? If we get caught I won't hesitate to get you in trouble" I snapped, trying to make sure my voice was low enough to not draw attention.
"You'd love that wouldn't you? Would be a great excuse to leave me behind so your precious keepers don't know about me" he rolled his eyes, standing up straight again as he now walked beside me.
"Well given how I fear you may burn their portraits to the ground, it wouldn't necessarily be the worst idea" I half joked, giving him a smirk as we descended the stairs leading to the sleeping dragon. Sebastian scoffed at this.
"I'm not that dramatic. Although I might consider it if they threaten you" he grumbled, staring at the statue, thankfully not seeing the blush that crept up my cheeks as he said that.
"My hero" I laughed, making sure he couldn't catch on to how flustered I was.
We finally reached the stairwell leading to the map chamber.
We both stared at it for a second, and I felt dread fill my body.
I could only think of last year, how every time I went down these stairs I was faced with a new challenge, each worse than the last.
The last time I had been down there was with Professor Fig...
I felt a hand gently grab my shoulder and I looked up to be met with a determined look from Sebastian.
"You got this" he encouraged, which made me feel a tad better.
Knowing he had my back was something I definitely needed.
I couldn't do this without help, and now that Fig was gone, I was glad that Sebastian was willing to take his place.
"Okay. I'm ready" I said, matching his determination.
He took his hand off my shoulder and gestured down the stairs.
"Ladies first" he grinned, to which I happily led the way.
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I pushed the doors open as we finally reached the map chamber.
I couldn't help but look back at Sebastian and smile as I did so, seeing his bewildered reaction.
"This has been here the whole time?" he questioned, taking in the room.
"Seems so. Guess the Undercroft wasn't the only place the Professors didn't know about" I commented, making my way down the stairs.
I stood in the centre of the map chamber, the map from before now gone.
I guess that made sense since it wasn't needed anymore.
Even the portraits were empty.
In all honesty, I didn't even know if they were still here after the final repository was found.
In their minds, their duties were probably done.
But people who are that scared of power don't usually go quietly and leave it all to someone else.
There was no way they trusted me that much.
Just as I thought that, Professor Rackham's portrait changed as he walked into the frame, confusion evident on his face.
"Ah, hello. It has been a while." he greeted, his voice monotone.
"Hello. Sorry. To be honest I didn't expect to come back here" I admitted, to which the portrait did not seem surprised.
"With the final repository found, I see no reason for you to do so. But we are here if you have questions" he explained, looking at the other portraits before sighing.
"At least, I will be here. The others still have mixed feelings about your situation" displeasure laced his voice as he looked away, only to do a double take as he saw Sebastian standing behind me.
"I see you have brought a friend. I assume he knows about your power?" he asked, nodding towards Sebastian.
"Yes. I trust him. He helped me find the pensive Isidora left behind." I explained, looking at Sebastian as I did so.
He just stood there, taking in the situation.
His arms were crossed as he looked between me and Professor Rackham, not really sure on how to react. Like he was looking at me to tell him.
"He wanted to join me when I came to see you" I quickly spoke, trying to evade the awkward silence as Sebastian was now forming a glare as his eyes settled on the portrait.
"And why have you come?" Rackham asked in anticipation, his voice monotone once again.
I took a deep breath, knowing that this was either going to be the best or worst idea i've had.
But I was definitely grateful that only Professor Rackham was here. I felt like he would be more understanding than the others.
"Recently, I have started having very vivid dreams involving the potential of my magic and how it can help people. But they feel like someone else's desires rather than my own." I tried to explain briefly, looking at Rackham to see his reaction.
He seemed to ponder for a moment, not seeming quite surprised when I told him.
"Was Isidora there?" he asked, finally looking back at me.
I nodded, not sure if I should add anything.
Did he know what I was talking about?
He sighed, seeming disappointed. Which indicated that he did in fact know.
Of course.
"When Ranrok opened the repository, I had a feeling that something like this would happen" he began, to which Sebastian and I exchanged a confused look.
"Like what would happen?" Sebastian finally piped up, already possessing an aggravated tone.
"Well, when I was close to death, I felt like my ability to use ancient magic was slipping away, but that was not the case" he began "After a while, I realised that it was not leaving me, rather, it wanted to be released." he took in the still very confused expressions Sebastian and I shared, and decided to elaborate.
"Through this I discovered that ancient magic does not disappear with the wizard when they die. Rather, it practically acts as a form of immortality as it carries their will and lingers wherever the weilder put it. Or-"
"Or where they died" I whispered, barely believing it myself.
I stepped back as I finally realised what had happened.
"But surely that's impossible, I sealed the repository again" I insisted, but Professor Rackham just shook his head.
"You only aimed to seal the repository. You wouldn't have noticed if it was never meant to be there to begin with" he explained, making my heart sink.
"Can someone please explain to me what you're talking about?" Sebastian snapped, not knowing the missing piece that makes the story complete.
I turned to him, my eyes wide as I now knew what was happening.
"Isidora was killed with the final repository. Her magic was released when she died and it must have mixed with the repository. When Ranrok released it, her magic got out too. The magic that carries her will"
Sebastian still looked confused as ever, but he did seem a bit more shocked as well.
"But what does that mean?" he asked, looking between Professor Rackham and I.
"It means that Isidora's magic is somewhere in the world right now, carrying out her will in its dark uses. Due to the way she used it, it has most likely taken an unpredictable form, and will only grow stronger the more pain she takes." Rackham answered, which caused Sebastian to finally click.
"But why the dreams?" he wondered, something which I wanted to know myself.
"The consciousness remaining in her will probably know that it is limited in its form. Which is why the magic usually needs to be placed in an object. So if she manages to recruit you, her capabilities would be endless" Rackham clarified.
"So you're saying that she's being targeted?" Sebastian stepped forward, seemingly angry now
"In a way, yes" Rackham agreed, his voice remaining calm, which only seemed to further Sebastian's anger.
"Yes? That's all you can say? She came to you for help. Is there nothing more you can do?" Sebastian insisted.
I looked at him in surprise. I hadn't imagined him getting so worked up over this.
The look on his face made me regret letting him come. He looked... desperate.
Professor Rackham was about to answer when he looked up and paused. His eyes fixing on something at the top of the stairs.
"It seems you were followed"
Sebastian and I both whipped our heads round in fear, not knowing who or what to expect.
But that fear instantly turned to guilt as I saw who had just entered the map chamber.
Ominis.
"What on earth is this?" he yelled, his wand clearly giving him all the information he needed about whatever he stepped into.
"How did you find us?" I wondered, it wasn't exactly something you stumbled across.
"I followed you both, because Merlin knows I'm not stupid enough to think you'd actually stay out of trouble" he spat
"It's not that simple. We didn't choose this-" Sebastian started, but Ominis cut him off
"I don't want to hear your excuses. I will not repeat last year."
And with that, he turned and stormed out of the map chamber.
I looked at Sebastian, who seemed heartbroken at the thought of losing Ominis.
"Go after him" I said, earning a worried look from him.
"But what about you? We need to figure this out" he gestured at the portraits, but i just shook my head.
"I'll be fine. I've got this" I insisted.
Sebastian looked at me for a moment, looking like he wanted to say something, but clearly decided against it.
He nodded firmly, before he began chasing after Ominis.
Once he had left, I turned back to Rackham, who seemed unfazed by the ordeal.
"Do you trust that other boy?" he simply asked
"Yes. He has been through a lot, but once the situation is explained he will keep the secret" I sighed, knowing that now he had to be dragged into this.
"Good. Because you will need all the friends you can get"
I looked up as he said this, furrowing my brows as I wondered what he meant. But before I could ask, he continued.
"I actually do have an idea as to how you can go up against Isidora's magic" he began, but I swiftly interrupted
"Hold on, who said anything about going up against it?" after seeing the memories and how Rackham struggled against her, how was I supposed to destroy her magic?
Yet, Rackham just continued.
"As I mentioned, before I died, my magic wished to be released. And in a poetic sense, I decided to put them in places that represented that which I held dear." he paused.
I was about to ask what he meant, but the floor beneath me started to glow.
I stepped back in curiosity and admiration, seeing different shapes form underneath me.
I expected the map to appear once again, but instead, four different objects appeared.
I looked back up at Professor Rackham in anticipation, and he stared at the objects at different sides of the circle.
"I decided to split my magic into four different objects, or more specifically, the Hogwarts House Relics."
I looked back down at the four objects displayed in the ground, looking closely at what each one was, soon realising that it was in fact each of the house relics.
I had only read about them briefly, with them being mentioned in history. But there was no doubt that they were quite unique.
First, there was the Hufflepuff Cup, then Slytherin's Locket, Ravenclaw's Diadem, and lastly Gryffindor's sword.
"I believe that with these, you could stand a chance against Isidora, and destroy her magic altogether" he explained, which caught my attention
"How do I find them?" I asked.
The floor changed once again, the familiar map appearing once again.
"I will show you once I convene with the other keepers" he said, which made me sigh in frustration.
"Is there really time for that? Isidora could be getting stronger as we speak" I was frustrated now, sick of how much talking the keepers did about whether or not they trusted me, like there was much choice.
"Actually there is time. Because you need to do something too." he said, still keeping his calm tone.
I stood, waiting for whatever profound thing I was going to be asked to do this time.
Fight a troll? Maybe even those guards again?
"You need to gather friends you can trust" he said.
I definitely wasn't expecting that.
"To use my power, you need to find the relics and absorb the ancient magic placed within. But the relics have trials built in them, so that the power doesn't just go to anyone"
I rolled my eyes. Of course there were more trials.
"The power you are going to absorb will merge with your own, making it unpredictable and difficult to control. I made it so that these trials cannot be completed alone, so that the person who absorbs the power is not faced with isolation." he continued, to which I became frustrated once again.
"You want me to put my friends in danger?" I snapped, but he just shook his head.
"I want you to trust them. When I was learning about this power, I relied on my friends - my fellow keepers - to guide me when I felt lost. The rarity and burden of this power is often overwhelming, and that is where I believe Isidora went wrong. While she had us to guide her, she did not confide in us the way friends do. Therefore, unless you find those you trust, I cannot allow that power to be absorbed." he finished.
I stood there for a moment, not knowing what to do.
I knew who I trusted, I knew exactly who I would ask.
But I couldn't knowingly put them in danger.
I couldn't do that to my friends.