“Scarlet,” Harry whispered from beneath his invisibility cloak, “Are you sure you don’t want to hide under here with me? There’s plenty of space.”

“I’m fine, don’t worry.” Scarlet replied softly.

At first, Harry was concerned, but after seeing the ghosts glide past her as if she didn’t exist, and watching her effortlessly avoid Mrs. Norris by standing on a high portrait frame, his worry turned to relief – and surprise. Her stealth was so impressive, it reminded him of the ninja he’d seen on TV.

They soon reached the deserted classroom and stood before the Mirror of Erised.

“Go ahead,” Scarlet nodded, urging Harry forward. “I believe the image of your family is true, so take a good look at them and say your goodbyes. One hour.”

“Thanks, Scarlet,” Harry whispered, sitting down in front of the mirror. He gazed at the reflection of his parents, both smiling warmly at him. He could even make out his grandparents – faces he’d never seen before, not in photos or anywhere else.

After a few minutes of quiet, Harry spoke. “Scarlet, don’t you want to look into the mirror and see what you truly desire?”

“Not really,” Scarlet shrugged. “If I want something, I’ll figure out how to get it. And the past...well, it’s gone. The best I can do is learn from it and make sure I don’t make the same mistakes.”

“Really?” Harry turned to look at her, intrigued. “But I’m curious. You always seem so prepared. I wonder what you’d see in the mirror. Please—just once.”

“Fine,” Scarlet sighed, stepping closer. She positioned herself behind Harry and looked into the mirror. In the reflection, she didn’t see herself as Scarlet, but as Akahime from her previous life, surrounded by her family, colleagues, and friends. They smiled at her with pride before waving goodbye, disappearing one by one. In the end, only Akahime remained. Slowly, her reflection morphed into Scarlet, the red-haired girl in battle gear.

“Did you see something nice?” Harry asked, curious.

“Sort of,” Scarlet said, her gaze leaving the mirror as nothing new appeared. “I saw Akahime and her friends. They said goodbye. Now all I see is myself - and you - just like any other mirror.”

“Then you must be the happiest person on earth.” A voice broke the silence.

Scarlet turned her head calmly, finding Professor Dumbledore sitting on one of the desks against the wall. Harry, in contrast, jumped up in shock, stammering, “Sorry, I—I didn’t see you, Professor.”

“I don’t need a cloak to become invisible,” Professor Dumbledore chuckled.

Scarlet didn’t apologise, but she gave a respectful bow, as always did when addressing staff. “Good evening, Professor Dumbledore. I’d like to report this mirror and suggest it be move to a more secure location, so no students will be harmed.”

So, he was waiting for us here, Scarlet mused. Well, not for me – he must’ve been waiting for Harry. Does this mirror have something to do with the story?

“I actually meant to inform you that the mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow,” Professor Dumbledore said warmly, observing Scarlet. “You’ve surprised me once again, Ms. Hong. This is the Mirror of Erised. It shows the deepest and most desperate desires of our hearts.” His gaze shifted to Harry. “That’s why, Harry, having never known your family, you see them gathered around you. And Ronald Weasley, always overshadowed by his brothers, sees himself standing along, the best of them all.”

“I had intended to ask Harry not to seek out this mirror again,” Professor Dumbledore continued, smiling kindly, “For men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they’ve seen or driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible. This mirror gives neither knowledge nor truth.” He glanced at Scarlet. “But since Ms. Hong has shown such caution, I trust will make sure Harry does not do so.”

Scarlet nodded, thought her mind was racing. He’s addressing me so formally, calling me ‘Ms. Hong, but’, but he calls Harry ‘Harry’...Does he dislike me or just being cautious with me? Or is Harry closer to him in a way Harry himself doesn’t realise? Was Harry’s father his apprentice? Wait - do wizards even use a master-apprentice system these days?

“Now,” The old wizard said, “why don’t we all head off to bed? It’s getting late, and sleep is important for growth.” He gave them a friendly wink.

Scarlet nodded, while Harry hesitated. “Um, Professor Dumbledore, can I ask you something?”

“Obviously, you have just done so,” Professor Dumbledore chuckled. “But you may ask me one more thing.”

“What do you see when you look into the mirror?”

“I?” Professor Dumbledore paused, the said with a smile, “I see myself holding a pair of thick, woollen socks.”

Harry looked surprised.

“One can never have enough socks,” Professor Dumbledore continued. “Another Christmas has come and gone, and I didn’t receive a single pair. People insist on giving me books.”

As Harry absorbed the unexpected answer, Scarlet’s voice brought him back. “Don’t worry, Professor. I’ll make a note of that, and you’ll received the finest socks in the world next Christmas.”

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

Professor Dumbledore was silent for a moment before giving a soft chuckle, “I shall look forward to those socks, Scarlet, if you don’t mind my using your first name.”

“It would be an honour for the greatest wizard to remember my name,” Scarlet smiled. “Goodnight, Professor.”

“Goodnight, Scarlet. And to you as well, Harry.”

“Goodnight,” Harry echoed, mimicking the bow Scarlet had given earlier before quickly following her out of the deserted classroom.

“Watch your steps. Keep it low and quiet,” Scarlet whispered as they walked.

“But it’s hard...” Harry muttered back.

“There’s a charm for that. Make sure you learn it...” she advised.

Their hushed voices echoed faintly in the hallway until they fell silent, leaving only Professor Dumbledore in the room with the mirror. He gave the mirror one a last glance before covering it with an old cloth.

Scarlet accompanied Harry all the way back to the Fat Lady’s portrait. Harry, feeling a bit embarrassed, mumbled, “It should be me seeing you back to your dorm.”

“I actually have a permission letter to stay out at night,” Scarlet said in response to Harry’s shocked expression. “As you’ve seen, I train with my spear at night, and Professor Sprout gave me a letter of excuse in case I’m late from my training. I’ve never needed to use it, but I suppose it’s work if Mr. Filch caught me roaming the halls since I reported it to him the day I got the letter.”

“That’s not fair...” Harry muttered.

“It is fair, because I’ve never misused it – until tonight.” Scarlet nudged Harry towards the dorm entrance. “You could apply for one too, but only if you had a good reason. And clearly, you don’t.”

“You’re being mean today,” Harry grumbled.

“And I’ll be even meaner if you keep dawdling in front of the door.” Scarlet raised an eyebrow, hands on her hips. “Off you go now, and don’t forget to send Mr. Black a letter about tonight.”

“Do I have to?” Harry hesitated.

“Yes, and I certain he won’t be mad at you,” Scarlet said, rolling her eyes. “That bold, reckless man? He’s probably like the Weasley twins, sneaking around the school at night countless times...Now hush and get moving.”

Harry mumbled about something under his breath before finally opening the dorm door with the password.

Though Scarlet couldn’t see him under the Invisibility Cloak, she could hear his breathing clear enough. After waiting a few minutes to ensure no other sounds lingered in the hallway, and to make sure Harry hadn’t tried sneaking out again, she finally retreated to her own dorm.

She kept an eye on Harry in the days following that night, ensuring the letters between him and Mr. Black were providing him with the support he needed. Once satisfied that all was well, she let her concerns rest.

Meanwhile, the gossip about the transfer student continued to circulate through Hogwarts, rivalling the upcoming Gryffindor vs. Hufflepuff Quidditch match in popularity.

“Her writing is still awful,” commented Maya, one of the students helping the transfer girl with her love letters. “And Cedric rejected her again. So, she’s finally decided to give up and become his fan instead - with the goal of being his best fan in the Cedric Diggory fan club.”

Scarlet looked up, surprised. “There’s a fan club for Cedric?”

“You didn’t know?” Amelia raised an eyebrow before nodding knowingly. “Oh, right, you’re too busy for that sort of thing.”

“And here I thought I’d gathered plenty of information about Hogwarts’ student body,” Scarlet thought for a moment, then shrugged. “Not that I’m planning to run for president or student union anyway.”

Amelia, continuing to polish her nails, smirked. “I’m just going to ignore whatever you said, because it’s probably some weird reference to your novel. Anyway, I’ve heard the transfer girl’s been annoying some of the other girls lately.”

“Why?” Maya asked. “Alexis is really nice, though sometimes she skips over things without thinking.”

“Apparently, some girls think she’s trying too hard to get attention,” Amelia replied, pausing to consider. “Haven’t you noticed how she’s been hanging around all the famous boys in Gryffindor?”

“Huh?” Maya looked puzzled. “I hadn’t noticed.”

“Well, ever since she arrived Hogwarts, she’s always been seen getting along with the Weasley twins and Lee Jordan. She also seems to be following Harry Potter and his two friends.” Amelia counted on her fingers. “Not to mention, her first target was Cedric, and before Cedric, it was Professor Snape. I mean, she’s bold, trying to impress that gloomy bat in Potions.”

Maya couldn’t think of anything to say, while Scarlet simply shrugged. “None of my business. I don’t think it’s wrong for a girl to want attention, as long as she doesn’t hurt anyone. And for the record, I’m against school bullying.”

Amelia’s eyes widened. “Are you saying you’d step in if someone bullied her?”

“Correction: I’d step in if anyone got bullied. Even if it’s someone from another House,” Scarlet replied. She had stuck to this principle since her time as a discipline team member at Caster Academy in her previous life. Though not a teacher, she had served as staff and handled numerous bullying cases during her decade of service before eventually shifting focus to supporting the caster association in cleaning up after incidents.

“I think I did a decent job of persuading Malfoy and his gang. The Slytherins are better behaved than I expected.” Scarlet noticed the strange looks on Maya and Amelia’s faces. “What?”

Amelia stopped polishing her nails, looking at Scarlet in disbelief. “You persuaded Malfoy?”

“If I’m not mistaken, yes.” Scarlet absentmindedly twirled the feather of her quill. “I just reminded him how a proper, elegant Slytherin should behave. His attitude toward Harry was completely out of control before. It was disgraceful for him to act like that.”

“No wonder the Slytherins don’t seem as bad as we’ve heard - at least the first years,” Maya muttered. “The Slytherins are notorious for their sarcastic remarks and sneers when they’re around us Hufflepuffs. The seniors warned us, but I thought they were exaggerating...and it was because of you.”

Scarlet frowned. “I doubt I have that much influence over an entire House.”

“But now that I think about it, they do seem more cautious whenever you’re around,” Amelia added, reflecting.

“Whatever.” Scarlet dismissed the conversation with a shrug.

“By the way, I heard Snape is going to be the referee for our Quidditch match against Gryffindor,” Amelia said, returning to her nail polish. “It’s going to be a rough game with that gloomy bat watching over it.”

An idea struck Scarlet, and she immediately began brainstorming. She grabbed her quill and started scribbling furiously in her notebook, quickly filling the pages with strange characters.

Amelia and Maya exchanged glances and shrugged. They were used to Scarlet diving into deep thought and suddenly scribbling down incomprehensive notes. The long accepted that this was just something novelist did when inspiration struck them.

Little did they know that this time, Scarlet wasn’t jotting down ideas for her next novel. She was, in fact, plotting something far more devious...