Lance and Eve found themselves back on the bridge leading to Hogwarts. It was noticeably warmer than it had been during the movie, a sign of how long it had been since the movie plot.
“Looks to be summer time” Eve commented
“Yes” Lance agreed “So time does not flow evenly between the lobby and the movie worlds”
Without another word the duo made their way to the castle. Even from a distance they could feel a difference about the school. Without the students and staff it didn't feel as alive. Lance was beginning the wonder if they would be the only ones in the school when a figure appeared from the main entrance. Dumbledore walked slowly towards the duo, his eyes twinkling slightly.
“Welcome back” the old wizard greeted “I was wondering if you would return”
“Sorry for our abrupt departure” Lance began “we were called on another mission and we”
Lance was silenced by a wave of Dumbledore’s hand.
“Don’t fret” the wizard said “I was made aware that your team would depart as quickly as you arrived”
“You were made aware of us?” Lance asked tentatively. He wanted to better understand how the movie worlds worked in relation to the players. This information could help him in future when dealing with movie characters as well as planning for entering movies.
“That I was” Dumbledore nodded “I’m not sure what the being was who told me but I have never experienced such power before”
“We just call it God” Lance said with a shrug. No one on the team knew exactly what God was or where it came from. It was on Lance’s list of what he wanted to learn but he felt it was more important to work out how best to survive the movie worlds.
“God” Dumbledore mused “I’ve seen many things in my long years but there will always be more to discover”
“Would you be interested in trying to learn about God?” Lance questioned
“No no” the headmaster shook his head “My time for hunting new discoveries is long gone. No i’d rather they find me from now on”
The wizard let out a chuckle and seemed lost in thought for a moment. Lance gave a disappointed smile. He had hoped for a moment they could recruit Dumbledore onto the team. There was an item in the exchange system that allowed for a movie character to join a team. It was a hefty price but the return of having someone like Dumbledore joining would be well worth it.
“Sure you wouldn't want one last adventure?” Lance asked one more time.
“I’m sure i’ll have a few more adventures in my life” Dumbledore said “but I want them to be here taking care of my students”
“Well if you have any students you think might be interested” Lance continued “We’re hoping to stop by regularly. We’ll be more than happy to take one on the team”
Even if they were not as powerful as Dumbledore it's still someone who would have the equivalent of a B rank bloodline added to the team.
“I will keep that in mind” Dumbledore nodded “So what brings you here on this trip”
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
“First priority was to check on the school” Lance explained “We didn’t get a chance to make sure all of the basilisks were wiped out”
“Ah yes the basilisks” Dumbledore shook his head “they are a nasty bunch. I can't thank you enough for saving the school from that infestation. Thankfully we were able to prepare ourselves with the book you left open in your room”
“Glad it could help,” Lance said with a smirk. He didn't actually have anything to do with that, it was probably left open by accident. Nevertheless he was happy to hear the wizards had some kind of warning.
“That it did” the headmaster exclaimed “we were able to cure the petrified students quickly and prepare a team of teachers to handle any that remained in the chamber”
“Were there any left?” Lance wondered
“One juvenile” Dumbledore answered “our Gamekeeper has been taking care of it until a more suitable home can be found”
“That’s good,” Lance answered halfway honest. He was happy no one else got hurt but he had also wanted to test if he would still be rewarded for killing one after the mission was over.
“As we were searching the chamber we found remains of some of your team” Dumbledore said, taking a solemn tone “We waited awhile to see if you would come for them but we ended up having to bury them in the nearby village”
“Thank you for that” Lance said completely honest “I think that's the best place for them”
“Along with the bodies we found a large amount of items” the headmaster continued “Some of which we had to dispose of due to they being banned on school grounds”
Lance winced slightly at the news, he should've guessed the guns would have been an issue.
“We understand” the teen said “Could we get back whatever remains?”
“Of course” Dumbledore said with a chuckle. The elderly wizard reached into one of the folds in his robe and pulled out a grey wand. It was short only ten inches long, instead of wood it looked to be made of stone and had a blue gem on the base.
“What is this?” Lance asked as he took the offered wand. It was heavier than expected but still easy to carry.
“That is a storage wand” Dumbledore said with a smile “It's enchanted to hold a large volume of items without weighing down the owner. You can have this one as a thanks for helping my school”
Lance looked at the stone wand with awe, storage items were actually high up on his list of exchanges to make. All magical ones cost a D rank reward minimum.
“How do I work it?” Lance asked
“Just say the word Cellarium and think about the item you are trying to store or retrieve from the wand” Dumbledore explained
Lance thought about the rapier he had Logan exchange before the movie.
“Cellarium” he said and the thin sword appeared in the air in front of him, before falling to the ground.
“Here’s a list of everything we put in there” Dumbledore said, handing the teen a piece of parchment “You can thank professor McGonagall for the list”
Lance thanked the headmaster for the gift as he took the parchment. Both parchment and wand were then given to Eve for review.
“Snape also wanted me to talk with you personally Lance” Dumbledore said
“About the list I gave him?” Lance assumed
“Yes” the headmaster nodded “He heard back from his contacts in China and confirmed he could get everything on the list. Though i’m unsure how willing he’ll be to work with you after your sudden departure”
“That's alright,” Lance said dismissively “It might be awhile until i can use the ingredients anyway.”
The reminder of his list and possible deal with Snape reminded Lance of the losses the team suffered in the last movie. The list he gave to Snape had been a recipe Lance exchanged from God for cultivating pills. The lowest and cheapest from Lance could find in the system. He had been hopeful that he or possibly a human creation would be able to eventually learn the techniques to make the pills. If his guess was right even the weakest form could possibly enhance the team’s growth. He had been especially excited after Claire’s evaluation, her experience could've saved a lot of time. Unfortunately she was no longer around. Now his options were to learn them himself or set up a human creation to learn them. Either way these would take time.
“Was there anything else you wanted to do while you're here?” Dumbledore asked
“Well” Lance let out a nervous laugh “we could actually use a ride”