Harry and his friends had already left, and there was only Bryan left in the office. The candlelight flickered, casting eerie shadows on the wall that swayed with the gentle breeze. He silently watched the monitoring wall, where he could see the movements of the students in the school. He didn't look away until they returned to their respective common rooms, safe and sound.
The weather in early March was no longer the kind of bone-chilling cold that made him shiver, but the fire in the fireplace was still so vigorous, as if it wanted to warm up the whole castle. The room was slightly hot, and Bryan felt sweat on his forehead. He walked to the window and opened it, letting in some fresh air. His eyes wandered aimlessly over the dark landscape. He didn't know why, but he suddenly felt that this office, which was still comfortable to live in, was so quiet that it made him restless.
The thousand-year-old castle still stood silently on the highland, overlooking the vast land. The nearby forest, which had witnessed countless past glories and brilliance, was now shrouded in darkness. It seemed to hide many secrets and mysteries, some of which were better left undiscovered. As Bryan gazed at the rolling forest, he suddenly thought of Lord Voldemort, who was willing to tear apart his immensely powerful soul for the sake of achieving immortality.
"Immortality?"
Bryan chuckled with self-mockery. He knew how absurd and futile that pursuit was. Since the birth of the universe, it had been relentlessly heading towards extinction. Life in the river of time was like a fleeting spark, soon to be extinguished by the endless night. In this vast cosmos, what could stand side by side with eternity?
For muggles or wizards, the only companions throughout their short lives were solitude and death. Bryan convinced himself of this fact. He had no close friends, no family, no love. He only had his ambition and his power.
He lost interest for a while, Bryan closed the window and turned around, but at the moment he lifted his foot, his figure stopped and his eyebrows suddenly locked. He felt a surge of magic in the air, as if something had disturbed the balance of nature. In the invisible world of magic, the magic that resides in space and leisurely sways like a sea of clouds is suddenly attracted by some inexplicable force and rushes into Bryan's body. It is like a dark pit suddenly appearing under the calm lake surface, and a whirlpool appears on the water surface.
Bryan's handsome face was slightly painful, and his pale purple eyes turned into swirling whirlpools, trying to absorb magic.
"What are you plotting, Dumbledore?"
In the headmaster's office, Snape leaned his hands on the desk, staring at Dumbledore, who was sitting in the armchair with his fingers touching. He tried to use Legilimency on him, hoping to find out what he was hiding behind his calm and gentle facade. But he met with a strong resistance from Dumbledore's Occlumency skills. He could not see anything from the abyss-like blue eyes that seemed to know everything.
"Oh, how interesting, Severus,"
Dumbledore responded calmly with a smile, "You actually tried to use Legilimency on me, but please forgive my immodesty, even if I grow old and lose my teeth and can't eat candy anymore, you probably won't succeed."
"Not only Bryan is suspicious, I am also very curious about this question, Dumbledore!"
Snape's cheeks twitched, he slightly retreated his body, his eyes were no longer so rude, but his tone was still gloomy, "According to my understanding of you, whether it is Bryan monitoring the young wizards in the school, or the things he proposed to let the young wizards deal with in class, you would not agree.
But you agreed to them all. Dumbledore, when did you become so tolerant? Last year when Quirrell was in this school, you were more wary of him than Bryan!"
"Severus, do you want to discuss with me the difference between Quirrell and Bryan?"
Dumbledore asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.
"You are avoiding the important and dwelling on the trivial, Dumbledore!"
Snape snapped back angrily, "Your tolerance for Bryan is not your usual style at all. Except for you plotting something, I can't think of any possibility!"
Fawkes was very familiar with this kind of quarrel that happened every three to five times. He was sleeping soundly on his perch, and didn't even open his eyes. He opened his wings full of colorful light and skillfully stuffed his head into his wings. After a light chirp, he continued his sweet dream. He knew that Dumbledore and Snape had a complicated relationship, and that they often argued but also cared for each other.
"Severus."
Dumbledore's old face moved his silver-white eyebrows and beard, his tone was a bit helpless, he was about to explain something, but suddenly something caught his attention. He felt a surge of magic in the air, as if. He recognized the source of the magic as Bryan, He wondered what he was up to, and decided to take a look. So he closed his mouth and walked quickly to the window under Snape's puzzled gaze. Through the glass window pane with carved frames, he frowned and stared at the boundless darkness. Silence suddenly fell, and silence enveloped this uniquely styled office. For a while, no one spoke. Snape watched Dumbledore's back with suspicion and curiosity, wondering what he was doing and what he had found. He felt a bit annoyed that Dumbledore didn't trust him enough to share his thoughts with him.
"Amazing"
After what seemed like ten minutes, Dumbledore's slightly furrowed brows finally relaxed again, and his azure eyes held a hint of lightness. He muttered in a voice only he could hear, "Without a doubt, since the time of the four great founders, over a thousand years, you're probably the most outstanding student at Hogwarts, Bryan." He saw glimpses of himself, his past and his future, some of which were disturbing and dangerous.
The turbulent magic returned to calm, and Bryan let out a long breath. When he came to his senses, he noticed that both his woolen shirt and his wizarding robe were soaked through from the brief ten minutes! He felt exhausted but exhilarated, as if he had just experienced a breakthrough in his magic.
"What is this?" Bryan wore a ridiculous smile. "Have I had an enlightenment?"
For wizards, after the initial magic riot period in their childhood years, the magic in their bodies enters a state of steady growth as they age. Unless they take some potions with great side effects or perform dangerous modifications on their bodies. Ordinary magic supplements can only make your body's magic increase slightly. And after the effect of the medicine is over, it will be immediately beaten back to its original shape. Perhaps it was because the inheritance of wizards had been interrupted. Or maybe no one had ever summed up the knack for artificially interfering with magic growth.
In short, every opportunity to achieve a leap in magic growth is rare. Bryan knew this very well. He had spent years studying magic theory and practice, trying to find ways to enhance his magic power and control
"Could it be that I can't stand loneliness anymore and really need to find a partner for myself?" Bryan shook his head and smiled as he recalled the rare magic growth process that had just entered because of his mood change. He knew that loneliness was inevitable for someone like him, He didn't need anyone else to understand him or support him. He didn't need anyone else to love him or be loved by him. He only needed himself.
"No, love is a distraction !" Bryan said to himself calmly. He didn't care about romance or intimacy. He only cared about efficiency and results. He had no time or interest for trivial matters.
Suddenly, Bryan's eyelashes moved. He sensed that someone seemed to be peeping at him under the dark curtain. He stared at the dark window outside and looked at where the peeping feeling came from. He saw a pair of blue eyes, shining like stars in the night sky. He recognized them as Dumbledore's eyes, the eyes of the only wizard he respected and feared.
After a long time, Bryan's condensed eyes finally thawed. He took out a teapot from the shelf above the fireplace and held up a cup of steaming tea and saluted outside the window.
"To the lone wanderer–"Bryan laughed softly, and then drank the hot tea in the cup He knew that Dumbledore was also a lonely man, a man who had sacrificed much for the greater good, a man who had secrets and regrets.