Chapter 16: Pensieves and Promises
"Professor Dumbledore!" Olivia said, announcing herself in the Headmaster's Office.
"Yes, Professor Green?" Dumbledore asked, standing up from his desk.
"I just caught these three breaking into my office!" Olivia shoved Claire forward along with Jae and Tulip.
"Could this have anything to do with the Wampus Cat that got loose in the courtyard recently?" Dumbledore eyed Barnaby, who was standing off to the side waving at Claire.
"That wouldn't surprise me, Professor," Olivia assumed. "Mr. Lee was hiding under an Invisibility Cloak near the courtyard, holding a Niffler out to attract the Wampus Cat. Luckily, I was able to subdue the cat with a Sleeping Charm before he could hurt anyone. Kettleburn then took the cat back to the Care of Magical Creatures enclosure. So now that we're all caught up, I'll let you decide what to do with these troublemakers."
"But we didn't do anything wrong!" Claire said as she stepped forward. "We only wanted to retrieve Professor Green's memories, which were in a box hidden behind a painting in her office that she didn't know about beforehand."
"Professor Green, is this true?" Dumbledore looked at Olivia.
Reluctantly, Olivia nodded. "I'm afraid I didn't know about these memories until they showed me. But I'm not sure if they're mine or not."
"So where did they come from?" Dumbledore wondered.
It was then that Claire had an idea. "Before Professor Green occupied her office, Rakepick resided in there. And I'll bet Rakepick was the one who hid those memories in the office with the intention of retrieving them later. That's why she tried to break out of Azkaban."
Dumbledore gave Claire a doubtful look. "Can you prove that was Rakepick's motivation?"
Immediately, Claire nodded. "When I ran into her in Azkaban Prison, she mentioned needing to get 'the box'. I think she was referring to the box of Olivia's missing memories."
"Missing?" Dumbledore gave Claire a skeptical look. "How do you know this box of memories belongs to Olivia to begin with?"
"Every single memory vial has the initials 'O. G.' on it," Claire repeated. "That has to stand for Olivia Green's name. And when I questioned Olivia about her time in Hogwarts, there were contradictions in what she remembers compared to what I know from other people including Duncan's ghost."
"That doesn't matter!" Olivia said. "It doesn't change the fact that you and your friends broke into my office and let a Wampus Cat loose on school grounds, which could have hurt someone!"
"Professor Green is right," Dumbledore stated. "These actions cannot be overlooked. I'm afraid I must consider expulsion for all of you."
Claire couldn't believe what she heard Dumbledore say. "You can't be serious!"
"Haven't you forgotten how many times Claire Krystal has saved our school?" Tulip said, finally speaking up.
"Yeah!" Jae added. "If it weren't for her, the school would be way too cursed for anyone to attend anymore."
"No, this whole theft was my idea," Claire admitted. "If you're going to punish someone, Professor Dumbledore, then punish me."
Dumbledore paused. "I suppose there are other factors to consider. The dangers posed by the Cursed Vaults and 'R' had nothing to do with you, Miss Krystal, yet you risked your life and those of your friends to thwart them time and again. Therefore, none of you will be expelled. But your parents will hear about this incident."
While Tulip groaned, Claire asked, "Does that mean you'll tell my real father?"
"Of course I will," Dumbledore said. "He has just as much of a right to know what happened as do your mother and stepfather. Is there a reason I shouldn't tell him?"
Claire didn't know how to put it, so she said, "I'll explain later."
"Very well," Dumbledore agreed. "Now while I won't ask any of you to serve detention, I will require Miss Krystal to promise to behave as a model student until graduation. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Professor," Claire said, lowering her head.
"As for the memories, I will allow Professor Green to look at them using my Pensieve if she wants to," Dumbledore said to Olivia.
"Thank you, Professor," Oliva said. "But I need some time to think about it."
"I will have the box of memory vials brought here to my office in case you should change your mind," Dumbledore said. "You all may go now."
While Jae, Tulip, and Barnaby left, Claire was about to join them when Olivia grabbed her arm. "I want to see you later in my office, alone."
Following a silent dinner where Claire could barely touch anything from the immense anxiety she was feeling, she reluctantly went to the Defense Against the Dark Arts Classroom where Olivia was grading papers at her desk.
"Professor," Claire said. "I wanted to say that…I'm sorry for what happened, and I promise I will never break into your office ever again."
Olivia put down her pen and had a troubled expression. "Something's not right…."
"With what?" Claire asked.
"My memories," Olivia said. "I thought about what you said, regarding how Duncan died. While my memory of his death is different from the way you described it, your description seemed like the kind of thing Duncan would do. He wasn't the type to act on impulse. Now I can't shake the feeling that you're onto something. What do you know about tampering with memories, Claire?"
"I learned about Obliviate in Charms on Valentine's Day last year," Claire said.
"Yes, that spell can erase memories," Olivia recalled. "But creating false memories is a more difficult task. If those vials in that box you found contains my real memories…I don't know if I would like to see them."
"Because you're worried you might find out that you really did work for 'R'?"
"Are they as bad as everyone says?"
Claire hesitated to answer. "If you had asked me last year, I would've said, 'yes'. But as my group has uncovered more information, 'R' has become more of an enigma."
"That's not very comforting," Olivia remarked.
"But regardless of what 'R''s true motivations are, those memory vials might be the only way to find out what really happened in the past."
"How do I know if the truth is worth the price?"
To be continued…