Thomas, Lily, Snape, Alice, James and Lucius were now standing in the Trophy room as they all looked at each other.
Alice then spoke. "What did I am Snape to get this, we just did our presentation of our Project and then did noting".
Lucius scoffed, crossing his arms. "Collateral damage, I suppose. You were near the blast zone, so you got dragged down with us."
Snape narrowed his eyes. "It's not a blast zone, Malfoy. You and Potter nearly shattered the entire window. Some of us were clinging to life."
James shot a look at Lucius. "Hey, you started it with your smug little smirk and that comment about Quidditch being for broom-swinging barbarians."
Lucius rolled his eyes. "Because it's true."
Lily sighed and looked at Thomas. "You doing okay? You almost fell two floors."
Thomas gave a tired smile. "I've had worse. At least this time it wasn't a stink bomb."
The door creaked open as Filch stepped in, dragging a broom behind him. "You lot are going to polish every trophy in this room... by hand. No magic. No talking. No whining."
Thomas looked around and whispered to Lily. "Think we can use Qi instead?"
Lily gave him a flat look. "Do you want another week of detention?"
Thomas sighed. "Fine. Manual labor it is."
As Filch left, slamming the door behind him, the room fell into a heavy, awkward silence.
Lucius examined a particularly tarnished shield and muttered, "This is beneath us."
James glared at him. "Then feel free to leave. No one's stopping you."
"Don't tempt me," Lucius snapped.
Thomas rolled his eyes and grabbed a rag. "Can we just get this over with before someone throws another hex?"
Lily, ever the peacekeeper, stepped between James and Lucius. "Let's just split the room. Three to a side. No fights. No drama. Agreed?"
"Agreed," Alice said quickly, nudging Snape forward.
Snape and Lucius went to one side with Alice reluctantly following. That left Thomas, Lily, and James on the other.
James kept glancing over at Thomas, finally asking, "So... what was that thing you did with your sword in Defense class?"
Thomas wiped a dusty plaque. "Something not taught in this school."
James tilted his head. "You trying to be mysterious on purpose, or is that just your personality?"
Thomas smirked. "Little of column A, little of column B."
Lily elbowed him. "Be nice."
Across the room, Snape leaned closer to Alice and whispered, "I swear I'm going to kill James for dragging me into this."
Alice chuckled. "You and Lucius both."
Lucius, without looking up, replied dryly, "I'm standing right here, you know."
Then, a low creaking sound echoed through the Trophy Room.
Everyone froze.
"What was that?" Alice whispered.
Thomas stood up straighter. "Please don't tell me this room is haunted too."
As if on cue, one of the shields on the wall fell with a loud clang, startling everyone.
Snape narrowed his eyes. "That's not the wind."
Thomas slowly pulled his sword from his side. "So... detention and a ghost problem. Great."
Sybill looked up as she spoke. "Look, there is a hole where the shield fell".
Snape moved as he took a quick look. "It's small, but not small enough for a finger; maybe a key or something in this room?".
Mes stepped over and crouched beside Snape. "You think this is one of those secret Hogwarts passage things?"
Snape glanced at him with a frown. "Possibly. Or it's just a hole."
Thomas walked up and knelt, inspecting the gap more carefully. "No… look. The stone around it isn't natural. There are markings—runes, I think. Faint, but there."
Lily bent down beside him. "So... some kind of mechanism?"
Lucius folded his arms, clearly intrigued despite himself. "Typical Hogwarts. You get detention and end up unlocking ancient secrets."
As the group fanned out across the room, Thomas felt something strange. His Qi stirred faintly—almost drawn toward the spot where the shield had fallen. A low hum, barely perceptible to the others, resonated through his bones.
He turned and muttered, "There is something here…"
Lily then spoke. "So".
Thomas looked as he spoke. "Keep cleaning"?
"Hah?" Everyone said together.
"Keep cleaning, until we find something in the Trophy room that will help us".
Lucius raised an eyebrow. "You mean to tell me your plan is manual labour until a secret reveals itself?"
Thomas stood up and grabbed a rag. "Yup. Classic Hogwarts logic. Touch enough dusty junk, and eventually, something magical reacts."
Snape sighed but didn't argue. "He's not wrong."
Lily shook her head with a small smile. "Only you would think cleaning counts as exploration."
James scoffed. "You all do what you want. I'm finding that secret passage first and getting out of here."
Sybill twirled a feather duster thoughtfully. "I wonder if the ghosts ever come here…"
Everyone paused and slowly turned to her.
Alice blinked. "Please don't summon Peeves."
As they resumed cleaning, Thomas's Qi began to stir again—this time stronger—whenever he got closer to a dusty, unassuming shelf tucked into the back corner. The trophies here were older, tarnished, and less organized. His instincts itched.
He glanced toward the others and muttered to himself, "Let's see what you're hiding."
As they were cleaning one of the Trophies, Thomas grabbed another trophy and saw the name. "Tom Riddle". He puts me back. "Nope".
Snape noticed Thomas's reaction. "What? What did you see?"
Thomas kept cleaning like nothing happened. "Nothing. Just a name I don't feel like dealing with."
Lily raised an eyebrow and walked over, glancing at the trophy Thomas had quickly put back. She read aloud, "Tom Marvolo Riddle… Awarded for Special Services to the School."
Alice blinked. "That name sounds familiar."
Lucius narrowed his eyes. "It should. He's a legend in some pure-blood circles—graduated as one of the top students ever. The Head Boy of his year."
Thomas muttered under his breath. "Yeah… a real role model."
James frowned. "Wait, I think Professor Black mentioned him once during Potions. Said he was his favourite student."
Sybill, still dusting a nearby plaque, looked up with eerie timing. "There's something wrong with that name. It... hums."
Everyone went quiet for a second.
Snape turned to Thomas. "Why did you react like that?"
Thomas hesitated. "Just a hunch. That name… gives me bad vibes."
The group exchanged uneasy looks, then returned to cleaning—but now with a heightened sense of awareness, like the room itself was holding its breath.
"Hey Kids doing your job well"
All of them screamed at once as they turned there only to find it was Professor Duskbane still wearing his blindfold but now wearing a normal outfit and not a suit
Thomas clutched his chest. "Professor Duskbane, do you have to appear like a ghost every time?"
Lily gasped. "Merlin's beard, you nearly gave us a heart attack!"
Duskbane gave them a sharp grin. "Well, I am a Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. If you're scared by a little entrance, how are you going to deal with an actual Banshee?"
Snape muttered, "I'd rather deal with a Banshee. At least they don't sneak up with cheerful greetings."
Alice looked at his new outfit. "You're not in your usual suit today?"
He chuckled. "Even I have to do laundry, Miss Alice. Besides, detention is less about flair and more about sweat."
Lucius crossed his arms. "We're in here cleaning because of them," he pointed at James and Thomas, "and now we're being haunted."
James rolled his eyes. "Oh come on, it was just one spell."
"One very loud spell that nearly sent Sybill and Thomas out a window," Lily said, not amused.
Professor Duskbane held up his hands. "Now, now. Let's not point fingers—unless you're planning to cast a hex with them. But I am here to check your progress. And…"
He walked over to the Riddle trophy, fingers gliding over the polished surface. His blindfold-covered face turned slightly toward Thomas.
"…I sense something was disturbed."
Thomas stayed silent.
Duskbane tapped the trophy once, the sound echoing louder than it should have. "This one always hums just a little too loud for a school award."
The group stood frozen.
Duskbane straightened up and smiled. "Well, carry on. If you find anything odd, call me. Or don't. Surprises make life interesting."
He turned and walked out—vanishing before even reaching the door.
Everyone stared after him for a long moment.
James finally broke the silence. "Okay. He's cool. But also terrifying."
Thomas mumbled, "Yeah. Welcome to my every day."
Lucius then spoke. "So, um, you aren't leaving yet".
Sybill touched Professor Duskbane as then instead of him being there or was a cardboard cutout of him. "When did he, how did he?"
Thomas sighed, rubbing his temples. "Of course. Of course, he left a bloody cardboard cutout."
Snape crouched to inspect the fake. "It's... enchanted. Lightly. Just enough to seem real until touched."
Lily blinked. "Wait, he vanished mid-step. How do you even do that without anyone noticing?"
James muttered, "I'm starting to think he's not human."
Alice crossed her arms. "I mean, his gloves cast spells, he appeared from a music box on day one, and now he's pulling disappearing acts with decoys. He's either a master magician or just... Duskbane."
Sybill was still wide-eyed. "I touched him. I swear he was solid. Warm."
Thomas chuckled darkly. "He probably made the cutout feel warm, just to mess with us."
Lucius stared at the spot Duskbane had vanished from. "One day, I'm going to learn how he does that."
Thomas smirked, walking back to the mess of trophies. "Get in line, Malfoy. I'm ahead of you."
Snape straightened and looked around. "Well, as far as distractions go, that was impressive. But it doesn't change the fact we're still stuck here."
Lily shrugged and picked up a rag. "Come on then. Let's find whatever he 'sensed.' There's more going on in here than just ancient dust."
Thomas looked back at the Tom Riddle trophy and narrowed his eyes.
"Yeah," he said quietly. "A lot more."
As the group continued cleaning, the atmosphere slowly shifted from irritation to cautious curiosity. The echo of their footsteps and the occasional clink of metal were the only sounds in the Trophy Room.
Snape was polishing a dusty plaque when he muttered, "This one's warped… the name's been scratched out."
Alice moved over. "Maybe someone didn't want to be remembered."
Lily, cleaning the wall where the shield had fallen, squinted at a faint outline behind it. "Hey, Thomas… you said 'keep cleaning until we find something,' right?"
Thomas looked over, "Yeah?"
"Then get over here." She tapped the stone wall. "This part feels different. The dust wipes clean easier, and there's a faint line, like something's... carved."
Thomas walked over and placed his hand on the stone. "Definitely different material." He focused his Qi, letting it flow into his fingers slightly. A soft shimmer pulsed through the stone.
Suddenly, a small inscription appeared, glowing faintly:
"Awarded to M.O. for services rendered in pursuit of silence."
James read it aloud. "That's ominous."
Lucius scowled. "M.O.? Who the bloody hell is that?"
Sybill tilted her head. "What kind of award is given for silence?"
Snape frowned. "More importantly… what exactly was silenced?"
Alice pulled a box from under a pile of plaques. It was old, covered in cobwebs, and sealed with a strange green wax.
Lily narrowed her eyes. "Well. That wasn't here before."
Thomas stared at the seal. It wasn't any Hogwarts house crest. In fact, it looked oddly... serpentine.
"This night's getting stranger by the second," he said, then turned to the others. "Do we open it?"
Lucius looked at the mark as he spoke. "Azure Dragon".
Thomas looked as he spoke. "You know this Symbol?"
Lucius looked as he spoke. "It is part of the Chinese Magic School one of this many Groups"
Thomas looked at him as she spoke. "Groups not houses".
Lucius looked at him as he spoke. "Yes, the other 3 are, The White Tiger, The Vermilion Birdand Black Tortoise".
Alice raised an eyebrow. "Wait—those are real? I thought those were just legends or—like, ancient magical beasts."
Lucius gave a short nod. "They're both. Each represents an elemental and directional force. At the Chinese Magic School, students are sorted into these groups instead of houses, based on their affinity."
Thomas narrowed his eyes. "Azure Dragon… that's the East, right? Wood element, growth, balance?"
Lucius looked mildly impressed. "Exactly. Impressive, Lazarus."
Sybill blinked. "So why would a sealed box from a Chinese magic group be in Hogwarts' Trophy Room?"
Snape, who had been quietly inspecting the box's edges, muttered, "Unless someone brought it here... someone from that school."
Lily folded her arms. "And left it in the one room where no one ever looks closely."
Thomas crouched beside the box, tracing the wax seal. "It's not broken. Whatever's inside… hasn't been touched in years."
James finally spoke, glancing between them all. "So. Do we open it? Or report it to a professor?"
Lucius gave him a flat look. "Oh yes, let's tell a professor we found a sealed box with a possibly forbidden symbol during detention, in a room we're supposed to be cleaning."
James shrugged. "Fair."
Thomas stood. "We open it. But carefully. If it's sealed like this, it's either dangerous… or valuable."
He drew a small blade, not his usual sword, but a short enchanted letter opener from his robe. Qi glowed faintly around his fingers as he began to slowly cut through the wax.
The wax split with a soft hiss, and the box clicked open.
Inside was a folded scroll, aged but preserved with magic. On its cover: more Eastern characters and a small emblem in the corner shaped like a coiled dragon around a sword.
Thomas felt his heart skip.
He recognized that symbol. It wasn't from the Azure Dragon school.
It was from a long-lost Sword Sect—one he had read about in his past life's cultivation novels.
His voice was quiet. "This… might've been left here for a reason."
Lucius then looked at a Box, and he found another thing, a small round object that looked like a Snitch but different, as he looked at it. "I think we found the key".
Thomas glanced over at Lucius, who was carefully holding the small round object. It shimmered faintly in the light—gold, with runes etched into its wings, which were folded tight like a locked mechanism.
Snape leaned in. "That's… not a Snitch."
Lily tilted her head. "Looks like one, but smaller. More intricate."
Lucius turned the object in his hand. "It's not for flying. Look—there's a symbol here. Same as the one near the hole in the wall."
Sybill gasped softly. "You mean… it fits the hole?"
Thomas stepped closer, eyes narrowing. "It's not a key in the traditional sense. It's… a trigger."
Lucius nodded slowly. "Exactly. Magical locks in the East aren't always just about unlocking doors. Sometimes, they unlock… knowledge. Or traps."
Thomas gave a dry chuckle. "Great. That's comforting."
Alice stepped forward. "So… what do we do? Try it?"
Thomas looked at everyone before saying, "We insert it—but carefully. Be ready to move in case something activates."
Lucius moved to the wall where the small indent was, the one Snape had pointed out earlier. He held the sphere steady, lining the symbol up.
With a soft click, the object slid in perfectly.
The wall gave a low, echoing rumble.
A piece of stone shifted—and then retracted, revealing a hidden alcove behind the trophy case.
Inside was a pedestal, and resting atop it… was a glowing jade amulet, pulsing gently with a pale green light.
Thomas whispered, "This is getting way more complicated than just detention."
Snape muttered, "What is that thing?"
Lucius said quietly, "Power. Ancient. Maybe forbidden."
Thomas stepped into the alcove. "And now it's our responsibility."
To be continued
Hope people like this Ch and give me Power Stones