The circle remains unbroken as Iris and Tessa exchange hurried whispers across its boundary. Beyond Tessa, the wall-bound shadow, a tall, faceless shadow-being with ragged edges and dim silver eyes ripples, and the corridor twists their voices into hollow echoes.
Tessa Vale
Before the charm changed, I saw a staircase folding sideways, with windows showing stars beneath the castle. That cannot be part of Hogwarts I know.
Tessa presses one hand against the pale rune nearest her, careful not to disturb its pattern. A black ripple crosses the wall whenever she says the word she remembers.
Tessa Vale
Then something instructed me: “Turn the castle inward, and let the buried door remember.” The last words come out warped, like the shadow is swallowing them.
The shadow stays pressed behind the circle, unable to cross the pale boundary. Through the archway, Desdemona’s dark-red shield still shelters the threshold, while Yuffie, Professor Loen, and Lyla remain beyond it.
Tessa Vale
I heard another voice repeating the instruction, but it was not the thing in the wall. It sounded young. Almost like a student whispering from inside the stone.
Tessa Vale
Iris, I can remember more if you keep me talking. Ask quickly, before the circle forgets which way is out.
The runes chime once beneath Tessa’s hand. The shadow’s ripples tighten into a listening shape, and the silver cut on her cheek begins to glow faintly.
✓ Quest Accepted
Convince Tessa that Iris is trying to help
✓ Quest Accepted
Identify the student voice inside the stone
“I ask Tessa what else the student voice said”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled -1)
Iris Evergreen
What else did the student voice say, Tessa? Anything that could tell us who they are or where they were hiding?
Tessa Vale
It said, “The girl with the silver eyes will open what the teachers cannot.” Then it whispered, “Do not trust the woman behind the red ward.”
Tessa’s face tightens as the memory surfaces. The black ripple behind her bends toward the threshold, and the red shield beyond the archway answers with a faint, warning pulse.
Tessa Vale
I do not know who it meant by the girl, Iris. But the warning was about Desdemona. I am sorry. I needed the truth more than I needed your trust.
The circle chimes, and a second memory settles into place: the student’s voice came from below the folding staircase, speaking through stone rather than from within the chamber. Tessa has given Iris the clue, but her suspicion of Desdemona now hangs between them.
Tessa Vale
If you want me to keep answering, promise me you will not let Desdemona decide what happens to me alone. I will owe you the rest of what I remember.
“I promise Tessa I will protect her choices”
SUCCESS (Good Diplomacy, rolled +3)
Iris Evergreen
I promise I will protect your choices, Tessa. Desdemona will not decide what happens to you alone.
Tessa Vale
Then I believe you. I will keep answering, and I will tell you everything I remember.
The pale circle loosens beneath Tessa’s hand without breaking. Its runes turn toward Iris, opening a narrow, safe path through the ring while the wall-bound shadow recoils against the wall.
Tessa Vale
The student said the folding staircase begins beneath the east foundation. A door below it bears three marks, and the middle one is false.
The silver cut on Tessa’s cheek dims. Beyond her, the wall-bound shadow’s faceless head tilts toward the newly opened path, but the circle’s light holds firm.
Tessa Vale
The false mark is the one that listens. Do not speak near it. The real door opens when someone touches the left mark and remembers the sky below.
Tessa steps through the opening toward Iris, safely beyond the circle at last. The shadow remains trapped behind the fading runes, while the clue points deeper beneath Hogwarts.
Quest Complete
Convince Tessa that Iris is trying to help
Skill Upgrade: Diplomacy Good→Great
