Dumbledore's voice pulled her back to reality:
"An Obscurus can be separated. Newt once managed to extract an Obscurus from a Sudanese girl, but unfortunately, she passed away."
"The risks are immense... But you said you'd rather die than live like this... So I tried, right here in this basement."
"In a sense, the separation was successful; your body did not perish. But in another sense, I failed."
Jane Yu thought of her inexplicable journey through time.
"So... does this have something to do with my soul?"
Dumbledore sighed, then paused for a moment before speaking, his voice heavy with guilt:
"Yes, I oversimplified everything."
"I should have realized it earlier. An Obscurus is born from the depths of a soul's pain and despair. Separating it naturally affects the soul..."
"Your soul was torn apart, your memories destroyed. What remained in your body was only a fragment of your soul and a sliver of consciousness to sustain it."
"I sealed the Obscurus here and brought you back to Hogwarts, hoping you could attend school like any other child..."
Jane stared blankly at the ink-like Obscurus. Its pull seemed to grow stronger—a kind of itch deep within her soul...
"So you... noticed the changes in my soul long ago? I mean, at the start of the school year?"
If only a fragment of her soul remained in her body, then the change caused by her arrival should have caught Dumbledore's attention.
Dumbledore smiled faintly, looking much more cheerful as he addressed this topic:
"Of course. Didn't you realize? You are the missing, torn piece of the main soul."
"Though a broken mirror is hard to mend, your soul still bears a crack. But at least the pieces have come together, haven't they?"
"The obsession that formed the Obscurus—hatred of magic, repression, and trauma—caused the soul to split during the separation."
"So as you gradually let go of those obsessions and pains, your soul began to heal."
Jane suddenly understood.
Her crossing over during the Sorting Ceremony wasn't accidental; it was part of her soul's reunification process!
Her torn soul: the main soul, having forgotten everything, grew up in the modern world without hatred for magic; while the fragment, harboring fear and obsession with magic, remained in her body to sustain it.
The so-called "original owner" was herself. She hadn't died; it was merely a fragment of her childhood soul that had been torn away!
The Sorting Ceremony symbolized her initial acceptance of magic, which was why she returned to her body.
And the Boggart-turned-Obscurus, transformed into a black ball of yarn by her Riddikulus spell, marked her victory over her fear of magic.
The elimination of obsession allowed her soul to mend—
In other words, the broken pieces of her had come together!
"Can I touch it?"
She murmured, reaching out to touch the Obscurus.
Dumbledore seemed to want to stop her but said nothing. He moved his lips, and all his words condensed into one:
"Careful."
Her fingertips smoothly passed through the magical energy field and touched the black mist. It was, after all, a part of her body, and she no longer feared it—
The Obscurus seemed to come alive. It began to move, spreading like ink dissolving in water...
But it was docile, showing no sign of being an unstable dark force—
It slid along her fingertips, palm, and arm, entering her body.
The entire process was devoid of discomfort. Instead, it felt like a long-lost relative returning home, reuniting with her...
She felt an unprecedented sense of fulfillment. Her soul, along with her bones, veins, and muscles, roared with the return of power...
Fragments of memories, not entirely destroyed, emerged in her mind: the orphanage director's belt... the punches and kicks from other children... the Obscurus's eruption... hatred and despair... people's terrified screams... Dumbledore's intervention...
But she no longer felt pain.
With a mere thought, the Obscurus, like a black dough, flowed out of her body again, allowing her to knead and shape it at will.
"You've done it." Dumbledore watched the scene, his eyes moist. "You've successfully controlled it... You've healed... The first in history..."
"I can feel it." Jane suddenly spoke. "It's not just about hatred and repression of magic... In fact, it was protecting me."
Dumbledore froze for a moment, puzzled. "Protecting?"
Jane didn't elaborate. She felt an unprecedented surge of emotion, her heart swelling with warmth.
She waved her hand, and as her emotions reached their peak, she didn't even need a wand:
"Expecto Patronum!"
A silver orb shot from her fingertips, gleaming with a translucent, silver-white core. The fluid-like form surged through the basement...
"Merlin's beard—this—"
Dumbledore murmured, almost at a loss for words.
"Yes, protection." Jane fixed her gaze on the silver orb. "Beyond pain and despair... It used its power to shield me from abuse. It was born from hatred and repression of magic, but it burned itself to protect me."
"Indeed... That makes sense..." Dumbledore seemed to grasp something, his memories from years past stirring. "Finding peace after meeting someone trustworthy, targeting those who would harm oneself or loved ones..."
"It was protecting... Credence was protecting himself and his sister Modesty. Ariana was protecting herself and us..."
He suddenly stepped forward and hugged her tightly. Jane realized he was silently crying as warm tears dripped onto her neck.
"Thank you," she whispered.
...
"Who would have thought, this little orphanage was hiding such remarkable talents."
Dumbledore mused as he crouched in the hallway of the orphanage's third floor, tapping and knocking around the first room.
"What are you doing?" Jane asked, puzzled.
She noticed that her guardian had been crawling under the bed for five or six minutes.
"I'm looking for—ouch—my back!"
Dumbledore groaned as he crawled out from under the bed, one hand clutching his back, his face and hair covered in dust.
"Did I ever tell you... Jane."
"Fifty-seven years ago... I took another child from here..."
"I don't think so. Who was it?" Jane asked curiously.
Dumbledore sighed, clearly troubled by the memory:
"Tom Marvolo Riddle."
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