Night Walk

James suddenly found himself in one of the Castle's corridors. Utterly confused, he glanced around to see where he was. The hallway was very dark, the only source of light being a candle hanged on the wall several feet from him. There was a series of paintings on both sides, and most of their inhabitants were asleep even though a few of them were silently observing him, probably wondering what he was doing there. Noticing a window not far down the corridor, he slowly headed towards it. As he was walking, he felt a strange sensation under his feet. Looking down, he realized that he was barefoot and that he was still wearing his pyjamas.

Approaching the window, he glanced outside. Hundreds of stars were scattered throughout the black sky, and the crescent moon was illuminating the top of the trees in the Forbidden Forest, making it look even more frightening than usually. Seeing the reflection of his face in the glass, he noticed that he looked somewhat pale. He had foolishly hoped that this wouldn't happen anymore now that he was here, but apparently his disorder followed him to Hogwarts.

Deciding to return to his Common Room, he turned around and followed the hallway. Once he reached the corner, he stopped, unsure which direction to take now. The Castle was composed of a maze of such corridors and it was often difficult to find one's way even during daytime. As he didn't have the slightest idea about his current location, James reached for his wand, hoping to use it as a torchlight in this obscure place. Unfortunately, his pocket was empty. He had probably left it in his school robe. Choosing to go right, James slowly advanced, trying not to think about the potential denizens of this ancient castle during the night.

Ambrosius was silently strolling through one of the fourth floor corridors as it was his turn to patrol the area during the night. Holding his wand like a torch, he roamed trough the deserted hallways, when at a corner he suddenly found himself face to face with a young man, who looked perplex and exhausted, with very visible dark shadows under his eyes. Reflexively, he pointed the wand at the vision, before realizing it was merely the reflection of his ever so pale face in a mirror.

He pursued his way, slightly troubled by what he had just seen, when he heard a noise coming from the end of the hallway. Heading towards it, he perceived a silhouette in front of him. Carefully approaching, he pointed his wand at it, lighting the stranger's face. "Mister Riddle" he said, recognizing it immediately, "I did not mean to scare you." he added, seeing his expression. "May I know what you are doing here in the middle of the night?" he calmly asked his student.

James instantly froze. There was a ball of light floating in mid-air at the end of the hallway. As it approached, he also heard footsteps, which where getting louder every second. Starting to panic, he glanced around, desperately trying to find somewhere to hide, since he knew that students were forbidden to be out of their common rooms at night. Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do, except maybe attempt to run away. Instead, he just remained standing there, petrified.

When the light was at only several feet from him, he was able to see the pale face of the one holding it. "Professor Umbranox" he whispered in one breath, visibly relieved. "Mister Riddle. I did not mean to scare you. May I know what you are doing here in the middle of the night?" the professor inquired. James remained silent for a few seconds, still trying to calm down. "I... I was sleepwalking." he admitted, while his heart was still racing. He didn't see the point in lying, since the alternative would imply that he was breaking the rules.

Ambrosius examined the boy for a moment, his look going from his pale face to his night clothes, and concluded he was certainly telling the truth. Noticing that his student was shivering, Ambrosius swiftly grabbed his wand and gave it a slight flick. A black coat suddenly appeared from nowhere and gently landed on the boy's shoulders, slowly wrapping him up. "I take it you do not know the path leading back to the Common Room." he assumed. The young man silently shook his head. "Very well, then I will accompany you. Follow me." he instructed as he turned back, his wand pointed in front of him to light the way.

"Thank you, professor." James mumbled when he felt the coat's warm embrace. He feared mister Umbranox would leave him there, lost in the middle of this enormous maze. However, the professor seemed to have guessed him thoughts and offered to escort him back to his Common Room.

After walking along the corridor, they turned right and then left after a while. Professor Umbranox had apparently no trouble orienting himself in this gigantic castle. There was an utter silence between them, except for the occasional complaint from the portraits who were blinded by the bright light emitted by the teacher's wand. James was silently following his professor, still feeling embarrassed that he had to find him in this condition, yet relieved he didn't have to wander the school alone.

After passing through several more nearly identical hallways, they finally emerged from the obscurity and found themselves standing on one of the platforms of the deserted Grand Staircase. The imposing marble structure was apparently moving even during the night, and they had to wait a while for one of the stairways to shift so that they could access it. James felt the cold stone under his bare feet and started trembling again, though he remained silent. After a few seconds, they were able to climb the steps leading to the fifth floor. Although orientation never was his strong side, James remembered how to get to Ravenclaw Tower from this point, since it was the path they had taken after the Opening Feast to attain the Common Room. However, Professor Umbranox seemed determined to make sure that James would safely reach his destination.

When they were a few corridors away from the Ravenclaw staircase, James suddenly recalled something he had noticed during his first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson. After weighing for a couple of seconds whether he should ask professor Umbranox about it, he mustered his courage and said in a hesitant voice: "Professor, I was wondering... Why were you surprised the first time you heard my name?". Several other people had manifested the same reaction when he introduced himself to them, but no one had explained him why.

Ambrosius instantly stopped, somewhat disconcerted by the boy's question. He turned towards him, stared at him for a moment then replied with a calm voice. "I was not planning on being the one to reveal this to you, but I guess you are bound to find out sooner or later anyway." He took a deep breath and pursued: "Years ago, there was a very powerful dark wizard, probably the most infamous in all wizarding history. In his quest for might, he did not back down before anything. Countless homes were destroyed, families torn apart, innocents murdered. Many laid their lives in order to stop him, including the students of this very school. Even today, those old enough to remember are still haunted by the painful memories remaining from that time."

After pausing for a moment, he continued. "The wizard had forged himself a name, designed to terrorize anyone who would hear it, to the point that only the bravest dared pronounce it. Voldemort." Even though he had been dead for years, his name still had a frightening resonance, especially when it was pronounced in a dark corridor in the middle of the night. "He was notorious throughout the wizarding world with that appellation, though rare are those who knew his real name. The one that was his when he was still a student at Hogwarts. Tom Marvolo Riddle."

James listened to the professor's explanation, apprehending every next word. At first, he didn't understand what the tale of this dark wizard had to do with him, until Professor Umbranox revealed the villain's real name. Tom Marvolo Riddle. Stunned by the discovery, James remained utterly silent for a few seconds, staring into the void, the time he needed to process what he had just learned. He shared the name of the most infamous wizards of all time, and as far as he new, there might exist an even stronger connection between them. It can't be, he reassured himself, everyone in my family is a Muggle. So what, a lot of people have the same last name and aren't related. It doesn't mean anything. Despite his reasoning, he didn't feel convinced at all.

Slowly raising his gaze towards Professor Umbranox, he uttered, in an anxious tone: "Could I be... Is it possible that...?". However he attempted to phrase the question, the end would still get stuck in his throat, unwilling to come out.

"I am afraid I do not possess the answer to that question." Ambrosius replied, perplex. "Of course, it is possible that it is merely a coincidence. I am almost certain Tom Riddle never had children, and as far as I know his father's family was exclusively composed of Muggles. However, I have to warn you. The wizarding community is not very vast, and I can assure you that most of its inhabitants are still terrorized by that name, as it brings back the horror that they had to endure. Wounds take time to heal, and those who inflicted them sometimes never leave our memory." He paused for a moment, fixing the black sky through one of the windows.

"Whether there is a connection between you and Tom Riddle or not, that name will always represent a burden for you. Those who know who once wielded it will often judge you by it before even having the chance to know you. And you will have no choice but to accept that, and always strive to prove them wrong." He was now staring deep into the boy's eyes. "A name does not determine who you are. Only your actions and the choices that you make can measure the kind of person you are. Always remember that."

After a long silence, Ambrosius concluded: "I think it is time for you to go to bed now." They went through the a few more corridors and emerged at the foot of the spiral staircase leading to Ravenclaw Tower. Once they approached the eagle shaped knocker at its top, a voice resounded in the empty stairwell. "The following sentence is false. The preceding sentence is true. Are these sentences true or false?". "Neither, it's a paradox. If the first is true, then the second must be false, which makes the first false." Ambrosius replied. The door of the Common Room opened and he stepped aside to let the boy pass. "Good night, mister Riddle." he added before turning around and climbing down the steps.

"I think it is time for you to go to bed now." Professor Umbranox added after warning him about the burden his name represented. James nodded in response, still unable to speak and somewhat intimidated by the teacher's penetrating gaze. Everything was now confused in his head, as he was still trying to process what Professor Umbranox just revealed to him, and his mind was not at its best this time of day. His only wish was to regain his cozy bed and to sink into a dreamless and uninterrupted sleep. After all, as the teacher said, there was nothing he could do about it, except to learn to accept it, however hard it may seem.

After climbing up the stairs leading to the Common Room, Professor Umbranox answered the riddle without hesitation and the door instantly opened. James slowly entered he deserted room. "Good night, mister Riddle." the teacher said . “Good night, professor” he replied with a weak voice. “And… thank you… for everything.” he added, unsure whether mister Umbranox could even hear him.