ALL NOVEL Chapter 6: 06
The next hour passed in a blur of explanations. I told Arabella everything — about my original life, about the system, about the dark future I'd prevented. She listened without interruption, her hand still in mine, her expression shifting between disbelief and understanding.
[CONFIDANT STATUS: ESTABLISHED]
[TRUST LEVEL: 94%]
[WARNING: EMOTIONAL ATTACHMENT INCREASING]
"So in this other timeline," she said slowly, "Sev becomes..."
"Bitter. Alone. Trapped between two masters." I swallowed hard. "But that's not going to happen now. You're both here, and—"
The system's interface suddenly flared with urgent notifications:
[EMERGENCY ALERT]
[MAGICAL SURGE INTENSIFYING]
[DEPARTMENT OF MYSTERIES STATUS: CRITICAL]
Arabella's wand vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out just as it began speaking in Dumbledore's voice: "All Order members respond. Death Eaters have breached the Hall of Prophecy. Casualties reported."
She stood, but I caught her wrist. "Bell, wait. In the other timeline, this is where everything goes wrong. The Death Eaters — they're desperate now. More dangerous."
[TACTICAL ANALYSIS LOADING...]
[ACCESSING FUTURE TIMELINE DATA]
[GENERATING STRATEGIC OPTIONS]
"I have to go," she said. "Sev's there."
"Then take this." I focused on what little magic I had recovered, calling up the system's new abilities.
[MAGICAL CORE STATUS: 16% - WARNING]
[ACTIVATING MAGICAL SENSITIVITY]
[TRANSFERRING TEMPORARY ENHANCEMENT]
I pressed my palm against her chest, just above her heart. A faint golden glow pulsed between us as I channeled the system's enhancement protocols through our contact.
"What did you just—"
"Protection," I gasped, already feeling drained. "It'll help you sense spells before they hit. Like a magical early warning system."
[ENHANCEMENT TRANSFER SUCCESSFUL]
[MAGICAL CORE STATUS: 13% - CRITICAL]
[RECOVERY TIME EXTENDED BY 72 HOURS]
She leaned down and, before I could react, pressed her lips to mine. It was quick, desperate, and carried the weight of years of unspoken feelings.
"We're talking about that when I get back," she said firmly, then turned and ran from the room.
[RELATIONSHIP STATUS UPDATE: COMPLICATED → ROMANTIC POTENTIAL]
[NEW QUEST AVAILABLE: HEART'S DESIRE]
[WARNING: PERSONAL ATTACHMENTS MAY AFFECT MISSION PARAMETERS]
I lay there, too weak to move, watching through the system's enhanced awareness as magical signatures clashed and swirled at the Ministry. Somewhere in that chaos were the people I loved — my family, both old and new.
The system's interface flickered with a new message:
[TIMELINE DIVERGENCE APPROACHING CRITICAL MASS]
[BUTTERFLY EFFECT SPREADING]
[NEW FUTURE CALCULATING...]
Then, something unexpected: the interface glitched, showing fragments of code I'd never seen before:
[SYSTEM ORIGIN: DATA CORRU--]
[CREATOR IDENT--: ERROR]
[PURPOSE: TO SAVE THE-- FORM --]
[WARNING: TEMPORAL PAR--]
"System," I whispered, "what are you?"
[QUERY DENIED]
[ACCESS LEVEL INSUFFICIENT]
[REQUIREMENT: COMPLETE PHASE TWO]
A scream of magical feedback suddenly tore through my enhanced senses. Something massive had just happened at the Ministry — something that sent ripples through the very fabric of magical reality.
[ALERT: MAJOR TIMELINE ALTERATION IN PROGRESS]
[CALCULATING IMPLICATIONS...]
[LOADING NEW OBJECTIVES...]
As my consciousness began to fade again, one final message flashed across my vision:
[REMEMBER, UNCLE: THE STORY YOU KNEW IS GONE]
[THE FUTURE IS UNWRITTEN]
[AND THE REAL ENEMY HASN'T SHOWN ITSELF YET]