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In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (2001), Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) turns eleven and finds himself thrust into a frightening and incredible world of magic. He is rescued from his bedroom in a cabinet under the stairs at his Aunt and Uncle’s house and whisked off to Hogwarts, the magical school for witches and wizards. There, he learns about Albus Dumbledore (Richard Harris), headmaster of the school and one of the most renowned wizards in the world. Of course, Harry is even more famous in this world he’s never known—he is the only known survivor of the killing curse, and the one responsible for defeating the darkest wizard in the history of wizards.

Harry and Dumbledore are first directly introduced as Harry is breaking a school rule—a tendency he will repeat numerous times throughout his tenure at Hogwarts. Harry finds himself impressed by the magnificence of The Mirror of Erised, an ancient and ornate magical mirror he discovers in a remote area of the castle. An inscription on the mirror reads “Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi,” a mirrored statement of its own, a backwards presentation of the claim “I show not your face but your heart’s desire.” This is the mirror’s power—revealing the most supreme desires of the person peering into it.

When Dumbledore finds Harry in the room with the mirror, he doesn’t mention Harry’s violation of school rules. Their conversation is about something much more meaningful, and Dumbledore instantly establishes himself as someone who will guide and mentor Harry as opposed to restricting his actions and operating as one would expect from a school headmaster. Dumbledore tells Harry that while the mirror is a fun parlor trick of sorts, thinking too much about what it reveals can be detrimental. “Men have wasted away in front of it,” he says, knowing that Harry, an orphan, is seeing an image of his parents in the reflection. “It does not do to dwell on dreams, and forget to live.”

Their meeting forges the foundation of an intimate relationship between the two characters. The two hold a mutual respect and adoration for one another. Harry idolizes Dumbledore for his stature, his renown, and his gentleness. Dumbledore respects Harry for his integrity and significance in the magical world, well before Harry realizes any such things in himself. Dumbledore grows to become Harry’s most prominent father figure, endlessly striving to foster Harry’s growth. The message of their initial meeting is that yearning needs to be kept in check, as modest expectations about one’s own desires are important, and life is superior to dreams. Nothing Harry does or sees will bring back his parents, and Dumbledore wants the boy to understand he will need to develop himself as a person without their help.

Harry’s story is one of literal magic, but one of Harry Potter’s most prominent themes across the films is that self-understanding, friendship, and personal growth are the greatest forms of magic. The first thing Dumbledore attempts to do is protect Harry from growing obsessed with something that could harm him, and that dedicated protection only grows and continues throughout the rest of Dumbledore’s life. Along with his friends Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson), Dumbledore grows among the most important people in Harry’s life, and that importance begins in a moment where the Mirror of Erised literally and figuratively transfers the power of Harry’s guardianship to Dumbledore.