Authors Notes: WHOOT! The Rotten Writer returns ladies and gentlemen.
So, we're up to the really fun parts of this story and there's one chapter, ONE left until we finally finish up Year One. At this point in time this story is already nearly double the length of the actual first book, go figure. And things don't seem to be slowing down. I'm already working on the first few chapters of Year Two, and between the next chapter and starting up year two I MAY take a brief break to work on it and get as much of it together as possible but I'll mention in the next chapter notes what the actual plan is.
This is being posted a bit early sinc Isaid last time it'd be up by the 8th, but I figure, I've got it together, why not post it up? Next chapter will go up on Tuesday the 15th.
In other news, this chapter really is second to last for this year. We've got some confrontations, violence and chaos up ahead. Some people I think are going to love this, and others are probably going to want to string me up by my toenails. Please, resist the urge to visit violence upon me, I can't continue if I'm too injured to work!
Oh, there are some quoted sections in here from Harry Potter and the Sorcerers Stone. Though even with those quoted chunks I went through and shifted some of the wordage and added some stuff of my own.
Disclaimer!: I own not Harry Potter and I honestly probably wouldn't want to. Can you imagine honestly being that famous? *Shudders* Horrifying I'm telling you. Absolutely horrifying. Also any recognizable bits of dialogue or description that are obviously from the books of course belong to Madam Rowlings herself and are not of my own work, I take no credit for those portions whatsoever.
Anywho! Without any more stalling, and with absolutely no further ado… I give you Chapter 13 of Soul Scars.
Soul Scars
By,
Rtnwriter
The days and weeks crept by and Harry put into practice some of the things that had been recommended on the sheets of parchment given to him by Healer Gant. He spoke to Susan and Hermione who showed him the Occlumency books that Amelia had sent. He read through the chapters, discussed the exercises with Gant each Friday during their sessions and practiced every night before bed. Slowly, he felt as if he was making progress with the mind arts and aside from anything else, he could feel that the meditation exercises were helping him.
He decided not to worry exceptionally at that moment about the suggested physical exercise routines recommended, since he was barely keeping up with his homework, sessions with Gant, Quidditch practice, and what had turned into a weekly meeting with McGonagall where she told stories of their parents, except for Hermione's, of course. Professor McGonagall had been the transfiguration Professor there when Susan's aunt and parents were students, as well as Daphne's and while they enjoyed a pot of tea with their head of house, she would tell them of some of the trouble their family had caused over the years.
There was one suggestion that had been on his lists that Harry had been more than happy to take part in. At least once per week, he was expected to take a break, and to do so with the girls. As Gant told him, it was a good idea for the four of them to spend time together that wasn't related to any of his issues or to school and to just get to know each other or relax and spend time together. Daphne and Susan had also been thrilled by the suggestion since it gave them a ready excuse to force Hermione to drop her insane study schedule at least once per week giving them all a chance to take a break and relax as end of year exams crept ever closer.
Harry had taken to the idea and decided that the best way to relax with the girls was with a picnic. Since snow still clung to portions of the grounds, he found that the Room was able to create a setting nice enough for a picnic. A whispered conversation with the twins got him into the kitchens and the elves were always more than happy to put together a basket for them that practically groaned with the weight of food and drink. During these picnics they'd developed some rules. No talk about school. No talk about Harry's issues. They talked about things they enjoyed. Books they'd all read. Hermione told them about her favorite movies, some of which Susan had even seen, and the two girls promised Daphne and Harry that they'd go to a theater over the summer break and catch a few films.
Harry of course knew what movies were, but hadn't really had a chance to see any with his life at the Dursleys, while Daphne was clueless. The other three tried to explain the concept but eventually they all decided that she would just have to see it and that would explain everything. Sometimes they didn't even talk at all, they just ate in companionable silence and then laid out on the blanket and stared up at the sky, letting a relaxing breeze play across them.
Despite how well things were going, some concerns still weighed heavily on Harry's mind, and Neville and the girls were no less concerned. In years to come, Harry would never quite remember how he managed to get through his exams when he half expected a restored Voldemort to come bursting through the door at any moment as he'd decided who else would need the Stone more? He hasn't discussed the idea with the others, but he was positive that Snape was working with Voldemort.
His nightmares started up with renewed strength when they had begun to trickle down to just a few times a week. By the time exams came around he was back to two or three times a night waking up from the same horrific nightmare. Added to that was the prickling pain in his scar that he'd noted off and on throughout the school year. As the nightmares ramped up in frequency so did the number of times per day that he would randomly winced at clutch at the lightning bolt etched into his forehead.
The girls were getting more and more concerned as they noted the increasing frequency and Neville was worrying that he might just be overly stressed due to the upcoming exams. Harry didn't feel any of them were quite right on their points. He didn't feel like it was a sign of illness, but he didn't think it was stress related either. He couldn't really put his finger on why, though.
#####
As time continued its inexorable forward march, they could only hope that Fluffy was still alive and well behind the locked door. It was sweltering hot, especially in the large classroom where they did their written papers.
They had been given special, new quills for the exams, which had been bewitched with an Anti-Cheating spell. They had practical exams as well. Professor Flitwick called them one by one into his class to see if they could make a pineapple tap-dance across a desk.
Professor McGonagall watched them turn a mouse into a snuffbox — points were given for how pretty the snuffbox was, but taken away if it had whiskers.
Snape made them all nervous, breathing down their necks while they tried to remember how to make a Forgetfulness potion. Harry did the best he could, trying to ignore the stabbing pains in his forehead, which had continued to increase as the days and weeks passed.
Maybe it was because they hadn't seen what Harry had seen in his nightmares, his memories, or because they didn't have scars burning on their foreheads, but Neville, Hermione, Daphne, and Susan didn't seem as worried about the Stone as Harry was.
The idea of Snape getting the Stone certainly scared them, but something kept Harry from mentioning Voldemort, or his suspicions, and they were so busy with their studying they didn't have much time to fret about what Snape or anyone else might be up to.
Their very last exam was History of Magic. One hour of answering questions about batty old wizards who'd invented self-stirring cauldrons and they'd be free, free for a whole wonderful week until their exam results came out.
When the ghost of Professor Binns told them to put down their quills and roll up their parchment, Harry couldn't help cheering with the rest.
"That was easier than I thought it would be," said Hermione as they joined the crowds flocking out onto the sunny grounds. "I needn't have learned about the 1637 Werewolf Code of Conduct or the uprising of Elfric the Eager."
Hermione wanted to go through their exam papers afterward, but Susan and Daphne insisted that with their final exam out of the way they could take an afternoon to relax. They wandered down to the lake and flopped under a tree.
The Weasley twins and Lee Jordan were tickling the tentacles of a giant squid, which was basking in the warm shallows. "No more studying," Susan said with a sigh, stretching out on the grass beneath a large spreading oak tree near the lake shore. "You could look more cheerful, Harry, we've got a week before we find out how badly you've beaten us in Defense and Hermione's beaten us in everything else."
Hermione blushed and swatted at Susan's shoulder as Daphne and Neville chuckled quietly.
Harry was rubbing his forehead and barely heard anything that was being said. "I wish I knew what this means!" he burst out angrily. "My scar keeps hurting."
"Go to Madam Pomfrey," Hermione suggested with a concerned frown. Susan sat up, leaning back on her elbows as the girls studied him carefully. His face was twisted into a pained expression and Daphne felt that he looked a bit more pale than usual. Sweat beaded his face and forehead but despite the heat there was a cool breeze blowing that should have dried it by then.
"I'm not ill," said Harry. "I think it's a warning . . . it means danger's coming. . . ." Neville was thinking furiously. "Do you think your scar reacting is connected to the Stone, somehow?" he asked and Harry shrugged, sighing in frustration.
"I don't know, Nev. I mean, how could it really? The scar is years old and I've never seen or been around the Stone before. I just feel like it's going to be taken any day now. I can't explain it."
"I can understand you being worried, Harry," Susan spoke up. "I mean, I'm not thrilled about the situation myself. But are we really sure Snape is going to steal it? I mean, we've never had any proof that he found out how to get past Fluffy. He nearly had his leg ripped off once, he's not going to try it again in a hurry, right?"
Harry nodded, but he couldn't shake off a lurking feeling that there was something he'd forgotten to do, something important. When he tried to explain this, Hermione said, "That's just the exams. I woke up last night and was halfway through my Transfiguration notes before I remembered we'd done that one."
Harry was quite sure the unsettled feeling didn't have anything to do with work, though. He watched an owl flutter toward the school across the bright blue sky, a note clamped in its mouth. Hagrid was the only one who ever sent him letters. Hagrid would never betray Dumbledore. Hagrid would never tell anyone how to get past Fluffy . . . never . . . but —
Harry suddenly paled even more and jumped to his feet.
"Where're you going?" said Neville. He and the girls quickly rose and followed after Harry, who had taken off at a brisk jog across the grounds.
"I've just thought of something," said Harry. "We've got to go and find Weasley, now."
"Why?" panted Hermione, hurrying to keep up.
Harry shook his head and refused to answer as some of the small details he'd noticed, but hadn't really considered closely over the year started to fall into place.
Weeks back, a few days after they'd overheard Ron, Dean, and Seamus talking about someone called Norbert, Gryffindor House had woken up in the morning to find a few hundred house points missing from their hourglass in the Entrance Hall. Rumor had it that the three boys had been caught outside after curfew with a wild story about a dragon and a daring escape from the top of the astronomy tower.
Ron's propensity for stretching the truth in his story telling was already well known, so Harry hadn't given it much thought but… what if he hadn't been a lying twit, for once? What if there had been a dragon? And who did Harry know that wanted a dragon more than anything?
"Gred!" he shouted as he approached the twins and Lee at the shore. "Forge!"
"Oh, Seeker, my Seeker," one of the twins said, turning to face the five first years as they skidded to a stop.
"What can we-"
"do for our favorite-"
"Seeker of the golden snitch-"
"this fine day?" they asked, switching back and forth in their standard routine.
"No time for twin pong today," Harry snapped. "I need to find that git of a brother of yours. Any guesses where he might be?"
The twins shared a look and glanced at the four students standing behind Harry, who all looked just as confused as they felt.
"Why do you need to find Ron?" one of them asked, suddenly serious.
"I need to ask him a question, promise I'm not gonna get into a fight with him but it's important and I don't have time to explain."
They eyed each other for a moment longer before looking back at Harry. "You'll tell us about it later?" the second one pressed and Harry nodded. The twins turned their backs to him while one of them pulled something from within his robes. There was a low muttering of words that Harry couldn't make out and he resisted the urge to tap his foot impatiently.
A moment later the twins turned back around. "He's over by the Quidditch pitch- Hey don't forget to tell us what's going on later!"
The last was yelled at Harry's back, for as soon as he heard the words 'Quidditch pitch,' he'd tossed out a quick 'thank you' and took off at a run, his bonded and friend following on his heels. The twins exchanged a look.
"Think Harry lied and he's really looking to kick the crap out of our little brother?" one of them asked the other. Honestly, even they weren't sure which was actually Fred and which was George.
"No idea, Forge," the second twin replied. "But I'm sure, that if ickle Harrykins is looking to rearrange our baby brothers features, then he damn well deserves it."
The first twin nodded, rubbing his chin in a faux sage-like manner. "True, brother, true. So… wanna head down to Hogsmeade and grab a butter beer?"
"Sound's like a plan, Stan."
"Oi! I'm Gred, remember? Who the hell is Stan?"
#####
Harry skidded to a stop at the edge of the pitch, his head whipping back and forth, sharp eyes searching for his quarry. He finally spotted Ron Weasley near the changing rooms, holding a broom and talking animatedly with Dean and Seamus.
"Weasley!" Harry yelled, and started running again just as Neville and the girls finally caught up to him.
"How is he so damn fast?" Neville panted, red faced and sweating already as they started chasing after him again.
"He apparently spent a lot of his younger years running away from his cousin and his cousins friend," Daphne huffed out next to him while Hermione simply growled angrily and focused on breathing. "He said last week that their favorite game was something they called 'Harry hunting'."
Neville frowned but said nothing and kept running until they finally caught up to Harry.
"Ron," Harry was saying as they stopped behind him, "I need to ask you a question." The red head was standing there staring wide eyed at Harry while Dean and Seamus were looking curiously at the panting group before they shrugged and started walking away.
"Looks like you're busy, Ron," Dean said and Seamus nodded.
"Aye, we'll catch ya later, Mate."
Harry ignored them and focused on Ron.
"Well? What is it then?" Ron snapped after he'd finally recovered his wits.
"Those rumors about the dragon a couple months ago. Was there really a dragon or were you just embellishing like you usually do?"
"Of course there was a dragon!" Ron practically bellowed, suddenly going from relatively calm but curious to red faced indignation in a second flat. Harry was almost impressed by how quickly he could flip emotional states but pushed the thought aside to focus on the issue at hand.
"Where'd it come from? Why were you trying to get a dragon out of the castle?" Please say Hagrid didn't have it, please say Hagrid didn't have it, please say Hagrid didn't have it…
"Hagrid hatched it."
Fuck.
"Said he won it in a card game down at the pub in Hogsmead. Hatched it from the egg and everything. Hey… where are you going?"
Once again, Harry was off like a shot, and a chorus of groans filled the air behind him. He didn't notice. His entire focus was on Hagrid and the disturbing suspicions that had begun to solidify in the back of his mind.
"Don't you think it's a bit odd," said Harry, scrambling up the grassy slope toward Hagrid's hut, thankfully keeping to a pace the rest could keep up with, "that what Hagrid wants more than anything else is a dragon, and a stranger turns up who just happens to have an egg in his pocket? How many people wander around with dragon eggs if it's against wizard law? Lucky they found Hagrid, don't you think?"
"How do you know that's what Hagrid wants more than anything?" Neville asked.
"He told me, when we first met he mentioned how much he'd love to have a dragon. Why didn't I see it before?"
"You didn't really know about it before," Hermione pointed out, already following his logic. "All we had were rumors, and not from a reliable source."
Hagrid was sitting on the front stoop of his hut, playing a flute that he held gently in his massive hands.
"Hullo," he said, smiling broadly at them behind his bushy beard. "Finished yer exams? Got time fee a drink?"
"Yes, please," said Ron and Harry whipped around, surprised that the red head had followed them.
"No," Harry cut in before Hagrid could rise to go inside his hut. "Thank you Hagrid, but we're in a hurry. Ron said you won that dragon egg that we heard about while playing cards with some stranger. What did the stranger look like?"
"Dunno," said Hagrid casually, "he wouldn't take his cloak off. Had the hood up the whole time we was there."
He blinked at the shocked look on their faces and raised his eyebrows.
"It's not that unusual, yeh get a lot o' funny fold in the Hog's Head. That's one o' the pubs down in the village. Anyway, I never saw his face."
Harry frowned, finger stroking the scar behind his jaw as the rest of the group eyed him carefully.
"What did you talk about while you were playing?" he asked. "I can't imagine you guys just played cards in silence the whole time. Did you mention Hogwarts at all?"
"Mighta come up." Hagrid frowned as he tried to remember. "Yeah… he asked what I did fer a livin' an' I told him about bein' gamekeeper here… Asked a bit about the sorta creatures I look after, so I told him about some o' them, said I'd always really wanted a dragon…. Least I think I did."
"You think?"
"Well I'm not rightly certain I remember all that well. He kept buying me drinks the whole time," Hagrid added the last with a wistful expression. "Right nice o' him, I thought."
"What else, Hagrid?"
"Well, he said he had a dragon egg that we could play for… but he wanted ter be sure I could handle it… So I told him after Fluffy, a dragon'd be a piece o' cake."
Harry groaned and pushed up his glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "And this man… he seemed interested in Fluffy, did he?"
"Well… yeah… how many three-headed dogs d'yeh meet, even around Hogrwarts? I told him, Fluffy's easy if yeh know how to calm him down, jus' play him a bit o' music an' he'll go straight off ter sleep-"
He cut off, suddenly looking horrified.
"I shouldn'ta told yeh that!" he blurted out. "Forget I said that! Hey… where're yeh goin'?"
None of them spoke to each other anymore, preferring to save their breath as they raced along behind Harry until he came to a halt in the entrance hall. The large space felt extremely cold and gloomy after the heat outside on the grounds.
"We've got to go to Dumbledore," Harry said, a frown marring his features. Can we trust Dumbledore? That bastard left me with the Dursleys…
He shook himself. "Whoever was under that cloak knows how to get past Fluffy. I'd be willing to lay money on the fact that it was Snape, but we can't say for sure."
"Harry, let's just go see him and tell him what we've found."
"What the hell is going on?" Ron snapped and Harry spun again, almost reaching for his wand in his surprise before he noticed the lanky redhead that'd kept up with them on their mad dash across the grounds.
"What're you still doing here?" he demanded.
"I want to know what's going on? You come over demanding answers and then just take off. What's happening?"
"Harry we don't have time for this, let's just go," Hermione told him, placing one calming hand on his arm as he glared at Ron. "Susan or Daphne can fill the idiot in on the way."
Ron spluttered and stuttered in a fury at being called an idiot but followed along as they started toward the Headmasters office. Hermione led the way since she had the best recollection of the route they'd taken on their first night in the castle and as they walked Susan and Daphne quickly filled Ron in on what they'd found out over the course of the year.
"Excuse me, can you please tell the Headmaster that we really need to talk to him?" Harry asked, nervously, of the gargoyle that guarded the entrance to the headmasters office.
The gargoyle did nothing but blink and then it's eyes became distant. Ron and Neville were both gaping at the stone guardian.
"The Headmaster is not present."
Ron and Neville jumped when the guardian suddenly spoke in a deep, gravely tone of voice.
Harry cursed and Hermione didn't even chastise him for his language as he spun and started down the hall again. "Come on," he called back. "Let's try McGonagall."
#####
Hermione stumbled into the common room past the portrait of the fat lady, a look of panic on her face to find her bond mates, Neville, and Ron waiting for her. Her bonded all wore looks of concern, as did Neville, but Ron just looked confused, staring at the four of them while they stood, staring at the entrance.
"I'm sorry, Harry," Hermione practically wailed. "Snape came out and asked me what I was doing there so I said I was waiting for Flitwick and…" Harry stepped forward and placed his hands on her shoulders, giving a comforting squeeze and a lopsided smile.
"It's all right, 'Mione," he murmured. "Don't worry about it, it was a long shot really."
She gave him a watery smile, her lips trembling slightly but took a deep breath, seeming to gather herself and nodded as Harry led her the rest of the way over to the group.
"Dumbledore is out of the castle," Daphne started to list off.
"McGonagall doesn't believe us," Susan added.
"Snape is a greasy effing git," Hermione growled and ignored how everyone stared incredulously at her for insulting a professor.
"We can't even follow him and we have no idea where he is. Tactically we're working with minimal information and no moves left on the board," Ron mused rubbing his chin thoughtfully with one hand while everyone's eyes swiveled to him. It took a few moment's before he noticed their scrutiny and he sat up straighter in his seat at the low table near the fire. "What?" he snapped, irritably. "I'm not a complete idiot, and I love chess, it's basic strategic thinking."
"Real life isn't like chess, Ron," Hermione pointed. "Chess pieces move in specific, predictable ways governed by rules. There aren't any rules in real life."
"I know that, but the basic points of strategy, attack, and defense are still relevant."
"Not important right now, guys," Harry snapped, interrupting the argument before it could get started. "The basic point is what do we do?"
No one had anything to say about that and Harry sat back and sighed.
"That's it then," he muttered. "I'm going out there tonight and I'm gonna try to get the Stone first."
"You're barking," Ron blurted, eyes wide.
"You can't!"
"I have to," he snapped, glaring at Hermione for a moment before his gaze softened and he pushed calming feelings toward her through their bond. "I'm sorry, but I have to," he said in a much calmer tone. "I've been thinking about this whole thing and it doesn't make sense to me. I don't think it's Snape looking to steal the stone, or at least… not just Snape," he admitted.
"What do you mean?" Daphne asked, absently pulling Hermione back so she sat against the seat between her and Susan while wrapping an arm around the girls shoulders.
"Look… it's just a thought that's been percolating around for a few weeks now, but… well… other than any greedy bastard, who would most benefit from a stone that can grant immortality?"
They all stared at him blankly and he sighed. "When Hagrid brought me my letter and told me about magic and my parents… he took me to Diagon Alley to pick up my school things. After, we ate dinner at the Leaky Cauldron, and something he said stuck out at me. I'd asked him why I was so famous and he told me about Voldemort. But he said that he wasn't sure if he was actually dead. Said he didn't think there was enough human left in him to die, and apparently Dumbledore thinks the same thing."
He looked intently into each scared face as they stared back at him.
"What if Snape is trying to steal the stone so he can bring Voldemort back to power? If it's even a chance, even a possibility… I have to stop him. If none of the adults are going to listen then I'll just do it myself, like usual."
They were silent for a while, each of them taking in that frightening possibility.
"You're right," Hermione finally admitted in a small voice. "He needs to be stopped."
"I've got my invisibility cloak from my dad," Harry pointed out. "I can use that to get to Fluffy's room.
"Will it cover all four of us though?" Daphne asked.
"What? Four? You guys aren't coming."
"And what makes you think that you could stop us, Harry?" Susan growled, her deep blue eyes flashing dangerously at him. "You've made a bit of a habit of protecting us this year, but we're not helpless and we don't need to be protected all the time," she snapped.
Harry just stared at them for several long seconds before he nodded once.
"Sorry, t-that's five," Neville spoke up and glared at Harry when his head whipped over to him. "Wherever a Potter goes," he said evenly, despite the stutter when he first spoke up. "I would never be able to live it down, or forgive myself, if I let you do this without me, Harry."
"You're all absolutely barking," Ron blurted out.
"Doesn't matter, Weasley," Harry snapped. "It needs to be done."
"Well count me out," he said, standing abruptly. "If it was just the chance to take Snape down I'm all for it. But if You-Know-Who is involved I'm not going anywhere near this. If you guys were smart you'd stay away too." Without another word he strode away from the group and headed up to the dorm.
"So we're going?" Harry asked the rest. Neville and his girls nodded, their faces set in grim determination. "That's it then. Tonight, we're stealing the Stone."
#####
After dinner the five of them sat in the common room in their corner, apart from the rest of their housemates. Neville and the girls all shifted and fidgeted in their seats, filled with nervous tension. Harry sat calmly, staring into the fire. At times the girls found themselves wondering if he was even blinking.
Slowly, the room emptied as people drifted off to bed, leaving them completely alone and without a word Neville looked to Harry and nodded his head. Standing, Harry reached inside his robes and pulled out the shining silvery cloak and handed it over to Hermione.
"Here," he said. "If the four of you huddle close enough together and keep low, it should cover all of you.
"What about you?" she asked and Harry shot her a lopsided grin.
"Trust me, I don't need it."
As they left the common room, four of them huddled uncomfortably beneath the cloak, Harry refused to say anything about how he was going to avoid being caught out after curfew and simply led the way quickly, but silently through the halls of Hogwarts.
As they walked, Hermione thought she was starting to see how he was so confident that he didn't need the cloak. As he moved along the hallway he seemed to vanish and reappear dressed as he was almost entirely in black and with the fluttering edges of his robes helping to break up the outline of his body as he moved from one deep shadow to another. He had a lot of practice escaping notice, she realized. He'd gotten good at hiding and moving without being seen. It must have been a necessary survival skill at his relative's home.
A hand gripped her shoulder and squeezed gently and she briefly glanced back into a pair of knowing ice blue eyes. Daphne nodded once, and gently prodded her back toward the front to pay attention where she was walking as they turned a corner and Daphne suddenly clamped a hand over Hermione's mouth, just before she screamed in shock.
Peeves the poltergeist floated inches in front of her face, bobbing gently from side to side as he sung quietly to himself. The four of them froze in place, unsure whether to move back or to wait for the poltergeist to get bored and move on. While they were trying to decide what to do a voice came from the far end of the hall.
"Old fat spider, spinning in a tree!
Old fat spider, can't see me!
Attercop! Attercop!
Won't you stop,
Stop your spinning and look at me!
Old Tomnoddy, all big body,
Old Tomnoddy can't spy me!
Attercop! Atrercop
Down you drop!
You'll never catch me up your tree!"
"Who's there?" Peeves yelled, floating forward a few paces, his head swiveling from side to side. "Are there ickle students out of bed? Naughty, naughty," he cackled and floated off down the hall at high speed.
The four invisible students carefully crept down the hall behind the specter until Harry suddenly rolled out from under a tapestry and scrambled to his feet with a tight grin on his face.
"How'd you pull that off, Mister Baggins?" Hermione asked, a bright grin on her face despite knowing he wouldn't be able to see it.
He leaned down and pulled up the tapestry to reveal a small alcove, a gap just big enough for him to fit into that was completely hidden when the tapestry was allowed to hang properly. He held a finger to his lips, let the tapestry drop down and started leading the way again.
Minutes later they were in the hall outside the forbidden are and Harry paused, pointing at the door.
It was standing open.
"There you are," Harry said quietly. "Snape's already inside. Last chance to back out guys, I wouldn't blame any of you."
"Shut it, Potter," Daphne growled. "We're not leaving you to do this on your own, so let's get in there already."
They pulled off the cloak and Harry quickly folded it and stuffed it into his pocket. As soon as they neared the door Hermione pursed her lips and started to whistle. Harry cocked his head to the side for a second, listening to the tune as Fluffy's three massive heads, which had been growling lowly at them as they entered the room, slowly drooped, eyes sliding closed in moments.
"Fur Elise?" Harry asked and Hermione nodded, continuing to whistle the tune. Harry and Neville scurried quickly over to the huge dog and between the two of them they were able to pull its huge paw off of the trap door and yanked it open, looking down into darkness.
"What's down there?" Daphne asked, wand in hand and her eyes trained on Fluffy along with Susan.
"N-nothing," Neville stuttered. "It's just b-b-black."
"Look, I'll go first," Harry hissed, not wanting to risk waking the dog even with Hermione still whistling. "If it's safe I'll call up to you guys. If I don't yell, don't follow me, head straight for the owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, got it?"
Neville nodded and Harry slid his legs over the edge of the hole. Turning, he grasped the edge and lowered himself until he was hanging on by his fingers. A moment later, he let go.
Cool, damp wind whistled past his ears as he fell for what seemed like an inordinately long time then he suddenly landed on something soft with a thump. He took a deep steadying breath for a moment, staring up at the square of light above that looked to be the size of a postage stamp.
"It's okay," he called out. "It's a soft landing, you can jump, just try not to land on each other.
After a brief pause Neville landed next to Harry followed quickly by the three girls.
"How far under the school do you think we are?" Hermione asked as she started shifting around, trying to find her footing on the tangle of vines they'd landed on.
"Who know's?" Harry said with a shrug. "At least this plant thing was here, guess it's to break our fall."
"Guy's?" Neville spoke up, a hesitant note in his voice.
"Huh?" Harry said, distracted as he tried to pull his foot that had gotten tangled up in the vines.
"Guy's this is a Devil's Snare!"
"A what?"
"It's a deadly plant! Don't move, just hold still, let me think a second." They all froze at which point Harry realized the vines he was getting tangled in were moving, slowly wrapping him tighter in their grip.
"Not to hurry you, Nev," he muttered through gritted teeth, "but please hurry!"
"Devils snare, the faster you move the faster it'll fight. It likes the dark and the damp… someone cast a light spell!"
"Lumos Maxima!" Susan bellowed whipping her wand through the motions and Harry screwed his eyes shut as a brilliant flare of light etched his eyelids. A high screaming sound echoed in his ears and the snakelike tendrils of the plant shuddered and retreated, pulling away from them until they were gone.
Moment's later the light receded from a blinding flare to a gentle glow, bright enough for them to see without blinding them and he blinked his eyes open to find they were all lying on a rough stone floor with a hole in the wall not far from them, presumably where the Snare had retreated from the light.
"Quick move, Susan," he gasped out and she sent him a tremulous smile as they all scrambled to their feet. A quick look around showed a rough stone passage as their only way forward and Harry led them toward it.
They hadn't gone thirty feet down the passageway before Neville spoke up.
"Harry?" he said in a small sounding voice and they all stopped, turning to look at their friend. Neville was pale and trembling, sweat beading his brow and his hands shook violently.
"What's wrong, Nev?"
"I shouldn't be here. I'm not brave enough for this, I'm just going to hold you back."
Part of Harry wanted to move forward. If Neville didn't want to come he didn't want to force him. But another part saw it for what it was. This was a turning point. It would be a defining moment for Neville Longbottom. Told his whole life he was weak and barely a squib. Harry new there was a powerful, confident wizard somewhere inside his friend. He'd seen glimpses of it throughout the year.
"Nev, let me tell you a story."
"We don't have time for stories Harry," Daphne tried to point out but Harry shot her a look.
"We'll make time for this one. Walk with me, Nev." He gestured with one arm for Neville to come with him and the group kept walking as Harry started to talk. "I never really agreed with how Gryffindor is described. It's called the house of the brave, and I don't think that's an apt description. Not for a true Gryffindor, at least."
"What do you mean?" Neville asked.
"There was a book series I read when I was younger by one of my favorite authors. The Xanth Series, it was called. In the land of Xanth, every person born has a magical talent. No two talents are ever the same and they range from simple, weak abilities to powerful magician class powers like creating storms from nothing. Anyway, in one of the books there was this kid, I think he was nine or so. I don't remember his name or which book it was but that's not the important part.
"The important part is that this kid goes off to get an answer to a question from the Magician of Information, Humphrey. Humphrey will answer any question, and his answers are always right, but to get an answer you have to get through three challenges in order to earn your answer. So, this kid, he gets through two of the challenges and then he reaches the third challenge and it's a Gorgon."
"Gorgon?"
"A mythical creature, a woman with snakes for hair whose gaze can turn a person to stone," Hermione supplied from behind them and Neville nodded.
"Anyway, he comes across a Gorgon, and he's terrified. He could die right this minute. And he closes his eyes and runs past the Gorgon and into the castle. A few minutes later the Gorgon is talking to him. Turns out she's the magicians wife and she never would have turned him to stone but he hadn't known that and still needed to get past her, which he did, and she says that he was very courageous."
"Courageous? But he closed his eyes and ran?" Neville sounded confused, but he didn't sound scared anymore and Harry smiled to himself.
"Exactly. And almost exactly what the kid said, too. The Gorgon tells him that there's a difference between being brave and having courage. Brave means that you're not afraid, and to her mind that means stupid. Fear is an important thing. It's like pain. Pain tells us when something's wrong with our bodies. Pain let's us know that we're hurt and not to push ourselves. Fear serves a similar function. Fear tells us when we're in too deep or when a situation is dangerous.
"But having courage. Having courage means being afraid, feeling that fear, and doing what you need to do anyway. The kid closed his eyes yes, and yes, he ran away from the Gorgon. But he didn't run out of the castle. He ran past her into the castle. He was afraid, but he pushed forward. He didn't retreat. That's courage. Courage is being afraid, but doing what you need to do anyway. You were afraid, Nev, but you kept your cool and you remembered about the Devil's Snare. You jumped, right behind me, and you saved our lives back there." Harry stopped and placed a hand on Neville's shoulder, looking his friend in the eye by the light from Susan's wand.
"I think you're very courageous, Neville. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise. And that's why you got sorted into Gryffindor. It's not about a lack of fear. It's courage in the face of fear."
Harry could see that his words had had a profound effect on Neville. His friend stood straighter, his shoulders back and his head held high. There was a steely glint in his eyes that Harry didn't think he'd ever seen before but it suited the young scion of house Longbottom.
"Thank's Harry. That really helps."
"Anytime, Nev."
They kept walking, Neville now leading the way with Susan beside him, using her wand to light their path.
"You never cease to amaze me, Harry Potter."
Harry turned and smiled at Hermione on his right side as a small hand slid into his left and he turned to favor Daphne with a smile as well. In silence they kept walking toward their next challenge.
#####
Amelia was sitting in her office finishing up the last of the mountain of parchment work that she had to get through before she could leave for the day. She hummed as she worked and occasionally reached up to pat her robes, reassuring herself that the folded document she'd sequestered in one of the inside pockets was still present.
She was looking forward to the next day, and at the same time felt a jangling of nerves that she hadn't experienced in some time. She loved giving good news to people. But she still worried just how well this news would be received. He'd seemed open to the idea. But was it really what he wanted? She consoled herself with the idea that it was going to be a temporary situation, at first. He wasn't being forced into anything, the decision would be his-
"Amelia!"
She started, jumping in her seat as the sudden voice intruded on her rumination and spun to face the fireplace.
"Sweet Merlin, Minvera," she gasped out, one hand going to her chest. "Give me a damn heart attack. What is it? Is Susan okay? Harry?"
"Honestly, I don't know, Amelia," the face of Minerva McGonagall admitted amongst a wreath of green flames.
"You don't know?"
"Several children came to me earlier today with a spectacular story. Your niece, Misters Longbottom, Potter, and the youngest Weasley boy as well as Misses Granger and Greengrass all came and told me they were positive that a professor was going to be stealing an item the Headmaster has hidden here in the castle."
"Why is the Headmaster using a castle filled with children as his own personal bank vault?" Amelia ground out, anger flaring in her chest.
"It is a long story, Amelia, but right now there are more pressing concerns. I told them I would look into it but there was no way that this item was in any danger. I just checked Gryffindor tower and only Mister Weasley is still abed. The rest are missing. I woke Mister Weasley and questioned him on the matter and he informed me that they were going after the item, attempting to beat this Professor they suspect before he could get to it. There are numerous traps and security precautions in place to protect the item and I believe the children could be in danger."
Amelia surged to her feet and tapped her Auror badge with her wand. "Carol," she snapped. "Get Kingsley Shacklebolt and Rufus Scrimgeour and have them meet me at Hogwarts in Professor McGonagalls office, immediately. Back up Minerva, I'm coming through."
#####
"Okay… So Fluffy was from Hagrid, obviously," Harry gasped, sitting on the hard floor with his back against a wall. "The Devil's Snare was from Sprout. The keys had to be Flitwick's work… who else are we gonna have to deal with?"
"McGonagall for sure," Hermione said, panting from her spot right beside him. "Probably Quirrell and Snape too. I don't think there would be anyone else."
The flight to grab that blasted key had been worse than chasing the snitch. Harry wished he'd had his own broom instead of the old things they'd been forced to ride but they'd been able to get it. Susan and Neville had joined him in the air while Daphne and Hermione had tried to direct them from the ground. As soon as Harry's hand had closed around the large, old looking key, the rest of them had gone ballistic and it had turned into a flying race to avoid being turned into a pincushion as a fluttering army of winged keys suddenly gave chase.
He'd dived for the ground, pulled out and thrown the key to Hermione who ducked a wave of the keys that embedded themselves into the heavy wooden door. Susan and Neville'd made for the ground while Harry'd led the keys on a merry chase and behind him he'd heard a voice cry out in pain but he hadn't been able to tell who it was in his efforts on staying alive. He could tell that none of the girls were in pain so he assumed it was Neville and hoped his friend hadn't been hurt too badly.
"Harry!" Hermione screamed. "It's open!"
He'd twisted upside down and dived again. As he was hurtling toward the open door he could just make out Neville rushing through, one arm hanging limply at his side. Hermione's wild mane was visible as she peeked around the edge of the door and just as he burst through as fast as the broom could carry him she'd slammed it shut, just in time to hear dozens upon dozens of sharp impacts as the keys slammed into the wood that was all that kept them from tearing through their flesh.
"You know," Harry said, "it's almost like they don't want people getting to the other end of this thing."
Hermione chuckled weakly and slowly pushed herself to her feet, making her way over to Susan and Daphne who were inspecting Neville's injury.
"It's nothing too terrible," Susan decided, leaning back on her heels as Daphne held her lit wand over the wound. It was at least four inches long, a deep gash high on his left upper arm and was bleeding steadily. Quickly, Susan tore his already ripped sleeve into long strips and wrapped the injury the best she could, tying it off carefully as Neville averted his gaze and winced in pain.
"All right there, Nev?" Harry asked, pushing himself to his feet with a groan. His body ached as muscles that had been held tense tried to remember how to relax and he nervously stroked the scar behind his jaw.
"I'll live, Harry. Let's keep going."
Harry helped his friend to his feet and the five of them continued forward down a new passage.
The next chamber was so dark they couldn't see anything at all. But as they stepped into it, light suddenly flooded the room to reveal an astonishing sight.
They were standing on the edge of a huge chessboard, behind the black chessmen, which were all taller than they were and carved from what looked like black stone. Facing them, way across the chamber, were the white pieces. Harry, and Hermione shivered slightly — the towering white chessmen had no faces.
"Now what do we do?" Harry whispered.
Hermione frowned as she studied the board. "I think… I think we need to play our way across."
Harry groaned. "Of for the love of…" He sighed and turned to face the four of them. "Any of you any good at chess?" he asked and they all shook their heads. Harry sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose for a moment. "Me neither," he admitted. "Could actually kind of use Ron's help, right about now. Who knew there was a challenge down here that would've been perfect for him?"
He turned and faced the board. "Wands out," he said and held his own aloft as he reached for that anger that he knew was still buried deep inside. He reached for the well, the pool of power that he could always feel and pulled at it. His wand grew warm in his hand as he pumped power down his arm and into it.
"I do not have the patience for this shite," he snarled and twisted his wrist. "Reducto!"
The red curse streaked across the board and obliterated one of the white pawns when it struck. Harry broke into a run, three more Reductos spitting from his wand in rapid succession as he heard footsteps behind him and knew his friends had followed.
"I'm sick and tired of this crap!" he roared as the white pieces started to converge in an attempt to block them. "REDUCTO!"
Four pieces erupted in a shower of stone shards that scattered across the board and they drove through the opening he created. A Reducto from Daphne's wand shattered the wooden door and they sprinted through as the sound of stone crashing against stone echoed loudly behind them.
#####
"Where are they?" Amelia growled out as she stepped through the Floo into McGonagall's office.
"The third floor corridor has been forbidden this year. Headmaster Dumbledore has a valuable item hidden there in an attempt to keep it safe."
"Why would he do that in a school full of children?" she snapped and Minerva shrugged.
"I couldn't begin to tell you the Headmaster's motivations."
The fire flared up behind them and two men stepped through wearing Auror's robes. Kingsley Shacklebolt stepped forward.
"Madam Bones?" he asked in his deep, smooth voice. "What's the situation, Ma'am?"
"Children out of bed and possibly in danger. My niece is one of them."
Both men's eyes hardened and they nodded sharply.
"Minerva, lead the way."
As they walked Professor McGonagall quickly filled them in on the various traps that had been placed to keep anyone away from the mystery item that she refused to name. By the time they reached the corridor and found the door standing open the three of them wore grim expressions and without even pausing burst through the door.
Three bright red stunners erupted from their wands, each striking one of the massive dog's heads. A second volley followed on the heels of the first and Fluffy collapsed with a pitiful whine. Amelia didn't have the time to feel bad for the poor animal though and strode quickly over to the open trap door.
"Get back to your office and see about getting hold of Dumbledore," she snapped and Minerva nodded and hurried from the room as Amelia hunched over and inspected the dark hole in the floor. "Kingsley, light."
Kingsley reached into his robes and pulled out a small orb which he tapped once with his wand before he dropped it down the hole. Before reaching the bottom it burst into bright light and Amelia was just able to make out snaking tendrils ripping back into a dark opening at the base of the wall. Without waiting she leapt into the hole, her wand pointing down as she cast a half a dozen cushioning charms in rapid succession.
She landed heavily on her feet and a moment later the two Aurors landed on either side of her and she started off down the tunnel, lighting her wand and raising it above her head to light their way.
The room filled with keys would have been fascinating but Amelia simply blew open the door without breaking stride and kept walking as keys flew everywhere, bouncing off the shields quickly erected by her Aurors and clattering to the ground around them.
"Gotta say," Kingsley muttered as they walked. "I'm kind of impressed with these kids. Not many first years could have handled that Snare back there, much less those keys."
"I'll be impressed with them after I'm finished grounding them," Amelia growled. The dark chamber they entered lit up and she came up short for a moment staring at the destruction before them. "I stand corrected," she whispered. "I'll be impressed now."
More than half the white pieces were completely destroyed, two or three wandered listlessly around the space with chunks missing and every single black piece was huddled in one corner of the room, quivering in terror.
"Mister Potter has certainly been here," she muttered with a rueful grin as she led the way across the board and through the blasted door on the other side.
"Holy… what is that smell?" Scrimgeour groaned as they stepped into the next hall, one hand held over his nose.
"Troll," Amelia said and pointed to the corpse lying on the ground nearby. "I don't think the kids did that one though. It's even bigger than the one Harry killed back on Halloween, so I understand."
Both Aurors fixed her with a dumbstruck look.
"An eleven-year-old killed a troll?" Kingsley stammered out and Amelia nodded.
"Come on." She continued forward, and found a wall of flames blocking their way at the end of the hall. A quick flame freezing charm and she held her breath and stepped through.
"Auntie?"
"Susan?"
"Auntie Amelia!"
Amelia stumbled back a step when a black and red blur slammed into her midsection and a pair of slender arms wrapped around her waist. Neville Longbottom sat against one wall, looking a bit pale and with his left sleeve tattered and wrapped around his arm, a bit of blood trickled down his forearm toward his hand. Daphne Greengrass looked more disheveled than she'd probably ever been, her face dotted with dirt and her robes torn and rumpled while Hermione Granger stood with her back to the room, steadfastly staring at a wall of black flames that blocked the way into the next room.
"Are you all okay?" Amelia demanded. "Where's Harry?"
"We're fine, Madam Bones," Daphne told her. "Harry went on, we couldn't follow him. The potions would only allow one person through."
Amelia idly noted the table with several little glass bottles lined up precisely on its surface. That'd be Snape's challenge, she thought.
"What happened?"
"We got through the chessboard and that troll was already dead and when we got here there was only enough of the potion for one of us to go forward and Harry drank it before we could stop him and he-"
"Susan, you're rambling."
Beyond the flames a great screeching sound echoed and all three girls suddenly tensed. Susan spun from her arms just as Daphne whipped around to face the flames Hermione still hadn't looked away from.
As one, three voices cried out in a pained wail that set even the hardened Aurors to shivering.
"HARRY!"
All three girls collapsed, like marionettes with their strings suddenly cut and Amelia surged forward, terror shooting through her. Another flame freezing charm and she plunged into the black flames as something foul, fetid, and icy cold brushed past her in the opposite direction.
#####
Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,
Two of us will help you, whichever you would find,
One among us seven will let you move ahead,
Another will transport the drinker back instead,
Two among our number hold only nettle wine,
Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.
Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,
To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:
First, however slyly the poison tries to hide
You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;
Second, different are those who stand at either end,
But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;
Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,
Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;
Fourth, the second left and the second on the right
Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.
"Oh, this is brilliant," Hermione gushed as she read the paper they'd picked up off the small table in the center of the room. As soon as they'd entered a wall of purple flames had sprung up behind them, blocking the door they'd just entered through, while a wall of black flames appeared in front, blocking the way forward.
"What's so brilliant about it?" Daphne asked as she studied the seven bottles lined up on the table.
"It's not magic, it's logic. It's a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven't got an ounce of logic, they'd be stuck here forever trying to figure out what to do."
"And we're not going to be?" Neville asked as Susan helped lower him to the ground. They hadn't been able to get the bleeding to stop entirely and he was starting to feel a little light headed. Harry wasn't sure if it was a result of blood loss or if he just wasn't used to pain and the sight of his own blood as Harry was.
He shoved those thoughts aside and focused his attention back on Hermione.
"No, everything we need is right here. All the clues. Just give me a moment."
"Give us a moment," Daphne interjected and dragged Hermione over to the table. Harry glanced at Neville and Susan and they both shrugged, Neville with a bit of a pained wince as the motion shifted his arm.
He glanced back at Hermione again, who was standing shoulder to shoulder with Daphne, the two of them reading through the paper and muttering to each other as they pointed at various bottles.
"Got it," Daphne called out as Hermione reached out and snatched up one of the bottles, spinning around with a triumphant smile on her face. "The smallest bottle, this one will get us through the black fire, toward the Stone.
Harry took the tiny bottle from her and held it up, looking at it with a critical eye.
"That's hardly one swallow. That'd only be enough for one of us."
They all looked at each other before Harry sighed and pushed down on their link. Not enough to cut them off entirely, he'd learned his lesson there, but enough that it'd be harder for them to track how he was feeling.
"Which one will get us back through the purple flames?"
"Uhh… that one!" she snatched up a larger round bottle from the right end of the line.
"Harry!"
She spun back around as Susan screamed and turned in time to see Harry lowering the tiny bottle from his lips as he swallowed the contents. Turning, he threw the bottle to the floor, smashing it on the stones.
"Drink that," he said, pointing at the bottle Hermione clutched in her suddenly nerveless fingers. "Use the brooms in the key room to get out. Go straight to the owlery and send Hedwig to get Dumbledore, we need him."
Without waiting to see if they would listen he rushed forward and plunged through the black flames and into the room beyond.
As he came out the other side his wand was already coming up and he spat out, "Diffindo!" The scythe like shape of the cutting curse ripped through the air, only to be batted aside with contemptuous ease and Harry skidded to a stop, his mouth dropping open as he took in the dark figure before him.
"Professor Quirrell?" he blurted out.
Quirrell smiled. His face wasn't twitching and he stood straight and tall as opposed to his usual hunched and nervous posture. "Me," he said, calmly. "I was really beginning to wonder whether I'd run into you down here, Potter. Your family has always seen fit to poke their noses where they weren't wanted."
"But…" Harry trailed off, frowning in confusion. "But I thought… Snape was…"
"Severus?" Quirrell laughed for a moment before his face took on a thoughtful cast. "Yes, he does seem the type, doesn't he? Quite useful to constantly have him swooping around intimidating and insulting everyone that crosses his path. Next to someone like that who would ever suspect me of being after the Stone?"
"But, Snape tried to kill me?" Harry hid a wince. He hated how that'd sounded like a question. As he talked he slowly moved to his left, getting away from the flames at his back and giving himself some room to maneuver if need be.
"No, I tried to kill you. Your friends knocked me over in their rush to set Snape on fire at the Quidditch match and broke my eye contact with you. I'd have had you long before then if Snape hadn't been muttering the countercurse, trying to save you."
Harry couldn't comprehend that. There was no way Snape had been trying to save his life, it just didn't make any sense.
"You're too nosy to live, Potter. All your scurrying around this school. Especially on Halloween. I know you saw me coming to look at what was guarding the Stone."
"I didn't see anything. Susan said she saw Snape, but I hadn't even noticed." Harry took another step to his left.
"None of that, Potter," Quirrell barked and snapped his fingers. Ropes sprang into existence and made to wrap themselves tightly around him but Harry slashed his wand.
"Diffindo," he cried out and grinned when the cutting curse sliced through the ropes and he suddenly was forced to dive to the side as a red curse split the air where he'd been standing.
"You're faster than I'd given you credit for, Potter," Quirrell snarled and snapped his fingers again. That time, Harry was still trying to scramble to his feet and was unable to use his wand or get out of the way and he found his arms pinned to his sides as the ropes tightened around him.
"You let that troll in, didn't you?" Harry snarled, struggling against the ropes which only seemed to tighten more in response to his actions.
"Of course I did. I have a special gift with trolls, you see. Unfortunately, Snape was able to head me off before I got to the third floor that night. That stupid dog didn't even manage to properly maim him," he muttered, sounding disappointed.
"Now wait quietly, like a good little boy. I have a rather interesting mirror here that I was in the process of examining."
That was when Harry noticed the large mirror standing behind the professor. It was one hell of a mirror, he had to admit. Standing as tall as a classroom ceiling, with an ornate gold frame, supported by two clawed feet. There was an inscription carved around the top: Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on woshi.
"This mirror is the key," Quirrell muttered, staring at the mirror with a mad hint of desire in his eyes. He continued to mutter and mumble as he tapped his way around the frame.
"I saw you and Snape in his classroom," he blurted out, determined to keep the lunatic from focusing too much on his task. He had to keep him distracted, give Dumbledore time to get back.
"Yes," Quirrell muttered, not exactly paying attention to Harry. "The dungeon bat was onto me by that time, trying to figure out how far I'd gotten against the protections around the Stone." He turned and smirked at Harry. "He tried to intimidate me, as if he could, when I have had Lord Voldemort on my side…"
He trailed off suggestively and a chill ran through Harry's body.
"I was right," he whispered before speaking again in a stronger voice, "I was right. Voldemort didn't die that night, not completely. He's still out there."
"Not 'out there', Potter," Quirrell snapped, spinning to face Harry. "Here! He's here, with me, right this moment."
He was nuts, Harry decided. Quirrell had snapped his twig, completely.
"I see the Stone," Quirrell was muttering, glaring distastefully at the mirror. "I'm presenting it to my master… but where is it!" he bellowed the last in frustration and let a blasting curse hurtle from his wand toward the far wall in his mounting anger and frustration.
Harry struggled against the ropes, twisting and fighting, but they refused to give in the slightest.
"What do you mean, Voldemort is here?" Harry demanded, trying to catch Quirrells attention again. "It's just you and me in this room."
"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "I met him when I traveled the world, a foolish young man at that time, full of ridiculous ideas about good and evil. Lord Voldemort showed me how wrong I was, Potter. There is no good. No evil. There is only power and those too weak to seek it… I have served him faithfully since then… but I am weak, I have failed him many times and he has had to be quite harsh with me…"
Harry stared, dumfounded at the madness spewing from the mans mouth. He's completely barmy, he thought as Quirrell turned back to the mirror once again.
"I don't understand… is the Stone inside the mirror? Should I break it?"
"Use the boy… Use the boy…"
Harry started, tripping as the ropes around his ankles caused him to overbalance and he fell over. What the hell was that voice?
Quirrell rounded on him, his dark eyes locking on Harry.
"Yes.. Potter, come here." He clapped his hands once and the ropes wrapping Harry up like a Christmas Goose fell away and he slowly climbed to his feet.
"Come here," Quirrell snapped. "Look in this mirror and tell me what you see."
Harry walked toward him. It's just a mirror, what did the lunatic expect him to see except his own reflection? And, just as expected, when he found himself yanked in front of the mirror he saw nothing but his own reflection, looking small, pale, and scared.
Then his eyes widened as his reflection suddenly smiled at him. It reached into its trouser pocket and withdrew a small blood red stone, about the size of his palm. With another conspiratorial smile and a wink, his reflection dropped the Stone back into his pocket and a moment later Harry felt something heavy dropping into his real pocket.
Realization struck him like a bolt of lightning.
He had the Stone.
"What do you see, boy?" Quirrell snapped and before Harry could begin to think up something random the image in the mirror swirled and shifted. Figures filled it and Harry watched as his own reflection swelled and grew up and out until he no longer looked the same. He was taller, broader, older. At least in his mid twenties, if Harry had to guess. On his right stood a woman with wild, untamed brown hair and a beautiful smile. Cinnamon colored eyes looked back at him and she turned and drew the older version of him into a kiss.
Hermione?
He almost jumped when he recognized the woman as an older version of his bond mate. The two figures pulled apart and an arm came into the frame from older Harry's left side. A body followed, another gorgeous woman with vibrant red hair that fell in waves to her waist. Her robes clung to a stunning figure and she winked one deep blue eye at real Harry before she turned and pulled older Harry into a kiss just as passionate as Hermione had just done.
Susan?
When that kiss ended, as Harry was beginning to suspect would happen, Susan moved aside and another figure walked into the frame. This one had long blond hair, straight and shimmering with reflected light as she ignored real Harry entirely and allowed herself to be wrapped in older Harry's arms as their lips met.
And Daphne.
"What do you see Potter?" Quirrell growled loudly in his ear and Harry jumped, shaking himself out of his stupor.
"Ummm… a girl," he mumbled. "I'm older and there's a girl, a beautiful girl, and she's kissing me."
"Gah, useless boy!" Quirrell practically bellowed and shoved Harry aside, sending him sprawling to the hard stones.
"He lies…" spoke the third voice that Harry still couldn't identify. Where was it coming from? Who was it?
"Potter!" Quirrell rounded on him and Harry scrambled backwards as the madman trained his wand on him.
"Let me speak to him… face to face…"
Quirrell straightened up, turning his attention away from Harry to speak to the empty air around him. "But Master, you are not strong enough," he protested.
"I have strength… enough… for this…" the voice said and without a word Quirrell reached up and began to remove that stupid, smelly turban that he always wore and as he did Harry began to notice something unusual.
As more and more of the Professors head became uncovered it became clear that it was strangely shaped and without any hair. By the time he had removed it entirely and turned his back on him, Harry was gripped by an overwhelming terror as the crimson reptilian eyes that he remembered so vividly from his nightmares locked onto his.
The face sticking out of the back of Quirrell's head was deformed, disgusting, and horrifying with chalk white skin, those glaring red eyes and slits in place of nostrils, like a snakes.
"Harry Potter…" it whispered.
Harry tried to scrabble further back but his body wouldn't move.
"Do you see, Potter, what I have become? What you have done to me? Reduced to this, a mere shadow and vapor… I hold solid form only when I can share the body of another. But once I have the Elixer of Life, I will be able to create a body of my own… Now… why don't you hand over that Stone in your pocket?"
He knew. Voldemort knew
Feeling surged back into his body and he scrambled backwards, rolling to his feet and backing away from the frightful apparition in front of him. His eyes darted around the room looking for something, anything to help him as Voldemort continued to rant and ramble.
"… Meet the same end as your parents…" he was saying. "They died… begging me for mercy…"
"LIAR!" Harry bellowed. "I've heard that night! My mother begged you to let me live. She sacrificed herself. She did everything to protect me!"
"How touching," Voldemort hissed as Quirrell walked backward toward Harry, letting Voldemort keep him in sight. "I always value bravery… Yes, your parents were brave, Harry Potter. Your father fought bravely, but still fell to my wand… and your mother… she needn't have died but she was trying to protect you… Now… give me the Stone, or your mothers sacrifice will have been in vain."
"NEVER!"
Harry jerked to his left than reversed direction in a sprint toward the door on his right as Voldemort shrieked behind him, 'SEIZE HIM!" and the next second, Quirrell's hand closed on his wrist.
Needle sharp pain seared its way through his scar, his head felt as though it was about to split in two and Harry cried out in pain. He yelled, struggling with all his might against the grip Quirrell had on him and, surprisingly, broke free as the man let go, shrieking in agony as his hand began to smoke and blister before his eyes.
""SEIZE HIM. SEIZE HIM!"
Quirrell sprang forward, driving Harry to his back as his hands came around the boys neck. Harry struggled but with his body pinned beneath the mans knees he couldn't get free and moments later Quirrel reared back both hands sizzling and smoking.
"I cannot hold him. Master?"
"Then kill him and be done with it you fool!"
"AAARGH!"
Before Quirrell was able to retrieve his wand Harry, in desperation, reached up and grasped the mans face. Lightning erupted behind his eyes as their skin made contact and pain roared through his body but Harry refused to let go. Quirrell surged to his feet in an attempt to escape and Harry followed, leaping bodily onto the man and driving him to the ground just as he'd been held moments before.
"You're never killing anyone again!" Harry bellowed and drove his fist down into the red and blistering face of his Defense Professor. Over and over, his fist rose and fell and each time their skin made contact it came with a flare of agony and the sizzle of burning flesh as slowly, Quirrell's face was reduced to a melted slag of blood and burned tissue.
Finally, with an inarticulate roar of rage Harry reared back and drove both fists down and the mans head caved in completely and after a spasmodic twitch, fell still beneath him.
Harry sat back, panting from exertion and pain and stared down as the body continued to burn and disintegrate beneath him. A cold wind began to blow through the room.
"Harry… Potter…"
Harry froze as the hissing voice of Voldemort sounded from beneath Quirrells head. Slowly, the head began to turn. Muscle tore, blood squirted, and with a sickening crack the neck snapped as the head turned one hundred and eighty degrees so Voldemort could fix his hateful crimson gaze on Harry.
"Potter…" he hissed. Blackish blood leaked from the slits of his nose and from his eyes and mouth, leaving streaks on the white flesh. "You may know… Potter… more than most, of which I speak…"
"What the fuck are you talking about?" Harry snarled.
Voldemort smiled. "You know violence. You… you are not as weak as that pacifistic fool… Dumbledore." He spoke with great, gasping breaths. "You know the truth of power. Take it… Harry… there is no good. There is no evil… One day, you'll join me and help me cleanse this world… cleanse it… of the taint… that-"
"I will never, EVER work with YOU!" Harry cut him off, screaming with rage and, once again lifted both hands, this time bring them down and driving his thumbs into and through those hateful crimson orbs.
Voldemort shrieked, a high pitched wail filled the air, more than any body should have been able to produce. A noxious cloud of black and green rose around him and Harry felt a chill seep deep into his bones. Beneath him the body suddenly exploded and Harry was flung hard and far through the air.
He felt something solid against his back, the back of his head whipped against the wall and several loud cracking sounds filled the air. Pain flared briefly in his body before all feeling fled and the last thing Harry Potter would remember, was the raised voices of three young women, each screaming his name.
He fell to the floor, half open green eyes staring at nothing as the light of life left them.
Authors notes the Second: Don't kill me! *Hides* Yes. A horrible cliff hanger, I know, I'm sorry I don't do them very often I swear! Please forgive and don't kill me, you'll never find out what happened if you kill me. Anyway, I'll be getting the next chapter up as soon as I can, probably before what would have been my next scheduled post cause I'm just so excited for the whole thing.
By the way, the song that Harry sings to distract Peeves? It's from The Hobbit and was sung by Bilbo Baggins to draw the giant spiders away from the dwarves so said dwarves could escape.
See ya around, gang.
Rotten Writer