Disclaimer: All that is not JKR's is mine-and that mainly consists in the human character of Nagini and the influence she exerts on the magical world.
Chapter 26: Through The Trapdoor
The last few weeks before exams passed by in a blur. Whenever Nagini wasn't spying on Harry Potter and his friends to figure out what they were going to do about the Stone, she was studying for exams, and whenever she wasn''t studying for exams, she was spying on Potter. From what Nagini could tell, it didn't seem like Potter was going to do anything, so she spent more and more time studying for her exams. Theo, Blaise, and Tracey had finally joined her in studying, making use of her more-organized notes. Nagini didn''t mind, but every time one of them reached for her notebook instead of their own, Nagini couldn't resist telling them, "I told you so." They would glare back at her, and she would just smirk.
Finally, the day of the first exam dawned. No one spoke at breakfast. Nagini was pleased to see Parkinson panicking, her hair slightly askew as she tried, and failed, to levitate the salt shaker. Nagini herself wasn't nervous. She could perform the spells they had studied that year, and she had spent many hours reviewing. She was confident she would pass. Other than her, Theo and Blaise seemed to be the only first-years who weren't nervous—Theo because he was quite clever and had spent nearly as much time studying as Nagini had and Blaise because he was never nervous about anything; in fact, he rarely displayed his emotions.
All in all, the exams weren't too bad, Nagini felt. Even Crabbe and Goyle, the densest pair of the year, could have passed, though that might have been a slight exaggeration—neither of them seemed to have absorbed anything from their classes the entire year. The written exams took place in the mornings in a sweltering hot classroom. The room was uncomfortable, and even with her hair pulled up in a bun away from her face, Nagini was still sweating. Like everyone else, she breathed a sigh of relief when they could finally leave the classroom.
The practical exams in the afternoons were much more interesting. In Charms, they had to make a pineapple tap dance across a desk, much to Professor Flitwick's delight. For fun, Nagini made hers do a couple flips at the end to Flitwick's applause. In Transfiguration, they had to turn a mouse into a snuffbox. They earned points for how pretty it was but lost points if the snuffbox still had a tail or whiskers. Herbology consisted of properly harvesting dittany. One had to carefully remove the berries from under the leaves and release the juice into a glass vial. Finally, in Potions they had to brew a simple Forgetfulness potion from memory. The first ten minutes, the class hurriedly scribbled down everything they could remember about the ingredients and directions before getting to work. In Nagini's opinion, the Potion's exam was the hardest simply because there was so much to remember, more so than any other class even.
Finally, the exams were done. The first years had nothing to do until their results came out next week. To celebrate, Nagini, Theo, and Blaise had gone down to the grounds and were now sitting on the edge of the dock, enjoying the coolness of the water and the warm sun overhead. Unfortunately, the peace was soon broken by the arrival of Pansy and her gang.
Nagini saw a shadow fall over her, but before she could turn around, someone pushed her from behind. She fell forward and with a splash landed in the lake. Nagini came up spluttering to see Pansy smirking at her. "What was that for?" demanded Theo, angrily. ""Can't face someone head on, so you have to push them from behind?"
Pansy didn't answer; she was still smirking at Nagini in triumph. From behind her, Daphne and Millicent were laughing, and Tracey looked nervous. Nagini pulled out her wand and pointed it straight at Pansy. The smirk slowly faded from Pansy's face, and her eyes widened.
"Locomotor Parkinson," called Nagini.
Pansy began to float off the ground, and she glared at Nagini as she flailed around in midair. "You wouldn't," she began, panic evident in her voice.
"Oh, but I would," finished Nagini and flicked her wand, causing the screaming Pansy to go flying and land with a splash in the water behind her.
She came up spluttering and began flailing her arms about, trying to stay above the water. "My hair!" she cried. "I'll get you for this, Ferestael!"
"You can try," replied Nagini evenly, "but somehow, I don't think you'll succeed."
Theo and Blaise were laughing their heads off on the dock. Even Daphne and Tracey were laughing slightly. Nagini turned to the two boys. "You better be laughing at her and not me," she warned them, "or else you'll be next."
They didn't reply, and Nagini splashed them with water. "It's rather nice in here," she commented as Pansy made her way back over to the dock. Once there, she paused, unsure of how to get out.
With an evil grin on his face, Theo stood up. "You know what?" he asked. "A swim does sound nice right about now." He then jumped in right next to Pansy, soaking both her and Nagini.
"Nott!" she cried. "You—I ––I—you'll pay for this!"
He just grinned at her and turned to Blaise. "You in?" he asked.
Blaise looked down at the Theo's eager face grinning at him. Smirking, Blaise replied, "As tempting as that sounds, I'd rather remain dry, funny enough."" Nagini rolled her eyes. Of course, she thought. Theo, however, grabbed Blaise's leg and yanked him off the dock. With a cry, Blaise hit the water, splashing Pansy, Nagini, and Theo.
Pansy glared at them all, close to tears, before turning and swimming back to shore, letting out sounds of disgust as she passed through weeds and mud. Nagini, Theo, and Blaise watched her leave and laughed in delight at her obvious discomfort. When she had reached shore, Theo and Blaise turned back to Nagini.
"You know, Blaise," Theo began, "Nagini did splash us." Nagini began slowly backing up, trying to get out of his reach.
"That's right," continued Blaise, smirking.
"I think it's time for some payback," continued Theo.
"I quite agree," finished Blaise.
Both boys began splashing Nagini, who used her wand to protect herself and send the water back at them. "But Blaise," cried Nagini, "Theo pulled you in the lake, not me.""
Blaise paused for a moment as Theo watched him warily. "True," he admitted, and Blaise proceeded to attack Theo as well. Laughing and screaming, the three battled back and forth. There were no rules and no sides, everyone was on their own. Finally, laughing and exhausted, they pulled themselves out of the water and onto the dock.
They lay in the sun for a while, drying off, before heading inside. Theo and Blaise headed straight for the Great Hall and dinner while Nagini took a detour, saying she needed to return a book to the library. In reality, she headed up to the third-floor corridor, as she did every day, to check that the creature was still behind the door.
Nagini turned the corner on the second floor but then pulled back abruptly. Slowly, she peered around the corner. Hermione Granger was standing outside the staff room, bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. She glanced nervously up and down the corridor before peering through the window. Just then the door to the staff room opened, and Granger jumped back in alarm. Professor Snape came out and looked at her.
"What are you doing?" he asked quietly.
"I—I," stammered Granger. "I''m waiting for Professor Flitwick. I have a question about the exam, you see."
That was lie, Nagini knew. If she had a question, she would have asked Flitwick long ago. Snape stared down at Granger; he seemed to be thinking along the same lines as Nagini. Finally, he said, "Well, if you wait here, Granger, I'll get him.""
"Oh, that's great," replied Granger in a forced cheery voice, looking like it was anything but. "I'll just wait here then."
Snape left, and as soon as he was gone, Granger bolted.
That was strange, thought Nagini, continuing on her way to the third-floor. If she really had a question, she would have knocked to see if Flitwick was in there. It was obviously just an excuse, and not a very good one at that. Was she spying on the teachers? Snape in particular? Her father had told her that Potter thought Snape was the one after the Stone. Nagini frowned and furrowed her brow in concentration. It appeared that the three Gryffindors were taking it upon themselves to protect the Stone rather than tell a teacher.
When Nagini reached the third-floor corridor, she heard voices. "I suppose you think you're harder to get past than a pack of enchantments!" cried McGonagall. Nagini peered around the corner. McGonagall towered over Potter and Weasley, who were cowering before her. "Enough of this nonsense! If I hear you've come anywhere near here again, I'll take another fifty points from Gryffindor! Yes, Weasley, from my own house!"
Nagini smirked slightly but then pulled herself together when she heard the sound of footsteps coming her way. She hurriedly pulled out her wand and murmured, "Invisibilis." She vanished from sight as Potter and Weasley rounded the corner.
"Did you see something over there?" asked Potter, pointing to where Nagini stood.
Weasley glanced over. "No, mate. I reckon you're getting a bit paranoid with all that's going on."
"Maybe," Potter replied. Nagini could tell he was unconvinced.
The two continued on their way, and Nagini followed them. She was supposed to be keeping an eye on them, wasn't she? She knew that after the confrontation with McGonagall, they would be planning something, and she needed to know what. "At least Hermione''s on Snape's tail," Potter said as they stepped off the staircase and continued down a corridor on the seventh floor.
"Harry, Ron!" called a voice. Potter, Weasley, and the invisible Nagini turned around. Granger caught up to them, panting slightly. Nagini hurriedly stepped back, so Granger wouldn''t run into her. "I'm so sorry," she gasped. "Snape came out and asked me what I was doing, so I said I was waiting for Flitwick, and Snape went to get him, and I've only just got away. I don't know where Snape went."
"Well, that's it then, isn't it?" asked Potter. Nagini, Weasley, and Granger looked at him. "I'm going down the trapdoor tonight," he told them. "I'm going to try and get the Stone first."
Nagini gasped then clapped a hand over her mouth. Fortunately, no one heard her because Weasley exclaimed, "You're mad!"
At the same time, Granger burst out, "You can't! After what McGonagall and Snape have said? You'll be expelled!"
I doubt it, thought Nagini. No matter what Potter did, Dumbledore wouldn't expel him.
"SO WHAT?" Potter shouted. Nagini listened, shaking her head, as he ranted. "Don't you understand? If Snape gets hold of the Stone, Voldemort's coming back!" Yes, that's the whole point, thought Nagini.
"Haven't you heard what it was like when he was trying to take over? There won't be any Hogwarts to get expelled from! He''ll flatten it, or turn it into a school for the Dark Arts!" That's a lie, thought Nagini enraged. Her father loved Hogwarts. He said it was like a home for him. He would never destroy it. He respects magic and the teaching of magic too much.
"Losing points doesn't matter anymore, can't you see? D'you think he'll leave you and your families alone if Gryffindor wins the house cup? If I get caught before I can get to the Stone, well, I'll have to go back to the Dursleys and wait for Voldemort to find me there, it's only dying a bit later than I would have, because I'm never going over to the Dark Side!" The Dark Side? He's trying to make the world safer for witches and wizards everywhere. That doesn't make him evil. That just makes you ignorant, misguided, and afraid of change, Harry Potter, Nagini lectured inside her head. She longed to curse Potter, or at the very least slap him, but the Gryffindors didn't know she was eavesdropping.
"I'm going through that trapdoor tonight," Potter continued, "and nothing you two say is going to stop me! Voldemort killed my parents, remember?" Nagini felt sorry for him that he lost his parents. She really did. After all, she knew what it was like to live alone, but that didn't mean she agreed with him at all. His parents were gone while her father could come back, and his parents had stood against everything her father believed in. He had told her that it was unfortunate what had happened to them. He said he had given them a chance to walk away, but they refused. He had even asked them to join him, but again, they refused! In the end, it wasn't his fault they had died—in every war there were casualties, and the Potters just happened to be among them. No matter how much Potter and she wished events had played out differently, there was nothing either could do to change the past.
Potter finished his tirade to glare at his friends, and Nagini glared at him.
"You're right, Harry," said Granger in a small voice. No, he's not, thought Nagini, fuming.
"I'll use the invisibility cloak," said Potter. "It''s just lucky I got it back."
"But will it cover all three of us?" said Weasley.
"All—all three of us?"
"Oh, come off it, you don't think we'd let you go alone?" Of course, they wouldn't, thought Nagini with a sigh. Stupid Gryffindor bravery.
"Of course not," interjected Granger. "How do you think you'd get to the Stone without us? I'd better go and look through my books, there might be something useful. . . ."
"But if we get caught, you two will be expelled, too," Potter protested. No, they wouldn't. Dumbledore would never expel any of his precious Gryffindors, Nagini thought bitterly.
"Not if I can help it," said Granger. "Flitwick told me in secret that I got a hundred and twelve percent on his exam. They''re not throwing me out after that." Nagini rolled her eyes. The girl was so annoying! In fact, she was almost as bad as Parkinson, jumping up and down at every question and having to be perfect at everything. Thank Merlin, she didn't share a dorm room with her as well.
The three Gryffindors entered their common room through a portrait of a fat lady, and Nagini was left by herself in the corridor. She removed the invisibility spell and stood there fuming. Eventually, she realized she had to leave before some Gryffindor caught her up there. After all, it was rather suspicious for a Slytherin to be hanging out around the entrance to the Gryffindor common room.
Nagini left, glaring at the empty corridor before her. Potter had no right to say such things! What does he know anyway? He wasn't there when the war was going on. All he knows is what people told him. And the people he talked to were ignorant, misguided, idiots blinded by power and contentment who were afraid of a change that was for their own benefit! Who did Potter think he was? Nothing he said was true. Nothing!
Invisible, Nagini ran through the empty corridor, not quite sure where she was going, just knowing she had to be somewhere no one was likely to find her. After hearing that Potter and his friends were going to go after the Stone, she had searched the castle for Quirrell to slip him a note, but she couldn't find him anywhere. She could only hope that he and her father were going after the Stone that night as well.
Nagini had lain in bed awake waiting for the other girls to fall asleep. Once they had, she had snuck out of the dorm room. Thankfully, the common room was already empty. It was late enough that even the older students had already gone to bed. She placed the invisibility spell upon herself and left. It wasn't enough to try to stop Potter, she knew. She had to inform her father of what was happening. It was what he had asked her to do, and she had vowed she wouldn't fail him. She couldn't fail him, not now, not when he was so close to being able to come for her.
Nagini stopped in the middle of the corridor and fell to her knees. She was gasping for breath, and she had a stitch in her side. She listened carefully—the castle was silent; there was no one nearby. Here is as good a place as any, she thought wryly. She couldn't run any farther, and she had had no idea where she was running anyway.
Nagini closed her eyes and breathed deeply, trying to calm her racing heart. She slowed her breaths, evening them, going into the deep meditation her father had taught her. It was a way to enter the clearing, he had told her, and a way to contact him in an emergency. Nagini delved deep into her mind and when she opened her eyes, she found herself in the clearing, though she could still feel the cold stone floor beneath her knees.
Nagini didn't wait for her father to come to her. He wouldn't, not tonight, not if he and Quirrell were going after the Stone tonight. Instead, she ran across the clearing and down a path that led through the trees. Farther and farther, she went. The forest grew darker as the trees thickened. As she ran, Nagini felt the tingling in her mind grow. She knew she was on the right track. Finally, she could run no farther—the trees blocked her path.
Nagini stood where she was and closed her eyes once more. She felt herself slowing dissolving into nothingness. Far away, she could still feel her beating heart, the air rushing through her lungs, and the stone floor upon which her body knelt. All around her, however, was darkness; she felt as if she was suffocating.
"Nagini?" asked a voice from all around her, drawing her thoughts back to her task.
"Father," Nagini answered in relief. "I had to tell you, but I couldn't find Quirrell."
"What is it?" he asked sharply. Impatience to hear the answer surrounded her.
"It's Potter," she replied. "He's coming. He's trying to get to the Stone before you."
Nagini felt his surprise and a touch of panic and fear. "You must hurry, Quirrell," her father said out loud. "Potter is coming. You must get to the Stone before he arrives.""
"Of course, master," came the muffled reply. "We are almost there. We only have to get past my troll, Snape's potions, and then Dumbledore's mirror. There was an inaudible shout and then a thud. Then Nagini heard the sound of footsteps, and she felt herself moving. The movement stopped, and there was a whoosh from behind and in front of them.
"What happened, Quirrell?" demanded Voldemort.
"There's a fire blocking the door, my lord," Quirrell replied, "I''m not sure how to get through it, but wait. There's something on the table." Nagini felt herself fall backward as Quirrell bent over to pick something up. Nagini heard the crinkling of parchment, and Quirrell was silent as he read it. "It's a riddle," he said finally. "There are seven potions on the table. Only one of them will allow us to walk through the fire. There's clues to help us determine which potion is which, but I'm sorry, my lord, I can't do it.""
"Read me the riddle," commanded Voldemort. Quirrell did so.
Danger lies before you, while saftely 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 theses 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.
Voldemort was silent, and Nagini tried to work through what she just heard. Suddenly, the darkness was extinguished, and Nagini saw a table laden with seven goblets in front of her. She tried turning, but she had no control over her movements. Just then, her head moved, and she saw black flames blocking the door ahead. Her gaze was brought back to the parchment in her hand, and she felt herself pacing back and forth in front of the table. She could hear her father thinking to himself. "Those two are the nettle wine, which means those two are poison. That one will lead us back, but we don't want that, not yet at least. And that," he though triumphantly, "is the potion that will lead us onward." "The smallest bottle, Quirrell," he spoke aloud. "That will bring us forward."
"Are you sure, my lord?" asked Quirrell.
"Of course, now drink it!"
"Yes, my lord."
Again, everything was black, and Nagini felt Quirrell move forward. "How is this happening?" she asked her father.
"You sought my mind," he told her. "I was with Quirrell, so now you are as well, and I would like you to stay, Nagini. It may be that you can assist us."
If one could smile without a mouth, Nagini knew she was. Her father wanted her to be with him! He thought she could help!
"Of course, I want you to be with me, Nagini," her father said, sounding amused. "And yes, I do believe you will be able to help."
"I didn't realize you could hear me," thought Nagini sheepishly.
"You are in my mind, daughter," he told her. "I know everything you are thinking, but now, let''s pay attention. We are almost there."
Quirrell stepped through the flames. Nagini could feel them, but they did not burn. Quirrell walked across a room then stopped abruptly. "You were right, my lord. Dumbledore did use the Mirror of Erised."
"The Mirror of Erised was here?" thought Nagini.
"Yes," her father replied. "Ever since you told me about it, I had wondered why it was at Hogwarts. The answer was obvious: Dumbledore planned to use it to hide the Stone."
"I can see myself," continued Quirrell. "I am holding the Stone, and I am using it to make the Elixir of Life."
"But where is the Stone?" asked Voldemort.
"I don't know, my lord," answered Quirrell. "Maybe—" He broke off, and Nagini listened intently. There were footsteps ahead of her, and someone entered the room.
"You!" gasped a voice. It was Harry Potter.
"Potter?" thought her father.
"Yes," answered Nagini. "That's his voice.""
"Me," said Quirrell calmly, turning to face the boy. "I wondered whether I'd be meeting you here, Potter."
"But I thought—Snape—"
"Severus?" laughed Quirrell. "Yes, Severus does seem the type, doesn't he? So useful to have him swooping around like an over-grown bat. Next to him, who would suspect p-p-poor st-stuttering P-Professor Quirrell?"
"But Snape tried to kill me!"
"No, no, no. I tried to kill you. Your friend Miss Granger accidentally knocked me over as she rushed to set fire to Snape at that Quidditch match. She broke my eye contact with you. Another few seconds and I'd have got you off that broom. I'd have manages it before then if Snape hadn't been muttering a countercurse, trying to save you."
"Snape was trying to save me?" asked Potter incredulously.
"Of course," answered Quirrell coldly. "Why do you think he wanted to referee your next match? He was trying to make sure I didn''t do it again. Funny, really . . . he needn't have bothered. I couldn't do anything with Dumbledore watching All the other teachers thought Snape was trying to stop Gryffindor from winning, he did make himself unpopular . . . and what a waste of time, when after all that, I'm going to kill you tonight." Quirrell snapped his fingers.
"You're too nosy to live, Potter. Scurrying around the school on Halloween like that, for all I knew you'd seen me coming to look at what was guarding the Stone.""
"You let the troll in?"
"Certainly. I have a special gift with trolls—you must have seen what I did to the one in the chamber back there? Unfortunately, while everyone else was running around looking for it, Snape, who already suspected me, wnet straight to the third floor to head me off-and not only did my troll fail to beat you to death, that three-headed dog didn't even manage to bite Snape's leg off properly.
"No, wait quietly, Potter. I need to examine this interesting mirror. This mirror is the key to finding the Stone," Quirrell murmured to himself. "Trust Dumbledore to come up with something like this . . . but he's in London . . . I'll be far away by the time he gets back. . . ."
"I saw you and Snape in the forest—" interrupted Potter desperately.
"Yes," answered Quirrell idly. "He was on to me by that time, trying to find out how far I'd got. He suspected me all along. Tried to frighten me—as though he could, when I had Lord Vodlemort on my side. . . ."
Nagini felt Quirrell moving around. "I see the Stone," he repeated to himself. "I'm presenting it to my master. . . but where is it?"
Nagini could hear Potter struggling with his bonds ahead of her, though she could not see him. "But Snape always seemed to hate me so much."
"Oh, he does," answered Quirrell casually, "heavens, yes. He was at Hogwarts with your father, didn't you know? They loathed each other, but he never wanted you dead."
"But I heard you a few days ago, sobbing—I thought Snape was threatening you. . ."
"Sometimes," answered Quirrell slowly, "I find it hard to follow my master's instructions—he is a great wizard and I am weak—"
"You mean he was there in the classroom with you?" gasped Potter.
"He is with me wherever I go," said Quirrell quietly. "I met him when I traveled around the world. A foolish young man I was then, full of ridiculous ideas about good and evil. Lord Voldemort showed me how wrong I was. There is no good and evil, there is only power, and those too weak to seek it. . . . Since then, I have served him faithfully, although I have let him down many times. He has had to be very hard on me." Nagini felt Quirrell shiver at his own words. "He does not forgive mistakes easily. When I failed to steal the Stone from Gringotts, he was most displeased. He punished me . . . decided he would have to keep a closer watch on me. . . ."
Suddenly, Quirrell cursed. "I don't understand . . . is the Stone inside the mirror? Should I break it?"
Nagini remembered back to the night she had discovered the mirror and the subsequent nights of research. She had learned that the deepest, most desperate desire of her heart was to be reunited with her father. Obviously, Quirrell's deepest, most desperate desire was to find the Stone and present it to her father. "What would her father, or even Harry Potter, see if he looked in the mirror?" she wondered. "Potter only wants to get to the Stone before Quirrell, so he'd probably see himself finding the Stone."
Her father heard her thoughts and was intrigued. "That could very well be true," he told her, "and Dumbledore would do something like that—only a person who doesn't actually want to use the Stone could find it. I knew you would be of assistance to us," he finished.
Nagini beamed to herself. His approval meant so much to her.
"What does this mirror do? How does it work? Help me, Master!"
"Use the boy . . . Use the boy . . ." answered Voldemort.
Quirrell spun around. "Yes—Potter—come here." He clapped his hands, and Nagini heard the sound of ropes falling to the floor. "Come here," Quirrell repeated. Look in the mirror and tell me what you see."
All was quiet as they waited for Potter to tell them what he saw. Nagini held a nonexistent breath, anxiously.
Finally, Quirrell couldn't wait any longer. "Well?" he demanded. "What do you see?"
Potter answered, "I see myself shaking hands with Dumbledore. I—I've won the house cup for Gryffindor."
Quirrell cursed. "Get out of the way," he said.
Nagini was confused. "He couldn't have seen that," she thought. "Winning the house cup is certainly not the deepest, most desperate desire of his heart." She felt her father's agreement all around her.
"He lies . . . He lies . . ." whispered her father aloud to Quirrell.
"Potter, come back here!" shouted Quirrell. "Tell me the truth! What did you just see?"
"He would never tell Quirrell the truth" thought Nagini. "He would rather die."
Her father interrupted her thoughts and Quirrell. "Lt me speak to him . . . face-to-face. . . ."
"Master, you are not strong enough!" exclaimed Quirrell.
"I have strength enough . . . for this. . . ."
All was silent. Nagini felt Quirrell raise his arms. After a moment, his turban fell to the ground, and Nagini could see. Before her, Harry Potter stood, staring terrified at the sight before him. He opened his mouth to scream, but nothing came out.
"Harry Potter . . ." whispered Voldemort. "See what I have become? Mere shadow and vapor . . . I have form only when I can share another''s body . . . but there have always been those willing to let me into their hearts and minds. . . . Unicorn blood has strengthened me, these past weeks . . . you saw faithful Quirrell drinking it for me in the forest . . . and once I have the Elixir of Life, I will be able to create a body of my own. . . . Now . . . why don't you give me that Stone in your pocket?"
Potter stumbled backward, shaking his head.
"Don't be a fool," snarled Voldemort, impatiently. "Better save your own life and join me . . . or you'll meet the same end as your parents. . . . They died begging me for mercy. . . ."
"LIAR!" shouted Potter, and Nagini winced at the noise. Quirrell was walking forward, so Voldemort and Nagini could still see him. Nagini felt her father smile.
"How touching . . ." he hissed. "I always value bravery. . . . Yes, boy, your parents were brave. . . I killed your father first, and he put up a courageous fight . . . but your mother needn't have died . . . she was trying to protect you. . . . Now give me the Stone, unless you want her to have died in vain."
"NEVER!"
Potter leapt for the flaming door, but Voldemort cried, "SEIZE HIM!" and Quirrell reached out and grabbed the boy's wrist. Her father screamed in agony, and Nagini''s mind burned. Quirrell released Potter, but still she burned and writhed. Nagini felt herself flying farther and farther away from the mirror's chamber as her father cried, "Seize him! SEIZE HIM!""
Nagini slammed back into her own body kneeling on the stone floor of the corridor and blacked out.
Nagini slowly stirred and sat up, her heading pounding. As she stared around the empty corridor, now filled with dawn light, she remembered the events from the night. Her father and Quirrell had found the mirror, she was with them, Harry Potter had shown up and found the Stone, he refused to give it to her father, so Quirrell grabbed him . . . and she felt a blinding pain in her head. After that, nothing.
Nagini stood up and almost fell down again. She leaned against the wall for support and closed her eyes. Had her father managed to retrieve the Stone, or had something happened to him? Worry began to rise up inside Nagini, and she was almost overwhelmed by it. Breathing deeply, Nagini tried to calm herself, so she could contact her father. She slowed her breathing and heartbeat and reached out with her mind and found . . . nothing.
Nagini opened her eyes. She couldn't reach the clearing. Her father had told her that the clearing was an extension of his mind. That meant that either he was too weak for her to reach or . . .
Nagini shook her head to banish the thought. Her father was not dead. She refused to believe it. Taking a few shaky breaths, Nagini pushed herself away from the wall and wavered for a moment before finding her balance. Slowly, she stumbled down the corridor, down the staircase, and through the dungeons to the Slytherin common room. In a daze, she murmured the password and passed through the black arch.
No one was there. Nagini breathed a sigh of relief. She was in no condition to answer questions about where she'd been and what had happened to. She made her way over to an armchair and collapsed into it. Only once her head was resting against the cushion, did the tears begin to fall. She feared the worst, though she didn't dare even think what the worst was. All she knew was that she couldn't reach her father and that when she was forced out of his mind, things were not looking too promising in the mirror chamber.
Nagini continued to sob silently, her tears running down her face and onto the armchair, until she finally fell asleep.
~Kasyntra