Chapter 13

I didn't proofread this, so feel free to point out any mistakes. Keep reviewing, it helps me write faster. Also, I'm aware that Dumbledore wasn't at the first match in the book, but since this is a different timeline, let's say that things happen differently due to some butterfly effect bullshit.

When early November came around, Harry couldn't help but feel excited. Quidditch season was here, which not only meant that he'd get to play his favorite sport, but that he'd be able to see his parents when they came to watch his matches.

The day prior to Harry's first Quidditch match, the quintet relaxed outside in the icy courtyard. Harry provided the group with some heating charms, while Hermione conjured a few flames to keep them warm.

Once again, Snape was limping near them. Looks like he hadn't had a nice encounter with Fluffy. While the others looked nervous, trying to hide the fire they thought may not be allowed, Harry cheerfully waved the sullen looking man over. "Hey, sir! Beautiful day, isn't it? Sirius wrote me yesterday, and he, Remus, and Dad wanted to say 'hi'. They'd like to thank you for keeping me in line with all of your detentions."

Snape didn't seem to notice the fire, but appeared to be in an even grumpier mood than usual. Or maybe that was just his reaction to seeing Harry. Mentioning the names of the Marauders in front of him probably wasn't helping his mood either. "Potter!" Snape snapped. "What do you have there?"

"Uh...my potions essay?" Harry answered, holding up his parchment for Snape to see.

"Turn out your pockets," Snape barked.

Harry casually emptied his pockets, only to remember he had the Marauders' Map on him. Whoops.

The Potions professor quickly picked it up. "What's this?" he asked.

"A spare bit of parchment," Harry said casually. "Sirius, Remus, and my dad gave it to me. It's got quite a bit of sentimental value, just because I treasure whatever my family gives me. Of course, I don't know why they gifted it to me, probably their idea of a joke. Really, a piece of parchment as a present? That's just cheap."

If he was actually an 11 year old with the map, he'd probably be a bit concerned about Snape finding it. But as a 30 year old who could easily sneak the map back from Snape if confiscated, he thought it might be a bit funny to see if the map would spit out the same insults as it did the last time Snape tried to read it. Besides, he'd added a few durability charms to the map a little while ago, so it was now indestructible. It wasn't like Snape could destroy it—even if he tried.

"Hand it over, Potter," Snape snarled.

Shrugging, Harry handed Snape the map.

"Professor Snape, Potions Master of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, orders you to reveal your secret," Snape growled.

Harry snorted. Whatever the parchment was about to spit out would definitely be entertaining.

Snape handed Harry the map. "Read it," he demanded.

Looking down at the map, Harry chuckled at the insults. His father had told him that while the map was charmed to insult anyone who tried to read it without the password, the Marauders had made the jibes towards Snape much more detailed on purpose.

Mr Moony presents his compliments to Snivellus Snape, but would like to suggest that he brush his crooked, yellow teeth.

Mr Wormtail agrees with Mr Moony, and would like to add that Snivelly is a greasy-haired, ugly git with foul breath.

Mr Padfoot would like to know what the headmaster was smoking when he appointed a moron like Snivellus as a professor.

Mr Prongs bids Professor Snivelly farewell, and advises him to get his fat, ugly nose out of other peoples' business.

After Harry read the insults out loud, he glanced up at Snape. The man appeared to be having a fit. If his fast-paced huffing, evil eye, and baring teeth were anything to go by, it seemed as though Snape very much wanted to cause Harry long-lasting suffering and grievous bodily harm, though that was pretty standard in both timelines.

To Harry's surprise, Snape angrily took the map out of his hands, before making a show of dramatically thrusting it back at him. "Get out of here, Potter, you and your little friends," Snape hissed. "And note that five points will be taken from Gryffindor for possession of an inappropriate piece of parchment on school grounds." Snape then grabbed his robe, threw it backwards, and stormed off.

Harry nearly snorted again. An inappropriate piece of parchment on school grounds? The man definitely just pulled that rule out of his arse. Couldn't he at least come up with something more believable? Say, possession of an inappropriate magical artifact on school grounds? Honestly, it's like he wasn't even trying...

"Thank you, sir. Hope you have a wonderful day," Harry called out brightly.

Harry briefly wondered why Snape had given the map back to him, but concluded that he probably didn't want to hold on to anything that had once belonged to his arch enemies. And perhaps Snape was worried about Harry tattling to Lily, seeing as Snape actually didn't have any grounds to confiscate the map, and he wanted to avoid conflict with the woman he loved.

XXXXXXXXXXX

"What was that, Harry?" Draco asked him as the five of them walked back to the castle.

Harry gave Draco a puzzled look. "What was what?" he replied innocently.

"Well, first off, what was that parchment? And don't give me some cock and bull about how you don't know what it is, you obviously do. Also, why did you invite Professor Snape over? Anyone can see that the man hates you, do you have a death wish?" Draco clarified.

"Oh, this old thing?" Harry pulled the map back out of his pocket. "It's just an old map that shows everyone in the castle. Specifically, what they're doing every moment of every day. Also, it shows a bunch of secret passageways," Harry said nonchalantly as he took out his wand, pointing it at the parchment. "Let me show you...I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

The rest of his friends looked on in amazement. Ron was the first to speak. "Harry! Why didn't you tell me you had this before?!"

"You already knew about it," Harry reminded him. "Fred and George offered it up to me at the barrier the day we first met."

"Yes, but I didn't know what it was back then!" Ron exclaimed.

Harry shrugged. "Then you should've asked."

"Are you sure it's safe to use?" Hermione asked skeptically. "I've read that you should never trust something if you can't see where it keeps its brain. Perhaps you should hand it over to Professor McGonagall."

Ron looked outraged. "What? Hand over something that good? Are you mental?"

"I mean, if Harry's dad gave it to him, it can't be dangerous," Neville said reasonably. "I don't think Mr Potter would hand Harry anything harmful."

"Hermione, my dad, godfather, and uncle made the map. Trust me, they were troublemakers, but they'd never use anything dark on the map. They were pranksters with only the most noble intentions. They just wanted to help the next generation of lawbreakers," Harry explained.

The bushy-haired girl rolled her eyes. "Right, because helping people break the rules is noble. But...I suppose if you know the people who made it and trust them, then it is probably all right…"

"Where are we?" Neville looked around nervously, probably just having realized that Harry had led them somewhere unfamiliar. "I think the staircases moved, we're on the wrong floor."

"Relax, Neville. I had a dream that there was some kind of magical mirror in an abandoned classroom around here, and I wanted to check it out. And before you say anything, Hermione, it isn't against the rules to 'study' in an abandoned classroom during the day," said Harry.

"Why do I have a bad feeling about this…" Draco muttered.

"Probably because the last time Harry led us somewhere, we almost got eaten alive by a dog with three heads," Ron answered, looking pale as a sheet.

"Come on, guys. Fluffy is harmless, and this magical mirror can't kill you either. Although, if you use it too much, it may drive you mad," Harry responded.

There were various apprehensive responses from his friends.

"Yeah, that makes me feel better," Hermione said sarcastically.

"I thought you were already mad," Draco grumbled.

"That ugly thing has a name?!" Ron asked incredulously.

"I'm scared," Neville said candidly.

"Oh, don't be nervous. I promise you, it's perfectly safe," Harry reassured them.

He got a bunch of skeptical looks in response.

"I think your definition of safe differs from that of a normal person, Harry," Hermione said finally.

Harry continued wandering along the corridor, occasionally peeking his head in to see if the Mirror of Erised was there. "Aha, here we are!" Harry announced as he ushered the group inside.

"stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi," Ron read the inscription. "What the bloody hell does that mean?"

"I show not your face but your heart's desire," Hermione answered. "You just have to read it backwards, Ronald. Honestly, did no one else get that?"

Harry blinked in surprise. He actually hadn't ever figured that out. Even at 11, Hermione was more clever than he'd ever be. "You're brilliant, Hermione," Harry commended.

Hermione blushed slightly. "No, I'm just highly logical, which allows me to find solutions to problems more quickly," she corrected.

"Gra...Hermione, just accept the compliment," Draco rolled his eyes.

"So, anyway," Heriome spoke up again. "I'm assuming that this mirror shows your greatest desire in life, as per the title. As Harry mentioned earlier, I'm sure that could drive anyone mad if they used it consistently, especially if their dream is something unachievable."

"Yep," Harry stated as he walked to the front of the mirror, curious to see what it would show him this time. Yet, when he looked into the mirror, he saw nothing different. The mirror still showed him as an 11 year old, with his friends standing next to him in an abandoned classroom. "Hm...it must be broken...I don't see anything…"

"Let me try!" Ron said eagerly, gently pushing Harry out of the way. "Woah! It's me, but...I'm older and I'm Head Boy. I'm holding the Quidditch Cup, and I'm captain of the team!" Ron looked absolutely joyous. "This is bloody incredible," he added dreamily.

So...that meant that the mirror still worked. Dumbledore had once told him that the happiest man alive would see himself standing in the mirror, without any changes in his surroundings. The more Harry thought about it, in his current timeline, he had everything he'd ever wanted. His friends and family were all alive, which was all he'd ever wished for. He truly was the happiest he'd ever been, and there wasn't anything else he really desired, other than to keep everything just the way it was. Sure, he missed the older version of his friends in the other timeline, but he had them all here with him now—plus his family. He wouldn't trade what he had now for the world. While he never would've intentionally left his previous life behind (after all, he'd ended up in a new timeline by tripping and falling through the Veil), he had to admit that he was much happier as he was now.

Hermione approached the mirror next, and Harry watched as her eyes widened at first in surprise, before her face relaxed into a smile.

"Tell us what you see!" Ron demanded tactlessly.

"Well…" Hermione began nervously. "I see all of you, but we're older...and we're still best friends. I never had many friends in Muggle school, so I guess it makes sense," she confessed. "I'm also holding hands with R— never mind. Neville, would you like to go?" Hermione looked absolutely mortified about nearly confessing her crush on Ron.

"Y-Yeah," Neville squeaked as he stepped in front of the mirror. "I see...I see me, but I'm older, taller, and brave. I-I'm not a wimp anymore. Gran and the rest of my extended family are proud of me, and so are Mum and Dad." Neville then ducked his head, clearly embarrassed by his greatest desire.

"You've already made your Mum and Dad proud, Neville," Harry said kindly. "And you're one of the bravest people I know."

Neville didn't look like he believed Harry, but murmured, "thanks."

When Draco made it to the front of the mirror, his jaw dropped, and Harry saw a lone tear stream down his face. Naturally, the usually composed boy quickly wiped it away and went stoic again.

Seeming to pick up on Draco's fragile emotional state, Hermione said, "You don't have to tell us."

Draco nodded gratefully in her direction before turning away from the mirror.

"You see your father, showing you love and affection," Harry whispered. "He's in the moment with you, and not preoccupied with his job or any other responsibilities. Your mother and father are proud of you, even though you've chosen a different path from the rest of the family."

From the look on Draco's face, Harry could tell he was correct. "Wha—please don't tell me your dreams told you that."

Harry thought back to the Final Battle at Hogwarts, and the way Narcissa and Lucius had prioritized Draco's life over their loyalty to Voldemort. Hell, Narcissa had lied straight to Voldemort's face, just so she could get to Draco, despite the fact that she could've been killed for it. Once the whole family was back together, the Malfoys fled together, their love for each other stronger than anything else. "My dreams told me your wish will come true one day," Harry answered, putting a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The morning of his first Quidditch match, Harry bobbed his leg up and down, beyond excited to see his family again. His friends seemed to mistake his excitement for nerves.

"Harry, you're going to be fine," Hermione assured him. "Come on, eat some toast, Harry. You'll need your strength today," she said, shoving two thick slices of toast his way.

"Come on, Harry. I'm a great Seeker, but so are you. Even though I will obviously get the Snitch before you, I'm sure you'll give me a run for my money out there," Draco said cockily.

"There's no way Slytherin can win with Harry as a Seeker for Gryffindor," Ron insisted. "You might be good, but Harry's better.

"I think they're both equally good," Neville said quietly, always one to try to keep the peace.

The two boys ignored Neville's comment. Draco made a rude hand gesture at Ron, while the redheaded boy stuck his tongue out back at him. Harry rolled his eyes. He often had to remind himself that they were just children. They had an excuse to be immature, unlike Sirius. Not that Harry didn't have his fair share of childish moments, but hey, he had a part to play.

Speaking of his irresponsible godfather, it appeared as though Harry's family had arrived to watch the match. "HARRY JAMES POTTER!" Sirius cried out. His godfather was so loud in fact, Harry thought he might've used Sonorus. Leave it to Sirius to make a dramatic entrance.

Harry turned around and saw his parents, Alaina, Sirius, and Remus walking towards the Gryffindor table. Harry got up from the table and met them halfway, giddily hugging all of them. "You're here!" Harry yelled out excitedly.

The Great Hall seemed to go silent as everyone watched the Boy-Who-Lived greet his family. Seriously, did people not have anything better to do? From the teacher's table, Harry saw Snape scowl right at his godfather and the other Marauders.

"Did you think we'd miss your first Quidditch match?" James asked. "Especially against those slimy snakes. I can't wait to see you crush those shitheads!"

"James!" Lily admonished, rolling her eyes.

"What? A little rivalry is healthy!" James asserted.

Lily ignored James, and focused back on Harry. "Oh, honey," Lily cried out as she hugged him again. "I've missed you so much, sweetie!"

While other children would be mortified at the thought of their mother smothering them with affection in the Great Hall, Harry couldn't get enough of it. He'd take being embarrassed by his mother on a daily basis, over not having her around.

"Lily, let the boy breathe," Sirius said.

Harry and Lily reluctantly let go of each other, as it was time to go down to the Quidditch pitch. Harry waved over his friends, eager to introduce them to his family.

When the four others finally made their way to Harry's family, the group walked to the pitch together. "Guys, this is Ron, Hermione, Draco, and you already know Neville, of course. Draco's also a first year Seeker, for Slytherin."

"So...you're the snake my son has befriended," James stated, sizing the blonde boy up. "Well, so far, you don't seem half bad. Just know that I won't be rooting for you out there, and won't be too upset if you make a fool of yourself."

"Sorry," Remus apologised on James' behalf. "Harry's father is Quidditch-crazed, which makes him act even more immature than he usually does. His definition of cheering is trash-talking the other team."

Draco shrugged. "It's alright. Harry is going to need all the cheering he can get when he's up against me. After all, he's not quite up to my level," he teased.

"Oh, you did not just say that!" Harry retorted. "Who was it that lost all the Seeker competitions we've had so far?"

"We've only had two, and one of them didn't count!" Draco argued. "A bloody bird got in the way right when I was about to get the Snitch!"

Harry's family and friends continued to chat on their way to the Quidditch pitch, until the adults went over to the parents and staff box, while the kids went to either join their teams, or go to the student section.

XXXXXXX

"Severus!" Lily greeted her friend once the family was in the parents and staff box. "It's so good to see you!" Lily embraced her best friend.

"Hi, Lily," Severus replied, offering up a smile that was rarely seen by others.

"Do you mind if we sit next to you? Of course, I'll sit in the spot right by you, while James and the others sit on my other side. I don't really fancy you guys going at it hammer and tongs," said Lily.

"Yes, of course," Severus answered, moving over to make room for Lily. Lily noticed that he seemed to be purposely avoiding eye contact with the Marauders and Alaina, which was probably for the best. Merlin knew that even if they tried to have a civil conversation, it would end up in either a duel, or a fist fight. At least, James and Sirius would brawl with Severus. Remus would probably have enough sense to try and break them up, only to unintentionally get involved himself. All in all, talking meant things would get messy very quickly.

Just then, an older blond man that looked exactly like Draco sauntered into the box. The man was undoubtedly Draco's father. He used a silver and black walking cane, and his resting expression appeared to be a sneer. "Severus, my friend," the man addressed as he sat on Severus's other side.

"Hello, Lucius," Severus responded curtly.

While Lily was aware of the Malfoy family's views on blood purity, she figured it couldn't hurt to give the man a chance. After all, he was the father of her son's best friend. "Hi, I'm Lily Potter. Earlier, I met your son, Draco. Our boys have become quite good friends."

"Yes, of course, what a pleasure to meet you. Lucius Malfoy," he said as he offered her his hand.

Lily politely took his hand, surprised by the kind gesture. After all, with Harry's fame, it was common knowledge that his mother was a Muggleborn. Though Lily suspected that his friendliness had a lot to do with the status Harry could offer the Malfoy family.

"This is my husband, James," Lily introduced, pointing to her husband who was eyeing Lucius dubiously. "Of course, Harry told me you met Sirius at Diagon Alley, that's my daughter, Alaina, and that's Remus over there," Lily finished.

"Don't bother offering me your hand again," Sirius said. "I still won't take it. I don't care if we're 'family' through Cissy, I don't like you," Sirius finished, crossing his arms and turning away.

Lucius directed a scowl Sirius's way, but didn't reply. It seemed as though he knew better than to start a brawl at a school sports game.

"I'm sorry about that," Lily said quickly. "It's just that-"

"Black is immature and has yet to grow out of his schoolboy days," Severus cut in.

"Well, I wouldn't have worded it that way, but yes," Lily replied.

"Oh, shove off, Snivellus," Sirius snapped.

"What? His name is Snivellus? I thought Mum said it was Severus…" Alaina looked confused. "Snivellus is not a very pretty name, I like Severus better."

"His name is Severus, honey," Lily answered quickly. "Your uncle just got his name wrong by accident," she lied.

"But—Uncle Padfoot talks about a guy named Snivellus all the time. Uncle Padfoot says he, Uncle Moony, and Dad used to prank him all the time at school—How would he not know the right name? Uncle Padfoot just called whoever Snivellus is—a greasy git—but I didn't know he was talking about someone here-" James covered their daughter's mouth.

Severus looked downright homicidal, so Lily put a comforting arm on his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Sev," she apologized before turning to her daughter. "Alaina, say sorry to Severus. That's his real name, don't listen to anything Sirius says, he's just rude." Lily glowered at the man in question.

After James took his hand off Alaina's mouth, the six year old spoke up. "You mean...he got the name wrong on purpose? That's mean, Uncle Padfoot, you should say sorry," Alaina gave Sirius a pointed look. "Here, I'll go first," Alaina turned to Severus, "I'm sorry, Severus. I hope we can still be friends."

Though Severus didn't say anything back, Lily could've sworn she saw the corners of his mouth twitch upward.

Sirius looked flabbergasted by Alaina's request. Scowling at Severus, Sirius reluctantly said, "sorry, Sniv...Severus." The words came out sounding like they left a bad taste in his mouth.

Alaina nodded in approval and hugged Sirius. "That's better."

Lily was saved from having to keep the peace by the start of the match. James and Sirius made sure to cheer loudly for Gryffindor, especially for Harry. When the commentator, a boy named Lee Jordan made obviously biased remarks towards Gryffindor, Lily found herself smiling, while James and Sirius laughed in appreciation. Of course, McGonagall did her best to keep him in line, but Lily could tell that she too was amused.

The excitement really mounted when both Harry and Draco had spotted the Snitch. Both of them were racing each other to get to the golden ball, but Harry was just a smidge faster. Lily watched in anticipation as Harry reached his hand out to grab the Snitch, when suddenly, a Slytherin Chaser nearly knocked Harry off his broom, clearly purposefully. Lily stomped her foot down in anger. It was too bad Quidditch didn't have red cards like in soccer. Not to mention—Harry could've been seriously hurt.

"Keep going, sweetie. Don't let him knock you down!" Lily encouraged.

"Oh, that rotten slimy snake!" James yelled.

"The bitch deserves an arse-whooping!" Sirius exclaimed, outraged.

"That's blatant cheating! He should be punished!" added Remus.

"Do you think Harry still has time to get the Snitch again?" Alaina asked.

To Lily's annoyance, Severus didn't seem to find anything wrong with the Slytherin Chaser's behavior, as he sat there, completely unbothered.

Lee Jordan obviously was finding it hard to take sides, and rightfully so. "So — after that obvious and disgusting bit of cheating —"

"Jordan!" McGonagall warned. But even Lily's former strict teacher didn't seem to care as much about the biased commentary.

"Fine, Professor! So—after Flint's nearly murders the Gryffindor Seeker, a complete accident, I'm sure, Gryffindor gets a penalty. As we continue to play, Gryffindor is still in possession."

Lily watched nervously as Harry dodged another Bludger that was inches away from taking out his head. Honestly, if it were up to her, Harry would never play a game of Quidditch again — it was far too violent. Then, suddenly, it seemed as though Harry had lost control of his broom. It was twitching back and forth, and her son barely seemed to be hanging on.

"What's going on? Harry can't have lost control of the broom, that's not possible! We need a time out—this isn't safe!" Lily exclaimed.

"We can't call a timeout from the audience, Lils," her husband reminded her. From his tone of voice, Lily could tell that James was scared too.

"Someone's got to be cursing his broom," Remus said. "There's no way a Nimbus can just start going wild like that—something's wrong."

"One of those no good snakes must have done it!" James proclaimed loudly.

Lucius then chimed in, defending his former House's students. "This is Dark Magic beyond the abilities of any school student. If someone is indeed cursing Potter's broom, it must be an adult wizard with extensive training."

"Like yourself?" James accused.

"If I were currently cursing his broom, I wouldn't be able to focus on talking to you, now would I?" Lucius retorted.

That shut her husband right up. While James could be rather rash when accusing people, he wasn't illogical, and could probably recognize that Lucius made a good point.

"Will Harry be okay?" Alaina asked nervously, tears streaming down her face. Lily saw Sirius put his arm around her reassuringly.

"Stupid stuttering turban-head," Lily thought she heard Sirius mutter. But she didn't have time to dwell on what he meant by that, Harry was in danger—they needed to help him.

"Hold on, Harry!" Lily called out anxiously. Lily wished she could do something, but she knew very little about Dark Magic, especially the kind that was powerful enough to tamper with a broomstick, and wouldn't be able to perform a counter-curse—at least, not without researching first.

"Don't worry, Lily. I'll do a counter-curse," Severus whispered before he focused in on Harry, and began muttering a spell.

Lily looked on nervously, desperately waiting for Harry's broom to go back to normal. She could count on Severus, as he was quite knowledgeable in the Dark Arts.

At that moment, it seemed as though Harry had decided to make a brave, but extremely stupid move. Lily watched on in horror as her son jumped off his broom from 50 feet in the air, as he had likely spotted the Snitch below him. Of course, her son would prioritize winning a Quidditch match, over his life.

"HARRY!" Lily screamed in horror. Harry appeared to have gotten his hands around the Snitch, but Lily couldn't care less about that. How could her son be so careless with his life? Lily quickly fired off a cushioning charm, hoping that would be enough to break his fall. Harry appeared to be falling at a much slower pace as well, and seeing that Dumbledore's wand was out, Lily guessed he was the reason for that. It looked like he would be just fine, but when Harry was off that field, he was going to get an earful.

Seconds later, Lily felt a warm sensation by her side. When she looked down, she was shocked to see that Severus's robes had been lit aflame. "Severus! You're on fire!" she shouted.

Since Severus had just stopped performing his counter-curse, he didn't seem to notice that he was on fire until Lily's warning.

Aguamenti!" Lily said quickly, drenching her friend in water.

Overall, Severus seemed a bit annoyed by the whole situation—not that Lily could blame him. Not only had his efforts to counteract the curse been completely useless (due to Harry's reckless behavior), but he'd somehow ended up on fire, and subsequently soaked in water.

"I've got the Snitch!" Lily heard Harry announce. "We won! Hell yeah!" It seemed as though her son had been completely unphased by the incident. Yes, he would definitely be getting a lecture on self-preservation when she got to him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"HOW DARE YOU! YOU COULD HAVE BROKEN YOUR BACK! YOU COULD HAVE DIED! WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO SAY FOR YOURSELF, YOUNG MAN?!"

Though Harry had been completely unscathed after the Quidditch match, the teachers had insisted that he be taken to the Hospital Wing, where he was currently being told off by his (understandably) furious mother. The rest of his family and his four best friends were also by his bedside, but it seemed that no one would dare interrupt Lily's tirade.

"I mean, I just figured that with all the teachers in the crowd, there was no way someone wouldn't do something to help break my fall. Besides, as long as I didn't die on impact, I'm sure there's a healing spell that would have me back to normal in seconds—no matter how gruesome the injury, " Harry replied blithely. "But—the important thing is that Gryffindor won. Aren't you happy for me?"

"HAPPY? HOW CAN I BE HAPPY WHEN YOU ALMOST DIED?!" Lily screamed again.

"To be fair, I've already had a close encounter with death since being here. Hermione, Ron, Neville, Draco, and I did fight off a fully-grown Mountain Troll on Halloween, after all," Harry said casually.

"Harry, this is no time to joke!" Lily snapped.

"I'm not joking! We really did fight a troll on Halloween. A professor let it in," Harry informed her.

"What? What kind of idiot Professor would let a troll in the school?" Lily asked incredulously, probably having realized that Harry was not kidding. "I'm going to have a little chat with Dumbledore!"

"It was Snape!" Hermione chimed in. "Ron, Neville, and I saw him. He was cursing Harry's broom. I've read all about Dark Curses. You have to make eye contact—and Snape wasn't blinking. And when I set his robes on fire, Harry's broom stopped twitching and fell to the ground. He must've let the troll in as a diversion to steal what Fluffy's guarding! Ron, Neville, and Draco said they saw him headed towards the third floor corridor."

"You're the one who set Severus on fire?" Lily questioned.

"Yes, to save Harry!" Hermione insisted. "It was Snape, I'm sure of it!"

Neville and Ron bobbed their heads in agreement. Draco just rolled his eyes, so at least he wasn't one to jump to conclusions.

"While I'm grateful for what you tried to do to save Harry, you shouldn't have set a teacher on fire," Lily reprimanded. "And besides, I was sitting next to Severus, he was performing a counter-curse. I can assure you that he is most certainly not involved in any sort of nefarious scheme."

"Snape is evil and wants whatever was almost stolen at Gringotts. Why else would he go after a three-headed dog? As awful as he is, I don't think he's suicidal," Neville said.

"There's a Cerberus at Hogwarts? What's Dumbledore thinking, keeping a thing like that in a school?" Lily looked shocked. "Oh, now I am definitely heading to his office after this is over! That's a safety hazard!"

"Whatever it is guarding, it must be important," Hermione said thoughtfully. "Hagrid knows about it! Remember? He said something about Nicholas Flamel! We need to ask him more questions about it—so we can keep it safe from Snape!"

"Don't be ridiculous, guys. It wasn't Snape, it was Quirrell," Harry added nonchalantly.

"The stuttering guy we ran into on the way to the Great Hall?" James asked skeptically. "What makes you think it was him?"

"I had a dream about it," Harry answered.

There was a series of eye rolls and groans (excluding Sirius, who already knew about Quirrelldemort).

"That guy is a scaredy cat. He screamed when he bumped into Uncle Remus. I think you're wrong, Harry," Alaina piped up.

Everyone (save Sirius) seemed to share the same sentiment as his sister. Oh well. They'd find out he was right soon enough.