Chapter One

Third Year - October 21

"Can you believe Trelawney?" Ron said as he sat down next to Harry, reaching over him to grab a pastry, "I just ran into her out in the hall, and she tried to comfort me over your 'impending demise.' That has to be like the twentieth time she's predicted your death so far, and we've haven't even been back for two months."

From the other side of the table, Hermione scoffed. "What utter nonsense. Honestly, Harry, you shouldn't listen to a word that woman says."

Harry's eyebrows shot up as he swallowed a bite of his porridge. "Really, Hermione? You are telling me to ignore a teacher?"

"Yeah," Ron said, his mouth full of pastry by now, "Where was that advice last year when we were stuck with Lockhart as a Defense teacher?"

Hermione wrinkled her nose in disgust at the redhead, but before she could respond, the arrival of the morning post was announced by the flapping of wings.

Harry looked up as a large barn owl he didn't recognize landed in front of him, a small package wrapped in brown paper tied to its leg. The tag on the package read: To Mr. H. Potter.

Intrigued, Harry carefully untied the parcel. He fed the owl two links of sausage, which the creature gratefully accepted before flying aware.

"Who's it from, mate?" Ron asked as he swallowed his last bite of pastry.

"It doesn't say." Harry carefully undid the paper wrapping to find a . . . wooden cube. He picked up the cube and held it in one hand while he inspected it closer. There were beautiful and intricate carvings on each side, and they all ran around the box toward one central ebony stone that had been embedded on the cube's top.

Harry reached out to touch the stone, only to have the cube snatched out of his hand.

"Well, well. What do we have here?" drawled Draco Malfoy from behind him.

Within seconds, Harry was on his feet and had turned to face the Slytherin boy. "Give it back, Malfoy."

"Don't be rude, Potter." Draco said, adopting a look of concern. " I'm just looking out for you. After all, this could be from Sirius Black."

"A wise deduction Mr. Malfoy." Harry scowled as his most hated professor approached. Snape held out his hand toward platinum-haired boy. "Hand it over please. I will need to inspect it."

Harry was suddenly overcome by a feeling of intense aggravation at the two Slytherins' discussion. At the exact moment Draco handed the cube to his head of house, the raven-haired boy leapt forward, grasping the top of the box tightly in order to wrench it away.

"It's mine!" He said.

"Harry! No!." He heard Herminone yell behind him.

But something was wrong. As soon as his fingers touched the black stone, he felt a tug at his navel.

A moment later, the occupants of the Great Hall were staring at the cube as it settled on the floor. The boy who lived, the Malfoy heir, and the potions professor had all disappeared.

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Next thing he knew, Harry was faceplanting the ground - or rather, the carpet. Looking up, he saw that Draco had steadied himself on a plush armchair, while Snape stood easily behind the sofa, appearing for all the world as if he had not just been violently snatched from the Great Hall.

No one spoke for a moment as they took in their surroundings. They appeared to be in a parlor. The three of them had landed in the center of the room, where there stood a sofa and two armchairs with a coffee table situated in between. To one side was a fireplace - a fire already lit inside - and on either side of the fireplace the walls were lined with bookshelves. On each end of the room hung closed curtains, and on the wall opposite the fireplace, standing more toward one end than the other, was a doorway. The doorway, though, was bricked up.

"What happened?" Harry asked as he sat up. He rubbed his elbow where it had smacked against the floor upon landing.

"Obviously, this is a trap set up by the homicidal maniac who wants to kill you." Draco sneered, but Harry could tell he was having a difficult time completely concealing his apprehension at their situation. The Slytherin boy turned to the only adult in the room. "I didn't think portkeys were allowed at Hogwarts, Professor."

"What's a portkey?" Harry, too, looked at the potions professor, while Draco rolled his eyes at the question.

Snape, though, seemed preoccupied with observing the room. "Portkeys are only allowed at Hogwarts with permission of the Headmaster." He said almost absentmindedly while ignoring Harry's question altogether. "Now, be silent. I need to figure out what mess Potter has landed us in."

Harry frowned, both at Snape's remark and the refusal to answer his question. He resolved to ask Hermione about portkeys later - if he survived this, that is.

The two teenagers watched as Snape crossed to the bricked-up doorway and withdrew his wand. He muttered a spell and waved his wand, but nothing happened. He tried a different spell. Again, nothing. After several more tries, he stood back. "Bombarda!" he exclaimed. His eyes widened when that spell failed too. Gaze focused over the heads of the two boys, he turned and made his way to the closed curtains on the other side the room. He pulled open the curtains to reveal frosted glass panes that obscured the view outside. He tried several more spells, none of which worked. Sighing, he turned back toward the center of the room.

"Mr. Malfoy, try to produce the Lumos charm."

The Slytherin boy did as instructed, but like Snape, his spell failed.

"Mr. Potter." Snape said, turning his attention to the Gryffindor still sitting on the floor. Harry pulled out his wand and tried the spell, being sure to enunciate clearly.

Nothing.

"What does this mean?" Draco asked, a bit of panic underlining his tone, "We're stuck in a room with no way out, and we can't use magic. How is that possible?"

Harry didn't say anything. His eyes went to Snape, and his gaze followed the professor's to the coffee table beside him. On top of the table sat three objects - a quill, an inkwell, and a book. Harry leaned forward, in order to better make out of the gilded scroll of the book's title: Veritas.

Draco was still panicking. "How will anyone know where we are?" He asked as he clutched the back of the armchair. "We're imprisoned here!"

"As it turns out, I know exactly where we are, Mr. Malfoy." Snape said, a bit of a sneer edging into his voice. "This prison is none other than a Veritas Cube."