Harry, Ron, and Hermione snuck through the castle as quickly and quietly as they could. The closest they came to getting caught was while waiting on the staircase to pick them up. Ron had noticed Filch's cat, Mrs. Norris, at the far end of the corridor.

It didn't notice them until it was too late. The staircase had finally moved and took them away from the landing, leaving the cat to meow in frustration into the silence.

When they made it to the door, Harry held up a hand for them to stop and pressed his ear to the door, listening for the massive dog inside. The massive snores were hard to miss but there was something else he couldn't quite place.

Is that music?

He unlocked the door and checked on the other two to see if they were ready. Getting two nods back, he slowly opened the door, doing his best to keep it from squeaking.

For a whole minute the three stood there waiting as the opening door finally revealed a three headed dog the size of Hagrid's hut. What took them by surprise was the massive dog was snoring. Loudly.

Harry turned to the others and shrugged before motioning them forward. The three entered and slid the door closed behind them.

Finally giving the room a closer look, they noticed a large golden harp playing itself in the corner.

That must be what put him to sleep, Harry thought, moving further into the room.

Ron tapped Harry on the shoulder and pointed at the trap door in the ground near where the dog's left most head was. Taking a deep breath, Harry began the longest twenty meter walk of his life.

In focusing on the dog's heads, he made it to the door faster than expected and almost tripped over it. Only the strong hand of Ron keeping him upright saved them.

After getting his breathing under control, Harry slowly opened the trap door, revealing darkness below. A moment later, Harry heard a very faint rustling coming from the room below. He couldn't put his finger on it but it sounded like a slight breeze through a thicket of trees.

Just as he was about to jump in, Ron grabbed his shoulder. Harry looked at him as Ron pointed at himself and then into the room below. Harry gave him a questioning look as if to say, "are you sure?"

Ron shrugged again before taking a shaky breath. Standing to his full height he took a confident step forward and allowed himself to fall through the door. Harry heard a weirdly wet crunch and a grunt as Ron hit whatever was below them. Judging by how long it took him to hit, the distance down was only about four or five meters.

As Ron was swallowed by the darkness, Hermione stepped up to Harry's side and grabbed his upper arm. He saw the caution in her eyes but wasn't surprised to see the lack of fear.

"Come on," Ron's whisper rose from the door. "It's softer than expected. Just land on your butt."

Making sure the dog hadn't heard Ron, Harry reached behind and placed his hand on the small of Hermione's back, nodding for her to go next. She nodded and took a breath before jumping. Harry heard a small "Eep!" from her as she hit whatever was below them.

Once he heard her move out of the way, he checked the dog again before slowly pulling the trap door shut. When he had it about a foot off the ground, he slipped into the door and hung from the edge before letting go and dropping the door into place all in one move.

He tried to roll when hit the ground but it almost gave way completely and he ended up just falling on his side. With the door shut, Hermione lit her wand.

"Are you ok-AHHH!"

In the split second she had lit her wand they saw the massive plant they'd been standing on suddenly pull away from them opening another hole in the ground.

Harry fell straight through but the other two tumbled down, vines having wrapped around their legs. Harry looked up just in time to see Hermione hanging upside down by one foot. He was barely able to get his feet under him when the plant released, dropping her headfirst into his chest.

"Oof!"

Harry hit the ground hard with Hermione on top of him.

Hermione groaned before apologizing and getting off of him.

"Uh… A little help here, guys?"

Harry and Hermione looked up to see Ron dangling from the plant, vines wrapped around his waist and left leg.

Hermione shook her head. "Stop squirming, Ron. It's Devil's Snare. It only tightens on things that are trying to escape."

Ron had a little bit of panic in his eye but did his best to stop moving. Slowly, the plant let him go, almost gently setting him on the ground next to them.

When he was finally free, he gave the other two a somewhat harrowed look before letting out a nervous chuckle.

"Well, I don't want to do that again."

Harry and Hermione nodded before standing and dusting themselves off. Hermione's wand was the only light so the boys lit theirs as well.

There was only one way to go so they kept moving forward. After only a few meters, they began to hear something in the distance.

"What is that fluttering," Hermione asked. "Birds?"

"Maybe it's ghosts or something?" Ron added, his voice filled with uncertainty.

"Let's just look instead of speculating, yeah?"

When they finally entered the room at the end of the corridor, all of their guesses turned out to be wrong.

"Flying keys? What kind of security is this?"

As the boys were looking up at the keys, Hermione was looking around the room for another door. When she saw it, dread filled her stomach.

"Brooms."

Harry and Ron finally looked down and saw what she was talking about. Next to a large wooden door were three fairly mundane looking brooms.

"So we have to catch a key, huh?" Ron said. It was obvious this challenge was closer to his comfort zone than three headed dogs and angry plants. He turned to the others. "Harry, you take a broom. You're a better flier than me and I don't want to get in your way in close quarters. Hermione and I will be next to the door. You grab the key and throw it to us or hand it off if necessary."

Harry nodded and grabbed the nearest broom. As soon as he touched the handle, the keys began flying in a chaotic dance, making it very difficult to keep track of just one key.

Just as Harry mounted the broom, Ron approached him again.

"Look for a key that matches that lock. The key hole is huge so the key won't be small. I'm sure it will probably be silver as well."

Harry hadn't taken his eyes off the keys while Ron spoke and only nodded before kicking off into the air, feeling the familiar rush of flight surge through him.

In no time he'd tracked the correct key down. It was struggling to keep up with the other keys as its wing seemed to be damaged. Even with its handicap the key proved evasive, sliding just past Harry's grip more than once.

Eventually, after Harry had almost slammed into the ceiling he felt the cold silver fill his hand. As soon as his fingers closed around it, the other keys went berserk. The cold metal bit into his skin enough to cause pain but not enough to make him bleed. Regardless, he began his wild flight to the door while doing his best to avoid sitting still long enough to be hit.

Harry smacked the key into Ron's outstretched hand before rocketing off in another direction, hoping to distract the keys and keep them away from his friends. It kind of worked with most of the keys following him but a few stayed behind to dive bomb Ron. Luckily, he was able to get the door open without too much effort.

Harry suppressed a sigh of relief when he saw the door open. Instead he lowered his body flat over the broom and pushed it as fast as it could go. He felt the broom handle shaking under the strain as he crossed the threshold at full speed. He was lucky there was a short hallway before the next room. It took all his strength to pull up and stop before slamming into a massive statue.

He heard the door close behind him and finally touched down as his friends approached.

"That was some great flying, Harry," Ron said, rubbing his arms where the keys had poked him over and over. "I don't think I would have been able to make that catch."

"I'm just glad the hand off was clean," said Harry. "I don't want to imagine what would have happened had I had to do it all again."

The trio took a moment to catch their breath before moving forward. Harry approached the massive statue in front of them, marveling at its size. In the moment he'd almost crashed into it he hadn't noticed all the other statues around it. It wasn't until he saw the row of statues in front of it that a bit of familiarity tickled his mind. He was trying to put his finger on it when the lights came on, bathing the room in tension.

"Blimey," Ron swore. "It's a massive chess board…"

That's what it is, Harry thought. He hesitated for a second, ideas of what this challenge may be running through his mind. Well, let's see if we can figure out exactly what we need to do.

With that thought, he walked across the board. Just as he approached the pawns they snapped out their swords, blocking him from advancing.

"I guess that means we actually have to play a chess match to move forward."

"Do you think you can beat them?" Harry asked Ron who was looking around in wonder. When Harry spoke, Ron's attention snapped back and he nodded.

"I'm pretty sure I can, but without knowing who made this place and what their skill level is, I won't have a clear picture until we actually start playing.

"Okay, well, you are calling the shots on this one. Tell Hermione and I what to do."

Hermione nodded in agreement. Ron swelled a little with the trust his friends were showing him but he kept cool and began thinking of the best places for Harry and Hermione. Before he could think too long, however, a Knight dismounted and beckoned Ron over. As he did, a Bishop and a Rook stepped aside, waving for Harry and Hermione to take their places.

"This is just too weird," Ron said as he mounted the stone horse. When the other two were in place, they heard Hermione call out a question.

"Our side is the same color as the other. How do we know which is white and which is black?"

Before the two boys could reply, the king began to move. The massive statue turned to Ron and signaled him to follow. The stone horse Ron was on began to move as if it were a real horse, causing Ron to almost fall in surprise. When the king was satisfied Ron was in control of the horse, he moved through the row of pawns in front of him, Ron riding alongside him as an escort.

It wasn't until then they noticed the king on the other side also approach with his own knight escort. When they met at the center of the board, the two kings shook hands for a long moment. While they were still, the opposing knight circled the small group, an air of arrogance surrounding him. Ron kept his eyes on the kings, fascinated by what was happening.

After a long moment, the two kings' shaking hands began to glow. When they let go, a silver disc was slowly spinning, suspended in the air. Ron was surprised to see his face embossed on one side of the coin with the other king's face on the other side. The kings stepped back and watched the coin as it began to spin faster and faster until it almost looked like a sphere.

Without warning it shot high into the air before falling to the ground again. Ron was surprised the coin didn't damage the marble floor when it landed. He couldn't see the coin but immediately knew what it was for when the horse he was riding suddenly swirled with black streaks until it was completely black. He also noticed his clothes melt away to be replaced by black armor that fit perfectly. He knew it had to be enchanted because he didn't feel the weight at all.

Turning around, he saw all the other pieces on their side now the same shade of black. He noticed Hermione had also changed.

She was normal enough, her shirt and pants fusing together to become armor as well. As he watched her, a large shield appeared on her left arm. She looked confused when she looked up at him. He shrugged and they looked over at Harry. Both of them couldn't help but laugh.

Harry was now in black ceremonial robes and had a massive ornate staff. He looked like a dark Pope.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," Harry said, annoyance pouring off him. "Not all of us get to be badass knights on horseback."

Ron was still laughing when he felt a touch on his shoulder. Turning back, the king handed him the coin which had shrunk to the size of a galleon. Ron accepted it and looked to the other king and knight, only to see them making their way back to the other side. It was then he noticed they had also changed. Their stone gray had become a brilliant white marble.

When Ron and the King had returned to their places on the board, the game truly began. A white pawn slid across the marble board into place. Ron signaled for a pawn to slide out as well, one space in front and to the side of the opposing pawn. He wanted to see what happened when a piece was removed from the board.

The three students immediately realized that this was no game when the white pawn drew its swords and brutally destroyed the black pawn. When it was done, the rubble of the black statue just stayed there, a reminder of how much pain they could face.

When asked later, the three couldn't figure out how long they played that game. Things had gone smoothly until Ron had misread a situation and ended up sacrificing too many pieces.

What felt like an eternity later, Harry began to see what Ron was setting up for.

"No, Ron," he called out. "You can't let yourself get hurt. We don't know what happens if a player gets hit or-"

"It doesn't matter," Ron cut him off. "I know who really needs to move forward and it's not me."

"Ron it's not-", Hermione began before he cut her off as well.

"Yes it is, Hermione. This is what I'm good at and I am going to do my damnedest to make sure you two move on safely. You two are much better at figuring out the kinds of challenges we've faced down here."

He sat up straighter on his horse, a look of determination on his face. Harry and Hermione were worried but also impressed with the way Ron was acting. The care free, somewhat lazy friend of theirs had been replaced by a true knight.

Ron took a deep breath and nodded to each of them before maneuvering his horse into place, putting the white king in check.

The trio held their breath as the white queen slid over to Ron. She paused for a moment, the silence of the room suffocating. She then raised her massive sword and plunged it into the horse.

Ron screamed as he fell to the ground, rubble falling around him.

"Ron!" Hermione called out and almost ran to him.

"Stop!" Harry yelled. "If you move, it will undo what he just did."

Hermione looked on the verge of tears but didn't move.

Harry turned his attention back to the board. He moved into position and spoke, the anger in his voice betraying how he felt about his friend being hurt.

"Check mate."

The white king didn't move and for a heartbeat, Harry thought they might be in trouble. Just when he was about to yell for Hermione to run, the king's massive sword toppled forward. It clamored to the ground in finality. Harry looked back to the king after a moment. It bowed to him and then began to flake away like ash in an invisible wind.

Harry looked around and noticed all the rubble on the ground and all the white pieces being blown away like dust. He felt a tug and noticed his robes were blowing away as well, leaving him in what he was wearing when they entered the room.

Remembering Ron, he turned to his friend who was still on the ground, back in his normal clothes. Harry and Hermione ran across the board to their friend. Harry put his ear next to Ron's mouth to check to see if he was breathing.

His fear turned to relieved annoyance when a familiar snore burst from Ron's mouth.

"I'm going to kill that prat," Hermione said, the relief in her voice also colored by exasperation.

"Well he played a hell of a game," Harry said, smirking. "He deserves this nap."

After checking him over more thoroughly, they determined he was okay.

"Let's rest for a moment," Harry said, sitting back. "Unless there is another way out of here, Quirrell does get the stone, he's got to come back through here."

Hermione nodded and sat back as well. The two sat in companionable silence for a few minutes.

When Harry felt his breathing was back under control he stood and offered a hand to Hermione.

"Might as well keep moving forward."

Hermione nodded and took his hand, accepting his help up.

"Let's do this so we can get Ron back safely."

Harry nodded and led the way across the board to the door. He double checked Hermione to see if she was ready. When she looked up at him in determination, he opened the door.

They were blasted by a stench that could only be classified as troll.

"Ugh," Hermione said, almost gagging on the smell. "I really hoped we wouldn't have to deal with a troll again."

Harry nodded, covering his nose and mouth with the collar of his shirt. He looked around before noticing the massive troll sprawled out on the floor. It had a huge bloody crater in the side of its skull.

"At least we don't have to fight one again," he said. "Come on, let's keep going. I can't breathe in here."

Hermione nodded before coughing and retching. She grabbed his sleeve as he started moving and followed along behind, gagging so much she couldn't tell where they were going. Harry pushed open the far door and immediately the stench waned.

When they pressed the door shut behind them, they heard a whoosh behind them. Both of them twisted around as fast as possible, drawing wands.

"It's just the fire," Hermione said, still with her guard up. An ominous purple fire had appeared on the other side of the room in front of the door.

"Just fire is still plenty dangerous," Harry replied. It was then he noticed the table in the center of the room.

The pair approached the table which had seven different shaped bottles set upon it. There was also a note with what looked like a poem on it. Hermione lifted the note to read it. Harry stepped up behind her to read over her shoulder.

Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind.

Two of us will help you, which ever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting bidden 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.

Hermione sighed in front of Harry. He felt like he was reading Egyptian hieroglyphics for as much as he understood what he was reading. Dread filled him before Hermione turned around beaming at him.

"What?" he said in confusion.

"It's a logic puzzle! Give me a minute and we'll be on our way."

Harry let out a breath, relief pouring over him.

"You are the most brilliant witch I've ever met."

Hermione's embarrassed blush was out-shined by her brilliant smile. She nodded and turned back to the table. For a few minutes, she walked up and down the table muttering a few words here and there. Eventually, she nodded and picked up the smallest bottle.

Turning to Harry, she held out the bottle.

"This is the one that will get you through the flames."

Harry accepted the bottle. He noticed the small amount of potion in the bottle.

"There isn't enough in here for both of us to go, is there?"

Hermione smiled a little sadly.

"No, I'll go back to check on Ron and you move forward. If anyone can get in there and stop Quirrell, it's you, Harry."

Harry just stared at the bottle. He didn't feel right moving on without his friends. He felt Hermione's hand rest on his arm. When he looked up, he was surprised to see Hermione smiling.

"You are a wonderful person, Harry. I know how much it hurts you to leave us behind. I've never had a friend that makes me feel as appreciated and loved as you do."

Harry smiled weakly.

"I'm not that good, Hermione."

He felt her grip on his arm tighten and she pulled him into a fierce hug.

"But you are, Harry. We all see it."

Harry hugged her back before feeling her arms loosen around him. He was about to step back when he felt her pull his head down. She kissed his cheek, the heat of her blush radiating off her face.

"Now get going, I've got to check on Ron."

Harry couldn't help but blush as well. He tried to speak but couldn't think of what to say so he just nodded.

Hermione smiled again, squeezing his hand before heading back the other way. Harry watched her for a few steps before turning to the purple flames between him and Quirrell.

Well, it's now or never, Potter.

With that thought, he downed the potion and walked into the flames.