A/N: For those who are wondering why Dumbledore would allow a Dragon to roam free within Hogwarts, I have to remind you that this is an AU. Dumbledore is a genuinely nice bloke, and if the Dragon is harmless and kept away from the main Castle building and Quidditch Pitch itself, then there are no problems that I can see.

The way I write Dragons is also different. So is my Hagrid, if you didn't notice in the last chapter.

Norbert is also here to stay for the years at Hogwarts. He will help during Harry and Ginny's adventures sometimes, and he will play a big part when he does.

Why? Well, in my opinion, the HP series has a huge lack of Dragons. Norbert was a wasted opportunity for a main character.

All of that, and I re-watched the How to Train Your Dragon series a few days ago.

It was over.

After a painstakingly long month of revision, studies, exams, and more exams, it was finally over.

It was also Ginny's birthday. And the day Norbert would come back, though they wouldn't get to visit him till much later, since Dumbledore and the Handlers would be making arrangements and checking out the enclosure.

He and Ginny were also worried about the Philosopher's Stone. They didn't know if their theory was real or bogus, but they were worried. They didn't know where it would be hidden either, nor did they know who the culprit was. All these reasons were stopping him from going to Dumbledore.

He opened the door to the Great Hall, and he made his way to where Ginny was sitting. There was a bit of a crowd of kids around her, probably to wish her.

"Happy birthday," Harry said, dropping into the seat beside her. "This," he added, pulling out a small box from his robes "is for you"

Ginny took it from him with a grin and a thanks, and slowly opened it. Her grin got wider when she saw that it was a set of watercolors.

"How did you know I ran out?" She asked.

"I noticed it the last time you painted," Harry explained.

"Thanks." She said. She'd drawn a portrait of Norbert for Hagrid on his birthday. Eventually, she decided to make one of Hedwig for herself and another that depicted a stag with a lily flower between its antlers. The latter was currently hanging in his room.

Ginny really was a good artist, much better than him anyway. He'd tried and failed so abysmally that he'd given up completely and only made the occasional suggestion.

The owls flew into the Great Hall, and Hedwig was with them. She was carrying an envelope with her.

She landed on Harry and Ginny's table, and Harry promptly fed her some bacon, something she liked very much. Ginny took the letter from Hedwig and stroked her feathers while reading it. She smiled at the contents and passed it to him. It said:

Dear Harry and Ginny,

He's back!! And you can visit him after breakfast.

-Hagrid.

Harry smiled too, and they quickly gulped down their breakfast and left the Great Hall. Outside, however, they ran into Percy, Fred, and George.

"Well, well, well," Fred said. "If it isn't our lovely sister, the birthday girl herself!"

"We were most disappointed in you," George said. "Sneaking out of the common room like that, without so much as a hello?"

"Why? So you could charm my hair off or something?" Ginny interrupted them.

They gasped in simultaneous horror and pretended to burst into tears. "Our own sister, Freddie," George said. "Making such slanderous accusations against us."

"We would have carried you like a princess," Fred said to Ginny, who was watching them through narrowed eyes. "On a litter and everything."

Harry was watching this byplay with an increasingly bewildered expression. Percy looked like he was enjoying the show. They probably bantered a lot like this in their Common Room. Personally, he'd never seen them like this. The twins didn't hang around the two of them much. Probably because Ginny had warned them not to prank him.

"We would have given you a crown. And jewels!" George cried.

"Enough" Ginny interrupted them, but this time, she had a smile on her face. "That is exactly why I flew out of the window. Here's your broom, by the way." She said, pulling out a miniature broom and tossing it to Fred, whose jaw had dropped open at the sight of it.

George, Percy, and Harry burst out laughing, and Fred joined in after getting over his shock. After they got themselves under control, all three of her brothers hugged her tightly and wished her a Happy Birthday, and made her promise to meet them in the Common Room that night. Even Harry was invited, and this time, he would go.

"Thanks, guys. Really. But-"

"But you two have a date to get to," Fred said.

"Do you want to get hexed, Fred?" Ginny growled. Harry had to use all of his considerable willpower to not blush and settle for his patented glare that sent everyone running in the other direction.

Fred gulped and shook his head.

"Good. Now, as I was saying, Harry and I need to visit Hagrid. So, I'll see you guys tonight in the Common Room,"

"Alright/Bye/See you there," Fred, George, and Percy responded.

They left the Entrance Hall and walked toward Hagrid's Hut.

"I'm sorry if that was too much," Ginny said. "I'm told it takes a little getting used to"

"It does," Harry admitted. "But it's nice they care so much."

Ginny took his hand, squeezed it gently, and then let go. They traveled the rest of the way in silence and knocked on Hagrid's door.

It opened immediately, and Hagrid looked at them with a smile. "Hello! Happy Birthday, Ginny!"

Ginny grinned at him. "Thanks, Hagrid"

"Are you two ready to go?"

Harry and Ginny nodded, and Hagrid quickly came out with Fang. Harry scratched the dog behind its ears.

"Come on, then! I'll show ya the new enclosure, too."

"How is Norbert?" Ginny asked when they were a fair distance into the Forest.

"Great!" Hagrid replied, sounding very giddy. Indeed, he was looking as though he wanted to jump around in excitement and was barely restraining himself. "He misses ya both. Dumbledore spoke with him briefly, well, as well as a human can speak with a Dragon. Anyway, Dumbledore thinks Norbert's going to be just fine. The Handlers say he's been trained well; he doesn't hurt anyone unnecessarily and eats what they give him. Though, it's gonna be a bit of a problem when he starts breathing fire. We don't know exactly what it will do."

This was good. Very good. It was better than Harry dared hope for. If the Dragon Handlers thought them to be good keepers for Norbert, then that meant he could stay until he turned 7. After he did, they'd have to send him to a Dragon Reserve to learn to harness his Magic. But they had seven years with him. And Harry would make sure that all of them enjoyed that time.

"I also have a bit of a confession to make," Hagrid said.

"Go on," Harry said.

"Is there another Dragon?" Ginny asked.

"No, no. Nothing like that." Hagrid said. "I… well, I told Dumbledore that you two were helping me. He has known since Christmas, actually."

"What!?" Harry and Ginny yelped.

Hagrid sighed. "Look, I'm sorry, alright? But, I couldn't lie to him like that."

"So, he knows about…" Harry trailed off helplessly.

"Yes. And he doesn't mind, as long as Norbert's safe to be around. Which he is." Hagrid said.

Harry and Ginny nodded in understanding. The path they were taking led them to the right, deeper into the forest. It was starting to get Dark, not as much as last night, but it wasn't even 11:30 yet, so that was weird. Harry assumed it was the Forest's Magic.

Soon, the path narrowed and they came upon a large rock structure with long and thick vines over it. Hagrid waved his umbrella- which Harry was 100% certain was a wand in disguise- over some very thick and long vines while muttering the Hogwarts motto "Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus." Or rather, never tickle a sleeping Dragon. The vines started moving, creating an opening big enough for them to fit through.

The opening led them into a cave. Hagrid ducked his head, even though Harry was sure he would fit through, and gestured for them to follow him.

The cave started out narrow at first but got broader and broader as they went on. Eventually, after three or so minutes, the cave opened up into a huge space and Harry's jaw dropped when he saw it. Ginny's did too, he absently noted.

They weren't underground, the fresh smell of the air was enough to convince him of that. But he didn't think he'd ever seen a place so… beautiful.

It was a large open oval-shaped area surrounded by large rock walls. There was a medium-sized pond in the middle, and lush green grass spreading across the ground, with large rocks scattered about the place. There was a large tree, across the side of the pond they were on, that provided a huge shade. Lastly, there was a large entrance to what Harry assumed was Norbert's home/Lair near the corner of the other side.

"You're gonna get a fly in your mouth," Ginny said, smiling as she closed his mouth with her hand. Harry lightly slapped it away and she chuckled.

"Like you were doing any better" Harry retorted, still in a bit of a daze.

"I recovered quickly though." Ginny pointed out. "That and I couldn't resist it."

Whatever Harry was about to say was interrupted by Norbert coming out of the cave that Harry had previously and correctly assumed to be his home.

Norbert let out a happy sort of squeal and ran toward them. He couldn't fly yet.

Just as the thought passed through Harry's head, Norbert jumped up, stretched his wings, flapped them once, and went a little further, flapped them again…

And crashed into the pond.

"Norbert!" Harry, Ginny, and Hagrid cried.

They rushed to the pond, only to find that it didn't inhibit the Dragon's progress in the slightest. Norbert quickly crossed the distance and tackled both of them into a hug, wrapping its front legs and wings around them. Harry and Ginny taught him to do that, and they were the only recipients of it, other than Hagrid, of course. Norbert did see Hagrid as his 'Mummy', after all.

"YOU CAN FLY!!" Harry and Ginny cried.

Norbert's response was a small, cute, baby growl that had Harry and Ginny smiling. He hadn't changed a bit.

"How've you been, buddy? We missed you." Harry said when Norbert released them. Ginny nodded her agreement

Harry didn't feel as strange talking to animals anymore. Especially since Hedwig and Norbert seemed to understand whatever he, Ginny, and Hagrid said.

Norbert licked their faces, probably to tell them that he did too.

"Did they treat you well?" Ginny asked him.

Norbert nodded and jumped up on his hind legs to catch the fish Hagrid threw at him. He quickly ate it and ran to the other side to play a little game of catch.

They spent two hours there, playing with, and feeding Norbert. Ginny even read him a story, but then they started to get hungry.

They put Norbert to sleep and left the enclosure. Norbert was old enough that he could be left alone without the risk of him hurting himself accidentally. Once they were out, the vines moved back to obscure the entrance to the enclosure.

They made their way back on the same path. Harry and Ginny decided to memorize this one too.

They traveled for a good five minutes before they heard a crunch of a twig nearby. "GET BEHIND ME!" Hagrid yelled and pulled out a crossbow and his umbrella/wand.

Harry and Ginny immediately did so, but still peeked around his form. A man made his way out of the trees. Wait, he wasn't a man, he had the torso and belly of a man. The rest of him looked like… a horse?

With a start, Harry realized that these were Centaurs. Recalling everything he knew about Centaurs, he remembered that they usually traveled in packs.

He drew out his wand and looked around himself. But he didn't find any more of them. Was it only this one, lone Centaur?

"Ah, Firenze. It's good to see you" Hagrid said. Harry and Ginny furrowed their brows. Did Hagrid know the Centaurs by name?

"And you, Hagrid." The centaur- Firenze- said. "You can come out younglings."

Harry scowled at being called that but came out anyway. Ginny followed his lead.

"What?" Harry asked when the Centaur kept gazing at the two of them.

The Centaur looked to the sky and said. "Mars will be bright tonight. Brighter than it has been for over a decade"

Oh, great, the Centaur was crazy. Probably why he was alone too. He was probably exiled. Centaurs were said to be rather… old-fashioned. A glance with Ginny told him she was thinking along similar lines.

Hagrid, however, seemed to grow pale and said. "There's gotta be more to it than just that. Do you know anything else? Who is it this time? When is it starting exactly?"

None of that made any sense to Harry or Ginny, but they were still watching the byplay with an interested expression.

Firenze looked at Harry and Ginny, and then the sky and said. "Mars will be bright tonight." He said. Harry thought Firenze placed a subtle emphasis on 'tonight', but he couldn't be sure. Ginny was frowning, probably thinking she imagined it. Hagrid, on the other hand, missed it completely.

"You can't tell me anything more?" Hagrid asked miserably.

Firenze shook his head. "I have been sent here, to inform you that the Centaurs will not go after your Dragon."

Hagrid's eyebrows raised. "What changed?"

"You healed the Unicorn. We do not think you wish us, or this Forest, any harm."

"Do you know what attacked the Unicorn?" Hagrid asked.

Firenze looked at Harry and Ginny again, then back up at the sky, again, but this time, he didn't say anything. He just bowed his head to the three of them, turned, and went away.

They traveled back to Hagrid's Hut without incident, and silently. Hagrid served them lunch, which tasted a lot like lunch at the Leaky.

"What did Firenze mean, Hagrid?" Ginny asked.

Hagrid started and looked at her, then at him, before sighing. "Might as well tell ya." He said. "Do you know what Mars means in Centaur culture?"

Harry and Ginny shook their heads. He wasn't even aware that Centaurs had a religion. It made sense, though.

"It means War. So, when he said 'Mars is going to be bright tonight', it means that there is going to be a War soon." Hagrid explained.

Harry and Ginny's eyes went wide. "But surely it's all speculation, right? I mean, how can you know the future?" Harry tried.

Hagrid shook his head. "You can't know the future. Not for certain. But you can know some vague events. Like a War will be coming, or there will be a storm soon. Most of the time, they don't know how soon the event will occur, or even how long the event will last, but it will come. And that's what has me worried." He finished with a frown.

Harry swallowed the nausea. A War? Something desperate enough to kill Unicorns to stay alive? Yeah, he had a good idea of who the War could be against. But, it was still crazy. He decided to go talk to Dumbledore tonight and just get it all off his chest.

"Boy, I'm doubly glad that I decided to get that egg," Hagrid said after a while. "It would be nice having a Dragon on our side. Not that Norbert's a weapon or anything. Besides, we got approved and everything! And Norbert loves it, too. Can't say I could've done it without you two, though."

Harry and Ginny smiled at him, but they were both lost in thoughts pretty soon after. The first part of Hagrid's sentence struck something within Harry. He was grateful for Norbert too, but where on earth did Hagrid get an egg for a Siberian Shadow? Those eggs were beyond rare, not to mention expensive. And for some reason Harry didn't think that Hagrid had 100,000 galleons just lying in a vault somewhere.

"Hagrid, where did you get the egg?" Harry asked. He had a hunch, but by God was he hoping he was wrong. Ginny looked at him with wide eyes, probably making the same connection he did.

"A bloke down by the pub gave it to me" Hagrid responded.

"How much did you pay for it?" Ginny asked warily.

"I got it for free" Hagrid responded, oblivious to the bottom dropping out of both their stomachs. "I can't remember much because I was erm… drunk." He admitted sheepishly. "He wanted some information. Specifically how to get past a Cerberus, and I told him the answer: Music."

Now, Harry knew why there was a Cerberus in the School. He'd previously assumed it was Hagrid or Dumbledore's pet. But no, it was guarding the Philosopher's Stone.

And Voldemort knew how to get past it.

"What did the man look like?" Ginny asked.

"Dunno. He had a mask over his face." Hagrid said. Harry and Ginny's horror must've shown on their face because Hagrid added. "Don't worry, loads of people do that down there. Even me sometimes."

"We know about the Philosopher's Stone." Harry blurted out. Ginny turned to him in surprise. Hagrid's eyes went wide and he paled, like, a lot "We know about the Cerberus in the Third Floor Corridor."

"You met Fluffy?" Hagrid asked, horrified.

"FLUFFY!? You named that thing Fluffy!? Hagrid!" Harry cried, all previous questions forgotten. Seriously if Harry had to name it, he would choose anything but Fluffy.

"Okay, I understand where you're coming from, but he's a seriously misunderstood creature-" Hagrid said, only to be interrupted.

"Guys!" Ginny cut in "This is seriously not the time! Harry, questionable naming choices can wait. Hagrid, what Harry wants to say, is that we know that the Philosopher's Stone is being hidden in the Third Floor Corridor. We know that… Fluffy… is guarding it. We know that it's about to be stolen, probably by Voldemort so that he can have his body back. We think that's what Firenze meant by 'Mars is bright tonight'" She said that in a disturbingly accurate impression of Firenze. Clearly, Hagrid thought so, too. "We need to find Dumbledore and tell him this."

Hagrid seemed to break out of his trance two minutes later. "Alright. I don't know how you know this. Nor do I want to know how you know this. But the Stone is safe. It is hidden extremely well. Me and a few other teachers have a hand in designing the defences. Trust me, no one is getting through it. Least of all You-Know-Who, because he is dead."

"Hagrid-" Harry tried

"Look, we have Enchantments for detection." Hagrid said. "If anyone goes there, we will know. Now, listen. You two should go back to the castle, have fun, and enjoy your Birthday Ginny. I think you probably know where the Kitchens are?"

Harry and Ginny nodded.

"Then, go and have fun. I'm gonna set a meeting with Dumbledore and tell him that you know about this. He will tell you more about it. Oh, and before I forget." He said, and went to his kitchen. He came back with a box of chocolates- the same gift he'd gotten for Harry a day after his Birthday.

"Here. Enjoy" Hagrid said.

"Thanks." He could tell that despite everything, she still liked his gift.

Harry and Ginny left soon, and made their way to the Castle. Ginny went up to the Gryffindor Common Room to put the chocolates and the rest of her gifts in her dorm room, while Harry was waiting outside.

She came out soon and asked, "What do we do now?"

"Let's find Dumbledore and tell him ourselves. He'll listen to us. He's just as crazy as we are." Harry said.

Ginny snorted, but didn't deny his statement. "Alright. Let's go."

Dumbledore's office was on the same floor, and theor trip there was short and uneventful, but they were still very nervous.

It was when they got there, did Harry realize that, they didn't know the password.

"Er.. could you let us through?" Harry asked. "We don't know the password, but we need to see Professor Dumbledore. It's urgent"

"Professor Dumbledore isn't here." Professor McGonagall said.

They both whirled around in surprise. Neither of them had noticed her there.

"We need to talk to him." Ginny said. "Do you know where he might be?"

"He's not in the Castle, Miss Weasley. He got an urgent letter from the Ministry of Magic just five minutes ago. Perhaps I can help?" McGonagall offered.

Harry shared a glance with Ginny. She was the Deputy Headmistress, and a presumably Powerful Witch. She might be able to help them better than anyone else, save Dumbledore.

"It's about the Philosopher's Stone," Harry said.

Professor McGonagall's eyes bugged out. "How in the name of Merlin do you even know about that-?"

"Doesn't matter," Ginny said. "Someone's going to try and steal it."

Professor McGonagall swallowed and said, "I can assure you the stone is perfectly well-protected."

"But-" Ginny tried.

"Go back to your Common Rooms." Professor McGonagall said. "And, please, do not say a word about this to anyone."

Harry quickly nodded. He knew when to keep pushing and when to back the fuck up. This was the time for the latter.

"Alright, Professor. Thank you for listening." He said, and took Ginny by the arm to the Room of Requirement.

"What the Fuck, Harry?" She said, once they were inside.

"She wasn't going to listen." Harry said. "And I don't think we could've convinced her."

Ginny gave it some thought and nodded slowly. "So, what do we do?"

"Well…" he trailed off. She was going to thin he was crazy for this. "The letter was probably sent by Voldemort to get Dumbledore out. Whoch means he's going after it today. So…"

"What?"

"I go after the Stone myself." Harry blurted out. He had no other choice but to do that. If Voldemort got his hands on it…

"We go after the Stone ourselves" Ginny said.

Harry stared at Ginny blankly for a few seconds. "You could be expelled." He said. He knew he couldn't command her to stay behind. She wasn't his to command, nor would she listen to him.

"Yes." Ginny admitted. "But if Voldemort comes back, I won't have a school to go to." She'd gotten used to saying Voldemort's name this past month, ever since they'd met him in the Forest.

Harry nodded. "When do you wanna leave?"

"The sooner the better." She said and got up.

He followed her lead, and they made their way to the Third Floor Forbidden Corridor without incident.

Harry opened the door with a Silent Alohomora and they both entered. There was a harp playing in the corner, causing the Cerberus to stay asleep.

Their good luck, however ended there.

One of the Paws of the Beast was laying on a Trapdoor. Presumably one they were supposed to go through, since the rest of the room was bare.

"What now?" Ginny asked in a whisper.

"Well… I guess we… move it?" Harry replied.

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock. But how?"

"I think I have an idea. But it's mad." Harry warned.

Ginny nodded at him to continue.

"We lift it up. Like, literally." Harry said.

"Or" Ginny said slowly, after a few seconds. "We use your Wandless Magic."

Harry could have smacked himself for bieng so stupid. It was his ability, he should have remembered it.

He let the Magic flow into his body, and concentrated on the paw, willing it to lift. It did, and Harry moved it to the right of the trapdoor.

"Brilliant" Ginny said in a whisper.

He nodded, and opened the Trapdoor. There was a ladder under there, but he couldn't see anything else.

"I'll go first." He said. Ginny nodded

"Good luck." She whispered.

Harry nodded his thanks, and started climbing downstairs. He heard Ginny climbing down above him and closing the trapdoor a few steps later.

They kept climbing downward for a good minute before his feet touched land, or rather, the floor.

He walked forward into a completely empty room, for a second he thought it was a trap, but when Ginny stepped in, the floor hissed, and started moving downward.

Another elevator, he thought.

It traveled down slowly with Harry and Ginny spending their time in silence, both lost in their thoughts. Eventually they reached the bottom and the wall in front of them started turning into a doorway.

Harry caught hold of Ginny's arm. "You know I won't think anything bad about you if you left now, right?"

She took his hand in hers. "That's good to hear, Harry. But, I would hold it against me."

"Alright then" Harry said.

There was a passageway beyond the doorway. It was narrow, with a cave-like ceiling and walls, and a very rocky floor. They stepped into the passageway and walked forward, the echoes of their footsteps sounding obnoxiously loud in the quiet room.

It was getting darker, despite the fact that his eyes were already adjusted to the darkness.

"I'm casting a lighting charm" He informed Ginny quietly. He wasn't sure why he hadn't spoken in a higher volume, it just seemed to be the mood.

"Go on," she said with a nod.

Lumos

His wand tip lit up dimly, Harry had intentionally held back due to the darkness. He slowly increased the brightness of the charm, giving their eyes some time to adjust. They couldn't see ahead of five feet, though. No matter how much Harry tried increasing it.

Thinking that he might need his wand to defend himself, Harry gave it a flick, causing the light from his wand to detach itself from his wand tip, and transform into an orb of light over his shoulder.

Soon, they ran into a few roots spread all over the walls and the floor, and hanging from the ceiling. Harry thought they looked familiar, but couldn't place it.

"Are these Devil's Snare?" Ginny asked.

With a start, Harry realized she was correct, but before he could do anything about it, a root near Harry started strangling him by the neck. Another one got his wand arm, squeezing it painfully causing his wand to drop to the ground. Yet another one, this time came for his feet. Harry stomped on one of them as best he could, but the other one got hold of his foot. He was unceremoniously pinned to the wall, and more and more roots started to come toward him.

Looking over at Ginny, he saw that she wasn't looking much better. She hadn't been caught yet, but she was jumping around all over the place- a minor miracle, considering the small size of the place- and she didn't seem to have a moment to even get her bearings on her feet before another root started to move towards her. She continued to do this dance of hers, knowing that her friend was in trouble, but unable to do much about it.

She did send a few Severing Charms toward a few new ones that made their way to him, but it wasn't too useful. The one causing Harry the most distress, was the one around his neck, and she didn't dare strike there.

Harry, on the other hand, was trying to remember the weakness of the plant. They'd learned about it just a week ago, but his mind had been more focused on Norbert's inevitable departure, instead of the lesson.

The pressure around his neck was at an all time high now. He needed to get out of here, and get Ginny out too. Professor Sprout had given them a poem to memorize, Harry remembered now. What was it?

Devil's Snare, Devil's Snare,

It's deadly fun…

… but will sulk in the sun!

Fire and sunlight! Harry remembered it. He opened his fist as best he could and let the Magic flow again. This time, he channeled it into creating a fire on his hand.

The Blue Flames ignited in his palm, and the Devil's Snare immediately recoiled. He brought the fire near him, and breathed in a huge gasp of air as the plant receded back and stopped choking him. He repeated this process on the other side of his body too, and fell to the ground. "Sunlight!" He managed to croak loudly, before shutting his eyes.

Ginny must have understood what he meant, because pretty soon Harry saw a bright light through his closed eyelids. When it went away, Harry opened his eyes, only to be tackled into a bone-crushing hug. The roots would be out for a while, so Harry hugged her back just as tightly.

"I was so scared, I thought you were going to die," she whispered.

Harry smiled. It was just typical of her to be worried about him, while trying to dodge potentially lethal plants trying to strangle her to death in the same way they were doing it to him. And while he found it amusing, he also felt a heat in his stomach, happily purring at her words.

Of course, that didn't mean he was going to let an opportunity for a joke slide. "No offense, but I think I was slightly more worried than you were."

Ginny didn't loosen her hold, she just lightly smacked him up the head and said "Typical, male."

Harry just chuckled. Eventually they let each other go, and walked forward, though they were tightly gripping each other's hands. Ginny was left-handed though, so she had no problems with not being able to use her wand.

The path they were on eventually widened, and they came into a large cave with lots of green colored plants having loads of spikes on its branches.

They were Venomous Tentacula, Harry realized. Many unsuspecting students had been grabbed by it in Herbology class. It was a vicious little plant, Harry knew.

"What do we do about that? Venomous Tentacula aren't affected by sunlight or anything like that. And we can't take out this many Tentacula with only Severing Charms"

Harry nodded. They weren't affected by much except a Severing Charm, and there were a lot more than two dozen here. They'd be dead before they could complete the incantations.

"How about a Shield Charm?" Harry asked suddenly. It could work. It saved him from the Troll. Somewhat.

"Can you cast one properly?" Ginny asked.

Harry grimaced. He hadn't tried to. It was just too complicated at his current level. "No." He said with a shake of his head.

"Me neither. Not properly anyway."

"What else do we have?"

"Pretty much nothing." Ginny said after a few seconds.

"Okay… so, I go in, cast a shield, and if I can make my way through, then you join me later." Harry said. "I'm only going first because I can heal faster."

"I don't like this." Ginny said, knowing she couldn't talk him out of this.

"Me neither." He agreed. "But I'll take care. Promise."

He gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and stepped forward, casting the Shield Charm. The moment he was in reach, A Venomous Tentacula branch came at him like a whip. It tore through his Shield Charm and slashed him across his wand arm. He was sure there would be a large gash where it hit him. Harry groaned in pain, and Ginny yelled his name, but Harry didn't hear it clearly as he was slashed again, this time on the back.

He quickly rolled away from their range, crying out in pain when the ground made contact with his back.

Ginny came to his side and helped him settle down near a rock. "Sorry," He said.

"Not your fault. Do you have Dittany?"

Harry nodded, and reached into his pocket with his uninjured hand. He pulled out his shrunken trunk, dropped it on the floor, and nudged it with his foot.

He carried it everywhere with him, only taking it out during bedtime, and emergencies. This was one of the latter. He and Ginny had brewed up some Dittany after Hagrid had demonstrated its usefulness back in the Forbidden Forest.

He took out the bottle and gave it to Ginny who poured some on his arms. He felt like the gash was on fire and he hissed in pain. Ginny smiled in sympathy. "Now the one on your back." His skin had regrown pretty well, Harry thought as he laid down to give her better access.

Harry cried out this time. The gash on his back was much bigger and it hurt a lot. He laid there for a minute, before getting up and repocketing his trunk "What now?" He asked.

"Well… you're gonna think I'm mad. But I think we could make it if we went together." Ginny replied.

Harry blinked. "Together?" He repeated.

Ginny nodded. "Yeah, like we cast two shield charms at the same time. It can't break through both of them, right?"

"Maybe" he conceded. "Let's just try casting it first."

Ginny nodded and they stood back to back.

"On three," Ginny said.

"One" Harry started.

"Two" Ginny continued.

"Three!" They finished together.

Protego

Something was different this time, Harry just knew it.

His wand was vibrating happily. He could feel Ginny's wand doing the same. The air around them rippled like it never had before, turning into a translucent spherical silver shield that surrounded them completely. The shield also had flecks of gold and red in it.

They'd done it.

Somehow.

"Well, I'd say this looks pretty good." Ginny said, turning to face him with a smile.

Harry just nodded his agreement. "Come on," he said, taking her right hand. "Let's test this out."

Together, they moved ahead. Again, the Venomous Tentacula came toward them like a whip. But this time, it collided with their shield with a bang, and a pulsing sound.

They gasped. "It worked! You're a genius, Gin"

Ginny blushed as they walked forward, "Not any more than you, Harry."

The plants continued to strike them, but with Harry and Ginny strengthening the Shield at various points, none of them managed to break through.

Eventually, they reached the other side unharmed and the plants stopped their attack. Thank God, Venomous Tentacula and Devil's Snare hated each other, and couldn't be placed nearby. They would be long dead if that were the case.

"Those seemed wierd didn't they? Venomous Tentacula usually strangles you. It doesn't slash." Ginny said.

"Flitwick probably enchanted them to kill straight away." Harry said. It was the only thing that made sense. Ginny nodded in agreement and clutched his hand tighter.

They moved forward again, except this time they were ready to cast any required charms. But it didn't seem to be necessary, the path led them to a bridge between two cliffs of a huge cavern, much like the one at Gringotts.

There were hundreds of winged keys, flying all around the cavern. Harry watched them for a while, before realizing that they Transfigured themselves randomly to change their appearance.

On the other side of the bridge was a door. Harry and Ginny crossed the bridge and instantly knew that the door was probably Heavily enchanted to keep people out. Harry saw a keybole and knew that one of those keys would fit the door. After thinking about it, he decided that it wasn't worth the efffort if it was just gonna Transfigure itself at random moments.

"Stand back" Harry said, letting go of Ginny's hand. He'd never done something like this, but if he could choke a human being without touching them, then he could take a door off its hinges without touching it, too.

He let his Magic flow to his arms and concentrated on the door. He squeeze his fist almost shut, and pulled back. He felt the door resisting his efforts, so he pulled harder, this time it came off with creak and a bang. He chucked it off the side and beckoned for Ginny to follow.

"I just want to make it known that I'm so jealous of you right now." Ginny said with a smile.

He smiled back and threw an arm around her shoulders. "I'll teach you. Don't you worry, little one."

Harry was certain that, if they weren't in an environment where they could easily die if they didn't pay attention, he would be getting to experience her patented Bat-Bogey Hex her brother Bill had perfected for her.

They came near another door. It wasn't enchanted like the last one, though. So Harry and Ginny opened it.

And immediately came face to face with the swinging club of a Troll.

Harry grabbed Ginny and dropped to the floor. The Troll burst through the door, breaking the walls and causing Harry and Ginny to cast another combined Shield Charm over themselves.

The Troll hit their shield with a club, but it did nothing. The Club simply bounced, and neither Harry nor Ginny felt any recoil.

The Troll reared its arm back to strike again, but Harry wasn't having any of that. He let go of the Shield Charm and thrust his arm out, lashing out with his Magic.

The Troll went flying backwards and crashed into the wall across from where they were standing.

Ginny quickly cast Oppugno on the fallen pieces of debris and sent them flying at the Troll, along with a Bat-Bogey Hex.

The Bat-Bogey, unfortunately, had no effect, but the debris did hit the Troll in the upper body and head, knocking it our or killing it, Harry didn't know which.

They ran to the other soor to the right of the room and pulled it open.

It was an empty room, except for a table with seven bottles of different shapes and sizes on the far side of it. As soon as they entered the room, however, a ring of purple fire went around the room.

Having no other choice, Harry and Ginny made their way to the table in the middle. They noticed an engraved riddle in the table that read:

"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 for evermore. 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 onwards 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."

Well. That made some sense to Harry, but not enough to solve it. He did notice Ginny eyeing a half-empty bottle interestingly though.

"Did you solve this already?"

"Oh, hell no. I didn't even read it, actually" Ginny responded. "But notice how this is half filled?"

"Yeah… Oh!" Harry said in sudden realization. The correct one would be empty, or at least half-empty since it was required to get you through. "See, you are a genius"

"There's one problem, though." Ginny said. "Only one of us can go"

"What?"

"There's only half left. I assume it takes half to go in there safely."

Shit. That would put a damper on your day. Harry didn't know what to do now. He knew it was unfair, but he wanted her there with him. There had to be a way. The teachers…

The Teachers must have a way to go! Surely they wouldn't send in just one person. There had to be a Refilling Charm or something. That could also only be true for the correct one.

Grinning at his progress, he held his hand out to Ginny "I might have a way." He said.

Ginny placed the bottle in his hand. Harry quickly opened it and emptied it on the ground.

"What are you doing!?" Ginny yelled.

"Improvising." Harry said, before putting the cap on the bottle again. It immediately started to fill and this time reached to the top.

Ginny gaped at him and Harry just smirked back. "You might as well help verify your theory." Harry said, placing the bottle on the floor. "Help me empty the rest. If they don't fill up then your guess was right."

Ginny shook herself and said. "I'm not the only genius here apparently." She teased him, as they quickly did as Harry suggested.

"Yep. You were right." Harry said, after none of the bottles refilled. He summoned the correct bottle into his hand, and drank half of it. He was about to give the other bottle to Ginny, when he realized he didn't even know if she would want to go with him.

"You don't have to, you know-" Harry started, only to be interrupted by Ginny taking the bottle out of his hand and gulping it down in one go.

"That answer enough for you?" She asked him, before putting the bottle on the table.

He nodded, smiling.

"Good. Now let's get this thing and get the fuck out. We've got a party to get to." She said.

He grinned. "Thanks."

She grinned back. "No need."

They passed through the fire and made their way to the door. They opened it and started their journey down.

It led them down to another room. It was large, and had torches on every pillar. The Mirror of Erised was in the centre of the room, and inspecting it was… Professor Quirrel!?

"Harry Potter and Ginny Weasley." Quirrel greeted them. "Welcome. My master and I weren't expecting anyone, but if I had to guess… you two would be the ones who would know everything."

"You!?" Harry and Ginny cried.

"Let me guess. You never suspected p-poor, st-tuttering, P-rofess-sor Q-Quirrel, did you?"

Harry gasped. It was all an act? He'd thought it was Voldemort. But it was him, instead. "You let the Troll in on Halloween didn't you?"

Quirinus nodded. "I've a real gift with Trolls."

"And here we are, thinking Voldemort was stealing the Stone." Ginny said.

"Oh, I am here, girl." A cold voice said. Harry looked around, but the three of them were the only ones there. With a start, Harry realized that the sound was coming from the back of Quirrel's head.

Sure enough, Quirrel turned around, and started unwrapping his turban. Harry saw that the face behind him had no nose, and red eyes.

"Tom Riddle." Harry greeted him coolly. Unwilling to grace him with the name he wanted others to use. He noticed Ginny turn to him with a frown.

Tom's red eyes narrowed in anger, and his… whatever he had as a substitute for nostrils, flared. "That name holds no meaning for me."

"It is your name" Harry said, shrugging. Honestly, Harry was fucking terrified. This wasn't just his parents murderer in front of him, it was the strongest Dark Wizard to ever walk the earth.

"Tom Riddle," he spat. "Was weak. I killed him. But I have no time for explanations now. Quirinus! Bind them."

Quirrel turned around and flicked his wand. Ropes bound them by the wrists and strung them up to the ceiling.

"Use the boy, Quirinus." Voldemort said, after a few seconds of them inspecting the mirror. Harry was just about to use fire to burn the ropes, but that sentence caused him to stop.

The bindings around him vanished and Harry fell to the ground. He landed on his feet, only to be dragged to the front of the mirror by Quirrel.

"What do you see?" Quirrel demanded.

Harry saw his reflection, pale and determined looking. But then it smiled and winked at him, and pulled a blood red stone out of it's pocket. It put it back in again, and this time Harry felt something in his own pocket, and he knew he'd gotten the Stone. His reflection put a finger to its lips and then settled back to mirror Harry's actions.

"What do you see?" Quirrel demanded, shaking him.

"I see socks." Harry said, smiling as though he'd like nothing more. "Thick woolen socks. I'm wearing them. Oh, and my parents are there. They're wearing them, too-" his bizzare lie was cut off by Quirrel shoving him aside and inspecting the mirror.

"He lies." Voldemort said. But Harry ignored him in favor of burning Ginny's binds with his blue fire. As he'd predicted so many months ago, it didn't hurt Ginny. She fell to the ground, same as him.

Harry pulled the Stone out of his pocket, as Quirrel came to tackle him, and tossed it to Ginny's feet. "Destroy it!" He yelled, before being tackled by Quirrel.

He punched Quirrel in the nose from the ground. It ended up hurting his own hand, but it hurt Quirrel more. He heard a cracking and crunching sound and he knew, without even looking, that Ginny had destroyed the Stone.

"NO!!" Quirrel yelled. He pulled out his wand and aimed it at Ginny.

"Crucio" he cast, just as Harry rushed forward and raised Quirrel's arm. The spell missed Ginny by several feet but Quirrel started screaming. Harry's own hands were burning too.

Smoke was rising out of Quirrel's arm and he staggered back, looking at Harry with fear in his eyes. Harry knew what he had to do, so he steeled himself and raced forward.

He put his hands on Quirrel's face and didn't let go, despite the screams and numerous attempts he made to pry him off. He kept his hands there, till Quirrel turned to nothing more than ash.

Harry stepped back, his ears still ringing from Quirrel's inhuman screams. Suddenly smoke started rising from his ashes, smoke that turned more dense, formed something in the shape of a face and flew straight at him.

"DUCK!" Ginny cried. He immediately complied, and the smoke, or rather Voldemort, went straight over his head.

Ginny joined him on the floor and they both fully laid down, facing each other and breathing heavily.

"Some birthday, huh?" She asked.

He chuckled, but before he could say anything, he heard footsteps on the stairs. He and Ginny got up, only to find that the footsteps belonged to Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Sinastra, and Trent.

They were all gaping at them, then Dumbledore turned to the mirror, and then the destroyed pieces of the Stone, and finally back at them.

"Well. It appears that we have missed quite the party." Dumbledore said.

"I must commend you both on your abilities, both Magical and Non-Magical."

"Thank you, sir." They said, blushing like the schoolchildren they were.

They were in the Headmaster's Office now and they'd just finished telling Dumbledore their story of how they got wind of the Philosopher's Stone, and why they went after it, along with what happened once they did get there.

They'd gone to the Hospital Wing to get checked out, and Mafam Pomfrey had given them a clean bill of health. That they had used Dittany also went a long way in the Matron's eyes.

"Now, I know you must have some questions. So, shoot" Dumbledore said.

"Why was the Stone here in the first place?" Ginny asked.

"Well, as you know.The Philosopher's Stone is a very valuable and dangerous object." Dumbledore said. "There is only one that has ever been made, and that is only because it utilizes a rare metal that crashed to the earth from Space many millions of years ago. It was called Arinac. Anyway, the point bieng that it was dangerous."

"All throughout the last war, Voldemort wanted immortality and power. The Stone would give him both. And Nicholas and Perenelle Flanel, the creators of the Stone, did not wish for this to happen. So they gave the Stone to me to hide, choosing Death for themselves. I thought what better place to hide this than in plain sight. At Gringotts. But this year, I wanted to hide it closer. I knew someone was looking for it. I had no idea it was Voldemort, though. So, I hid it here, under the School. Where no one was supposed to find it" he finished, looking at them over the top of his half-moon spectacles with an amused expression.

Harry and Ginny blushed again, but they knew they'd done the right thing. Even when they learned that Ginny had killed the Troll.

"Why did Quirrel die like that?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore sighed. "Do you remember when I said that your mother unknowingly cast a protection on you when she died?"

Harry's eyes went wide. Surely Dumbledore wasn't suggesting…? "My mum's protection did that?"

Dumbledore nodded. "That is the Power of a Mother's Love, Harry. As long as the Blood Protection lives on in you, Voldemort cannot so much as touch you without incinerating himself."

Harry nodded in understanding, filing all that information away for later.

"Why did our Shield Chas work when we cast them together?" Ginny asked.

Dumbledore's eyes twinkled now. "Ah, yes. That would be due to the unique relationship your wands share. They are Brother Wands, correct?"

Harry and Ginny nodded.

"Brother Wands can be used together to combine and strengthen your spellwork. To do so, you must to show absolute Trust in your partner, and his or her Magical and Non-Magical abilities. Basically you combine the power of your two spells, and the Brother Wands allow you to channel that Power flawlessly. Of course, the two of you having Phoenix Feathers means that your Wands will also cast the combined spells to the best of its ability. So, to answer your question: your Wands assisted you."

Harry and Ginny nodded and sat in silence for a while, each absorbing this new information, before Harry asked. "How did Voldemort survive that night?"

Dumbledore sighed heavily. "I do not know, Harry. But whatever he did, I need to find it, and fast. If he rises again soon… then we are all doomed."

Harry and Ginny found in a compartment by themselves this time for the Train ride back. Neither of them had left the other's side more than they had to during the last 3 weeks at Hogwarts.

The Weasleys were told what happened and they came to check on Ginny. Harry was excited for this summer because he'd been invited to saty at The Burrow full time, and he'd accepted. Mrs. Weasley had been ecstatic.

After that night on Ginny's birthday, they'd been so exhausted that they refused to return to the Gryffindor Common Room, choosing to sleep in the Room of Requirement. With Dumbledore's permission, of course.

Word of what Harry and Ginny had done spread like Wildfire, and everyone demanded answers. It got to a point where Ginny had to punch three guys for harassing them so much. Harry's record was at five. He'd made sure that the people who forgot his reputation as a cold hearted Slytherin got a good reminder again. Honestly, he'd prefer the cold-hearted facade than reveling in his fame. He'd just prefer to be in the shadows, and live a happy life.

As for some good news. Slytherin won the Quidditch Cup. Devon had been phenomenal out there, and he'd been lauded as a hero. It was the first time Harry noticed that not all Slytherins were bastards of the highest degree. Devon was in a compartment with the rest of the team now, and would likely stay there for the rest of the trip.

Norbert had been sad, but he understood that they had to go for two and a half months. He didn't want to go. Norbert would probably be all grown up and breathing fire when they came back and Harry didn't want to miss it.

They'd locked the door to the compartment, only opening it for the Trolley Lady. Their ride back to King's Cross was uneventful, and no one interrupted them, not that Harry and Ginny would let them.

Eventually, the Train slowed and Ginny had to wake Harry, who had fallen asleep on her shoulder some two hours ago. "Come on, let's go," She said.

Harry nodded sleepily and got up, following Ginny outside.

They were both grabbed in a hug by Mrs. Weasley. "Oh, how are you two?" She asked upon releasing them.

"Fine/Good" Harry and Ginny replied respectively.

Mr. Weasley gave Ginny a hug of her own, and shook Harry's hand. "Noce to see you again, Harry. And thanks again for the gifts. They were both wonderful."

"It's no problem, Mr. Weasley." Harry responded

They watched alongside Mr. Weasley as Mrs. Weasley hugged all her children and made sure they were okay. Harry and Ginnt snorted when they saw Fred hand Ron a miniature toilet seat.

They mad their way outside to the parking area, where Mr. Weasley told them all to sit inside a Ford Anglia.

He turned the car on, and they set off to The Burrow. And a new Chapter in Harry's Life.

A/N 2: And that's a wrap on First Year. Hope you enjoyed it. If you did, please leave a review. You don't need to write much. Even a 'good chapter' or 'bad chapter' will do.

I don't know when I'll post Year 2. It will be sometime this week, of course. But I want to get a regular schedule for these updates. Maybe like once a week? I dunno. But I'm not abandoning this.

Also, Norbert's enclosure is from How to Train Your Dragon, except it has more land space. If you haven't seen those movies, search "Hiccup and Toothless: Forbidden Friendship scene" on YouTube.

See ya next time,

Byee!!