Shinsei Unmei: Path of Light and Darkness
Chapter Fourteen: The Mirror of Erised
A/N: This chapter is dedicated to all of my reviewers, which I know, is not a lot of people. Namely, to my friend Jaclyn, who totally kicks ass, Yokokaru-Chan, and Krystal Fox just to name a few. If I left you out, well, it's because I'm rushed in typing the next to last chapter.
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That night found Harry, Yugi, and Ron in the Gryffindor common, shifting uncomfortably with the knowledge of what they were about to be doing.
As soon as the last person had gone up to bed, Harry pulled the invisibility cloak out from under him, swinging it around the trio of boys.
"Where's Marik?" Harry asked as Yugi pushed open the portrait hole, which swung open with a soft swoosh.
"He's with the others in the hospital wing." Yugi replied, looking at his watch.
"They're going to come when Madam Pomfrey goes to sleep." He added, followed by a sigh.
"How are we going to get past Fluffy?" Yugi asked, stepping through the common room entrance and into the corridor beyond.
"Hagrid told us that music makes him fall asleep, so I brought the flute he sent me at Christmas." Harry replied, hurrying as fast as he could with the other two under the cloak with him.
On the third floor, Ron led them through a shortcut his brothers had showed him, allowing them to avoid the main corridor.
They soon reached the entrance to the forbidden corridor, the door already partially open.
"That's not good." Harry muttered as the sound of faint music reached their ears through the crack.
Ron pushed the door open, revealing a magical harp that was playing itself to a slumbering Fluffy.
"Come on." Yugi whispered, running around the dog and pulling open the trap door behind him.
Harry jumped down first, soon after calling that there was a plant to cushion their fall.
When Yugi thumped down on the enormous plant, he recognized it for what it was.
"Don't move! It's Devil's snare!" he cried, trying to stay as still as possible as fear set in.
As Ron and Harry continued to struggle, Yugi sank through the bottom of the plant and landed in a small stone chamber below.
After neither boy seemed to want to stop struggling, Yugi sighed, pulling out his wand.
"Incendio!" he cried, pointing his wand just below Harry and Ron respectively.
The plant withered away below them and they fell into the chamber, their faces blue from suffocation.
"Come on. Snape may already have the stone." Harry grunted, massaging his arm where it had hit the stone floor.
Continuing into the next room, they found hundreds of winged creatures soaring above them, leaving them confused.
"Maybe when we cross the room they attack?" Ron suggested, pulling out his wand.
"I don't think so... This is probably Flitwick's enchantment." Yugi replied, closing his eyes to think.
'Yami, can you go up there and take a look?' he added to his dark half, who nodded in response.
Yami no Yugi appeared behind his light, pushing into the air with a slight hop. Since he didn't need a floor to walk on, he continued into the air, pausing by one of the creatures.
"Interesting... They're not birds! They're keys. We want that one, its feathers are already rumpled from someone catching it." Yami no Yugi called, returning to the Sennen puzzle.
Just then, Harry noticed a lone broom sitting in the corner of the room, hovering off the ground just slightly. Running over to it, he jumped on, pushing into the air with ease.
Harry flew towards the key Yami no Yugi had pointed out, which promptly flew away at his approach.
"Stupefy!" Yugi called, barely missing the key Harry was after, but driving the winged object right into his hands.
As soon as Harry made contact with the key, the others all shot after him, pelting him with their jagged edges.
Harry flew at breakneck speed down to the ground, where he tossed the key to Ron, who ran over to the door, stuffing the key in and unlocking it.
"Come on Harry!" Yugi called, gesturing to the door.
As soon as Harry flew through the door, Ron slammed it shut and several loud thunks were heard from the other side.
"Holy crap..." Yugi muttered, staring in awe at the life size chess pieces in front of him.
"McGonagall." Ron muttered, sizing up the opponents.
"Harry take the place of that bishop and Yugi, you're the castle beside him." Ron began, snapping into action. "I'll be the knight."
Ron led them across the board, losing many a pieces along the way. Soon, Ron was looking thoughtfully at the white queen and king. "Harry, I'll move here, which will get the queen out of your way. As soon as I'm taken, checkmate the king."
"Ron no!" Harry cried as Ron moved into his position, and was immediately slapped off the board by the queen, landing outside the board with a sickening thump.
"Harry." Yugi began, his voice somber, "Make the move Ron pointed out. It's the only way to win the game."
As soon as Harry had checkmated the king, they ran across the board, hurrying into the next room.
A passed out troll awaited them, and they continued on, moving into the next to last chamber.
Inside was a table covered with seven glass bottles, varying in size and shape. Harry picked up a scroll nearby and read aloud:
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 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;
Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.
"Holy crap." Was all Harry could say, completely lost in the words of the riddle.
'It's only logic. The smallest one takes you ahead.' Shadii said, causing Harry to shake his head.
"There's not enough for both of us to get through." Harry added aloud, picking up a small round bottle.
"Yes there is. Just take a tiny sip." Yugi replied, taking the bottle and barely drinking a drop.
Yugi walked quickly through the black flame, leaving Harry with no choice but to drink and walk through...
The next chamber was a surprise to both Harry and Yugi, containing only a single object, a mirror.
"The mirror of Erised!" Harry exclaimed, recognizing the mirror from the night he had gotten the invisibility cloak.
"Hm?" a familiar voice replied from behind the mirror, a figure dressed in purple robes and a turban coming around it.
"Ah Mr. Potter and Mr. Mutou... Such nosey brats." Professor Quirrell spat, pulling out his wand.
"Kill the spare." A voice hissed from professor Quirrell, sending chills down Yugi's spine.
Professor Quirrell raised his wand and smirked, muttering two words. "Avada Kedavra."
A jet of green light flew towards Yugi, who barely dodged it in time. "Flipendo!" Yugi cried as he flew through the air, trying to keep professor Quirrell from keeping his attention on finding the stone for too long.
"Ferula!" Quirrell countered, binding both boys in conjured ropes.
"Yugi! Harry!" Marik called from behind them, although they were unable to turn and see him.
"Such idiotic fools! Avada Kedavra!" Quirrell bellowed, shooting his curse at Ryou, who quickly rolled out of harms way and crouched low, pointing his wand at Harry.
"Severus!" he muttered, cutting through the ropes that bound him and then Yugi.
As Yugi stood, Quirrell shot his curse again, and hit the Sennen puzzle squarely on the Wedjat eye.
In response, the puzzle shattered, scattering the original pieces around Yugi as he fell to the ground in shock, knocked unconscious by the violent separation of his and his dark's souls.
"Yugi!" Harry and Ryou cried in unison, watching their friend fall to the ground unmoving, the scattered pieces of the Sennen puzzle lying around him.
Seto stood there in horror, 'that's an unforgivable curse... Was the philosophers stone really worth it?' he thought, stepping back. Hermione suddenly appeared in the room beside him, the Sennen tauk around her neck shining brightly.
Seto grabbed her and pulled her close, keeping her tight to his chest.
Ryou trembled in rage and Marik smirked, lost in his own thoughts.
'Karimu, I know you can hear me. What do you want?' The Egyptian boy thought, crossing his arms and slipping his right hand into his robes.
'Is it not obvious? To avenge the pharaoh, he's your friend as well.'
'Be my guest.' Marik smirked, the Sennen scale's glow hidden beneath his robes.
'NO! 'A third voice exclaimed, and dark power seeped into the fragile bond between Marik and Karimu.
'I will NOT let you interfere with this!' Akunadin added, forcing all of the power of the Sennen eye in Ryou's robes into Marik.
Marik fell to the ground, apparently untouched, all three souls thrown into spiritual limbo.
Yami no Bakura realized what had happened to Marik a second too late, turning his host's head to watch the Egyptian fall to the ground, the Sennen scale clattering across the floor.
Yami no Bakura took over Ryou's body, sealing the English boy into his own soul room.
Quirrell laughed, shooting another curse at Hermione, "Crucio!"
Seto reacted just in time, turning the two so he would take the blow instead of her. The CEO fell to his knees, biting his lip to keep from yelling. The pain was so intense he couldn't... he couldn't bear it. Seto slipped into unconsciousness, falling to the floor with a thump.
The Sennen rod shone brightly, Yami no Seto taking over for his unconscious descendant.
'Rest well.' Yami no Seto added, standing up in his hikari's body.
'Hermione... This is getting dangerous. Allow me to avenge pharaoh's death.' A voice called through Hermione's head, and her eyes glazed over.
'Where am I?' Hermione called, appearing in a poorly lit room she had never seen before.
Hermione walked over to a nearby door, thrusting it open to find a nondescript hallway behind it.
Across from her was another door, made of stone and covered in vines, looking like it had been opened in a millennium.
Hermione walked over and pushed on that door too, to no avail. When she turned her back, the door opened with a soft click, swinging open and revealing its contents.
A black haired woman dressed in a simple white dress was behind it, her eyes the same blue hue as Hermione's.
'I am Aishisu. You are welcome into my soul room anytime you like, you will find our thoughts are one now.' The priestess greeted, nodding her head.
'Can you help me stop professor Quirrell from getting the philosophers stone?' Hermione replied, putting her hands up to the Sennen tauk that was around her neck.
'I will do my best.' Aishisu replied, taking possession of Hermione's body.
Aishisu opened Hermione's eyes, pushing away from Yami no Seto.
"Seth" she acknowledged, looking at the high priest.
"Aishisu. Nice of you to- down!" Yami no Seto replied, tackling her to the floor as Quirrell fired a curse at the unsuspecting priestess.
"Care to try that again?" Aishisu spat, calling back her years of training to be pharaoh's priest.
"Seth... Shall we avenge pharaoh's death?" she added, walking slowly over to Harry.
Yami no Bakura smirked as Quirrell shot another curse at Yami no Seto, who rolled and turned it into a dive, wrestling the professor's wand from his hands.
"Harry, come. We must figure out how to get the stone before he does." Aishisu whispered, pulling the first year down the stone steps to stand in front of the mirror.
"You know how it works... Hurry!" she added as she hurried over to help Yami no Seto keep Quirrell at bay.
Yami no Seto flew back into a stone column for the second time as Quirrell's spell hit him, throwing him twenty feet through the air.
Raising the Sennen rod above his head, Yami no Seto shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Kisara! Let your Ka do my bidding once more! Blue Eyes White Dragon!"
The Sennen rod shone brilliantly, and a massive form appeared before them, Seto's signature monster, the Blue Eyes White Dragon.
Yami no Bakura faked a cough, obviously unimpressed by Seth's feat.
"This is how it's done high priest!" the thief replied, splaying his arms in front of him and tapping into the Sennen ring.
"Ka! Diabou-" Yami no Bakura began, but was stopped in his tracks by Aishisu, who had picked up a rock and hurled it as hard as she could at the thief, stopping his summons.
Harry looked into the Mirror of Erised; maybe he wouldn't need the stone after all. Maybe Dumbledore would get here before then.
"Better not risk it." He muttered aloud.
Harry realized the image of himself in the mirror was moving! The mirror version of Harry put his hand into his pocket and Harry felt a bulge in his pocket. 'The philosophers stone!' he exclaimed mentally, looking up to Aishisu.
"Shadii! Get your lazy ass out here!" Seth called, dodging another curse from Quirrell.
"I'm busy at the moment high priest!" Harry replied, slapping his hands over his mouth.
"No time, we need to get that stone to pharaoh and Marik... Before it's too late." Aishisu rushed, putting her arm around Harry's shoulder and hurrying over to where Yugi lay.
Half way there, Quirrell figured out what they were doing and bellowed at the top of his lungs, "AVADA KEDAVRA!!"
Aishisu shoved Harry out of the way just in time, moving too slowly herself. The Egyptian priestess took the spell full blast, the Sennen tauk flashing brightly and snapping in half down the Wedjat eye in the center, falling to the ground with a clang.
Hermione's hair lightened back into its usual brown and she fell to the floor, unmoving.
Seth's eyes widened and his eyes deepened, signaling the switch from dark to light.
"You fucking bastard." Seto exclaimed, lunging at Quirrell and tackling him to the floor, knocking his turban askew.
Where the back of Quirrell's head should have been, a ghost-like face with red eyes and slits for nostrils was instead.
"Harry Potter..." it hissed, staring at the-boy-who-lived and sending chills down his spine.
"You... murderer!" Harry cried, a single tear falling from his eyes. The drop fell on the Sennen ankh, which shone brilliantly, pulsing with pure light.
As the room watched on, the shattered pieces of the Sennen items flew into the air, hovering above their hosts.
'Harry.' Shadii said from behind him, reassuring Harry's unconscious course of action.
Harry splayed his arms before him, Shadii doing the same behind him.
The Sennen ankh gave out one last pulsation, sending a wave of light coursing through the room.
The broken items reassembled themselves; the pieces of the Sennen puzzle clicking back into place slowly.
As soon as each item was completed, their owners stood up.
Yugi stood up shakily, Yami no Yugi appearing fuzzily behind him to help him.
Hermione rose to her feet even slower, picking up the Sennen tauk from where it lay.
Now, professor Quirrell was obviously unsure of his abilities, looking around feverishly.
All of the conscious group's dark halves appeared, standing faithfully behind their descendants. Well, except for Ryou and Yami no Bakura, for obvious reasons.
Simultaneously, Ryou, Yami no Bakura, Yugi, Yami no Yugi, Seth, Aishisu, and Shadii splayed their hands, focusing all of their power on Quirrell.
"MIND CRUSH!" they bellowed, and their former professor crumpled to the ground, his mind banished.
Voldemort rose from the dead shell of professor Quirrell's body, turning to Harry.
Before anyone could act, the spectral Voldemort flew towards the boy, determined to kill the one person he couldn't take down with a single curse.
"I don't think so." Seto scoffed, pointing the Sennen rod at the vengeful spirit.
Yanking the rod skyward, he sent Voldemort sailing through the ceiling, which promptly began to crack and fall apart.
As soon as the dark lord was gone, each and every person in the room passed out, falling to their knees on the cold stone floor...
Shinsei Unmei: Path of Light and Darkness © Copyright 2004 ArchSaugim (ID: 418011). All rights reserved. Distribution of any kind is prohibited without the written consent of ArchSaugim
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Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh or Harry Potter, just this story.
A/N: Now that you've read, review.