In the years to come, Hiro would never quite remember how he had managed to get through his exams when he half-expected Maleficent to burst through the doors at any moment. Yet the days crept by, and there was no doubt that Aladar was still alive and well behind the locked door.

Finals were upon them, and they perturbed the students in equal measure. They were given special new pens and pencils for the written exams that were charmed to rap them on the nose if they tried to cheat. Professor Flora had them attempt to enchant a mop, bucket and broom to life and use them to clean the classroom; points were given for how quickly and neatly the job was done, but taken away if they couldn't make the broom stop. Professor Yzma made them all nervous, breathing down their necks while they tried to brew both a potion that could turn you into a llama, and the antidote to make you human again. Eda brought a dummy to life and made them fight against it in teams using all the spells she taught them, while Lilith brought them in one by one to see if they could change bread and water into tea and cakes.

Hiro did the best he could, trying to ignore the throbbing pains in his arm. It had been bothering him ever since his trip into the forest. Sprig thought Hiro couldn't sleep, but the truth was that Hiro kept being woken by his old nightmare, except it was worse than ever because there was a black horned figure dripping blood in it.

"I must say, that was much easier than I thought it would be," said Wendy as they joined the crowds flocking out onto the sunny grounds after their Magical Myths and History exam. It was a grueling hour of answering questions about all sorts of royals and their conflicts with good and evil. They wandered over to a tree perched near a small lake and settled in the shade. The Blight twins and Hunter were throwing scraps of food to an enormous crocodile making a mysterious ticking noise.

"Ahhh, just one more test and then no more studying," Peter sighed happily, stretching out on the grass and playing a little on his panpipes. All they had left was Musical Magic in another hour; Professor Owl told them that they'd only have to sing something spontaneous from the heart. "Come on, cheer up, Hiro. We've got a week before we find out how badly we did."

Hiro was rubbing his forearm.

"I wish I knew what this means!" he burst out angrily. "My scars keep burning. It's happened before, but not as often as this."

"Go to the infirmary," Wendy suggested.

"I'm not sick," said Hiro. "I think it's a warning…it means danger's coming…"

Peter refused to get worked up; it was too hot for that.

"Hiro, relax. Wendy's right, everything's safe as long as Merlin's around. Anyway, we don't know for sure if Lilith ever found out how to get past Aladar. She nearly had her leg ripped off the first time she tried, so she's definitely not gonna do it again soon. And Milo will win the Questing World Cup before Ralph lets Merlin down."

Hiro nodded, but he couldn't shake off a lurking feeling that there was something he'd forgotten to do, something important. When he tried to explain this, Wendy said, "Oh, that must be the exams. I woke up last night and was halfway through my Transformation notes before I remembered we'd done that one already."

Hiro was quite sure the unsettled feeling didn't have anything to do with work, though. He watched a green dragonfly flutter toward the school across the bright blue sky, a note clamped tightly in its hands. Ralph sent a message to Merlin that way once. Ralph would never betray Merlin. Ralph would never tell anyone how to get past Aladar, never…but…

Hiro suddenly jumped to his feet.

"Where're you going?" said Peter sleepily.

"I've just thought of something," said Hiro. "We've gotta go see Ralph, now."

"Why?" panted Wendy, hurrying to keep up.

"Don't you think it's weird," said Hiro, scrambling down the grassy slope, "that what Ralph wants more than anything else is a new magical friend, and then a stranger turns up who just happens to have the world's friendliest snowman in their pocket? How many people wander around carrying enchanted snow? Lucky they found Ralph, huh? Why didn't I see it before?"

Ralph was sitting on the stoop of his house; he was carefully chiseling a brick into a new sculpture.

"Ralph!" Hiro yelled.

"Oh, hiya Hiro," he said, smiling. "You got time for a root beer?"

"Of course!" said Peter, but Hiro cut him off.

"Never mind that. Ralph, I've got to ask you something. You know that night you won Olaf? What did the stranger you were playing cards with look like?"

"Don't know," said Ralph casually, "they wouldn't take their cloak off."

He saw the three of them look stunned and raised his eyebrows.

"It's not that strange, you get a lot of funny folk in Tapper's – that's one of the watering holes down in town. I never saw their face, they kept their hood up."

"What did you talk to them about, Ralph? Did you mention the Magic Kingdom at all?"

"It might have come up," said Ralph, frowning as he tried to remember. "Yeah... they asked what I did, and I told him I was groundskeeper here…they asked a bit about the creatures I looked after…so I told them…and I said it can get lonely some nights, though, on account of..."

He paused, and for a moment a curtain of gloom crossed over his face.

"Anyway, the next thing I know, they kept buying me drinks, and I don't remember much after that…except…yeah, they mentioned they had a special friend I could grow on my own and we could play cards for it if I wanted…but they had to be sure I could handle it because they didn't want it to go to any old home…So I told them, after Aladar, anything would be a piece of cake."

"And did they… seem interested in Aladar?" Hiro asked, trying to keep his voice calm.

"Well yeah, it's not every day you come across a live dinosaur, even in a place like this. So I told him, Aladar's easy if you know how to calm him down. Just play him a bit of music and he dozes off faster than Sleeping Beauty in a spinning wheel convention –"

Ralph and the kids suddenly looked horrified for very different reasons.

"I shouldn't have told you that!" he blurted out. "Forget I said it! Hey, wait! Where you going?!"

Hiro, Peter, and Wendy didn't speak to each other at all until they came to a halt in the entrance hall, which seemed very cold and gloomy after the grounds.

"We've got to go to Merlin," said Hiro. "Ralph told that stranger how to get past Aladar, and it was either Lilith or Maleficent under that cloak; it must've been easy, once she got him drunk. I just hope Merlin believes us. Baloo might back us up if Bagheera doesn't stop him. Where's Merlin's office?"

They looked around, as if hoping to see a sign pointing them in the right direction. They had never been told where Merlin lived, nor did they know anyone who had been sent to see him.

"We'll just have to –" Hiro began, but a voice suddenly rang across the hall.

"Well, howdy there! What are you three doing inside on this brazzle dazzle day?"

It was Professor McGucket, carrying a large pile of books and blueprints.

"We want to see Merlin immediately," said Wendy, rather bravely, Peter and Hiro thought.

"See Merlin?" Professor McGucket repeated, as though this was an impossible thing to do. "Why would y'all wanna do that?"

Hiro swallowed – now what?

"It's sort of a secret," he said, but he wished at once he hadn't, because Professor McGucket's eyebrows turned up sympathetically.

"Aw, sorry, Hiro, but Merlin done left with Eda ten minutes ago," he said. "He got a message from the Magic Coalition Council tellin' 'em to come lickety-split and they plum flew off."

"They're gone?" said Harry frantically. "Now?"

"Well, gosh, Merlin's a big wizard, Hiro, he's in real high demand –"

"But this is important, " said Hiro, throwing caution to the winds, "Professor, this is about the Sundrop and Moonstone –"

Whatever Professor McGucket had expected, it wasn't that. Everything he carried tumbled out of his arms, but he didn't pick them up.

"How in the blazes did you know –" he spluttered.

"Professor, I think – I know – that Li…that someone's going to try and steal them. I've got warn Merlin."

Professor McGucket eyed him with a mixture of shock, suspicion and worry.

"Aw, consarnit, I dunno how you kids found out about the stones, but there ain't no way no one can steal 'em, they're too well protected."

"But Professor –"

"Hiro, I know what I'm talkin' about, " he said brusquely. He bent down and gathered up the fallen books. "Merlin'll be back tomorrow. Now, y'all better go back outside and enjoy the sunshine. Everythin' is fine, nothin' to worry about, honest."

But he didn't sound so sure. And they didn't return outside.

"It's tonight," said Hiro, once he was sure Professor McGucket was out of earshot. "Lilith's going through the trapdoor tonight. She's found out everything she needs, and now she's got Merlin and Eda out of the way. She must have sent that note; I bet the Council will get a real shock when they both show up."

"But what can we – "

Wendy gasped. Hiro and Peter wheeled round.

Lilith was standing there.

"Good afternoon, " she said smoothly.

They stared at her.

"You shouldn't be inside on a day like this, " she said, with an odd, twisted smile.

"We were –" Hiro began, without any idea what he was going to say.

"You want to be more careful, Mr. Hamada," said Lilith. "Hanging around like this, people will think you're up to something. And Mus really can't afford to lose any more points, can it?"

Hiro flushed. They turned to go outside, but Hiro called them back.

"And one more thing, Hiro – any more nighttime wanderings in the Forbidden Stacks or any part of the castle and I will personally make sure you are expelled. Good day."

She strode off in the direction of the staffroom. Tinkerbell did a rude imitation of Lilith walking away. Out on the stone steps, Harry turned to the others.

"Here's what we've got to do," he whispered urgently. "One of us has to keep an eye on Lilith. Wendy, Tink, wait outside the staff room and follow her if she leaves it."

"Why me?"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Peter. "You can pretend to be waiting for Professor Flora." He put on a high voice, "'Oh Professor, I'm so worried, I think I got Question 14-B wrong…'"

"Oh, be quiet," said Wendy, but she agreed to go and watch out for Lilith.

"And we'd better stay outside the third-floor corridor," Hiro told Peter. "Come on."

But that part of the plan didn't work. No sooner had they reached the door separating Aladar from the rest of the school than O'Dell turned up and lost his temper.

"Your heads must be harder than that door!" he stormed. "If I see you anywhere around here again, I'll be going right to Professor Lilith!"

Hiro and Peter waited impatiently outside the music classroom for Professor Owl to call them in for their test. Hiro had just said, "At least Wendy's on Lilith's tail," when Wendy appeared with Tinkerbell trailing her.

"Oh, Peter, Hiro, I'm so sorry!" she wailed. "Lilith came out and asked me what I was doing, so I said I was waiting for Professor Flora, and she went to fetch her, and I only just got away! I don't know where Lilith went."

Tinkerbell chimed in.

"Tink says she hid and tried to follow Lilith, but she was discovered and Lilith nearly zapped her," Peter translated.

"Well…that's it then, isn't it?" Harry said.

The other two stared at him. He was pale and his eyes were glittering.

"Hiro Hamada, it's your turn," Professor Owl trilled through the door. Hiro took one last look at his friends before entering. Professor Owl stood waiting alongside some enchanted instruments.

"They will pick up on the music within your heart and the song that flows forth from you. They'll only begin, however, when you are ready. Take the first thing that comes to your mind and rrrrroll with it!"

He tapped a baton on the music stand. Hiro took a deep breath. All he could think about was Lilith. The moment she got ahold of the Sundrop and Moonstone, Maleficent would return. The thought of expulsion didn't scare him anymore because if she came back, there'd be no Magic Kingdom to get expelled from. By his reckoning, she'd blow it up or turn it into a school for evil; no House Cup would stop her from hurting anyone he cared about, just like the last time she was in power.

He hardly noticed the band strike up into a quick-tempo tune.

Hiro knew what he had to do. He had the kabuto back, he had Baymax, and he had the will. It might mean he would die sooner than later, but was no way he would ever turn to the dark side, and no way anyone would stop him from going down that trapdoor tonight.

He began to sing:

"My mind is racing but my heart it beats faster

I'm in control, commander and master

Lady Fate's creating disaster

But she ain't the boss of me, nuh-uh

Head-on collision with a catastrophic setback

Makes you either want to get lost or get back

I choose the latter; let's not forget that

We hold the cards this time

So there's no need to bitch and whine

There's no way I'm gonna take another option,

No way I'm gonna settle with a loss,

No way I'm gonna sit around and watch

There's no, no way

There's no way you're gonna find me in the background

No damn way you're gonna see me satisfied

No way she's ever gonna make me back down

No, no way

Field advantage, the upper hand is mine

So the game is on

The clock ticks but I've got my tricks

And plus I can fix what's wrong

Let's wake up and go, guys,

Take out the bad guys,

Break out your mad eyes, yeah-ah!

We'll take it all together

We're stronger and we're better

And if there's a problem, ha! Whatever!

There's no way I'm gonna leave it up to chance

There's no damn way I'm gonna go without a fight

No way you're gonna see me on my ass

There's no, no way

There's no way I'm gonna settle with sorrow

Leave right now if you think this ain't real

Today, I'm not waiting for tomorrow

No, no way, there's no way

No, no way, there's no way

No, no way, there's no way

There's! No! Waaaaaaaaaaaay!"

The music came to an end as Hiro finished the final note breathlessly. He turned to Professor Owl. The bird stared at him.

"Thank you, Mr. Hamada, that was…interesting. If you could please send the next student in on your way out..."

Hiro exited the classroom, his whole body still shaking. Peter and Wendy were waiting by the door.

"Did you hear that?" he asked, feeling even more self-conscious than before.

"Yeah. We heard," said Peter.

Hiro exhaled.

"I'm going to try and get to the Stone first. Tonight. I've got the kabuto and, uh –"

"Will it cover all three of us?" Wendy asked.

"All…all three of us?"

"Oh, come on, you didn't think we'd let you go alone, did you?" said Peter.

"Of course we wouldn't," said Wendy briskly. "We'd never abandon you, Hiro. We'll all need to work together if we're going to stop Maleficent. I'd better go and took through my books, there might be something useful in my stories that can help us..."

"But if we get caught, then you'll be expelled too."

"Not if I can help it," Wendy said, determined. "Professor Flora told me in secret that I got one-hundred and twelve percent on her exam. I don't think they'd throw me out after that."

"And if I get kicked out, I'll never have to do any homework again. Everyone wins!" said Peter with a cocky grin.

After dinner the three of them sat nervously apart in the common room. Nobody bothered them; they had nothing to say to Hiro anymore, after all. This was the first night he hadn't been upset by it. Wendy was skimming through all her books, hoping to come across one of the enchantments they were about to try to break. Hiro and Peter didn't talk much. Both of them were thinking about what they were about to do. Slowly, the room emptied as people drifted off to bed.

After talking it over with Peter and Wendy, Hiro decided it would be best to bring Baymax along with them, considering all the dangerous spells they'd have to work through. Up in the dormitory, Hiro divided the holding space of his backpack in two with a thick book. He remembered Lord Demanitus' theory about the Sundrop and Moonstone reuniting, and hated to think of what might happen if two such powerful artifacts accidentally touched each other while being jostled about on his back. His eyes then fell on the ocarina Ralph gave him for Christmas. He draped it over his neck with Aladar in mind – he didn't feel like singing anymore today.

Once he and Baymax got into their flight armor, they hurried down to the common room with the kabuto.

"We'd better make sure it affects all four of us, if O'Dell spots one of us walking around –"

"What are you doing?" said a voice from the corner of the room. Wart appeared from behind an armchair.

"Nothing, Wart, nothing," said Hiro, hurriedly putting the kabuto behind his back.

Wart stared at their guilty faces. "You're going out again," he said.

"No, no, no," said Wendy. "We're not. Why don't you go to bed, Wart?"

Hiro looked at the grandfather clock by the door. They couldn't afford to waste any more time, Lilith might even now be playing Aladar to sleep.

"You can't go out," said Wart, "you'll be caught again. Mus will be in even more trouble."

"You don't understand," said Hiro, "this is important."

But Wart was clearly steeling himself to do something desperate.

"I won't let you do it," he said, hurrying to stand in front of the portrait hole. "I'll…I'll fight you! I'll tell one of the professors!"

"Wart," Peter exploded, "get away from that hole and don't be an idiot –"

"Don't call me an idiot!" said Wart, his eyes filling with tears. "You were the one who told me to stand up to people!"

"Yeah, but not us," said Peter in exasperation. "Wart, you don't know what you're doing –"

He took a step forward and Wart took out his wand. In a flash, he transformed into a bird and fluttered around the room.

"Wake up! Wake up! Hiro's going out again!" he shouted.

"Stop him, Tink!" said Peter.

Tink chased after Wart until managed to grab him by his tail feathers. The two struggled against each other in the air.

"Wart, I'm truly sorry about this," Wendy said as she pointed her wand at him. "Filigree Apogee Pedigree Perigee!"

There was a puff of smoke and sparkles, and when it cleared there was an orange rabbit flailing about in midair. Wart the rabbit fell on the floor. Hiro dove on him before he could get away.

"Quick, the pot!" he cried, looking over at the fireplace. There was an empty cauldron hanging over the dying embers.

"You want to cook him?!" Peter cried.

"No! Grab it and trap him inside!"

Peter quickly lifted the cauldron off its hook and brought it down bottom-side up over Wart. Hiro wriggled his arms out before the rabbit could escape. Wendy took some books lying on a nearby table and placed them on top. It kept the cauldron in place as Wart banged against the sides.

"Sorry, Wart," said Hiro, "no time to explain."

"We ought to hurry, that spell isn't permanent," said Wendy.

"What was that?" Peter asked in awe.

"Wart wasn't the only one practicing transformation magic on the side," Wendy said, a hint of a smile.

"You know, you're a little scary sometimes," replied Peter. "Scary, but brilliant."

Wendy blushed while Tinkerbell frowned and turned a fiery shade of red.

"Tink, you stay here and keep an eye on Wart," Peter told the fairy. "Make sure he doesn't tell anyone where we are, and if he does, come and join us."

Tinkerbell stamped her foot and pouted, but did as she was told. The three of them and Baymax headed for the portrait hole.

"Sorry, Wart," Wendy called one last time over his shoulder.

"You'll understand later," said Peter as he pushed open the painting.

Everyone touched Hiro's shoulders, and he donned the kabuto. In an instant, he vanished, and Peter, Wendy, and Baymax followed suit.

But leaving Wart fighting to escape his iron prison didn't feel like a very good omen. In their nervous state, every statue looked like O'Dell, every distant breath of wind sounded like Baron Ravenswood or the Cheshire Cat swooping down on them.

At the foot of the first set of stairs, they spotted Bony lying there with his head on his paws.

"Did anyone think to bring a snack?" whispered Peter.

None of them did. Bony's head shot up and he looked around. One sniff and he knew there were intruders about. Baymax continued to walk towards the dog.

"Baymax, no, stop!" Hiro hissed. But Baymax had already reached him.

"Good dog. There, there, boy," he said mechanically but sweetly. He gently patted and stroked Bony, and scratched him behind his floppy ears. Bony leaned into Baymax's hands, too happy to bark and scare away his new invisible friend. He yawned deeply, lay his head down, and with a few more affectionate pets from Baymax, fell fast asleep.

Hiro gave his robot two thumbs up, and they carefully stepped over Bony.

They didn't meet anyone else until they reached the staircase up to the third floor. The Cheshire Cat was bobbing halfway up, loosening the carpet so people would trip.

"I wonder who's there?" he said suddenly as they climbed towards him. He narrowed his yellow lamplike eyes. "I may not see everything, but I know someone's about who shouldn't be. Are you a ghoul, or a ghost, or a student who's lost?"

He floated in the air and lifted his head off his body. He squinted as he looked around for them.

"Perhaps I ought to call Mr. O'Dell. It'll be loads of fun!"

"Shhh, I got this," Peter whispered to Hiro and Wendy. He darted unseen around the Cheshire Cat and flew up onto the arch over the doorway. He sat there and spoke into his hat.

"Cheshire Cat," he said, his voice sounding eerily similar to that of a certain ghost, "Baron Ravenswood has his own reasons for being invisible."

For once, the Cheshire Cat was caught off guard. He froze in midair, his yellow eyes darting around the room. "Why, Baron, I had no idea it was you!"

"I have business here tonight, Cheshire Cat. Stay away from this floor and make sure no one else comes here either…UNDERSTAND?!"

The Cheshire Cat gasped in terror and dove down through the stairs away from them. Wendy covered her mouth to stifle her giggles.

"All right, Peter!" whispered Hiro.

"And one more thing," Peter continued in his ghostly voice, "Tell the kitchen to send up every dessert they have to Mus Tower –"

"Okay, now you're pushing it," Hiro said. He yanked Peter's foot and dragged him back down to their level.

Moments later, they were outside the third-floor corridor – and the door was open. The sounds of a gentle harp floated out.

"Oh boy, looks like Lilith's already got past Aladar," Hiro said quietly.

Seeing the door ajar somehow seemed to impress upon all three of them what was facing them. Hiro turned to the other two.

"If you want to go back, I won't blame you," he said. "You can take the kabuto, I won't need it now."

"Are you kidding?" said Peter.

"We're coming," said Wendy. Hiro pushed the door open.

A golden harp with the figurehead of a beautiful woman stood in the corner playing itself. Aladar was fast asleep with one claw draped over the trapdoor. The music was making Hiro, Wendy and Peter feel sleepy as well.

They began to shove Aladar's claw aside.

"Come on, push," Hiro said through gritted teeth.

The harp suddenly stopped playing.

"Who is it? Who's there?" she asked fearfully.

One of Aladar's eyes popped open. His growl rumbled through their bones as he got to his feet.

"He must wake up the moment the music stops," said Hiro. "Well, here goes…"

He put Ralph's ocarina to his lips and blew. He tried to remember one of the lullabies he learned in music class. What came out was a close approximation of a tune. Aladar yawned but didn't go back to sleep.

"Stay awake, don't rest your head,

Don't lie down upon your bed…"

The harp joined in with Hiro's melody, making it stronger and sweeter. Slowly, Aladar's growls ceased. He tottered on his claws and fell to his knees, then slumped to the ground, fast asleep.

"I can take it from here, Hiro," Peter said, whipping out his panpipes. He continued playing as Hiro took off the kabuto and set it aside.

"Thanks," Hiro addressed him and the harp. "I think we'll be able to pull the door open now."

"Are you here to face the challenges as well?" the harp asked.

"We're here to stop someone from getting through them," said Wendy.

The harp nodded gravely.

"A dark-haired woman transported me here from the music room and forced me to help her so that beast wouldn't slaughter her."

Hiro bent and pulled the ring of the trapdoor, which swung up and open. He could see nothing but pure blackness, and no way of climbing down.

"Baymax, can you scan for anything down there?"

Baymax gazed down the trapdoor.

"Scanning complete. There is a large body of water with several hundred life forms beneath the surface."

Hiro gulped.

"I'll go down first with Baymax. Peter, if everything seems okay, I'll call you to come down with Wendy."

Peter, who was still playing, nodded. Hiro climbed aboard Baymax.

"If anything happens to me, don't follow. Get yourselves out and send a message straight to Merlin, understand?"

Wendy and Peter nodded.

"Right. See you in a minute…I hope…Geronimo!"

And Baymax fell through. Cold damp air rushed past them as they fell down, down, down and – FWOOSH.

Three feet from the water Baymax activated his thrusters and hovered steadily over the surface. Hiro looked around, his eyes adjusting to the gloom. He couldn't see anything lurking underneath them.

"It's okay!" he called up to the light. "There's nothing down here! I think I can see the door to the next room!"

Back above, Wendy sat at the edge of the trap door.

"I suppose I'll have to jump," she said nervously.

Peter dropped the panpipes and held her back.

"Wendy, don't! I can carry you."

Aladar growled to life once again – and collapsed just as quickly as the harp began to play.

"I'll keep him asleep. Go now, hurry, stop her before it's too late!"

Peter tenderly picked up Wendy and they flew down the trapdoor to where Hiro and Baymax were waiting.

"We must be miles under the school," Peter said.

"Guess whoever made this trap thought we'd be dumb enough to go swimming in it," Hiro said cockily.

"Hiro!" shrieked Wendy as she pointed to his leg. "Look out!"

Something long and slimy emerged from the water as Hiro was talking and wrapped itself around his ankle. With a jerk he was ripped off of Baymax's back and into the lake. He could make out a thousand yellow eyes all gazing at him through the inky darkness of the water. Hiro activated the flashlight built into his helmet – and immediately wished he didn't.

Limbless mottled gray-green creatures with gaping mouths all moaning in a tormented chorus surrounded him. Hiro screamed, letting out his only breath of air.

There was a splash next to him, and he could see two legs kicking beneath a billowing blue skirt. A pair of hands scooped Hiro up from under his arms and pulled him back above the surface. It was Peter, wide-eyed and partially dripping wet. Wendy floundered about in the water – Peter had dropped her in order to save Hiro.

"There's…things…pulled me under…" Hiro gasped for breath.

Wendy screamed, and in an instant she vanished below. Hiro and Peter cried out her name.

"Peter, get me on Baymax!"

Peter dropped Hiro off on Baymax's back, and Hiro climbed to the highest set of notches set in.

"Baymax, do you see Wendy down there?"

"Scanning complete. A creature is wrapped around Wendy's leg, and her oxygen is running low."

"Can you reach down there and save her?"

Baymax leaned forward, his thrusters slowing down so he hovered slightly more horizontally, and stuck his arms into the water. Seconds later, he pulled her back up. Wendy choked and sputtered, then something tugged her closer back in again.

"Pull harder!" Hiro cried.

Peter took hold of Wendy's arms and pulled along with Baymax. They finally ripped Wendy free, but no sooner had they done that then two more creatures shot out of the lake and wrapped themselves around Peter's ankles.

"I know what these are," said Wendy as Baymax gathered her into his arms. "They're polyps, plant creatures that were once people who signed dark magical contracts they couldn't fulfill, so they're turned into these as punishment! They usually root themselves outside of evil enchanters' lairs to warn others against making the same mistake they did."

"Of course, nobody can sell their souls if they're drowned first!" yelled Peter sarcastically. He struggled against the creatures, but they put up a strong fight.

Wendy tried to think.

"Professor Plantar said something about polyps, what was it…poor unfortunate souls, in pain, in need..."

More groaning polyps whipped themselves around Baymax's arms and legs, dragging him closer to the water's surface. Hiro tried to reach for his wand.

"Maybe if we just give them a quick blast –"

"No!" Wendy stopped him. We can't hurt them; they hardly know what they're doing! We just need to cross the water –"

She gasped.

"That's it!"

Wendy reached down her dress, pulled out Elsa's whistle, and blew into it. A sharp high note blasted like an icy wind through the room.

The more Baymax and Peter resisted the polyps, the harder the polyps fought back. A third tangled itself around Peter's wrist as the water passed his thighs –

Soon Baymax's armor was inches away from the surface –

Hiro steeled himself for that horrible, groaning sight yet again –

There was a whinny and a splash –

Elsa and the Nokk burst out of the water. The polyps shrank back as she bolted towards them. Baymax shook the creatures off and surged back into the air with Hiro and Wendy. Elsa grabbed Peter as she rode by and plunked him behind her on the Nokk's back. The water horse galloped across the surface; patches of ice formed in its wake and blocked the polyps, until it reached the far end of the chamber. A landing with a door well out of the creatures' reach was waiting.

Wendy was ecstatic as Baymax brought her to her feet.

"Oh, Your Hi – Elsa, I knew you'd come!" she said joyfully.

"Good thing we didn't panic," said Peter as he dismounted.

"Good thing your friend knew who to call when you were in trouble," Elsa replied with just a hint of a smirk.

Wendy looked at the whistle in her hands. It shattered back into a thousand tiny ice crystals and scattered into nothing.

"One time only," Elsa repeated sadly. "Will you be all right from here?"

"Yeah, I think we got it – actually, could you go to the Magic Council and tell Merlin he needs to come back to the school right now?" Hiro asked her.

"You've got it!"

Elsa and the Nokk vanished back into the water.

"Let's hope she makes it in time," Hiro murmured.

They opened the door to a round metal passageway, the only way forward. Baymax retracted his wings, and they crawled in one at a time. All they could hear apart from their gentle bumps was the quiet drip of water trickling down the walls. The passageway sloped downward, and Hiro was reminded of the bank's underground tunnels.

"Can you hear something?" Peter whispered.

Hiro listened. A soft clinking and scraping of metal seemed to be coming from up ahead.

"Do you think it's Lilith?"

"I don't know…sounds mechanical."

They reached the end of the passageway and entered a dimly lit chamber. Rusty metal squares covered everything from the ceiling to the floor; some were blank, some had strange symbols etched into them. There was no other way out but the way they came.

"Look around, but don't touch anything," Hiro warned them. He tiptoed around any squares that had symbols; he'd seen enough movies to know they spelled a booby trap. Peter and Wendy examined the walls and Baymax –

"Oh no."

Hiro whipped around. Baymax had stepped on a tile with a marking resembling the play button on a remote.

The door slammed shut and sealed itself. All the marked tiles glowed an ominous red. The room shook as a klaxon horn blared, and random squares began to poke out from the walls, floor and ceiling towards them.

Peter pushed back against one.

"Come on, move…"

Wendy, Hiro and Baymax tried the same, but nothing could stop the blocks' encroachment. If they didn't hurry, they would be crushed.

"Hiro, what do we do?" Wendy begged.

Hiro's mind raced around the room. If only he had a sign – but he did, hundreds right before him.

"The symbols! Maybe if we press the right ones, the room will stop! Baymax! Blacklight on!"

Baymax's built-in searchlight switched on and glowed purple. In addition to their sets of footprints, a fifth one appeared on the floor along with handprints on four different and increasingly separate tiles higher up on the walls.

Wendy climbed two blocks rising from the floor and hit the first one. It turned a bright blue. Hiro, Peter and Baymax took to the air. Peter slammed his hand on the second, and Baymax touched the third. Hiro climbed onto Baymax's shoulders, weaved his way through the interlocking blocks, took a flying leap and caught hold of the block with the final symbol. He punched it with one hand.

There was a ding, and a door opened up in the western wall, though the blocks continued to grind towards each other.

"Run for it!" shouted Hiro as he lost his grip. Baymax cut his fall thankfully short, and carried him through the door with Wendy and Peter right behind. The blocks clanged together, sealing their exit. The three friends laughed nervously as they composed themselves.

"That was nuts! You ruled back there," Peter told Hiro as he playfully punched him in the shoulder.

"Ah, thanks," said Hiro modestly.

They surveyed the room they were in now. It was very dark and damp and foggy. The air smelled of salt water. They could hear the slow creak of timber and lapping of water. A crack of lightning illuminated the room and an eerie voice echoed with the thunder:

"Dead men tell no tales…no tales…no tales…"

They were standing on the edge of a vast body of water that had to be as big as seven Olympic-sized swimming pools. In the dead center was a monstrous whirlpool with an enormous wall of mist cutting across, keeping the other end of the pool from view. Moored on the shore were two dinghies, a Chinese junk, a submarine, a Viking boat, and three impressive sailing ships, each one bigger than the last.

"It's a giant Maelstrom set!" Peter gasped in awe.

Hiro blinked. "Does this mean…"

"Isn't it obvious?" said Peter gleefully. "We have to play the game to get across. Hiro, you take the Dauntless. Baymax, get on the Nautilius. Wendy, you commandeer the Empress. As for me, I'll be captain of the Interceptor."

The Interceptor was the largest of the ships. At Peter's words, a gangplank emerged from each of the four vessels, allowing them to board.

"You seem pretty confident about this," Hiro shouted to Peter from his ship.

"I'm the best Maelstrom player in the Magic Kingdom! Just leave it to me," he replied confidently.

"Peter…you don't suppose this will be like a real game of Maelstrom, will you?" Wendy asked.

Peter commanded the smallest of the fleet, a tiny dinghy with only one sail, to move several spaces ahead. There was tension in the air as they waited for their opponent's move. Hiro kept a tight grip on the steering wheel. What if they lost?

A cannonball breached the wall of fog and sunk the dingy in one fiery blast. Peter laughed, a little less brashly than before.

"Yes, Wendy. I think this is gonna be exactly like Maelstrom."

Every time they lost a ship, their opponent showed no mercy. Soon there was nothing but flotsam where the dinghies, the Viking boat, and the abandoned sailing ship stood. Peter still kept Hiro, Baymax and Wendy out of harms' way, even if it was just in time, and helped them figure out where they should go and when they should fire. Peter himself sailed all over the board, only narrowly avoiding the whirlpool, taking even out even more ships than they lost.

"There's just one left," he called out suddenly. "It's The Wicked Wench, the head of their fleet…I can't shoot at it; I'll just be wasting my shot if I don't know where it is…but if I move, it'll have to choose between running and hiding again or taking me out and revealing where it is."

Hiro realized where he was going with this.

"I'm down to my last mast, so it'll go for me, and that'll leave it open for you to sink it, Hiro!"

"But if it does, then you'll be hit!" Hiro shouted.

"Peter, you can't sacrifice yourself!" cried Wendy. "There must be some other way!"

"You wanna stop Lilith from getting the stones or not?" snapped Peter. "You know all the stories you read us, Wendy? Sometimes the good guys had to give themselves up, even if it meant they were gonna get hurt, so the real heroes could go on and save the day. That's what I gotta do, 'cause you're the one who's gotta go on and beat Lilith, Hiro, I know it. Not me, YOU."

They had no choice. Peter had made up his mind.

"Right…bring me that horizon."

Peter whirled the ship's wheel and moved into place as far from his friends as possible.

A long, horrible silence fell over the water.

And then, the boom of a cannon, and a whistle that grew louder as something hurtled towards the Interceptor.

Peter turned to Hiro and Wendy with a smile. He crowed triumphantly as the cannonball struck, and the Interceptor exploded into fiery timber.

"PETER!" Wendy screamed. She ran to the side of her boat and prepared to jump in the water.

"No! Don't move!" Hiro yelled. "We're still playing! Once we win, we'll find him."

Wendy hesitated, then nodded and swallowed her tears. Hiro gripped the handles of his wheel and squinted into the fog. There, through the billowing mists, he could make out the silhouette of the final ship.

"Fire port broadside!" he called.

The Dauntless' cannons rang out as the shells pierced through the fog. Their aim was true; there was a blast of thunder and fire greater than the one before it, so much so that Hiro could see it almost clear as day through the cloudy haze. The whirlpool subsided and the fog vanished, revealing the flaming wreck that was formerly The Wicked Wench sinking below the surface to join its brethren.

Hiro wasted no time.

"Baymax! Find Peter now!"

Baymax zoomed overhead and scanned the detritus bobbing where the Interceptor once stood. Suddenly he dove in. Seconds later, he burst through the surface carrying Peter in his arms. Baymax softly landed on the deck of the Dauntless and carefully laid the boy down. Peter coughed up some water, but his eyes rolled into the back of his head and he fell limp once more.

"His lungs are clear, but he has several contusions, bruised ribs and signs of a concussion. It would not be safe to move him or leave him without professional medical assistance for very long," Baymax noted.

"Well then, I guess we'll have to return quick with the Sundrop," said Hiro. He returned to the wheel, but before he could touch it, it spun about on its own. The sails of the Dauntless and Empress billowed and carried them across the vast pool to the other side. The gangplanks reemerged and they disembarked. With one last desperate look back at Peter, Hiro and Wendy charged through the door and into the next passageway.

"What if he's –"

"He'll be all right," said Hiro, trying to convince himself. "What do you think's next?"

"We had Professor Plantar's and Lilith's, that was the polyps; McGucket and Timothy made the symbol room; Eda and Flora enchanted the pirate ships; that leaves Yzma."

They reached the next door. Hiro pushed it open, both of them hardly daring to look at what came next – but there was nothing frightening in here, just a table with twelve bottles of all different shapes and sizes, each with a tag saying "Drink Me" strung around the neck, standing in the middle of the room.

They stepped over the threshold, and the door suddenly closed behind them. In an instant, it grew to gigantic proportions; the doorknob must have been fifty feet out of their reach. At the same time, the door ahead of them shrank until it was little over three inches high.

"Look!" Wendy seized a roll of paper lying next to the bottles. Hiro looked over her shoulder to read it:

Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Three of us will help you, whichever you will find.

Two among us bottles will let you move ahead,

Another one will send the drinker back instead.

Six among our number are only bottles of rum,

Three are llama potions, which will make you feel quite dumb.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

To aid you in your choice, we give you these clues four:

First, however essence of llama tries to hide,

You will always some sitting on rum's left side.

Second, different are those that stand on either end,

But if you would move onward, then neither is your friend.

Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,

Neither dwarf nor giant holds rum on their insides.

Fourth, the second to the left and the second to the right

Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.

Wendy let out a sigh and Hiro, amazed, saw that she was smiling, the very last thing he felt like doing.

"Of course!" said Wendy. "This isn't a test of magic or character – it's logic! A riddle! Some of the greatest heroes of all time have hardly any logic in them. How many times have they been given good advice, yet they very seldom follow it? I know I've read about a riddle like this somewhere before…"

She put on a look of serious contemplation.

"Twelve bottles: three are llama potions, six are rum, one will send us back through the big door, and two will send us forward through the little one – but which of us should go ahead and who should go back?"

"Peter was right," said Hiro. "I have to be the one who goes on."

"Then I should go with you."

"Wendy, no, I don't want anything to happen to you –"

"But someone needs to help you! And besides, Baymax can't drink anything."

"If I may, Wendy," said Baymax, "there is a strong likelihood that pouring the potion onto me will have the same effect on myself as it would Hiro if he consumes it."

"But I…"

"Baymax was made to look after me, Wendy. I'll be okay. The question is, which are the bottles we need?" Hiro asked.

"Give me a minute," said Wendy.

She read the paper several times. Then she walked up and down the line of bottles, muttering to herself and pointing at them. At last, she clapped her hands.

"I've got it!" she said. "The smallest bottles will get you through the little door to the Sundrop and Moonstone."

Hiro looked at one of the tiny bottles, then back at Wendy.

"Which one will get you back through the giant door?"

She pointed to a rounded bottle right at the end of the line.

"When you get through, see if you can rouse Peter and fly yourselves back up the trapdoor. If Merlin and Eda aren't back yet, send a message to them. I might be able to hold Lilith off for a bit…"

"But Hiro…what if Maleficent is with her?"

Hiro choked out a laugh.

"I was lucky once, wasn't I?" He brushed his arm. "I might get lucky again."

Wendy's lip trembled, and she threw her arms around Hiro.

"You're brilliant, Hiro, you know that."

"Aw come on," said Hiro, embarrassed, as she let go of him. "Even I don't know as much as you do with all the stories you know."

"Me?" said Wendy. "If I've learned anything from them, it's that friendship and bravery are the most important things of all, more than knowing everything and being the perfect hero…and…oh, Hiro, please be careful!"

Hiro nodded.

"You drink first," he said. "You're sure you know which is which?"

"Of course," said Wendy. She took a long drink from the bottle at the end. In an instant she shot up until her head nearly bumped the ceiling.

"Hurry! Go before it wears off!" Hiro shouted to her.

"Good luck, Hiro, take care –"

"GO!"

Wendy turned the knob and hurried through the giant door.

Hiro took a deep breath and uncorked one of the tiny bottles. Baymax leaned his head down to Hiro's level, and he poured the bottle's contents on him. No sooner had the first drop hit his head than Baymax shrank down to the size of the door.

Hiro exhaled.

"Here I come, Lilith," he said, and he chugged down the bottle in a few gulps. It tasted like cherry tart, then custard, pineapple, roast turkey –

And the next thing he knew, he was smaller than the bottle itself, and just the right size to get through the door. Hiro let the bottle roll away and joined Baymax's side. The robot opened the door. Inside was a long, dark tunnel. Hiro lit up his wand, and they quietly made their way through.

At the next corner, Hiro stopped.

"Wait here," he whispered to Baymax.

Hiro braced himself, then made the turn and found himself in the archway of a spacious room. There was already someone there –

But it wasn't Lilith.

It wasn't even Maleficent.

Hiro pointed and shouted –

"You!"

Cliffhanger!

Sorry for disappointing you if you were expecting Hiro to break into "Immortals". Looking at the lyrics it struck me more as a song for making plans and standing against what people peg you as (maybe it's the montage), more fitting for something like Order Of The Phoenix than Sorcerer's Stone. Plus, if you can't already tell, I love AVPM/AVPS and "No Way" is one of my favorites from there. I thought having Hiro figure out his thoughts through song (especially a song that's somewhat tied to HP) instead of doing a big speech would work with this story.

I'm actually not going to spoil the final chapter title because it gives away who the big bad of this story really is…and I want to know who you think it is first, mwahaha…But because I love everyone who took the time to read and review, the last chapter will be going up on December 24th as an early Christmas present to you all. See you then!