Nicholas Flamel
After Dumbledore gave Arthur the words he needed to hear that he isn't to go looking for the Mirror of Erised, he kept his Invisibility Cloak folded at the bottom of his trunk for the rest of the Christmas holidays and didn't go back to look at the Mirror.
He found himself wishing that he could forget about what he saw in the Mirror as it now just made him feel sorrow. He even started having nightmares over and over again about his parents being engulfed in a flash of green light while hearing a high voice cackling with laughter.
"There you go, even Dumbledore agrees that the Mirror's no good." David told Arthur after he explained the nightmares.
Chrys, who had come back the day before term started, expressed disappointment that they made no progress in finding out who Nicholas Flamel was and also expressed concern over what Arthur did involving the Mirror and roaming the school at night three times in a row.
At this point, they've nearly given up hope on finding Flamel in a library book, despite the fact that Arthur swears he's read that name before.
Once term started, the three were back to skimming through books for ten minutes during breaks, though Arthur had even less time as Quidditch practice started again.
Wood was working his team harder than before. Not even the endless rain which replaced the snow could dampen their spirits. There were times when the Merlons complained that Wood was being too much of a fanatic, though Arthur actually sided with Wood. This was because if they won their next match, which was against Hufflepuff, they'd overtake Slytherin in the House Championship for the first time in seven years.
One good thing from the training was that Arthur had fewer nightmares when he tired out from training.
During one practice session, which was truly wet and muddy, Wood gave the team the worst news they could possibly get.
"Snape's refereeing this time and he'll be looking for any excuse to knock points off Gryffindor."
This news ended up causing Kevin to fall off his broom, losing motor control for a second.
"Are you kidding me?! He's never refereed before! And he'll ensure we don't overtake Slytherin, even if we play fair!" He ranted, expressing everyone's thoughts, especially Arthur's. He knew Snape would have any excuse to take house points away for even the smallest of things, so a Quidditch game will just be worse.
"It's not my fault. We've just got to make sure we play a clean game, so Snape hasn't got an excuse to pick on us."
Of course that was bad enough for the whole team, but Arthur had another reason for not wanting Snape anywhere near him during the match.
While the rest of the team hanged back to talk to each other as they normally do at the end of practice, Arthur started making his way back to the Gryffindor common room, where he found both David and Chrys playing wizard chess. It seemed that Chrys wasn't all that good at chess, which Arthur and David thought was good for her.
"Hold on, I'm just about to- Whoa, what happened?" David said, cutting himself off upon seeing Arthur's face.
Speaking quietly so that no one could hear him, Arthur told the pair about Snape's sudden assignment to be Quidditch referee.
"Then don't play." Chrys said instantly when he finished explaining.
"Say that you're ill." David suggested.
"Break an arm or leg." Chrys made another suggestion.
"I can't, you guys. There's no reserve Seeker. If I step down, Gryffindor won't be able to play at all." Arthur shot them both down.
Just as he finished that sentence, Neville had toppled into the common room. How he'd manage to climb through the portrait hole could be anyone's guess as his legs were stuck together by what is clearly the Leg Locker Curse, He had to have bunny hopped his whole way up to Gryffindor Tower.
Everyone there was laughing except for the trio. Chrys, being the kind girl she is, performed the counter curse, resulting in Neville's legs to spring apart and get to his feet, trembling slightly.
"Let me guess, Draco?" She asked, leading him to sit with Arthur and David.
"Yes. I met him outside the library. He said he'd been looking for someone to practise that on." He said shakily.
"Then just go to Professor McGonagall and report him!" She urged him.
"I don't want more trouble." He mumbled, shaking his head.
"But Neville, if you don't start standing up to people, you'll be bullied for the rest of your life. Plus, Draco's used to walking over people so he should see that shouldn't be the case." David argued back.
"There's no need to tell me I'm not brave enough to be in Gryffindor, Malfoy's already done that." Neville choked. Arthur felt so bad that he reached into his robes' pocket and pulled out a Chocolate Frog, the very last one from the box Chrys got him for Christmas. He then gave it to Neville, who looked like he was going to cry.
"If you ask me, you're worth twelve of Draco. The Sorting Hat placed you in Gryffindor, after all. And Draco is in stinking Slytherin where he belongs." Arthur tried making him feel better, which seemed to work as Neville's lips twitched into a weak smile as he unwrapped the Frog.
"Thanks, Arthur… I think I'll go to bed… d'you want the card, you collect them, don't you/"
As he walked off, Arthur looked at the Famous Wizard card.
"Huh. It's Dumbledore. He's the first-"
He made a gasp, staring at the back of the card in disbelief and as though he felt stupid. He then looked at David and Chrys.
"I've found him! I told you I've read the name before. It was on this card, listen: 'his work on alchemy with his partner, Nicholas Flamel'!"
This made Chrys jump to her feet with a look of excitement, the kind that she had when she got the marks from her first piece of homework.
"I'll be right back!" She then said before sprinting off to the girls' dormitories. The two boys had little time to exchange looks of confusion before she came back with a large book in her hands.
"I never assumed to look in here! And to think that weeks ago I checked this out for some light reading." She said excitedly, flicking through the pages quickly until she found what she was looking for.
"This is it!" She whispered before turning the book for the two boys to read where she's pointing:
The ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Philosopher's Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing powers. The Stone will transform any metal into pure gold. It also produces the Elixir of Life, which will make the drinker immortal.
There have been many reports of the Philosopher's Stone over the centuries, but the only Stone currently in existence belongs to Mr Nicholas Flamel, the noted alchemist and opera lover. Mr Flamel, who celebrated his six hundred and sixty fifth birthday last year, enjoys a quiet life in Devon with his wife, Perenelle (six hundred and fifty eight).
"This means the dog's guarding Flamel's Philosopher's Stone. He must've asked Dumbledore to keep it safe because they're friends and knew that someone would go after it. That explains why he wanted the Stone to move out of Gringotts." Chrys said.
"Well, can you blame him? Anyone would want a stone that can make gold and keep you from dying. Especially if it's someone like Snape." Arthur agreed.
"And this explains why we couldn't find Flamel in any of the books about recent wizarding developments. He's over six hundred years old." David added.
The next morning in Defence Against the Dark Arts, whilst copying down different ways to treat werewolf bites, both Arthur and David discussed about the Philosopher's Stone, wondering just how it could make gold and produce the Elixir of Life. But then when David said what he'd do if he had his own Stone, that'd he'd get a Quidditch team of his own, Arthur remembered the Quidditch match with Snape being a referee.
"Screw it, I'm just going to play. I'm not letting Slytherin think I'm too scared to face Snape. I'm gonna wipe the smiles off their faces if we win." He declared to David and Chrys.
When the match drew nearer, Arthur felt his nerves acting up. The rest of the Quidditch team weren't calm either. Just the very idea of overtaking Slytherin in the House Championship seemed wonderful as no one had done it for nearly seven years. But they were worried that because of the biassed referee, they may not be allowed such a chance.
Also, Arthur seemed to run into Snape constantly wherever he went. He even questioned if the greasy haired man was following him, trying to catch him on his own. Naturally, Potions lessons were a weekly torture with Snape still being so horrible to him, if not more so. Could it be that he knew they found out about the Philosopher's Stone? Arthur just had that sneaking suspicion that Snape was able to read minds.
When David and Chrys wished him good luck outside of the changing rooms the next afternoon, Arthur felt more nervous than ever before. He was barely able to hear a word of Wood's pep talk as he pulled on his Quidditch uniform and picked up his Nimbus Two Thousand.
Meanwhile, both David and Chrys found a place within the stands next to Neville, who didn't seem to understand why they looked so worried, or why they brought their wands to the match. Arthur was unaware that the two actually secretly practised the Leg Locker Curse, having been inspired by Draco, ready to use it on Snape if he shows any signs of wanting to hurt Harry.
"Remember, it's Locomotor Mortis." Chrys muttered.
"Got it." David muttered back, finally being able to accept help from Chrys.
Back in the changing room, Wood took Arthur aside to give him a few words.
"Don't want to pressure you, Pendergast, but if we ever need an early capture of the Snitch, it's now. Finish the game before Snape can favour Hufflepuff too much."
"Thanks, you've already given me pressure." Arthur sarcastically said.
"Hey, the whole school's out there! Heck, even Dumbledore's here to watch!" Jack Merlon said. This actually made Arthur's heart do flips. If Dumbledore's here, then Snape won't make a move. He looked and saw his long silver beard among the crowd. This must also be why Snape was so angry as the two teams marched onto the pitch. This was something David noticed, too.
"Man, I've never seen Snape look so mad. They're off. OW!" He felt someone poke the back of his head. He turned to see that it was Draco.
"Oh, sorry, Merlon, didn't see you there." He grinned broadly at Crabbe and Goyle
"Wander how long Pendergast's going to stay on his broom this time? Anyone want a bet? What about you, Merlon?"
"He'd easily hang on much longer than you ever would. You'd fall off from even the smallest twitch." David retorted, watching as Snape had just awarded Hufflepuff a penalty due to Kevin Merlon hitting a Bludger at him.
Chrys kept her eyes solely on Arthur, who circled the game like a hawk, trying to find the Snitch.
"You know how I think they choose people for the Gryffindor team?" Draco loudly said a few minutes later when Snape awarded another penalty to Hufflepuff for no reason whatsoever. "It's people they feel sorry for. See, there's Pendergast, who's got no parents, then there's the Merlons, who've not gotten their priorities straight… you should be on the team, Longbottom, you've got no brains."
Neville went bright red, though he turned to face Draco.
"I'm worth twelve of you, Malfoy." He stammered, making the Slytherin trio howl with laughter.
"You tell him, Neville." David said, trying to not take his eyes off the game.
"Longbottom, if brains were gold you'd be poorer than that Weasley the Merlons are friends with, and that's saying something." Draco said, getting on David's nerves to the breaking point.
"One more word and you're-"
"David, Arthur!" Chrys suddenly said.
"Where?" He asked, seeing that Arthur made a spectacular dive, drawing gasps and cheers from the crowd. Chrys stood, crossed fingers over her mouth as Arthur streaked to the ground like a bullet.
"You're in luck, Merlon, Pendergast's obviously spotted some money on the ground!" Draco said, still mocking his family friend.
"THAT'S IT!" He roared, spinning on the spot before punching Draco in the face and wrestling him to the ground. Neville hesitated before clambering over the back of his seat and tried to help out.
"Come on, Arthur!" Chrys cheered on, leaping on the spot as Arthur sped straight towards Snape. She didn't notice Draco and David rolling around under her or the yelps and scuffling that came from the fists of Neville, Crabbe and Goyle.
Up in the air, Snape turned on his broomstick in time to see a scarlet blur shoot past him, missing by a few inches, and in a few seconds, Arthur pulled out of the dive, arm raised in triumph as the Snitch was clasped in his hand.
The stands all erupted because no one ever remembered the Snitch being caught so quickly.
"David! Where are you? Arthur caught the Snitch! We've won! We're in the lead!" Chrys shrieked, jumping up and down, hugging Parvati Patil and Mike.
Arthur jumped off of his broom a foot from the ground. He just couldn't believe it, he was able to end the match barely over five minutes. As all of Gryffindor came spilling onto the pitch, he saw Snape landing nearby, white faced and tight lipped, clearly annoyed that Gryffindor won and overtook his house.
Arthur then felt a hand on his shoulder, making him look to see Dumbledore's smiling face.
"Well done. Nice to see you haven't been brooding about that mirror… been keeping busy… excellent…" He said so quietly that only Arthur could hear him. Snape also spat bitterly on the ground.
Later on, Arthur left the changing room by himself to take his Nimbus Two Thousand to the broomshed. He felt so happy, having done something he himself can be proud of and to prove that he wasn't just some famous name. The evening air also had never smelled so sweet. He walked over the damp grass, reliving the last hour in his head: Gryffindors all lifted him onto their shoulders. Both David and Chrys were in the distance jumping up and down. Arthur noticed that David's nose was bleeding as well.
Once he reached the shed, he leaned against the wooden door, looking up at Hogwarts. It truly looked beautiful right now with its windows glowing red in the setting sun.
Gryffindor was now in the lead, Arthur didn't know if he'd get used to that. But he'd done it, he'd even shown Snape.
Speaking of Snape…. Arthur saw a hooded figure swiftly making their way down the front steps of the castle, not wanting to be seen. They walked as fast as possible towards the Forbidden Forest. The victory against Hufflepuff now faded from Arthur's mind, recognising the figure's prowling walk to be Snape's. Why would he sneak into the Forest while everyone else was at dinner?
Deciding to see for himself, he jumped back on his Nimbus Two Thousand and took off. He was grateful that he was able to glide silently over the castle as he watched Snape enter the Forest on a run. He followed after him.
The trees were so thick that he couldn't see where Snape had gone, flying in circles, lower and lower, brushing the top branches of trees until he finally heard voices. He glided in the direction they came from and landed without making noise in a towering beech tree.
He'd climbed carefully along one of the branches, holding his broomstick tightly, trying to look through the leaves.
Below, in a shadowy clearing, stood Snape. But Quirrell was there, too. Arthur wasn't able to make out his facial expression but he was stuttering worse than ever. He strained to hear what they were saying.
"...d-don't know why you wanted t-t-to meet here of all p-places, Severus…."
"Oh, I thought we'd keep this private. Students aren't supposed to know about the Philosopher's Stone, after all." Snape said, his voice more icy than ever. With this, Arthur leaned forward, making sure to pay attention to everything. Quirrell mumbled something but was interrupted by Snape.
"Have you found out how to get past that beast of Hagrid's yet?"
"B-b-but Severus, I-"
"You don't want me as your enemy, Quirrell." Snape cut him off, taking a step towards him.
"I-I don't know what you-"
"You know perfectly well what I mean."
An owl suddenly hooted loudly, scaring Arthur so much he nearly fell out of the tree. He was able to steady himself to hear Snape say "-your little bit of hocus pocus, I'm waiting."
"B-but I d-d-don't-"
"Very well. We'll have another little chat soon, when you've had time to think things over and decided where your loyalties lie." Snape cut in. He then threw his cloak over his head before striding out of the clearing. It was almost dark, but Arthur looked at Quirrell, who stood quite still and Arthur was barely able to see him mutter as though he was talking to himself. And he seemed more normal and not his usual nervous, stuttering self. Was it all just an act?
"Arthur, where have you been?" Chrys questioned.
"We've won! And I managed to give Draco a black eye. Neville even tried to take on Crabbe and Goyle single handed! He's still out cold though but Madam Pomfrey said he'll be alright. Talk about showing Slytherin! Everyone's waiting for you in the common room. We're having a party. Both Jack and Kevin stole some food from the kitchen." David said.
"Forget all that for now. You need to hear this, follow me." Arthur said, leading them to an empty room, making sure Peeves was nowhere in sight, shut the door behind them and explained what he had seen and heard, especially about how Quirrell is possibly putting on an act.
"Well… I didn't mention this yet but during the first match, I noticed Quirrell was staring hard at you. It was so unlike how he normally looked." David said.
"And when your brothers made snowballs hit his turban, I heard what sounded like growling and hissing as well." Arthur added.
"So… either Qurriell is in league with Snape to get the Philosopher's Stone, or he's after it for himself and knows a way to get past Fluffy but isn't telling Snape. And all that stuff about 'hocus pocus', I think there must be other things guarding the stone including Fluffy. And both of them must've set stuff up but Snape is trying to get the Stone first." Chrys started theorising.
"Great. So now we have two people to worry about." The boys groaned, fearing that the Stone could end up gone by next Tuesday.
Well... looks like the trio now also suspect Quirrell of getting the Philosopher's Stone. These three collectively are quite the smart Gryffindors, aren't they?
And we have a reference to Weasley. Trust me, there's a reason for that and the fact that their a family friend to the Merlons.
And it should be noted that one of Arthur's key flaws is that when he starts thinking down one way, he'll stay down that way unless he learns or sees something that goes against his thinking. Which is why he struggled to remember why he knew Flamel's name until he reread Dumbledore's Chocolate Frog card.