I do not own Harry Potter nor World of Darkness
Great Hall, Hogwarts, 27th May 1992 (Wednesday)
Harry stared at the letter, re-reading it once again while having trouble believing it.
As Theo tapped on his shoulder, Harry handed him and the girls his letter.
Dear Harry,
Please, stop following Professor Quirrel.
I am fully aware of what a Philosopher's Stone is and I am very
well well versed with both its creation process as well
as its uses. I can guarantee you, it is NOT worth it.
Believe me, I would know.
Focus on your classes and, if you need an extracurricular activity to
distract your mind, I suggest finding a copy of the old Demonology textbook
Do not follow Professor Quirrel. He is irrelevant and so is the stone.
This is a direct order from your domitor and legal guardian.
Sir Harold Zettler
"What the hell does he mean by 'I am very well well versed with both its creation process as well as its uses'!?" almost shouted Theo. The Philosopher's Stone was Nicholas Flamel's magnus opus, the accomplishment of a lifetime, something that, according to his parents and every single book they had read on that topic, was impossible to recreate.
"Perhaps he has some information about the stone we don't have?" pointed out Sally.
"No shit he does." muttered Theo under his breath, earning an icy glare from the Slytherin girl.
"Yeah, that's the point! How does he know more about the stone that our parents do? My parents told me to steal the stone from Quirrel. They gave me a list on how to do it!"
Harry raised his hands in surrender "I don't know what to tell you, I'm just as surprised as you."
"Bloody hell, Harry. After this there is no way my parents won't demand you let them meet with sir Harold." pointed out Theo.
"Can my parents be there? I don't think they will take a 'no' after I tell them this." added Daphne.
Sally chuckled, knowing full well that she would be in the same situation.
Harry shrugged. "I can ask, but I won't promise you anything."
There was something off about Sir Harold's letter, in the simple dismissiveness he had regarded the stone. He wasn't particularly good at reading the emotions of his domitor, especially via letter, but he could swear he almost sounded… disappointed? Was the Philosopher Stone really so unremarkable to merit such a mild, dismissive reaction?
Nott Manor, Nottingham county, 28th May 1992 (Thursday)
"It's irrelevant! It's the greatest alchemical creation of the past millennia and he just waves it off as irrelevant!" shouted Gerard.
"That's the point, Gerard! He knows about the stone. You read the letter. If he knows about the stone…"
Gerard looked at his wife once again, taking his hand into his own.
"I know - he whispered, kissing her forehead. - But the stone could save you. The healers don't have a cure, but with the stone..."
Gerard felt a kiss on his forehead.
"Taking the stone is too dangerous. I'm sure you could get the stone, but Theo isn't you, Gerard. If this mage has a solution, especially if his solution doesn't put Theo in mortal danger…"
Gregor took a deep sigh.
"I'll invite the Greengrass and the Perks. Can you send a letter to this Zettler? I don't want to risk insulting him off and you've always been the one with a talent for politics."
Lavinia smiled.
"Of course, dear."
Nott Manor, Nottingham county, 30th May 1992 (Saturday)
It wasn't common for the Nott family to have guests anymore. With Lavinia's health deteriorating at an accelerating pace, the family was rarely in the mood for visits, but this was a special circumstance and thus called for special arrangements.
Today, Lavinia had left her bed, probably for the first time that year, and her husband Gerard had pushed her wheelchair into the living room where their guests had just arrived moments before. Despite her condition, Lavinia was showing herself at her best: she might have been sick, but she was the Nott matron and she would be damned if she didn't act the part.
Before their children had met at Hogwarts, Lavinia Nott had been passingly familiar with Jericho and Rena Greengrass: while the two had officially retained a neutral stance during You-Know-Who's campaign, they had offered a sizable donation to his cause. Apparently they had done the same for the other side, but Lavinia didn't think doing so had made them traitors. It made them cunning, something she respected and deeply envied. Many times her own husband had lamented picking a side too soon.
The Perks family, on the other hand, was an enigma. The wilde, Hildegarde, was the daughter of a French immigrant that settled in England after Grindelwald's defeat and married the third son of the Burke family of the sacred Twenty-Eight. Whether Roscoe had been influenced by Hildegarde's political views or vice versa was still a mystery to the Notts.
Jericho walked up to Gerard, vigorously shaking his hand.
"Gerard Nott, it's nice to finally meet you in person."
Lavinia smiled.
"It's a pleasure to have you in our home. We do apologize for the short notice, but after the recent…developments - She took a pause - We figured that it would be best to meet everyone as soon as possible."
Hildegarde looked around.
"Speaking of which… I was under the impression Mr Potter's guardian would have joined us as well. Should we wait for him?"
"That will not be necessary, dear Hildegarde Perks."
The wizards snapped their necks toward the voice. On a chair they all could swear was unoccupied barely a second before there was now a man wearing what could best be described as an 18th century muggle military uniform: tight beige pants, tall black boots, open blue jacket with way more buttons than necessary and a triangular hat comfortably sitting on top of his head. With slow, elegant movement, the man stood up, removed his hat and offered a deep bow to the astonished wizards.
"Harold Zettler. Malkavian antitribu. Methuselah. Engraver. Scholar of Banes and member of Pentex's Board of Directors. At your service."
Gerard swallowed, trying to calm down. There was something deeply unnatural about this man, his instincts shouting at him to run away, but he couldn't falter. He was the master of the house, and he would not be intimidated by such a display. He had no idea what any of the man's titles meant, but if this man thought they were important enough to be included in his introduction, they must have carried significant weight behind them. Still, the man hadn't sent a reply to their invitation and etiquette demanded he address this perceived slight, even before discussing the man's sudden appearance. Did he Apparate? He had lowered the Apparition ward, but the man shouldn't have been able to Apparate silently like that. Did he have a Silencio charm? Doing so while Apparating was exceedingly difficult, even for experienced wizards such as himself.
"Welcome to our home, Sir Zettler. We were surprised not to receive an owl confirming your presence."
Sir Harold raised his head, showing off the scar that covered one of his red eyes.
"I find your chosen mailing system to be exceedingly inefficient over long distances such as those I'm forced to travel. While I did send a reply via owl, I am confident in saying that my private jet surpassed it about twenty minutes after departure. Considering the animal's flight speed… you should be receiving my reply around noon tomorrow."
"It's nice to finally meet you, sir - said Roscoe Perks, combating the uneasiness as he shook the vampire's hand - Sally told us how much young Harry looks up to you. Do you mind if I ask how Mr. Potter ended up in your care?"
The vampire smiled, teeth carefully hidden after centuries of practice.
"Of course, Mr. Perks. You see, my beloved Pentex is a very large company, with hundreds of subsections. Subsidiaries, we call them. When Mr. Potter was given to his… What's your word for kine? Muggle? Yes. When Mr. Potter was given to his muggle relatives, they decided it would be best to send him to a special school. The organization that ran said school just so happened to be one of our many subsidiaries. When Mr. Potter received his Hogwarts letter, the information was passed up the command chain until it reached me."
Rena Greengrass eye twitched.
"You mean there's an entire muggle company that knows about wizards!? What the hell is the minister thinking?"
"Au contraire, Miss Greengrass. The vast majority of our employees do not know about the existence of mages. Only a selected few Fomori, a handful of my childer and an exceedingly limited selection of kine that are on a strictly need-to-know basis are aware of your world. That might change soon, of course. After all, opening up a wizarding shop in Diagon Alley might require a slight adjustment in our standard hiring protocol."
Gerard frowned. He had never heard of a Fomori or a childer, assuming that wasn't just an unusual way the man used to talk about his kids. By the looks of it, he wasn't the only one in the room to have noticed.
"While this is all very interesting, I was a bit more curious about something dear Sally mentioned in her last letter. She claimed that you, Sir Zettler, claim that the Philosopher's Stone is, and I believe this is an actual quote from you, 'irrelevant'. Do you have any personal experience with the Philosopher's Stone? Are you an Alchemist?"
"Yes, I've had many encounters with them, miss Perks, you could say that. And thanks to the many years I spent researching the works that those Tremere put into the stone… I would strongly advise you against their use."
"And why is that? So you can hog them all for yourself?" asked Jericho, his patience running thin, in an accusatory tone.
Sir Harold chuckled lightly.
"No, my dear. I don't need their twisted ritual to achieve what is already mine. After all, the Philosopher's Stone was the first experiment, a failed experiment if I may add, to achieve what they eventually got through the Diablerie of Saulot. While there are some… benefits to the Stone, I believe that using that particular ritual would be somewhat… distasteful for your kind."
He paused for a second, their minds entranced by his voice. Sometimes he wondered how come mortals, mages or not, could fall for something as simple as banal as Awe.
"Have none of you wondered how come a couple of married wizards that maintained a perfectly young and healthy, fertile body for over six centuries never had a single child? Don't you find it… somewhat unusual?"
The room fell into silence. It was unusual now that they thought about it. Sure, the Flamel couple had adopted many orphans and raised them as their own kids, but they never had a biological child. Was this an effect of the Stone?
Before they could voice their concerns, the air seemed to shimmer, revealing a spindly thin humanoid dressed in buddhist monk robes carrying an old tome. The man was completely shaven and multiple metal and glass tubes emerged from his skull, twisting and turning before burrowing back into either the skull or the back of his neck.
Multiple wands were instinctively drawn and pointed at the monk, but he ignored them all. He simply placed the book on the table and stood straight, looking at Zettler, awaiting further instructions.
"Thank you, F-19. You may return to your post."
The man bowed to the vampire.
"As you command, my lord."
The tubes in the monk's head came to life with a bright green glow before his figure shimmering once more, slowly disappearing into thin air. Zettler smiled at the wizards' shocked expression.
"Ah, Psychics. Such useful tools, don't you think? Granted, not all muggles that undergo the enhancing procedure develop useful abilities, but I dare to say 25-F19 really hit the jackpot. Invisibility, psychoportation, pyrokinesis… He's essentially the perfect servant, don't you think?"
He chuckled, taking great care not to show his teeth to the confused and unnerved wizards. If he had timed everything correctly, he should…
A barely audible ringing sound echoes through the room. Zettler faked an irritated expression, picking up the phone and turning off the alarm. A modern trick, but a particularly useful one. He should probably use it more often.
"Apologies, but it seems that duty calls upon me once again. Mr. and Miss Perks, Greengrass, Nott… While circumstances force me to end our conversation short, I believe that old Tremere grimoire will answer most of your questions regarding the Philosopher's Stone. I find it somewhat ironic to hand it over to you, considering your relationship with the recently deceased Nicholas Flamel née Tremere."
With one deep bow, the vampire disappeared into thin air, leaving a completely stunned group of wizards. He glanced back up, his Vitae feeding his Discipline of Obfuscate in order to make him vanish from the Mind's Eye. Poor wizards. Just a bit of theatrics and they were already fooled. They didn't even bother to check if the grimoire was authentic, they merely took him at his word. He wondered if they would even attempt the 'rituals' he wrote down in that old booklet the previous night. Wouldn't it be hilarious if he had actually created a functioning ritual while madly scribbling under the high of Kyasid's blood?
Moving stairs, Hogwarts, 3rd June 1992 (Tuesday)
Theo, Daphne and Sally had all received clear instructions from their parents to stay away from the Philosopher's Stone. They apparently had a meeting with Sir Harold and, after listening to whatever the man had told them, had unanimously decided that the Stone just wasn't worth it.
Ron and Hermione had been informed, after omitting some of the more compromising details, but their parents' decision to leave everything be had done next to nothing to convince the Gryffindor duo to relent in their quest.
"If your parents don't think it's worth it it only means that whoever is blackmailing Quirrel is just that desperate! Desperate people are dangerous!" almost shouted Hermione.
"I mean… She's not exactly wrong…" conceded Theo
"So what, we should tell a professor?"
"Absolutely not! They will start asking questions and we'll have to admit to taking the information from Hagrid. That could get him fired."
"I didn't know you cared for Hagrid, Daphne." pointed out Ron.
"I don't care about him! But what's the point of having blackmail on Hogwarts staff if they get fired?"
"So this has nothing to do with the fact that you spent one hour playing with Fang yesterday?" teased Sally.
Daphne turned red.
"Shut up! Because of Astoria mom said won't let us have dogs at home!"
"Daphne Greengrass playing with dogs. That goes straight into the blackmail box." commented Theo, causing the girl to turn even redder.
"Can we go back to Professor Quirrel? I still say we should tell Professor McGonagall."
"Tell me what, Miss Granger?"
The group turned their head, noticing the transfiguration Professor at the top of the stairs, which had moved halfway through their conversation, looking down on them with a mix of curiosity and concern.
"Well, Professor…" started Harry, looking for an excuse, but was cut off by Hermione.
"It's about the Philosopher's Stone!"
The old witch's eyes widened and she almost dropped the pile of parchment in her hands. Whatever Professor McGonagall had expected, it clearly wasn't that.
"How do you know?" she spluttered.
"Professor, we think… we know… that Q- that someone's going to try and steal the Stone." finished Theo, trying his best to salvage the situation. Why did Hermione go off shouting off secrets out in the open like that?
"I don't know how you found out about the Stone, but rest assured, no one can possibly steal it, it's too well protected." She eyed him with a mixture of shock and suspicion.
"But Professor…"
"Weasley, I know what I'm talking about. - she snapped back at the redhead, her tone finally settled on irritation. - I suggest you all go back outside and enjoy the sunshine."
"We want to see Professor Dumbledore." said Hermione.
"I'm afraid Professor Dumbledore left earlier today minutes ago. He received an urgent owl from the Ministry of Magic and flew off for London at once."
"He's gone? - said Ron frantically. - Now?"
"Professor Dumbledore is a very great wizard, he has many demands on his time."
"But this is important!"
"I can assure you once again, Miss granger, that the stone is not in danger. And even if it was, I'm sure your warning can wait until tomorrow, once the headmaster returns."
As the professor walked away, Harry couldn't help but notice the horrified expression on Ron and Hermione.
"Don't." he all but ordered the two Gryffindor, his eyes flashing red.
The two nodded, saying their goodbye as they followed Professor McGonagall to their Transfiguration classroom.
"You used Passion." stated Theo. The tone was clearly meant to be harsh, but it was equally clear that Theo would have done the same, had he known the spell for it.
Harry nodded. He could almost feel a headache coming for what he was sure the two Gryddindors were planning to do, whatever that would be.
"I don't think it'll last for long."
"They're going to do something incredibly stupid, aren't they?" asked Sally, receiving a nod from everyone.
"Now what? Should we tell Filch?"
"Filch might lock them up in Fluffy's room and pretend he didn't know." muttered Theo.
"Then… Professor Snape?"
Professor Snape was locked up in his classroom, analyzing the various potions brewed by fifth and seventh year students in preparation for their O.W.L. and N.E.W.T., but despite his rather foul mood, he allowed the first year students in.
"Be quick, I do not possess the patience for silliness. Now even less than usual."
"Professor… We think Granger and Weasley will try to break into Cerberus's room tonight."
Snape froze, slowly turning his head to glare at his students.
"They overheard Professor Quirrel talking to someone after one of his classes and they think someone is blackmailing him into stealing the Philosopher's Stone." said Harry, now cursing himself at not asking Sir Harold for more advanced Dementation tricks.
Snape glared at his students for a few more seconds.
"I expect a full explanation as to how a group of first year students came to possess information about one of Hogwarts most guarded secrets."
"Well…" started Sally
"We know of the Cerberus because Weasley saw it. Half the school knows about it because of it. - explained Theo - Back when he was sent to detention in the forbidden forest."
"We asked our parents about it and we learned that Cerberi are guardians." continued Daphne.
"As for the stone… I'm related to Nicholas Flamel. - concluded Sally - Between the award and what my parents told me about him… We just thought… it was the most…logical answer."
Sally's voice ended up as barely a whisper.
While Snape was listening, it was obvious he wasn't convinced by their story and wanted to know the details.
"Ron overhead Quirrel being blackmailed after the DADA class." added Harry, his eyes flashing red as he looked at the Potions professor in the eyes.
Snape remained silent, staring down at his students for a few more seconds.
"I know you are hiding something. Mark my words, I will find out what it is and you will suffer the consequences."
He turned his back to the four, walking rapidly towards the desk.
"I will handle things from here. Go to your rooms."
Before the four could say anything, they were shoved out of the class by an invisible force, the door slamming in front of them.
The group looked at each other, unsure what to do. With a sigh of relief, the four stumbled back to their common room and crashed on the closest couch. Harry smiled.
"I love Passion."
Notes
The bulk of this chapter was taken up by Zettler doing his best to bury the interest of Harry and firends into the Stone, using good old fashion misinformation, bamboozling, falsifying evidence and liberal use of various Disciplines (Dementation, Presence and Obfuscate chief among them). I'm decently satisfied about that scene, but it's not perfect.
Meet 25-F19, the first Psychic of the story. He isn't the only Psychic in the setting, but he's got a very... striking feature that's going to be a common theme among Psychics (or at least, those who work with Pentex)
Again, Dumbledore's out of the castle! Ron and Hermione act like their typical canon selves, but Slytherin heads (or rather, vampiric Vitae) manage to cool things down enough for the time being.
Yay for doing the responsible, yet boring, thing and tell the adults! I know some of you were anticipating Harry and co to go after the Stone's gauntlet, but I just couldn't find a way to make it happen without bending the story to the point of feeling unnatural. And since we're talking about it... is it just me or does Philosopher's Stone almost feel like a separate book from the rest? Like... if it was in the third year instead of the first it'll seem like filler content, or is it just me?
Answering PM/Reviews
Glad to hear you're enjoying the story! It really means a lot to me when people take the time to comment, your reviews make my week! I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations