Chapter Seven
Harry lay sleepless in bed, waiting for midnight to come. His dormmates were snoring away, save for Neville, who was still in the hospital wing. Ron had been offering advice all evening on what to do to win his duel. Harry had been studying his books and trying to remember what he had learned about combat from his Father, Uncle Fester, and Wednesday. Ron got out of bed and walked over to Harry.
"It's almost time, we better go!" he whispered. Ron wore his night clothes and slipped his dressing gown over them. Harry had gone to bed fully dressed and had to slip on his boots. He gave Mano a tap on the palm. The hand woke from his slumber, stretching and standing on his fingertips.
"Come on, we might need you." Harry held his hand, and Mano scuttled up his arm and sat on his shoulder. Harry and Ron left the dormitory and crept down to the Common Room. The fireplace still had a few dying embers, but a table lamp turned on just as they approached the portrait hole.
"I can't believe you're going through with this!" Hermione hissed under her breath. She was dressed in a pink dressing gown over her bedclothes.
"You? Oh, go back to bed, you bossy cow!" Ron sneered. Hermoine stood and walked over to them.
"I almost told your brother Percy, but I thought perhaps I could keep you two out of trouble myself!" She looked imploringly at Harry.
"You were lucky not to get detention from Professor McGonagall last time, Harry. This could cost you your spot on the Gryffindor team!"
"Not if we don't get caught!" he said, then turned to Ron, telling him they better get going. As they walked towards the portrait hole, Hermione followed, unwilling to give up.
"You're going to cost Gryffindor the House Cup! All the points we've earned, lost in an instant!" Ron told her to go away, uncaring about her complaints. Hermione shrugged, calling them idiots, and turned to the portrait to return inside, only to find the Fat Lady was gone.
"What am I going to do now?" Hermione quietly despaired.
"You'd better come along then, but keep quiet," Harry said and began to lead the way. Ron and Hermione followed, who swore that if they got caught by Filch and Mrs. Norris, she would tell on them, even if it meant detention for herself for being out of the dormitory at night.
Harry motioned for them to stop and be quiet as they were walking. There was a faint snuffling sound. Harry knelt and let Mano scurry down his arm. The hand scuttled across the stone floor into the darkness. Suddenly, there was a brief shriek. Harry, Ron, and Hermione followed the sound to find Neville curled up on the floor with Mano clamped over his mouth.
"Neville, what are you doing here?" Hermione asked. Harry snapped his fingers, and Mano let go of Neville's face. Nevile stood up hastily, still looking at Mano with fear.
"I, I forgot the password! Madame Pomfrey let me out, but the Fat Lady would only let me in with the password! I was waiting for someone to find me and let me in, but I fell asleep."
"Well, it's too late now; the Fat Lady's gone walkabout," Harry told him.
"Come on, you'd better come with us." Neville followed along as Ron and Hermione told him to be quiet.
"Where are you guys going?" he wondered, wondering why they were leaving the tower at this hour.
"Malfoy and I have a duel to fight. Hermione refused to let us go without her."
"I didn't want to come; I tried to stop them!" Hermione hissed. The four students crept along silently. Harry was on alert for any sign of Filch or Mrs. Norris. Mano scuttled along, keeping watch for them. Occasionally, he snapped his fingers and pointed them in the right direction. Soon, they reached the trophy room.
Malfoy and Crabbe still needed to arrive. The gold and silver trophies gleamed even under the faint moonlight. Harry crept along, examining each cup, medal, and plaque. Soon, he found the Quidditch shelf. There were trophies and cups from various years. Finally, he found what he'd been looking for. Quidditch Final, 1977, Gryffindor won.
Listed on the plaque were the names of the members of the team. Etched on a bronze shield was the name James Potter, with the position of Chaser below it. Harry felt a swell of pride within him. He wondered if his birth Father would have been proud of him for being picked for the Quidditch team at eleven years old.
"Malfoy's late; he must have chickened out," Ron said, looking for any sign of the blonde boy. Suddenly, there was a noise in the next room. Harry pulled out his wand in case Malfoy and Crabbe tried a sneak attack. They heard someone speak, but it wasn't Malfoy.
"Sniff them out, my sweet; they could lurk anywhere." A scraggly voice hissed. It was Filch and his blasted cat! Harry whirled around and motioned for the others to keep quiet and follow him. Filch had entered the Trophy Room, his lantern shining in the darkness. Harry and the others crept bent over, keeping to the shadows as they edged towards the other exit.
As they crept along, Neville tripped over his robes and bumped into Ron, the two crashing into a suit of armor. The noise was like a thunderclap. Harry pulled Ron and Neville up and told them to run and follow him.
The four youths ran as hard and fast as they could, not daring to look behind them to see if Filch was following. They ran through corridors and passageways, panting for breath, unsure where to go. Soon, they found themselves outside the Charms classroom. Harry looked around. They'd lost Filch and Mrs. Norris.
Harry wiped his brow and then checked on the others. Neville was doubled over, panting for breath. Hermione gasped, clutching her sides.
"I-told-you-so!" she panted. Ron turned to Harry.
"We've got to get back to Gryffindor Tower!" Harry agreed but needed to figure out where to get there in the castle. Hermione rounded on them.
"Malfoy never intended to duel you! Filch knew someone was supposed to be there! Malfoy wanted you caught out of bed!" Harry's eyes narrowed. To challenge a duel, then not even bother to show up, was cowardly enough, but to tell someone else about it to try and cause the challenge to be caught was as low and dishonorable as possible! Harry swore he would get even with the blonde weasel if it were the last thing he ever did! They were about to start on their way again when Peeves came zooming from a classroom. His frog-like eyes widened in ghoulish delight.
"Ooh, Firsties out of bed! Naughty, naughty!" Peeves cackled with delight. Harry looked up at the Poltergeist.
"Peeves, if you don't give us away, I promise to make it worthwhile." Peeves looked intrigued by this.
"What pray tell could you give me, Itty-Bitty-Potty-Wotty?" Harry reached into his trousers pocket and produced one of the twins' Super-Dungbombs. They'd given him one as a thank-you for showing them how to make the time delay. Peeves' eyes gleamed with fascination.
"This custom dungbomb is designed for a time delay. You can hide it in Filch's office while he's out and set it off when you know he'll be there. The stench has been engineered to permeate the skin and clothes and is very difficult to spell away and wash off. Filch will smell like a blocked-up lavatory for a week!" Harry offered the bomb to Peeves, who seemed to be thinking it over. Suddenly, they heard a door open, and Filch wheezed, and his shuffling footsteps approached.
"What's it going to be, Peeves?" Harry held the smelly device up to Peeves.
"Turn us in, or have this pretty bomb?" The Poltergeist grinned and snatched up the bomb, stuffing it in his orange coat. Harry turned to the others to tell them to follow him when suddenly Peeves shouted.
"STUDENTS OUT OF BED! STUDENTS OUT OF BED, DOWN THE CHARMS CORRIDOR!" Harry turned toward the treacherous Poltergeist. Peeves grinned.
"Silly Potty, you know Peevesy can't be trusted!" Peeves soared over their heads, still shouting. Harry and his friends ran down the corridor until they came to the end, before a locked door. Ron pulled at the door handle, banging on the wood.
"That's it, we're done for!" He moaned. Filch was running to where Peeves was still shouting. Hermione shoved Ron out of the way and pulled out her wand.
"Alohomora!" she whispered and flicked her wand. Suddenly, the lock clicked, and the door opened. The four students ran through the door and slammed it shut. Harry put his ear to the door to listen. Filch had finally caught up to Peeves.
"Where did they go, Peeves? Which way?"
"Say please!" Peeves giggled. Harry snarled under his breath about the treacherous Poltergeist.
"Peeves, tell me now!" Filch commanded.
"Shan't say nothing if you don't say please!" Filch groaned and then very begrudgingly asked, 'Please.'
"NOTHING! HA-HA! I told you I wouldn't say Nothing 'til you said please!" Peeves cackled and flew away. Filch cursed the Poltergeist, then turned and stalked away.
"Good, he's leaving. We'll wait here for a while, then we can go." Harry felt a tugging on his sleeve. He looked beside him and saw Neville's panicked face.
"What's wrong?" Harry asked. Neville pointed in front of him, struggling to form words. Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned to look at what Neville was pointing at. Hermione shrieked briefly, and Ron's eyes practically bulged from his head. Harry's eyes widened as it registered on his where they were. They were on the third-floor corridor and knew why it was forbidden.
Inside the room, a massive beast was sleeping on the floor. The beast's snoring sputtered as it began to wake up. Harry's eyes adjusted to the darkness and could make out what stood before them.
A Cerberus! A living, breathing, growling Cerberus! Grandmama had told Harry about these legendary Greek monsters. Legends said they were descended from the original demon that ancient myth told guarded the gates to Tartarus in Hades.
The three-headed dog stood and gazed at the four young students. Its six eyes narrowed, and its three jaws began to growl. Hermione, Ron, and Neville backed themselves against the wall and door to the chamber; even Mano had crawled into Harry's pocket to hide.
Harry stood straight and still, looking the mighty beast in the eye. Carefully, he raised his hand, pointed at the enormous dog, and commanded,
"Sit!" The dog's three heads cocked to the side, its eyes showing confusion. Harry stood firm; his face emotionless. Again, he commanded the beast to sit. Hermione tugged on Harry's free arm, begging them to leave.
Harry stepped towards the dog and commanded it to sit one final time. The dog stopped growling and, to the amazement of Harry's friends, actually sat down on the room's stone floor.
"Lay down!" Harry signaled with his hand again. The beast lay itself down before him. Harry smiled and told it, 'Good boy.'
Ron, Hermione, and Neville stood in shock as Harry approached the massive dog and gently stroked its three faces. He whispered sweet appraisal to the Cerberus, whose three faces softened; one head opened its mouth and tried to give Harry a massive lick.
Harry dodged the giant tongue, which would have soaked him in saliva. He backed away and told the dog to stay. He kept eye contact as he backed up towards his friends. Harry motioned for them to open the door. Ron yanked the door open and rushed out, followed by Hermione and Neville. Harry kept eye contact as he walked through the door and closed it. He turned to his friends, a massive grin on his face.
"That was amazing! I can't wait to tell Wednesday and Pugsley I saw a living Cerberus; they'll be so jealous!" Harry checked the coast, which was clear, then told his gob-smacked friends to follow him back to Gryffindor Tower.
"That was bloody brilliant; how did you do that?" Ron asked. Harry explained that he had experience handling wild and dangerous animals. Kitty Cat was their pet lion, adopted from one of Gomez's African safaris. Grandmama had a twin pair of alligators, Snapper, and Chomper, with whom she enjoyed wrestling. Uncle Fester had his vulture, Zelda, who circled the neighborhood for fresh carrion or the occasional stray pets.
"What on earth is that monster doing in a school?" Neville asked.
"That explains why the third-floor corridor is forbidden!" Harry thought about why a Cerberus was hidden away in Hogwarts. They were bred to guard entrances and treasures. He thought back to the object Hagrid had taken from Gringotts, the same vault later broken into. These were pieces of a giant puzzle he had yet to put together.
At last, they reached Gryffindor Tower. The Fat Lady had returned. She glared at the four students as they approached her portrait.
"Where the devil have you been? It's far past curfew!" Harry shushed the Fat Lady and gave the password. The portly pink-dressed Witch gave a huff and swung open. The four students entered and collapsed in the Common Room armchairs. Hermione looked at Harry and Ron, looking quite angry.
"Well, I hope you two are satisfied! We nearly got thrown out of school, could have lost hundreds of points, and eaten by a giant dog!"
"Neville's right; what the hell are they doing keeping a thing like that locked up in a school!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione rolled her eyes at him.
"You don't use your eyes, do you? It was standing on a trap door on the floor, so it's not there by accident!"
"I thought the same; Cerberi were bread to be the perfect guard dog." Harry agreed.
"It must be guarding something important." He told them how Hagrid had taken something from Gringotts the day he took Harry and his family to Diagon Alley and how the same vault had been broken into later that day.
"What could be so important they'd hide it here in Hogwarts?" asked Ron.
"Who cares? It's none of our business!" exclaimed Hermione.
"Now I'm going to bed before either of you come up with another clever way to get us all killed, or worse, expelled!" she got up from her chair and walked up to the girls' dormitory. Ron looked at Harry.
"She needs to sort out her priorities." Ron and Neville stood and went to go to bed. Ron asked if Harry was coming, but he said he'd be up in a minute.
He pulled out some parchment and wrote to Wednesday about the object, the break-in, and the dog. He asked if she had some ideas about what could be so crucial that even Gringotts wasn't safe to hide something. He sealed and addressed the letter and took it upstairs to post in the morning.