"You three should stay behind us," Sprout warned the three mystic soul kids, his wand pointed at the door.
The three first years and two professors stood at the end of the third-floor corridor. And just behind the door in front of them was the three-headed dog from the kid's home country.
"I'm still wondering how a Cerberus even found its way from the Underworld, to Greece, and then all the way to Britain," Melody thinks out loud.
"Whoever brought it here will have me to answer to me when we meet him," Krinos cracked his knuckles.
"You three are pretty sympathetic toward a creature that could easily kill you," Flitwick noticed. "How much time have you been spending with Hagrid?"
"So we've had a few biscuits and some tea with him, doesn't mean he's turning us into him," Harry says. "Cerberus are just very special to Greece. They are the sacred creature that guards the gates of the Underworld. So the living can't get in and the dead can't get out."
"There were a few cases, like Orpheus and Heracles, but it's the principle of the thing," Krinos said.
Flitwick did the unlocking spell, opening the door. They went inside and, much to their shock, heard a harp playing. The Cerberus was fast asleep, all three of the rottweiler heads slightly snoring, as a harp was playing in the corner.
"Someone must have charmed the harp to keep playing until they came back up," Melody whispered. "That's a complicated spell. Not even Granger would know a spell for that, even if she's the self-proclaimed 'smartest witch of her year.' Arrogant much."
"You sound like Professor Snape," Harry quietly commented. "He can't seem to go one class without calling me arrogant, or pompous, or just plain calling me 'Potter' while sneering."
"He really needs to get a life and stop picking on you and Neville," Krinos said. "And if he keeps sneering, his face might get stuck like that."
"Hard to believe that hasn't happened already," Harry said dryly.
Flitwick and Sprout shared a look. They both knew that Snape was deep in his bitterness and hatred of just about anyone with the last name Potter. They remember how for the months leading up to this school year, Snape would hardly stop his constant complaining about 'James Potter Junior' coming to 'spread his arrogance' around the school. Even during the staff meets all year, all he ever did was go on and on that he wished that he didn't have to teach the 'Potter Devil Spawn.' He didn't have anything good to say about either of the Gardna twins either.
They tried to tell McGonagall that he would not grade them as fairly as he does his Slytherin's, but she did not listen. It seems that it was a theme with her, lately.
They went over to the trapdoor on the floor and opened it, looking into the pitch black bellow. They had not noticed the harp no longer playing. Until Melody was the one that noticed that music was no longer in her ears.
"Uh oh," she swore.
"What," Krinos asked her.
"It's gone quiet," Melody warned. "As in no more harp."
That's when the growling started. The five of them looked up to see all three of the rottweiler heads looking at them like they were it's dinner.
"I am guessing that Fluffy hasn't been fed in a while," Sprout guessed.
"That thing's name is Fluffy," Krinos raises an eyebrow.
"Jungle soul, rottweiler," Harry cast, touching his amulet.
The light from his spell stopped the beast when it came close to trying to take a bite out of one of them. Even if one bite from even one of those heads wouldn't have left anything behind.
The animal spirit of the dog formed next to Harry. It caused the Cerberus, oddly named Fluffy, to look at him differently. All three heads tilted, looking at him.
"That's right, big guy," Harry tries to calm the beast down. "We're not going to hurt you. We know it's in your nature to guard, but we have potential idiots and bad people already down there."
Fluffy looked down at the trapdoor and whined a little. Music had, once again, gotten the better of his species.
Harry cautiously reached his hand out to the giant dog. He might be overestimating his powers, but you can't blame him for being an animal person. It is his mystic soul power after all.
"We just want to help," Harry told the Cerberus. "We are not after what you are guarding. Just the people after it already."
The middle head slowly leaned down and placed his cold nose on Harry's palm. He was now calm.
"I guess it's safe now," Melody said.
Harry took his hand off of Fluffy.
"Animals are more like humans than people give them credit for," he says. "And as an animal mage, I do tend to prefer the company of animals to humans. Mostly because animals value loyalty and family more. As the werewolves say, 'the pack is life."
"If it was possible, I think I'd poach you from Minerva and have you transferred to Hufflepuff," Sprout giggled.
The group went over to the trapdoor. Flitwick did a mass levitation charm, floating them all down gently through it. They landed on something green and really squishy. But the moment they landed, the plants they landed on started to snake around them. They all fell backward, being tied up by the plants.
"Try not to move," Sprout warned. "This is Devil's Snare. The more you move, the faster it tries to kill you."
"For the love of the gods," Melody swore. "Is this a school or a Saw movie?"
"A what," Flitwick asked.
"Explanation for another day," Harry responded. "Krinos, if you would."
The nature mage nodded at his brother. His eyes and amulet then glowed bright green. The Devil's Snare immediately untangled itself from them and then retreated away from the group. Unfortunately, that caused them to drop to the floor below them, as it seems that the plant was covering a non-completed floor. They all landed with a large "THUD" in the ground.
"If I had known that was gonna happen, I would have had that plant lower us down instead of just letting us go," Krinos says, standing up and brushing himself off.
"Quite impressive spell work, Mr.Gardna," Sprout praised.
"I've worked with my nature magic since I was little," Krinos softly smiled. "Plants have always been my sanctuary and my soul. I was able to communicate with our mother using nature from the time I was four."
They went to the next room, which was obviously the obstacle done by Flitwick himself. There were over four dozen bronze keys flying in the air. They looked a little rusty and their wings were like those of a dragonfly.
They saw that one of the keys had a slightly bent wing and was slower than the others. Melody unsheathed her wand and immediately cast the same summoning charm she had done on their first train ride to Hogwarts. The key instantly shot into her hand.
Flitwick was starting to deeply admire his three students. Even though Melody was the only one in his house, all three of them were starting to become his most favorite students that he's ever had. Even more so than Pandora Lovegood and Lily Evans.
Harry had definitely inherited his mother's talent for Charms, especially seeing it when he charmed his object to do the Charleston during exams. He was also quite fascinated by their powers. Mystic souls have always been respectful to the goblin nation in the past. They were both used to being discriminated against by wand-user wizards. Plus, there is the fact that both Krinos and Melody have such an incredible heritage. Even he knew of the legacy of the Gardna family. Their sense of protection for those they love is known worldwide as something not to be messed with.
"How can you do the summoning charm," Flitwick asked, curiously. "That's a fourth-year spell."
"Wands are just a focus for the magic that mystics possess," Melody explained. "Wizards typically use them so that they can use it as they don't have the necessary skills for wandless magic or the right core power. As a mystic soul, it's easier to use the higher level spells because we're more powerful at our core."
"And it's not like mystic souls don't need a focus every now and again," Krinos says. "Heart type mystics souls have powers where magic flows through our bodies. Holder type magic needs a focus. The most typical objects used are keys, amulets, weapons, and armor."
The three went through the door and into the next room.
"Am I the only one that sees their eyes almost light up whenever they talk about their kind," Flitwick asked his colleague.
"Makes you wonder why they decided to attend Hogwarts," Sprout says. "I have heard tales of Crystal Rose Academy. It's said to be the best school for mystic souls in the world."
"Legacy and heritage seem very important to them," Flitwick pointed out. "It's probably why they love their powers so much. It's part of their family. They want to honor Harry's Potter heritage, and Hogwarts is the biggest part of that."
"I have a feeling that if events like this keep happening, they're gonna high tail it back to Greece faster than the rest of us can say Olympus," Sprout giggled.
"I also have a feeling that the three aren't exactly strangers to deadly situations," Flitwick guessed.
The teachers then followed their students into the next room. They were shocked by what they saw.
Melody was standing in front of the giant wizard chess set that McGonagall had made. Her mouth was open and silver and purple music measures were coming out and wrapping around each piece. She was singing a single note, a continuous and long "Ah."
"I can never tell which of your powers is more beautiful," Harry chuckled. "Nature or music."
"Nature/Music," the twins had a different answer, then playfully glared at each other.
Melody's music notes then seemed to go into the chess pieces. And they almost seemed to make the stone pieces look dull and less threatening looking.
"What you do," Flitwick asked, astonished. "Professor McGonagall transfigured this chess set herself."
"A simple spell I learned in order to avoid pranks and traps," Melody said. "I call it harmonic disenchantment. It basically removes spells and enchantments from objects. Though, I'm not strong enough to remove curses with it, yet."
"We did not have the time to deal with living chess pieces," Krinos says. "Mostly because it looks like it was already played, and there's an idiot on the floor."
As soon as the Professors looked over, they could see Ronald Weasley lying unconscious on the floor. They rushed over to him and started casting spells.
"How is he," Harry asked.
He might not care for the redhead annoyance, but he didn't wish him dead.
"Concussion, hairline skull fracture, and a few bumps and bruises," Flitwick said. "He is very lucky, there doesn't seem to be any excess swelling or blood build up. With some skull-gro, he should be fine in an hour or two. But Poppy should be a bit more precise."
"I can stay," Melody offered. "My powers can take on the chess pieces if they turn back on, somehow, or whoever comes back through that door. I can also make sure he keeps his idiotic mouth shut if he wakes up."
"Sweetie, maybe it would be better if a teacher stays with him," Sprout says. "It would be quite irresponsible, as a teacher, to leave an injured student here with only another student watching them."
They reluctantly left the Herbology teacher behind.
"Granger seriously left him there," Krinos complained. "Just proves exactly what we thought. She cares more for books than people."
Passing through the next room, they were hit by an awful smell. In the same room was an ogre, only this one was dead. It only made the smell worse. It was almost a blessing based on the size of the ogre. It was easily eight to ten feet taller than the one they faced on All Hallow's Eve. Even the mystics souls knew that they'd have trouble with it.
"And I thought that last ogre smelled gross," Harry cringed. "Why can't there be a nice smelling ogre for a change?"
They went over to the next door.
"From the previous obstacles, we know which Professors have done what," Melody says. "Hagrid was probably the one that provided Fluffy. Professor Sprout's Devil's Snare was next. You, Professor Flitwick, had done those keys. Then you had McGonagall's chess set. That ogre has to be Professor Quirrell. The only one left is Snape."
That jab at Snape by not calling him 'Professor' was definitely not missed by Flitwick. Not that he blamed them.
In the next room, Hermione Granger lay on the floor, showing no signs of breathing. There was a line of bottles next to her, with one just lying next to her hand. Flitwick rushed to her side and started running scans to see if there was anything he could do for the girl. It was only then that he noticed her unique coloring. Her skin was a sickly green color, that had a slight 'Slytherin' vibe, with vivid red pimples spelling out the word 'thief' on her forehead.
"She doesn't appear to be breathing," Flitwick was starting to panic.
Krinos picked up the bottle that was near her hand. He took a small sniff.
"Root of asphodel, wormwood, valerian root, sopophorous bean, and... ew... sloth brain," he listed, making a face. "Those are the ingredients in the Draught of the Living Dead. But it's faint, like only a little bit was added."
Flitwick was looking at him as if asking how he knew all that with his face.
"As a nature mage, I can identify hundreds of thousands of plants by sight, smell, feel, or a mix of them," Krinos explained. "The other ingredients that I can smell are all in a color changing potion I've read about. Probably why she looks like a Christmas tree attending private school."
Again with the weird looks sent his way.
"You have the weirdest metaphors I have ever heard," Harry stated.
"Snape must have been in one of his moods when he brewed that," Melody guessed. "Not that he ever seems to not be in a mood."
Looking over at the magical flames blocking the last door, Krinos rose his hand and cast his 'nature's extinguisher' spell. It sent out mystically enhanced wet leaves that quickly put the flames out. A nature mage needs to know how to put fires out.
"Guess it's time to see what the headmaster has in store," Krinos said.
"But what about her," Harry asked, pointing at the brown bush on the floor.
"There wasn't a lot of the Draught of the Living Dead in the potion she drank," Krinos says. "She'll be up and annoying people in, at least, two days."
"I can use my chameleon power to check out the next room and warn you guys about who's in there," Harry offered.
The students looked at the teacher next to them. While he was not very thrilled about letting his eleven-year-old student go alone, even for a little bit, he saw his point. They'd just need to work quickly.
"Come back as soon as possible," Flitwick ordered.
Harry nodded, then touched his amulet.
"Jungle soul, chameleon," he cast.
The spirit of the lizard formed next to him. The two of them then vanished, becoming no more than a disturbance in the air. The opening and closing of the door told the rest of them where he was.
Harry walked down a set of stairs that lead into a room surrounded by columns and more stairs. On the middle of the room were two things that shocked him. The first being that the Mirror of Erised standing there. The second, in front of the mirror was a scrawny-looking man in black robes with a red turban wrapped around his head.
Quirrell.
" It's always the ones you least expect ," Harry thought, shaking his head. " I always did think he stuttered too much for it to be real ."
Harry slowly made his way down the stairs, making sure to make as little noise as possible. And if Quirrell turned around, he would have to stay perfectly still. He would be able to see the disturbance in the air if he moved in his line of sight. Chameleon camouflage was not invisibility. Harry was suddenly feeling like he should have brought his dad's cloak with him.
"There is ssssomeone here ," a hissing-spinning voice said, and it was most definitely not Quirrell's voice. " I can feel him."
" Crap ," Harry swore.
He tried to run back up the stairs, but flames burst up and around the top of the stairs. The sudden heat and light wavered his concentration, making him come out of his camouflaged state.
"Oh crap, again," he swore.
"Harry Potter," Quirrell greeted his student in a very creepy way.
Harry's chameleon spirit vanished, and he slowly walked down the stairs.
"So you really were the one cursing my broom during that match," Harry said. "Between you and Snape, I gave it a fifty-fifty shot. One is too obvious and the other was the least obvious. This might just be from watching too many American cop shows, though. And it's Potter-Gardna."
"You are a lot smarter than every other sad sack in this Merlin forsaken school," Quirrell says.
"Or maybe you aren't as subtle as you believed," Harry crossed his arms. "My sister picked you out of the entire crowd. She also saw Snape, but he was most likely trying some counter-curse."
"If he hadn't been uttering that counter under his breath, I would have thrown you off your broom," Quirrell sneered.
"Even if I had fallen, trust me when I say that I am a lot harder to kill than I appear to be," Harry says. "If fireballs, an army of spiders, and the demon of fear can't kill me, one fake-stuttering wizard has no chance."
"Let me sssspeak to him," the snake-like voice said.
"Master, you're not strong enough," Quirrell told the voice.
" This guy seems to be a few cards short of a deck ," Harry thought.
"Do as I ssssay," the voice snapped.
Without another word, Quirrell started to unravel his turban. Harry kept his hand close to his amulet. When push comes to shove, hopefully their secret will remain intact by him thinking it's the amulet and not the person.
When he'd done unraveling the cloth, Quirrell pulled off the last of the turban. Harry almost threw up when he saw someone else's face coming out of the back of his head. It made him sick in the stomach.
"Harry Potter," the face hissed.
"One, it's Potter-Gardna," Harry says. "And two, I haven't been so disgusted since that Scavenger Demon exploded into slime all over me."
"You have been quite elusive these past few yearssss," the face said.
"It's called living in another country, genius," Harry rolled his eyes. "Is everyone in this country so egotistical that they never even considered that their precious 'savior' would live anywhere but here."
"Cheeky little brat, aren't you ," the face said. " Quite arrogant, as well. Coming here all by your lonesome."
"Who said anything about alone," Harry smirked.
Quirrell tried to quickly raise his wand, but a vine shot out of nowhere and snatched it from his hand. Darting his head in that direction, he saw Krinos with the same smirk on his face as his brother.
"People always underestimate what a plant can do until it is too late," he snickered, taking the wand from his vine. "Wands, such fragile little trinkets."
With a quick flick of his wrists, he snapped the wand in two.
"Oops," Krinos 'innocently' stated.
Quirrell yelled in rage and tried to lunge at the nature mage. He was interrupted by a soft tap on his shoulder. He angrily turned and came face to face with a "sweet" looking Melody.
"Goodbye," was all she said.
Melody then opened her mouth a screamed. Purple soundwaves came out, along with a pterodactyl-like shriek. Quirrell was blasted off of his feet, soaring over the mirror, and roughly landing on his back.
"I never get tired of doing that," Melody giggled.
If Flitwick hadn't been impressed by his students before, he sure was now. Between Harry's animal channeling, Krinos' vine manipulation, and Melody's sonic scream, they were a very impressive trio.
"Stupify," the half-goblin cast on the semi-conscious man, Quirrell now fully knocked out. "That will keep him out until we can contact the DMLE."
But black smoke started coming out of Quirrell. But it was not any ordinary smoke. Dark magic seemed to radiate off of it in terrifying amounts.
"Or maybe not," Harry stated.
That was when everything went dark as the smoke past over them.