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Chapter 13: The stoneNotes:

Hello everyone.

Here we go, the first year is slowly coming to an end. Do our heroes manage to resolve the whole situation without destroying the timeline? We'll see.

Thank you all for the continuous support with all your reviews. That is really quite the motivation :)

(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)

Chapter Text

Finally, the week they've all been dreading has come. For most students it was the week of the finals, but for Harry and Hermione it was the week where Quirrell would attempt to steal the stone. In between their study group with Neville, Daphne, Tracey and the Patil twins they planned the whole thing out. With Minnie's assistance they learned a spell to bypass the chess set, some backdoor she had built in, Severus' logic puzzle was not an issue at all. The rest was not difficult either, they'd just have to wait until Dumbles was lured away after the History of Magic exam.

But before that it was exam time.

They all started out with transfiguration, which was no big deal after all. Minnie had to grin all the time when she examined their skill, knowing they would get the perfect score despite her testing way harder than usual. DADA was quite literally a joke and any other class was barely a challenge. Not even the Forgetfulness potion he had struggled with last time, there he was quite certain to score an O (yes, he'd probably do that in all of them, but it was potions, formerly his least favourite subject)

Even Neville, with whom they spent most of their time outside of classes, told them that he was pretty certain he did quite well, both in the practicals and the theoreticals. Daphne, who got herself the reputation of being an emotionless, cold pureblood princess in Slytherin house but was quite comfortable with all of them, was quite certain of her success as well. Both the heir Longbottom and the heiress Greengrass had grown a bit closer over the past year and were excelling at school. Most of Gryffindor house was not that happy about Neville getting close to a snake, like they put it, but he didn't care. And besides, the whole group of Harry, Mione, Nev and Daphne were friends with students from most houses. Yes, mainly the pureblood heirs, but not only them. 

The main reason for that was that Nev and Daphne had basically grown up with most of them or at least had met at many social gatherings. Well, mainly Daphne because Augusta Longbottom had cut most ties with the outside world after the attack on her son and daughter-in-law. Nev had mostly met sons from old light-sided families, otherwise he would have known Daphne beforehand. But combined both of them knew basically all the future Lords and Ladys, which Harry used for his benefit. Yes, he made several friendships with other students as well, but he had to work calculating. It would help him to form magical Britain that way that all the prejudice and bigotry would be gone, so no Dark Lord could ever rise again. But before that he would have to deal with a very certain Dark Lord - and with Voldemort too. 

He laughed quietly at that thought. The prophecy never stated that it was Riddle, and the way Dumbledore had acted, it might as well be him, at least in this very timeline. 

Either way, no matter about whom the prophecy was talking, he would have to deal with both eventually. Sometimes he asked himself why fate was hating him so much that he would have to deal with so many evils - and that in several lifetimes. 

And then it was finally Thursday. 

The morning started with Minnie telling all the first years at breakfast where they would write the History of Magic exam, afterwards walking up to Harry and then, under a discreetly cast Muffliato informing him that old Dumbles had left the school, heading for London. He nodded, understanding what she was saying. They hadn't ruined the timeline and so Quirrell was having a try at stealing the stone today. Just like they had expected.

History of Magic had been a rather easy though exhausting exam. The material that was taught in class by Binns was more than boring and very prejudiced in regards to goblins. They didn't even talk about Grindelwald or Voldemort, just the good old goblin wars. But he had studied that material thoroughly so he managed to write the whole exam in basically half the time. 

At lunch Harry wanted to take a bite from some treacle tart, but his hand started to shake. Neville, Mione and Daphne (who had joined them at the Gryffindor table today) all looked up, when the young Greengrass heiress spoke up.

"Harry, are you wearing a Lord ring? I know that from my father, it's the warning mechanism for hidden potions and that reaction looks way too strong to just be the Heir ring. Someone tried to sneak something into your food." 

Yes, Harry had recognised the warning mechanisms, but he hadn't expected someone else to see or even understand that. While Mione instantly started checking that food with potion detection spells, he carefully looked around, checking that no one was listening, then put up a Muffliato and a notice-me-not. Finally, he let the rings appear on his hand and without hesitating, Daphne grabbed said hand and stared at every single ring.

"What in… That one's Potter, that's obvious. This should be the Peverell crest. I think someone married into the Potter family at some point. You've got to be joking! Slytherin, Gryffindor and Ravenclaw? How? And that…"

She burst out laughing once she saw the Heir Black ring, which had to be explained by her. Most of Draco Malfoy's reputation and position in Slytherin house came from him claiming to become the next Lord Black once he'd reach his maturity. Combined with being the sole heir to the House of Malfoy he was certainly a good catch - at least to those who valued money and title above looks and character.

"Damn it, that's certainly one of Dumbledore's. A compulsion potion. I can imagine what it's supposed to do."

Mione interrupted their discussion as soon as she was able to decipher the detection spells she had cast. Now that she saw the two confused looks on both Neville's and Daphne's faces she silently scolded herself for blurting that out without thinking. While she was still thinking about what to do, Harry intervened with telling them some part of the truth.

"Well, Dumbledore wants me to face Voldemort because we're destined to fight to our deaths and he is trying to be the puppet master of my whole life. Thanks to Minnie - Professor McGonagall I'm escaping his manipulations though we do have to play along a bit so he doesn't get suspicious. He's hiding the philosopher's stone here which Voldemort needs to gain a body once more. And now that the old man is gone for the day, he's creating the opportunity for Voldemort's servant to steal it."

To Neville, not much of that was new, since his grandmother did tell him quite a bit and he knew all along about the headmaster's intentions, since that day they all met in Diagon Alley. Daphne was a little bit more surprised, but to be honest, her parents were not allied with the light side and they had repeatedly told her that Dumbledore was a master manipulator.

Another person coming up to them interrupted all their thinking.

"Mr Potter."

Snape hesitated because there were two other students, both of which had nothing to do with the whole thing, sitting with Harry and Hermione. While considering his options Harry responded to him in a way no one could understand what precisely they were talking about.

"I assume he is on his way now? Then we'll give him twenty minutes and then we're good to go. Thank you, professor."

Snape nodded and hurried away, not wanting to spend so much time at the Gryffindor table talking to Harry. That could possibly blow his cover, both with the Dark Lord and the headmaster.

After the twenty minutes were over and most of the students were already outside because of the nice weather, Harry and Hermione wanted to get going, but neither Neville nor Daphne was willing to let them go without them. After minutes of hefty debating they gave in, especially because they didn't want to give Quirrell even more time alone.

"Good, then you come with us, but stay behind and do as we say."

Both nodded and then the four made their way up to the forbidden corridor on the third floor. They had to admit, neither Nev nor Daphne showed any fear but trusted them, despite the fact that they right now went to the place which Dumbledore had named off-limits because it was dangerous. After entering the corridor, Harry advised them to be quiet before Mione made a step forward and used a melody charm to make Fluffy fall asleep. That particular charm was not usually taught but Mione had read about it sometime during their sixth year and obviously she still remembered it. The big cerberus responded nearly instantly to the music and collapsed loudly on the floor, which was kind of what they wanted to achieve, but he also blocked the trapdoor. That meant that they now needed a strong Wingardium Leviosa, which Harry gladly provided.

Despite having said that Nev and Daphne should stay behind them, the little Heir Longbottom insisted on jumping down first. He didn't know what was down there but still. Harry had to admit, he liked this Neville way more than last time's. 

"Devil's snare? Why would anyone try building an obstacle with that? It's damn dangerous, so everyone who would try to get past it would get killed or would know how to disable it. In a school! I would call that negligent. Lumos!"

Nev's Lumos was not strong enough to completely disable the plant, but at least it stopped throttling them. Mione then cast a Lumos Maxima, while Harry and Daphne both went for the bluebell flames. That finally defeated the plant and now, free again, they followed the path through the stone passageway until they reached the room with the flying keys. 

It didn't take Harry, the trained and experienced seeker that he was, to spot the correct key flying around and point at it. 

"There, it has to be that one. I'll go and get it."

Everyone was stunned how he always managed that, just like with spotting the snitch. For spectators it always seemed like he just randomly flew around until he found and caught it, but no. He had a natural talent for that.

It didn't take him more than a minute to catch it and land gracefully, so that they could open up the door and end up in the room with Minnie's giant chess set.

"Oh damn, I hate chess!"

Daphne just couldn't hold back that exclamation, which made everyone laugh, but then Mione reassured her that they wouldn't have to. She explained that Professor McGonagall had created that and she had also told the two of them her backdoor to deactivate it. Mione went to the rook on the left side, placed her one hand on him and with her other hand she began to make intricate wand movements. After around twenty seconds she finished with a quietly and calmly spoken Finite, which made all the chess pieces disappear until the next person would enter and reset the board. Now they could go on and enter the next room.

Harry knew what was laying ahead and prepared himself to cast a bubble-head charm, but Daphne was faster. 

"Florate fragantia!"

It was a spell that only Hermione had ever heard of, but she herself had to admit that it hadn't crossed her mind to use it against the smell of the freshly dead troll.

"Smart, Daphne. How do you know that charm?"

The blonde girl blushed.

"Well, it is something my mother used to do when I was younger. I loved the smell of flowers even back then and I could sleep way better. I taught it myself from memory and an advanced book once I got here. Our common room smells way too much like mould and the sea's water."

Mione smiled. Seems like she wasn't the only smart and talented witch in their year, she had just never bothered to look beneath the surface of many, many fellow students.

Next up was - finally - the potions room. Upon entering black flames lit up in the passageways behind and before them. The only thing inside the room was a table with seven potion bottles next to each other and a piece of parchment laying in front of it. Before Mione could go ahead with solving it, Daphne hurried forward and grabbed the parchment, beginning to read the riddle out aloud,

"Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Two of us will help you, whichever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number hold only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

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

First, however slyly the poison tries to hide

You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;

Second, different are those who stand at either end,

But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;

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

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Fourth, the second left and the second on the right

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

Neville, that much was clear, was clueless, but Daphne was already working on solving it. Mione had to admit, the girl was very clever and had something most wizards lacked: logic. Otherwise they all would have seen how old Dumbles was playing them.

It took the Slytherin witch a while, but eventually she got there and picked the smallest bottle, handing it to Harry, who smiled in return. Neville was both excited and surprised, pulling Daphne into a hug, before they started to think about how to proceed. Thankfully, Harry and Hermione already had a plan for that, adapting it to the changed circumstances.

"So, I learned the Doubling charm and I think I can duplicate the potion. I guess the smartest thing to do is that I duplicate the potion for the way back for you two and the one to go on for us. Grab two of the brooms from the key room and inform McGonagall and Snape that everything is going according to our plan. No, don't even start to argue, I don't want you to face Voldemort."

Mione made quite clear that there was no way she would change her mind and handed both kids the right potion, hugging them briefly before going ahead through the flames with Harry.

"Mr Potter! And…how are you here, Miss Granger? Well, it doesn't matter. Good to see that you are finally joining us."

"Quirrell! Oh believe me, there is no way I'm gonna help you get the stone for Voldemort."

The man flinched, being surprised at Harry's lack of surprise, his knowledge about his plans and the fact that he dared saying the Dark Lord's name. With a flick of his wand he entrapped both kids in ropes of an incarcerous spell. Then he summoned both their wands, tossing them in some distant corner of the room. Then the strange dialogue between Quirrell and the Dark Lord began, just like last time Riddle wanted to talk to Harry but the professor thought it wouldn't be a good idea. Still, Dark Lords had the tendency to get what they wanted and so Quirrell took off his turban, and turned around, revealing Riddle's face on the back of his head. 

"Harry Potter…"

Harry grinned and replied with ease.

"Hey Tom, long time no see."

Lord Voldemort, usually never showing any of his fears, was startled for a fraction of a second, but then just snarled.

"Don't you dare, Potter! I don't know how you know that name, but you'll tell me once I've got that stone. Quirinius, let the boy look into the mirror."

And the Dark Lord's servant bowed and fulfilled his master's wishes. Harry was still bound by ropes but had gotten a hold of his backup wandd while being levitated in front of the mirror. Once again - Dumbledore must have charmed the mirror so only Harry could get it out, since he had definitely no desire to get a hold of it - the stone appeared in his pocket while he told Tom a lie about what he saw. Without really paying attention he wondered how the old meddler had managed to bewitch the mirror - an ancient artefact - to not show him his desires anymore. A beautiful piece of magic, that he had to admit, even if it used him as bait for Riddle. Now he had the stone, the one thing the Dark Lord needed and wanted. That meant that it was time to drop the act and initiate their attack on Tom.

Voldemort was still watching Harry, not believing him what story he was telling him, but before the Dark Lord could tell Quirrell to send a Cruciatus in the girl's direction for motivation, Harry's posture changed. He seemed - confident. How could that little first year appear so confident?

Harry, despite being by now able to utilise some wandless magic, used his second wand, which was always charmed invisible on his side, to lift the incarcerous spell. The ropes dropped and with a flick of his wand he sent a stunner towards Quirrell. Sure, he was able to block the spell, but it had only been a distraction to free Mione and summon their wands. Which actually had worked. 

What followed now was probably the least impressive duel in the history of magic, with maybe the exception of Lockhart against Snape. Well, Quirrell was at least able to throw some spells at Harry, but he really was a timid and weak man. Tom himself couldn't intervene since he was too weak to take over the body. That meant that Harry and Mione threw some mild curses to neutralise but not maim Quirrell. That would be hard to explain. 

After a leg locker combined with a banishing charm slamming Quirrell into a wall, Mione summoned his wand while Harry walked up to him. They had thoroughly discussed what they would do with Quirrell and had come to the conclusion that he was more or less dead already, or he at least would be when Harry would banish the Dark Lord out of him. That meant Harry wouldn't have to feel bad for evoking his mother's protection. 

Riddle was screaming, not yet out of pain but anger. That would change though, since Harry Potter was now coming up to him, planting both his hands on Quirrell's head.

Pain.

Terrible pain.

That was the only thing he was able to feel while the skin of his weak little vessel began burning. He knew that this body wouldn't be able to contain him any longer so he did the only smart thing.

He left. 

The leech, that Tom Riddle currently was, headed out of the castle, leaving Quirrell to die, making his way further south hoping to find one of his servants to bring him back. That was certainly not the last they had seen of the powerful Lord Voldemort.

In the small chamber, Harry and Hermione were now standing next to a burnt body, hugging and being relieved that it was all over. Now they had to hurry, because Dumbledore would probably arrive every second now, surely monitoring his enchantment on the mirror or something like that. Didn't matter how, but he probably knew that the stone was now no longer inside the mirror and he was on his way. 

Simply because he didn't want to take any chances with Riddle trying to steal it again, Harry smashed the stone on the floor, just in time. Because only a few seconds after that the flames in the passageway collapsed and Dumbledore, Minnie and Severus were hurrying into the room.

"Mr Potter… and Miss Granger. Are you alright?"

"Headmaster! Yes, now we are. It was Quirrell, he wanted to steal the stone and we just couldn't let that happen. He would have brought Voldemort back."

Severus had to grin, the kids were playing their roles pretty good. A while after Harry and his friends had disappeared, Neville and Daphne had returned. He wasn't really happy with them being involved but it was quite clear that those two were stubborn. Just moments later Dumbledore apparated into the castle, one of the perks of being headmaster. He fed them some lie of realising halfway to London that Fudge, who was asking for him, was currently at a convention of the ICW in Norway and so the whole thing must be a trick to get him out of Hogwarts. All hogwash if you'd ask Severus. 

Either way, the three of them then hurried down into the chamber with the stone in it, only to see Quirrell dead and both Harry and Hermione alive and well. While Harry told what had transpired here, though most of it was probably a lie, Minnie rushed to Hermione and acted like she had to comfort her. Obviously, that girl has had worse than that and was presumably tougher than many wizards, for the old meddler she was still only a muggleborn first year, confused and clueless. 

After some basic explanations of Lily's sacrifice and the reassurance that the destruction of the stone was no big deal, they were all escorted back up through a hidden passage that opened when Dumbles touched a certain spot on the wall. They all ended up behind a painting of Merlin near the grand staircase, then the kids were all shooed to the hospital wing since they did just face the Dark Lord and killed his vessel.

Obviously both of them were sent back to their dorms pretty quickly since they had not sustained any injury at all, well, excluding the bit of bruising thanks to the incarcerous. The whole school was talking about Quirrell's disappearance, though no one knew he died, excluding Nev and Daphne. But to be honest, that topic of discussion got boring pretty fast since the exams were already done and no one really missed the professor. He hadn't been that good a teacher and was pretty secretive. 

Instead, everyone started talking about the upcoming quidditch match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw, because the lions were top candidates for the cup, especially thanks to Harry. He, though no one knew it, was very very eager to win said game since last time he had missed it and because of that they lost. Not this time.

And Harry was right. It was a long game, yes, but in the end their chaser line was damn strong. Especially Katie, also playing her first season this year, delivered quite strong. The lions were already ninety points ahead, before Harry spotted the snitch near the Ravenclaw chaser, a sixth year whose name he honestly didn't remember. But instead of racing towards him he tried to outplay him with a Wronski Feint, the move he had copied off from Victor Krum at the world cup. He could basically feel Mione panicking though he didn't even see her during his nosedive. She never liked it when he pulled manoeuvres like that, but he still did it, because he was skilled enough and it tended to work. Just like this time. 

The Ravenclaw seeker, flying on a Nimbus 2000 just like Harry, spectacularly crashed into the ground, giving Harry the time to pull up and hunt the little golden ball, which he easily caught, ending the game with a lead of two hundred and forty points, hereby easily securing the quidditch cup. 

Madame Hooch handed the cup to Oliver Wood once all the players had landed, who then instantly gave it to Harry. After some cheering Harry then continued to hand it over, this time to a brightly smiling Minerva McGonagall. All of Gryffindor house then made their way into the common room to celebrate properly. Believe it or not, they wanted to carry Harry all the way, but the boy denied that, claiming that he had to finish something before he joined. 

Truth be told, he just wanted some peace and quiet, sitting next to Mione and thinking about how much better their school year was without any gigantic changes. The result was still the same so they hoped all was still on track.

But what they couldn't deny after all was that things had changed. Not only the whole situation with Ronald Weasley, no, so much more. They realised that all over again when Severus came over to them once the crowd was gone, congratulating Harry for the win and admitting that he had inherited some of his father's talents. Not even Snape could deny that James had been quite skilled in a variety of things, despite all the bullying and pranking.

But Snape wouldn't be Snape if he didn't point out that Harry had - luckily - inherited more of his mother's talents. A statement which made the young boy smile, not only because it was something nice to hear, but also because it was a symbol for all the changes they had made under the radar of the old meddler.

Notes:

That's it for today, hope you liked it.

Always looking forward to your reviews. See ya all next week