Fourth Enchantment

AN- Freaking hell. You have no idea how long this took me. Actually, you probably do, since you've waited do god damned long for it. Well, here it is. The result of over a dozen attempts to bash my head against writers block, a million attempts from life to stop me writing this that I won't explain to try and a BILLION other things. Seriously, I can't excuse how long this took, besides saying that in a way I needed to sit back and actually look at what I was writing and wonder just what went wrong...

I'll say it up front, I dislike this chapter. Hell, I fear that I hate the entire tone I've unfortunately bred. I just can't seem to do Shinji and Warhammer 40K-eque Badass Awesomeness coupled with hilarious moments. Alas, Harry Potter is very lacking in badass things to write about in year one, or in the series in general, since Shit tends to only go down once a year, so now I'm just focussing on trying to make my own Badass and just finish this damn year. Either way, I thank the hundreds who have reviewed and the many more who followed/favoured this fic; I never expected so much interest. Either you REALLY have nothing better to read or I'm actually doing something right. Regardless, this chapter's for you awesome guys/gals who did it. Hopefully with this out the way I can continue this fic without a nine month pause... hahaha... yeah right.

Disclaimer: Do you hear that? That is the sound of me not owning anything... and the tears of rage that accompany my lack of owning on the subject of Harry Potter and the Nasuverse.

Midnight is a very prominent time for Important Events to happen within. The reason behind this is sort of vague: it might be due to it being the point between two days, so is an excellent time for all sorts of Magic to be worked; it could be because at such a time in the night all good meaning people are happily asleep, so unlikely to interfere; or it could be just because its more dramatic than having a duel at half two in the afternoon. Either way, as far as instances for a duel to occur, midnight is as good as any other.

"Not long to go Hermione, we should get going." Stated Harry eagerly as he stared at the large clock mounted on the wall of the Ravenclaw common-room. "We wouldn't want Malfoy to assume we got cold feet and leave, would we?"

Hermione just scowled slightly, having been against the idea of a duel from the very start. "I assume not, wouldn't we?"

"Are you still annoyed with me?"

"Is the sky still blue? Of course I'm annoyed. It annoys me that I'm now in a duel that I'll probably loose. It annoys me that we're going to be breaking the rules. It annoys me that you refuse to listen to common sense sometimes."

"I know, I know..." Harry sighed. "I am sorry, you know. What more can I say? What more can I do?"

"Actually listen to me for a change?" She huffed.

"Well, next time I'm about to drag you off to break the rules I'll ask, okay?"

"Fine." Hermione still seemed irritated, but at least she was talking to The Boy Who Lived again. It was good enough though, so Harry led his friend out into the school and towards the Gryffindor portrait where Neville had agreed to wait. The boy in question was there, so without a word by either male in the trio they began to walk through the silent school to the Trophy Room, where little to their knowledge someone other than a blonde fop waited.

XXXXXXXXXX

Meanwhile in another part of the school- the forbidden third floor corridor to be precise- Professor Quirrel lurked. Quirrel was good at lurking, nearly as good as he was at killing. The man had always cared more for his own well being than others, so he had picked up the ability to seem unnoticeable early on in his life, then refined it to become forgettable. Add in his talent with the Disillusionment Charm, and you had yourself a perfect sneak. It was this talent in staying unnoticeable that had first perked the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher's mysterious benefactor's interest, when he had first read the mind of the vampire attack survivor in the forest he had been lurking in.

The reason Quirrel was lurking was because the voice literally in the back of his head had told him to. The objective that the both of them were working towards was obtaining that which the elderly headmaster had clearly hidden within the locked door on the third floor corridor (Specifically stating that something was forbidden to enter was just asking for someone to visit).

So Quirrel had decided that the current night was as good as any other to begin examining the defensive measures put in place. Since nothing could go wrong by doing so.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Harry, are you sure this a good idea?" Repeated Neville for what he felt was the tenth time. "I mean, I doubt Malfoy would show up anyway. Can't we just give up... this is against the rules."

"Yes Neville, this is a marvellous idea." Reiterated the other boy. "Like I said before, this is a perfect way to shut Malfoy up."

"And the rules?" Reminded Hermione.

"What of them? Screw the rules, this is Hogwarts. Its already a given that Hogwarts was designed specifically for rules to be broken. I mean, look at this whole curfew idea."

The intelligent girl sighed deeply as they continued walking. "Not this argument again..." She trailed off.

"What do you mean?" Asked Neville.

"You weren't there at our table on the day we we first got sorted, but after Dumbledore's speech Harry got this stupid idea in his head as to the Headmasters discipline guideline."

"Well it does make sense." Mentioned Harry defensively. "This is a school that teaches Magic, so regular rules reinforcement can't exactly work, can it? So Dumbledore can't exactly keep an eye on his students and stop them getting into trouble, can he? That's where the Third Floor Corridor comes in..."

Hermione knew exactly where this was going, having already heard Harry's 'theory' previously and thought that it was just as stupid as she had initially assumed it to be. "Harry, do I really need to tell you that your idea makes you sound like some sort of paranoid conspiracy theory... and don't you even dare respond that its not paranoia if they really are out to get you."

"Look, why else would Dumbledore specifically tell us not to go into the Third Floor Corridor unless he really did want his students there? He's been a teacher for who knows how many years, so he should have figured out by now that telling a kid not to do something encourages them to actually do it, meaning that his wording was deliberate!"

"Harry," The witch hissed, repeating the argument she had first used at the dining table. "The Headmaster was warning the students, not performing reverse psychology."

"I'm getting confused now." Butted in Neville.

"Its much simpler than it sounds." The Boy Who Lived insisted. "Dumbeldore can't do much to stop us children from getting up to mischief and potentially harmed, so instead he draws attention away from the actually dangerous Forbidden Forest filled with monsters and who knows what, to the Third Floor Corridor instead. Therefore rebellious students will put their efforts into exploring that location instead of getting eaten by giant spiders in the only other interesting and dangerous place in the school instead."

"That plan seems overly long and complicated."

"Exactly. Don't people here insist that Dumbledore is half insane, therefore such an implausible plan actually seems feasible!"

"I'm not even going to argue anymore. I wash my hands of this damned argument." Hermione decided.

"Surprisingly, that wasn't that unusual of an idea when it comes to what most people think Dumbledore's mind works like. I mean, Nan says he's a dozen sweets short of a packet of Bertie Bott's Every Flavoured Beans." Mumbled Neville curiously, as if he was actually considering Harry's idea to not be just a load of rubbish.

"Look, how about we hurry up and get this stupid duel out of the way, before one of us gets expelled!"

"Fine." Cue an eyeroll from a certain male. "Lets pick up the pace."

With no further arguments, the group arrived at the location selected for the duel, the School's Trophy Room. Much to Harry's annoyance and Hermione's smug delight, the Slytherin's never showed up. The trio were alone when they heard the sudden grumbling of the notorious school caretaker Filch and her cat.

"I really should have guessed that he was going to do this." Stated Harry rhetorically. "I really should have."

"What's that Mrs Norris? Students in the Trophy Room?"

"Meow."

"Students in the well?"

"Meow, meow!"

"Fire in the barn?"

"Meow."

"No, the trophy room?" Concluded Filch. "Well, we'd better go and see, eh?"

Hermione sighed. Neville paled. And Harry was annoyed. "I should have guessed that you were right, Hermione."

"See!? See!?"

"Lets just go, shall we?"

As much as it bothered Harry to run, he didn't want to get caught this early on, so running was the only option. Rest assured Malfoy's treachery would not be forgotten, nor would it be forgiven.

After fleeing the room by causing a distraction elsewhere, Neville, Hermione and Harry managed to avoid initial detection, although from the grumblings of the caretaker they could tell that he was following closely behind them.

"Any ideas?" Asked Neville.

"Not really. Keep running." So they did, but they didn't exactly have anywhere to go. It the night the school of Hogwarts seemed much different, while none of the group was particularly knowledgeable on the layout of Hogwarts. In short, they were lost and had nowhere to run.

"STUDENTS ON THE THIRD FLOOR CORRIDOR!" Screeched a voice as they passed a large wooden door. The group turned suddenly to find a transparent figure, a ghost. In other circumstances Harry would have enjoyed meeting a ghost, but this one was being a pain in the ass.

"Its Peeves." Moaned Neville. "He always picks on us first years."

"ICKLE FIRSTIES ON THE THIRD FLOOR CORRIDOR!" Peeves shouted a second time.

"If you keep doing that, we'll be caught!"

"So? STUDENTS ON THE-"

"Shut up Peeves!" Harry said plain and simply. "I swear that I don't know how and I don't know why, but if you don't shut up right now I will find a way to punch you in the face."

"STUDENTS ON THE THIRD FLOOR CORRIDOR!"

"There over there!"

"We don't have time for this." The witch complained, recognising that this was wasting time, and she sure as hell didn't want to get in trouble and have all the points she had earned removed. Then her eyes settled on the door and she got an idea. "Alohamora!" She pointed her wand at the door and cast the spell, having remembered reading the unlocking charm previously in one of the library books she had taken out. The door swung open and she pulled the two boys into the room beyond the door, slamming it shut behind her as she did so.

Almost immediately the sounds from outside vanished, as if charmed to not pass through the now shut door. The three waited impatiently, with a minute passing by in shushed silence. After that minute though, nobody had opened the door. Peeves, for whatever reason, hadn't told on them.

"They must be gone by now." Neville said quietly. "We could leave now."

"Give it a few more minutes just to be safe. Isn't Peeves supposed to be a prankster? I wouldn't put it past him to be waiting outside just to spring a trap on us."

"So we wait." Concluded the girl. "Where are we anyway?"

"Oh no." Neville paled further. "Didn't Peeves scream something about the Third Floor!"

"Oh no." She echoed. "This is terrible. If we're caught here, the punishment will be dreadful! I don't care what Harry says, we should leave. Now. Before we get in trouble. There's a reason why Professor Dumbledore said this corridor was forbidden!"

"Filch, remember? Besides which, this is a perfect time for me to prove you wrong. Lets just take a quick look; what could go wrong?" Almost immediately Harry realised that he had said something he shouldn't have, but couldn't exactly take it back. When 'nothing could go wrong' is said, it always does go wrong! Murphy guarantees it! But he was curious, and Rin was mentally bothering him to check it out just to satisfy her own curiosity, so while he might have been being a bit too accommodating to a figment of his imagination, he did want to see what lay at the end of this surprisingly large and wide corridor.

"But Harry-"

"Hermione, trust me on this one."

"Don't I have a say in this?" Asked Neville.

"No. Come on, it'll be fun."

"No!"

"I'll go alone then." Commented Harry. "I'll be quick anyway, so come or don't, its up to you." He began to walk, trying to avoid the various cobwebs obscuring the forbidden part of the school from view.

"I hate you sometimes Harry." Regardless, Hermione followed reluctantly after her friend, if only to keep him out of danger, while Neville followed more hesitantly behind them.

Eventually they reached the end of the corridor without much delay and came to a new room. This one was tremendously massive, simple in design and made of cold, hard stone. It wasn't the room that caught the attention of the group though: it was the giant three headed dog lazing in the centre of it, with nothing holding it besides the three chains attached to the dog's three collars around its three necks.

"By the Root..."

"Its a Cerberus!" Neville screamed in terror, pointing at the dog. The mountain of fur awoke, its six identical eyes opening at once to signal its awakening. With ease the black mass of taut muscle rose form its laying position to regard the three children whom had been foolish enough to wake it.

"My Root, it's a Phantasmal Beast! And what is it doing here!" Puzzled Rin, though Harry ignored her commentary because it really wasn't the time or the place. He was looking at something with a mouth large enough to swallow him whole, and puzzling over its nature wasn't going to help him.

"Ggggrrrrrrrrrr!" From the beast originated a deep growl, which resonated through the room. It wasn't a roar, but it was loud enough to cause Neville to flinch away in fear.

"I've read about them in Fantastical Beasts and Where to Find Them, but never thought I'd see one..." Hermione trailed off, too busy looking at the trails of drool pouring from the sharp tooth rimmed mouths of the dangerous beast. Then the realisation settled in, and both Neville and Hermione turned tail and ran from the beast -screaming loudly- back towards the door they had first entered through.

Harry had remained though. He was curious. The thing was no doubt fast enough to swallow them whole and had been given plenty of time to attack, so why hadn't it? By all rights if the thing was going to eat him, he would have been dead by now. So why?

Then he caught sight of the trapdoor he was standing on top of, and noticed the thick chains binding the dog to prevent its escape.

"Harry!" Came Hermione's cry. "Run!"

But Harry didn't run. The thing was guarding something, something important enough to warrant a Cerberus being brought in to guard it like a demented guard dog, and he wanted to know what. He had read tales of Things greater than mankind, Things capable of killing humans almost easily. The tales of Nasu always had humans as being on the lower levels of the totem pole (Save for few exceptions), so could he really run away so easily from one such thing? He was not scared of such a beast, despite it having the power to kill him easily.

Because it couldn't. Those chains made sure of that.

So he stepped forwards.

The beast snapped as it sensed him approach it, growing closer to the trap door, and snapped one of its three jaws at it. Harry managed to stop himself from flinching, since Angra Mainyu and a Dead Apostle were ten times worse than even a beast like this.

"Harry!?" The voice was more scared for Harry now.

"Come back, its fine." Harry stated. Hermione and Neville had almost left him in the corridor, and he couldn't blame them since its what any sane person would do, flee in this situation, but they refused to leave without him. He was grateful for that, and was pleasantly happy about that too.

"Its a giant dog with three heads!" Pointed out Neville, shaking like a leaf.

"And its bound and unable to reach me. Look." Harry took another step forwards, and the Cerberus growled again. "And again." Another growl, this one accompanied by a snap that couldn't even reach within five metres of the boy.

"Harry, you shouldn't push your luck." Warned Hermione, though she did walk forwards on unsteady legs to approach it, though she was a dozen more metres back than Harry. Neville remained where he was near the door.

"Seriously, it can't hurt us. Look." Leaning down to the floor, Harry used his wand and jabbed it sharply at the ground. With force of will in accordance of his wand he cast a silent Alteration, removing a section of the stone from its place in the floor to make a small rock that could fit into his palm. Then, he lobbed it straight at the Cerberus' face. Then he repeated the process, throwing a second rock at a different head.

"Come on you stupid dog! Come and get me then! Your momma's a bitch and your father smells of shit, and you're uglier than Medusa herself (Hot form not included)! So come and get me if you think you're so tough! Try and eat me, because you can't! Hahahaha!"

A pregnant pause where the other two inhabitants of the room looked on in fear, then the silence was gone and the three headed beast was tearing its vocal chords apart to roar at the group, writhing against its chains to try and swallow the thrower whole. Harry ignored the deafening noise and stood there defiantly, confident that he was safe where he was standing. The chains wouldn't let the beast close enough to harm him, and it could do nothing to him.

"See?" Concluded Harry, ignoring how terrified his friends are. "Perfectly safe."

BANG!

Then a resounding CRACK echoed through the room, followed by two additional echoes of shattering metal as the chains holding the great three headed beast shattered and clanged to the floor.

The Cerberus, noticing its sudden freedom, took a shaky step forwards on its muscular legs then another more confident step, before letting loose a great roar from its trio of maws.

"Oh... well maybe that was a bad idea."

"YOU THINK!?"

Neville stumbled backwards in terror once more, while Hermione looked at the sight of the released beast in shock. Harry however reacted differently; he cursed his own stupidity. Suddenly everything he had just done seemed incredibly idiotic. He should have just ignored his own curiosity and left with the other two earlier."I am such an fool." He cursed. "Why the hell did I bring us here? Why didn't I expect an event like this to occur? The duel could have been avoided, we could have left this place earlier before anything could happen, and I could have NOT pissed off the three headed dog."

Further deliberation from the young boy was cut short as the full reality of an XXXXX rated beast being let loose came to mind. He had to get his friends out of here. He was the reason they were here, and he was the reason that it was so aggravated, so it was his responsibility to ensure that they survived. Harry had been revelling in his new found freedom from the Dursleys and happiness in his new school for far too long, he had not even perceived the fact that he could ever really be placed in a dangerous scenario. Even with the suspicions that he had a Dark Lord after him, even with the Headmasters warnings of danger, even with his past and the stories he had grown up reading, he had assumed that he had years to go before he would have to take responsibility for the harsh reality of the world.

He had been wrong. He had been far too quick to forget the bloody and brutal message that the Nasuverse had taught him, and now because of his hubris he now had a pissed off mythical beast growling at him, promising his death. Once more Harry thought to himself "I am such an idiot..."

"ROOOAAAAARRR!" The air vibrated as the three heads bellowed out their anger. The mass of dark fur and powerful muscles began its violent stride towards the trio.

"Run... RUN!" Ordered Harry, placing all of his desperation into the command. "GET OUT OF HERE!"

The other two complied, needing no further guidance to turn around and sprint for the the door leading to the corridor. After a momentary pause, Harry followed them, Magically Reinforced limbs allowing him to easily catch up them. They sped through the door, Harry slamming it shut as soon as they had passed the threshold. "Keep running!" He insisted, turning his attention to the door.

A quick flash of insight struck the boy, he quickly gathered his Magic and channelled it into the door, Reinforcing it as quickly as he could. He then Altered the structure of the door, forcing the wood to distort and thrust into the brickwork of the walls, while he Altered the walls as quickly as he dared to allow space for the wood to inhabit.

The reinforcement did its job as it temporarily halted the speeding mass of muscle as it gained momentum and smashed into the door, almost breaking it instantly through sheer power. The pause gave opportunity for his friends to run further away.

Harry knew that his foolish actions had led to this event, so he would take responsibility. His friends would definitely survive the night... even if he did not. "Hermione, Neville..." He called out loudly with a grimace. "I'm sorry for this. Run, get a teacher. I caused this, so I'll try and hold it off."

As if sensing its cue, the large dog used its mass to smash into the door once more, causing it to break apart, while its great size forced the brickwork to rupture too.

Harry leapt back several times until he was a fair distance away from the broken door. He waited in anticipation, letting his Magic surge into the shaft of wood in his hand, ready to cast, whether it be one of the few spells he could use or his own brand of Magicraft. He still found it difficult to describe what it felt like to wield his wand, but Finis Humanis Superbiam obeyed his will regardless, and he knew that he could count on his Wands support in the meantime.

At the other end of the corridor Hermione was dragging Neville away as fast as she could, terror lending energy to her movement. "Come on Neville, we have to get out of here!"

"But what about Harry?" Protested the other boy. "We can't just leave him here!"

"But we have to get a teacher!"

"But its a Cerberus and he's a first year! If we leave Harry, he'll die!" Neville may have been angry still as Harry, but he couldn't just leave him to die. He just couldn't. What would his Gran say? Besides which, they were friends. You don't leave your friend to die.

"But Neville..." The smart girl argued. "What can we do if we stay? We'll die too then!"

SMASH! After multiple tackles the great beasts power finally overwhelmed the wall, demolishing it and allowing its large frame to finally leave the confines of the room it had been trapped in. It was free now, it could leave! But first, it had to take its anger out on those that had disturbed it.

"Hey you!" Yelled the young boy with a scar upon his forehead as he looked up defiantly at the large form. "Take this! Lumos!"

The basic light charm Lumos was one of the first spells taught to any First Year in Hogwarts. It produced a bright glow from the end of the wand tip and could be basically compared to a torch in most contexts, so barely useful enough to ever be used besides if you need a torch.

Harry however was in tune with his Magic and could cast without a wand. Harry had realised early on after receiving his wand that it was not necessary to have one to cast a spell. The only two things a wand would actually do is firstly focus your Magic, link directly to your reserves so you could still channel your inner power even without training in directly controlling your Magic. The second thing was to amplify the Magic, using the nature of the ingredients and foci in the wand and its relationship to the Wizard to take the strand of Magic entered into the wand and multiply its intensity, converting it to a wave or a beam or another form and ultimately strengthening it, allowing spells to be cast resulting is specific effects without worrying about how the spells ultimately work.

Therefore when Harry cast the basic charm, he knew that the wand could amplify it and power up the spell if he spent more Magic, so instead of a small torch of light erupting from his wand, a vast flash was issued instead, like a supernova in his palm.

White power momentarily blinded the six eyes of the Cerberus that had been locked onto the boy, eliciting several barks of pain. In this single moment Harry knew that he had only a brief window of opportunity to try and fight the beast. He knew little offensive spells and was aware of the danger of the creature in front of him. Why else would it be used to guard something unless it was a deterrent to even powerful spell casters?

As such, Harry chose to try and deal with this scenario in the best way he could... by Burning it with Fire.

Using his Magic as a fuel, Harry encouraged his Magic to pour through his wand in a thin beam and aimed it at the Cerberus. Harry briefly though back to Aunt Marge Incident when he had burnt the curtains, and repeated the experience, willing the Magic he had expelled with every fibre of his being to react with the Oxygen in the air around him. At first Harry had assumed he had failed, but then after a brief spark the beam he had imagined was engulfed in a narrow stream of fire that hit its target right in the chest, causing the thick hair to combust.

"Wow... that was certainly more potent than when I first performed it." Commented Harry. Marvelling at just how useful a wand was.

"That it was."

The momentary joy was short lived, Cerberus' had an innate Magical Resistance and Harry's spell had barely damaged it.

"Well shit." he eloquently put it upon realising this fact. A second later the wall of muscles slammed into him, throwing him backwards along the corridor. If Harry had not Reinforced himself beforehand he would have probably broken bones from the impact. Instead, he was only in extraordinary pain, but relatively unhurt, though he did feel like he had lost a fight with a rhino. "This is going to suck." he muttered upon staggering to his feet once more, wand still grasped tightly in his hands.

"Harry!" Cried out Hermione, still indecisive over whether to run and get a teacher like her common sense was dictating she do, or if she should agree with Neville and try and foolishly assist.

"I'm fine!" He insisted. "Get a teache-" He stopped mid-sentence when the three headed dog charged once more, heads ready to bite this time instead of just head-butt like before.

"Hermione! We c-can't just leave him!" Insisted Neville as he fearfully looked on. "We have to help."

Hermione fought herself internally between the two difficult decisions. Unfortunately for her, her Gryffindor traits won the fight with her more cautious Ravenclaw attributes.

She sieved through her vast mind for a solution to help her friend. As far as she was aware, she had not read any books on how to stop a Cerberus, besides the mythological idea of playing music, which was useless in the present situation, so she continued to think. She finally remembered one of the few spells she believed she could cast, even if she had only read the theory in class and not actually performed the spell yet.

"Windgardium Leviosa!" She punctuated precisely with the correct wand movement targeted at a loose piece of rubble from the shattered wall. To her surprise the spell worked despite the pressure she was under and the slab of brick rose from the ground. Quickly, she flicked her wand once more at the creature before her spell began to fail. The slab smacked the beast in its right head, causing it to grind to a halt and look over to the terrified girl. "L-leave him alone!" She shouted, tears almost leaking from her eyes.

It complied, leaving its initial target alone for the moment. The beast named Fluffy turned its attention to is new prey...

Harry, upon seeing Wingardium Leviosa, remembered his own rather similar spell. "LEVITATION!" He commanded imperatively, flooding as much Magic through his connection to Finis Humanis Superbiam as he could, while the wand reluctantly bent to his will to convert the regular tendril of Magic sent from his Magical Core to lift a target into something much stronger than what the Wizard could actively achieve on his own.

The wave of invisible will struck the ceiling above the hairy beast, then with a tremendous tug of effort the ceiling trembled and shook. Harry's force of will commanded the material making up the ceiling to converge at the dangerous beasts location, so it did. The roof caved in as more than a tonne of rubble fell onto the back of the creature.

"Hah...hah...hah..." Harry panted while sweat dripped down his face and back from the exertion, spent of most of his Magic, barely enough left in his reserves to cast even a single technique.

"Hermione, you okay?" Inquired Harry slowly as he tried to back away from the pile that Fluffy was buried under.

"Y-yeah." Hermione ran over to her friends location, Neville in tow.

"Do you think its over?" Questioned Neville.

SMASH!

"Apparently not."

Fluffy shook off the rubble like insects and turned his attention back to the trio with his four glaring eyes; the third head being no more after having been crushed to pulp under a particularly large chunk of rock. The situation had not changed save for how Fluffy was now lacking a single mouth to eat them with and was now even angrier.

"GGGGROOOAAARRR!"

"Run again!"

"No!" Protested Harry. "Its faster than us, we'd never escape."

"But how?!"

"We fight it." He declared mater of factly. "I'm nearly spent, so I can't offer much. But if we cast together we might be able to increase the potency of our assault."

Fluffy approached the trio much slower than before he had been crushed under the weight of the ceiling, but still rather quickly. The remains of the chains connected to the two remaining collars elicited a clanking noise as the creature limped and the metal fell against burnt fur.

"Lightbulb!" Thought Harry triumphantly in a sudden moment of realisation.

"Harry! What do we do, its getting closer!"

"Distract it for me! I have a plan!"

"WHAT THE HELL COULD YOU POSSIBLY DO!" Shouted the other two at once.

"Something." He insisted, calling upon the last dregs of his power. "NOW!"

"Fl-Flipendo!" Pleaded Neville loudly. His wand promptly ignored him, projecting a few sparks.

"Flipendo!" Echoed Hermione, if only due to her limited spell vocabulary. She knew that the Cerberus had some Magical Resistance like Trolls, but then again she was only aiming to distract.

Then it was upon her. Harry at her side saw this, so he pushed her out the way, towards Neville, who was up against the wall and trying to make himself as small a target as possible. Harry looked into the eyes of the beast and the row of sharp teeth fast approaching him, and he frowned. They couldn't go on like this. They were first years, there chances of success were low at best, non existent at worst. He had not expected his friends to stick around, but they had.

It was obvious. He had to end it now. He reached down for his shoe, for the MacGuffin that he had been saving for a rainy day. From inside his footware he slipped out the knife that he had taken to carrying on his person, and he poised himself for the right moment. Then, using as little Magic as possible he topped up its Reinforcement, and threw it at one of the two remaining heads.

Admittedly one might question his decision considering how he had no actual experience in knife throwing to his name (as far as he was aware) but at this point Harry was willing to try anything.

Much to his surprise, his aim had been unusually good, his body having instinctively thrown it correctly, though he had no idea how he had done so. It should have bothered him how he was proficient in something he shouldn't know, but he had more important issues to deal with. The sharp point buried into its maw up to the hilt, inflicting a roar of pain and annoyance, causing the mutt to thrash around wildly, although its charge did not halt.

Then with his reinforced body, he lunged at the maw aiming to take a chunk out of him defiantly. Harry ducked- the mouth narrowly avoided him. As quickly as his body allowed, he jabbed his wand at the collar of the beast as it passed.

"ALTER!" With his final spell of the evening cast, the remaining head followed through on its brothers attempt and slammed the boy away. This time he sprouted a tired smile as he was swatted away like a mosquito bothering an elephant, but the damage had been done.

"Well, thank Root for Wizards naturally being more resistant to punishment..." He slammed into the wall and dropped like a sack of potatoes. "And for personal Reinforcement." He finished as said Reinforcement ended, his Magic fully spent, much to his annoyance. "Although it was quite a risk. Too much Reinforcing is Bad, and I haven't had the most time to practice..."

"Damn... I didn't manage to get the final neck, but at least I dealt with the second head." His contribution before being smacked into the wall he was laying against had been to Alter the shape of the collar. Instead of being a thick and bulky ring of metal, it had become a thin and narrow band, with the leftover metal becoming sharp spikes aimed inwards to the neck of its wearer. The head had died instantly due to the damage of having several shafts of metal lodged in its neck.

"Harry!" Cried out Hermione, fearing the worst after seeing the other boy go flying.

"Nah... I'm alive. Seriously, run now. I'm all out and there's still a head left."

"No!" Hermione was cursing her sudden resolution, but she just couldn't leave him, as infuriating as he could be sometimes. No, it was against her nature. Hermione loved having friends, it was a novel experience, so she couldn't just do the sensible thing and run while the Cerberus was too busy mourning its two heads to give chase, even if her first friend was a terrible, terrible fool.

Instead she ignored the logical side of her mind and rans stubbornly to Harry's side, standing between him and the beast. "Stay away from him!"

The Cerberus took little notice of her and swatted her away with one powerful paw strike.

XXXXXXXXXX

Neville wasn't a particularly brave person, not in his opinion. Him being in Gryffindor was a fluke, nothing more than that. He knew this and he accepted this. Quite honestly, he knew he was a burden and weak. He had been told as such by many people, and over time this had become his regular state of thinking when it came to himself.

So it wasn't a surprise to him when Neville could do nothing but watch in terror as Hermione followed Harry's actions and was thrown across the corridor by the strength of the brute, only without the Reinforcement Harry was capable of doing, she didn't get up again. No, she couldn't just shrug it off like other people.

For all Neville knew, she could have been dead. The bookworm definitely wasn't moving, so she could have been dead. Neville didn't want to think this, he didn't want to imagine that she was dead. He didn't want to accept that she had died and that he had done nothing. That he was a spineless coward who couldn't even save his friend from an untimely end before his very eyes.

"She's dead. She's dead." Kept echoing through the boys thoughts, even as Harry struggled to rise and continued to shout at the only girl in the group to 'please be okay!'.

"She's dead. She's dead."

"Neville, run!" He couldn't, he just couldn't. His legs wouldn't work. He was so terrified of joining Hermione. Even as the sole remaining head turned to focus on the single figure still standing, he couldn't run.

"She's dead. She's dead. AND ITS YOUR FAULT, NEVILLE!" Yes, Harry may have caused this to happen, but he didn't mean to set this chain of events into motion. Neville could have stopped him, if he had really tried. And when Harry had realised his actions, hadn't he tried to take responsibility for his actions? Hadn't he told them to run while he held the animal back? Hadn't he shoved Hermione out of the way previously? Even now wasn't he futilely trying to rise and distract it once more while he just stood there! Too scared to act.

Yes, Neville was a coward, in his own opinion. He should have acted, but he didn't. Now someone else close to him was gone.

"She's dead. SHE'S DEAD!"

So there was only one cause of action to perform. If Neville was too scared to move, he had to shed his fear. He had to abandon that which made him weak. The only thing standing in his way was his fear. That, and a giant wall of muscle trying to kill him.

Neville took a step forwards, choosing to ignore the crushing feeling that he was going to die, while the oversized hound sauntered towards him.

He took another step, choosing to close off the part of him that was terrified.

Neville didn't want to stand by and do nothing once more, he didn't want to be scared. So he chose not to be.

He chose to try and hurt the thing that may have killed Hermione, or die trying. He chose to honour his house, to be brave.

The hound was upon him and the frowning boy did not move, nor did he care.

A sudden weight appeared in Neville's still hands, replacing the discarded wand lying by his side, which he ignored. Almost clinically he observed the awe inspiring silver sword inset with rubies and polished to a gleaming point, and didn't question the presence of the Sword of Godric Gryffindor in his hands.

With a loud roar equalling that of his target, Neville thrust the blade forwards into the face of his enemy with all the strength in his young body, which is to say not very much, but the Sword did the rest, Neville's own courage fueling his efforts and fueling the blade.

The sharp edge cut into the flesh of the animal as if it were warm butter, almost anticlimactically easy. Blood spilled from the wound as Neville forced the blade through the entire head, coating the Goblin forged silver in the gore. The beast died quickly, almost surprised at the sudden appearance of the weapon which slew it, and its subsequent death that followed it.

It slumped, the body going limp. With some effort, Neville wrenched out the legendary artefact, studying the blade intently in amazement.

"Bloody hell Neville..." Uttered Harry in surprise, finally standing, although with great effort based on the limp he was sporting. "Either you've been holding out on me when it comes to Magical blades, or we're very lucky. Very, very lucky."

"Yeah." Neville was still studying his weapon intently, until he remembered something important. "Merlin's Pants! Hermione!" Discarding the blade now that its job was done, Neville dashed to his other friends side. Harry struggled to follow.

"Check the pulse!"

"I am!" He snapped back. Neville pressed his fingers against the still girls neck. "There's a pulse, I think. She's just knocked out."

"Thank Root." Harry let loose a breath he had been holding for far too long. "We should get her to the hospital wing though, quickly."

"Yeah..."

"Then we just need to come up with an explanation for what the hell happened here." The Magicraft user gestured around them, at the wrecked corridor and the door destroyed earlier in the fight.

"That will not be necessary." Stated a kind voice. From one end of the wrecked corridor walked the headmaster of Hogwarts, garbed in his regularly colourful robes. While normally a pleasant smile was plastered comfortably on his face, tonight his features had stretched into a rare frown. "I can clearly see myself. At first I had assumed that it was him here, so did not act until one of the paintings contacted me about the loud noises. So I'm sorry, I should have been here sooner."

"Sooner!?" Wheezed Harry. "Why weren't you here in the first place? I mean, you're the headmaster of this school, and apparently one of the greatest wizards in the world, so how the hell did it take you so long to get here?"

Dumbledore did not respond. Instead, he brought out his wand and Conjured a stretcher with a quick flick of his wand. "First things first, I think we should get miss Granger to the hospital wing, and then check you all over." Another flick later, the injured girl had been levitated onto the stretcher, which began to move on its own. "Come, let us talk while we walk."

"P-Proffessor?" Asked Neville, the legendary sword still in hand. "Will Hermione be alright?"

"Poppy is a rather good medic, so I feel that she will be better in no time at all." Responded the wise old man.

While he had agreed to walk and talk, Harry and Neville had nothing to say until Hermione's condition had been confirmed. It was only after she had been handed over to the matrons able hands and that Harry had gotten his own check over (Minor damage to bones and a cracked rib, as well as a case of physical exhaustion and Magical exhaustion, which would be easily cured by a minor bone repairing potion and some sleep) that Neville had popped the question that had been plaguing both boys minds. "So what now?"

"Now," Began Dumbledore, a little of his signature sparkle returning to his eyes. "we get the two of you back to your beds. You've had a long day?"

"Aren't we getting punished?"

"No."

"Why not?" Asked Harry. "I put students in danger, broke the rules and visited the Third Floor corridor and even caused property damage due to the fight!"

"I think seeing your friend in trouble was punishment enough. You've learnt your lesson." Decided Dumbledore. "Students always tend to try to break the rules and I had actually sort of expected someone to get curious and attempt to visit the floor. I had thought the dog would scare anyone away though, him breaking free was something rather expected."

"Ahah!" Thought Harry with a flourish even in the circumstances. "I was totally right before! He did set it up specifically for someone to enter! This must mean I was right!"

"This isn't the time." Reminded Shirou.

Almost Magically, the trio turned a corner and found themselves back in front of the portrait of the Fat Lady leading into the Gryffindor common room.

"How did we get back here so quickly?" Asked Neville in surprise.

"Magic." And with that Dumbledore tapped his nose mysteriously, a lighthearted twinkle in his eyes. Neville shook his head tiredly and made his way back to the portrait.

"Neville," Called back the powerful wizard. "Remember that you are not at fault in this instance. You managed to draw the sword of Godric Gryffindor, something only someone with true courage could do. Speaking of which, I'm afraid that I have to take it from you to return to its proper place."

"S-sure." Neville, finally realising the full scale of what he held in his hand, turned back and offered the sword back almost reverently.

"Now goodnight Neville." Finished Dumbledore after accepting the relic. After the other boy had left, the man returned his attention to the limping boy. "Are you certain you do not wish to spend the night at the hospital wing?"

"I'm fine. I only took a small hit." Lied Harry.

"Very well then. Shall we return to your dorm?"

"No." Decided Harry levelly. "No, I think that its finally time we had a conversation, Dumbledore. I have a lot to ask, and I really want answers."

Dumbledore analysed the boys features for a moment, realised that he would not be heeded by words, then reluctantly agreed. "Yes, perhaps I do owe you a talk."

XXXXXXXXXX

Once Harry was sat down opposite the living legend in his impressive office, he didn't actually realise what to say. There was so much to cover. Why had he been placed with the Dursleys? What really happened that night his parents died? Was he correct in that Voldemort was alive and kicking? And most importantly, just what was Dumbledore thinking when he brought that Cerberus in, and why had he not gotten there sooner? Why had they nearly died?

"I assume you have many questions." Started the elder, breaking the silence as he petted his pet phoenix absent mindedly. "So ask away."

"Well, where to begin..." Grumbled Harry.

"Why not at the beginning?" Recommended Dumbledore.

"Sure. So lets not beat around the bush, the man who killed my parents is alive, isn't he?"

"Alive is a very relative turn." He responded. "I suppose that if anything he's just mostly not dead."

"Mostly?"

"From here on out this is mere speculation, since everyone who was at your home on that dark Halloween is either dead or unwilling to talk, but as McGonagall told you, Voldemort definitely killed your parents, but when he tried to attempt it on you, as far as I can tell it reflected off you and struck him instead." Dumbledore shook his head though, shrugging, as if admitting that Harry's guess was as good as anyone's. "Admittedly the only evidence we have is the scar on your forehead, since not even a body remained of Voldemort, which is rather abnormal, so there is probably more pieces to the puzzle we are missing."

"So if all evidence points to him having taken a deadly death curse to the face, why are we both agreeing that he is alive?"

"There is dark magic out there, my boy." Dumbledore's gaze narrowed. "We live in a world of endless impossibility, where even our own Magic is but the beginning of a world so much larger and more dangerous than we realise- a world that most Wizards prefer to look away from and ignore- and your parents murderer has descended into the depths of the darkness that even I dare not flash a Lumos at. In short, Voldemort was a monster, more inhuman than he was mortal, and as there are methods that can be used to overcome death, I believe he is using one."

"My guess is that he's a ghost." Harry suggested. "I mean, look at Hogwarts. We have an infestation that even the Ghost Busters wouldn't be able to clear out quickly."

"Indeed." The wizard rose from his chair, leaving his mythical companion alone in favour of contemplating and stroking his long beard. "For many years I had heard rumours of a wraith inhabiting the forests of Albania, and I believe that this pitiful spirit was that which remained of Voldemort: a spirit with less substance than a ghost, futilely clinging onto life."

"Next question," Started the Boy Who Lived. "Why in the Root was I placed with the Dursleys of all people!?"

"Just what exactly is this tree root you keep swearing by anyway?" Puzzled the man.

Harry blushed in embarrassment, realising that he kept on using terms that nobody understood. He was actually surprised he hadn't been called him out on it earlier. "Its better than blatantly abusing swear words."

"Indeed." The old man nodded his head in sagely agreement.

"B-besides which, that isn't the important thing!" Harry decided to quickly change the topic of conversation back towards the plot. "So what the hell were you thinking when you left me with them!?"

"You know, I actually thought that it sounded more sophisticated when you swore by that Root thing." Concluded Dumbledore. "I mean, I often say gobledygook during my speeches to reinforce my public persona, so I can't talk, but even so..."

"I am actually really, really, REALLY annoyed right now!" The eleven year old informed calmly. "Out of all of the people in the world, why them? Surely there were others I could have gone to!?"

"My boy-"

"Don't 'my boy' me, Dumbledore!" Snapped Harry. "What sort of able guardian locks their charges in a cupboard under the stairs for nine years, treats them like a slave and gives them a coat hanger for their birthday?"

"Think back to that night we have just discussed." Dumbledore moved from his desk, walking patiently towards one of the various trinkets that littered the expansive office. "Why did Avada Kadava, the one spell which always kills without question or exception, fail to work on you? I lied before; there was another piece of evidence. Complex blood magic had been cast; there was a protection set upon you. I believe Lily, your mother, cast it before her untimely end. As a result, so long as you were kept near someone with the same blood, the protection given to you that night would remain."

"Thus the Dursleys." Mused Harry, remembering that even if he sometimes forgot Pertunia Dursley was his aunt, even if she didn't act like it.

"As those charming Muggle ladies I see once a month say, bingo."

"So I was with them so that I had some measly protection spell on me? You're the strongest wizard in, like, forever! On the scale of Weak to OP, you take being a Badass Old Man Up To Eleven!"

"I feel I should take that as a compliment." Smiled Dumbledore, still fiddling with his device, which was now emitting puffs of green smoke in a pattern Harry was unable to identify.

"Couldn't you have just come up with some wards which were good enough to protect me anyway? Surely it would have been worth not leaving me there with them."

"Let me ask you something, Harry. Was your experience with the Dursleys truly that bad? Did they beat you? Starve you? Torture you?"

"No." Admitted Harry reluctantly, remembering that even if he was treated like a pariah and locked in a cupboard and forced to work, he was fed and clothed, he hadn't been physically touched besides the occasional whack on the head, and Harry had found happiness in his Games, even with Dudley's bullying behaviour. In many ways his childhood was far from perfect and was infinitely detached from any semblance of a normal upbringing, but it the end he had still been happy.

"And do you have any idea about the post war state of our society?" Questioned the powerful Magic user intently, looking to one side distastefully, as if remembering the taste of something quite unpleasant. "There were so many Death Eaters not captured due to pleading 'Imperius', not being found or bribing the corrupt system to escape justice that it was a wonder that they hadn't continued without Voldemort leading them due to just how many there were!"

"Oh."

"They're like cockroaches!" He continued in disgust. "They are always there, impossible to get rid of and can hide like nobodies business! Not only this, Death Eaters can do two things which influenced my opinion: use the Killing curse indiscriminately and Apparate. Do you understand how insane that is? If even one of them thought to get revenge on you, all they would have to do is teleport up close to you if you were ever to leave my wards, say two words, then leave before they could even be caught!"

"That does seem pretty broken." He identified, conceding the point.

"Even with 24/7 guards, it would be simply too much of a risk." A pained look crossed the man's face. "I couldn't bare it if the last of the Potter's were to die for such a reason. No, it was safer to keep you out of the public's eye with the muggles, where you also had the Blood protection to defend you and anonymity to blanket you."

"I suppose that makes sense."

"I am over one hundred you know; that sort of age generally comes with wisdom."

"And sometimes senility." Reminded Harry.

"Indeed, I am not as young as I used to be." To reiterate his point, he returned to his seat, like he couldn't even stand without difficulty. "I am but an old man, but like cheese or vintage wine, I prefer to think I have aged well."

"And so if that was the case, were you the person who kept Obliviating me whenever I tried to leave the Dursleys?" Harry pointed rudely at the man. "That was damned annoying! I mean, why did you keep stop me from leaving!?"

"For all of the above reasons." He pointed out bluntly. "Also, to keep you safe?"

"Really?" Asked Harry, his voice filled with mirth. "Was it truly for 'My Own Good'? Are you sure that you weren't actually trying to manipulate my life to make sure I fulfilled your intricate plots and rigidly kept on course for the destiny you had preprepared for me?"

"What? No! Of course not!" The confusion was now on the other foot; now Dumbledore was the one who was looking at the other like he was mad. "Whatever gave you that impression!?" Harry opened his mouth to answer, but he cut him off. "Don't answer that." He commanded. "What sort of mature old man lets a nine year old boy run away with the circus?"

Harry suddenly felt really stupid. Again. Inner Rin made sure to reiterate this feeling by shouting it from inside his mind. After all, didn't Dumbleore's explanation make a lot more logical sense? Why had he been so focused on the idea that Dumbledore was a Puppet-Master Manipulative Bastard out to try and micromanage his life?

"There, there." Comforted Dumbledore, who was barely stifling the laugh that threatened to leave his lips. "Its only natural for one of your age to have an over active imagination..."

"Sh-shut up..." He flushed under the headmasters stare. "This isn't over you know! There's still more you need to explain!"

"So ask your questions."

And so Harry got onto the crux of the matter, the thing he really needed to cover tonight of all nights.

"How about where the hell were you tonight? You're Dumbledore, aren't you? Greatest wizard ever... apparently, yet somehow it took you that long to get there! If I hadn't managed to keep a level head and if Neville hadn't pulled out his Deus Ex Machina, we would've been dead quicker than you could say to the parents 'oops, your kids just got savaged by a Root damned three headed dog!', and don't even try to evade my questions! I know everything!"

Yes, Harry knew that it was a test, so why was something as ridiculously inappropriate as that been brought in? And if it was a test, why had Dumbledore not been in a position to step in if things went wrong?

"I don't have much to say. That was purely my own mistake, and I regret not arriving sooner." Informed the Headmaster honestly. "As much as others think so, I am not omnipotent; I don't know everything that goes on in these halls. Admittedly, I had detection Charms placed in the chamber, but it was indiscriminate and could not identify individuals, only an entrance. With the amount of people who enter the room to check it or whom would grow curious, it did not require my time. Indeed, Charms were only set up to urgently alert me if one got past the beast."

"So why the hell did you have that Cerberus anyway? And why did you give it such weak chains?"

"The chains broke?" Clarified Dumbledore. "I expected as much once the portraits had sent me a message telling me that they could hear loud sounds coming from the corridor, but I don't know why. The chains were strong enough to hold back the beast indefinitely, and had been Enchanted as well, so the only way it could have been shattered would be if someone had removed the spells and deliberately broken them."

"So you suspect sabotage?"

"Indeed." Agreed the man gravely. "Though I do not see why he performed such a risky move."

"Who did it then? I didn't see anyone there?" And Harry had not, the three of them had been alone and the chains had clearly broken while they were still in the room. In fact, the only way that the chains could have been broken was...

"I see you are unusually sharp." Complimented Dumbledore. "I notice that you have realised the culprit would have had to have been there, so must have masked his presence."

"How? Can Magic even induce invisibility?" If it did, it would have to be a very complicated spell to bend light in such a fashion or do something similar... "Then again, this is Magic we're talking about. It wouldn't surprise me."

"Now all there is to figure out it why Quirrel acted so hastily."

Now Harry was confused. What did the Defence Professor have to do with anything?

"Indeed, why he did so is a mystery. Maybe he saw an opportunity and took it, but I thought that he would continue to observe the defences for the Philosophers Stone more before acting in any way."

"Quirrel? Philosophers Stone? What exactly are you talking about?" The Boy-Who-Lived was very perplexed now. VERY! He had clearly been missing something, or had the two of them been talking about two completely separate topics simultaneously?

"Oh my." Realised the elderly wizard in understanding. "It appears that the two of us have had a misunderstanding."

"Understatement of the century!" The other snapped.

"Its just, after you had said that you knew everything I decided to take it at face value." Admitted Dumbledore. "While it was admittedly unlikely that you would figure it out so quickly, the clues were there, and McGonagall did claim that you were an... interesting... character."

"Everything!?" Harry practically shouted. "Just what the Root have I been missing? I had just assumed that the whole 'enter the forbidden corridor only if you want a very painful death' thing had been a front! I mean, if you specifically tell a bunch of children not to do something, OBVIOUSLY they'd do it anyway, so having worked for so long with kids, you MUST have known this! I thought that this was just a test to keep mischievous students away from the True Danger of the Forbidden Forest, by giving them an impossibly high hurdle to spend all their time trying to figure out a counter to and that it had just gone horribly wrong!"

"Well oops." The Supreme Mugwump declared sheepishly. "It appears that I really misjudged the situation. I don't suppose I can go back to claiming ignorance?"

"NO! I'm curious now! This 'stone' thing nearly got me killed and had Hermione hospitalised, so I want some damned answers!"

"Well I did promise them, didn't I?"

"Yes!"

"Although I am still somewhat mystified as to how you reached your conclusion."

"Well what conclusion was I supposed to have reached then, oh wise one?" Sarcastically berated Harry, ignoring how rude he was being, since he had just been nearly mauled by a giant three headed dog and felt that being polite was much less important than finding out why he and his friends had nearly died.

"I suppose that it would be quicker if I gave all the facts quickly, since it doesn't appear I can cover this up now that you know. There were quite a few signs that I had expected you would find. The break in at Gringotts? How Hagrid had the paper with its story in when you visited him? Maybe a teacher mentioning Nicolas Flamel in passing? Cross examining my chocolate frog card to get to the answer of alchemy? The Philosophers Stone which could transfigure metal to gold and grant immortality? The conclusion that someone wanted to steal it, and realising that Quirrel's stutter was overly suspicious? Didn't you get any of this?"

"No." The boy shook his head. "Never noticed any of that. Besides which, wouldn't Snape be a much more obvious figure to pin the blame on anyway?"

"True. Well anyway, Quirrel wants to steal the Philosophers Stone." Summarised the helpful headmaster.

"And now that you've told me," Harry took a deep breath. "Why the HELL did you guard it in a school full of students!"

"Now that is a very long story." Replying briefly, the ex-Transfiguration professor stroked his beard contemplatively. "I guess the short answer is 'why not'? I can keep a close eye on it here and since I know everyone here the suspect pool is limited, while many who would seek to obtain it would be unable to claim it while it is behind Hogwarts' immense Wards.."

"Why did Quirrel want it anyway?"

"I personally think that its because he's working for Voldemort, but that isn't important." The old man brushed the issue aside.

"No, it isn't." Agreed Harry. He had already had his suspicions confirmed about Voldemort's survival, so he could believe that Quirrel was a minion.

"What is important is that you not reveal what you have learned tonight, for a trap is not a trap if the prey knows that it has been set."

"One more question. Out of curiosity, what other defences were there after the Cerberus?"

"There was the Devils Snare, the flying keys, the chessboard," He counted them off on his fingers one by one. "the Troll which Quirrel was going to bring in, the potions puzzle and finally a magical mirror."

"Oh... are they any good then? Just out of curiosity, had a student actually gotten past the dog could they have cleared the other tasks?"

"Well, theoretically a first year could technically get through all the challenges. With ease if the correct people entered. Technically."

Harry sighed. "How did I know that there was a reason that the locking charm on the door could be broken by a first year? How did I know?"

"Because you're too savvy to not see." Arcueid stated it like it was obvious.

"What? They had to be tantalising enough for Quirrel to be able to go through."

"But the way that a first year could beat them proves that it was more than that! I was right before, wasn't I? You had set up those defences for a second reason. As a test! Don't even try lying, I bet that you hoped I'd end up with Gryffinor bravery and try to go through the challenges myself!"

"I will admit that I had prepared the tests with the possibility in mind." The bearded man conceded. "But I did this with good reasoning behind it; with Voldemort still existing, you need all of the preparation possible. Leaving the tests easily solvable was an easy solution as any to help get you experience."

"But why?"

"Harry... look at me." And Harry did, very intently. Dumbeldore was a living legend, a figure whom Harry was certain would become a Heroic Spirit if this world had a similar system to the Nasuverse. He was mighty. He was strong. He was the Defender of the Light, the slayer of Grindewald and the Guardian of Hogwarts. He was a Badass. But now, he looked more tired than heroic, and more old than bold. The carefully constructed mask of kind benevolence and wise strangeness had slipped off, albeit temporarily, and a face could say a thousand words. Harry could see. The blade which had been used to stop a Dark Lord was rusted and worn out.

"I am old. I am feeble and I am weak. I am over a hundred years old and have fought through two of the last centuries greatest wizarding wars, seen the end of an age and survived to usher in Modern Magical Britain... and I doubt that I will live for much longer." With that admission, the man informally and formally recognised as being one of the strongest wizards still alive in the present world almost seemed gallow, as if his words were true and Death was watching him from the shadows.

"In my prime I defeated the Dark Wizard Grindelwald and for many years people believed I was the only one capable of matching Lord Voldemort, but that is not the case any more. The younger generation always surpasses the new, and by all rights I should have been done after Grindewald. I had fought the Darkness and stood up for the Light, had suffered greatly and had been forced to stop someone I had once considered my closest friend. I should have been done." He repeated.

"But you weren't done, were you? The world still needed you."

"Indeed, much to my disappointment. Figures such as the Potters and the Longbottom's -those who were young, powerful and motivated- should have been the ones to confront Voldemort, for that is how history repeats. Throughout time, the same thing happens. A cycle of conflict and war and peace and prosperity has always existed, and I was just one of the many who has stood up for all that is right. A Dark Lord rises and a Hero of the Light in turn chooses to take the challenge and try to defeat him."

The Boy Who Lived could understand this line of thought, or he could at least acknowledge this belief.

"I was never meant to challenge Voldemort, being out of my prime and still exhausted from carrying the fate of Wizarding Europe on my shoulders, but I did so anyway. For none others dared to do so. In the end my ideals showed, because in a way it was the younger generation that stopped Voldemort's reign of terror, with Lily's actions being responsible for his partial death." With what seemed to almost be a bitter smile Dumbeldore sighed and scratched his bearded chin, relinquishing his unspoken fears for the first time to someone besides Minerva.

"And now he returns again; soon he shall rise and with him stirs the darkness, and I believe that it is impossible for me to be the one to vanquish him. No, it was you, Harry Potter, who defeated Voldemort, even if Lily helped stop her age groups threat. Not the Longbottom's nor any of the others who had the potential to do so did it, you did! And Fate is a fickle thing, so mark my words for one day you will engage him in battle once more. I have no doubts of that."

"So you assumed that I would be the one to do it? You assumed that I needed to be pushed to do this duty?"

"Yes... you are but a boy, Harry." Dumbledore said tiresomely, looking his age more than he had ever looked in his regular cheerful appearances in the Great Hall. "But a Hero must face Voldemort, and Fate has selected you, so it is my duty as the elder generation to prepare you for such a role, for if you don't defeat Voldemort then the only other path is to allow him to win."

"I understand that much. What I don't get is why you felt you had to go out of your way to force me into the role of a Hero." Harry laughed. "Ironically, before I entered Hogwarts, I told someone I admired that I would try not to spend my whole life saving people, but that I would be a hero without regret if I had to be."

Yes, Harry remembered making that promise at the graveside of his broken disks. He still wore those shattered pieces around his neck after all. He recalled telling Shirou that very decision.

"Regardless of your actions or anyone else's, I would still choose to fight Voldemort, to be that hero for the Wizarding World. For trying to help people is never wrong! For heroes do exist, and sometimes you must stand up and fight against All the Evils in the World even if doing so terrifies you! If someone must fight, then I am perfectly willing to do so, even if I must stain my hands to accomplish my task! I owe the snake a few spells for killing my parents and trying to murder me anyway!"

"I see." Dumbledore smiled, his frailty fading away as it was replaced with relief. "You may be only a boy, but I can see the conviction in your words. You would, wouldn't you? You would have been the hero of this story regardless..."

"Yes. There's no need to send me through subtle hoops, manipulating events to give me challenges that I must overcome. There is no need to manipulate me like I am unable to forge my own victory. It is a waste of time, so instead give me some proper training! Help me to get strong enough for the day that I must be that hero!"

"I ask you then, Harry James Potter, he Who Lived." Dumbledore rose from his grand chair and regarded the smaller still seated figure keenly. He had to be sure, he couldn't just take words at face value. He needed to be certain... "Are you certain that this is the Path you wish to walk, my boy, one that is wrought with blood and that will lead you only to a bitter end? Do you truly wish to be the blade that fights for the light, that shall represent this generation against the Threats of Old and the New Threat that will inevitably follow? Can I truly trust that you will be the Hero this society needs and will in turn protect and nurture the next generation to ensure that they too take up arms against the Darkness as I once did?"

Silently and much less dramatically than the elder, Harry rose. With resolution he thought back to just what it was that he wanted to do, to the goals he had sworn to uphold and the ideals that he had been exposed too early on as a child. He considered just what it would mean to agree and to acknowledge that he would have to turn away from a safe and normal life once and for all. For he knew that heroes couldn't save everyone and that the path of a hero would only lead him to unhappiness (Both Archer and the bitter, umasked legend before him proved this).

Could he truly say with absolute confidence that he would do all that Dumbledore asked?

He then said the only thing he could do; the only thing Harry James Potter could do in order to not later regret his own actions and his choice of path. "Yes. I can't claim that I will be successful, or that I will be able to do anything, or that I can ever be a Champion of the Light as you once are and still are, but I will try my best to do so, and I will try to do what I believe is right. I might not ever be someone who can Champion the Light, but I will fight to help people and to stop the monster that murdered my parents. I will stop Voldemort and I will stop any more Dark Lords that try to take away peoples regular, happy lives; that you can be certain of."

Dumbeldore's crooked smile and twinkling eyes returned to replace the troubled old man that had formerly been uncovered, though to Harry it looked far more real than it had done before. "I am relieved that even if I were to die, that there would be children like you still willing to take up sword and do the right thing. So I will change my plans, and I shall help you prepare for this which is to come."

"You better. I'd hate for me to have to fall back on my 'overthrow Dumbledore' plan." With that chiding joke thrown at the headmaster to directly reference their earlier conversation, the moment of seriousness was over. Harry had made his choice and he would lie on the bed of nails and swords that he made, but now he would go back to being a child for now. He'd laugh and enjoy his time at Hogwarts while he still had unbloodied hands.

"Has anyone ever told you that you are an odd child who doesn't match what people would assumed for you to be like?"

"So sue me. How do you think I feel now that I don't have you to try and overthrow?"

He sighed wearily. "It has been a long day. Now, would you kindly get out of my office."

XXXXXXXXXX

After a long nights rest, Harry felt much better. He still felt like he had lost a fight with a brick wall, but he was better. He was glad that Wizards were naturally more resilient and recovered from injuries quicker than Muggles, because he would have hated to have been stuck in the hospital for days on end.

"Speaking of which... I need to visit the hospital wing." Thought Harry with a frown as he left his common room early.

After a brisk walk, he found the person he had been expecting to find. "Morning, Neville."

"Oh." Neville jumped, as if startled. He looked terrible (In Harry's opinion), as if he hadn't gotten much rest. "What are you doing here?"

"The same reason you are, no doubt. To visit Hermione." Neville nodded his head in agreement. "Why are you stood outside then? Is Madame Pomfrey not letting us in?"

"Ummm... no. She is allowing visitors." Neville admitted with a tired frown. "Its just... I just... couldn't. I just couldn't work up the nerves to enter. I'm a coward, aren't I Harry?"

"Neville, you pulled out Gryffindor's Sword! If that doesn't count as courage, then what does?"

Neville flushed. "I didn't deserve to pull it out. I'm no hero like Godric Gryffindor... I'm just me. How can I go in there and face her after last night? I stood back and let that thing nearly eat her, and I didn't even do anything! I couldn't do anything! That isn't the actions of a hero! That isn't courage!"

"Listen to me, Neville." Harry laid a reassuring hand on his friends shoulder. "If anyone should be too scared to see her, it should be me. I was the one who nearly got her killed. So what if you couldn't do anything? You're eleven, and shouldn't be expected to be ready to face a Cerberus. Besides which, you killed the thing, didn't you? You can't shrug that aside. You killed that Cerberus like a pro!"

Neville smiled a ghosts grin. "I did, didn't I? But I was too late... I could have acted earlier, but I didn't."

Harry looked inside himself for words of inspiration for his friend, words that could explain to him why he was no coward, why actually he was the bravest out of all three of them. Because he had been scared, but he had overcome that fear, which took true courage. Harry however was just too stubborn to acknowledge the threat that could kill him, arrogant enough to try and fight it purely out of spite, willpower and obligation, which was not bravery.

"What am I supposed to say?" He asked himself as he continued to grip Neville's shoulder, whom was looking at him morosely, as if he was the only one in the world who had answers. "I'm not used to this kind of stuff, and I hardly have any words of wisdom to say besides the lessons that 'Tsukihime' and 'Fate/Stay Night' taught me."

"Don't ask us." Rin snorted. "We're your imaginary friends, not your life councillors."

"Any answer we have, you already know, deep down. We just help you recognise it." Said the mental projection of the user of the Mystic Eyes of Death Perception.

"True..." But Harry didn't know what to say, since all of his words so far hadn't helped, while even Dumbledore's praise the night before hadn't been enough to send him out of this flunk. Besides which, Neville was naturally self doubting, so what could he say that could actually overcome this?

"Wing it." Decided Harry out-loud, vocalising all he could do. If all he had were the morals and ideals taught to him by the Nasuverse, then these lessons would damn well have to do for Neville as well.

"What was that Harry?"

"Nothing." Harry removed his hand and looked the pudgy boy over. Hardly hero material -indeed- but Neville had drawn the sword of the Brave, and he had to hope that the Hero archetype was one that the Longbottom boy could grow into. "Do you mind if I tell you a story, Neville?"

The boy blinked in surprise, then rubbed his eyes to remove the sleep. "What does that have to do with anything?" Upon getting no response, Neville agreed.

"There once was a young boy." Harry began, remembering the tale that had affected him so strongly in his youth and altering it just slightly to better reflect the message he was trying to give. "Who the boy was didn't matter, only whom he became. There was a terrible fire, and he and his family were caught up in it. They died, but the boy evaded death. He walked on even as everybody else burned, and some part of him blamed himself for walking on and ignoring their cries of help, even if there was nothing he could have done.

"However, he was saved. A hero rescued him from the embers and took him in as his own son. The boy remembered those that he had no ability to save, those he had abandoned to their fates, and vowed after his fathers death to take up arms and become a hero like the one who had saved him. Much as he tried, he could not become like his father. He tried to help people wherever he could, to atone for his sin of living, but he could never truly 'save' anyone.

"Then a conflict arose, a repeat of what had caused the fire that had orphaned him. The boy sought to enter the fight, to save lives and prevent such a tragedy from ever occurring again, but he was weak. In a superhuman fight to the death, he could do nothing. Like before. But he fought anyway. Even though he could do nothing but be a hindrance, he fought on. He fought for his ideals, to become a hero and to save others.

"But he was only human, with human limits. He couldn't save everybody, and in the fight he had no choice but to fight to kill, even though he wanted nothing more than for everyone to live and be happy. He had to face the fact that his own father had learned, that not everyone can be saved. But he didn't care. He kept fighting. He might not have been strong enough to save everyone, but trying to help people was never wrong. Eventually he died on a hill of swords, but it didn't matter, because across his lifetime he had helped many people even if others had not been saved. He could die knowing that although he had not atoned for his sin of leaving others to die in the fire, he had remembered them and tried to help those that he could instead."

The air was heavy after Harry finished his twisted story of a Magus known as Shirou Emiya, and Neville stood there in thought, thinking about what Harry had said. The other boy was as equally quiet, reminiscent of days long gone when he had played games and been truly happy.

"That was a sad story." Reflected Neville. "It was sad that he never really managed to be a hero, but interesting. Why did you tell me though?"

"Because Neville, although it doesn't seem like it, you have many similarities with that boy who wanted only to be a hero. He blamed himself for not having the power to help those in the fire, and cursed himself for not dying alongside them by trying to help. Likewise, you blame yourself for caring for your own life, for not helping Hermione until it was too late."

"Its not the same."

Harry raised one eyebrow. "Isn't it? The boy had no reason to blame himself for the fire, since he didn't have the power to do anything about it even if he had acted. You didn't have the power to take on that beast, so you can't be blamed for not acting!"

"Its still not the same!"

"The sad thing is that unlike the boy, in the end you did act. Despite being terrified and scared of dying, you turned back and drew the Brave Sword of Godric Gryffindor and slew the beast, while all the boy could do is keep on walking." Harry sighed. "I know that this isn't the best tale to relate to you, but its the only one I've got! Just listen to me, Neville! You might regret what happened, but so did the boy. He chose to acknowledge what happened and press on, to become stronger and try to be a hero despite knowing that no matter how strong he would become he would still be powerless to help many people."

Harry walked past the contemplating boy and stopped just at the door to the infirmary, gently starting to push open the door. "Will you acknowledge that what happened last night can't be undone and move forward, just like he did? Will you try your best to get stronger and help those you care for as much as possible; like that boy will you do so knowing that there are times that you may not succeed but do so anyway because you might still be able to do some good?"

"Harry..." Neville said in a pained fashion.

"Think about it. There are many parallels. The only question now is whether you chose to walk the same sort of path as he did, and if so, how closely you follow him?"

Then he pushed through the door and left Neville to his thoughts to confront the other reason he had decided to visit the infirmary: Hermione.

She was sat up in bed in one of those thin hospital gowns, looking healthy enough but rather grumpy as well. "Harry?"

"Hey." He greeted, pulling up a seat to sit next to her. He fumbled for the words he was looking for struggled. In the end they lapsed into silence until Hermione brought up the topic that was plaguing both of their minds.

"Last night..." She trailed off, although the general message was given.

"Last night was a disaster." Said Harry. "I was an idiot. A stupid, stubborn idiot. And I'm sorry for what happened, okay?"

"No. Not okay." Hermione sighed quietly. "Just saying it changes nothing. Apologising won't change a thing."

"And you think I don't know that? Hermione, I know that I messed up." That was probably an understatement. "I know that yesterday could have been avoided. I know that goading Malfoy into a duel was foolish. I know that staying in that room was stupid. I know that antagonising the giant, three headed dog able to turn me into a chew toy was so stupid that its a miracle I'm forming cognitive thought!"

Hermione allowed herself to smile slightly. At least he recognised that he had screwed up.

Harry rubbed the back of his head in shame. "And the result of my stupidity was dragging you and Neville into that mess and leaving you in the Hospital Wing."

"Harry, you do get what you did wrong?"

"I was stupid?"

"That too." Hermione frowned again. "The issue is that your stupidity I could forgive so long as you learnt your lesson. The real problem is that all of this could have been avoided if only you had actually listened to me when I told you!" The girl raged. "Seriously, if you were going to be so reckless you could have at least LISTENED when I was pointing out how it was a bad idea."

"That is true." He couldn't deny it.

"So why didn't you then? Why didn't you listen to my complaints?"

"I suppose that I'm still getting used to having a friend who doesn't live in my head." Admitted Harry. "I'm used to doing my own thing, to not having to worry about others. And I was complacent and arrogant. I didn't even think that we could get harmed throughout the mess, thinking that I still had years until I had to be ready." The boys face darkened. "I was wrong, and I know that now."

"Harry..." The girl in the hospital bed really didn't know what to say, feeling just as awkward as the other on the matter of having friends. "It really hurt me how you didn't think you could trust my opinion, that you were so damn stubborn on doing what you wanted to do without thinking of the consequences. But... I suppose that there I can't hold it over your head."

"You mean that-?"

"Yes, Harry. I forgive you for nearly getting me killed." She blinked. "And the fact that I even have to forgive someone for nearly getting me eaten by a Cerberus is probably a worrying thing."

Harry laughed sourly. "More than likely."

"So I forgive you. BUT!" She interrupted before her friend interjected like she knew he would. "You have to do one thing for me."

"What? Anything!" Hermione was Harry's first real friend besides Neville and he didn't want to lose her, even if he did deserve it. Her absence would certainly teach him a lesson if she decide to break her ties with him.

"I want you to actually listen to me." With pursed lips she lectured him, wagging her fingers in a fashion that was far too adorable to be intimidating. "I know that you're going to continue to be stupid and endanger yourself, its obvious that a near death experience with an XXXXX rank monster isn't going to change your mind. So all I ask is that if you don't have the common sense to figure out when you are doing something stupid and potentially dangerous, that you listen to me."

Harry smiled in relief. "I think that I can manage that much at least."

"Good. Because you really seem to lack a sense of self preservation. I saw you fight that monster, and while your attempt to occupy its attention was heroic it was also stupidly suicidal." Again she tried to chide him in a fashion that had a lot in common with Professor McGonagall (Though lacking in a lot of her experienced disapproval, the Animagus would have been proud). "So listen to me, Harry, and I'll be your voice of reason for you, okay? If you won't care about how reckless you're being, then let me care for you! If you persist in this madness, then let me pull you away from the rabbit hole."

"A reference to Alice in Wonderland?"

"Obviously. I read it as a child." She smiled at the memory and leaned forwards expectantly, holding out a hand for him to shake. "So do we have a deal then? I forgive you and in return you listen to me?"

"Deal." He said without hesitation, gripping her hand tightly. It was odd, but Harry had mentally compared Rin and Hermione before, noting their similar studious nature and genius intelligence, as well as the obvious trait in that both of them used Magic, but as they shook hands she looked more Rin-like than ever before.

"I guess I can accept you being his voice of reason in the real world." Accepted Inner Rin, noting how Hermione was trying to take a role she had formerly held, offering advice and warning from within. "Yeah, I feel like you can keep the idiot in check."

So Harry broke off the handshake feeling like a weight had been lifted from his shoulders, happy that their friendship had been rescued from disaster.

The offspring of two dentists however felt nervous, because she sensed that keeping her word was going to be challenging and time consuming. In fact, she just knew that it would be a full time job keeping his ass out of the fire and away from the frying pan. "You're already thinking of doing potentially stupid, aren't you?"

Harry whistled innocently, not even trying to deny it.

AN- So yeah, this fic isn't dead. Rejoice, for it has arisen from its coma! Hopefully with this chapter out I can shove my writers block aside and actually continue this thing... maybe. But hey, at least you'll get an update EVENTUALLY.

Chapter content itself, the Dumbledore scene has been planned for awhile. All this time I was implying that this was gonna be a Manipulative Dumbeldore fic, when I actually I was just playing up the fandoms image for the Lolz. That's right, Harry's an unreliable narrator and Dumbeldore is actually how he is presented in canon: a Retired Badass who had a habit of creating elaborate plans but was ultimately a Good Guy who was simply too old to continue fighting and did what he did for what he felt were excusable reasons. Don't get me wrong; I understand why the fandom has this image (Because he WAS manipulative, and because its one interpretation that can be produced by the evidence in canon) so I don't mind reading fics with him like that, but in this story at least he is quite firmly a Good Guy, though he will still have some Chessmaster-esque moments.

Also, the Cerberus scene. Yeah, I know that it was kind of unexpected, but it was the only way I could think of to diverge the fic as early as possible, shove in a fight scene and allow my characters to have some development. Plus its helping me to shift back to some more mature and serious themes than just crack, which was never the intention of this fic, which is a good thing.

And we have some Character Development! Finally! Neville will get some balls soon, Hermione will grow out of her childish rule abiding self and Harry is finally learning to take responsibility for his actions! Remember people, they are only eleven, so its natural that they aren't quite the most sensible people yet. Add in Harry's unusual upbringing and how he is Technically Insane according to the Sorting Hat (Because of having sentient beings in his head) and its amazing that he's even as serious as he currently is.

Now to quote George RR Martin... "Don't worry people! The Dragons are coming! When they get here, they'll be awesome! And Winters coming too... eventually! There'll be Ice Zombies and Magic and more incest and shit too!" The badass stuff is coming around eventually, so again I must urge you to be as patient as possible. By years end the badass will start appearing, since I plan to end the First Year with a BANG! It will be... Enchanting, if you pardon the pun.

Anyhow, I've got mocks to prepare for, lines to learn for drama, other fics to write and a dozen more writers block's I'm gonna have to psyche myself up for overcoming before I even start the next chapter. So leave a review if you want to show support, offer criticism, complain about the long update time or even just want to Flame. I'll no doubt see you all again before seven months have passed. Undying Soul out.