Draco grinned. 'A bit.' He glanced over the riddle again, and took a phial. 'This is it. This will take us forward.' He took a sip and then handed it to Harry, who drank from the phial and then replaced it, being careful to cast a Refilling Charm before stepping through the flames into the next room. Draco joined him a moment later. The room was empty except for a large, antique mirror. Harry wandered over and stood in front of the mirror. He gasped at what he saw. It was himself, only as he had been before he became Aries Black, with James's messy hair and Lily's green eyes. Behind him stood James and Lily, as well as Sirius and Remus. Draco stood beside him, and the rest of the family were there too: Pollux, Arcturus, Melania, Irma, Cassiopeia, Abraxas, the Squibs...all of them. In his hands Harry held a large crystal flask of Elixir of Life, and everyone around him looked both energetic and youthful.
'What do we do now, Aries?' Draco asked impatiently. 'I just want to find the Stone and go.'
'Look in the mirror,' Harry said eagerly, shoving his cousin in front of the large mirror. 'What do you see?'
Draco stared briefly, and then gasped. 'The Stone! It's in my pocket.' He reached into the pocket of his robes and pulled out a blood-red stone.
'You did it!' Harry exclaimed in shock.
'We did it,' Draco corrected with a smile.
'May I see it?' Harry asked, reaching out for the Stone.
'Once we get out of here,' Draco said, and muttered his password. Nothing happened. He tried again, with no results. And again. Draco's triumphant look changed to one of panic. 'The Portkey doesn't work. There must be anti-Portkey wards in place!'
'Let's try mine,' Harry said, and grabbed his cousin's arm before letting out a long, guttural hiss. It didn't work.
'We'll have to try to make our way back through the obstacles,' Draco said.
'How are we supposed to do that?' Harry snapped. 'The effects of that potion have undoubtedly worn off by now, and there's no other way to get through the flames.'
'What do we do?' Draco asked.
'We'll have to break through the anti-Portkey wards,' Harry said.
'How the hell are you going to do that?' his cousin demanded.
'Don't know,' Harry replied honestly. He closed his eyes, raised his wand and began to hiss. Draco felt himself growing more and more nervous as his cousin went through incantation after incantation. Finally, Harry's eyes snapped open and he grabbed Draco's arm. 'Now, Draco!' he shouted, and the blond boy uttered the password. Moments later, the two boys found themselves in the Gryffindor Common Room.
'How did you manage that?' Draco panted.
Harry smirked. 'I'm the Heir of Slytherin, the next Dark Lord. I have all sorts of phenomenal powers.'
His cousin rolled his eyes, and the two boys went up to bed. Neither noticed a certain Muggleborn witch hiding behind a large armchair.
.....
Early the next morning, Hermione dragged Ron and Seamus back to their favourite abandoned classroom.
'What is it this time?' Seamus yawned. 'You could have let us have a bit of a lie-in. Even the Crafty Cousins aren't up yet.'
'And I know why,' Hermione said smugly. 'They were up late last night. They Apparated into the Common Room, even though no one can Apparate or Disapparate inside of Hogwarts.'
Ron scoffed at that. 'There's no way they could have Apparated, Hermione. They're only eleven.'
The bushy-haired girl glared at him. 'I know what I saw, Ron. Besides, I heard what Malfoy said after they Apparated. He asked Black how he did it.'
'And what did Black say?' Seamus asked.
Hermione took a deep breath. 'He said that it was one of the many special powers he has because he's the Heir of Slytherin and the next Dark Lord.'
Both boys' eyes went wide in shock.
'He actually admitted it?' Ron exclaimed.
Hermione nodded soberly. 'Right there in the Common Room.'
'Did he know you were there?' Seamus asked. 'Mightn't he have been pulling your leg?'
'He didn't know I was there,' Hermione said. 'I was behind an armchair picking up a book I'd forgotten when they Apparated in.'
Ron collapsed in a rickety wooden chair that barely looked as if it could hold his weight.
'Blimey,' he exclaimed. 'I knew they were trouble, but I never thought they'd admit it so freely.' He shook his head. 'They've been weaselling their way into our family too. Fred and George went over to the Blacks for Christmas. Mum was livid when she found out.'
'We've got to do something,' Seamus said. 'Maybe we could tell a teacher?'
Ron sat up straight. 'That's an idea. We could tell McGonagall.'
Hermione shook her head pensively. 'I like Professor McGonagall, but I'm not sure we can trust her. I went to complain to her after I saw her award Black House points for the Dark magic he used on the troll, and she told me to mind my own business.'
'If Black really is the next Dark Lord, we should go straight to the Headmaster,' Seamus opined.
Ron scoffed. 'When? It's not like we have any lessons with him.'
'I think we should go to Professor Quirrell,' Hermione said at last. 'He is the Defence against the Dark Arts master.'
'Do you think he could handle a Dark Lord?' Seamus asked. 'He seems a bit on the twitchy side.'
Hermione sighed, conceding the point. 'I still think we should tell him. If he can't handle Black himself, at least he can take the matter to Dumbledore. The Headmaster would be more likely to listen to a teacher than a bunch of first-years.'
.....
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