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Chapter 12: Back into the Hogwarts Routine

The rest of the Christmas holidays went on quite normally or at least as normally for Harry Potter and the Turtles. The meeting with Hermione's parents had proved to be a difficult experience but Harry managed to explain the appearance of his family, which eased the reservations of Hermione's parents slightly.

The crystals, which were found in the lair, had Harry baffled. Much like Don said earlier, they were extremely unique and Harry had not seen anything like them before either. He reasoned he would have to take one of the crystals to Hogwarts and seen if he could find out if they were of magical origin or not.

Time tended to speed up when it was least wanted and it was the night prior to when Hogwarts was to be back in session. Harry packed all of his belongings earlier in the day and it was time for good byes.

"So, I guess this is it for a while," said Harry. "Contact me via the two way mirrors if anything strange or odd pops up, especially with those ninjas. I will be in touch soon if I find out anything new about the Philosopher Stone problem. I will return for the Spring Holidays, sooner if I get a gap in my schedule, but I doubt it, as Flint will be putting us through the ropes for Quidditch. "

"Good luck and good fortune, my son. Remember to always remain on your guard as evil could be lurking in every corner,” said Splinter as the others waved.

Harry pulled out his wand, tapping it upon his Portus-Amulet. Leaving New York behind with a bit of sorrow and regret, the Portus-Amulet yanked Harry, pulling him into the chambers underneath the Slytherin library.

Harry dropped down gracefully on his feet. Pacing his hand on the Mystic markings above his head, the trapdoor gave a hiss and sprang open. Harry pulled himself up and into the Slytherin Library. It was as he had left it. The Diary of Salazar Slytherin set on the table. Picking it up, Harry pulled it open and began thumbing through the diary. An entry about ten minutes into his reading caught Harry's attention. Looking on curiously, Harry began reading the text from the diary.

Entry 311:

After months of searching and nearly giving up, I have finally found the realm I was looking for. I had located a Nexus, which is some kind of world between worlds. This strange place seems to be more than meets the eye, as every four years there is a great competition. The best competitors in the entire Multiverse converge for a tournament competition. Whoever wins is named the greatest warrior in all of the Multiverse. This competition seems to only be for the elite and despite over thirty years of intense training, I am still not at a level. Maybe someday I can enter the grand competition of this noble tournament. Still, I should not be detracted from my tasks. I need to travel to this dimension to find the elements I need in an attempt to accomplish my task. I dare not write in this diary what it is, should it ever fall into the wrong hands. The human soul is a delicate element to tamper with and while my new discovery could be beneficial, they could also be put to some horrible use. Tonight, I prepare for the ritual to enter the Nexus and then hopefully my search will bare fruit

Harry eyed the entry he had just read with interest. The Nexus appeared to be intriguing; Harry would have to research it further when he did not have too much on his plate. With that thought, Harry remembered the crystal. He stuck it in his trunk about a week ago and nearly forgot about it. He would need to look through the endless amount of books in the Slytherin Library. Surely he could find something on the crystals or at least information on elements similar to the crystal. Harry flipped through the books, finding little. He put his hand on his forehead in disgust.

Looking through the books for about an hour, before giving up, Harry got up. He had History of Magic first period tomorrow, a cruel and unusual punishment if there ever was one.

"What’s on the third floor?" asked Daphne incredulously.

Daphne, Theodore, Hermione, and Harry were walking through the hallways during break.

"The Philosopher's Stone," repeated Hermione. "I remember reading about it somewhere. It is a magical artifact which transmutes lead into gold and creates the Elixir of Life, which as long as it is taken, leads to someone becoming immortal."

"That is what I have been trying to tell you," said Harry. "Muggles suspect its existence; even through they think it is only a myth."

"Yet, it is all too real," concluded Theodore. "Still Hermione, you have been holding out on us? You said you have met Harry's mysterious family over the holidays, yet we are still lacking in details."

Hermione and Harry exchanged an uneasy looking. An extremely uneasy look, before Harry nodded slowly at Hermione.

"Well, years ago a boy was walking across the street carrying a bowl with four pet turtles," said Hermione slowly. "At the same time an old blind man was crossing the street and he nearly got ran over. In the chaos, the turtles got knocked into a storm drain and a canister of some type of green ooze flew out of the back of a truck. Also, a rat went down into the sewer, attempting to assess the situation. Both the rat and the Turtles had been contaminated with the ooze, which had affected their growth properties. Eventually they developed human like intelligence."

"That is quite the interesting story and trust me when I say I have heard enough strange and unbelievable things to believe it," said Theodore. "Still, it does not fit about my queries about Harry's family."

Daphne rolled her eyes at her friend. He did not seem to have put two and two together.

"Aren't you the bright one?" said Daphne sarcastically. "I believe these mutated creatures are Harry's family. A strange, odd family but I am not one to judge as I have quite a few crooked branches on my family tree."

"Yeah, Daphne's right, they’re my family," said Harry. "They rescued me when I was, well when I was left in New York."

Harry gave his head a shake. His nearly five years with the Dursleys still caused him nightmares from time to time. It would be quite some time before Harry forgot his time there.

Hermione could see her friend looking uncomfortable and hastily changed the subject.

"What I'm worried about," said Hermione slowly as if she was deliberately considering something, "is who will be after the Philosopher's Stone and why?

"Voldemort, to regain a body, and perhaps become stinking rich," said Harry as if stating the obvious.

Harry's three friends winced at the name.

"Yeah, that could be but isn't You-Know-Who currently lacking an essential element in stealing the Philosopher's Stone, namely a body?" questioned Daphne logically.

"He would have to have a go between," said Theodore. "Although I’m suspicious at Quirrell, especially after he sent the troll in on Halloween."

"Quirrell, are you out of your mind?" cried Daphne. "Head of House or not, it seems Snape may be the one who is after the Stone. Something about him seemed rather shifty after he hexed Harry's broom. Also, the rumors I heard about him being in You-Know-Who's Inner Circle, my mother told me the only reason he got off was because of Dumbledore."

Hermione and Harry looked at each other, looking confused. This had to be common knowledge among pureblooded families because they did not have the slightest clue.

"Snape was cleared," said Theodore shortly.

"So was Lucius Malfoy, so what's your point?" challenged Daphne irritably.

Harry put his hand up into the air, ready to avert the storm before it started.

"Daphne, Theodore, enough," said Harry in a low commanding voice. "Both Snape and Quirrell both have reasons for us to be suspicious of them."

Harry then remembered the advice Master Splinter told him, before turning towards his friends.

"Besides, I am not going to do anything until I know all the details," said Harry. "A wise warrior never takes action until he knows the full scope of what he is dealing with."

"Well, you can't exactly argue with that," said Hermione looking impressed at the way her friend put his reasoning.

The four friends walked off chatting about school, Quidditch, and Harry's family. The Philosopher's Stone was safe as long as Fluffy was guarding it. There was no need to worry about it right now.

The last few weeks went by slowly. Flint worked the Slytherin Team to the brink of exhaustion, as Harry predicted. The Quidditch Match with Ravenclaw was in a few weeks and Flint wanted victory at any cost. Even if the cost were slightly illegal, the trollish Slytherin captain would have his triumph. Harry's little research project on the crystals did not go as planned, as he found nothing.

Malfoy had not said anything to Harry or his friends in several weeks although he narrowed his eyes at Hermione every time she joined her Slytherin friends for meals.

"Hermione, what exactly did you do to get into Detention?" asked Harry. Hermione was in a fury after class one day, raging about "unjust situations". It took a while for her to calm down. At this time, Harry and his friends were doing homework in the Library.

"Ronald Weasley, what else?" responded Hermione irritably.

"What did the buffoon do this time?" asked Theodore.

"No wait let me guess," said Daphne before launching into a whiny voice. "Harry Potter is a bloody traitor. He should not be allowed to live. He is as bad as You-Know-Who. He attempted to sacrifice me to his altar of evil. He is a no good stinking Slytherin who deserves to be executed in the most bloody and inhumane possible. It other words, the usual."

"Funnily enough he never seems to make these comments to my face," said Harry grimly. "He always seems to make them behind my back. So what's the story, Hermione?"

"Well, he was running his mouth as usual, it seems like he never learns to shut up," said Hermione. "I finally lost my temper and smacked him right across his oversized mouth."

Harry fought the urge to laugh. No doubt, Hermione smacking Weasley would be amusing.

"It gets more unfair," said Hermione. "His brother, the prefect, Percy was standing right there the whole time his brother was laying into Harry and he does not say a word. Then, when I gave Ronald his just desserts, Percy Weasley put me in detention. It's an outrage, a black mark on my record due to unfairness. I would understand if Weasley was put in detention too but his brother didn’t say anything. Now I have to serve detention with Filch!"

Daphne, Harry, and Theodore winced. A few hours with the grouchy caretaker was not something they wished on anyone.

Harry shook his head at the gall of one Ronald Weasley. The fool did not learn his lesson, once again. An evil idea for a prank was forming in Harry's head. While looking through the Simple Potions for Every Day Pranks book, Harry saw a scrawled note, which detailed a charm to make anyone who passed through a doorway to stagger around as if they were drunk. Smirking, Harry thought of the possibilities.

Daphne tapping him on the shoulder brought Harry out of his thoughts of Weasley staggering around like a buffoon.

"Look, there's Hagrid," said Daphne. "I wonder what he is doing in the library."

"Well, if we asked him, maybe we would find out," said Theodore.

The four friends walked up to Hagrid.

"Hello, Hagrid, how are doing?" asked Hermione.

Hagrid looked surprised and attempted to shove a book behind his back. He was obviously hiding something.

"Oh hello Hermione," said Hagrid. "I have just bin lookin', research for something, yah know."

"Oh well, that's nice, we have done our share of research recently as well," said Daphne casually.

"Yeh kids aren't still on about Flamel," said Hagrid.

"Oh we found that out weeks ago," said Harry. "We know what Fluffy is guarding. Perhaps we can discuss our findings with you in private."

Hagrid just nodded his head.

"Come down to me Hut, when you can," said Hagrid. "I know Flint has been working yeh rapid with that Quidditch but when yeh have a free minute, yeh know where to find me."

Hagrid turned his back and walked off. Harry was left with even more questions than he had when the day started.

"I am going to go and find out what section he has been looking in," said Daphne before walking off.

"Perhaps when we talk to Hagrid, perhaps we can get a few more answers on this Philosopher Stone mess," said Hermione.

"I hate to say it, but knowing Hagrid, he might let something slip," said Theodore. "Whether it is to us or to the wrong person, I don’t know, but he will."

"Still, we need to take this chance when we can," said Hermione. "As Harry said before, we need to learn more about this Philosopher Stone mess."

Daphne reappeared from the section where Hagrid with a bit of an amused look on her face.

"Hagrid seemed to be reading up on dragons," said Daphne. "He would seem like the type who would want a dragon."

"Call me crazy," said Harry as his three friends snorted. ", But I think Hagrid has acquired himself a Dragon Egg somehow."

"I thought dragon breeding was illegal," said Hermione.

"It is, but we are talking about the guy who has a three headed dog for a pet," said Theodore. "I wouldn’t put it past him to raise an illegal dragon in his house."

"An illegal dragon in his wooden house," added Hermione, her eyes growing as wide as saucers.

"The dragon is the least of our concerns," said Harry. "We still need more information of the Philosopher's Stone but I have pressing matters on my plate right now."

"Meaning..." said Hermione who had a funny feeling Harry was up to no good when she saw the glint in her friend's eye.

"I have a right which needs to be wronged, by the noble art of pranking," said Harry.

Harry got up, calmly walking off with a smirk on his face.

"Well, now we know exactly why he was sorted in Slytherin now," said Daphne. "When he has the ambition to do a task, he will not stop until he has accomplished his goal."

Meanwhile, Voldemort had a smirk on his vaporous face beneath Quirrell’s turban. The previous night, he had accomplished his task, he had found out how to get past that mongrel of a beast on the third floor. His faithful servant Quirrell got the oaf of a Groundskeeper drunk, by putting a dragon egg on the line in a pair of cards. The Hagrid oaf had been a pawn in Voldemort's plans in a past; Voldemort caused Hagrid to take the blame in the Chamber of Secrets incident in years past. Voldemort reasoned the first thing he would do when he got himself a body was pat himself on the back, as his scheme had gone as planned.

Voldemort was brought out of his evil thoughts by a low, dangerous voice. If Voldemort had a body, it would be tensing up. It was the voice of the man who was once perhaps one of the most talent members of his Inner Circle, Severus Snape.

"Quirrell, what are you doing wandering around aimlessly at this time of the day?" demanded Snape.

"N-n-no reason S-s-s-Severus," stuttered Quirrell.

"There better not be a reason, Quirrell," said Snape. "I have found your actions as of late to be extremely suspicions."

"W-w-why would that b-b-be, Severus?" asked Quirrell, playing dumb.

"You tell me, Quirrell," said Snape in a bored tone of voice. "One would think you would be up to something."

Snape saw Quirrell gulp before the turban professor backed off a few steps.

"Be warned, Quirrell, you do not want me as your enemy," said Snape. "Have a nice day."

Snape turned and walked off. Underneath the turbaned, Voldemort found Snape's actions puzzling. Snape gave Voldemort no reason to think he knew Quirrell's true reason for stealing the stone. All Snape appeared to know was Quirrell as after the Stone.

Voldemort reflected on the past. Snape had proved to be his most loyal servant and had given Voldemort no reason to question his loyalty. Despite the warnings of other servants such as Bellatrix Lestrange during his first reign of terror, which quickly fell on a deaf ear and a Cruciatus Curse, Voldemort had no reason to believe Snape was treacherous. Still, Voldemort could not risk detection until he returned to his full body.

Snape clutched his arm; the mark began burning when he got near Quirrell. Snape's dark suspicions proved to be true. Voldemort appeared to be getting just a little bit stronger and Snape could sense Quirrell was not long for the human world.

Out of all the people in the Wizarding World, he was high up of the people who had the most to lose if the Dark Lord returned. No doubt Dumbledore would make Snape spy on the power hungry fool once again. Snape cursed the old coot, who hung a trip to Azkaban over his head if Snape did not follow Dumbledore without question. If the coot did not blackmail Snape into doing his bidding, he would go to some desolate place, like Siberia and pretend he never heard of anyone or anything in the Wizarding World. At least then, Snape's life would be a lot easier than it was at this moment.

Outside the Gryffindor Common Room, Harry had his wand out and the piece of paper from the book in his hand. No doubt this would be great, especially when Weasley got caught in the crossfire. Harry raised his wand in his hand, twirling it in a pattern. Suddenly, Harry felt the piece of paper getting pulled out of his hand.

"Oh what do we have George," said a voice behind Harry.

"Why Fred, I believe it is young Mr. Potter with some kind of spell," said George. "It appears it seems to be a spell of the pranking nature."

"My dear twin, are you pondering what I am pondering," said Fred.

"About how Snape keeps his hair that naturally greasy?" asked George.

"Well that and the fact, our serial prankster seems to have tipped his hand," said Fred.

"No it can't be?" said George sarcastically. "According to our brother Ron, bless him, this young lad is the second coming of You-Know-Who. He can't possibly be a prankster."

Harry could not help but smirk at the antics of the Twins.

"Yet, I see the proof with my own eyes," said Fred. "Plus, you forgot our brother Ron seems to tell tales."

"Yes, that fact momentarily slipped my mind," said George. "Still he can't be too bad if he carries around pieces of parchment detailing how to perform spells to make the target drunk as a skunk."

The Twins turned to Harry, identical looks of mischief gleaming in their eyes.

"So, Mr. Potter, it was you who has been befouling our honest dishonest reputations," said George whose eyes were twinkling in amusement.

"We only have one thing to say to you for that," said Fred.

Harry wondered what their response would be but it was obvious he did not know Fred and George well enough.

"Well done, mate," said the twins in unison, looking impressed at the savior of the Wizarding world had the mind of a prankster.

"Well, thanks," said Harry. "I do admit I have some style in the fine and noble art of pranking."

"Indeed, Harry my boy," said George. "Now we might as well pull this prank off to take the trouble off of you. Merlin knows we’ll be blamed about it anyway."

George and Fred gave Harry knowing winks as if they knew whom exactly the prank was reserved for. Harry laughed as the Twins walked off. Ron Weasley was in for some embarrassment and humiliation. Walking off smirking, Harry needed to get down to the Slytherin library to do research at any rate.