yes it's risky
a lot more
than usual

ϟ

"Drink it, Harry," Perry offered.

"No," he insisted. "You're better at these kinds of things."

"Harry," she said putting the flask in his hand. "My ankle's still sore from chess; I can't be limping trying to catch Snape. It has to be you."

He held the flask in his hand. He looked at Perry and then to Hermione.

"You're sure it's not enough for two?" Harry asked.

"I'm sure," Hermione said.

"I'm sure too," Perry agreed.

"I'm going to go check on Ron," Hermione said excusing herself.

Once she was gone Harry turned to Perry. She had a scratch along her forehead and her hair was a mess, not to mention her surly sprained ankle.

"Hey, you're like me now," he said putting two fingers right on the borders of her forehead gash.

"You're stalling," she said with a smile.

"I am n—"

"You are," she said with a nod.

"I'm— I'm scared, Pare-Bear," he whispered. "I'm really scared."

"And that's okay," she said pulling him into a hug. "I'm going to be right on the other side of the fire." She pulled out of the hug. "And I'm going to be right here—" she tapped him on the forehead. "And here—" she said poking him in the chest.

"I love you, Pare-Bear, and if I don't make it back th—"

"Stop it," she interrupted. "You're going to be right back here holding that stone in no time." She kissed him right on his scar like she used to do when they were infants. "I love you more than you can imagine."

She walked him up close to the fire holding his hand. She nodded to him and he pulled a wary face. He flicked open the flask and downed it in one.

"I'm not as good as you, Perry," he said.

"You're a great wizard, Harry. You can do it." She gave him a push on the back and he walked through the fire.

She watched as he disappeared into the flames. All she could do was wonder. She stared into the flames but she could never see through them. She was standing so close but she didn't feel the heat.

She didn't know how long she had been standing there. Minutes? Seconds? Hours? She kept staring into the flame trying to talk to Harry. No matter how much she reached out to him, she couldn't get through. She kept staring through the flames.

Perry stumbled back in surprise. Could she have really seen what she just thought she saw? She bent forward to look closer at the flames. There. She saw it again. She reached her hand out as she stepped forward to the fire. The flames danced across her hand as she reached out for a flaming hand. The flaming hand kept backing away and she kept walking forward to grab it.

She felt dizzy. She felt like she was walking on clouds. Her vision spun while she stared at the fiery hand reaching out to her. She dozed off as the flames licked at her skin. She almost had the hand. It was just in her reach.

"Don't be afraid," a calm voice of a woman whispered.

Perry's eyes watered as she reached for the hand. She lurched for it. She couldn't understand why she felt so compelled to hold the fiery hand, but something in her was making her. Her eyes were tearing up from not blinking, but she didn't want to lose sight of the hand.

She couldn't help but to blink eventually. The tears clouding her eyes disappeared along with the hand. Perry blinked a few more times and rubbed her eyes. She was standing on the other side of the fire, but she didn't remember going through it. She only remembered reaching for the hand.

Perry steadied her pounding heartbeat. How was that possible? Then she reprimanded herself for asking such a dumb question. She's a witch, magic shouldn't surprise her at this point.

Perry looked around at the room with huge eyes. Her heart was beating rapidly and she couldn't tell if it was Harry's or her own. The static she felt coursing in her veins was a new form of anxiety she had never before bore victim to.

Around her was a huge room with multiple pillars. It was entirely made of stone, with stone bricks as the floor, and a marble like stone as the pillars. In the center of the room sat a familiar object: The Mirror of Erised. Before it stood a man Perry didn't expect to be in this room. Professor Quirrell stood looking into the mirror with a struggling tied up Harry at his feet.

"It looks like your friend decided to join us after all, Potter," Professor Quirrell said without one stutter, which quite surprised Perry.

"Perry!," Harry exclaimed turning his head towards the girl. "No!"

"But— but," Perry stuttered.

"But— but," Quirrell mocked. "You sound like p-p-poor Professor Q-Quirrell."

"But, I thought Snape—"

"Not you too, Persephone," Quirrell sighed. "To believe I thought you were smarter than that."

Perry was taken back by the whole situation. Harry didn't want her to be there, meanwhile he was tied up by a rope on the ground, The Mirror of Erised was moved to this room of all places, and she had found Professor Quirrell and not Professor Snape.

"It's been you this whole time?" she asked breathlessly.

"Not even a little suspicion?" he asked in a menacing voice.

He raised his wand and her limbs were tied instantly with a rope just as Harry's were. She struggled to break through, or at least grab her wand. She felt helpless. When her feet left the ground and she found herself levitating in midair she couldn't help but to panic.

Her heart was pounding out of her chest. She wondered if it was just that loud inside of her head or if Quirrell and Harry could hear it too. Harry might've, but Quirrell was too busy looking into the Mirror of Erised.

"What does this mirror do? How does it work? Help me, Master!"

"Master?" Perry whispered to herself. This whole situation was too confusing.

"Use the children... use the children..."

A cold, icy voice answered Quirrell. Scarily enough, it seemed like it came from Quirrell, yet he didn't move his lips.

"Yes— of course— Potter, stand up," Quirrell said.

The rope around Harry disappeared with a wave of Quirrells hand. Perry began to lower to the ground thinking about how much magic she still had to learn. She needed to be brave. She couldn't double think, yet she doubted herself slightly. The hat decided to put her in Slytherin, not Gryffindor, so could she be brave? Could she even be cunning?

Her feet touched the ground and the ropes around her dropped to the ground. She shuffled over to Harry who was standing to the right of the mirror, but there was still some rope around her feet. She stumbled forward, clumsily kicking the rope under the mirror. She sheepishly walked over next to Harry, and he immediately grabbed her hand out of habit.

"Well," Professor Quirrell said, "Tell me what you see."

The children took a few steps forward and turned so they were facing the mirror, hands still clutching each other. Perry expected to see nothing, but that wasn't the case.

In the mirror, a replica of the children standing before the mirror was facing them. Perry hadn't noticed just how beaten up she looked. The gash on her forehead had dried, smeared blood all around it. The cut from her lip made her look like a vampire. Her hair looked like a rats nest. A bruise was starting to form near her left temple.

Harry didn't look great either. He rarely combed his hair, but even so, his hair was unkempt and covered in so much dust it looked dyed in multiple places. His glasses had a small crack at the bottom of the left lens. His eye was red and by morning, if they made it there, he would surly have a black eye. Both Perry and Harry were covered in debris of the stone chess pieces, and it made them look much like the ghosts of the castle.

They looked at themselves waiting for something to happen. Suddenly they felt something heavy form between their held hands. The replica of themselves in the mirror moved their hands forward and opened their palms so they made a platform for a large red object that they had been holding: the Philosopher's Stone. The two replicas winked at them and then the version of Perry picked it up and put it into Harry's robe pocket.

"Why are you looking at her, Potter?" Quirrell inquired as he took a step towards them. He stared daggers down at the small blonde girl. "Do you have the stone, sweet Persephone."

Him calling her sweet made her want to throw up right then and there.

He was pulling the two farther away then they could go. If they didn't act now their hands wouldn't be able to reach each other and the stone would be out in the open, whether it be in Harry's hand, Perry's hand, or on the ground.

"I saw Perry," Harry said suddenly, "I saw her.. happy. I saw her— and the other Slytherins.. friends. That's why I was looking at her."

"Shit."

Perry was taken back by what Harry said and the curse word Quirrell dropped. Sure Harry lied, but he so easily came up with it. She knew she didn't get along with the other Slytherins, and she was fine with that, but Harry's words caused her a little pain.

"Get out of the way," Quirrell spat. Perry quickly swept over to Harry's side. She clutched his hand tightly and slowly moved their hands towards his pocket. Slyly she took the stone out of his hand and dropped it into his pocket, all the while Quirrell was staring into the mirror.

"I see the stone... I'm presenting it to my master... but where is it?"

Perry retook Harry's hand and the two of them slowly scooted away from Quirrell and the mirror. They had the stone, now all they had to do was get it safely away from Quirrell and hope someone believes their story.

"He lies..." the icy voice said again, "...he lies..."

"Potter!" Quirrell shouted. "Come back here! Tell me the truth! What did you see!"

Quirrell stormed towards Harry. Harry backed up and tripped. He fell on to his back and crawled away, breaking the hold between his and Perry's hands.

"Let me speak to them... face-to-face..." the voice whispered.

"Master, you are not strong enough!" Quirrell said in a panicked voice.

"I have strength enough... for this..."

Quirrell moved his hands towards his head with a wicked smile across his face. Harry felt as if he had been hit with a full body binding curse. No matter how much he wanted to move, his limbs felt attached to the floor and immobile.

Quirrell began to unwrap his turban and a funky smell emitted around the room. Perry backed away from him slowly.

Quirrell dropped the unwrapped turban to the ground. Perry thought his head looked rather small without it on top like a crown. Quirrell grinned a toothy smile and slowly turned around.

Perry wanted to scream but she felt as if all the air in her lungs had deflated. She stumbled backward into a marble pillar. Where there should've been a back to Quirrell's head there was a pale, chalky face that resembled one of a snakes. Red eyes stared at the two children while the slits that replaced the face's nose flared.

"Persephone... Harry Potter..." it whispered. "See what I have become? Mere shadow and vapor... I have form only when I can share another's body... but there have always been those willing to let me into their hearts and minds... Unicorn blood has strengthened me, these past weeks... you saw faithfully Quirrell drinking it for me in the forest... and once I have the Elixir of Life, I will be able to create a body of my own... now... why don't you give me that stone in your pocket, Potter?"

Harry began to shuffle himself backwards on the ground.

"Don't be a fool," the voice snarled. Quirrell walked backwards so it seemed like the face was walking forword.

"Hey!" Perry exclaimed. "Get away from him!"

Quirrell waved her away with his hand and she flew into the steps in front of the fire. Her head collided with the step, sending a bolt of pain throughout her body. She couldn't move for about a minute. She opened her eyes and watched the room in front of her spin. With a groan she reached her hand behind her head and felt around. A sticky substance found her hand and Perry pulled her hand away. She rubbed her hand on her robe and tried to focus on what was happening in front of her.

"Seize him!" echoed through her mind over and over again. She squinted at the room, attempting to see clearly what was happening. She saw Harry move slightly towards her. Quirrells hand grabbed Harry's wrist before he extracted it with a groan.

Harry ran over to her and crouched behind her. He picked up her head and whispered to her, "It's okay, Perry. Everything's going to be fine."

While Harry was whispering to her, Perry was concentrating her best on what was happening to Quirrell.

"My hand! Master, my hands!" Quirrell cried as he walked backwards so the face could keep watch on the raven haired boy and platinum haired girl.

Harry's touch hurt him, Perry thought to herself. She had an idea.

"Then kill them!" the voice croaked.

Quirrell stumbled forward. Perry's vision may have been doubled but she'd studied the signs of someone pulling their wand enough times to know what Quirrell was reaching for. She bent forward and grabbed the rope that had been wrapped around her body earlier. As Quirrell stumbled forward she yanked the rope with whatever mite she could conjure. Thankfully, Perry's clumsiness had helped her this one time. The rope from the mirror to Perry's hand tightened into a line much like a tightrope.

Quirrell stumbled into the tripwire just as he had pulled his wand from his robe pocket. He then fell onto his back with a big— thud.

"Quirrell— you idiot..." the voice whispered shouted.

Perry launched out of Harry's arm and threw herself on top of Quirrell.

"Don't you dare lay a hand on Harry!" Persephone whispered as she pinned Quirrell down with hers knees. She felt his chest rise and fall as she kneeled on top of his rib cage. She lurched her hands at Quirrells face as the world spun around her.

Another pair of hands— hands smaller than Quirrells— laid on top of hers. Perry looked slightly up as her vision swayed. She saw the focused face of Harry facing her. A flash of light reflected off of Harry's glasses onto Quirrells burnt face. The echo of screams played in the back of her mind as she collapsed to the ground.