Harry slipped out from behind the tapestry; there was a long, very thin window about a dozen yards down the corridor. When Harry looked out, he experienced vertigo for the first time in his life. Damn. And he was on the opposite side of the castle, too.

Racing around the corner, Harry discovered two staircases, twisting in opposite directions, one up into a tower, the other down into Hogwarts. Bracing himself for a long descent, Harry jogged down, his fingers skimming the smooth, cool walls.

oOoOo

An hour later, exhausted both emotionally and physically, Harry collapsed into Severus’ office. However, his father was not marking at his desk, cooking or even brewing in his private lab and, when Harry, frantic with worry, burst into Severus’ ebony furnished bedroom, he only found yet another empty room.

Slouching back into the Sitting-room, Harry thumped down in an armchair, taking gulping breaths to fight off the rising panic. Where was his Dad?

After a minute, Harry sat up and his gaze aligned on an incongruous roll of parchment on the mantelpiece. Harry stood up and immediately noticed his name was written upon it.

“Dear Harry,

If you are reading this, I expect that you have called by to celebrate the end of your first-year exams. Most unfortunately, I have been called away and I doubt that it will be in my power to return tonight. A parent of one of the children in our House, I cannot disclose whom, has been killed and I must remove the child’s remaining family to a safe location and further secure the property. I am afraid that I will not be back this evening and may well have to remain away until dawn.

I am very sorry to miss this important event in your life and I hope you have a lovely evening with your friends. I am very proud of you.

Your father,

Severus Snape.”

Harry bit his lip, telling himself that he was eleven and, therefore, should not cry like a baby just because his Dad wasn’t there to coddle him. After all, the person who'd died... it probably wasn’t the parent of anyone he knew very well; Draco’s dad was well powerful and Mr Nott was smart and… Shaking his head to banish the terrible, haunting ideas assailing his mind, Harry swallowed convulsively and scrubbed at his eyes with his sleeve. Dumbledore. If his Dad wasn’t around, Dumbledore would be the next best person to go to.

oOoOo

“What do you mean he’s not in?!”

“Had to go orf, kid” drawled the stone goblin outside the Headmaster’s office. “Whatchoo gonna do? He’s a busy guy.”

Harry shook his head, this was a nightmare. “When’s he going to be back?”

“Dint tell me, kid: I’m just a glorified doorstop. An, if he did, I probly shouldn’t tell you.”

Harry looked at the statue in despair but was little comforted when the stone goblin, in compassion, added “He had an overnight bag, kid, stuffed inta his pocket and he seemed in a hurry. Best I can do.”

This was terrible. No father, no Headmaster and whom else, amongst the Professors, could Harry trust? Quirrell was in league with the thief, so perhaps other teachers were too. And wouldn’t it just be Harry’s luck to go to the wrong person. So who could he trust? Going to Madam Pomfrey was no good; she’d just lock him in the Infirmary and approach McGonagall but, if the Deputy Head was also in on it…

Hagrid, of course, was another possibility: the Game Keeper would sooner die than betray the Headmaster but, although he was very strong, he didn’t have a wand and something told Harry that the thief was dead dangerous. He couldn’t live with himself if…

No, no, stay focused. Professor Kettleburn; he was definitely trustworthy. However one leg, half an arm and, rumour had it that Kettleburn had to hold his wand in his teeth... He'd just tell some other teacher and then they’d hit the same problem.

Professor Burbage was dead nice but… how well did Harry actually know her? What if she was just being kind to smarm up to him and his Dad? Petunia did that to other parents all the time; treated them like her best friend to their face, only to bitch about them later. And, although most Dark Wizards were blood supremacist… No, it wasn’t worth the risk.

But… a little voice in his head whispered. There is one person whom you can trust: yourself.

oOoOo

“Harry! Where the blue blazes have you been!” called Draco, as Harry entered the Serpent’s Nest.

Harry paused: should he reveal all? If Draco or the others knew what he was planning, they’d want to help and, thereby, place themselves in danger. Mortal danger at that.

“I’m sorry” Harry said, forcing a smile “I was just held up with Filch, caught me running in the corridors and made me spend an hour polishing trophies.”

“Aww!”

"That's so unfair!"

“The dick!”

“Draco!” Pansy and Hermione chorused, outraged.

“What?!”

“You shouldn’t swear!”

“Such a common word!”

“Flich doesn’t deserve any better” Blaise said quellingly. “Come here, Harry, have an ice-cream."

"You look done in.” added Theo.

“We saved you your favourite” smiled Milly, blushing.

“Thanks!” Harry replied, sitting down. As the other children chattered, Harry plotted. Severus kept his invisibility cloak on top of his bedroom wardrobe; while Harry would never normally nick stuff, even his own things, like that, this was a special, once-in-a-lifetime situation. Right. And, as the Secret Room didn’t work last time, Harry’d have to get past Fluffy. He couldn’t risk asking Hagrid so he’d need some music. Would whistling work? It had better. Okay…

“You okay, Harry?” asked Tracy, noticing Harry was staring blankly at his melting ice-cream.

“Yeah, fine” Harry smiled, taking a bite of pistachio “No problems at all.”

oOoOo

At quarter to eleven, Harry’s dormitory was dark, but for the light of the low fire, and silent, save for Greg’s whuffling snores. Hidden by the heavy curtains of his bed, Harry, who had been lying with wide eyes and rapidly beating heart, suddenly sat up. Pulling off his pyjamas, the eleven year old dressed quickly and quietly in his duelling gear; a lightweight shirt and tracksuit bottoms, both of which were woven with substantial shield charms. His invisibility cloak under his arm and shoes in hand, Harry slipped out of bed and tiptoed to the door. Slowly, carefully, wincing at the slightest of creaks, Harry opened the door and, pulling on his cloak, slipped into the Slytherin common room.

“Heidi! Where are you going?!”

Before Harry could register what was happening, much less work out how to avoid it, a small, fluffy white cannonball flew towards him; Heidi had sensed Harry and in flying to greet him, her claws caught his cloak, wrenching the hood clean off his head.

“Err… Hi Hermione.” Harry said; feeling, along with the fear and frustration of being thwarted, exceptionally embarrassed.

“Harry! What are you doing up?” Hermione took in his appearance or, rather, the lack of any below his head “I thought your father had confiscated that” she added, frowning at the space where Harry’s body should have been.

“Um… well, I…”

“What’s going on, Harry?” Hermione asked, suspiciously.

Sighing, Harry walked over to where Hermione was sitting and dropped into a chair beside her: it was pointless to dissemble, he couldn't tell a barefaced lie, not to Hermione. Having cast, muffliato Harry explained the situation. Around two thirds of the way in, Hermione’s expression changed from alarm to incredulous anger.

“Harry James Potter-Snape, do you mean to tell me that you were planning on facing this thief who, for all we know, could be a Dark Wizard, on your own!”

“Well, I couldn’t exactly take you along! You could get hurt!” Harry replied, his eyes blazing.

“I could… Oh Harry Potter-Snape you are the limit! The absolute limit! You! Are! Eleven! Years! Old!” Hermione cried, jumping up and stamping her foot.

“So!”

“So you should have gone to a teacher!”

“I tried! Dad and Dumbledore are out all night!” Harry replied angrily.

“There are other teachers, you know!" Hermione stormed "What about McGonagall, she’s the Deputy-Head!”

“She might be in on it too! Quirrell is!”

“Oh..! Well, what about Hagrid? Surely you trust him” Hermione snapped irritably, tossing her hair over her shoulder.

“He hasn’t got a wand!”

“And you’re eleven, Harry! Eleven! We’ve scarcely completed our first year!”

“I’m powerful!" Harry insisted "I dealt with that Cerberus!”

“Oh for heavens…” Hermione shook her head “Why didn’t you tell Mr Malfoy, then? Draco could have contacted him in a minute! He’s a powerful wizard and a school Governor, so the wards would allow him right through.”

“Oh…” Harry flushed. He hadn’t even considered that. “Well, what matters is that while we’re here chatting, some Dark Wizard is stealing the Stone.”

“Let him” Hermione ground out, crossing her arms and fixing Harry with a steely glare.

“What!” Harry goggled.

“Your life is worth more than some stupid Stone, Harry Potter-Snape!”

“But what… But what if it’s Voldemort!” Harry whispered, only now admitting the suspicion which had been gnawing at the back of his mind.

“Oh come on! Voldemort is dead.”

“The guy... The guy talking to Quirrell could speak Parseltongue.” Harry confided quietly.

Hermione’s smirk slipped “How do you know?”

“Guess!” Harry snarled “Voldemort was a Parselmouth, Hermione.” A piece of information clunked into place in Harry’s brain “Someone’s been killing unicorns- only someone who is absolutely evil and determined to cling to life at all costs would do that! What if Voldemort didn’t die, not fully at least. What if he wants the Elixir to bring him back to health?! The bludger that almost killed me, Quirrell was at that match, it could have been him!”

“Its… well, we have no firm proof…” Hermione said, looking concerned.

“Please, Hermione, I’ve got to stop him” Harry begged, his green eyes imploring.

Hermione bit her lip “Very well, but you’re not going alone.”

“But…”

“No, Harry. We all go or no one goes.”

Harry opened his mouth to protest but Hermione renewed her steely glare and Harry just knew that there was no alternative but to accept.

“Okay,” he sighed “I’ll wake Blaise, Draco and Theo.”

oOoOo

“So, basically you were about to run off and fight not just any adult but a Dark Wizard and, let’s be absolutely clear, a Dark wizard who might just be Voldemort by your little, eleven-year old self?” Blaise said, arms folded and eyebrow raised.

“Errr…” Harry realised that Blaise reminded him a lot of his Dad at times.

Draco glared at Harry “Not a word, Potter-Snape. Not a single word. You are a complete and utter… I am so mad at you, you absolute… Gryffindork!” he cried shrilly.

“How could you be so dumb, Harry” sighed Theo, shaking his head. "Okay, I get this is important but there is such a thing as safety in numbers!"

“Look, I’m sorry." Harry cried "I know I acted a total Gryffindork but…”

“Yes, yes, we know” Hermione said calmly, patting Harry on the shoulder: the boys’ anger seemed to have purged her own. “Now, let’s floo Malfoy Manor.”

Glaring at Harry, Draco stomped over and threw a handful of powder in the fire “Father! Mother!”

There was a long silence and, suddenly, Dobby popped his head out of the fire “Master Draco?”

“Where are my parents, Dobby?”

“Away, Master Draco.” Dobby muttered.

“Well, go and get them!” Draco said irritably.

“They is not telling Dobby wheres they have gone.” Dobby replied mournfully.

“Oh! Off with you! And when they get back, tell Dad he’s needed here!”

“Yes, Master Draco.”

Blaise looked at Harry “Lucius is the only Parent Governor in Slytherin, Harry. I think it’s time to get going if we’re to stop whomever it is.”

Harry was afraid, not for himself but for his friends, he couldn't bear it if anything happened to them because of him. “You don’t have to c…”

“Shut it, Harry” snapped Draco.

“We’re not going to let you go alone Harry and that’s final” added Hermione.

“Let’s stop by the Secret room first, though.” Draco said thoughtfully “I have an idea.”

"The Secret Room is on the Seventh floor!" Blaise pointed out "We won't all fit under Harry's cloak!"

"Um, my Dad taught me how to do a disillusionment charm" Theo said quietly. "Just in case, you know."

"Mine too." admitted Draco.

"That's great" beamed Hermione.

Smiling wryly, Blaise nodded. "Okay, so Harry, Hermione and I take the cloak; it should just fit three."

As Draco and Theo prepared to dissillusion themselves, Hermione asked "Why didn't you teach us how to do this during our DA sessions?"

"It's dead useful" added Harry.

Draco paused "Only spies and criminals use Dissillusionment charms, Hermione" he replied softly.

"That must make us spies, then" grinned Blaise "Come on, let's go."