Chapter 51: Chapter 51: Eisen's Arrangement
"What do you think will come next?" Harry asked softly as they walked down the next corridor.
"We've already passed Sprout's trap, the Devil's Snare, and Flitwick must have enchanted the keys. McGonagall likely transfigured the chess pieces and brought them to life. That just leaves Quirrell and Snape's magic," Hermione speculated.
"Is Professor Eisen still with us?" Harry asked, glancing around, but he couldn't spot Eisen anywhere.
"Of course he is! Professor Eisen just saved me. He said he'd follow us!" Ron said excitedly, rubbing his wrist. He had been struck by a chess piece earlier, and although the card-shield had blocked most of the blow, his wrist still hurt.
As they spoke, they arrived at another door.
"Let's go in!" The three exchanged glances before Harry pushed the door open.
Eisen, who had been invisibly following them, stepped in behind them but was immediately overwhelmed by a foul stench. He quickly cast a Bubble-Head Charm on himself before taking a proper look around.
A massive troll lay on the ground, seemingly dead. This was likely Quirrell's doing, though Eisen wasn't sure if Voldemort had helped.
"Great, no need to fight trolls!" Harry sighed in relief, seeing the creature lifeless before them.
"Hurry up, I can't breathe!" Ron said, covering his nose with his sleeve. Harry and Hermione did the same.
They quickly opened the next door, and the sight behind it caught them by surprise.
Unexpectedly, there was nothing dangerous waiting for them—just a table with seven differently shaped bottles arranged in a row.
"It's Snape's work," Harry whispered, recognizing the setup immediately.
The three stepped inside cautiously. As soon as Eisen crossed the threshold, two flames erupted on either side: black flames blocked the path forward, and purple flames sealed the door behind them. They were trapped.
"Look—what's this?" Hermione picked up a piece of parchment lying next to the bottles.
Eisen was familiar with this puzzle. Seven bottles were arranged before them: three were poison, two were wine, and two were potions. One potion would allow them to pass through the black flames, while the other would let them return through the purple flames.
In the original story, only Harry and Hermione made it to this point, with Hermione choosing to return while Harry went forward. But now, with Eisen's involvement, Ron had made it this far too. How would they decide?
Since this was a logic puzzle, Hermione immediately took charge. In just a few minutes, she picked up one of the bottles.
"This little bottle will let us pass through the black flames and get to the Philosopher's Stone!" Hermione said, smiling.
"But there's only enough for one person—not even a sip," Harry pointed out. "There are three of us."
"And this bottle will let someone return safely," Hermione added, holding up another bottle.
The trio exchanged uneasy glances. One potion could take someone through the black flames, but that meant facing Snape alone—or possibly Voldemort, if things were worse than they feared. The other potion allowed a safe return, clearly hinting that someone might need to go back.
"Professor Eisen? Can't you stop Snape?" Ron asked softly, breaking the silence.
Eisen, deep in thought, was still puzzling over how Quirrell had made it this far—especially with McGonagall's giant chessboard. How had Quirrell managed to reset the pieces after winning the game?
Eisen could replicate the traps set by McGonagall and Flitwick with his current level of magic, but breaking through them without disrupting the professors' arrangements was something else entirely. Could Quirrell's magic really be that advanced? Perhaps not, but Voldemort's certainly was. As an equal to Dumbledore, Voldemort advising Quirrell made sense.
"Professor Eisen?" Hermione called out, noticing his silence.
"Let me think," Eisen's voice echoed back to them.
In reality, Eisen knew that the flames weren't as dangerous as they seemed. According to the original book, the potions didn't extinguish the fire but rather lowered the body temperature to offset the flames' heat. The fire's destructive power would be neutralized by the potion's effects.
Eisen could easily extinguish both flames with a spell, but his concern wasn't about breaking the flames—it was whether Ron and Hermione would follow Harry to face Voldemort. While he was confident in his ability to protect all three, there was no telling what dark magic Voldemort might use, and Eisen couldn't guard against every curse.
Harry, with the protective magic from his mother, could defeat Voldemort with Eisen's help. However, if Ron or Hermione were harmed, the consequences would be dire.
"Harry, you'll go in, and I'll follow. Don't worry. Hermione and Ron, you can either wait here or go back and notify Dumbledore," Eisen finally said.
"Professor Eisen—" Hermione began in surprise.
"It's decided," Eisen interrupted firmly.
"Good luck, Harry. Be careful," Ron said, offering his friend encouragement.
Hermione, though reassured by Eisen's presence, still looked worried as she handed Harry the small bottle.
Harry took a deep breath, drank the potion, and faced the black flames. With a determined look, he stepped through.
As expected, Harry passed through the door without incident. Eisen silently manipulated the black flames, creating an opening just wide enough for him to step through. The flames closed behind him as if nothing had happened.
In Hermione and Ron's eyes, it was as though the flames had parted for Harry and then magically resealed. Had they not known Eisen was following, they might have thought it was an illusion.
I hope your like the chapter 😊.
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