Bound by Soul

Tenuous Suspicions

Weird chapter. But it is what is.

I've been on a bit of a roll with chapters recently, so have another one.

I know! Three in one month! Now that we're over the rough patch of hard to write chapters, I'm getting excited for it again! I can't wait! 

Harry stared into the fire in the Slytherin common room, thinking over the conversation he'd just had with Snape. He knew it was inevitable, ever since Halloween, but it hadn't been what he was expecting. Snape had asked him about his classes, asked if the other students were giving him any trouble, innocuous things one would expect to chat about over tea. The only thing different had been Snape's parting words as he dismissed him,

"It can be overwhelming, adjusting to a new environment, it is easy to feel out of your depth. Your well being is more important then your studies, no matter how it may seem. If you ever need anything, my door is open. Escape is not always the answer. Sometimes you have to face the problem, before you can truly be free of it. But not every problem has to be faced alone."

His words had felt... heavy. They weren't platitudes, or promises, or dismissals. They had the weight of hard learned lessons, of casualties that outweighed the victories in a neverending war...

"Harry!"

Theo dropped onto the couch, right next to Harry, breaking him from his reverie.

"What?"

"You know how we saw Quirrell going into the forbidden corridor?"

Harry wasn't sure where this was going.

"Yeah..."

Theo leaned closer, lowering his voice so no one would overhear.

"I saw him coming out of there on my way back from the library. So I decided to see what was in there."

That didn't sound like it would end well.

"There's a cerberus in the corridor!" He whispered,

"A what?" Harry asked.

Theo glanced around, lowering his voice further, almost hissing,

"A cerberus! A giant dog with three heads! Its whole leg was as big as I am!"

He grinned at Harry, like this was the best thing since pumpkin pasties. All Harry could think about was the time Uncle Vernon's sister's bulldog had chased him into a tree. If the cerber-beast, whatever, was as big as Theo said it was, it would most likely have pulled the tree up by the roots, to get him. Unless it could reach that high up without any help. Harry shuddered at that thought. Being turned into dog food did not sound pleasant.

"And!" -'There's more?!' Harry thought incredulously- "it looked like it was standing on something! Like a trapdoor, or a secret passage! It must be guarding something valuable!"

Harry blinked.

"So?"

Theo sat up sharply, staring at Harry incredulously,

"So? Aren't you the least bit curious as to what the beast is guarding? Cerberi are incredibly rare in Britain! Whatever is on the other side of that trapdoor must be really valuable if Dumbledore got a cerberus just to guard it."

"But does it really matter? If it's so valuable, shouldn't we leave it alone?"

"It's not like I want to steal it." Theo scoffed, "I just want to know what it is."