Drawn by Peeves' piercing scream, Filch's footsteps were getting closer.
"The door's locked…"
Ron whimpered in despair, shoving at it as if brute force might break it open.
"Let me!"
Hermione showed unexpected decisiveness. She pulled out her wand, tapped the lock, and whispered,
"Alohomora."
With a click, the door swung open. The group rushed inside, slammed it shut, and pressed their ears against it, listening for movement outside.
"I think we're safe…" Harry let out a long breath and slid down against the door.
"What's wrong, Neville?" He noticed Neville tugging at his sleeve.
Harry turned—and felt as if something had seized his throat. Only a hoarse gasp escaped him.
They hadn't entered an ordinary room.
They had stumbled into the forbidden corridor on the third floor.
Now he understood why it was forbidden.
The others weren't doing any better.
Only Lewis stood calmly, even curiously, as if admiring an exhibit.
But this was no ordinary exhibit.
It was a monstrous dog—so massive it filled the space from floor to ceiling.
Three heads.
Six vicious, rolling eyes.
Three twitching noses.
Three drooling mouths, strings of saliva hanging like sticky ropes, faintly smoking with a suspicious yellow haze as they dripped from yellowed fangs. Each drop hit the floor with a sizzling hiss.
Lewis knew this was Hagrid's three-headed dog—Fluffy.
But something was different.
From the beast, he could smell a heavy scent of sulfur.
A hallmark of infernal creatures.
Combined with the dense fire-element aura surrounding it, Lewis was certain—
this was no ordinary three-headed dog.
This was a true infernal beast: a Hellhound Cerberus.
But in the original Harry Potter world, there was no hell—only an afterlife.
This anomaly immediately reminded Lewis of Ciri… and the earlier mention of the drowner brain.
Just as he suspected—
this world had begun to diverge.
Still, the main storyline hadn't changed.
The trapdoor beneath the dog still led to the Philosopher's Stone.
Lewis believed this was all part of Dumbledore's design—a trial for Harry.
If Dumbledore truly wanted to keep Voldemort from the Stone, he could have simply asked Nicolas Flamel to destroy it outright. Why go through the trouble of guarding it?
And in the original story, Dumbledore destroyed the Stone almost immediately after Voldemort's failure—before Harry even woke up.
That alone proved it had been planned in advance.
Lewis had no intention of interfering.
He wasn't strong enough to challenge Dumbledore—and there was no need.
Tonight's involvement in the "main storyline" was natural enough, given his friendship with Harry.
Avoiding Harry deliberately would only make him look suspicious.
Better to let things unfold naturally.
Turning back to the four frozen students, Lewis sighed.
The thick chains around Fluffy's neck meant it couldn't reach them.
But for first-years, fear was only natural.
Lewis raised his wand.
"Dancing Light."
A glowing orb flickered into existence, drifting like a firefly toward the beast.
Fluffy's attention snapped to it instantly.
At that moment, the terrifying creature looked no different from a puppy chasing a butterfly.
"While I've got its attention—go."
Hermione reacted first. With a click, she opened the door.
They rushed out in a panic.
Filch was nowhere to be seen now.
At the staircase, the group split up and hurried back to their respective dorms.
Everyone left—
except Hermione, who suddenly grabbed Lewis.
"What is it, Miss Granger?" Lewis asked, eyes heavy with fatigue.
"Just call me Hermione," she said, a little embarrassed. But her thirst for knowledge quickly overcame her shyness.
"Mr. Green… what spell did you use in the trophy room? At first I thought it was the Disillusionment Charm, but that's supposed to be for older students. And your effect… it was completely different."
Lewis nodded. "Correct. The Disillusionment Charm is indeed an advanced spell. But that's not what I used."
"Because my magic is far superior to it."
Seeing her visibly relax, Lewis couldn't help but smile mischievously.
"Stronger than the Disillusionment Charm? That's impossible!" Hermione's eyes widened.
"Of course it's possible. Because what I used is my own creation—Invisibility."
"Invisibility?!" Hermione gasped. "You mean it can—"
"Exactly. True invisibility. Just like wearing an invisibility cloak."
"So… you've created a spell that can completely replace the Disillusionment Charm—and even rival an invisibility cloak?"
Invisibility cloaks were expensive magical items made from Demiguise hair, capable of rendering the wearer completely invisible.
They were highly sought after because they outperformed the Disillusionment Charm and weren't affected by revealing spells.
But they were costly—and their magic faded over time.
Consumable luxury items.
Harry's cloak, of course, was different.
As one of the Deathly Hallows, it granted permanent invisibility and could even evade detection from prophetic magic.
For generations, wizards had tried—and failed—to replicate such effects through spells.
And now Lewis claimed he had succeeded.
Hermione found it hard to believe.
So Lewis demonstrated.
Right in front of her, he vanished without a trace—
then reappeared behind her.
Hermione stared, stunned.
"If you knew the Revealing Charm, you'd find it doesn't work on this," Lewis added casually.
After all, Invisibility came from an entirely different magical system.
Naturally, it wasn't affected by this world's spells.
Only arcane magic like See Invisibility or True Seeing could counter it.
Seeing her expression, Lewis decided to push further.
"And compared to the Disillusionment Charm, it's actually easier to learn."
Hermione finally broke.
She stepped forward and grabbed his hand.
"Coach—I want to learn magic!"
"…What?"
Her face flushed red. Gathering her courage, she said,
"I mean… could you teach me spells? Not just Invisibility—but also that floating light spell."
"You mean Dancing Light?"
"Yes! Please—teach me!"
She looked at him with eager anticipation.
The competitiveness in her heart had already faded.
Where she once saw Lewis as a rival—
she now saw him as a goal.
Only admiration and nervous hope remained.
After all, a spell like Invisibility wasn't something people casually shared.
But Lewis's warm smile dispelled her worries.
"Of course. I'm happy to teach anyone willing to learn my magic. You know where to find me."
In truth, Hermione had underestimated her own value.
Setting aside her charm—or her role as a central figure—
her aptitude alone made her worth investing in.
In the entire Harry Potter world, aside from a few outliers, Hermione Granger was among the very best.
And for Lewis, who had ambitious goals, she was someone worth cultivating.
If you wanted allies—
you had to invest early.
"Yes—yes, I do. Thank you, Mr. Green!" Hermione was so excited she could barely speak.
"Just call me Lewis," he said, waving it off. "It's late. Staying up will give you acne."
"R-right…"
"See you tomorrow, Hermione?"
"Tomorrow, Lewis!"
She skipped away happily, disappearing down the corridor.
Girls really were simple.
A few promises, a little kindness—and they'd give you their most genuine emotions.
Adults, on the other hand…
For the same result, you'd probably need cold, hard gold.
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