The Strange Peeves

The match was already fierce.

Harry deftly dodged the Bludgers high in the air, while Slytherin Seeker Terence Higgs stayed close on his heels.

Gryffindor were ahead by twenty points, but their captain and Keeper, Oliver Wood, had been knocked unconscious by a Quaffle from Slytherin's Marcus Flint. The tension was so thick it felt as though the whole stadium had frozen.

At this crucial moment, Harry Potter's broom seemed to go haywire. It flew wildly through the air in a zigzag, jerking violently from time to time.

It bucked and spun madly, as if determined to throw its rider off. Harry could only cling to the broom for dear life with both hands and his knees to keep from plunging to the ground.

"That broom seems to be under someone's control," Rosier suddenly said. "I've heard of this happening before. Whoever's doing it must be somewhere on the grounds, not too far away."

As she spoke, she pulled a pair of binoculars from her robes and began scanning the grounds.

At the same time, Hermione in the Gryffindor section did the same.

"Oh, Merlin! It's Professor Snape, the Head of House. He's chanting nonstop!" Rosier turned to Yulian in shock. The sheer astonishment left her mind blank, and she had no idea what to do.

"Is that so?" To Rosier's surprise, Yulian didn't seem worried about his cousin at all. He spoke unhurriedly. "Then take another look behind Snape."

Rosier raised her binoculars again. "Good heavens! Professor Quirrell! He's chanting too!"

"Then who do you think is casting the Evil Curse?"

"It must be Quirrell. Oh, no, perhaps..." Rosier suddenly recalled Snape's attitude toward Harry Potter and found herself unsure.

Yulian glanced sideways at her. The usually proud and aloof Slytherin girl looked uncertain. "No, shouldn't we do something?"

"Perhaps." He replied softly, "Don't forget, Professor McGonagall and many of the other teachers are here. They won't let a student come to harm."

Rosier paused, then nodded. A moment later, she thought of something and shook her head. "No, wait. Why did you tell me to look behind Professor Snape? You seem to know something."

"Mm, there's no need to dwell on unimportant things," Yulian said with a shrug. "Perhaps I have a gift for Prophecy."

Just as Rosier was about to ask another question, a commotion broke out among the staff on the opposite side. Then Harry's broom immediately returned to normal.

Back on his broom, Harry suddenly dived, plunging toward the ground like a meteor. Yulian knew he had spotted the Golden Snitch. The Slytherin Seeker beside him immediately followed.

The two of them were about to crash into the ground! The whole stadium gasped! At the last moment, Higgs clearly couldn't manage such a daring maneuver, and pulled his broom up first.

Harry Potter waited until the very last moment before pulling up in a hair-raising Wronski Feint. Though he fell off his broom and hit the ground, he spat the Golden Snitch out of his mouth.

"Gryffindor win!" Lee Jordan roared, nearly lifting the stands off their foundations.

The Gryffindor students leaped about in wild celebration, while Slytherin sat in dead silence. Only Marcus Flint was still arguing incessantly with the referee, Madam Hooch, claiming that Potter had caught the Golden Snitch in his mouth, not with his hand, so it shouldn't count.

Rosier stood and brushed the snow from her robes. "I should get back," she said. "The common room won't be a pleasant place after a Slytherin loss."

"Be careful," Yulian said with a nod.

She turned and walked a few steps, then looked back. "Oh, by the way—if you find any clues about the ruins, you can tell me. I think... we may have the same goal." Her words carried a deeper meaning.

Yulian watched her disappear into the crowd, the heavy ancient book clutched tightly in his hand. The cold wind ruffled his black hair. In the distance, Harry was tossed high into the air by his teammates, his laughter reaching through the clouds.

That evening in the library, Yulian closed the notebook he had borrowed from Rosier. His fingertips still held the peculiar chill of parchment. Outside the window, night lay thick as ink beyond Ravenclaw Tower. Only above the dome did the stars glitter like diamonds, silently watching over the thousand-year-old castle.

An indescribable shock churned within him. So that was it.

The areas of Europe said to have "abnormal fluctuations in magic"—the part of the Scandinavian Mountains within the Arctic Circle, the Dinaric Alps in Albania on the Balkan Peninsula, and the Scottish Highlands where Hogwarts stood—

Their balance was maintained by three "Source Stone Slabs" imbued with the power of the stars, discovered by the first wizards.

One had been found by Grindelwald and entrusted to the Rosier Family for safekeeping; Dumbledore had found the second and entrusted it to the guardians of a Northern European tribe of ice and snow; and the third... had been hidden all along in the most secret heart of Hogwarts. Yulian now knew it was inside the Mirror of Erised.

What shook him even more was what the book said: when the three slabs were brought together, they would open a "Star Gate" to an unknown dimension. Its power might be enough to reshape the world—or tear it apart completely. No one could know whether it would bring fortune or disaster.

There was another truth buried by time: the Black Family had also taken part in building Hogwarts and had served as its caretakers for a long time.

The first caretaker had been Pyxis. Interestingly, records showed that all Four Founders had called her "Guardian" on different occasions.

"The Black Family really was... the Guardian?" Yulian murmured to himself. His grandfather, Alphard, had never mentioned any of this. He must not have known that such an earth-shattering secret lay buried in their family bloodline.

He had to get back to his dormitory at once. It was late, and if he didn't leave now, the ever-elusive Filch would catch him red-handed.

To avoid the main staircase, he chose a little-known spiral path leading to the abandoned Astronomy Tower in the west wing. The path was cold and damp, and the torches on the walls flickered, stretching his shadow long and thin until it resembled a lonely ghost.

Just as he was about to pass through an archway, a piercing laugh rang out ahead.

"Hee hee hee! Look who's up in the middle of the night, playing hide-and-seek!"

A translucent ghost wearing a tricorne hat appeared out of nowhere, hovering in front of Yulian. It was none other than Hogwarts' infamous prankster—Peeves. He was clutching a roll of soaked parchment, apparently stolen from some poor student's homework.

Yulian's heart tightened, and he instinctively took a step back. Just my luck. Why did I have to run into him? This fellow was a real nuisance; even the professors couldn't keep him in check.

Yulian wondered what spell he could use to drive Peeves away.

However, when Peeves saw him, he didn't throw an ink bottle at him or come shrieking toward him as usual. His little eyes, normally alight with mischief, were fixed on Yulian, and there was an unusual gravity in them.

"Black..." Peeves' voice suddenly sank. Gone was the shrill laughter; in its place was a hoarse sound with an ancient echo. "Shiloh Yulian Black. You carry the scent of 'her.'"

Yulian froze. "Her? Who?"

"Pyxis!" Peeves abruptly straightened, his voice full of reverence. "Pyxis Black, the first to come to Hogwarts! Only she could command me! And only her bloodline could awaken the sleeping key!"

Yulian's heart began to race. Pyxis?!

"What are you talking about?" Yulian forced himself to stay calm, though his voice came out a little hoarse.

"Don't play dumb, young Black!" Peeves floated closer, almost pressing his face against Yulian's. "I know who you are. You must already know what's hidden inside that mirror. It's right there! But no one except you can take it out! Your blood is the only key that can open it!"

Peeves lowered his voice further, his tone almost warning. "You're not just the key—you're the Guardian, too. When the three are joined, the Star Gate will open. Fortune or disaster depends entirely on your choice. Remember, little one, don't let those vultures lurking in the shadows catch its scent, or else... hee hee hee!"

With that, Peeves let out an eerie laugh, seemingly forgetting everything he'd just said. His form turned into a wisp of smoke and vanished at the far end of the corridor.