Three-Headed Dog

In the Room of Requirement.

The room was enormous, large enough to hold a Thousand-Year Basilisk dozens of meters long.

The Basilisk lay on a long table dozens of meters in length. Its flesh had been stripped away, leaving only a skeleton. Beneath the table stood numerous glass jars filled with bright red blood.

Matthew busied himself around the room, taking the Basilisk apart and storing its parts separately. He had made quite a haul this time. The skeleton alone was worth a great deal; depraved male wizards would gladly pay a high price for Basilisk Bone Powder.

He kept the Basilisk's skeleton intact, since he still hadn't decided what to do with it.

Basilisk flesh could be used as the main ingredient in potions that increased Petrification Resistance. It could also serve as an auxiliary ingredient in certain potions. For example, Dragon Heart, Phoenix Feather, and Basilisk Blood could be used to make a potion that increased Instant Death Magic Resistance.

Basilisk Skin had extremely high Magic Resistance. He planned to find a skilled tailor to make a few Wizard Cloaks.

Matthew also had high hopes for the Basilisk Heart. He had an ancestral potion recipe that used a Basilisk Heart and a Unicorn Horn to make a potion that enhanced physical ability.

After dealing with the Basilisk's flesh, Matthew took a Rabbit from the cage beside him. He had asked Preserved Egg to catch it in the Forbidden Forest.

He wanted to test the effects of the Basilisk Eye on the Rabbit.

The Basilisk Eye was slightly larger than a basketball. Matthew needed both hands to lift it.

He aimed the enormous Basilisk Pupil at the Rabbit and channeled magic into the eye with both hands. The Rabbit in front of him instantly froze.

Through Magic Sense, Matthew sensed a strange, invisible magic shooting from the Basilisk Pupil in a fan-shaped area extending forty-five degrees ahead.

The strange magic only reached a little over two meters. Snakes had poor eyesight and mainly hunted using their tongues and heat-sensing pits.

This Petrification Ability was actually a passive effect of the Basilisk. But now that the eyes no longer had a supply of magic, Matthew had to activate it himself.

Within the fan-shaped area of magic, meeting the Basilisk's gaze triggered the petrification effect.

Matthew tested it on several more Rabbits. He found that when he poured in a large amount of magic, he could activate the Basilisk Eye's Instant Death Ability, killing the Rabbits instantly.

However, using the Petrification Ability consumed very little of the Basilisk Eye's Pupil Power, while using the Instant Death Ability consumed a great deal. Now that the Basilisk was dead, its Pupil Power was like water without a source: every use depleted it. Under normal circumstances, using the Instant Death Ability wasn't worth the cost.

The Rabbits Preserved Egg had caught in the Forbidden Forest were ordinary creatures, so they couldn't be used to test how magic affected resistance to petrification. Matthew would have to verify that in a real encounter later.

After the experiment, he put everything in the room into his Undetectable Extension Charm Pocket.

Once he had finished cleaning up, Matthew left the Room of Requirement. When he reached the Prize Display Room, he heard someone whispering up ahead.

"He's late. Or maybe he's too scared to come."

It was Ron's voice.

Matthew raised an eyebrow. He'd run into Harry Potter and his friends again. He suddenly remembered that he had once promised to teach them the Summon Familiar spell, but he'd been so busy lately that he'd nearly forgotten.

Next time for sure, Matthew thought to himself.

Another voice came from up ahead.

"They're in here somewhere. Maybe they're hiding, dear. Go and find them!"

It was Filch's voice.

Matthew remembered that tonight was when Little Malfoy had tricked Harry Potter and the others into coming for a Midnight Duel, but Little Malfoy hadn't shown up. Instead, he'd reported Harry Potter for wandering the halls at night. That night, they would encounter the Three-Headed Dog in a room along the Third Floor Corridor.

Matthew was intrigued. Dumbledore would use the Philosopher's Stone to set up an Obstacle Course Game to lure Voldemort and test Harry Potter. The Three-Headed Dog was the first challenge.

He had never seen a Three-Headed Dog before. He decided to "happen" upon Harry Potter so he could get a look at the dog.

He took a bottle of Deodorizing Potion from his pocket and sprinkled the potion powder over himself and Preserved Egg, so Mrs. Norris, with her keen nose, wouldn't detect them.

He walked right past Filch, but neither Filch nor Mrs. Norris noticed him.

Then he caught up with Harry Potter and the others.

"We have to get back to the common room," Ron panted. "As fast as we can!"

"Malfoy never intended to duel you! He must have told Filch!" Hermione said.

"Let's go." Harry knew Hermione was right, but he was embarrassed to admit it.

"What are you doing wandering around so late at night?" Matthew canceled his Illusionary Body Spell and walked toward them from a distance.

At the sound of the voice, Harry tensed up. When he saw who it was, he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He'd thought Filch had caught up with them!

"Matthew..." Harry had barely begun when a noise nearby interrupted him.

A doorknob rattled, and Peeves emerged from a classroom.

He cackled. "Slytherin and Gryffindor students out of bed and wandering the halls together! You're going to get caught!"

"Peeves, please keep your voice down! Filch will hear you!" Harry begged.

"Should I tell Filch?" Peeves looked perfectly serious, but there was no hiding the mischief in his eyes.

Ron was getting impatient. "Peeves, get out of the way! You're blocking the path!"

Then Ron hit Peeves, trying to chase him off.

Peeves was instantly enraged. He yelled, "Slytherin and Gryffindor students out of bed and wandering the halls together! In the Charms Class Corridor!"

"Run!" Matthew took off first, sprinting deeper into the corridor.

The others hurried after him.

They soon reached the end of the corridor. There was only one door, and it was locked.

"There's nowhere to go!" Ron said, his face full of despair. Filch was about to catch up with them.

They could already hear footsteps coming from behind them in the corridor.

"Let me!" Anxious, Hermione snatched Harry's wand. "Alohomora!"

The Unlock Charm struck the lock, and it clicked open. They hurried inside and shut the door behind them.

After the door closed, Harry pressed his ear against it and listened for a moment. "He thinks the door's locked. I think we're safe."

Matthew drew his wand. "It's too soon to say that, Harry."

Harry turned and saw the terrified look on Neville's face. Confused, he asked, "What's wrong?"

Then he understood. A monster that took up nearly half the room was glaring at them.

It was a huge dog with three heads and a vicious stare. Drool slipped between its fangs and dripped onto the floor.

Matthew wanted to test its mettle.

"Stupefy!"