The Beating "Heart"

Time: 5:35.

In the second-to-last room of the Forbidden Grounds at Hogwarts, the parchment next to the bottle left both Harry and Draco puzzled.

It contained riddles written by Snape.

This puzzle is difficult for wizards who tend to be more emotional and whose spells emphasize idealism, but Harry and Draco are wizards full of rational thinking.

"The first sentence explains that there are two Potions here that we need. Taking them will allow us to either travel forward through the black flames to the last room, or return to our original location through the purple flames—possibly the Troll's room, or directly to Fluffy," Draco said as he read.

"I think that makes a lot of sense. If the intruder only knocked out Fluffy and the Troll temporarily, they would be attacked the moment they returned, which is very much in line with Professor Snape's personality."

"The following paragraph explains that of these seven Potions, two are Nettle Wine, three are poison, and the rest are what we need," Harry added.

"Harry, let's number them from left to right."

"The third clue indicates that the largest and smallest bottles do not contain poison, which are the sixth and third bottles."

"The fourth clue is that the second bottle from the left and the second bottle from the right taste the same, so the second and sixth bottles are likely Nettle Wine."

"According to the first clue, the poison is located to the left of the Nettle Wine, which means that only the first, third, fourth, and fifth bottles are poison. Excluding the third bottle, the remaining bottles are the first, fourth, and fifth."

"The second clue is that the first bottle on the left and the first bottle on the right are not what we need to move forward, and they are different from each other. So the first bottle on the right, which is the seventh bottle, can only be the medicine to go back through the purple flame!" Draco analyzed the bottles on the table.

"So, the third bottle, the smallest one, contains the medicine to get back!" Harry picked it up and looked at it. "Indeed, it's already been drunk from. There's only enough for one person, less than a sip."

"Give it to me!" Draco said, as if trying to snatch it.

"What are you doing?" Harry sidestepped Draco nimbly.

"Didn't you want to drink it yourself and secretly leave me behind?" Draco chuckled, scratching the back of his head.

He could tell from the puzzled look on Harry's face that he had misunderstood something.

"This is a defense set up by Professor Snape! If you ask me, these could all be poison." Harry looked at Draco with the look of someone looking at an idiot.

"But this medicine has already been drunk, hasn't it? If he really is the You-Know-Who, how could he have made a mistake?"

"You're not trying to distract me and sneak a sip when I'm not looking, are you?" Draco looked at the Potions in Harry's hand, still poised to snatch it.

"If it was Voldemort, is it possible that he switched these Potions to buy himself time?"

"He even put a curse on these Potions."

"I need to check." Harry picked up the seventh bottle, held it in front of him, and gestured with his wand.

"What are you doing?" Draco asked.

"The magic for detecting the Potions's potency, my secret," Harry replied casually, while concentrating intently on the techniques he had learned in his First-Year Potion-Making in Atlantis.

"Very good. Freeze protection is non-toxic."

"Here you go, Draco." Harry handed the seventh Potions to Draco.

"Is everything alright? No, I mean you're going to do it alone? I've already come all this way! Don't tell me you're looking for other professors or anything like that. It'll be 6 o'clock in 10 minutes, and Goyle and Crabbe will take care of everything for me then!" Draco's pale cheeks flushed slightly.

"Dumbledore left me a message alone, saying just in case."

"To be honest, the defenses in the previous rooms all seemed so simplistic to me, even Professor Snape's were so basic. Maybe it really is as we suspected before—there's no Voldemort, Quirrell."

"This was just a test from Dumbledore, for me."

"Draco, go back to Ron. If you're going back to Fluffy, go find the professor. If it's Troll, Professor McGonagall —no, by process of elimination, it should be Professor Flitwick's defensive line—has a flying broomstick there; you can use it to fly out."

"However, we didn't take Flying Class together, so if your skills aren't up to par, you might have to try a few more times," Harry said with a smile, holding the Potions.

"You bastard, I am Draco Malfoy, the Quidditch genius!"

"Let me join you! Or we can stay here and keep watch! Professor McGonagall's defenses just now, like playing chess—it was so dangerous, it's probably not some bullshit test, and Voldemort really is behind it!" Draco's eyes welled up with tears.

"Professor McGonagall has always been a very serious person."

"Draco, don't you think the other professors' defenses are just for show? I'm afraid only Professor McGonagall is taking it too seriously," Harry joked.

"If it really is Voldemort, then what we'll be waiting for is him being resurrected with the Philosopher's Stone, and I won't be able to beat him then."

"Oh, they're all gone. I'll have to go myself now."

"Hiss—!" Harry took advantage of Draco's inattention and drank the Potions in one gulp.

"It's not poison, is it?" Draco asked, first angrily then worried.

"No—but it's like ice, cold and biting."

"I need to hurry, it'll stop working soon," Harry said, trembling, before running off without looking back.

He didn't turn back; he was afraid he wouldn't have the courage then.

He knew perfectly well that Voldemort was right in front of him. His forehead was throbbing as if it were alive, and his mind, intuition, and even his body were becoming more agile.

Like ice, the fireproofing agent that instantly seeped into his entire body seemed to chill his heart as well. He dropped the Invisibility Cloak; the Deathly Hallows were left here. If he failed, he couldn't leave them to Voldemort.

He simultaneously used the Disillusionment Charm, which he had been learning but never mastered.

Strangely enough, using it this time was as easy as putting my right hand on my butt.

His body became indistinguishable from its surroundings; he could no longer see the black flames licking at him, and felt nothing at all—in that instant, he saw nothing.

All he could see were black flames—then he made it to the other side and entered the last room.

Draco's voice still echoed in his ears, "Good luck—be very careful—"

Sure enough, Quirrell appeared before him, his forehead throbbing like a heartbeat, telling Harry that his enemy was just ahead!

Voldemort is right ahead!

"Periculum!" This time Harry didn't utter the spell aloud. He had a keen sense that he shouldn't do it, so he silently recited the spell in his mind.

That motherly warmth seemed to sense his danger, and the warm power flowed from every inch of his skin to his fingertips!

Then, a variant of Red Spark shot out from the Holly Wood wand in Harry's invisible right hand.

It wasn't the initial fireworks, nor was it the same red ray as when they encountered the Troll; it was an effect Harry had never imagined!

Snape's riddle:

Danger is in front of us, safety is behind us.

Two of us can help you.

Drink them down, and one will lead you forward.

The other one will send you back to where you started.

Both contain Nettle Wine.

Three of them were assassins, lined up and waiting.

Make your choice, unless you wish to remain here forever.

We also provide four clues to help you choose:

First, no matter how cunningly the poison hides...

Actually, they are all standing to the left of the Nettle Wine;

Second, the contents of the bottles on the left and right sides are different.

If you want to move forward, none of them will be of any use to you;

Third, you will find that the bottles are all different sizes.

Bleach is not hidden among Giant and dwarfs;

Fourth, the second one on the left and the second one on the right.

Although they look different, they taste the same.