Hogwarts Hollows: Philosopher's Stone

The Baba Yaga

"Incarcerous!"

Y/N hissed. The wood under the creature curled into a cage as a magic rope bound by runes sprung from the tip of Y/N's wand, trapping the winged creature further. He let out a hushed sigh of relief as he and Neville crept closer to the cage.

"What was that?" Neville said behind Y/N as he pulled his wand closer to him. "You've got to explain what's happening."

The boy lay flat on his back in exhaustion as the cage next to him shook violently.

"Hold... On.... Catch my breath." Y/n propped himself up against the crude cage as he fixed his vest and stroked his hair. You had both been running around the train for an hour now. Hiding from the Trolley witch when she got suspicious of some noise and walked nearby. Poor Neville was just coming along to ensure his pet toad was not eaten by the flying menace.

Y/N rubbed his eyes and looked at Neville. "Please don't go mental about this, but-"

"It's too late for that."

"-Good point, but as I was saying. I have a... uhh. Well, why don't I just show you."

Y/N turned and whispered something to the wooden cage and waved his wand, the magical light burned away, taking the rope with it. The wooden planks slowly curled back down into their rightful place.

Neville's jaw dropped as he saw the panting figure of the flying blur he had been seeing chase his pet. Long iridescent wings that shimmered like rainbows in the light, a slender, serpentine body that twisted and coiled like a snake. And an elegant skull-like head with flickering yellow eyes. Neville had finally met Y/N's pet swooping evil.

"Neville, meet Primrose, but she prefers Prim." Y/N said as he knelt beside her and let her latch onto his vest like a baby bat.

Y/N scratched her under her chin and she purred affectionately. "You tired now, girl? We don't just chase other people's pets like that, no matter how juicy they look. You got Neville all worried about Trevor!"

Primrose just licked him with her dart-like tongue and returned to her cocoon form, looking like a spiky chrysalis on the end of a necklace. Y/N put the rowdy little bugger back on and turned back to Neville, still utterly gobsmacked and terrified.

"Y-you... How.. Wait, That was a swooping evi-"

Y/N covered his mouth and pulled him aside. "Not so loud!"

Neville nodded with wide eyes and Y/N let go of him. He tried explaining it to Neville, but he was still shocked. He was snapped out of it though, when he heard a croak.

Both boys turned in place to see a plump toad, absent-mindedly trying to walk into a wall before croaking again. Y/N pulled out his wand to levitate the little fellow towards Neville, but he dropped it as soon as he heard a gravelly-shrill voice screech an otherworldly sound.

"Naughty children!" the trolley witch said, but something was wrong. She had a strange aura around her, an unsettling air despite her wide smile.

"What do you think you're doing? Practicing magic in the corridors?" She said as she placed a cold hand on each boy's shoulder.

She had looked so nice and warm when they'd seen her before, but something about her now seemed... off. Her face showed more wrinkles, her ears looked as if they were misty, her eyes made the boys feel as if their souls were about to be ripped away. And just for a moment, Neville thought he saw her teeth flash into a different image. Sharp and rotten teeth.

Neville tried to hide behind Y/N, but both boys were firmly kept in place. Y/N saw Trevor the toad jump on top of some luggage near an open window, but he couldn't bring himself to move. Just then, Trevor leapt out the window and stuck to the glass, climbing to the top of the Hogwarts Express, even Neville seemed to notice. He tried to speak, but all that came out was a whimper.