"Take a bit of toast, mate. Go on," Ron tried to persuade Harry who had been pushing his breakfast around his plate for the entirety of the morning.
"Ron's right, Harry. You're going to need your strength today," Hermione chimed in while Harry just gave her a blank stare, seeming uninterested in not only his food but the conversation.
"I'm not hungry," he spoke, giving them both a look that would hopefully convey how done he was with talking about his lack of appetite and his nerves about his first quidditch game today, a game against their biggest rivals in the school: Slytherin.
Draco sat across from him, deciding to sneak a seat at the table with them while Crabbe and Goyle slept in. He knew how big today's game was, he'd heard everything having to do with house rivalry from his father, how Gryffindor had always been a good team and how Slytherin often resorted to cheating their way into a win. At the time, his young mind was intrigued and understanding of the wrong doings of his destined house but as he looked over at the boy he had become closer friends with in the weeks following the troll incident, he hoped that today's game would be different.
"It's understandable to be nervous," Draco told him. "I'd be bloody nervous, too."
"Why? Because it's Slytherin?" Harry questioned, not wanting to deal with Malfoy, even if he was only joking about how Slytherin was better. They all knew Draco didn't want to be involved with a house known for only their dark wizards, but house pride was something all of Hogwarts took seriously even if they hated whichever house they were sorted into.
"No." Draco shook his head. "Because it's quidditch. People can seriously get injured, and while my father has told me there haven't been very serious injuries since he was playing on the team, it can still be dangerous."
Ron looked over at Draco with an eyebrow raised, surprised nothing cheeky came out of the blonde's mouth.
"You could also be nervous because Slytherin will win, but that was already a given." And there it was.
For the first time that morning, Harry's nerves subsided a bit and he chuckled. "I'll believe that when pigs fly, Malfoy." Draco simply laughed back before taking a bite of his eggs.
"Good luck today, Potter," Proffesor Snape spoke, making all four heads turn to where he stood at the edge of the group. "Then again now that you've proven yourself against a mountain troll, a little game of quidditch should be easy work for you. Even if it is against Slytherin." Snape's eyes flashed up to look at Draco who sat quietly, avoiding the eyes of the man who was very close with his family and continued munching on the toast at the edge of his plate. Giving up, Snape limped away but not before gaining the attention of the three Gryffindor students.
"That explains the blood," Harry remarked, causing Draco to look at him like he was crazy.
"Blood?" Hermione asked, seeming to be equally as confused as Draco felt.
"Listen," Harry turns to face her completely, "Last night, I'm guessing Snape let the troll in as a diversion so that he could try to get past that three headed dog BUT he got himself bitten. That's why he's limping."
Draco thought Potter was just making up some crazy story until Hermione spoke up. "But why would anyone go near that dog?"
"The day I was at Grinngotts, Hagrid took something out of one of the vaults, said it was Hogwarts business, very secret." Harry turned to look at Malfoy before forgetting he hadn't known anything that had happened in the beginning of the year.
"So you're saying. . . " Hermione continued, causing Harry to turn back towards her.
"That's what the dog's guarding. THAT'S what Snape wants."
"So where exactly is this vicious dog you're talking about?" Draco butts in.
"It's on the third floor-"
"That's forbidden! You heard Dumbledore say-"
"We know," Ron interrupts, rolling his eyes. "We didn't go looking for it, the stairs just started changing and we ended up there. Then Filch's cat came along and we knew we had to hide fast because wherever that bloody cat goes, Filch isn't far behind. We ended up in this room and waited until the coast was clear when we saw the dog."
"It was standing on top of this trap door," Hermione continued on where Ron left off. "We thought it was guarding something and with all the things that have gone on recently it's probably true."
Draco, head still spinning from the amount of chaos his new friends seemed to get themselves into, nodded along to show that he was following with what she was telling him. "So now we just have to figure out what exactly it's guarding that Snape wants so badly?" he questioned.
"Exactly," Hermione smiled.
Before any of them could continue to eat their breakfast, the hoot of an owl rang through the Great Hall. The four of them looked up to see an owl swoop across the tables, what looked to be a broom gripped tightly in its tallons before releasing it, causing it to land infront of the group.
"Bit early for mail, isn't it?" Hermione's eyebrows scrunched up in the middle of her forehead in thought.
"But I. . . I never get mail?" Harry whispers. Draco feels saddened by the fact but doesn't dwell on it for too long.
"Let's open it." Ron already has his hands on the package and the four go to town, ripping and tearing until a bright and shiny broomstick is left. Draco looks to the handle to see what make it was and his eyes widen when he sees it's a Nimbus 2000.
"It's a broomstick," Harry remarks, and Draco rolls his eyes. Everyone knew what the package was before it even landed at the table.
"It's not just any broomstick," Ron starts. "It's a Nimbus 2000!"
"But who. . ." Harry states under his breath before hearing the same hooting of an owl, turning his head to see McGonagall sitting at the head table, smiling and stroking the feathers of her owl softly. They all follow his line of vision to see her smiling at all of them. Today was seeming to look up for Harry.
After they all finished their breakfast, Draco had to seperate from Hermione and Ron as they were heading to the Quidditch Pitch. Crabbe and Goyle had made their way out of bed and were just outside the hall when he had exited and dragged him away from what fun he was having. He quickly explained that he was just trying to intimidate Potter and get under his skin before the game, stating that he was alrwady nervous and it didn't take much this morning to bother him at all. The two boys nodded before they started the trek to the pitch, trailing behind the trio he had sat through breakfast with as they went.
When they finally made it, it was about half an hour of sitting around and waiting before the teams were flying onto the field, whipping and whirling through the stands and towers. Lee Jordan, a third year Gryffindor, was announcing the game as he had been doing since his first year of Hogwarts since his high spirit made the commentary much more lively and enticing.
Cheers rang through the air, the sounds of clapping hands and chants being sent through the air. Soon after, Madam Hooch walks onto the middle of the field and the players circle aroud her as they take their positions.
"Now I want a nice clean game," she announces, staring over at the Slytherin team longer than the Gryffindors. "From all of you."
Ten seconds later, the bludgars are released along with the golden snitch. The quaffel is tossed and the game begins. Gryffindor chaser Angelina Johnson quickly snatches it and zips away towards the hoops, dodging left and right as Slytherin chasers come close to catching her. She ducks as a bludgar comes her way and wips under her broom as another Slytherin comes zooming up to her before throwing the quaffel through the tallest hoop.
"ANGELIN JOHNSON SCORES! TEN POINTS FOR GRYFFINDOR!"
The game continues on normally, the whole crowd excited and cheering loudly until Marcus Flint, captain of the Slytherin team, sends a bludgar straight to Oliver Wood's head. It results in Wood crashing to the ground along with angry shouts from the Gryffindors. Next is when two Slytherin chasers lead a Gryffindor chaser into the tapestry of one of the towers. This resulted in a few bangs ringing out before she appears at the bottom unconscious. While the Slytherins around him cheered, Draco couldn't find it in him to continue cheering. He wanted Slytherin to win, but he wanted it to be because they were simply more talented.
When no one was looking, he snuck out of the stands and made his way to where he knew Hermione and Ron were sitting. He stripped off his Slytherin tie and stuffed it in his robes before stomping up the stairs and finding himself surrounded by angry students. He squeezed through the crowd before finding the bright orange hair of Weasley.
"I couldn't stay over there." The voice startled Hermione as she turned to see Malfoy.
"Can't you get in trouble for being over here?" she asked.
"I don't care," he told her. "I just can't sit there and listen to them cheer for a team that can cheat and be so-"
"Okay, okay," Hermione acknowledges how he is feeling and she let's him know that she won't push him any further. They turn back to watch the game, standing closely as the wind picked up and whipped Hermione's hair into his face. He wondered how she had so much unruly hair as he pushed it away and tucked it behind her ear to secure it. Hermione blushed at the action but pretended to ignore it, keeping her eyes locked on Harry as he flew through the air.
Harry zoomed forward, ducking under a bludgar before his broom began to throw a fit. He held on with a grip that nearly snapped it in half as he was flung around. It felt like the broom had a mind of its own as it tried desperately to shake him off.
"What's going on with Harry's brromstick?" Hagrid asked incredulously, and Hermione continued to look through her binoculars at the boy in question. She could tell he was struggling but she knew it wasn't his doing. Harry flew brilliantly, it was in his blood to do so, and it was strange that this was happening.
As she peered down, she picked up on Snape who appeared to be mouthing furiously while maintaining eye contact with the form of Harry.
"It's Snape! He's jinxing the broom," she says to Ron and Draco.
"Jinxing the broom?!" Ron exclaims.
"What do we do?" Draco asked.
"Leave it to me," she says before quickly making her way through the crowd of people all standing with their mouths gaping at the sight of Harry nearly falling off his broom. They all watched as Harry was shook violently, causing him to nearly fall had it not been for his right hand holding onto the stick tightly.
"Come on Hermione," Ron spoke, anxiousness building up inside of him at the sight of his friend nearly making an incredibly painful fall to the ground. A few moments later, he and Draco looked to where their teachers all gathered and saw flames licking up the sides of Snape's robes, causing him to break eye contact to try and stomp out the flames.
Harry, noticing the lack of movement in his broom once again, decided to muster his strength to fling himself upright. He then took off, catching up with the Slytherin seeker in a race to catch the snitch once again.
"I still can't believe you almost swallowed the snitch, of all the ways to catch it Potter," Draco exclaimed as the four walked alongside Hagrid, enjoying the time that they weren't in a classroom.
"Probably would have gotten it sooner had Snape not jinxed my broom," Harry mumbled the last part, but Hagrid had heard him and couldn't hold his tongue.
"Nonesense! Why would Snape put a curse on Harry's broom?"
"Who knows," Harry replied. "Why was he trying to get past that three headed dog on Halloween?"
Hagrid looked down at the boy with shaggy black hair in confusion. "Who told you about Fluffy?"
"Fluffy?" Draco asked. Of all the names in the universe, he couldn't believe that someone had decided to name their pet, let alone a three headed dog, fluffy.
"That thing has a name?" Hermione inquired.
"Well of course he's got a name, he's mine! Bought him off an Irish feller I met down at the pub last year," Hagrid told them. "Then I lent him to Dumbledore to guard the-"
"Yes?" Harry pushed.
"I should not have said that," the half giant uttered to himself. "No more questions, do not ask anymore questions! That's top secret, that is."
"But Hagrid," Harry continued pestering, "Whatever Fluffy is guarding, Snape's trying to steal it."
"Codswallup," Hagrid said. "Proffesor Snape is a Hogwarts teacher."
"Hogwarts teacher or not, I know a spell when I see one. I read all about them," Hermione exclaimed, growing tired of Hagrid not believing what she had seen. "You've got to keep eye contact and Snape wasn't blinking."
"Exactly," Harry nodded, though he hadn't seen Snape at all during the affair and surely hadn't known about maintaining eye contact during spell.
Hagrid let out a deep sigh. "Now you listen to me, all four of you. You're meddling in things that ought not to be meddled in. It's dangerous. What that dog is guarding is strictly between Professor Dumbledore and Nicholas Flammel."
"Nicholas Flammel?" Draco questioned, wondering what the famous wizard had to do with any of this.
"Who's Nicholas Flammel?" Ron asked, turning to Malfoy.
"I should not have said that," Hagrid said again, not believing he was letting slip valuable information that wasn't meant to be shared before walking off towards his hut.
"Nicholas Flammel," Draco kept repeating, trying to think of where he'd heard of the name before.
"Who's Nicholas Flammel?" Harry asked, looking towards his friends for answers, mostly towards Hermione.
"I don't know," she replied, her brows scrunching together in thought as she tried to think if she'd read about him before in any of the books she checked out from the library.
"We should probably try to do more research on him, get as much information gathered as possible," Draco suggested. "The answer must have something to do with him if he's the only person Dumbledore has been doing business with."
"That's brilliant!" Hermione compliments. "Since the holidays are coming up soon, we could try to research over the break as well. That way when we come back we can come together and share what it is we've gathered!"
"So you're saying we use the time we're given away from school to research?" Ron can't think of anything he'd want to do less, even if it was important. He was looking forward to the holidays to lounge around the common room, perhaps sleep in more and just be lazy. Maybe he would play wizard's chess with Harry, teach him a few things before completely destroying him.
"That's exactly what I'm saying." Hermione glares at Ron, still holding a slight grudge from when he was talking badly about her.
"I think it's a good plan, gives us more time to find whatever it is we can. It's not like you have to spend all your time researching, Weasley," Draco tells him as the four make their way back to the castle.
When they made it to the steps, Draco parted ways with the three and made his way to his dormitory to send a letter of questions to his mother. Surely she had to know something about a Nicholas Flammel or had a book lying around with information on the wizard. Hermione headed towards the library, already listing off books in her head to check out and skim through. She was determined to find out what was so important to keep hidden in Hogwarts, and more importantly why Snape would go looking for it. Harry and Ron, who were the least motivated to do any sort of research, headed back to Gryffindor tower to nap before dinner, only hoping the holidays would come quickly.
