AN: Like Donna said, the twins sort of invited themselves...

***DNMCY1***

In the days leading up to their exams, they kept returning to Fluffy's room. Since that first time they'd accidentally barged into his room, the Cerberus had taken quite a liking to them. Well, to Donna to be exact, and he tolerated the others for the sake of her scratches. So long as the guard-dog was there, and Dumbledore was in the castle, they were satisfied that Voldemort or his servant had not yet retrieved the Stone.

Harry confided to Donna that he kept having nightmares and waking up, and his scar hurt worse than it had ever done. He'd even been to see madam Pomfrey about his recurring headache – without prompting, to boot! She'd given him a soothing salve for the inflamed-looking skin, which helped to ease the pain a little, but it never disappeared completely.

At least talking about his fears with his friends helped, in that he didn't keep expecting Voldemort to jump from behind every corner.

Then the exams really were upon them, and they had little time for anything other than a quick check on Fluffy and then back to studying.

Donne was fairly confident she'd done well, though. Her pineapple had performed an adequate jig, and she'd got extra credit for adding an embellishment to the dance (inspired by the traditional mating dance of the Magori people of the Nether Plains on Teldoran, not that she told Flitwick that). Her snuffbox in Transfiguration was appropriately whisker-free and decorated with swirling circles within circles that she likewise did not mention the origin of.

Her revenge on Snape was to perform every step of the brewing process meticulously, down to cutting the ginger root into exact cubes, even when he was breathing down her neck. The more he glared at her, the more meticulous she became. If he docked points for her being a Gryffindor, well... these first-year exams weren't the end of the world. As she understood the wizarding world, potential employers looked at your OWL and NEWT scores, not at what might've happened first year. And the main thing was that she did know how to make the potions, not what her teacher might think of her.

The written portion of the exams went alright too, she felt. Sure, she wouldn't beat Hermione any time soon, but who would? And where she wasn't sure of the answer, she usually managed to write something tangentially related, hopefully good for a couple of points even if she did not get full marks.

The moment she finished her last exam, History of Magic, she put down her quill with a satisfied sigh. They were done for the year. No more exams until this time next year.

The four friends wandered towards the lake, with the same goal in mind as most of the school – relaxing for the coming week, until they received their exam results and it was time to go home.

Hermione was happily chatting away about her exam, trying to compare notes with what the others had answered. Donna was lying down, enjoying the sunshine. She poked Hermione's leg with a finger.

"'Mione, you're adorable, but can you please give it a rest for a little while? You can pick my brain all you want tomorrow after I've had some decent rest, but for today I've forgotten all my answers."

Hermione rolled her eyes, but she did quiet down a little. Harry was the only one in their group who remained standing, looking at the castle with a troubled look. Donna looked at him with concern.

"Are you ok, Harry?" she asked. "Is it that feeling again?"

Harry looked at her for a moment, before returning to his scrutiny of the castle.

"Yes? No? I don't know, I have this unsettled feeling, but it's not like last time. I can feel it in my bones though... something's about to happen."

Donna got up and came to stand next to him, likewise looking at Hogwarts. She knew better than to just dismiss a gut feeling like that.

"Ok, well, it's not the exams, those are over. The only other thing we've had on our minds is the Stone, but..."

Before she could continue, a movement just over Hogwarts drew her gaze. At first she thought it was an owl, but it was a lot larger than the bird, even though it did have wings. In fact, it was larger than any type of bird she knew.

Harry had also seen it, judging by the way he'd stiffened next to her. "Is that... the headmaster?" he asked hesitantly.

Donna hadn't even noticed, too intent on trying to figure out what kind of animal she was seeing, but Harry was right. On its back she could see a splash of a colour that would only be worn by Dumbledore.

It was a horse, she decided when the animal flew just a little bit closer to their location before rising higher and disappearing. She vaguely remembered seeing winged horses at the beginning of the year, though she hadn't stopped to think about them since. The question was, why was the headmaster sitting on one of them, and where was he going?

"Was he... sitting on air?" Harry asked.

Ok, so... that was not the question she was expecting. At least that one she could answer. "No, he was sitting on a winged horse, one of those skeletal horses that draw the carriages."

Hermione, who had joined them by now, glanced at her.

"Those carriages aren't drawn by anything, they move by magic."

"What? No, honestly, there are horses. Look, that's not the important issue here. We do remember what we said wouldn't happen so long as Dumbledore was at Hogwarts, right? Well, his manner of departure doesn't assure me he plans to be back within the hour. I'd say our thief is going to use his absence to try for the Stone, and probably sooner rather than later. We should go tell McGonagall."

"Professor McGonagall, Donna," Hermione corrected, but it was clear her heart was not in it.

Together they made their way to McGonagall's office, where they knocked on her door. When no answer came, they wondered what to do. She could be anywhere. They'd been hoping she'd be correcting exams, but then she might be doing that in the staff room. Perhaps they could look there next.

However, they did not get a chance to go that far, because the woman herself came up to meet them, her arms full of books.

"What are the four of you doing inside?" she asked.

"Looking for you, professor," Harry replied. "Is it true that professor Dumbledore left a while ago?"

"The headmaster? Yes, he received a summons from the Ministry. Why do you ask?"

"We think someone is going to try and steal the Philosopher's Stone."

"The Stone?" McGonagall repeated. "How do you know about that? Look, the Stone is well protected. Nobody will be able to steal it. Please do not worry about it, we are doing all things necessary to ensure its safety. I suggest you go outside and enjoy the sunshine."

McGonagall brushed passed them and into her office, closing the door behind her. She looked stressed, but still… that was it? Did... she actually know what Gryffindors were like? How was she head of this house? When children came to you with a concern, especially after they'd already undergone a traumatic event, you at least listened to them, and you made damn sure your assurances took hold. You did not send them outside with a pat on the head and leave the concern to fester! Was this the same woman who'd shown such concern after their detention? She might be a fine teacher, but the psychological side of dealing with children was not her strong suit.

Once outside, Harry started pacing. "We need to find out what's happening. Maybe we could go wait outside Fluffy's door? And then one of us should keep an eye on the staff room, so we know when Snape or Quirrell make their move."

Donna shook her head. "Too much chance of getting caught, and for all we know the thief is not even in the staff room. What we need," she said as she spotted two identical boys wander past, "is outside help. One moment!"

She quickly went up to the twins and linked her arms with theirs. They looked up when they felt her touch, but they let themselves be dragged to a more private spot easily enough.

"Can we help you, milady?" one of them asked. She labelled him Fred in her mind, if only to keep her sanity intact. She supposed it might be a bit callous, but if they wanted her to keep them straight, they shouldn't go out of their way to look as identical as possible.

"Yeah, I have a question. I'm sure the two of you didn't get as far in the pranking business as you did without some means of knowing where the teachers are. So, spill. We need to know what Snape and Quirrell are up to."

George let out a low whistle. "Snape and Quirrell? What might you need them for when classes are done for the year?"

"It's got to do with the business in the forest," Donna said. It was the subtlest way she could think of to remind the twins that she'd told them the truth about Voldemort without actually coming out and saying it.

"Well, if you put it that way," Fred said.

"You understand we cannot just divulge our knowledge willy-nilly," George continued. Donna was glad they were at least using full sentences, more or less. It was better than interrupting each other every few words, like they sometimes did.

"So, if you would excuse us one moment, fair lady, we will have the requested information for you in a jiffy."

The two removed themselves a small way, but she could still see the top of one red head on the other side of some bushes. So, whatever it was that told them of teachers' locations was small, and they carried it with them. Good to know.

A moment later they were back.

"Snape is in the staff room," Fred reported, "but Quirrell seems to be on the third-floor corridor. Do we want to know what he's doing in a room with a three-headed dog?"

"Hah! I knew it was him! Also, why am I not surprised the two of you know about Fluffy?"

"... Fluffy? Really?"

Donna nodded. "That was my reaction too, when I heard his name."

"So, what gives? Why do you need to know about Snape or Quirrell? We saw... Fluffy's... teeth and decided we were better off elsewhere."

Donna considered them for a moment.

"Can we trust you?" she asked.

"You already did, asking us about Snape and Quirrell," George pointed out.

"There is that. Alright, so here's the deal. We discovered that Fluffy is guarding the Philosopher's Stone."

"The one that's supposed to make you immortal?" Fred asked.

"That's the one. We also found out either Snape or Quirrell are trying to steal it, probably for Voldemort." She ignored their flinch. "We just didn't know which one. Now Dumbledore has gone to the Ministry and according to what you told me, Quirrell is the guilty party. So, we're going to stop him."

"Shouldn't you, you know, tell a teacher?"

"We tried, she wouldn't listen. Really, if she's surprised Gryffindors then take matters into their own hands, I don't see what she's doing as head of Gryffindor."

Fred and George looked at each other, then at her. "Ok, in that case we're going with you."

"You're what now?"

Fred answered. "Look, Harry isn't the only one who lost family in the last war. Our uncles, Fabian and Gideon, fought against You-Know-Who, and paid for it with their lives."

George continued. "If he does come back, there's no way we're joining his side, so we'll be targets too. You know us Weasleys, family of blood traitors and all. Perhaps not his first targets, but eventually..."

"So we might as well help in delaying his return a while longer."

Donna considered the two of them for a long moment. They might act like the class clowns, but they could show a serious side when they felt it was called for. Also, she and her friends didn't know at all what might lie beyond Fluffy, so any extra help would be welcome.

"Ok, so long as the others agree, you're welcome. Come on."

Together they made their way back to where her friends were waiting. Hermione and Neville were sitting down, but Harry was pacing and biting his thumb. He quickly turned around when he saw Hermione look up.

"I'm back!" Donna said cheerfully. "And I brought backup!"

The other three looked at the twins questioningly. "Are you sure?" Harry asked hesitantly.

She wasn't sure who he was addressing, the Weasleys or herself, but she answered nevertheless. "Yeah. They said Quirrell was with Fluffy – told you we couldn't trust him. They know about what we saw in the forest, and they want to help, so I say let them."

"Donna! Didn't professor McGonagall specifically say not to mention what we saw to our classmates?"

Donna shrugged, unimpressed. "Yeah, so? She also sent us packing without even hearing us out. Sorry not sorry, I'm keeping my own council. I didn't blab about it to everyone and their dog, but the people who sought me out? Yeah, they're welcome to the information. It's not a secret as far as I'm concerned."

Neville raised his hand. "I'm ok with more people," he said, "just don't invite the whole school maybe."

Donna chuckled. "Nooo, they sort of just invited themselves. Harry, Hermione?"

Harry waved his hand. "Fine, if it means we can just get started. You say Quirrell is already there?" he asked George, who nodded.

"Ok. I'd expected him to make his move tonight, don't know why I thought that."

"You're still too attached to the idea that nighttime is the best time for sneaking around," Donna answered his rhetorical question.

Harry just rolled his eyes. "I'm gonna go get my cloak, it might come in handy. Anything else we need?"

Donna nodded. "Three steaks, I should think. I know he's used to me, but no harm in bribing Fluffy."

"What do you mean, he's used to you?" Fred asked.

This time, Donna was the one to roll her eyes. "Ask Harry, he likes telling this story. Everyone, meet in front of the third-floor corridor in a quarter of an hour. Don't get caught."