CHAPTER SEVEN: THE NEXT CLUES

DISCLAIMER: Harry Potter is not mine; it is J.K. Rowling's. Only the plot is mine...

A/N: Still no reviews?? Is everyone busy? Or has everyone (everyone meaning my only 2 readers) forgotten about me? Or are they just being selfish, not reviewing and all? Just kidding.

Dedications: NONE. None none none!!!

Harry, Ron and Draco woke up at nine in the morning. Only four hours of sleep. That was all Harry said they could lose. Four hours. They didn't even know if Hermione was okay or not. Neither were they any closer to knowing where she was being kept.

The three hastened down the steps, carrying their brooms over their shoulders.

"Breakfast?" Harry asked. "But we can only have a quick one. Just a few slices of toast."

The two nodded. The important thing was finding Hermione.

Tom heard Harry say the last few words and lead them to a table. "Toast, yes?" He asked.

Harry nodded.

A few minutes later, Tom approached carrying three plates of toast--two pieces on each. They were coated with sweet syrup.

The three hurried up in eating their meal. By the time they finished, it was about nine thirty already.

"Let's go..." Harry said, standing up.

"How're we going to find her?" Draco asked, following suit. "We have absolutely no idea of her whereabouts."

Ron stood up, too, thinking.

Before any of the three could say anything, Tom appeared. "That'll be seventeen sickles each."

"Oh..." Harry said, checking his pockets. He had no cash.

Ron didn't have any either.

They had both finished off the last of their money for the room.

Draco dropped three galleons on the desk--the last of his wizard money except for a few knuts.

"Thank you, gentlemen." Tom said, taking the galleons from the table. "I hope had a pleasurable stay..." he walked back to his post behind the desk.

"How're we gonna--" Draco started, but a stranger in a black hooded robe bumped into him, causing him to take a few stumbled steps backward. Without a backward glance, the stranger trundled out the door into the morning sun.

Draco glared after the stranger but his expression immediately changed when he felt something sharp poking into his arm from inside the sleeve of his robe. There was a piece of paper there.

It was labeled: "CLUE."

Harry's, Ron's and Draco's eyes widened. "Open it, quickly!" Harry said, walking over to Draco. Ron did, too.

Draco unfolded the paper and read:

Not far from here and down below

A wide treasure is safely stowed

Gold and silver and some bronze

May be there, and then gone

Nasty creatures you will see

That unlock treasures if you've the 687 key

"Oh great..." Ron said. "Another vague message. What the hell is he talking about?"

But Harry's reaction was different. He was smiling. "This clue's so easy, Ron."

"What is it?" Ron asked.

"'Not far from here and down below', Ron! They have to be talking about Gringotts. 'Gold and silver and some bronze'? That has to be the galleons, sickles and knuts." Harry replied.

A look of understanding appeared on Ron's face. "And the 'nasty creatures' are the goblins."

Harry nodded.

"But wait a second," Draco said. "How do we know where in Gringotts we can find her? I mean... there are more than a thousand vaults at Gringotts."

"I know that one, too." Harry said. "My vault is vault 687. And I have the key."

Two nodded and they were off to Gringotts.

Underground still felt the same: the air cold and damp.

When they stopped outside of Harry's vault, the goblin turned around. Harry expected him to ask for the key, but instead it asked, "What're you three doing here in the middle of the school year?"

"Nothing." The three answered immediately in unison.

"We just... well, Potter just... ran out of cash so... we just accompanied him here." Draco added.

"Key, please," the goblin said, not entirely believing Draco's lie.

Harry handed him the key and glanced at Draco.

"What?" Draco whispered. "What else could we have said?"

Harry shook his head, smiling. Draco was definitely loosening up. Harry kind of liked it. He didn't know about Ron's feelings, though.

Once the vault door was open, revealing Harry's small fortune, Harry stepped inside, searching for any sign of life. How could they have gotten in here? Hagrid said that this was the safest place, other than Hogwarts.

After a few seconds of looking around the vault, the goblin's voice was heard saying, "Aren't you gonna make a withdrawal?"

Harry turned around and nodded, "Yes... I am." Harry bent down and scooped a few galleons, sickles and knuts into his moneybag, looking around the interior of the vault the whole time, searching for a clue... anything...

There! Harry spotted a folded piece of paper in the corner. How the paper had been placed there was a mystery...

Harry drew his moneybag closed and rushed to the corner of the small space. He picked up the paper and stuffed into his pocket.

"I'm done." Harry said, nodding slightly at Draco and Ron.

They had a long ascent up into the Gringotts lobby. "Thanks." Harry told the goblin as they exited Gringotts.

"No problem, sirs." The goblin's croaky voice came back in reply.

"You find anything?" Draco asked.

"Yup." Harry held up the folded piece of paper that read: "CLUE."

A/N: Well? Getting any better? I hope so... Please please please please review!!! Only 5?? And it's already the seventh chapter? How pitiful! Come on! Be generous! Oh yeah... and on December 25, refer to the title of this fan fiction as "Make a Choice" okay?