"Hagrid! Oh my gosh!"
Hagrid was almost bowled over by four bodies ferociously hugging him.
Harry grinned so hard he felt like his face would split open. Hagrid was looking well, his bushy beard and beetle eyes practically vibrating with happiness. When they'd all let go of him, Hagrid stood up to his full height and brushed off his moleskin overcoat.
"Was wonderin' when you lot was gunna come down ter see me. 'Bout time!" Hagrid shook his head. "Well! Got summat real special teh show you. Let's...hmm...yes. Dumbledore, if you don' mind?"
"Yes, please show them, Hagrid."
"Righto, professor. Alright c'mon this way now. Watch yer step!"
Harry was still in a state of blissful shock. He hadn't seen Hagrid in so long (although in his heart he knew that it had only been a few weeks) and seeing him again, brought back memories.
Hagrid was one of his favorite people at Hogwarts, and it was a shame he couldn't come with them to Durmstrang. Hagrid led them all across the grounds and behind his cottage. The earth beneath Harry's feet was damp and springy. The day was still young, and the sky held a faint trace of dawn. Hedwig was asleep in her cage. Soon it was likely that sunlight would flood their world, if they were planning to fly to Durmstrang. As if sensing Harry's thoughts, Ron pressed to the front.
"Are you showing us how we're going to get to Durmstrang, Hagrid? Is that it? Tell us!"
"Can't say nuthin' yet, Ron. But you won' be disappointed, lemme tell yeh that."
The group rounded the corner of Hagrid's hut. In front of them stood two large gleaming black and silver carriages. Hagrid held open the elaborate door of one of them for the students to get a glimpse of the inside. The carriage was enormous, almost as big as half of their Gryffindor common room. There were wide, uncomfortable-looking stone benches bolted to the walls, and the floor looked slippery and shiny. In the center of the carriage was a huge table made out of some kind of black marble. The table seemed to grow right out of the floor, as they both seemed to be made out of the same material.
Harry took a closer look and saw alcoves carved into the walls, almost invisible, because of all the glittery blackness that made shadows and light unclear. The alcoves looked like they were for putting things into, or even sleeping...
"It...it looks almost like the one the Beauxbatons students came in! Except... darker, almost. It kind of looks like the stereotypical villain's transport." Ron said, looking around. "Uh, Hagrid, where are the horses?"
"Ah," Hagrid said mysteriously. "They're already there."
"Already th-there?" Asked Neville. "How? I can't see anything."
"Thestrals. You'll understand soon, trust me. You'll learn in yer fifth year."
The look in Hagrid's eyes was sorrowful and conflicted. Harry, sensing that Hagrid didn't want to be prodded, got into the carriage first. The others gingerly followed him, looking out the window every few seconds to see if a steed would magically appear.
"Thestrals..thestrals...I know I've heard that somewhere…" Hermione muttered under her breath to herself.
Without their luggage to fiddle with, there suddenly seemed like nothing to do. Hermione worried at Crookshanks's basket while Ron absentmindedly fed Pigwidgeon owl pellets. Neville was looking for Trevor again.
Harry cleared his throat. "Er, do you reckon we're going to fly? Or...or go underwater or something?"
"Ooh!" Hermione cut in. "Maybe we're doing a combination of Beauxbaton's and Durmstrang's entrances to the Triwizard!"
"A combination?" Echoed Ron. "Like what, exactly?"
But the carriage started moving forward at that exact moment. They all quickly turned to the windows, but there was nothing outside that could be possibly pulling their vessel. There was only watery sunlight and an extremely quiet sound of ghostly hooves clopping against the path.
Harry twisted around to see that Dumbledore and McGonagall had boarded the similar carriage behind them, horseless-well, Harry reminded himself, it was being pulled by thestrals, whatever they were.
The path was taking them to a part of the Hogwarts grounds Harry had never been before. The ride got more rocky, the gilded wheels of their carriage rattling over the ruts. Hermione was gripping the seats, her knuckles were white.
Ron was the first to notice something different.
"We're tilting!" Ron yelled, grabbing onto the windowsill.
Hermione looked at the floor of the carriage. It was clean, and made of some kind of black stone. She whipped out her wand, and the floor, walls, and benches were padded with squashy silver cushions and bedding.
"Wow! It's like a nest now!" Neville said, sinking to the floor. It was a good thing he did, too, because their carriage left the ground. Hedwig squawked and flapped her wings against the bars of her cage indignantly as they rose unsteadily into the air.
The carriage felt awkward, as though the thing pulling it didn't know how to balance the extra weight. The carriage bounced around in the air until a sudden gust of wind allowed it to surge forward smoothly.
"We're flying!" Harry whooped, thrusting his arms and head out of the window. It was a glorious feeling. He felt weightless and carefree as the sunlight washed his limbs with warmth.
He could almost hear the beat of monstrous wings…
Ron sank down into the pillows and unwrapped a Pumpkin Pasty. There was sweat dotting his brow and he looked rather green from their sudden departure from the ground. Ron took a large bite.
"Feels almost like that flying car, Harry," Ron said, his mouth full.
"Yeah, only a lot better cause we've got more space." Harry agreed.
"You really shouldn't have done that, Harry and Ron. I know it was a long time ago, but you were seen so many times!" Hermione said, annoyed.
"It was cool, though!" Neville offered.
Ron laughed. "Thanks, Neville."
Harry looked down. The scenery had changed drastically. Far off in the distance, Harry thought he could see a dark smudge that was the Forbidden Forest. Rolling green hills and the occasional tree dotted the landscape below. The ride was surprisingly smooth, considering the fact that they were being pulled through the sky by an invisible creature.
"Do you think there's an invisibility spell on this or something? There's no way Muggles can miss this carriage." Harry said.
"I don't know." Hermione said, frowning. "I expect you can ask McGonagall when we get there, though."
There was a lapse in conversation. They sat in silence until Ron broke the ice.
"Oy, Hermione. Got any more Durmstrang facts to share?" Ron asked, looking genuinely interested.
Hermione bit her lip. "Well, they're extremely secretive about their location, and no one really knows where it is. They might put a memory charm on us, actually. To make sure we forget how we got there. But I think they'll let us keep a memory of their castle grounds. I've heard that they live near mountains, so there should be many beautiful views."
Neville was asleep in an alcove, his snores muffled by pillows. Hermione looked slightly miffed by this blatant show of disinterest. She stood up, stretched, and hauled Crookshanks onto her lap.
"Blimey!" Ron yelled. Neville startled, woke with a snort, and fell out of his alcove.
"Oops, sorry Neville," Ron snickered, then looked towards Harry. "Look at the windows...they've got glass or something covering them."
He was right. The windows were suddenly sealed with a transparent solid, preventing them from sticking their limbs outside.
Hermione rapped on the window and produced no noise at all.
"Weird…" she murmured. "Must be some kind of protective material."
Outside was darkness. The carriage was lit by a faint glow that seemed to be coming from the very walls. Neville whimpered and ate a Chocolate Frog. Harry felt rather like the time when the dementor was on the Hogwarts Express in their third year. They had all huddled in a compartment, trying not to panic in the darkness. He was getting a strong sense of deja vu.
Something pressed against the window. It looked wet and seemed like some kind of greenery. The dim lighting of the carriage didn't help the eerie feeling that had developed since their carriage had fortified itself a few minutes ago.
Hermione snatched her hand back from the glass-like stuff on the window. "We must be nearing Durmstrang."
"What is that?" Neville asked. "Maybe we have to go through a forest or something to get there." He squeezed his eyes shut. Ron patted him rather awkwardly on the head.
"Wait," said Hermione, deep in thought. "Something's not right. We're tilting downwards. And...and I think we're going into water or something. We're sinking!"