Disclaimer: Anything you recognize, I do not own.
In years to come, Harry would never quite remember how he had managed to get through his exams when he half expected Voldemort to come bursting through the door at any moment. Yet the days crept by and there could be no doubt that Fluffy was still alive and well behind the locked door.
It was sweltering hot, especially in the large classroom where they did their written papers. They had been given special, new quills for the exams, which had been bewitched with an Anti-Cheating spell. They had practical exams as well.
Professor Flitwick called them one by one into his class to see if they could make a pineapple tapdance across a desk. Professor McGonagall watched them turn a mouse into a snuffbox. Points were given for how pretty the snuffbox was, but taken away if it had whiskers. Snape made them all nervous, breathing down their necks while they tried to remember how to make a Forgetfulness potion. Harry did the best he could, trying to ignore the stabbing pains in his forehead, which had been bothering him ever since his trip into the forest.
Neville thought Harry had a bad case of exam nerves because Harry couldn't sleep, but the truth was that Harry kept being woken by his old nightmare, except that it was now worse than ever because there was a hooded figure dripping blood in it.
Their very last exam was History of Magic. One hour of answering questions about batty old wizards who'd invented self-stirring cauldrons and they'd be free, free for a whole wonderful week until their exam results came out. When the ghost of Professor Binns told them to put down their quills and roll up their parchment, Harry couldn't help cheering with the rest.
They wandered down to the lake and flopped under a tree. The Weasley twins and Lee Jordan were tickling the tentacles of a giant squid, which was basking in the warm shallows.
"It's over!" Thomas sang joyfully. He and Phoebe slapped high-fives and lied down against the cool grass.
Harry was rubbing his forehead.
"I wish I knew what this means!" He burst out angrily. "My scar keeps hurting. It's happened before, but never as often as this."
"Go to Madam Pomfrey. She may have something for it." Serena suggested worriedly.
"I'm not ill. I think it's a warning... it means danger's coming..."
"Does it tell you Timmy is the well too?" Phoebe scoffed and Harry couldn't help but glare at her.
"Just forget about the fancy rock for a second. Snape may not even know how to get past Fluffy yet. He nearly had his leg ripped off once, he's not going to try it again in a hurry. And Neville will turn into England's Next Top Model before Hagrid lets Dumbledore down." Thomas assured him.
Harry nodded, but he couldn't shake off a lurking feeling that there was something he'd forgotten to do, something important. He watched an owl flutter toward the school across the bright blue sky, a note clamped in its mouth. Hagrid was the only one who ever sent him letters. Hagrid would never betray Dumbledore. Hagrid would never tell anyone how to get past Fluffy... never... but...
Harry suddenly jumped to his feet.
"Where're you going?" Thomas asked sleepily; it appeared Phoebe was actually asleep on the grass.
"I've just thought of something." Harry told them. He had turned white. "We've got to go and see Hagrid, now." He ran towards the familiar hut.
Thomas and Serena woke Phoebe up and the three sprinted after him. Phoebe caught up to him first and kept pace while the others panted along behind them. As they all got within hearing range again, Harry continued:
"Don't you think it's a bit odd that what Hagrid wants more than anything else is a dragon, and a stranger turns up who just happens to have an egg in his pocket? How many people wander around with dragon eggs if it's against wizard law? Lucky they found Hagrid, don't you think? Why didn't I see it before?"
Hagrid was sitting in an armchair outside his house; his trousers and sleeves were rolled up and he was shelling peas into a large bowl.
"Hullo. Finished yer exams? Got time fer a drink?"
"Yes, please." Serena panted, but Harry cut her off.
"No, we're in a hurry. Hagrid, I've got to ask you something. You know that night you won Norbert? What did the stranger you were playing cards with look like?"
"Dunno." Hagrid responded casually. "He wouldn' take his cloak off." He saw the four of them look stunned and raised his eyebrows. "It's not that unusual, yeh get a lot o' funny folk in the Hog's Head. That's the pub down in the village. Mighta bin a dragon dealer, mightn' he? I never saw his face, he kept his hood up."
Harry sank down next to the bowl of peas. Serena collapsed and leaned against him, but Phoebe and Thomas remained upright, staring at their friend.
"What did you talk to him about, Hagrid? Did you mention Hogwarts at all?" Harry questioned.
"Mighta come up." Hagrid frowned as he tried to remember. "Yeah... he asked what I did, an' I told him I was gamekeeper here... He asked a bit about the sorta creatures I took after... so I told him... an' I said what I'd always really wanted was a dragon... an' then... I can' remember too well, 'cause he kept buyin' me drinks... Let's see... yeah, then he said he had the dragon egg an' we could play cards fer it if I wanted... but he had ter be sure I could handle it, he didn' want it ter go ter any old home... So I told him, after Fluffy, a dragon would be easy..."
"And did he... did he seem interested in Fluffy?" Harry asked, trying to keep his voice calm.
"Well, yeah, how many three-headed dogs d'yeh meet, even around Hogwarts? So I told him, Fluffy's a piece o' cake if yeh know how to calm him down, jus' play him a bit o' music an' he'll go straight off ter sleep-." Hagrid suddenly looked horrified. "I shouldn'ta told yeh that! Forget I said it! Hey! Where're yeh goin'?"
Harry, Phoebe, Serena and Thomas didn't speak to each other at all until they came to a screeching halt in the entrance hall, which seemed very cold and gloomy after the grounds.
"We've got to go to Dumbledore. Hagrid told that stranger how to get past Fluffy, and it was either Snape or Voldemort under that cloak! It must've been easy, once he'd got Hagrid drunk. Where's Dumbledore's office?" Harry panted. They looked around, as if hoping to see a sign pointing them in the right direction. They had never been told where Dumbledore lived, nor did they know anyone who had been sent to see him.
"We can ask a teacher-." Serena began, but a voice suddenly rang across the hall.
"What are you four doing inside?" It was Professor McGonagall, carrying a large pile of books.
"We want to see Professor Dumbledore." Phoebe informed her, rather bravely.
"See Professor Dumbledore?" Professor McGonagall repeated, as though this was a very fishy thing to want to do. "Why?"
Harry swallowed.
"It's sort of secret." He said, but he wished at once he hadn't, because Professor McGonagall's nostrils flared.
"Professor Dumbledore left ten minutes ago." She said coldly. "He received an urgent owl from the Ministry of Magic and flew off for London at once."
"He's gone? Now?" Harry asked frantically.
"Professor Dumbledore is a very great wizard, Potter, he has many demands on his time."
"But this is important."
"Something you have to say is more important than the Ministry of Magic, Potter."
"Look." Harry told her, throwing caution to the winds. "Professor, it's about the Sorcerer's tone-."
Whatever Professor McGonagall had expected, it wasn't that. The books she was carrying tumbled out of her arms. One of them hit Thomas's foot, still injured form his karate kick to the table in the common room, and he let out a yelp of pain and started hopping around. Professor McGonagall didn't move to pick up the books, or even look at Thomas.
"How do you know-?" She spluttered.
"Professor, I think... I know that Sn... that someone's going to try and steal the Stone. I've got to talk to Professor Dumbledore." Harry insisted. She eyed him with a mixture of shock and suspicion.
"Professor Dumbledore will be back tomorrow." She said finally. "I don't know how you found out about the Stone, but rest assured, no one can possibly steal it, it's too well protected."
"But Professor-."
"Potter, I know what I'm talking about." She said shortly. She bent down and gathered up the fallen books. "I suggest you all go back outside and enjoy the sunshine."
But they didn't.
"It's tonight." Harry said, once he was sure Professor McGonagall was out of earshot. "Snape's going through the trapdoor tonight. He's found out everything he needs, and now he's got Dumbledore out of the way. He sent that note, I bet the Ministry of Magic will get a real shock when Dumbledore turns up."
"But, mate, how do we-?" Thomas started. Phoebe slapped him as Serena gasped. Harry and Thomas wheeled round. Snape was standing there.
"Good afternoon." He said smoothly. They stared at him. "You shouldn't be inside on a day like this," He had an odd, twisted smile on his face.
"We were-." Harry began, without any idea what he was going to say.
"You want to be more careful." Snape interrupted. "Hanging around like this, people will think you're up to something. And Gryffindor really can't afford to lose any more points, can it?" Harry flushed.
They turned to go outside, but Snape called them back.
"Be warned, Potter. Any more nighttime wanderings and I will personally make sure you are expelled. Good day to you." He strode off in the direction of the staff-room.
Out on the stone steps, Harry turned to the others.
"Right, here's what we've got to do." He whispered urgently. "One of us has got to keep an eye on Snape. Wait outside the staff room and follow him if he leaves it."
"I'll do it." Phoebe offered immediately and ran off.
"And we'd better stay outside the third-floor corridor." Harry added to Thomas and Serena.
But that part of the plan didn't work. No sooner had they reached the door separating Fluffy from the rest of the school than Professor McGonagall turned up again. That time, she lost her temper.
"I suppose you think you're harder to get past than a pack of enchantments!" She stormed. "Enough of this nonsense! If I hear you've come anywhere near here again, I'll take another fifty points from Gryffindor! Yes, Potter, from my own house!"
With no other choice, the three went to back to the Gryffindor common room. Phoebe stormed in just minutes later
"I ran into a herd of Slytherin's passing by the staff-room. They distracted me with their hair gel and blood traitor insults." She explained in a huff. "I lost Snape."
"Well, that's it then, isn't it?" Harry asked. The others stared at him. He was pale and his eyes were glittering. "I'm going out of here tonight and I'm going to try and get to the Stone first."
"Yes, because an eleven year old is definitely better at breaking through magical enchantments than a professor." Phoebe agreed sarcastically.
"You'll get hurt. Or worse. Killed." Serena emphasized the last word, trying to drill it into his brain.
"Being the supreme lords of the bathroom is one thing, mate, but I don't think that we can just waltz in and take the stone. Not if we want to keep all our limbs attached or our brains wired properly so we don't have to wear helmets and drool cups." Thomas stuck his tongue out and acted like a zombie for a moment to emphasis his own point.
"You can't. It's too dangerous-." Serena started again, ignoring their friend's antics.
"SO WHAT?" Harry shouted and even Phoebe looked surprised at his outburst. "Don't you understand? If Snape gets hold of the Stone, Voldemort's coming back! Haven't you heard what it was like when he was trying to take over? I'm going through that trapdoor tonight and nothing you can say is going to stop me! Voldemort killed my parents, remember?" He glared at them, waiting for them to respond.
"You're right Harry." Serena told him in a small voice, chin trembling slightly.
"I'll use the invisibility cloak. It's just lucky I got it back."
"Will it cover all four of us? We might need to get creative about it." Thomas said thoughtfully.
"All... all four of us?" Harry stuttered.
"What? You think you're going down there alone?" Phoebe scoffed.
"We're your friends." Serena reminded him gently.
"And friends don't let friends do stupid things alone." Thomas agreed wholeheartedly.
Harry smiled at all of them. They were crazy, each in their own way. But, somehow, he thought that only made them better friends to have in situations like the ones he faced...