Breakfast was a hurried affair. Rain clouds rapidly drew across the Enchanted Ceiling of the Great Hall as they ate, but Hagrid had departed almost as soon as they had arrived.
Hermione wolfed down her scrambled eggs and bacon and a piece of toast almost faster than Harry ate his; Harry was very keen to visit Hagrid as soon as he had finished eating, and she couldn't really blame him. She was as curious as he was to find out if their experience in the forest held any truth to it. She reached for her cup of tea to wash it all down, then noticed Lavender valiantly trying to hide her giggles and Parvati wearing a pensive expression on her face.
Hermione felt her cheeks growing warm.
"What? Did I spill something on me," she asked, glancing down at her cardigan.
Parvati shook her head. "No, it's just, you don't usually eat that fast. Does this have something to do with why you looked so out of sorts when you woke up this morning?"
"She did?" asked Lavender.
"Er… Did I?" asked Hermione at precisely the same moment.
Parvati rolled her eyes at the both of them.
"Yes, you did, Hermione. … And what did you think was going on, Lavender?"
"I thought Hermione was just really eager to hang out with Harry." Lavender's face reddened.
Flustered, Hermione couldn't think what to say. She glanced at Harry, whose features looked just as awkward as her own. Apparently he had overheard, which wasn't surprising as he had finished his own breakfast while she was taking a sip of tea and had been looking right at her.
"Erm…" said Harry. "I just wanted to visit Hagrid."
"That doesn't explain why Hermione looked peaky—you too for that matter, Harry. And you can see Hagrid anytime. It's Sunday, and it's still early. What's the rush?"
Hermione squashed the urge to tell Parvati to stop being so nosey. They were all fast friends now, and, truth be told, she wanted to share with them but didn't want to upset Harry. She gave Harry a pleading look, and he sighed.
"Erm… Okay," he said. "There really isn't any reason not to tell you, I guess, but I ought to ask Hagrid first. Why don't you two finish your breakfasts, and we'll all go visit Hagrid together."
Five minutes later, the foursome traipsed carefully down the wet slope of the hill, ignoring the rain as it began to grow heavier. Hermione kicked herself for not suggesting that they go back to Gryffindor Tower to fetch their raincoats. It was almost a downpour by the time they reached the door of Hagrid's hut, and Harry knocked loudly to be heard over the thrum of rain on the roof.
He knocked again, louder. But there was no response, not even from Fang, who should have been barking or whining by now.
"Bother it!" said Hermione, her brow creased in consternation as her bushy hair grew soggier. "He must have gone into the woods."
"Bollocks!" swore Harry, "You're probably right."
He turned to look at Parvati and Lavender, but despite their wetness, they didn't seem to be inclined to return to the castle. Hermione could see them practically bursting with curiosity, and that it would take more than a bit of rain to quench it.
"Maybe we should go have a look for him," Parvati suggested. "Not too far in," she quickly added, "just as far as the clearing where Care of Magical Creatures lessons are held."
"Oh," said Hermione, surprised. "You know where it is then?"
"Yeah," said Parvati. "Lavender and I found it during the first week of term when we were exploring the grounds."
Lavender nodded. "Hagrid was there talking to Professor Kettleburn. That's how we know."
Harry and Hermione shared a worried look between them. Then Harry's expression grew determined.
"Right! Let's go have a look, then," he said, rubbing at his scar.
"But we really shouldn't go too much further than that," said Hermione. "It… it might not be safe."
As Parvati and Lavender led them into the woods, Hermione's unease began to grow. At one point a loud squawk made them all jump in fright.
"It's okay," said Parvati, recovering quickly. "There are some paddocks over there with some sort of half-bird half-horse creatures."
"The clearing is just over that way," said Lavender, pointing at a path through a cluster of Scottish pines and hawthorn bushes.
The four of them emerged from the dripping canopy of the woods into the clearing and peered all around, seeing nothing but soggy leaves and puddles. Hermione wrapped one of her hands around Harry's and took a deep breath to quell her anxiety. He gave it a comforting squeeze.
"Okay," he sighed resignedly. "We might as well go back to the castle. Hermione and I can tell you what's up after we dry—"
"Oi!" boomed a deep, gruff voice, interrupting Harry. "Blimey! What're you lot doin' down here?"
Harry spun around, breaking into a relieved grin as Fang bounded across the clearing excitedly and slobbered on him.
"We were looking for you, Hagrid." Then he spotted the enormous crossbow in Hagrid's gigantic hand, and frowned. "What's that for?"
"Protection!" said Hagrid shortly. "T'ain' safe in the forest at the moment, unless yeh're with me or Fang. Now go on, back t'the castle with yeh."
"But I really need to talk to you," said Harry. "Hermione and I both do. It's important."
For a moment the four students and the hairy giant eyed each other, as if staring each other down, and all that could be heard was the burbling patter of rain on leaves and the forest floor. Then the hairy giant relented and sighed.
"Righ' then! Back to my hut it is. Follow me, an' stay close."
Once they were all back at Hagrid's hut, he removed his waterproof cloak and hung it up to dry before starting a fire in the hearth and setting a kettle on his stove.
"Looks like yeh fergot to put on yer cloaks," he said kindly, peering at the thoroughly drenched students. "Here—jus' pull up a few chairs round the fire while I grab a packet of cocoa."
Hermione warmed her hands and shot everyone a wan smile. They were all fidgeting, wet, and anxious to finally get on with things while Hagrid made the cocoa.
"Sorry," said Harry. "I guess I could have told you before—"
"That's okay," Parvati interjected, grinning sheepishly. "It's my fault that Lavender and I are wet. I'm the nosey one."
There were grins all around at that. Moments later, Hagrid was passing everyone steaming mugs of hot cocoa, adding a splash of whiskey to his own, and pulling up a chair for himself.
"Righ' then," he said cheerily, "So wha's goin' on with yeh, Harry?"
Harry cleared his throat and took a deep breath. For a moment, Hermione thought she might have to get the ball rolling, but she saw determination glint in Harry's eye and left him to it.
"Hagrid, is something killing Unicorns in the forest?"
Hagrid nearly spit out his mouthful of hot cocoa.
"Blimey, Harry!" he sputtered, wiping his bristly beard with a napkin. "How'dja know that, then?"
"I—I'm not quite sure," said Harry truthfully. "But I think one was killed last night. Do you know if any have been killed?"
Hagrid looked thoroughly unnerved. He poured more whiskey into his cup of cocoa and drained it in one gulp.
"Actually, yeah!" he said, giving Harry a wary look. "Firenze—he's one o' the Centaurs—he told me he found a dead Unicorn early this mornin'. Woke me up at the crack o' dawn, he did. I went and had a look—sure enough, there it was, deep in the forest.
"Then I came back real quick like ter tell Dumbledore, before I did a proper search for whatever killed it. I'd just started searchin' close by before goin' back in deep when I heard you lot skulkin' around. … Now, go on, tell me how yeh know about it. Yeh haven' been explorin' the forest at night, I hope."
Harry gulped nervously.
"Erm… Not exactly—maybe? … I'm really not sure, Hagrid. I promise. It was like I was there, but I wasn't..."
"We both saw it," said Hermione when Harry trailed off and peered at her for help. "We were dreaming—or that's what it seemed like at first when I woke up in bed…"
Hermione told Hagrid everything that she had surmised with Harry earlier that morning about their late night excursion, while Lavender and Parvati listened intently, their eyes widening with each revelation.
"Blimey!" said Hagrid when Hermione had finished. "That's sump'n else, that is. I dunno abou' that sort o' thing—some sort o' weird dream magic, I suppose. Dumbledore oughter know more about it."
"D'you think I should tell him then?" asked Harry, rubbing at his scar worriedly. "It's just… I think it was Vol—I mean You-Know-Who. My scar hurt really badly when I saw him, like it was on fire. It had to have been him."
"Blimey!" Hagrid looked even more gobsmacked, if possible, at that revelation.
There was a moment of quiet as everyone stared at each other. Lavender and Parvati both looked as shocked as Hagrid.
"Er… Yeah!" said Hagrid after the moment passed, looking very apologetic. "Yeah! You should definitely tell Professor Dumbledore. Looks like yeh migh' be right after all about You-Know-Who bein' back, Harry—but if that's true, don' be telling anyone else.
"That goes fer all o' yeh," he added, peering at Lavender and Parvati as well. "Especially before we know for certain. There'd be a lot of panic if yeh start spreadin' it around. It's up ter Dumbledore to figure out what t'do about it."
There wasn't much chatting to be had after that. The four students quickly drank the rest of their cocoa, then filed out of Hagrid's hut one after the other. On the way back to the castle, Hermione's hair, which had dried into a frizz, quickly became soggy again as it was still raining.
"You should probably go straight to Dumbledore's office," said Parvati the moment they got through the front doors.
"And don't worry. We won't tell anyone else," said Lavender earnestly.
Harry watched Parvati and Lavender head back to Gryffindor Tower, then glanced at Hermione, looking as if he was contemplating returning to the Tower so that they could get out of their wet things too. Despite being thoroughly drenched again, and wishing she could just change into clean, dry clothes, Hermione knew Parvati was right, and she knew that Harry just wanted to get this over with.
"Come on, Harry," she said, tugging on his wet sleeve. "Let's go see Professor Dumbledore first."
Harry looked relieved, and together they went to find the entrance to Dumbledore's tower. Fortunately, they had a reasonably good idea where it was—unfortunately, the entrance was most likely on the Third Floor, the only bit of the castle they hadn't been able to properly explore yet.
First they checked in the Great Hall, just to make sure Dumbledore wasn't there. Then, with some trepidation, they took the staircase to the Third Floor, keeping their eyes peeled for Filch. There weren't many students to worry about, as most were either in their common rooms or the Great Hall (or possibly braving the deluge outside).
"Well, at least we know it's not that side of the castle," said Harry, glancing along the mezzanine of the Third Floor to the door of the corridor which held Fluffy.
"Hmm…" said Hermione as they stepped from the landing of the stairs onto the Third Floor balcony. She pondered the layout, looking for a door which looked most like an entrance to a tower. Then she spotted a likely prospect—a curved wall on the corner at the far end of the balcony, where a gargoyle stood watch over a doorway. "Harry, let's try there first."
"Yeah! Okay," he agreed. "Looks more like the sort of entrance to an important person's office than any other door."
Still keeping a watchful eye out for Filch, they passed by several portraits who tut tutted at them for disobeying the rules. Fortunately, they seemed more interested in whispering to each other and smirking than raising the alarm.
When they arrived at the doorway, they saw that it was an entrance to a curved set of stairs that wound up the inside of the tower. Harry decided to take the lead at this point and stepped forward. He stumbled backwards and Hermione let out a squeak when the stone gargoyle moved to block the entrance.
"Password?" said the gargoyle.
"Er… What?" asked Harry.
"The password! … You know—the word you say when you want to pass." The gargoyle rolled its stone eyes.
"He means like the password to Gryffindor Tower, Harry," said Hermione.
"Yeah! I kind of got that part," said Harry. "I just didn't expect it. Anyway…" He glared at the Gargoyle. "...I really need to see Dumbledore."
"No password, no entrance!"
"But it's really important," Hermione pleaded.
"Well if it's important, why didn't you just say so to begin with?" The gargoyle rolled its eyes again. "That changes everything."
"Hey!" said Harry crossly. "There's no reason to be rude to Hermione about it."
"I quite agree," said a welcome voice behind them.
Harry and Hermione spun around to see the bearer of the voice.
"Oh, thank goodness!" said Hermione, relieved. "Professor Dumbledore, we need to talk to you, It's really important."
"So I have gathered," said the headmaster, his eyes twinkling merrily. "By all means, join me."
Then Dumbledore stepped in front of the gargoyle and said, "Chocolate Frogs," giving Harry and Hermione a wink.
They raised their eyebrows at each other in surprise and amusement. Dumbledore stepped onto the bottom step of the circular stairs and beckoned them. The stone stairs started moving. Startled, they both quickly hopped onto the step behind Dumbledore's.
"It's like an escalator..." said Harry in amazement.
"...made out of stone," said Hermione, just as astonished.
"Quite so," said Dumbledore, chuckling. "I daresay muggle technology is starting to catch up to the wizard world's. … Nonetheless, there are some bits of muggle technology from which the wizard world could benefit magically emulating."
Taking note of the wetness of his students, once they had entered his office Dumbledore waved his wand and a warm breeze instantly dried them.
They each took a seat in well-cushioned chintz armchairs and glanced around the office. There were wooden shelves all around, piled high with ancient looking tomes, numerous mahogany and ebony cabinets full of curios, dozens and dozens of ornately gilt-framed portraits of past headmasters and headmistresses—all of whom eyed the students with great curiosity—covering the walls, and an assortment of delicate whirring and humming gold and silver instruments adorning Dumbledore's desk.
But perhaps the most intriguing thing in the room was an enormous scarlet and gold bird which bore similar features to that of a Peacock, preening its feathers. The bird stopped preening and lifted its head, keenly eyeing Harry and Hermione.
"Is that a Phoenix?" asked Hermione, awed by its beauty and size.
"Indeed it is," the headmaster replied. "This is Fawkes. … Fawkes, this is Harry Potter and Hermione Granger."
Fawkes gave Dumbledore a look which suggested that the introduction was quite unnecessary. Then Fawkes returned his piercing gaze to Harry in particular. Harry uncomfortably rubbed at his scar, a pensive expression on his face, as if something odd had occurred to him.
"Professor Dumbledore," he said after a moment, "Mr Ollivander said that my wand's core was a Phoenix feather. I don't suppose it came from Fawkes, did it?"
"Indeed it did," said Dumbledore, his eyes twinkling. "Which is quite something indeed. Fawkes only ever gave one other..."
"To Voldemort's wand," Harry muttered, looking disturbed and rubbing at his scar again. "Mr Ollivander told me."
Hermione gasped, her jaw dropping. Harry shot her an apologetic look, then lowered his eyes as if ashamed.
"Sorry," he muttered. "I never really thought of telling you—maybe I just didn't want to."
"That's okay, Harry," Hermione squeaked, taking his hand and giving it a comforting squeeze. She felt rather abashed herself for having upset him. "I don't care if you have a wand like Voldemort's—really."
"Take heart, Harry," said Dumbledore consolingly, "it means only that you and he have great power far beyond that of most wizards. It says nothing about who you are as a person—nothing of what is in your heart.
"Your innermost nature and your choices are what define you, not your power, though power can indeed be buoyed by one's strength of character and conviction."
Harry sighed, lifting his head again.
"I suppose," he said, with a hint of a shrug. "It's just… I know we're connected—Voldemort and me—because of my scar. I guess that might have something to do with why we're here…"
Harry took a deep breath and began explaining, telling Dumbledore everything that had happened, with Hermione chiming in at intervals to tell her side of things. They even told him all of their worries about the Philosopher's Stone and what they believed it meant.
When they were finished, Dumbledore's bushy white eyebrows rose up his crinkling forehead. He peered at them both with an equal measure of admiration and foreboding, stroking his long silvery beard.
"Well," he said after a moment passed, glancing first at Hermione, "that is quite an astute observation of yours, Miss Granger. Yes, indeed, you and Harry had what many muggles call an Out of Body experience, which can sometimes be so potent as to give the experiencer's astral form enough substance to interact physically with the environment.
"As to the fact that you had it in the context of a shared dream—that is simply due to your affinity for one another…" Dumbledore ignored the furious blushes on Harry's and Hermione's faces. "...and your immersion in the study of magic.
"Even some muggles have such experiences—rare though they are—particularly when they are engaged in muggle occult practises and mystical studies. In the world of Dreams—the world of the Soul and of the Spirit—even muggles can access certain forms of magic which are otherwise unavailable to them in waking life. This is something of which—generally speaking—only the most learned of wizards are aware."
Dumbledore's look of approval gave way to a grave expression. He took off his half-moon spectacles and wiped them with a paisley handkerchief, then replaced them, sighing.
"Now, Harry, yes, this is very disturbing indeed. Your assessment that Voldemort has returned is undoubtedly correct. Your story has confirmed what I suspected to be true, but had hoped was not yet a firm reality. I did not believe that Voldemort was actually here at Hogwarts, but I did indeed believe that someone is planning to steal the Philosopher's Stone on Voldemort's behalf, and that it may be someone affiliated with Hogwarts…"
He raised his hand to silence Harry and Hermione when they both opened their mouths to offer their opinions on the subject.
"Whom that someone might be, is for the time being something for me to determine. I do not wish either of you to be engaged in wild speculations regarding Professors Snape and Quirrell…"
Indignantly, Hermione opened her mouth to object, but Dumbledore raised his hand again, and she shut up, noting the frustration on Harry's face too.
"I understand your concerns, Miss Granger, Harry—believe me. I cannot reveal all at this time, but suffice it to say that I am monitoring the situation closely, and that I will be redoubling my efforts to unmask the likely accomplice of Voldemort. For the moment, the Philosopher's Stone is safe, and so is Harry—"
Hermione couldn't help herself at this point. "How can you say that?" she blurted out, her voice shrill. "Voldemort is here—at this school. He could get Harry at any time if he comes back to life."
"Enough!" said Dumbledore, raising his hand once more. "Voldemort is at the present powerless to cause Harry any great harm beyond that which is caused by the pain in Harry's scar. Now that I am fully aware of his presence here, I shall be taking extra precautions to ensure that Harry is protected.
"I already have my own suspicions as to whom is working with Voldemort, and they will be under increased scrutiny until they have exposed themselves. Thanks to you both, that now is likely to be much sooner, rather than much later. I expect this all to be sorted out in short order.
"It will do no good to engage in excessive speculation—indeed it could be quite detrimental to Harry's safety should it lead to a confrontation. However, that does not mean that I wish you to become complacent and ignore any warning signs—such as that which Harry's scar provides. So please, keep your heads down, but your eyes and ears open.
"By all means, should either of you discover any new information, please bring it to my attention immediately, day or night. You have my express permission to return to my office at any time, regardless of the general order to avoid the Third Floor, of which Filch shall be informed.
"Just remember the password: Chocolate Frogs," Dumbledore concluded with a wink and a return to a more jovial demeanour.
"Oh! Er… Okay," said Harry, who seemed relieved by Dumbledore's proposal. "Thanks, Professor."
For her part, Hermione felt much better too. Something was still nagging at the back of her mind, but she kept that to herself. Instead she beamed and said, "Thank you, Professor Dumbledore."
It wasn't until they had departed Dumbledore's office and were on the stairs that Hermione shared her thought with Harry.
"Harry, what Dumbledore said about the Phoenix—about you and Voldemort having more power than other wizards—I think there might be a bit more to it."
"Really? Like what?"
"Well, in muggle myths, Phoenixes never really die. They keep coming back to life—"
"Oh, yeah!" said Harry, interrupting her, and she could see light dawning in his eyes. "They burn up and are born again from the ashes. I remember from primary school. … Wait, are you saying..."
"...that the power you and Voldemort both have is that neither of you can really die? … Maybe—I'm not quite sure—but it is interesting, considering that Voldemort couldn't kill you, even though he tried, and that Voldemort isn't really dead, even though he blew up."
Harry looked thoughtful again and fell silent, then he let out a groan and came up short before getting off the stairs at the next floor.
"I just remembered," he said, "We never told anyone about the glowing Doe."