The way things went wrong was this:
El and Neville sat up alone in the common room late into the night, quietly playing (terrible) games of chess and watching the clock. Sixth Year Prefect Paige Murphy came in through the portrait hole at a quarter to midnight, and beelined straight for them.
"Where are the rest of your little entourage?" she asked once she was standing over their table.
Elowen stared up at her with a blank, innocent expression. "They all went up to bed. Why do you ask?"
"They had better have." Murphy frowned, crossing her arms. "I heard the most interesting thing from Farley. She says that Theodore Nott was telling any prefect who'd listen about Heir Potter's plot to sneak a dragon out of the school tonight. He says he's going to catch him in the act."
Neville's wide panicked eyes met Elowen's. The redhead forced her face to remain neutral.
"Please, where would we even find a dragon?" she scoffed. "Nott hates us, Murphy, everyone knows that. Harry's in bed, Hermione's in bed, Ron's in the hospital wing. No one is breaking any rules any time soon."
Murphy watched the two first years with narrowed eyes, then sighed. "Whatever. It's late and I'm tired. You'd better not be lying, Potter."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Elowen replied. "Have a good night."
Elowen and Neville watched as Murphy disappeared up the stairs, listening for the slam of the dormitory door. When they heard it, they both stood from the table and hurried out of the common room.
"Where are you going?" the Fat Lady demanded. "It's past curfew!"
They ignored her. Elowen's wand was dimly lit as they almost ran through the corridors, trying to catch up to Harry and Hermione. Scanning the hall ahead of her as she was, Elowen wasn't paying attention to her feet, and she missed the bottom step of the stairs they were running down. She went sprawling on the floor, her wand clattering to the floor and rolling away. The light went out and they were in complete darkness.
"Nev, cast a lumos," Elowen whispered. She'd gotten to her knees and was feeling around. "I can't find my wand.
"Lumos," Neville barely whispered. He cleared his throat, face screwed up in concentration. "L-lumos!"
The light was dim and barely there, but it was enough. Elowen spotted her wand and snatched it up, casting her own Lumos and setting off again.
"Nev," she whispered distractedly. "We've got to work on your charms more."
They rounded the corner, and ran right into McGonagall, tugging Nott by the arm.
~~~
The good thing, Harry thought, about their plan completely derailing, is that things couldn't possibly get worse.
Filch took them down to Professor McGonagall's study on the first floor and instructed them to sit and be silent. He hobbled off and Harry and Hermione sat in the cold office, waiting for McGonagall to return. He could feel Hermione trembling next to him and he knew it had nothing to do with the cold.
Years of talking himself and Elowen out of the worst of trouble flew through his head with various excuses and alibis. Nothing he could think of sounded remotely plausible as for why they were out of bed, let alone up a tower that was strictly off limits outside of classes. He couldn't see how they were going to get out of this. He sighed heavily. How could they have been so stupid as to forget the Cloak? If McGonagall found out about Norbert, they might as well be packing their bags already.
Had Harry said that things couldn't get worse? He'd been lying. Things could always get worse, and frequently did. Just like they were now.
When Professor McGonagall finally came into her office, Harry had to suppress a groan of frustration. The universe must hate them, because trailing behind the Professor was none other than Harry's twin and Neville.
"Harry!" Neville burst out, the moment he saw the other two. "We were trying to find you to warn you, we heard about Nott saying he was going to catch you, he's telling people you have a drag—" He cut off as Elowen gently dug her elbow into his side.
Harry shook his head violently to shut Neville up, but Professor McGonagall saw him. She looked more likely to breathe fire than Norbert as she towered over the four of them.
"I would never have believed it of any of you. Mr. Filch says you were up the astronomy tower. It's one o'clock in the morning. Explain yourselves."
No one answered. Hermione was staring at her shoes. Harry was fairly sure it was the first time she'd ever not been able to answer a teacher's question.
"I think I've got a good idea of what's been going on," said Professor McGonagall when no one spoke. "It doesn't take a genius to work it out. You fed Theodore Nott some cock-and-bull story about a dragon, trying to get him out of bed and into trouble. I've already caught him. I suppose you think it's funny that your twin and Longbottom here heard the story and believed it, too?"
Both twins' faces filled with offense at the idea that they'd ever try and trick the other like this. Harry felt like rolling his eyes. How dare she accuse he and Hermione of trying to trick their friends! Besides, they'd all been in on it anyway. He caught Neville and Elowen's eyes and tried to convey gratitude with just a look. He did appreciate them trying to warn them.
"I'm disgusted," Professor McGonagall was saying when he paid attention once more. "Four students out of bed in one night! I've never heard of such a thing before! You, Miss Granger, I thought you had more sense. As for you, Potters, I thought Gryffindor meant more to you than this. All four of you will receive detentions – yes, you too, Mr. Longbottom, Miss Potter, nothing gives you the right to walk around school at night, especially these days, it's very dangerous – and fifty points will be taken from Gryffindor."
"Fifty?" Harry gasped – they would lose the lead, the lead he'd won in the last Quidditch match.
"Fifty points each," said Professor McGonagall, breathing heavily through her long pointed nose.
"Professor, please —"
"You can't —"
"Don't tell me what I can and can't do, Mr. Potter. Now get back to bed, all of you. I've never been more ashamed of Gryffindor students."
The four of them were completely silent as they trudged back to the tower. A hundred and fifty points lost. That put Gryffindor in last place. In one night, they'd ruined any chance Gryffindor had had for the House Cup. Harry felt as though the bottom had dropped out of his stomach. How could they ever make up for this?
Harry didn't sleep all night. He could hear Neville sobbing into his pillow for what seemed like hours. Harry couldn't think of anything to say to comfort him. He knew Neville, like himself, was dreading the dawn. What would happen when the rest of Gryffindor found out what they'd done?
~~~
At first, Gryffindors passing the giant hour-glasses that recorded the house points next day thought there'd been a mistake. How could they suddenly have a hundred and fifty points fewer than yesterday? And then the story started to spread: the Potter Twins, the famous Potter Twins, one of them their hero of five Quidditch matches, had lost them all those points, them and a couple of other stupid first-years.
From being one of the most popular and admired people at the school, Harry was suddenly the most hated. Even Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs turned on him, because everyone had been longing to see Slytherin lose the House Cup. Everywhere Harry went, people pointed and didn't trouble to lower their voices as they insulted him and his twin. Slytherins, on the other hand, clapped as they walked past them, whistling and cheering, "Thanks Potter, we owe you one!"
Only the Sprigs stood by him.
"They'll all forget this in a few weeks," Ron said knowingly. "Fred and George have lost loads of points in all the time they've been here, and people still like them."
"They've never lost a hundred and fifty points in one go, though, have they?" said Harry miserably.
"Well… no," Ron admitted.
It was a bit late to repair the damage, but Harry swore to himself and the other Sprigs not to get involved with things that weren't their business from now on, and punctuated this by clearing off their clueboard. He'd had it with sneaking around and spying. He felt so ashamed of himself that he went to Wood and offered to resign from the Quidditch team.
"Resign?" Wood thundered. "What good'll that do? How are we going to get any points back if we can't win at Quidditch?"
But even Quidditch had lost its fun. The rest of the team wouldn't speak to Harry during practice, and if they had to speak about him, they called him 'the Seeker'.
The Gryffindor Sprigs as a whole had fairly vanished from the Gryffindor common room. They spent all their free time in the Den, only in the common for as long as it took to get to and from their dorm rooms. In any other situation, Harry thought, this might have raised concern with someone, but as the rest of Gryffindor House had fairly ostracized them, no one seemed to notice. If not for Draco forcing them out of the Den, they probably wouldn't have bothered going down to the Great Hall for meals.
Elowen, Hermione and Neville were suffering, too. They didn't have as bad a time as Harry, because despite Elowen also being famous, they weren't as well known, but nobody would speak to them either. Hermione had stopped drawing attention to herself in class, keeping her head down and working in silence. Neville's Hufflepuff friends, Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott, had stopped attending the study group and stopped sitting with Neville in Herbology. Elowen had fallen back into old habits with the teachers, her quality of work plummeting in classes the way it had when they were still in the same school as Dudley (Elowen had found out that McGonagall only took twenty points from Nott, and come to the conclusion that the teachers here were the same as their previous teachers, who blatantly favored Dudley over them).
Harry was almost glad that the exams weren't far away. All the revision he had to do kept his mind off his misery. The Sprigs kept to themselves, working late into the night in the Den, trying to remember the ingredients in complicated potions, learn charms and spells off by heart, memorise the dates of magical discoveries and goblin rebellions…
Then, about a week before the exams were due to start, Harry's new resolution not to interfere in anything that didn't concern him was put to an unexpected test. Walking back from the library on his own one afternoon, he heard somebody whimpering from a classroom up ahead. As he drew closer, he heard Quirrell's voice.
"No, no, not again, please —"
It sounded as though someone was threatening him. Harry moved closer.
"All right, all right," he heard Quirrell sob. Next second, Quirrell came hurrying out of the classroom, straightening his turban. He was pale and looked as though he was about to cry. He strode out of sight; Harry didn't think Quirrell had even noticed him. He waited until Quirrell's footsteps had disappeared, then peered into the classroom. It was empty, but a door stood ajar at the other end. Harry was halfway towards it before he remembered what he'd promised himself about not meddling.
All the same, he'd have gambled twelve Philosopher's Stones that Snape had just left the room, and from what Harry had just heard, Snape would be walking with a new spring in his step – Quirrell seemed to have given in at last.
Harry went back to the library, where the other Sprigs were still reviewing. Hermione was testing Ron on Astronomy. Harry told them all what he'd heard.
"Snape's done it, then!" said Ron. "If Quirrell's told him how to break his Anti-Dark Force spell —"
"Anti-Dark Force?" Draco drawled in amusement. "What kind of spell is that meant to be?"
"Who knows what Quirrell set up?" Ron shot back. "Anti-Dark Force spell is just a general name. I'd like to see you come up with something better."
Draco opened his mouth then closed it. As Ron laughed, he muttered, "Shut up, Weasley."
"There's still Fluffy, though," reminded Hermione.
"Snape doesn't necessarily have to have asked Hagrid how to get past him though," Neville pointed out.
"He's probably figured that out already," said Ron, looking up at the thousands of books surrounding them. "I bet there's a book somewhere in here, telling you how to get past a giant three-headed dog. So what do we do, Harry?"
The light of adventure was kindling again in both Elowen and Ron's eyes, but Hermione answered before Harry could.
"Go to Dumbledore. That's what we should have done ages ago. If we try anything ourselves we'll be thrown out for sure."
"But we've got no proof!" said Harry. "Quirrell's too scared to back us up. Snape's only got to say he doesn't know how the troll got in at Halloween and that he was nowhere near the third floor – who do you think they'll believe, him or us? It's not exactly a secret we hate him, Dumbledore'll think we made it up to get him sacked."
"You hate him," Draco corrected.
"Yeah, yeah," Harry moved on. "Filch wouldn't help us if his life depended on it, he's too friendly with Snape, and the more students get thrown out, the better, he'll think."
"Why does that man even work in a school?" Elowen wondered. Harry gave her an exasperated look at the interruption.
"—And don't forget, we're not supposed to know about the Stone or Fluffy. That'll take a lot of explaining."
Hermione looked convinced, but Ron didn't.
"If we just do a bit of poking around —" he tried.
"No," said Harry flatly, "we've done enough poking around."
His friends all exchanged looks that Harry ignored. He pulled a map of Jupiter towards him and started to learn the names of its moons.
~~~
The following morning, notes were delivered to the twins, Hermione and Neville at the breakfast table. They were all the same:
Your detention will take place at eleven o'clock tonight. Meet Mr Filch in the Entrance Hall.
Prof. M. McGonagall
Harry had forgotten they still had detentions to do in the furore over the points they'd lost. He half expected Hermione to complain that this was a whole night of revision lost, but she didn't say a word. Like Harry, she felt they deserved what they'd got.
Elowen poked her wand at her note and set it on fire. "I don't understand how giving us a detention past curfew is supposed to teach us not to be out past curfew."
"You don't think our detention is with Mr. Filch, do you?" Neville said nervously.
Hermione shook her head. "It's got to be with a teacher, doesn't it?"
They all looked at Ron, who stared back with half a sausage in his mouth. He shrugged.
"I dunno," he said. "Prob'ly."
"Very helpful, Ronald," Hermione sighed.
~~~
At eleven o'clock that night they said goodbye to Ron in the common room and went down to the entrance hall. Filch was already there – and so was Nott. Harry had also forgotten that Nott had got a detention, too.
"Follow me," said Filch, lighting a lamp and leading them outside. "I bet you'll think twice about breaking a school rule again, won't you, eh?" he continued, leering at them. "Oh yes… hard work and pain are the best teachers if you ask me… It's just a pity they let the old punishments die out… hang you by your wrists from the ceiling for a few days, I've got the chains still in my office, keep 'em well oiled in case they're ever needed… Right, off we go, and don't think of running off, now, it'll be worse for you if you do."
"How is he still employed around children?" El muttered under her breath as they marched off across the dark grounds. Neville kept sniffing. Harry wondered what their punishment was going to be. It must be something really horrible, or Filch wouldn't be sounding so delighted.
The moon was bright, but clouds rolling across the sky kept throwing them into darkness. Ahead, Harry could see the lighted windows of Hagrid's hut. Then they heard a distant shout.
"Is that you, Filch? Hurry up, I want ter get started."
"Our detention is with Hagrid?" Harry said with a voice full of relief. His heart rose; if they were going to be working with Hagrid it wouldn't be so bad.
Filch scowled. "I suppose you think you'll be enjoying yourself with that oaf? Well, think again, boy – it's into the Forest you're going and I'm much mistaken if you'll all come out in one piece."
At this, Neville let out a little moan and Nott stopped dead in his tracks.
"The Forest?" he repeated, and he didn't sound quite as pretentious as usual. "We can't go in there at night – there's all sorts of things in there – werewolves, I heard."
Neville clutched the sleeve of Elowen's robe and made a choking noise.
"That's your lookout, isn't it?" said Filch, his voice cracking with glee. "Should've thought of them werewolves before you got in trouble, shouldn't you?"
"Or maybe our teachers shouldn't be sending us into the Forbidden Forest for detention," Elowen said sharply. Filch glared at her.
"It's alright, Neville," Hermione said shakily. "I read in Hogwarts: A History that the school grounds have wards against dark creatures. That has to include werewolves, right?"
"What's this abou' werewolves?"Hagrid came striding towards them out of the dark, Fang at his heel. He was carrying his large crossbow, and a quiver of arrows hung over his shoulder. "Abou' time. I bin waitin' fer half an hour already. All right, you four?"
"I shouldn't be too friendly to them, Hagrid," said Filch coldly, "they're here to be punished, after all."
"That's why yer late, is it?" said Hagrid, frowning at Filch. "Bin lecturin' them, eh? 'Snot your place ter do that. Yeh've done yer bit, I'll take over from here."
"I'll be back at dawn," said Filch, "for what's left of them," he added nastily, and he turned and started back towards the castle, his lamp bobbing away in the darkness.
Nott now turned to Hagrid.
"I'm not going in that Forest," he said. The Sprigs were pleased to hear the note of panic in his voice.
"Yeh are if yeh want ter stay at Hogwarts," said Hagrid fiercely. "Yeh've done wrong an' now yeh've got ter pay fer it."
"But this is servant stuff, it's not for students to do. I thought we'd be writing lines or something. If my father knew I was doing this, he'd —"
"— tell yeh that's how it is at Hogwarts," Hagrid growled. "Writin' lines! What good's that ter anyone? Yeh'll do summat useful or yeh'll get out. If yeh think yer father'd rather you were expelled, then get back off ter the castle an' pack. Go on!"
Nott didn't move. He looked at Hagrid furiously but then dropped his gaze.
"Right then," said Hagrid, "now, listen carefully, 'cause it's dangerous what we're gonna do tonight an' I don' want no one takin' risks. Follow me over here a moment."
He led them to the very edge of the Forest. Holding his lamp up high he pointed down a narrow, winding earth track that disappeared into the thick black trees. A light breeze lifted their hair as they looked into the Forest. The light caught on a trail of some kind of shimmer.
"Look there," said Hagrid, "see that stuff shinin' on the ground? Silvery stuff? That's unicorn blood. There's a unicorn in there bin hurt badly by summat. This is the second time in a week. I found one dead last Wednesday. We're gonna try an' find the poor thing. We might have ter put it out of its misery."
"And what if whatever hurt the unicorn finds us first?" said Nott, unable to keep the fear out of his voice.
"Yeah, Hagrid, not to agree with Nott," Harry added, "but is this really safe for us to do?"
"There's nothin' that lives in the Forest that'll hurt yeh if yer with me or Fang," said Hagrid. "An' keep ter the path. Right, now, we're gonna split inter two parties an' follow the trail in diff'rent directions. There's blood all over the place, it must've bin staggerin' around since last night at least."
"I want Fang," said Nott quickly, looking at Fang's long teeth.
"All right, but I warn yeh, he's a coward," said Hagrid. "So me, Harry an' Hermione'll go one way an' Elowen, Theodore, Neville an' Fang'll go the other. Now, if any of us finds the unicorn, we'll send up green sparks, right? Get yer wands out an' practise now…" They obediently shot sparks from their wands. Hagrid nodded in approval. "That's it. An' if anyone gets in trouble, send up red sparks, an' we'll all come an' find yeh, so be careful. Let's go."
The Forest was black and silent. Almost as soon as the trees completely closed them in, they came upon a fork in the path.
"Remember, if yeh ge' intae trouble, shoot up red sparks," Hagrid said as he led Harry and Hermione down the right path.
"Does anyone else have a sinking feeling of dread about this detention?" Elowen asked the two boys. Neither answered. Fang barked and started to run ahead of them. Elowen drew her wand. "Lumos!"
They set off, Nott trailing behind Elowen and Neville. A few minutes passed in silence before Nott tripped over a root.
"For the love of Merlin," he spat as he got to his feet. "This is an absolute disgrace! Three Heirs, out here alone and getting injured? My father will hear about this!"
"And what's he going to do?" Elowen asked, rolling her eyes. "We all know he's not on the Board, he's barely on the Wizengamot." She looked Nott over pointedly. "And you're not hurt, you're barely even dirty. Can we get a move on?"
She grabbed Neville's sleeve and continued on down the path. Nott reluctantly followed grumbling the whole way.
"My father will tell Lord Malfoy, who will do something about this," he told them as they ignored him. "I shouldn't even be out here. I did nothing wrong."
"Merlin, do you ever shut up?" Neville burst out after approximately ten minutes of this. El's jaw dropped in glee as Nott glared furiously at him.
"What's the matter, Longbottom, jealous that my family has Lord Malfoy's ear and can petition the Board?"Nott sneered. He tucked his hands in his pockets and sauntered past the two Gryffindors. "Maybe I should mention how you and your little band of Gryffindors have corrupted his son."
"We did not corrupt Draco," Elowen said exasperatedly. "We're his friends."
"That might be difficult for you to understand," Neville added, "given that you have no friends, only 'allies.'"
El smiled as Nott turned a rather unhealthy shade of angry red. She turned to Neville and said cheerfully, "I think we've all been a bad influence on you, Nev."
"So do I," he said. "Please never tell my Gran about any of this."
"I plan on never talking about this entire detention debacle with anyone ever," Elowen pointed out as she walked past a fuming Nott. "Come on, the unicorn's not gonna find itself."
~~~
Harry, Hagrid and Hermione walked in silence, their eyes on the ground. Every now and then a ray of moonlight through the branches above lit a spot of silver blue blood on the fallen leaves.
Harry saw that Hagrid looked very worried.
"Could a werewolf be killing the unicorns?" Harry asked.
"Not fast enough," said Hagrid, shaking his head. "It's not easy ter catch a unicorn, they're powerful magic creatures. I never knew one ter be hurt before."
They walked past a mossy tree-stump. Harry could hear running water; there must be a stream somewhere close by. There were still spots of unicorn blood here and there along the winding path.
"You all right, Hermione?" Hagrid whispered. Harry looked over at her. She was very pale and just staring at the blood. Hagrid patted her shoulder, almost knocking her over. "Don' worry, it can't've gone far if it's this badly hurt an' then we'll be able ter – GET BEHIND THAT TREE!"
Hagrid seized Harry and Hermione and hoisted them off the path behind a towering oak. He pulled out an arrow and fitted it into his crossbow, raising it, ready to fire. The three of them listened. Something was slithering over dead leaves nearby: it sounded like a cloak trailing along the ground. Hagrid was squinting up the dark path, but after a few seconds, the sound faded away.
"I knew it," he murmured. "There's summat in here that shouldn' be."
"A werewolf?" Harry suggested.
"That wasn' no werewolf an' it wasn' no unicorn, neither," said Hagrid grimly. "Right, follow me, but careful, now."
"Neville and Elowen are going to be alright won't they?" Hermione asked him nervously. Hagrid waved a hand.
"They'll be jus' fine, they've got Fang with 'em."
They walked more slowly, ears straining for the faintest sound. Suddenly, in a clearing ahead, something definitely moved.
"Who's there?" Hagrid called, raising his bow again. "Show yerself – I'm armed!"
And into the clearing came – was it a man, or a horse? To the waist, a man, with red hair and beard, but below that was a horse's gleaming chestnut body with a long, reddish tail. Harry and Hermione's jaws dropped.
"Oh, it's you, Ronan," said Hagrid in relief. "How are yeh?"
He walked forward and shook the centaur's hand.
"Good evening to you, Hagrid," said Ronan. He had a deep, sorrowful voice. "Were you going to shoot me?"
"Can't be too careful, Ronan," said Hagrid, patting his crossbow. "There's summat bad loose in this Forest. This is Henry Potter an' Hermione Granger, by the way. Students up at the school. An' this is Ronan, you two. He's a centaur."
"We'd noticed," said Hermione faintly.
"Good evening," said Ronan. "Students, are you? And do you learn much, up at the school?"
"Erm," Harry stuttered eloquently.
"A bit," said Hermione timidly.
"A bit. Well, that's something." Ronan sighed. He flung back his head and stared at the sky. "Mars is bright tonight."
"Yeah," said Hagrid, glancing up too. "Listen, I'm glad we've run inter yeh, Ronan, 'cause there's a unicorn bin hurt – you seen anythin'?"
Ronan didn't answer immediately. He stared unblinkingly upwards, then sighed again. "Always the innocent are the first victims," he said. "So it has been for ages past, so it is now."
Harry sent a confused look at Hermione. He saw the glint in her eye and knew she'd already committed the words to memory so they could tell the other Sprigs later.
"Yeah," said Hagrid dismissively, "but have yeh seen anythin', Ronan? Anythin' unusual?"
"Mars is bright tonight," Ronan repeated while Hagrid watched him impatiently. "Unusually bright."
"Yeah, but I was meanin' anythin' unusual a bit nearer home," said Hagrid. "So yeh haven't noticed anythin' strange?"
Yet again, Ronan took a while to answer. At last, he said, "The Forest hides many secrets."
A movement in the trees behind Ronan made Hagrid raise his bow again, but it was only a second centaur, black-haired and -bodied and wilder-looking than Ronan.
"Hullo, Bane," said Hagrid. "All right?"
"Good evening, Hagrid, I hope you are well?"
"Well enough. Look, I've jus' bin askin' Ronan, you seen anythin' odd in here lately? Only there's a unicorn bin injured – would yeh know anythin' about it?"
Bane walked over to stand next to Ronan. He looked skywards.
"Mars is bright tonight," he said simply.
"We've heard," said Hagrid grumpily. "Well, if either of you do see anythin', let me know, won't yeh? We'll be off, then."
Harry and Hermione followed him out of the clearing, staring over their shoulders at Ronan and Bane until the trees blocked their view.
"Never," said Hagrid irritably, "try an' get a straight answer out of a centaur. Ruddy star-gazers. Not interested in anythin' closer'n the moon."
"Are there many of them in here?" asked Hermione curiously.
"Oh, a fair few… Keep themselves to themselves mostly, but they're good enough about turnin' up if ever I want a word. They're deep, mind, centaurs… they know things… jus' don' let on much."
"D'you think that was a centaur we heard earlier?" said Harry.
"Did that sound like hooves to you? Nah, if yeh ask me, that was what's bin killin' the unicorns – never heard anythin' like it before."
They walked on through the dense, dark trees. Harry kept looking nervously over his shoulder. He had a horrible feeling that they were being watched. He was very glad they had Hagrid and his crossbow with them. They had just passed a bend in the path when Hermione grabbed Hagrid's arm.
"Hagrid! Look! Red sparks, the others are in trouble!"
"You two wait here!" Hagrid shouted. "Stay on the path, I'll come back for yeh!"
"No way!" Harry shouted back, taking off after him. "That's my sister!"
Hagrid grumbled but stopped them as Harry and Hermione followed him, crashing away through the undergrowth.
"You don't think they've been hurt, do you?" Hermione gasped as they ran.
"I don't care if Nott has, but if something's got El or Neville… It's our fault they're here in the first place."
The scene they came upon was confusing. Harry and Hermione skidded to a stop just behind Hagrid and stared. Nott was backed up against a tree, hands over his face as he uselessly tried to bat away giant bats made of snot. Elowen was glaring furiously at him and standing protectively in front of Neville, who seemed to be both embarrassed and desperately trying to calm down.
"Wha' is goin' on? Are any of yeh hurt?"
"I've been injured!" Nott cried. "Potter hexed me!"
"You deserved it, you absolute prat!" Elowen yelled back, raising her wand as if to hex Nott again. "What is wrong with you?!"
Neville pushed her wand down and turned to Hagrid. "Nott thought it'd be funny to sneak up behind me and grab me. I… I panicked and sent up the sparks."
Hagrid was fuming. "We'll be lucky ter catch anythin' now, with the racket you two were makin'. Right, we're changin' groups – Neville, you stay with me an' Elowen; Henry, you an' Hermione go with Fang an' this idiot. I'm sorry," Hagrid added in a whisper to Harry, "but yer sister's likely to hex 'im again. He'll have a harder time frightenin' you two, an' we've gotta get this done."
So Harry and Hermione set off into the heart of the Forest with Nott and Fang. They walked for nearly half an hour, deeper and deeper into the Forest, until the path became almost impossible to follow because the trees were so thick. Harry thought the blood seemed to be getting thicker. There were splashes on the roots of a tree, as though the poor creature had been thrashing around in pain close by. Harry could see a clearing ahead, through the tangled branches of an ancient oak.
"Look," he murmured, holding out his arm to stop Hermione and Nott.
Something bright white was gleaming on the ground. They inched closer.
"Oh, no," Hermione breathed, sounding on the verge of tears. "Is that…?"
It was the unicorn all right, and it was dead. Harry had never seen anything so beautiful and sad. Its long slender legs were stuck out at odd angles where it had fallen and its mane was spread pearly white on the dark leaves.
Harry had taken one step towards it when a slithering sound made him freeze where he stood. A bush on the edge of the clearing quivered. Then, out of the shadows, a hooded figure came crawling across the ground like some stalking beast. Harry, Hermione, Nott and Fang stood transfixed. The cloaked figure reached the unicorn, it lowered its head over the wound in the animal's side, and began to drink its blood.
"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!"Harry nearly jumped out of his skin as Nott let out a terrible scream and bolted – and so did Fang.
Harry blindly pushed Hermione behind him. "Go, get Hagrid!" he whispered quickly.
"What about you?"
"Someone's got to make sure it doesn't get away," he replied. "It hasn't noticed us yet, go!"
He heard her stumble as she turned and ran. A stick cracked as she went, sounding impossibly loud in the dark forest. The hooded figure raised its head and looked right at Harry, unicorn blood was dribbling down its front. It got to its feet and came swiftly towards him — he couldn't move for fear.
Then a pain pierced his head like he'd never felt before, it was as though his scar was on fire. Half-blinded, he staggered backwards. He heard hooves behind him, galloping, and something jumped clean over him, charging at the figure.
~~~
Further away in the forest, just as Hermione caught up to them, Elowen suddenly clapped a hand to her face and fell to her knees as her scar burned like it never had before.
"Elowen!" Neville helped her as she blinked rapidly, trying to clear her vision. She looked up at him as soon as she was steady again.
"Something's wrong with Harry!" she gasped and started back the way Hermione had come.
~~~
The pain in Harry's head was so bad he fell to his knees. It took a minute or two to pass. When he looked up, the figure had gone. A centaur was standing over him, not Ronan or Bane; this one looked younger; he had white-blond hair and a palomino body.
"Are you all right?" said the centaur, pulling Harry to his feet.
"Yes, thank you," he said as he brushed his pants off with shaking hands. "What was that?"
The centaur didn't answer. He had astonishingly blue eyes, like pale sapphires. He looked carefully at Harry, his eyes lingering on the scar which stood out, livid, on Harry's forehead.
"You are the Potter boy," he said. "You had better get back to Hagrid. The Forest is not safe at this time – especially for you. Can you ride? It will be quicker this way." He didn't wait for an answer. "My name is Firenze," he added, as he lowered himself on to his front legs so that Harry could clamber on to his back.
There was suddenly a sound of more galloping from the other side of the clearing. Ronan and Bane came bursting through the trees, their flanks heaving and sweaty.
"Firenze!" Bane thundered. "What are you doing? You have a human on your back! Have you no shame? Are you a common mule?"
"Do you realise who this is?" said Firenze. "This is the Potter boy. The quicker he leaves this Forest, the better."
"What have you been telling him?" growled Bane. "Remember, Firenze, we are sworn not to set ourselves against the heavens. Have we not read what is to come in the movements of the planets?"
Ronan pawed the ground nervously.
"I'm sure Firenze thought he was acting for the best," he said, in his gloomy voice.
Bane kicked his back legs in anger.
"For the best! What is that to do with us? Centaurs are concerned with what has been foretold! It is not our business to run around like donkeys after stray humans in our Forest!"
Firenze suddenly reared on to his hind legs in anger, so that Harry had to grab his shoulders to stay on.
"Do you not see that unicorn?" Firenze bellowed at Bane. "Do you not understand why it was killed? Or have the planets not let you in on that secret? I set myself against what is lurking in this Forest, Bane, yes, with humans alongside me if I must."
And Firenze whisked around; with Harry clutching on as best he could, they plunged off into the trees, leaving Ronan and Bane behind them.
Harry didn't have a clue what was going on, but he decided he didn't much like the other centaurs.
"Why's Bane so angry?" he asked. "What was that thing you saved me from, anyway?"
Firenze slowed to a walk, warned Harry to keep his head bowed in case of low-hanging branches but did not answer Harry's question. They made their way through the trees in silence for so long that Harry thought Firenze didn't want to talk to him any more. They were passing through a particularly dense patch of trees, however, when Firenze suddenly stopped.
"Henry Potter, do you know what unicorn blood is used for?"
"No," said Harry, startled by the odd question. "We've only used the horn and tail-hair in Potions."
"That is because it is a monstrous thing, to slay a unicorn," said Firenze. "Only one who has nothing to lose, and everything to gain, would commit such a crime. The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price. You have slain something pure and defenceless to save yourself and you will have but a half life, a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips."
Harry stared at the back of Firenze's head, which was dappled silver in the moonlight.
"But who'd be that desperate?" he wondered aloud. "If you're going to be cursed for ever, death's better, isn't it?"
"It is," Firenze agreed, "unless all you need is to stay alive long enough to drink something else – something that will bring you back to full strength and power – something that will mean you can never die. Heir Potter, do you know what is hidden in the school at this very moment?"
"The Philosopher's Stone! Of course, the Elixir of Life! But I don't understand who —"
"Can you think of nobody who has waited many years to return to power, who has clung to life, awaiting their chance?"
It was as though an iron fist had clenched suddenly around Harry's heart. He suddenly recalled a passage from one of the many books he and El had read over the summer: Though the widely accepted consensus is that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was killed that fateful Samhain night, there are those who maintain the belief that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was no longer fully human, and therefore unable to die. The theory this faction holds is that whatever magicks allowed the Twins-Who-Lived to survive simply weakened You-Know-Who's power severely, and he is lying in wait until he regains the strength to come back and wage war on the wixen world once more.
"Do you mean," Harry croaked, "that was the Dark Lor—"
"Harry!"
"Harry, are you all right?"
His twin and friends were running towards them down the path, Hagrid puffing along behind them.
"I'm fine," said Harry, hardly knowing what he was saying. "The unicorn's dead, Hagrid, it's in that clearing back there."
"This is where I leave you," Firenze murmured as Hagrid hurried off to examine the unicorn. "You are safe now."
Harry slid off his back and was promptly tackled in a tight hug by Elowen.
"Good luck, Henry and Elowen Potter," said Firenze. "The planets have been read wrongly before now, even by centaurs. I hope this is one of those times."
He turned and cantered back into the depths of the Forest, leaving Harry shivering in his sister's hold behind him.
~~~
Ron had fallen asleep in the dark common room, waiting for them to return. He shouted something about Quidditch fouls when Harry roughly shook him awake. In a matter of seconds, though, he was wide-eyed as a determined Harry led them out of the common room and to the Den.
"Blubber!" The little house-elf popped into the room. "Can you please bring Draco here?"
In a matter of minutes, the Sprigs were all seated in front of a crackling fire, watching Harry pace in front of them as he explained what had happened in the Forest. He couldn't sit down. He was still shaking.
"Snape wants the stone for the Dark Lord… and the Dark Lord's waiting in the Forest… and all this time we thought Snape just wanted to get rich…"
"Stop calling him that!" said Ron in a terrified whisper.
"You met the Dark Lord in the Forest?" Draco said in a horrified tone.
Harry wasn't listening to either of them.
"My scar felt like it was on fire and I couldn't move. Firenze saved me, but he shouldn't have done… Bane was furious… he was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going to happen… They must show that Voldemort's coming back… Bane thinks Firenze should have let Voldemort kill me… I suppose that's written in the stars as well."
"Will you stop calling him that!" Ron hissed.
"So all we've got to wait for now is Snape to steal the Stone," Harry went on feverishly, "then the Dark Lord will be able to come and finish me and El off… Well, I suppose Bane'll be happy."
"Har, you've got to sit down," Elowen said, guiding her twin into a seat on the couch and shoving a mug of cocoa into his hands. She sat down next to him and leaned against his shoulder. "You really think the centaurs think we're going to die?"
Hermione looked very frightened, but she at least had a word of comfort.
"Harry, everyone says Dumbledore's the only one You-Know-Who was ever afraid of. With Dumbledore around, You-Know-Who won't touch you. Anyway, who says the centaurs are right? It sounds like fortune-telling to me, and Professor McGonagall says that's a very imprecise branch of magic."
"Centaurs are much better at Divinatory Magic than wixen are, though," Draco said. "The trouble is figuring out what they're saying."
"'Mars is bright'," Hermione recalled. "And something about the innocent being the first victims?"
"Mars is named for the Roman god of war," Ron offered, "maybe mars being bright means war is coming?" They all stared at him. He shrugged. "I snuck one of Percy's Divination books once and it had a chapter on the different planets. It was interesting."
"What else do you know?" Hermione asked eagerly.
"Not much," Ron replied. "Percy found out and took his book back before I could finish it."
"War does make sense," Draco said slowly. "Father says too many innocent people died or were permanently damaged in the war."
"Like your parents," Neville said quietly. Then, even quieter, "Like my parents."
He didn't seem to want to talk about it, and he and Draco both looked supremely uncomfortable, so El changed the subject.
"What I wanna know is, why did my scar start hurting when I was across the Forest from Harry?"
Harry turned to look at her. Her scar, usually thin silver-pink lines, was indeed redder than usual. Harry had no doubt his own scar looked the same.
"There's a lot no one understands about how you two survived," Draco said, looking very concerned as he scanned El. "You're okay, though, right?"
"It passed after a minute, and then I almost forgot about it until Harry mentioned it."
The sky had turned light before they stopped talking. They pushed the Den's couches together and fell asleep in a pile exhausted, their throats sore. But the surprises weren't over.
When Harry snuck back into the dorm before breakfast, he found his Invisibility Cloak folded neatly under his pillow. There was a note pinned to it:
Just in case.