(mix of several chapters with extra scene at the beginning, most from chapter 12 of the Philosopher's/Sorcerer's Stone)
The day after the Quidditch match, Harry, Ron, and Hermione went to the library every break to find out who Nicholas Flamel was. They were having no success by the time dinner had rolled around. Ron was perturbed by this lack of progress.
"We'll never find him at this rate!" He exclaimed loudly as they headed towards the Great Hall. "We'll probably have to look through Christmas to find him!"
"Ron, keep it down!" Hermione hissed at him.
"I swear I've heard the name before," said Harry, frowning in thought.
"What name?" A voice asked from behind them. The trio whirled quickly around to see who it was. It was Ben.
Ron let out a deep breath. "Blimey, Ben you nearly gave us a heart attack."
Ben smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I seem to have a talent for showing up unexpectedly, even though I think that I'm not sneaking up on anyone."
The group resumed walking towards the Great Hall. "You never answered my question."
Harry caught the eyes of Ron and Hermione. They seemed to be in agreement. Harry spoke. "You have to swear not to tell this to anybody."
Ben smiled at that. "I'm rather good at keeping secrets. I won't reveal this information to anyone except if it's an emergency."
Harry thought that was good enough. "We think that something of Nicholas Flamel's is in the castle. We want to know what it is because the three-headed dog is guarding it. I know I've heard the name before, I just can't remember where."
Ben frowned in deep thought. "I don't know what it could be, but I remember Nicholas Flamel being mentioned with Dumbledore."
Harry tried to think of where Ben could have heard Flamel and Dumbledore together. Then, Harry remembered their ride on the Hogwarts Express. His eyes widened as he stopped walking. "Dumbledore's card."
The other three stopped to look at him. Ben asked, "What?"
"Flamel was mentioned on Dumbledore's chocolate frog card."
Hermione and Ron wore baffled expressions while Ben frowned in concentration. Then, his eyes widened. "Right, he was. I also remember alchemy being mentioned."
Hermione brightened. She hadn't looked so excited since they'd gotten back the marks for their very first piece of homework.
"I think I've got the book with the information we need already!"
"Great!" Ron said. "We can go to the library to look it up after dinner!"
Harry was eager to have this mystery solved as quickly as possible, but see the enthusiasm the other two had for this plan, he quickly acknowledged that this was probably the best course of action.
After dinner, Harry, Ron, and Ben went to the library while Hermione went to her dormitory to retrieve the book. They didn't have to wait long before she dashed into the library, an enormous old book in her arms.
"I never thought to look in here!" she whispered excitedly. "I got this out of the library weeks ago for a bit of light reading."
"Light?" said Ron, but Hermione told him to be quiet until she'd looked something up, and started flicking frantically through the pages, muttering to herself. Ben glared at Ron for his comment.
At last Hermione found what she was looking for.
"I knew it! I knew it!"
"Are we allowed to speak yet?" said Ron grumpily. Hermione ignored him.
"Nicolas Flamel," she whispered dramatically, "is the only known maker of the Philosopher's Stone!"
This didn't have quite the effect she'd expected.
"The what?" said Harry and Ron.
Ben's reaction though was probably more of what she expected. He was flabbergasted.
"Oh, honestly, don't you two read? Look - read that, there."
She pushed the book toward them, and Harry and Ron read: The ancient study of alchemy is concerned with making the Philosopher's Stone, a legendary substance with astonishing powers. The stone will transform any metal into pure gold. It also produces the Elixir of Life, which will make the drinker immortal.
There have been many reports of the Philosopher's Stone over the centuries, but the only Stone currently in existence belongs to Mr. Nicolas Flamel, the noted alchemist and opera lover. Mr. Flamel, who celebrated his six hundred and sixty-fifth birthday last year, enjoys a quiet life in Devon with his wife, Perenelle (six hundred and fifty-eight).
"See?" said Hermione, when Harry and Ron had finished. "The dog must be guarding Flamel's Philosopher's Stone! I bet he asked Dumbledore to keep it safe for him, because they're friends and he knew someone was after it, that's why he wanted the Stone moved out of Gringotts!"
"A stone that makes gold and stops you from ever dying!" said Harry. "No wonder Sn- someone's after it! Anyone would want it."
"Indeed," Ben said, nodding in a sagely manner.
-Break-
Christmas was coming. One morning in mid-December, Hogwarts woke to find itself covered in several feet of snow. The lake froze solid and the Weasley twins were punished for bewitching several snowballs so that they followed Quirrell around, bouncing off the back of his turban. The few owls that managed to battle their way through the stormy sky to deliver mail had to be nursed back to health by Hagrid before they could fly off again.
No one could wait for the holidays to start. While the Gryffindor common room and the Great Hall had roaring fires, the drafty corridors had become icy and a bitter wind rattled the windows in the classrooms. Worst of all were Professor Snape's classes down in the dungeons, where their breath rose in a mist before them and they kept as close as possible to their hot cauldrons.
"I do feel so sorry," said Draco Malfoy, one Potions class, "for all those people who have to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas because they're not wanted at home."
He was looking over at Harry as he spoke. Crabbe and Goyle chuckled. Harry, who was measuring out powdered spine of lionfish, ignored them. Malfoy had been even more unpleasant than usual since the Quidditch match. Disgusted that the Slytherins had lost, he had tried to get everyone laughing at how a wide-mouthed tree frog would be replacing Harry as Seeker next. Then he'd realized that nobody found this funny, because they were all so impressed at the way Harry had managed to stay on his bucking broomstick. So Malfoy, jealous and angry, had gone back to taunting Harry about having no proper family.
It was true that Harry wasn't going back to Privet Drive for Christmas. Professor McGonagall had come around the week before, making a list of students who would be staying for the holidays, and Harry had signed up at once. He didn't feel sorry for himself at all; this would probably be the best Christmas he'd ever had. Ron and his brothers were staying, too, because Mr. and Mrs. Weasley were going to Romania to visit Charlie. Ben was also staying, as his mother didn't have the money for a plane ticket to get him.
When the Gryffindors and Slytherins left the dungeons at the end of Potions, they found a large fir tree blocking the corridor ahead. Two enormous feet sticking out at the bottom and a loud puffing sound told them that Hagrid was behind it.
"Hi, Hagrid, want any help?" Ron asked, sticking his head through the branches.
"Nah, I'm all right, thanks, Ron."
"Would you mind moving out of the way?" came Malfoys cold drawl from behind them. "Are you trying to earn some extra money, Weasley? Hoping to be gamekeeper yourself when you leave Hogwarts, I suppose - that hut of Hagrid's must seem like a palace compared to what your family's used to."
Ron dived at Malfoy just as Snape came up the stairs.
"WEASLEY!"
Ron let go of the front of Malfoy's robes.
"He was provoked, Professor Snape," said Hagrid, sticking his huge hairy face out from behind the tree. "Malfoy was insultin' his family."
"Be that as it may, fighting is against Hogwarts rules, Hagrid," said Snape silkily. "Five points from Gryffindor, Weasley, and be grateful it isn't more. Move along, all of you."
Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle pushed roughly past the tree, scattering needles everywhere and smirking.
"I'll get him," said Ron, grinding his teeth at Malfoy's back, "one of these days, I'll get him -"
"I hate them both," said Harry, "Malfoy and Snape."
"Come on, cheer up, it's nearly Christmas," said Hagrid. "Tell yeh what, come with me an' see the Great Hall, looks a treat."
So the three of them followed Hagrid and his tree off to - the Great Hall, where Professor McGonagall and Professor Flitwick were busy with the Christmas decorations.
"Ah, Hagrid, the last tree - put it in the far corner, would you?"
The hall looked spectacular. Festoons of holly and mistletoe hung all around the walls, and no less than twelve towering Christmas trees stood around the room, some sparkling with tiny icicles, some glittering with hundreds of candles.
"How many days you got left until yer holidays?" Hagrid asked.
"Just one," said Hermione.
"Yer not lookin' fer Nicolas Flamel, are yeh?" Hagrid suspiciously.
"Oh, we found out who he is ages ago," said Ron impressively, eyes still on Flitwick, who had golden bubbles blossoming out of his wand and was trailing them over the branches of the new tree. "And we know what that dog's guarding, it's a Philosopher's St -"
"Shhhh!" Hagrid looked around quickly to see if anyone was listening. "Don' go shoutin' about it, what's the matter with yeh?"
"We're not trying to," Harry said. "In fact, unless something happens to make us think that the Stone's in danger, we're not trying to mention it."
Hagrid visibly sagged in relief. The trio talked to Hagrid for a while before heading back to the Gryffindor common room.
AN: Okay, so I posted this chapter shortly after I woke up. I've not got much to say except that I will work more on my writing as that went a little slack due to writer's block from where I was previously at.
Uploaded Dec. 13th, 2019, Edited Jan 10th, 2025