The Gryffindor Royal

Chapter Ten

Harry,Ron,Shelena,Hermione and (Y/N) had never run so fast in their lives. "Hagrid always wanted a dragon," Harry said. The five were now back in the castle,and had slowed down their paces considerably. "Told me so the first time I ever met him." "It's crazy. And worse,Malfoy knows." Ron said,shaking his head in despair. "I don't understand. Is that bad?" Harry turned to look at the girls,none of whom gave him an answer. "It's bad," Ron muttered,turning pale at the sight of their Transfiguration Professor standing in the doorway of her classroom glaring at them. "Good evening." She said calmly,while Malfoy stepped out of the classroom,wearing his triumphant smirk. Professor McGonagall gestured for them to enter the empty Transfiguration classroom,Malfoy right on their tail. She sat down and glared at the Gryffindors sternly. "Nothing,I repeat, nothing gives a student the right to walk about the school at night. Therefore as punishment for your actions,30 points will be taken." "30?!"(I know it was 50 each in the movies but I wanted it to be 150 in total instead of 250 points so don't come after me.)Harry nearly shouted,astonished that the professor would take points off of her own house. "Each." She confirmed with a nod. Malfoy turned to smirk at them once more,until he caught sight of (Y/N)'s glare. He didn't want sticky pumpkin juice on his head again. Harry's mouth hung open in shock as he mentally scolded himself for being so careless. "And," Professor McGonagall said,"To make sure this never happens again,all six of you will receive detention." Malfoy stepped up to the front of the teacher's table. "Excuse me professor, perhaps I heard you wrong. I thought you said the six of us." He said,being as polite as he could be. McGonagall didn't buy it. "No,you heard me correctly,Mr Malfoy. You see,as honourable as your intentions were,you too were out of bed after hours." It was Harry's turn to grin at the Slytherin boy. "You will join your classmates in detention." Malfoy sent the Gryffindors a glance of disgust before heading off to bed. The next night,Harry, Ron,Shelena,Hermione,Malfoy and (Y/N) made their way to Hagrid's hut,which was where they had to meet him, accompanied by Filch. "A pity they let the old punishments die," he said in his gravely voice. "There was a time detention would find you hanging by your thumbs in the dungeons. God,I miss the screaming." Shelena flinched slightly,but (Y/N) smiled sweetly at the man. "That sounds...pleasant,Mr Filch. However,I would like to know,was it possible for teachers to get detentions back then?" Filch thought for a while before nodding. "Yeah,if they'd done something horrible,like transfigure a student for punishment,or not go by Dumbledore's rules." He scowled slightly, making (Y/N) sure he'd disobeyed some of Dumbledore's rules. "Yes," she agreed with a slight pout. "It's certainly a pity they let those times and punishments slip away...if they still existed,teachers and caretakers terrorising students would get punished!" The others,except Draco,could hardly contain their mirth but Filch understood what (Y/N) had meant and scowled the entire way to Hagrid's hut. The little group stopped a few metres away from Hagrid's hut. "You'll be serving detention with Hagrid tonight." Filch explained. "He's a got a little job to do. Inside the Dark Forest." Filch grinned evilly while (Y/N) rolled her eyes. They'd gotten into trouble for being with Hagrid,and now they had to serve detention with him? However,the Dark Forest seemed a bit harsh. "Sorry lot,this,Hagrid." Filch called to the large figure emerging from the hut. Hagrid,on the other hand,didn't seem to care. He was sniffling and in the firelight, his eyes seemed red. "Oh god,you're not still on about that bloody dragon are you?" Filch groaned in contempt. Hagrid sniffled again and turned to the Gryffindors. "Norbert's gone. Dumbledore sen' him off ter Romania ter live in a colony." "Well that's good isn't it?" Hermione asked. "He'll be with his own kind." Hagrid scoffed lightly. "Yeah but wha' if he don' like Romania? Wha' if the other dragons are mean ter him? He's only a baby,after all." It was now Filch's turn to scoff. "Oh for god's sake pull yourself together man. You're going into the forest after all. Got to have your wits about you." He raised his eyebrows sinisterly,causing Draco to drop his 'cool act' for the second time this year. "The Forest? I thought that was a joke! We can't go in there. Students aren't allowed. And there are...werewolves!" Filch chuckled darkly. "Oh,there's more than werewolves in those trees,lad,you can be sure of that. Nighty-night." He gave them a smile,if you could call it that,and walked away. The silence surrounding them was thick as each child absorbed what Filch had told them. There were werewolves and more in the Forest? Shelena could feel the cold sweat on her forehead. "Righ'. Let's go." Hagrid said,not doing much to ease the tension. He led the way into the forest,Shelena trailing at the back. Hagrid stopped the group in front of a clump of trees and stooped down to look at some silvery liquid. He picked it up and peered at it intensely,causing Shelena and (Y/N) to make retching noises and other sounds of disgust. "Hagrid,what is that?" Harry asked apprehensively,while (Y/N) gave him a 'how could you not know what that is' face. "What we're here for. See tha'?" Hagrid lifted his fingers up. "Tha's unicorn blood tha' is. Found one dead a few weeks ago. Now,this one's been hurt bad by something." Harry,Shelena and Ron exchanged looks of fear;Draco didn't seem to care while (Y/N) looked angry. Hermione was expressionless. Until,that is,a loud howl echoed through the Forest. Everyone,even Hagrid,looked around nervously. "So," Hagrid continued. "It's our job ter go and find the poor beast. Ron,Hermione, Shelena, you'll come with me." "Ok," Ron managed,before turning even paler than before. "Harry,(Y/N),you'll go with Malfoy." Harry nodded without much issue,but Malfoy tried to bargain. "But I get Fang." "Fine," Hagrid shrugged casually. "Just so's yer know,he's a bloody coward." Fang and (Y/N) whined in unison;Fang out of sadness,(Y/N) out of annoyance and disgust. "Hagrid,I thought we were friends. And then you put me with Malfoy?!" Hagrid rolled his eyes. "We don' have time fer this. Jus' get on with it." Because she didn't have a good enough comeback to convince Hagrid,(Y/N),muttering vulgarities under her breath,walked deeper into the Forest with Harry and Malfoy. "You wait till my father hears about this." He said once the three were out of earshot of Hagrid. "This is servant's stuff!" "If I didn't know better,Draco,I'd say you were scared." Harry giggled slightly. Draco scoffed,but (Y/N) spoke up. "Firstly,who'd have him as a servant?! He's utterly useless! Secondly,he is scared." What the boys didn't know,was that she was secretly using her mind-reading skills to read Malfoy's mind,which only had one thought etched into it:fear. "Scared,Potter." The blonde scoffed. Another loud howl sounded,and Malfoy stopped dead in his tracks,grabbing (Y/N)'s sleeve. "Did you hear that?" He asked shakily,evident fear in his voice. Malfoy shook his head when he realised what he'd down and let go of (Y/N)'s robes,leading them and Fang deeper into the forest. "Come on,Fang." Harry called over his shoulder. Soon,they'd reached a part in the Forest so dark and quiet,that no one could see their hand right in front of their face,and a pin drop would have sounded as loud as an explosion. Fang and (Y/N) walked in front,Harry and Malfoy trailed behind. The redhead turned around. "Hurry up you cowards!" She said loudly,and rather rudely. Malfoy was about to retaliate,but decided not to take his chances. He didn't want pumpkin juice or,knowing (Y/N)'s temper, something much worse. They stopped at a fork in the road when Fang started to growl deeply. "What is it,Fang?" Harry asked softly. What they saw terrified them,and Harry's scar started to burn. He hissed in pain but no one came to help him. Malfoy would've laughed in a normal situation,but (Y/N) would've helped. Now,both were rooted to the ground,shaking in their shoes. There was a figure,a hooded figure,drinking the blood of a...unicorn? (Y/N) began to see red. "Get away from the unicorn!" She shouted angrily. The figure paid no attention. It drank a few more drops brfore looking up at the students. Harry couldn't see his face,but he was sure its expression was one of hungriness. "Ahh!" Malfoy screeched. He unknowingly grabbed (Y/N) by the hand and dragged her away,leaving the poor girl shouting Harry's name at the top of her lungs. Fang,as Hagrid had said,was a coward and ran off with Malfoy,who was now shouting for help. Harry turned back from that scene to the hooded figure. It was now approaching him hungrily,head bent and arms slightly outstretched. Harry panicked slightly and moved backward,only to trip over some roots and scuttle backward like a crab. The figure was still advancing on him,and Harry had a wild idea of trying to do a shrinking spell and hide out in the roots he'd stumbled on,but loud hoofbeats  reverberated through the Forest. The hooded figure gave a start and tried to run off deeper into the Forest,but a huge creature stampeded to them. It reared up it's hind legs and made wild hits at the hooded figure. The figure eventually retreated and ran into the mist that surrounded the Forest. To say the creature looked unique was an understatement. It had the body of a man but the hind legs of a horse. "Harry Potter. You must leave." He said in a confident and deciding voice. "You are known to many creatures here. The Forest is not save at this time,especially for you." "But what was that thing you saved me from?" Harry asked. "A monstrous creature. It is a terrible crime to slay a unicorn. Drinking the blood of a unicorn will keep you alive even if you are an inch from death. But at a terrible price:for you have slain something so pure,that from the moment the blood touches your lips,you will have a half-life;a cursed life." The creature said gravely. "But who would choose such a life?" Harry couldn't understand,and tried to get the creature to give him a hint. "Can you think of no one?" He asked. "You mean to say,that thing that killed the unicorn,that was drinking its blood,that was Voldemort?" "Do you know what is hidden in the school at this very moment,Mr Potter?" The creature leaned down to Harry's height. "The sorcerer's stone." Harry's face shone with realisation. The creature,Firenze,was about to say more,but was cut off by Fang's booming barks. "Harry!" "Harry, are you ok?!" Hermione and Shelena were shouting,while (Y/N) was running frantically toward Harry,but Hagrid held her back,pointing to Firenze. "'Ello there,Firenze." Hagrid greeted. "See yer've met our young Mr Potter. Yer alright over there,'Arry?" The said boy nodded shyly and Hagrid let (Y/N) go,allowing her to rush over to Harry,and letting her nearly strangle him with her hug. "I tried to get that bloody Malfoy to let me come back,but Hagrid said no. I thought you'd be dead." She murmured. Harry wasn't sure what to say. He wasn't used to being in such close proximity to a girl,let alone one that was in such an emotional state. "I-it's alright. I'm fine,see?" He gently detached (Y/N) from himself before waving his arms in circles to show her that he was fine. "Harry Potter," Firenze interrupted. "This is where I leave you. You're safe now. Good luck." With that,he trotted back into the depths of the Forest. Harry grabbed (Y/N)'s hand and prepared to walk back to the little group,only to be met with Hagrid's intense frown as the giant man stared down at the unicorn. Harry knew how much magical creatures meant to Hagrid,and couldn't imagine how he must be feeling right now. After making it to the edge of the Dark Forest,Hagrid left the six first-years and retreated into his hut,where they heard loud howls shaking the hut. "He really is insane." Malfoy muttered,and ran off in fear lest (Y/N) do something to him again. "You mean,You-Know-Who's out there,right now,in the Forest?" Hermione asked when they'd got back to the common room. "But he's weak," Harry said. "He's living off of unicorns. Don't you see? We had it wrong. Snape first want the stone for himself,he wants the stone for Voldemort. With the elixir of life Voldemort will be strong again,he'll–" the boy could hardly bring himself to say it. "He'll come back." Harry finally said as he sat down next to (Y/N). "But if he comes back,you don't think he'll try to...kill you,do you?" "Ron,how thick can you be? What do you think you'd do if you had the chance to kill your worst enemy,who also happened to be a baby when he essentially killed you and made you a laughing stock in the wizarding world?" (Y/N) scoffed. "I think if he'd had the chance he might've tried to kill me tonight." Harry said,eager to break up the squabble. Ron's eyes widened and his eyebrows shot up. "And to think,I've been worrying about my Potions final!" Shelena slapped him upside the head. "As you should! Exams are as important as...life,even!" "Hang on a minute," Hermione said. "We're forgetting one thing:who's the one wizard Voldemort always feared?" Ron shrugged and Shelena slapped him again. "Dumbledore! As long as Dumbledore's around,Harry,you're safe. As long as Dumbledore's around,you can't be touched. Same goes for you,(Y/N)."  The latter looked utterly confused. Hermione sighed dramatically. "And you're supposed to be the one that knows your information! One of the Elements that you can control is Spirit. The Spirit of Life. As long as you posses that,along with Dumbledore being around,you'll be safe." (Y/N) shrugged. "I guess... but,what do you mean only if I posses it?" Hermione sighed again. "Voldemort's always called himself the most powerful wizard ever. But,the Spirit of Life can stop him. It allows a person to block even the Killing Curse. And,your power cannot be taken away from you,unless you allow someone to take it from you. There's a book about in the library in the Restricted Section,but no one's ever tried to take the Elementum Power away from someone;they don't really want to sacrifice their life."•••••"I've always heard the Hogwarts end-of-year exams were frightful,but I found that rather enjoyable." Hermione said in a loud voice. "Speak for yourself,and maybe Shelena and (N/N) too,I s'pose. All right there,Harry?" Ron turned to look at the raven-haired boy,who'd been engaged in a conversation with (Y/N). "My scar. It keeps burning." He explained,rubbing it. "It's happened before." Hermione tried to reason. "Not like this." (Y/N) argued back. Harry had told her about the scar hurting,and she'd been trying to find out possible reasons,to no avail. "Perhaps you should see the nurse?" Ron tried. Shelena clicked her tongue. "Highly unlikely Pomfrey would know anything about the scar. It's a curse scar,and they don't come by often." "I think it's a warning. Danger's coming." Harry said,rubbing the scar some more. "Argh!" He winced. Without even knowing where their feet had carried them,the five students had ended up several yards away from Hagrid's hut. "Oh," Harry muttered softly. "Of course." "What is it?" Hermione and Shelena asked in unison. "Don't you think it's a bit odd," Harry began,grabbing the nearest person to him,which happened to (Y/N),and marched toward the little hut. "That what Hagrid wants more than anything is a dragon and a stranger turns up and just happens to have one? I mean,how many people wander around with dragon eggs in their pocket? Why didn't I see it before?" Harry  rushed out. "Honestly, Harry,you're starting to sound like 'Mione." (Y/N) stated,earning a sharp pinch from Harry. "Not the time to joke,(Y/N)." He muttered in a low voice. He marched the squirming redhead all the way to the door of the hut where Hagrid sat playing a flute similar to the one he gave Harry for Christmas. "Hagrid,who gave you the dragon egg? What did he look like?" Harry said breathlessly,waving his hands around to exaggerate his point. "I dun' know!" Hagrid exclaimed. "Never saw his face,he kept his hood up." "This stranger though,"Harry persisted. "You and he must have talked." Hagrid nodded. "Well,he wanted ter know what sort of creatures I looked after. I told him,I said 'after Fluffy,a dragon's going to be no problem." "Did he seem interested in Fluffy?" (Y/N) asked. "Well,o' course he was interested in Fluffy. How often d'you come across a three-headed dog,even if yer in the trade? But I told him,I said—'the trick with any beast is ter know how ter calm him. Take Fluffy,fer example:just play him a bit o' music and he falls straight ter sleep!" The five Gryffindors exchanged triumphant glances. Hagrid had revealed how to calm Fluffy! The giant must've noticed what he said,because his brows furrowed deeply. "I shouldn' have told yer that," before he could say anything else,Shelena had grabbed as many hands as she could and sprinted off,dragging the rest behind her. "Where're yer going?!" Hagrid roared,attracting the attention of many. Only (Y/N) turned to reply. "We'll try to make it out alive. Arrange our funerals if we don't!" Shelena shushed her hurriedly and brought them to McGonagall's Transfiguration classroom. Untangling himself from the web of arms,harr bolted up to the table. "We have to see professor Dumbledore." "Immediately!" Shelena added. "I'm afraid Professor Dumbledore is not here." McGongall said,clearly not used to being spoken to in such a rude tone. "He received an urgent owl from the Ministry of Magic and left immediately for London." She explained. "He's gone?! Now? But this is important! This is about the sorcerer's stone!" Harry practically shouted, lowering it dramatically at the end of his sentence. "How do you know—" McGonagall gasped. "Someone's going to try and steal it." The look McGonagall gave the three practically killed them. "I don't know how you five found out about the stone,but I assure you it is perfectly well-protected. Now would you go back to your dormitories? Quietly." She added at the back,looking straight at Harry and Ron. The former shook his head in defeat  before turning and gesturing to his friends to follow him.(Woohoo longest chapter ever!! Also thanks for 100 reads!!!)