Emily Lily Lupin-Black

1. Chapter 12 Exams.

I was almost glad that the exams weren't far away. Harry, Ron, Hermione, and I kept toourselves, working late into the night, trying to remember the ingredients incomplicated potions, learn charms and spells by heart, memorise the dates ofmagical discoveries and goblin rebellions. Harry walked back to the library, where Hermione and I were testing Ron onAstronomy. Harry told us what he'd heard."Snape's done it, then!" said Ron. "If Quirrell's told him how to breakhis Anti-Dark Force spell —""There's still Fluffy, though," said Hermione."Maybe Snape's found out how to get past him without asking Hagrid,"said Ron, looking up at the thousands of books surrounding them. "I bet there's abook somewhere in here telling you how to get past a giant three-headed dog. Sowhat do we do, Harry?"The light of adventure was kindling again in Ron's eyes, but Hermioneanswered before Harry could."Go to Dumbledore. That's what we should have done ages ago. If we tryanything ourselves we'll be thrown out for sure.""But we've got no proof!" i said. "Quirrell's too scared to back usup. Snape's only got to say he doesn't know how the troll got in at Halloweenand 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 itup to get him sacked. Filch wouldn't help us if his life depended on it, he's toofriendly with Snape, and the more students get thrown out, the better, he'll think.And don't forget, we're not supposed to know about the Stone or Fluffy. That'lltake a lot of explaining."Hermione looked convinced, but Ron didn't."If we just do a bit of poking around —""No," said Harry flatly, "we've done enough poking around."He pulled a map of Jupiter toward him and started to learn the names ofits moons. Ron had fallen asleep in the dark common room, waiting for them to return.He shouted something about Quidditch fouls when Harry roughly shook himawake. In a matter of seconds, though, he was wide-eyed as Harry began to tellhim, Hermione and I what had happened in the forest.Harry couldn't sit down. He paced up and down in front of the fire. Hewas still shaking."Snape wants the stone for Voldemort...and Voldemort's waiting in theforest...and all this time we thought Snape just wanted to get rich....""Stop saying the name!" said Ron in a terrified whisper, as if he thoughtVoldemort could hear them.Harry wasn't listening."Firenze saved me, but he shouldn't have done so....Bane was furious...he was talking about interfering with what the planets say is going tohappen....They must show that Voldemort's coming back....Bane thinks Firenzeshould have let Voldemort kill me....I suppose that's written in the stars as well.""Will you stop saying the name!" Ron hissed."So all I've got to wait for now is Snape to steal the Stone," Harry wenton feverishly, "then Voldemort will be able to come and finish me off ... Well, Isuppose Bane'll be happy."Hermione looked very frightened, i tryed to say words of comfort."Harry, everyone says Dumbledore's the only one You-Know-Who wasever 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."The sky had turned light before they stopped talking. we went to bedexhausted, their throats sore. But the night's surprises weren't over.When Harry pulled back his sheets, he found his invisibility cloak foldedneatly underneath them. There was a note pinned to it:Just in case. In years to come, I would never quite remember how I had managedto get through the exams when I half expected Voldemort to come burstingthrough the door at any moment and hurt harry. Yet the days crept by, and there could be nodoubt that Fluffy was still alive and well behind the locked door.It was sweltering hot, especially in the large classroom where they didtheir written papers. They had been given special, new quills for the exams,which had been bewitched with an Anticheating spell.They had practical exams as well. Professor Flitwick called them one byone 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 — pointswere 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 toremember how to make a Forgetfulness potion. Neville thought Harry had a bad case of exam nerves because Harry couldn'tsleep. The idea ofVoldemort certainly scared Ron and hermione, but they didn't keep visiting them in dreams, andthey were so busy with their studying they didn't have much time to fret aboutwhat Snape or anyone else might be up to.Their very last exam was History of Magic. One hour of answeringquestions about batty old wizards who'd invented selfstirring cauldrons andthey'd be free, free for a whole wonderful week until their exam results cameout. When the ghost of Professor Binns told them to put down their quills androll up their parchment, Harry couldn't help cheering with the rest."That was far easier than I thought it would be," said Hermione as theyjoined the crowds flocking out onto the sunny grounds. "I needn't have learnedabout the 1637 Werewolf Code of Conduct or the uprising of Elfric the Eager."Hermione always liked to go through their exam papers afterward, butRon said this made him feel ill, so they wandered down to the lake and floppedunder a tree. The Weasley twins and Lee Jordan and I were tickling the tentacles of agiant squid, which was basking in the warm shallows. "No more studying," Ronsighed happily, stretching out on the grass. "You could look more cheerful,Harry, we've got a week before we find out how badly we've done, there's noneed to worry yet." i said in a joking matter. but Harry was rubbing his forehead."I wish I knew what this means!" he burst out angrily. "My scar keepshurting — it's happened before, but never as often as this.""Go to Madam Pomfrey," Hermione suggested."I'm not ill," said Harry. "I think it's a warning...it means danger'scoming...."Ron couldn't get worked up, it was too hot."Harry, relax, Hermione's right, the Stone's safe as long as Dumbledore'saround. Anyway, we've never had any proof Snape found out how to get pastFluffy. He nearly had his leg ripped off once, he's not going to try it again in ahurry. And Neville will play Quidditch for England before Hagrid letsDumbledore down."Harry and I nodded. Harry suddenly jumped to his feet."Where're you going?" said Ron sleepily."I've just thought of something," said Harry. He had turned white."We've got to go and see Hagrid, now." "Why?" panted Hermione, hurrying to keep up."Don't you think it's a bit odd," said Harry, scrambling up the grassyslope, "that what Hagrid wants more than anything else is a dragon, and astranger turns up who just happens to have an egg in his pocket? How manypeople wander around with dragon eggs if it's against wizard law? Lucky theyfound Hagrid, don't you think? Why didn't I see it before?" i understood what he ment and quickned my pace. "What are you talking about?" said Ron, but Harry and I, sprinting across thegrounds toward the forest, didn't answer.Hagrid was sitting in an armchair outside his house; his trousers andsleeves were rolled up, and he was shelling peas into a large bowl."Hullo," he said, smiling. "Finished yer exams? Got time fer a drink?""Yes, please," said Ron, but Harry cut him off."No, we're in a hurry. Hagrid, I've got to ask you something. You knowthat night you won Norbert? What did the stranger you were playing cards withlook like?""Dunno," said Hagrid casually, "he wouldn' take his cloak off."He saw the four of us 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? Inever saw his face, he kept his hood up."Harry sank down next to the bowl of peas. "What did you talk to himabout, Hagrid? Did you mention Hogwarts at all?" i asked. "Mighta come up," said Hagrid, frowning as he tried to remember."Yeah...he asked what I did, an' I told him I was gamekeeper here...He asked abit about the sorta creatures I took after...so I told him...an' I said what I'dalways really wanted was a dragon...an' then...I can' remember too well, 'causehe kept buyin' me drinks...Let's see...yeah, then he said he had the dragon eggan' we could play cards fer it if I wanted...but he had ter be sure I could handleit, he didn' want it ter go ter any old home....So I told him, after Fluffy, a dragonwould be easy....""And did he — did he seem interested in Fluffy?" Harry asked, trying tokeep his voice calm."Well — yeah — how many three-headed dogs d'yeh meet, even aroundHogwarts? So I told him, Fluffy's a piece o' cake if yeh know how to calm himdown, 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!" he blurted out. "Forget I said it! Hey —where're yeh goin'?" we sprinted up to the castle. Harry, Ron, Hermione and myself didn't speak to each other at all until theycame to a halt in the entrance hall, which seemed very cold and gloomy after thegrounds."We've got to go to Dumbledore," said Harry. "Hagrid told that strangerhow 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. I just hope Dumbledorebelieves us. Firenze might back us up if Bane doesn't stop him. Where'sDumbledore's office?"They looked around, as if hoping to see a sign pointing them in the rightdirection. They had never been told where Dumbledore lived, nor did they knowanyone who had been sent to see him."We'll just have to —" Harry began, but a voice suddenly rang across thehall."What are you four doing inside?" It was Professor McGonagall, carrying a large pile of books."We want to see Professor Dumbledore," said Hermione, rather bravely,Harry and Ron thought."See Professor Dumbledore?" Professor McGonagall repeated, as thoughthis was a very fishy thing to want to do. "Why?"Harry swallowed — now what?"It's sort of secret," he said, but he wished at once he hadn't, becauseProfessor McGonagall's nostrils flared."Professor Dumbledore left ten minutes ago," she said coldly. "Hereceived an urgent owl from the Ministry of Magic and flew off for London atonce.""He's gone?" said Harry frantically. "Now?""Professor Dumbledore is a very great wizard, Potter, he has manydemands on his time – ""But this is important.""Something you have to say is more important than the Ministry ofMagic, Potter?""Look," said Harry, throwing caution to the winds, "Professor — it'sabout the Sorcerer's Stone —" i said slowly. Whatever Professor McGonagall had expected, it wasn't that. The booksshe was carrying tumbled out of her arms i caught them with non-verble, non-wand magic which no one noticed thankfully. "How do you know —?" she spluttered."Professor, I think — I know — that Sn— that someone's going to tryand steal the Stone. I've got to talk to Professor Dumbledore."She eyed him with a mixture of shock and suspicion."Professor Dumbledore will be back tomorrow," she said finally. 'I don'tknow how you found out about the Stone, but rest assured, no one can possiblysteal it, it's too well protected.""But Professor —""Potter, I know what I'm talking about," she said shortly. She thanked me for catching her fallen books. 'I suggest you all go back outside and enjoy the sunshine."But we didn't."It's tonight," said Harry, once he was sure Professor McGonagall wasout of earshot. "Snape's going through the trapdoor tonight. He's found outeverything he needs, and now he's got Dumbledore out of the way. He sent thatnote, I bet the Ministry of Magic will get a real shock when Dumbledore turnsup." i continued on. "But what can we —"Hermione gasped. Harry, Ron and I wheeled round.Snape was standing there."Good afternoon," he said smoothly. We stared at him."You shouldn't be inside on a day like this," he said, with an odd, twistedsmile."We were —" Harry began, without any idea what he was going to say."You want to be more careful," said Snape. "Hanging around like this,people will think you're up to something. And Gryffindor really can't afford tolose 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 willpersonally make sure you are expelled. Good day to you."He strode off in the direction of the staffroom.Out on the stone steps, Harry turned to the others."Right, here's what we've got to do," he whispered urgently. "One of ushas got to keep an eye on Snape — wait outside the staff room and follow him ifhe leaves it. Hermione, you'd better do that." "Why me?""It's obvious," said Ron. "You can pretend to be waiting for ProfessorFlitwick, you know." He put on a high voice, "'Oh Professor Flitwick, I'm soworried, I think I got question fourteen b wrong....'""Oh, shut up," said Hermione, but she agreed to go and watch out forSnape."And we'd better stay outside the third-floor corridor," Harry told Ron and I."Come on."But that part of the plan didn't work. No sooner had they reached thedoor separating Fluffy from the rest of the school than Professor McGonagallturned up again and this time, she lost her temper."I suppose you think you're harder to get past than a pack ofenchantments!" she stormed. "Enough of this nonsense! If I hear you've comeanywhere near here again, I'll take another fifty points from Gryffindor! Yes,Weasley, Lupin, from my own house!"Harry, Ron and I went back to the common room, Harry had just said, "Atleast Hermione's on Snape's tail," when the portrait of the Fat Lady swung openand Hermione came in."I'm sorry, Harry!" she wailed. "Snape came out and asked me what Iwas doing, so I said I was waiting for Flitwick, and Snape went to get him, andI've only just got away, I don't know where Snape went.""Well, that's it then, isn't it?" Harry said.we all 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.""You're mad!" said Ron."You can't!" said Hermione. "After what McGonagall and Snape havesaid? You'll be expelled!""SO WHAT" Harry shouted. "Don't you understand? If Snape gets holdof the Stone, Voldemort's coming back! Haven't you heard what it was likewhen he was trying to take over? There won't be any Hogwarts to get expelledfrom! He'll flatten it, or turn it into a school for the Dark Arts! Losing pointsdoesn't matter anymore, can't you see? D'you think he'll leave you and yourfamilies alone if Gryffindor wins the house cup? If I get caught before I can getto the Stone, well, I'll have to go back to the Dursleys and wait for Voldemort tofind me there, it's only dying a bit later than I would have, because I'm nevergoing over to the Dark Side! I'm going through that trapdoor tonight and nothingyou two say is going to stop me! Voldemort killed my parents, remember?"He glared at them.'im with harry on this one we can risk a few house points or expellsion but not losing our friends and family.' i said in a stronger voice. "I'll use the invisibility cloak," said Harry. "It's just lucky I got it back.""But will it cover all four of us?" said Ron."All — all four of us?""Oh, come off it, you don't think we'd let you go alone?" i almost yelled at him "Of course not," said Hermione briskly. "How do you think you'd get tothe Stone without us? I'd better go and took through my books, there might besomething useful....""But if we get caught, you three will be expelled, too.""Not if I can help it," said Hermione grimly. "Flitwick told me in secretthat I got a hundred and twelve percent on his exam. They're not throwing meout after that."