Chapter 20 - Here for Him

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29/06/1992

Exams were a breeze. That was an opinion you and Hermione shared.

They were certainly intimidating. Sitting at a desk for three hours to complete a herbology exam was not the merriest of memories. You remember the cold stone under your feet, the uncomfortable, hard chair you sat on and the dry paper resting in front of you, its questions written on a typewriter. The hardest exam was transfiguration by far, and most students seemed to agree. You were fine with algebra and arithmancy, but that was with a calculator. An exam paper of this topic usually ended up with a thousand calculations scribbled everywhere, unerasable. It was another thing you did not like: you could only use ink. It was a hassle.

You walked along with Harry, Ron and Hermione outside the courtyard. The grass was greener than you have ever seen it. Despite the warm weather, students were still told to wear their robes and sweaters.

"I've always heard Hogwarts' end of the year exams were frightful, but I found that rather enjoyable," Hermione told you. Ron's face twisted in disgust.

"Speak for yourself," he replied. Harry's hand quickly came up to his forehead, brows furrowed. "You alright there, Harry?"

"My scar, it keeps burning."

"It's happened before..." the girl pondered.

"Not like this," he groaned.

"Perhaps you should see the nurse," the redhead proposed.

"I think it's a warning. It means danger's coming..." There was a slight pause as the four of you marched your way out of the school grounds. You saw Hagrid, sitting near his hut, playing what seemed to be a recorder. He was awful. The sounds he made were enough to pierce your ears. "Of course!"

"What is it?" Hermione asked. You started marching faster towards the giant.

"Don't you think it's a bit odd that what Hagrid wants more than anything is a dragon and a stranger turns up who just happens to have one? I mean, how many people wander around with dragon eggs in their pockets? Why didn't I see it before?" Harry sounded angry at himself. You all rushed towards the man, robes flowing behind you. You arrived in front of the man and the black-haired boy spoke up.

"Hagrid–" he called, making the tall man notice him, "–who gave you the dragon egg? What did he look like?" Hagrid's gruff voice echoed in your ears.

"I dunno, I never saw his face. He kept his hood up," he informed.

"The stranger, though, you and he must have talked?"

"Well... he wanted to know what sort of creatures I looked after. I told him: 'After Fluffy, a dragon's gonna be no problem'," he laughed.

"And did he seem interested in Fluffy?"

"Well of course he was interested in Fluffy! How often do you come across a three-headed dog, even if you're in the trade? But I told him– I said, 'The trick with any beast is to know how to calm him.' Take Fluffy for example. Just play him a bit of music and he falls straight to sleep," he told you. This earned a gasp from Hermione, and Hagrid realised his mistake. "I shouldn't have told you that..." Suddenly, Harry turned away and ran towards the castle. You, Ron and Hermione all glanced at each other before following him. "Where are ya going? Wait!"

Your heart was beating out of your chest as you navigated in the hallways. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of running, you reached McGonagall's office, where you also saw the ghost of Nearly Headless Nick sitting in one of the students' desks. You all reached her desk at the same time, startling the woman.

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