The Girl with the Stone

Trouble

Chapter nine: Trouble

In the weeks after, Dove could swear that wherever she was, there was Quirrell as well. When she wasn't at classes, she stayed either in the Gryffindor Tower or Severus' chambers. However, as the weather turned warmer, she and her friends spent more and more time outside. Studying. Hermione and Draco insisted on studying for their end of year exams.

"But they're ages away!" Ron argued.

"Ten weeks." Draco and Hermione chorused.

"What are you studying for anyhow?" Dove asked. "You already know the material. Both of you do."

"What am I studying for? Are you crazy?" Hermione fussed. "You realize we need to pass these exams to get into the second year? They're very important, I should have started studying a month ago, I don't know what's gotten into me..."

"I'll never remember this," Ron burst out one afternoon, throwing down his quill and looking longingly out of the library window. It was the first really fine day they'd had in months. The sky was a clear, forget-me-not blue, and there was a feeling in the air of summer coming.

Dove, who was working on an essay for Severus' class, sighed. "We've been at it forever it seems. Can't we take a break? It's a beautiful day. Let's go enjoy it."

"Hagrid! What are you doing in the library?" Ron asked. Hagrid shuffled into view, hiding something behind his back. He looked very out of place in his moleskin overcoat.

"Jus' lookin'," he said, in a shifty voice that got their interest at once. "An' what're you lot up ter?" He looked suddenly suspicious. "Yer not still lookin' fer Nicolas Flamel, are yeh?"

"Oh, we found out who he is ages ago," said Ron impressively. "And we know what that dog's guarding, it's a Sorcerer's St -"

"Shh!" Hagrid looked around to see that no one was listening. "Don' go shoutin' 'bout that- whassa matter with ya?"

"There are a few things we wanted to ask you, as a matter of fact," Dove said. "about what's guarding the Stone apart from Fluffy -"

"SHHHH!" said Hagrid again. "Listen - come an' see me later, I'm not promisin' I'll tell yeh anythin', mind, but don' go rabbitin' about it in here, students aren' s'pposed ter know. They'll think I've told yeh -"

"See you later, then," Dove said. Hagrid shuffled off.

"What was he hiding behind his back?" said Hermione thoughtfully.

"Do you think it had anything to do with the Stone?" Draco asked.

"I'm going to see what section he was in," said Ron, who'd had enough of working. He came back a minute later with a pile of books in his arms and slammed them down on the table. "Dragons!" he whispered. "Hagrid was looking up stuff about dragons! Look at these: Dragon Species of Great Britain and Ireland; From Egg to Inferno, A Dragon Keeper's Guide."

"Hagrid's always wanted a dragon, he told me so. " Dove informed them.

"But it's against our laws," said Ron. "Dragon breeding was outlawed by the Warlocks' Convention of 1709, everyone knows that. It's hard to stop Muggles from noticing us if we're keeping dragons in the back garden anyway, you can't tame dragons, it's dangerous. You should see the burns Charlie's got off wild ones in Romania."

"But there aren't wild dragons in Britain?" Hermione asked.

"Oh yeah," Draco said. "Loads. Father found one on a business trip once. The Ministry went through quite a bit of trouble to cover it up too."

When they knocked on the door of the gamekeeper's hut an hour later, they were surprised to see that all the curtains were closed. Hagrid called "Who is it?" before he let them in, and then shut the door quickly behind them. It was stifling hot inside. Even though it was such a warm day, there was a blazing fire in the grate. Hagrid made them tea and offered them stoat sandwiches, which they refused.