ambitious, cunning, adaptable | hp x dm

chapter six: troll attack

The next day they managed to make it to Hagrid's after lunch between bouts of homework and attempting to enjoy the weekend as it faded away. They had spent a considerable amount of time talking with him, and after a while, Harry noticed Draco had warmed up to the half-giant, but politely kept declining tea (Harry couldn't blame him). They had tried to ease into the conversation and drop hints about the break-in, or what could have been in the vault, but it had proved fruitless.

Pansy patted at Fang, he was a nice enough dog even if he did drool all over her robes. "Hagrid," she started, her voice lilting upwards to gather the man's attention, "why is there a Cerebus on the third floor?"

"Wha'?" Hagrid had replied, staring out at her disbelievingly from under his bushy eyebrows. "How'd yeh know 'bout Fluffy?"

"Fluffy?" Draco echoed, laughing a bit. "That's thing has a name?"

"'Course he does! He's mine, ain't he? Gotta have a name!" Hagrid puffed his chest out proudly, like a doting parent. "especially if he's doin' such an important job for Dumbledore."

"He's... guarding something isn't he?" Harry ventured. "That thing you got the day we went to Gringotts."

"Yes'sir! A very important job indeed. Guardin' something for a friend, some guy named Flamel." Hagrid took a large swallow of his tea and lowered it, sinking back into his chair as Harry, Draco and Pansy looked amongst each other excitedly. "I shouldn't ta said tha'."

"Don't worry, Hagrid," Harry assured, patting the man on the arm. "We won't tell anyone."

"Well, we best be going," Draco started, sliding up from his chair, quickly followed by Pansy. "It was nice talking to you, Hagrid."

"Bye Hagrid, I'll visit you soon, I promi--" Harry was hauled out of the hut by Draco and stumbled down the steps. "Well, that was rude."

"We got what we came for."

They started trudging back up the steep hill towards the castle and Draco looked at Pansy. "Do you know anyone named Flamel?"

She shook her head, panting as they reached the top and headed for the doors to the courtyard. "No, do you?"

Both Draco and Harry shook their heads as they headed inside and down to the dungeons, their minds swirling with new information.

"After we finish our homework, we should head to the Library, then maybe we could start looking." Harry gulped in air as they reached the wall entrance to the Common Room and took a few deep breaths. "Sanguine." The wall trembled and the bricks slid apart, moving similarly to the archway into Diagon Alley before the three of them passed inside, ready to get down to work.

Several hours later, Harry and Draco had retired to their room, arms filled with books they had borrowed from the library. Books they were currently hunched over.

"I can't figure any of this out." Draco flopped down on his bed, the large history tome open beside him. They had tried checking random historical books out of the library in an attempt that with the lack of pattern one of them would get lucky and find information on the "Flamel" person. So far, none of them were having any luck.

"I think I've learned more in the past four hours about myself than anything." Harry pushed his glasses up and slammed his copy of Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century shut and placed it on the floor. "Do we really have to do this?"

"I want to know what that - Fluffy - is guarding! Don't you? If it's so small that it could fit in your hand but worth being guarded by a bloody three-headed dog, it must be important. And powerful. And expensive."