Chapter 10
Ron squinted at the teachers. "You sure it's him?"
"My necklace wouldn't lie," Cassidy snapped, her voice sharp with urgency. "Hermione, do something!"
Hermione didn't hesitate. "I'll distract him!" she declared, leaping to her feet and darting off.
Cassidy and Ron exchanged nervous glances but stayed rooted, eyes glued to Harry as Hermione made her way toward Snape.
"Come on, Hermione!" Cassidy said, frustrated.
From below, Hermione crouched and set fire to Snape's robes. He jolted upright, his incantation interrupted as he frantically patted at the flames.
Above, Harry's broom suddenly steadied.
"He's got control again!" Cassidy cheered, relief flooding her voice.
"Go, Harry!" Ron shouted, punching the air.
The Gryffindor crowd roared as Harry shot forward, chasing the Snitch with unrelenting speed. The Slytherin Seeker raced against him, but Harry dove beneath him with inches to spare.
Cassidy clutched her heart, holding her breath as Harry extended his arm. With one final burst of speed, he fell off his broom, tumbling through the grass.
Cassidy, Ron and Hermione watched with bated breath.
"Where's the Snitch?" Cassidy muttered.
Harry gagged.
"Oh no, he's gonna be sick!"
He gagged again, much to the crowd's horror.
Then the Golden Snitch popped out of his mouth.
"He's got it!" Lee Jordan yelled. "Harry Potter catches the Snitch! Gryffindor wins!"
The stands erupted. Cassidy threw her arms around Neville, bouncing in excitement. "He did it! He actually did it!"
Neville blushed furiously but didn't dare move away.
Ron hollered, pulling Cassidy into an impromptu dance. "I knew he'd do it! Harry's brilliant!"
Down on the pitch, Harry held up the Snitch, his face glowing with triumph as his teammates swarmed him.
Cassidy turned to the professors' box, her joy momentarily giving way to suspicion as she watched Snape scowl and leave in a hurry. She clutched her necklace, its warmth fading but leaving a lingering unease.
"Something's not right," she murmured, but the cheers of her friends drowned out her words. For now, Gryffindor had won, and that was enough.
"Nonsense! Why would Snape put a curse on Harry's broom?"
It was afternoon, and the Golden Quartet walked alongside Hagrid. They all had scarves tightly wrapped around their necks to ward off the cold. Cassidy was shivering a little, having forgotten to bring gloves. Hermione, ever the helpful friend, held her hand as a replacement.
"Who knows? Why was he trying to get past that three-headed dog on Halloween?" Harry shot back, raising his eyebrows.
Hagrid looked down at the four of them in surprise.
"Who told you about Fluffy?" he asked gruffly.
"Fluffy?" Ron repeated incredulously.
"That thing has a name?" Hermione added.
"That's an interesting name choice, for sure," Cassidy said.
"Enough of that cheek, Cassie. And of course, he's got a name—he's mine! I bought him off an Irish feller I met down the pub last year. Then I lent him to Dumbledore to guard the..." Hagrid trailed off.
"Yes?" Harry prompted.
"Shouldn't have said that. No more questions, don't ask any more questions! That's top secret, that is," Hagrid grumbled, pointing a finger at them.
"Remind me to never tell Hagrid a secret," Cassidy said, getting a laugh from Ron.
"But Hagrid, whatever Fluffy's guarding, Snape's trying to steal it!" Harry pleaded, while the others nodded in agreement.
"Professor Snape is a Hogwarts teacher!" Hagrid protested.
"Hogwarts teacher or not, I know a spell when I see one," Hermione replied, stopping the group. "I've read all about them. You've got to keep eye contact. Snape. Wasn't. Blinking."
"Exactly," Harry agreed, turning to Hagrid, who now looked a bit skeptical.
"Now you listen to me. All four of you. You're meddling in things that aren't to be meddled with. It's dangerous," Hagrid said, glancing at Cassidy's necklace for a brief moment. "What that dog's guarding is strictly between Professor Dumbledore and Nicolas Flamel."
"Aha!" Cassidy shouted, pointing at Hagrid.
"Nicolas Flamel?" Harry looked at the others in curiosity. Hagrid looked crestfallen.
"I shouldn't have said that. I should not have said that..." Hagrid mumbled to himself as he walked off. The four children watched him go in wonder.
"Nicolas Flamel," Harry muttered, clearly confused.
"Well, it'll be easy sailing from here on out. Hermione's always got her head in a book, so she must know who Nicolas Flamel is," Cassidy chirped, turning to Hermione, who, for once, looked stumped.
"Well?" Cassidy asked, expecting an answer.
"I...I don't know," Hermione admitted. Cassidy's face fell.
"Oh, fiddlesticks."
The Christmas holidays were fast approaching, and a festive cheer filled Hogwarts Castle. Students were packing their bags and preparing to leave for the holidays, but Cassidy, Ron, and Harry were staying behind. Cassidy's parents were away on business, Ron's family had gone to spend the holidays with his older brother in Romania, and judging by the stories Harry had told her about the Muggles he had to live with, Cassidy knew he wouldn't be going back home anytime soon. To her personal dismay, however, Hermione was heading home to her Muggle parents.
She sat with Harry and Ron by the massive Christmas tree in the Great Hall, watching them play chess.
"I'm gonna miss her, you know." Cassidy mumbled, her eyes fixed on the game, though her thoughts were elsewhere.
"You've told us that a thousand times, Cass. We know you're gonna miss Hermione. She's not even gone yet." Ron groaned, watching Harry make his next move.
As if on cue, Hermione appeared at the entrance to the Great Hall, suitcase rolling behind her, already dressed in her jacket and scarf. Cassidy's face lit up at the sight of her.
"Knight to E5," Harry said, making his move, while Ron concentrated, looking for a counter.
"Queen to E5," Ron said triumphantly, knocking out Harry's knight. Hermione gasped.
"That's totally barbaric!"
"Tell me about it." Cassidy said, agreeing with her friend.
"That's wizard chess," Ron explained simply, smirking at his victory.
Cassidy suddenly threw her arms around Hermione, hugging her tightly in sudden despair. Hermione blinked, a little surprised at first, but then returned the hug.
"I'll miss you," Cassidy whispered.
"Calm down, she's only gone for a month." Ron rolled his eyes. Cassidy ignored him, pulling away from Hermione and sitting back down.
"I see you've packed." Ron observed.
"I see you haven't," Hermione replied with a raised eyebrow.
"Change of plans," Ron said with a sigh.
"Unfortunately." Cassidy muttered, glancing at Harry, who chuckled.
"My parents decided to go to Romania to visit my brother Charlie. He's studying dragons there."
"Good, you can help Harry and Cassidy then. They're going to look in the library for information on Nicolas Flamel and whatever her necklace could be." Hermione nodded toward Cassidy.
"We've looked a hundred times!" Ron exclaimed, exasperated, as he looked from Harry to Cassidy.
Hermione leaned in, placing a hand gently on Cassidy's shoulder.
"Not in the Restricted Section," she whispered, before standing up again.
"Happy Christmas." And with that, Hermione turned and walked away.
"I think we've had a bad influence on her," Ron said, shaking his head.
Cassidy nodded in agreement. "Yeah, but it's kind of cool, isn't it?"