A Hogwarts Legend: The First Step [1] (Under Editing)

Chapter Forty Three

Chapter Forty Three- "Your zippers down, just thought you should know!"

After a good's night sleep, I feel almost back to normal.

"I want to go to the feast," I tell Madam Pomfrey as she straightens my many sweet-boxes. "I can, can't I?"

"Me too," Harry butts in.

BUTTS

"Professor Dumbledore says you are to be allowed to go," Madam Pomfrey says sniffily, as though Professor Dumbledore doesn't know how risky feasts can be. "And you two have another visitor."

"Oh good," I say. "Who is it?"

Hagrid sidles through the door,  and as usual, he looks too big to be allowed inside. He sits down next to Harry, looks at both of us and bursts into tears.

"It's - all - my - ruddy - fault!" he sobs, his face in his hands. "I told the evil git how ter get past Fluffy! I told him! It was the only thing he didn't know an' I told him! Yeh could've died! Both o' yer! All fer a dragon egg! I'll never drink again! I should be chucked out an' made ter live live as a Muggle."

"Hagrid!" says Harry, just as shocked as me to see Hagrid shaking with grief and remorse, great tears leaking into his beard. "Hagrid, he'd have found out somehow, this is Voldemort we're talking about, he'd have found out even if you hadn't told him."

"Yeh could've died!" sobs Hagrid. "An' don' say the name."

"VOLDEMORT!" I bellow, and Hagrid is so shocked he stops crying. "We've met him and I'm calling him by his name. Please cheer up, Hagrid, we saved the Stone, it's gone, he can't use it. Have some sweets, we've got loads ..."

Hagrid wipes his nose in the back of his hand and says, "That reminds me. I've got a present for yeh both."

"It's not a stoat sandwich, is it?" says Harry anxiously and at last Hagrid gives a weak chuckle.

"Nah. Dumbledore told me about how yer played to Fluffy, so I made yer this."

Hagrid hands me a full size wooden flute.

"I love it, Hagrid, thank you," I say, taking the flute from him.

"And Harry, Dumbledore gave me the day off yesterday ter fix it. 'Course, he shouda sacked me instead - anyway, got yeh this ..."

It seems to be a leather-covered book. Harry opens it, and I take a peek. It's full of photos of two people who I'm guessing are Harry's parents.

"Sent owls off ter all yer parents' old school friends, askin' fer photos ... Knew yeh didn' have any ... D'yeh like it?"

Harry doesn't speak, but Hagrid and I know that he likes it.

*

Harry and I make our way down to the end-of-year feast, slightly late as we were held up by Madam Pomfrey.

When we arrive the Great Hall is already full. It's decked out in the Slytherin colours of green and silver to celebrate Slytherin's winning the House Cup for the seventh year in a row. A huge banner showing the Slytherin serpent covers the wall behind the High Table.

When we walk in there is a sudden hush and then everybody starts talking loudly at once.

I slip into a seat between Maya and Hermione, while Harry sits in between Ron and Hermione, and I try to ignore the fact that people are standing up to look at me.

Eh, I'm fabulous and these people know it!

Fortunately, Dumbledore arrives moments later. The babble dies away.