Mon Cher (Severus Snape Daughter FF)

Ch. 10 // PS

Quirrell, however, must have been braver than they'd thought. In the weeks that followed he did seem to be getting paler and thinner, but it didn't look as though he'd cracked yet.

Every time they passed the third-floor corridor, the four of them would press their ears to the door to check that Fluffy was still growling inside. Severus was sweeping about in his usual bad temper, which surely meant that the Stone was still safe. Whenever Harry passed Quirrell these days he gave him an encouraging sort of smile, Ron had started telling people off for laughing at Quirrell's stutter, and Clara had beat it into the other three that her father was innocent until they actually caught him with the stone.

Hermione, however, had more on her mind than the Sorcerer's Stone. She had started drawing up study schedules and color coding all her notes. She had gotten Clara to do it-- no problem, but Harry and Ron were a different story, for Hermione kept nagging them to do the same.

"Hermione, the exams are ages away."

"Ten weeks," Hermione snapped while Clara made flash cards for them. "That's not ages, that's like a second to Nicolas Flamel."

"But we're not six hundred years old," Ron reminded her. "Anyway, what are you two studying for? You already know it's an A."

"What am I studying for? Are you crazy?"

"You realize we need to pass these exams to get into the second year?" Clara added.

"They're very important, I should have started studying a month ago, I don't know what's gotten into me..."

Unfortunately, the teachers seemed to be thinking along the same lines as the two girls. They piled so much homework on them that the Easter holidays weren't nearly as much fun as the Christmas ones. It was hard to relax with Hermione next to you reciting the twelve uses of dragon's blood or Clara practicing wand movements. Moaning and yawning, Harry and Ron spent most of their free time in the library with them, trying to get through all their extra work.

"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.

Clara felt his pain. As much as she knew it was important for her to study, she wanted to go outside as well. Severus had been on her about the exams. She never had any free time anymore. One day, Seamus challenged her to a game of chess, which she had to decline.

"What about third period?"

"I'm sorry, Seamus, but I really have to study. My dad will kill me if he walks last the library and doesn't see me with my nose in a book."

Harry, who was looking up "Dittany" in One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi, didn't look up until he heard Ron say, "Hagrid! What are you doing in the library?"

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 Clara impressively.
"And we know what that dog's guarding, it's a Sorcerer's St--" Ron began to say.

"Shhhh!" Hagrid looked around quickly to see if anyone was listening. "Don' go shoutin' about it, what's the matter with yeh?"

"There are a few things we wanted to ask you, as a matter of fact," said Harry, "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--"