"Good luck?" Harry repeated as the door closed behind Dumbledore. "Three turns? What's he talking about? What are wesupposed to do?"
But Hermione was fumbling with the neck of her robes, pullingfrom beneath them a very long, very fine gold chain.
"Harry,Emma come here," she said urgently. "Quick!"Harry and I moved toward her, completely bewildered. She was holdingthe chain out. I saw a tiny, sparkling hourglass hanging from it."Here —"She had thrown the chain around our necks too."Ready?" she said breathlessly.
"Ready for what?" I asked
"What are we doing?" Harry said, completely lost.Hermione turned the hourglass over three times.The dark ward dissolved.
I had the sensation that I wasflying very fast, backward. A blur of colors and shapes rushed past me, my ears were pounding, I tried to yell but couldn't hear my own voice —And then I felt solid ground beneath my feet, and everythingcame into focus again —Harry and I were standing next to Hermione in the deserted entrance halland a stream of golden sunlight was falling across the paved floorfrom the open front doors.
I looked wildly around at Hermione,the chain of the hourglass cutting into his neck."
Hermione, what — ?"
"In here!" Hermione seized Harry's arm and dragged him acrossthe hall to the door of a broom closet; she opened it, pushed himinside among the buckets and mops, ushered me then slammed the door behind us.
"What — how — Hermione, what happened?"
"We've gone back in time," Hermione whispered, "Three hours back . . ."
"But —"
"Shh! Listen! Someone's coming! I think — I think it might beus!"Hermione had her ear pressed against the cupboard door."Footsteps across the hall . . . yes, I think it's us going down toHagrid's!"
"Are you telling me," Harry whispered, "that we're here in thiscupboard and we're out there too?"
"Yes," said Hermione, her ear still glued to the cupboard door."I'm sure it's us. It doesn't sound like more than four people . . .and we're walking slowly because we're under the InvisibilityCloak —"
She broke off, still listening intently.
"We've gone down the front steps. . . ."Hermione sat down on an upturned bucket, looking desperatelyanxious, but I wanted a few questions answered.
"Where did you get that hourglass thing?"
"It's called a Time-Turner," Hermione whispered, "and I got itfrom Professor McGonagall on our first day back. I've been using itall year to get to all my lessons. Professor McGonagall made meswear I wouldn't tell anyone. She had to write all sorts of letters tothe Ministry of Magic so I could have one. She had to tell themthat I was a model student, and that I'd never, ever use it for anything except my studies. . . . I've been turning it back so I coulddo hours over again, that's how I've been doing several lessons atonce, see? But . . .I don't understand what Dumbledore wants us to do. Whydid he tell us to go back three hours? How's that going to helpSirius?"
i stared at her shadowy face."There must be something that happened around now he wantsus to change," I said slowly. "What happened? We were walkingdown to Hagrid's three hours ago. . . ."
"This is three hours ago, and we are walking down to Hagrid's,"said Hermione. "We just heard ourselves leaving. . . ."
I frowned; I felt as though I were screwing up my wholebrain in concentration."Dumbledore just said — just said we could save more than oneinnocent life. . . ." And then it hit me.
"Hermione,Harry we're going tosave Buckbeak!"
"But — how will that help Sirius?"
"Dumbledore said — he just told us where the window is —the window of Flitwick's office! Where they've got Sirius lockedup! We've got to fly Buckbeak up to the window and rescueSirius! Sirius can escape on Buckbeak — they can escape together!"
From what I could see of Hermione's face, she looked terrified."If we manage that without being seen, it'll be a miracle!"
"Well, we've got to try, haven't we?" said Harry. He stood up andpressed his ear against the door."Doesn't sound like anyone's there. . . . Come on, let's go. . . ."
Harry pushed open the closet door. The entrance hall was deserted. As quietly and quickly as we could, we darted out of thecloset and down the stone steps. The shadows were already lengthening, the tops of the trees in the Forbidden Forest gilded oncemore with gold.
"If anyone's looking out of the window —" Hermionesqueaked, looking up at the castle behind us.
"We'll run for it," said Harry determinedly. "Straight into theforest, all right? We'll have to hide behind a tree or something andkeep a lookout —"
"Okay, but we'll go around by the greenhouses!" said Hermionebreathlessly. "We need to keep out of sight of Hagrid's front door,or we'll see us! We must be nearly at Hagrid's by now!"
Still working out what she meant, Harry and I set off at a sprint,Hermione behind him. We tore across the vegetable gardens tothe greenhouses, paused for a moment behind us, then set offagain, fast as we could, skirting around the Whomping Willow,tearing toward the shelter of the forest. . . .
Safe in the shadows of the trees, I turned around; secondslater, Hermione arrived beside us, panting.
"Right," she gasped. "We need to sneak over to Hagrid's. . . .Keep out of sight. . . ."
We made our way silently through the trees, keeping tothe very edge of the forest. Then, as we glimpsed the front ofHagrid's house, we heard a knock upon his door. We movedquickly behind a wide oak trunk and peered out from eitherside.
Hagrid had appeared in his doorway, shaking and white,looking around to see who had knocked. And I heard Harry's ownvoice.
"It's us. We're wearing the Invisibility Cloak. Let us in and wecan take it off."
"Yeh shouldn've come!" Hagrid whispered. He stood back, thenshut the door quickly.
"This is the weirdest thing we've ever done," Harry said fervently.
"Let's move along a bit," Hermione whispered. "We need to getnearer to Buckbeak!"
We crept through the trees until they saw the nervous hippogriff, tethered to the fence around Hagrid's pumpkin patch.
"Now?" Harry whispered.
"No!" I said, starting to understand how this works. "If we steal him now, those Committeepeople will think Hagrid set him free! We've got to wait untilthey've seen he's tied outside!"
"That's going to give us about sixty seconds," said Harry.
Thiswas starting to seem impossible.At that moment, there was a crash of breaking china from insideHagrid's cabin."That's Hagrid breaking the milk jug," Hermione whispered."I'm going to find Scabbers in a moment —"
Sure enough, a few minutes later, we heard Hermione's shriekof surprise.
"Hermione," I said suddenly, "what if we — we just run inthere and grab Pettigrew —"
"No!" said Hermione in a terrified whisper. "Don't you understand? We're breaking one of the most important wizarding laws!Nobody's supposed to change time, nobody! You heard Dumbledore, if we're seen —"
"We'd only be seen by ourselves and Hagrid!"
"Emma, what do you think you'd do if you saw yourself burstinginto Hagrid's house?" said Hermione.
"I'd — I'd think I'd gone mad,"I said, "or I'd think therewas some Dark Magic going on —"
"Exactly! You wouldn't understand, you might even attack yourself! Don't you see? Professor McGonagall told me what awfulthings have happened when wizards have meddled with time. . . .Loads of them ended up killing their past or future selves by mistake!"
"Okay!" I said. "It was just an idea, I just thought —"
But Hermione nudged me and pointed toward the castle.Harry moved his head a few inches to get a clear view of the distantfront doors. Dumbledore, Fudge, the old Committee member, andMacnair the executioner were coming down the steps.
"We're about to come out!" Hermione breathed.And sure enough, moments later, Hagrid's back door opened,and I saw myself, Harry Ron, and Hermione walking out of it withHagrid. It was, without a doubt, the strangest sensation of my life,standing behind the tree, and watching myself in the pumpkinpatch.
"It's okay, Beaky, it's okay . . . ," Hagrid said to Buckbeak. Thenhe turned to Me,Harry, Ron, and Hermione. "Go on. Get goin'."
"Hagrid, we can't —"
"We'll tell them what really happened —"
"It's not fair--"
"They can't kill him —"
"Go! It's bad enough without you lot in trouble an' all!" I watched the Hermione in the pumpkin patch throw theInvisibility Cloak over me,harry and Ron.
"Go quick. Don' listen. . . ."
There was a knock on Hagrid's front door. The execution partyhad arrived. Hagrid turned around and headed back into his cabin,leaving the back door ajar. I watched the grass flatten inpatches all around the cabin and heard three pairs of feet retreating. Me, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had gone . . .
but theMe, Harry andHermione hidden in the trees could now hear what was happeninginside the cabin through the back door.
"Where is the beast?" came the cold voice of Macnair.
"Out — outside," Hagrid croaked. I pulled Harry's head out of sight as Macnair's face appeared atHagrid's window, staring out at Buckbeak. Then we heard Fudge.
"We — er — have to read you the official notice of execution,Hagrid. I'll make it quick. And then you and Macnair need to signit. Macnair, you're supposed to listen too, that's procedure —"Macnair's face vanished from the window. It was now or never.
"Wait here," Harry whispered to Hermione and me. "I'll do it."
As Fudge's voice started again, Harry darted out from behind histree, vaulted the fence into the pumpkin patch, and approachedBuckbeak."It is the decision of the Committee for the Disposal of DangerousCreatures that the hippogriff Buckbeak, hereafter called the condemned, shall be executed on the sixth of June at sundown —"
Careful not to blink, Harry stared up into Buckbeak's fierce orange eyes once more and bowed. Buckbeak sank to his scaly kneesand then stood up again. Harry began to fumble with the knot ofrope tying Buckbeak to the fence.
". . . sentenced to execution by beheading, to be carried out by theCommittee's appointed executioner, Walden Macnair . . ."
"Come on, Buckbeak," Harry murmured, "come on, we're going to help you. Quietly . . . quietly . . .
"". . . as witnessed below. Hagrid, you sign here. . . ."
Harry threw all his weight onto the rope, but Buckbeak had dugin his front feet."Well, let's get this over with," said the reedy voice of the Committee member from inside Hagrid's cabin. "Hagrid, perhaps itwill be better if you stay inside —"
"No, I — I wan' ter be with him. . . . I don' wan' him ter bealone —"Footsteps echoed from within the cabin.
"Buckbeak, move!" Harry hissed.
Harry tugged harder on the rope around Buckbeak's neck. Thehippogriff began to walk, rustling its wings irritably. They were stillten feet away from the forest, in plain view of Hagrid's back door.
"One moment, please, Macnair," came Dumbledore's voice."You need to sign too." The footsteps stopped. Harry heaved onthe rope. Buckbeak snapped his beak and walked a little faster.Hermione stuck her white face from behind the tree.
"Harry, hurry!" she mouthed.
I could still hear Dumbledore's voice talking from withinthe cabin. Harry gave the rope another wrench. Buckbeak broke intoa grudging trot. They had reached the trees. . . .
"Quick! Quick!" I hissed, darting out from behindher tree, seizing the rope too and adding her weight to make Buckbeak move faster.
Harry looked over his shoulder; we were nowblocked from sight.
Hagrid's back door had opened with a bang. Me,Harry, Hermione,and Buckbeak stood quite still; even the hippogriff seemed to belistening intently.Silence . . . then —
"Where is it?" said the reedy voice of the Committee member."Where is the beast?"
"It was tied here!" said the executioner furiously. "I saw it! Justhere!"
"How extraordinary," said Dumbledore. There was a note ofamusement in his voice."Beaky!" said Hagrid huskily.There was a swishing noise, and the thud of an axe. The executioner seemed to have swung it into the fence in anger.
And thencame the howling, and this time they could hear Hagrid's wordsthrough his sobs."Gone! Gone! Bless his little beak, he's gone! Musta pulled himself free! Beaky, yeh clever boy!"
Buckbeak started to strain against the rope, trying to get back toHagrid. Me,Harry and Hermione tightened our grip and dug ourheels into the forest floor to stop him.
"Someone untied him!" the executioner was snarling. "Weshould search the grounds, the forest —"
"Macnair, if Buckbeak has indeed been stolen, do you reallythink the thief will have led him away on foot?" said Dumbledore,still sounding amused. "Search the skies, if you will. . . . Hagrid, Icould do with a cup of tea. Or a large brandy."
"O' — o' course, Professor," said Hagrid, who sounded weakwith happiness. "Come in, come in. . . ."