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The nineteenth of December, Hogwarts, Great Hall, Evening.
Today the castle was as beautiful as always, even, probably, more than usual. In honor of the winter holidays, it was even more exciting and mysterious. The pre-holiday mood permeated its walls and halls. Every nook and corner, nothing could hide from him. This is also a kind of magic, in some ways not inferior to ordinary magic, maybe even superior in some aspects.
For a brief moment, the treacherous thought of staying in Hoag this Christmas and not going home to my family arose in my head. But no, I have to spend this holiday with my parents, and besides, the ritual is coming up. It is better to spend it with your family.
The first semester at Hoga is already over, which means I can sum up the partial results of my activities. To summarize, I fulfilled the main goals, some even exceeded them. I was able to find a teacher on healing, knowledge on metamorphism is also available to me. I must say that the successes on these fronts have been impressive. Much of the credit for this, of course, goes to mentality.
I didn't even fit into the canon trio, and this is an indicator. And it's not a joke. I don't need even more attention at all, especially from DDD and Tom.
In general, everything is going pretty well, if you don't pay attention to my attempts at conspiracy. Hmm, how come I didn't think of the professors' experience? I considered myself the smartest, so this came back to haunt me.
So I thought while picking at my plate with a fork. The poor cutlet was killed, dismembered, and also mercilessly swallowed by me. Rest in peace, your sacrifice will not be in vain. For the greater good, huh.
Feeling the approach of a person with my magical sense, I turned my head in his direction. As I suspected, it was Neville. Still, for all the time that we have been friends, I clearly remember the feeling of his mana. No one in the castle has such a concentration of life and spring wind, not even Professor Sprout. She's not far behind though. But what years Nev has, he has everything ahead of him.
"Have a nice time, Kol," Neville told me, sitting down in the empty seat next to me. It just so happened that the seat next to me was always empty, especially for Nev. Apparently everyone is already accustomed to the fact that he eats with me, at the table of ravens, and not badgers.
"You're a little late today, Nev," I remarked. "There," nods towards the professor's table. "Professor Sprout has been here since the beginning, and you came in the middle of dinner." Something happened? — the politely demanding gaze of my eyes stared at the guy's figure. Some guy is twitchy, something unsettled him.
"Well, you see," he began. - Here it is...
Having said this, he fell silent. It's getting weirder and weirder. What could have happened to leave Nev at a loss for words? He doesn't see this often. Hm…
"Okay," I said. "Let's eat, you'll calm down, and then we'll talk somewhere else." For example, in the library, okay?
- Oh, yes, good. Only this," he hesitated slightly. - Let's not go to the library. Then, no matter what, we'll go there," he said, and fell silent.
So we ate in silence. Throughout the entire dinner, Nev didn't say another word, which is absolutely not typical for him. Interesting.
After about twenty minutes, we finally defeated the enemy in an unequal battle, that is, we had dinner. Rising from our seats together, we headed to the exit from the Great Hall. Out of the corner of my eye, I managed to notice how one fluffy little head was closely watching us. Somehow I don't like it anymore...
Winding through the corridors of the castle, I tried to get Neville to talk, but to no avail. It was as if he had filled his mouth with water and remained silent. And if he said something, it was only chopped phrases, like: "Later," "Not now," and so on. Looks like something really serious.
Ten minutes later we came to an empty classroom, which was not far from the library. Still, they don't visit the library much, but prefer, even bypass it. What can I say - they are wasting already precious time. That is why this wing of the castle was not so popular. Well, smart people take advantage of this, I dare to hope that I belong to this list of people. Although, against the backdrop of recent events, I seriously doubt this.
Pushing open the wooden door, we entered the classroom. It was clean, apparently someone else is using it besides us. Having checked with magical vision the presence of an outsider and walked around the class, I was convinced that there was no one here at the moment. And if there is, then I am not able to find it at the moment.
"Privata regio," the privacy spell flew off my wand. Now not a single sound will come out of our room. Well, if someone comes in, we can immediately stop communicating. In general, this spell is quite interesting, it creates a kind of connection with the wizard, and if someone tries to eavesdrop using the spell, it will automatically dispel, thereby warning the caster, that is, me. Good stuff, however, let's get back to our sheep.
Having transfigured, with a wave of my wand, two soft, blue chairs, I sat down in one and, with a wave of my hand, pointed Neva to the other. Still, he knows more than anyone else about my capabilities, though not all of them, but who among us doesn't keep skeletons in the closet, right? I have plenty of them.
"Sit down, Nev," I told him. - I think it will be more convenient, don't you think? - and after waiting until he sat down opposite me, he continued. - Well, come on, what kind of "creepy and mysterious" thing did you decide to tell me in private? Undoubtedly, it is very important," I finished, making quotation marks with my fingers.
Looks like my not-so-subtle tricks worked a little. Nev relaxed slightly, settling more comfortably in his chair. Well, at least he was released a little, and that's good.
"Well, here, in general..." he began, trying to pick up the glory. Hmm, that's not how things are done. He's still excited. By the way, he has been like this for some time. True, today his nervousness has surpassed all conceivable and inconceivable limits.
"Stop, stop," I waved my hands. - Stop, collect your thoughts and then speak. There is no need to rush, we still have plenty of time.
He nodded to me and closed his eyes. Well, if it's easier for him, let him think it over.
— Do you want the short or long version? - He began opening his eyes.
"Well, I would say the long one, as usual, but this time let's start with the short one first," I answered after thinking. So at least I will immediately understand the main topic of the conversation.
— There is Nicholas Flamel's philosopher's stone in the castle and someone wants to steal it. And all of this has something to do with Headmaster Dumbledore," he blurted out and fell silent, while staring at me.
The room fell silent, both Neville and I were silent. How does he know about this? Although a stupid question, one of the trio told him. Then another question, why do they need Nev? Is this their private initiative or does the director not want to let go of the backup hero due to Potter's non-canon behavior? But Neville is not the same as in the canon. Hmm, this is starting to get annoying.
"Okay, I understand you," I said after a while. "More precisely, I didn't quite understand, but oh well," I added with a sigh. "I take my words back, this is truly a terribly mysterious and important matter," it seemed that the knock of my fingers on the armrest of the chair was heard outside of Hog, although the armrest of the chair was soft and did not absorb the blows of my fingers well. - Now give me the long version, from the very beginning and with all the details. I feel it will be at least interesting, and maybe even dangerous," I answered slightly tiredly.
"Well then, giving from the very beginning," he began the story. "Do you remember that day when I offended Hermione with my statement?" - nod. - After our conversation, you went to the Great Hall, but I stayed to apologize - well, yes, that was the case. When he arrived in the hall, he told me that she had forgiven him. - Well, I apologized. Of course, she was still offended, but she still forgave me. So we went to dinner together. But on the way we were stopped by excited Ron and Harry. From their appearance one could tell that they ran here at breakneck speed. At least their faces and shortness of breath hinted at this, he added. - Grabbing Hermione by the hand, they rushed to the nearest classroom. Well, I followed them.
"Well, yes, of course," I interrupted him. - How could our knight on a white horse leave the poor princess in the hands of robbers, right? — I said, grinning. "She'll need a prince anyway, ha-ha," he lightened the situation a little. "Sometimes I think a red and gold tie would suit you well, don't you think?"
- What was left for me? - he was righteously indignant. "What if they really did something to her?" "I wouldn't forgive myself for this," he turned his head to the side, sulking. Looks like he was offended. — And about the Lions, the hat offered me, but I refused. "There's nothing to do with a dean like theirs," he answered my question.
"Okay, okay," I raised my hands in front of me in defense. - I'm sorry. You are our hero, without fear or reproach.
"Same thing," he replied smiling. "Well, I followed them," he continued. "They didn't go far, they ran into the nearest niche and began whispering. I didn't have time to start the conversation, but somewhere in the middle I came," interrupting, he took a breath. — That day, Ron and Harry went to Hagrid's hut to talk to him. Well, you know what they say about our forester. He's too good-natured, it's worth mentioning some kind of magical "creature," or better yet a "cute one," he emphasized the cute one with his intonation. Yes, Hagrid has a slightly strange concept of cute. "And he immediately begins to sound like a nightingale." So they mentioned Cerberus, which is on the third floor. No, just put it in Cerberus. Not only that, this dog belongs to Hagrid. Where is the director looking? And what a nickname - Fluff, - he was indignant. — The most suitable nickname for a hefty, three-headed dog. Well, during the conversation it turned out that the dog was guarding something connected with Dumbledore and Flamel - at this point he fell silent and shrank slightly, while blushing. "Well, then I touched my armor and they burned me."
My hand met my own face. This is how this happens to him? I can't understand, only he can stumble out of the blue. As if enchanted. You need to hint him about playing sports, he will get himself in order and, lo and behold, he will stop stumbling. Exactly, I will do so, but not now. A little later.
- Okay, I understand how you found out about Nikolos, and about Pushka. How did you find out about the stone?
"It's not my fault anymore." When they burned me, I gave my word that I wouldn't tell anyone. And today, after herbology classes, Granger caught me and told me what exactly Cerberus protects. The truth is that you can guess this. They all unanimously decided that this was the philosopher's stone. Not only that," he continued, jumping up from his seat. - They think that Snape, no, listen - Snape wants to steal the stone. No, this is how long you need to be repulsed. After all, everyone knows that professors enter into contracts with the director. He simply physically cannot steal a stone, or whatever it is, if the director does not allow him," he fell silent into a chair. Like a deflated balloon - that's how he looked at the moment.
As soon as he stopped talking, the room became absolutely silent. Not a single sound, nothing. We sat silently and each thought about our own things. Hmm, so what to do? I don't want to go into these wilds. From the word absolutely.
"Okay," I began, clapping my hands. - let's go in order. What we know: first," I stuck out my first finger, "the third floor is truly deadly." Second," the second stood next to the first: "it's not just anyone on guard, but a full-fledged Cerberus, which is famous as the best guard in the world." Third, - now there were three of them: - Cerberus guards, tentatively, something as valuable as the philosopher's stone and connected with Nicholas Flamel, but we don't know what exactly. Fourth," I stuck out my fourth finger. "Someone wants to steal this something, and then the fifth," all five fingers stood in a row. "The most important thing is that our valiant trio got into this up to their necks." And you can't drag them away by these same ears, that's for sure. "I just have one question," I said while watching Nev. - Why did you tell me this? After all, you gave your word that you wouldn't tell anyone.
"Oh," he was slightly surprised. - I didn't say? - I shake my head negatively. "Well, Hermione asked me to find out more about it since I'm tied up." I asked if I could tell you. She agreed, although her face was not very pleased. Your reputation as the best student in Hoga haunts her.
I leaned back in my chair and began to think about the current situation. What we have: the canon runs its course. The canon trio has been formed, all key events have occurred. How was it formed? The troll was eliminated by me, but the very fact of its existence, although few people know about its presence. Quirrell became even more of a buffoon. Potter's first Quidditch match was as present as the out-of-control broom. I bet it's precisely because of this, and Snape's limp, that they suspect him, although this is not yet certain. Now it's the turn of the stone itself. Someone decided to get the trio to involve Neville as well. It looks like a kind grandfather is watching, otherwise how else can Nev be drawn into this? He's in a different department, so he won't be able to fight the trio. So we have to pervert. But this is all speculation. However, one detail - how soon will DDD pay attention to me? And do I need it?
"Tell me," I broke the resulting silence. - Why do they need you? It's clear about me, you suggested it yourself, but you? What good are you? "Don't think about it," I waved my hands. - This in no way offends you, you're just in a different department and have never interacted with the trio. And then right away - help us protect the Philosopher's Stone from the hands of the evil and treacherous Snape. Something doesn't add up here, don't you think? What if you gave this information to someone else, maybe even to a professor or even worse, from the outside, to the Dungeon Horror himself. Are they completely out of touch? Or are they just pretending? "Something seems to me - Gryffindor is not just a calling, but also a partial liquefaction of the brain," I said.
"Well," he scratched his head. — I somehow didn't think about it.
"Eh," I sighed. "Not only are you a Gryffind, but you're also a real child."
"I'll ask," he disagreed. - I'm not a lion, but a badger. Besides, you are also a child, just like me. So I don't need it here.
- Hmm? — my right eyebrow rose up, fully expressing my emotions at the moment.
"Okay, okay," he raised his hands in a sign of surrender. - Not quite like us. But still a child. And don't even think about denying it, this is an obvious thing.
"Maybe so, I don't argue," he spread his hands. - But what do you need from me? I can tell the same thing to any of the professors. And believe me, it won't cost me anything, I'll just save hotheads from unnecessary adventures. Yes, they will be offended, perhaps they will even take revenge, but I will know that they will not climb into the mouth of Cerberus. And there for each of the three there is a separate place.
- Well, I would like you to come with me to meet them. And he expressed his opinion there, maybe this will convince. And you won't tell anyone if you ask," he said. How can you flog such a game with such a confident face? Talent.
- Hmm, well, you gave it away. Complete game, - for the umpteenth time this day, my hand meets my own face. - No, I won't go and don't ask. "You can tell them what I said earlier, plus add about the contract with the school, maybe it will help them," I said. - Well, you can add: Dumbledore is the Great Wizard and he has everything under control, let them teach the lessons better. Maybe in the end they will be able to become decent wizards, otherwise with all this nonsense they won't have enough time for anything. They will only regret it later.
This is where our conversation ended. Nev, of course, was slightly offended, but I think he will understand my point of view.
Having left the class, having dispelled the spell before, everyone went about their business. I go to my living room, and Neville goes to the library. Along the way I met the notorious trio. I tossed them a greeting and moved on.
Only the look of the curly head burned a hole in my back.
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