HERMIONE

"ARHHG!!! Hermione, please tell me a lightning storm will happen today!" I rolled my eyes for the millionth time and glared at the sea green eyed Gryffindor sitting next to me, who's been bugging me ever since the first night we spat the Mandrake leaf to the phial.

"Sorry to disappoint you Iro, but I don't know when it will come. Plus, you're not the only one who's agitated you know... But we don't have much choice! We've made this far, so the best thing we need to do is to wait." I quietly explained to him.

He pouted his lips and brought back his attention to his Potion's Book written in Ancient Greek. Iro and I are currently inside the library doing our assignments and reviewing for our exams 10 weeks from now. Luckily, I have him as my study body because Harry and Ron are apparently weren't capable of doing it with us at this moment. They reason it's too early to study for the examination.

"Uhm Iro... You already know everything in that book. Why don't you study Charms or Astronomy instead? You know you need to give extra effort at those two." I reminded him with a mocking tone of voice. He just rolled his eyes to me and closed his book.

"Yes Ma'am!" he said, straightening his body and raising his right hand with 2 link fingers towards his head. "But just so you know Ms. Perfect, I don't suck at Charms. In fact, Professor Flitwick himself said I'm not considered as bad as the others. And please! I don't even understand why we need to study Astronomy."

I just looked at him in disbelief and released a sigh, accepting the fact that he'll never change. Knowing Iro, he won't make much effort unless the subject really caught his interest like Potions, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts.

Herbology is a plus one to him because he's good with Potions. Apparently, nearly every plant we study in that particular subject could be used as an ingredient for varieties of potions. But of course, it doesn't cover everything so he still needed to put extra effort. Then in the DADA, he's good with it but Harry's better.

"Anyway Hermione, what do you think we should do about Snape?" He asked, "I think it's better if I just blind him now before he could steal the stone."

Harry immediately told us about everything he overheard when he followed Snape to the forbidden forest. And it's been weeks now since that happened. We've been trying our best to constantly check Professor Quirrell's condition who's rather getting paler and thinner. Apparently, he's the only person standing between Snape and the Philosopher's stone. And every time we passed the third-floor corridor, we would press our ears to the door to check that Fluffy was still growling inside.

I released a sigh and diverted my gaze from my book to my friends' disordered eyes.

"Iro, you know you could only summon those dark clouds for just a moment. Eventually he would get to see again when you exhaust yourself too much and retrieve those clouds. Plus..." I didn't have the chance to finish my sentence when a sudden soft and girly voice intervened from our side.

"Íroas - is that you?" I glanced over to my right and saw a girl in my age, with long, shiny dark hair and freckles across her nose. I looked to my left and saw Iro smiling happily at the girl.

"Oh! Hey Cho, how are you? And please, just call me Iro" He demanded. I glance back to Cho who's now standing next to me with a bunch of books clutched in her arms.

"Hermione, this is Cho, she's a Ravenclaw. Cho, this is my best-friend Hermione." I smiled at the girl which she instantly greeted back to me.

"I'm fine Iro. How about you? I hope you're staying away from the lake after what happened to you." She replied. I raised my eyebrow to Iro about what Cho last mentioned, but he just smiled at me guiltily.

"Err... don't worry Cho. That would never happen again. I mean, at least the part that you saw." He said from his quiet boastful tone, which made the girl's expression turn red and a bit serious.

"Huh! Still showing off eh? Anyway, I have to go now. My friend is waiting for me outside. See you around Iro, Hermione." We smiled back at her and bid our goodbyes. When she's out of sight, I immediately shoot a glance at my friend.

"Did you tell her about Blackjack?" I asked, with my knitted eyebrows, while crossing my arms. He instantly shook his head and bit his lower lip.

"Uhm... Err... You see I was – Uhm, almost... drowned in the lake."

"What!?" I gasp.

"Don't worry, I was rescued by a mermaid. And that's when I met Cho. She saw me unconscious from the ground near the lake. She woke me up thinking I was dead." He immediately assured me in a single breath. I felt my lips parted and eyed him seriously and worried.

I took a deep breath as though restraining myself,"When did that happen? Why didn't I know about that? Why didn't you tell us? Did Harry and Ron know? What are you even doing swimming in the lake? And you have the guts to call me your best friend huh Mr. Íroas Thymos Olympia?" I constantly asked him with a high pitch voice, not minding the fact that we're inside the library and people are now staring at me.

"Relax Hermione. Don't shout, we're inside the library for Merlin's sake. Just calm down okay?"

"Calm down? You want me to calm down when you almost die?"

"But I didn't! See? I'm still alive and perfectly in shape." He sarcastically said while waving his upper body sideways as if dancing, smiling like an idiot. It made me calm for a bit but still infuriated and worried because of what happened.

"Plus, it happened long ago. I almost forgot about that. And I'm sorry I didn't tell you Hermione. I know you would react like this." I didn't say anything to him, trying to restrain myself from scolding the hell out of the boy.

"And please... don't tell Harry. He'd kill me if he knew" He pleadingly continued. I raise an eyebrow at him and huff in disbelief.

"And what makes you think I won't do that?" I asked him. He just grinned at me widely.

"Simple! Because you love me! And I'm too handsome to be killed by a girl. Plus, we still have our deal about our Animagus Form. If you win, shout at me all day you want, I won't talk balk I promise. Just don't tell Harry." I contemplated for a moment, but eventually agreed to his request. Releasing a sigh of defeat, I once again looked at his sea green eyes and simply nodded.

"Okay I won't do that. Just be careful next time." He smiled and nodded like a kid, with traces of victory on his face.

"You're really afraid of Harry to not tell him?"

"Definitely! The last time something happened to me because of my stupidity, he scolded me for almost a month. Geez, I have to endure that creepy treatment of him that long. He even declined playing my mythomagic with me. That's so awful of him you know that, still giving me creeps." He quickly responded in a single breath. Shivering from the thoughts, he then hugged himself for comfort.

For the next few days, Iro and I kept reciting the Animagus incantation for every sunrise and every sundown. Easter Holidays had started and our teacher had given us loads of assignments, and Harry and Ron have been ranting all morning because of that.

One afternoon, the four of us went to the library to do our school work and study for exams. And surprisingly, we even saw Hagrid in there, scanning the book shelves. We talked to him about the Philosopher's stone but he just brushed off the topic but promised to tell us something in his house later. Then he left.

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HARRY

After doing all those bloody assignments and memorizing a bunch of words; Hermione, Ron, Iro and I went straight to the hut of our friend, the gamekeeper of Hogwarts.

"Err... let's see, Professor Dumbledore burrowed Fluffy. Then there are other teachers who put other spells and enchantments for extra protections of the stone. There is Professor Flitwick, Professor McGonagall, Professor Quirrell, Professor Sprout, and Professor Dumbledore himself of course, then... oh! and Professor Snape." The keeper enumerated.

The four of us gasped by the last name he mentioned. We asked him earlier about the other things that guard the stone. But he doesn't know any, so he just mentioned every teacher that Dumbledore trusted to protect it.

"Snape what!?" Iro reprimanded. We all looked at the giant who's rather laughing from our expressions.

"Yeah! You still think Snape would steal it, didn't yah?"

'Snape must have found out by now how to get past every spell the other teachers have added, aside from Fluffy and Professor Quirrells' I thought to myself. Looking at the expressions of my three friends, they must have the same assumption.

"Uhm... Hagrid, you didn't tell anyone how to get past Fluffy? Right?" Hermione asked for assurance.

"Not a single soul, except Professor Dumbledore of course. No one knew." He answered confidently which made the four of us look at each other and smirked from our seat.

"Well sorry to disappoint you Hagrid, but Iro here is a big Greek addict. In other words, we know how to get past Fluffy." Ron said between the laughs he couldn't manage to hold. I checked Hagrid's expression and saw not a single drop of belief.

"Yah think? Then, care to tell me how?" He challenged us.

"Rice cake!"

"Music!"

"Large red ball!" Iro added confidently to what Ron and I answered to Hagrid. Which made him earn a slap to his shoulder from the bushy brown-haired girl sitting next to him.

"Iro, I told you that won't work!"

"And a rice cake and music did? huh Hermione? – I still stand for the red ball." Ron and I just listen to their arguments. Especially Hagrid who's rather dumbfounded by what we knew.

"How...? I didn't even know the rice cake would pass through Fluffy!" He finally let out from his disbelief.

"I told you, Iro's addicted to Greek Myths. And apparently, your dog came straight from there." Ron answered.

"Hey Hagrid, can we please open the window? It's so hot here" Hermione impatiently intervened. Changing the subject which made Hagrid gratified but shook his head in disapproval and glancing nervously to the fireplace. I followed his gaze and thoroughly examined the fire. Then I see it.

"Uhm – Hagrid, What's that?" I asked, pointing my finger towards the huge black egg residing from the heart of the fire. But before he could answer, Ron suddenly spoke with traces of amusement and disbelief in his voice.

"I know what that is!" He began, "But where did you get that Hagrid?"

"Won it. – last night from the stranger I played cards with. He's too happy getting rid of that. And too dumb if I may add. Having a rare Norwegian Ridgeback Dragon as a bet."

"A dragon!? But for Merlin's sake Hagrid! Your house is literally made of woods! How would you take care of that bloody thing?" Hermione hissed, but was ignored by a humming Hagrid. Too happy with his new lovely, not so vicious, and friendly soon to be pet.