Give It a Year

Well our little conquest to save the Dragon ended in ruins, 160 points we lost because of being out of bed and a detention, well didn’t everyone just hate us then, even other houses, however Slytherin thought we were Heroes, putting them first to win the house cup, of course Harry copped most of the flak for it, I had a little too. How disappointing that Cedric Diggory’s little sister stuffed up and put Slytherin ahead. Although at least our detention could be worse, spending it with Hagrid seemed more like a gift than punishment, well that was until we found a dead unicorn, we split off to find the thing that had killed it but of course, Fang, Draco and Neville are scared of their own shadow and now the real punishment starts, I’m in a group with Malfoy, but at least I’ve got Harry. Draco seemed to be farm more comfortable with Nyx, who was with me this time than Fang.

“Yeah she isn’t so ugly now, git.” I slammed my shoulder into Malfoy’s and went off ahead with Nyx. “How someone would be able to live with that boy is beyond me.” I muttered to myself. Harry heard and sniggered. We dragged on for a while, Nyx stopped mid walk which triggered me to stop. “Harry, we found it.” I whispered. He stopped too looking at the tragic death scene, however the small moment of sorrow ended swiftly with fear as a hooded figure glided across the ground. Malfoy let out a shriek of terror and sprinted off. I looked at Harry as he cringed touching his forehead. His scar was hurting again.

He told me to run, I hesitated until he yelled, I took off, Nyx by my side until I heard the sheer panic from Hermione, Neville, Hagrid and Malfoy. I caught up with them giving them a fright, “Oh yer a’right Valora.” Hagrid smiled quickly.
Harry came riding in on a Centaur, “He saved me, it was-was-.”
“Harry you’re safe!” Hermione shouted in relief. We all sighed in relief, although I must say it was quite funny seeing Malfoy run away like a complete girl. Which I had to tell the story to Hermione and Ron over and over again when we got back to the common room. However I began to grow tired and I needed to Revise with Hermione, Exams were slowly creeping up and I had barely studied and if I needed to show dad that even though im Gryffindor im the top of my game still.

It seemed like that’s how the weeks went on after that leading up to exams, I’d have class eat then study, barely sleep, but then again I soaked in every detail I needed and Hermione helped a lot with revision for my exams which I passed with high marks, I was glad of that actually. Now with all that out of the way, gave me time to really invest myself with the issue about the stone. The four of us sat in the common room, it was late and everyone was in bed.

“I may have thought it through, maybe just maybe we could sneak in to that room with fluffy in it with your invisibility cloak, every other thing guarding it couldn’t be as hard as trying to get passed a three head dog no? and with Dumbledore gone now who knows when the stone could be gone.” It was that very moment when the three looked and turned to me. “Dumbledore is gone?! What do you mean he’s gone?” Harry jumped up , I shrugged and told him I overheard McGonagall talk about his business in the ministry tonight.
“Its tonight, the stone will be gone tonight we have to do something.” Harry stressed, the three of us just looked at him.
“oh my cloak, thank god I got it back.” Harry sighed in relief , We sat in the common room despite the day being as nice as it was. Hermione just lost track of Snape, who we all suspect must be taking the stone. “Tonight, after Dinner we’ll wait until everyone is asleep and your cloak we can use to get down there. But the cloak will only hold the three of us wont it Harry?” Hermione hummed, she was putting a lot of thought into how the plan will work.

“Well, Nyx knows her way around the castle, Valora takes her on a walk daily, she can scout the hallways before we get there for a safer walk through, and maybe help out Fluffy if I go south with music.” Harry announced logically, he wasn’t dumb let’s just say.
Dinner was quiet between the four of us, Harry was anxious about the stone getting into the wrong hands and Hermione and Ron weren’t particularly fond if Voldemort himself showed up.
I however wasn’t too anxious, yes I was in one sense but otherwise not really, perhaps Nyx accompanying us gave me comfort, she still wasn’t fully grown as of yet despite her size reaching just shy of my waist.
When we reached the common room it wasn’t particularly busy as the nights before exams were. “Now we just wait.” I murmured at Nyx, it was dark and the only light illuminating the room was the fire slowly burning out.

Eventually when the last person went to bed we decided to move out. Nyx went out first, having her roam the corridors were far more safer if Filtch caught her. Neville took it upon himself to actually stand up to us, we couldn’t afford anymore point loss for our house.
“Look Neville, we can’t magically conjure up 150 plus points in that short amount of time, we’re done, deal with it.” I said, I was brutally honest with him but it needed to be said.
With little arguing and a few leg locker curses we had him incapacitated and out of our way.
The castle was very eerie at night, especially knowing that Voldemort himself might be lurking the walls, Harry was very brave to have put himself up to this.
Without too much nonsense happening we made it quietly and safely to the door on the third floor corridor. We were bewildered to enter the room were Fluffy resides in and it have been sleeping.
“He’s already here.” Harry muttered in frustration. Nyx stalked circles around the sleeping three headed dog, she sat herself on the far corner of the room where we’d meet her after all this was done.

“c’mon Harry you can easily open the door, Hermione you keep playing the flute.” Ron commands, simple but effective.
Harry and I opened the trapdoor with nothing to show but a dark pit of nothingness. “I’ll go first.” I murmured, the trapdoor was narrow so I crossed my arms over my chest and pin dropped into the trapdoor. “oh dear.” I muttered, before I could shout a warning the three dropped in beside me, luckily not to land on me.
“Good thing this plant broke our fall.” Ron said rather pleased, Hermione and I were angered, the plant had its tendrils and vines wrapped around the lot of us. Of course they’d know it’s a devils snare if they payed attention in Herbology, so of course they tried to struggle away from the plants. “Stop moving! The more you move the tighter it’ll hold you. Let me think.. ah of course! To kill a devils snare you need.. need-.”

“A fire!” Harry and I shouted, she was bewildered she hadn’t thought of that earlier, she whipped out her wand and cast a bluebell charm setting us all free.
We managed to walk freely for a few moments until a strange noise appeared, “do you hear that? Sounds like wings.” Ron said quietly as they closed in on the small chamber at the end of the passageway. The chamber had thousands of small bright birds, well I thought that at first, they were keys, obviously to open up the door at the other end. “This will take all night Harry theres thousands of Keys and only one opens the door.” I was disappointed and feared for what might come to Hogwarts now all because no one would believe us that the stone was going to be taken and we couldn’t even figure out how to unlock a door. Three broomsticks sat afloat in mid-air as if it were to mean something

“There! That one! Its old fashioned and its got a broken wing, that’ll unlock the door.”
I felt stupid to say the least, of course Harry would find it, he’s Gryffindor’s seeker for gods sake. I ran to the wooden door ready to open it up when Harry got the Key.
Ron, Hermione and Harry Jumped on the broomsticks chasing the small broken Key, after Harry retrieved it Harry lodged it into the door and we continued. This chamber was next to impossible to see in, barely lit up we managed to walk our way through and stopped as light illuminated the room dimly.

The entire floor was set up as a Chess board and on the sides were chess pieces and broken shards of some.
“We have to play to get across the room..” Ron studied the room as I did, I confirmed by nodding. “I think we’re going to have to be chessmen, I’ll take the Knight.” He said, he was confident in what he was doing, of course he was, he was brilliant at Chess from what I saw.
“Just follow my lead because you guys aren’t exactly.. brilliant at wizard chess, Harry you take the Bishop and Hermione you take the castle, Valora you take the queen. Okay, let’s begin.”
A white pawn made its first move signalling that the game really begun. We all watched as he directed the pieces around the board piece by piece he seemed to be taking but sometimes loosing. The pieces on the board began to scarce as only a short few were left on each opposing sides. I knew the fundamentals of chess I just never bothered. Things began to get complicated when Ron ordered us to move, he, even I realized that we couldn’t pass until he was taken. “I need to let the queen take me so that leaves you free to check mate the queen Harry.”
“But-.”
“You need to find Snape, it’s the only way!”
With on swift movement as he moved forward the queens hand came down hard on his head, he dropped to the ground almost instantly. Hermione screamed but stayed in her square, Harry walked to the opposing king and check mate, the game was over.

“You two go ahead, I’ll stay with Ron.” I smiled softly, “You’ll beat him Harry, you’re the bravest Wizard I’ve ever known.” The two hesitated but then ran ahead, I smiled and sat down beside Ron. I kept him on his side in case he choked or anything and kept a regular check on his pulse and blood movement. He was out cold.. It wasn’t long until Hermione ran back, “He’s in, we need to tell Dumbledore now! And take him to the hospital wing!” I nodded and tried picking him up, “Its useless I can’t carry him..” I cried out.
“Hermione, help me.” I wheezed, we both picked him up and started to drag him. By then he started gaining consciousness.

“Alright we’ll go back to the room with broomsticks, theres three of them so we can fly out past Fluffy and go straight to notify Dumbledore.” Hermione said and I nodded, we dragged Ron into the room and got him on a broomstick. “W-what?”
“Ron just go back to sleep.” Hermione whispered and we got on the broomsticks, carefully holding Ron we were surprised to see that fluffy was still asleep, although tinges of pink were streaking in the night’s sky.

When Dumbledore was notified Harry had already gotten the stone, it was Professor Quirrel, all along, our poor stuttering defence against the dark arts teacher.
Maybe Snape wasn’t as evil as we thought but he definitely doesn’t seem the type for rainbows and picnics either. But alas it was the final day of our first year, and I couldn’t have been happier to go home yet saddened that I had to leave. I haven’t been able to see Harry since he left to find the stone, Cedric’s kept a close eye on me when the whole school started talking about it, although even Hermione, myself and Ron didn’t know what happened between Harry and Quirrel so much to others disappointment we couldn’t tell them.

“What a year it has been! And another year gone, you all have the summer to relax and prepare for the next and to those in their last year, farewell. As I know, the house cup must be awarded to the winning house, the points are. Gryffindor in fourth place with three hundred and twelve points, Hufflepuff in third place with three hundred and fifty two points, in second place Ravenclaw with four hundred and twenty six points and finally, Slytherin in first place with four hundred and seventy two points.” The Slytherin table cheered and everyone else seemed to internally groan and sigh as if it’s the norm. I mean it was, wasn’t it?

“However, recent events call for last minute points to award, Ronald Weasley for the best played game of chess Hogwarts has seen in years. 40 points to Gryffindor. Hermione Granger for the use of logic in the face of crisis. 40 points to Gryffindor! Valora Diggory, in times of panic stays calm and will go back to help those who fall. 40 points to Gryffindor!”
The entire school except Slytherin erupted into claps and cheers, “My brother! That’s our brother that got past McGonagalls chess board!!” The Weasley twins yelled and banged their hands on the table. Percy did the same, but more so.. silently.

“Alright alright, I’m not finished yet.. now.. where was I?.. ah that’s it, Harry Potter, For pure nerve and outstanding courage I award Gryffindor house another 40 points.”
Slytherins table went silent, we were a tie! All those points we lost came back!
“But alas! I have one more person, it takes great courage to face your enemies and stand up to them, but it is difficult to stand up to your friends, I award Neville Longbottom 10 points to Gryffindor!”
The Gryffindor table stood up in song and dance, as did other house tables, all but Slytherin were rejoicing.

It was a good year, and better yet with my Friends, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley and Harry Potter. Now I await for my second Year.