Chapter 33
Albert asked Harry as they ran, "What happened? Why did you suddenly jump up and stun us like that?"
Harry's face turned pale. "I just remembered something—right now. We need to find Hagrid immediately."
"Why?" Hermione asked eagerly, trying to catch up with him.
"Don't you think it's a bit strange?" Harry said, speeding toward the grassy slope. "What does Hagrid want most? A dragon. And now, some stranger happens to be carrying a dragon egg in his pocket? How many people are wandering around with dragon eggs all day? You know that's against wizarding laws! Aren't they lucky to find Hagrid? Why didn't I think of this before?"
"What the hell are you planning to do? Are you going to do something?" Ron, who was last and panting, asked. But Harry dashed through the field toward the forest without answering.
They caught up to Hagrid, who was busy with chores outside his hut. After some questions, Harry learned that Hagrid had won the dragon egg in a card game with a suspicious character. Despite Harry's interrogation, they found out that the biggest weakness of the three-headed Hecate was that he fell asleep when listening to music, just as Albert had done before. They urged Hagrid to tell the suspicious man about this weakness when he was drunk.
Then Harry headed back toward the castle. Albert and the others had no choice but to follow him. When they reached the cold entrance hall, Harry stopped.
"We have to tell Professor Dumbledore that these suspicious people have managed to control Hecate." But it was clear no one knew where Dumbledore's office was.
At that moment, Professor McGonagall appeared. Harry stepped forward to express his concerns and warnings. However, Professor McGonagall didn't believe him. She told Harry that although Dumbledore wasn't at school, the Philosopher's Stone was well protected, and there was nothing to worry about.
After Professor McGonagall left, they met Professor Snape and were warned by him.
Later, Harry tried to watch the room where Snape was, but Albert stopped him.
"After all, you're a first-year student spying on professors and forbidden areas. Even if you find something wrong, you can't stop it. On the contrary, you might cause unnecessary harm or alert the enemy. Besides, as a professor, he has countless excuses and spells to fend off or avoid students."
Hearing Albert's reasons, Harry had to abandon his immature plan.
In the end, Harry decided to remove the Philosopher's Stone before it was stolen, so the thief wouldn't get it unnoticed.
Albert admired Harry's empathy. "I think it's a good way to get the best results with the least cost. You should try it."
But Hermione and Ron objected, saying the idea was too dangerous and might get all the staff fired.
At that moment, Albert convinced Ron and Hermione. "Now, it's not about getting fired or not—it's about the safety of the entire wizarding world." (At this point, Albert was so passionate about this grand speech that he was getting goosebumps all over, yet he kept a straight face.) "And our friend Harry's life is definitely more important than going to school. We're here to protect the school's property, and professors won't kick out students for this."
"Me?" Harry asked, surprised.
"Of course," Albert shrugged.
"If you see yourself risking alone, you have to give us some credit for saving the world."
"Thanks, everyone. But I think my invisibility cloak won't fit four people," Harry said excitedly.
"No need to worry about that," Albert said. "I learned the Disguise Charm a long time ago, and I'll use it on the mission. So your cloak only needs to cover three people."
With the decision made, it was time to prepare.
After dinner, avoiding a few other students, they started making various preparations in a corner of the common room. In fact, no one at the academy had been paying much attention to Harry lately, which made their preparations easier.
Soon, their corner was quiet. No one wanted to talk, and only Hermione could be heard quietly reading some spells. Finally, the clock passed nine at night. Everyone was exhausted after the exam and went back to the dormitories to sleep. At last, only Harry and the three friends remained in the common room.
Ron said, "You can get the invisibility cloak now." Harry ran upstairs to fetch it. Albert pulled a rugged belt armed with pouches and small glass bottles from his bag and strapped it on himself.
"When I first got my Hogwarts acceptance letter, I thought wizard training would be like a Dungeons and Dragons card game—full of actual fights and lots of adventures. So, I prepared for that. But it never happened. I realized the wizarding world isn't much different from the ordinary world," Albert told a stunned Ron and Hermione while adjusting his armor belt.
At that moment, Harry came downstairs and paused for a moment when he saw Albert's outfit, then pulled out the invisibility cloak.
"Better wear the cloak here and see if it can cover all three of us. If Filch sees a pair of feet walking alone—" After Albert confirmed there was no problem, Harry, Ron, and Hermione walked ahead, wearing invisible cloaks, while Albert cast a spell on himself and followed five or six meters behind.
Once outside the house, they knew they had to do something big tonight. Everyone was tense, feeling every statue and shadow might be a professor or Filch watching them in the dark.
On the way, they met Mrs. Norris, who seemed to see the three.
However, perhaps because of the spell Albert used on himself and his friends, Mrs. Norris didn't notice anyone there. She turned, looked around, and then lay back down.
Later, by the fourth-floor corridor stairs, their biggest crisis appeared in the form of Peeves.
Thanks to Harry's idea to imitate Bloody Baron's voice to scare Peeves away.
But Albert felt that since Peeves had been at Hogwarts with Bloody Baron for hundreds of years, he couldn't be fooled by Harry Potter's little voice.
Professor Dumbledore must have known this before. At this school, the only person who can order Peeves to do anything is the headmaster.
After getting rid of Peeves, a few seconds later, they reached the corridor where the door was already open.
It seemed that even though they decided to take the Philosopher's Stone beforehand, it was still a bit too late. After all, it was easier for the professors to walk around the castle after curfew than for them to sneak in.
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