Chapter 39 - Christmas holiday and James' vintage robes

Thomas, James, Adam, and Michael eagerly made their way to the Ravenclaw common room, excited at the prospect of finding information about Nicolas Flamel. The four boys scoured the shelves of the library, pulling out book after book and scanning their pages for any mention of the elusive wizard.

As they searched, they couldn't help but appreciate their house's library. The room was circular, with a high, domed ceiling and tall windows that let in a soft, blue light. The walls were lined with bookcases filled with volumes on every subject imaginable, and there were plush armchairs and sofas scattered throughout the room, inviting students to sit down and read. It felt as if they were inside the castle library but with a better-looking design and more comfortable chairs and sofas.

"This place is amazing," James said, flopping down into one of the armchairs. "I could spend hours in here just reading. How did we miss reading and studying here?"

"I know," Thomas agreed, pulling a dusty old tome off the shelf. "But right now we need to focus on finding information about Flamel."

James rolled his eyes, while Adam and Michael nodded in agreement, and the four boys settled down to their search. They combed through books on alchemy, ancient wizarding families, and even obscure magical creatures, hoping to find a clue that would lead them to Flamel.

After what seemed like hours of searching, the boys were about to give up hope. They had scoured through hundreds of books, yet not a single one had any mention of Nicolas Flamel. The frustration was beginning to mount, and James couldn't help but let out a sigh of disappointment.

"We're never going to find anything," he said, slumping back in his chair. "This was a waste of time."

"Don't say that," Thomas said, trying to keep the morale up. "We just need to keep looking."

But as the minutes ticked by, their search began to feel more and more futile. Michael was on the verge of giving up when he noticed a particularly old and dusty book shoved deep in a corner of the shelf. It was so old that the spine was barely holding on, but the title caught his eye: "Magical Texts and Their Makers."

"Hey, guys," he called out excitedly, holding up the book. "This might be something."

The other boys rushed over, and together they flipped through the ancient pages. The book contained detailed descriptions of magical texts, including some that were believed to be lost to time. And on one page, almost as an afterthought, there was a mention of a book that was rumored to belong to Nicolas Flamel himself, a book that was never published.

"Guys, look at this," Adam said, pointing to the passage. "It says here that Flamel had a book called the 'Philosopher's Stone,' and that it was said to grant immortality to its owner."

The boys were stunned. They had heard stories from older students about the Philosopher's Stone, but they had always thought it was just a myth or story made by someone to fool people into buying the supposed stone. But if it really existed, and if Snape was trying to steal it, then they needed to find out more about Flamel and this mystical stone. Excitedly, they began searching through the rest of the book, hoping to find more information. And after a few more pages, they hit pay dirt.

"There's a reference to Flamel's book in here!" Thomas exclaimed, pointing to a paragraph on the page they were looking at. "It says that Nicolas Flamel might have given the stone to a friend to keep! If what it says here is true and that the bloody stone is real, doesn't that mean that Flamel is actually hundreds of years old?"

"Hundreds of years old?" Adam repeated, his voice filled with wonder. "That's impossible, isn't it?"

"Not necessarily," James said, his mind racing with the possibilities. "I mean, we've read about wizards living for centuries before, haven't we? And Flamel was an alchemist who presumably made the Philosopher stone, which he could have used to prolong his life."

Michael nodded in agreement. "And if he really did give the stone to a friend, that means the stone could still be out there somewhere. Maybe we should focus on finding that friend instead of trying to track down Flamel himself. I mean it's the most logical thing to do, after all even if we find him, maybe it would be too late to find that friend of his."

James' voice suddenly cut through their excitement. "But how are we going to find this friend? We don't even know who they are or where they could be. I mean it's not like we can find an old wizard that can be even remotely close to Flamel's age, right?"

Thomas was deep in thought, his brow furrowed in concentration. "Wait a minute," he said slowly. "What if...what if Flamel's friend is still alive too? I mean, if Flamel could live for hundreds of years, who's to say his friend couldn't do the same? Especially with the use of the stone right?"

The other boys looked at him skeptically. "That seems like a bit of a stretch, doesn't it?" Adam said.

But James' eyes lit up at Thomas's suggestion. "No, he might be onto something," he said. "Hermione told us that Harry saw Snape with a wound from that three-headed dog. And our headmaster is kind of an old guy himself right?"

Michael's eyes widened as he caught on to James's train of thought. "Wait a minute, you don't think…?"

Adam finished his sentence. "You don't think our Headmaster is friends with Nicolas Flamel and is hiding the stone for him?"

Thomas nodded excitedly. "It's a possibility, right?"

The boys quickly packed up their books and rushed back to the library to tell Ron, Harry, and Hermione their theory.

Hermione listened intently to their story, nodding thoughtfully. "It's definitely a possibility," she said. "But we still need to be careful. We don't know who else might be after the stone."

Harry, who had been quiet up until this point, spoke up. "But if Snape is after the stone, then we have to find it before he does. We can't let him get his hands on it."

Ron chimed in, "And we can't just walk up to Dumbledore and ask him if he's friends with Flamel and if he's hiding the stone. He'll never tell us."

"So what do we do?" Michael asked, looking around at the group.

"We need to keep looking for clues," Hermione said firmly. "We need to be sneaky and clever, just like Flamel was when he created the stone. We need to think outside the box."

James jumped in, "And we need to figure out what that three-headed dog is guarding. I mean, it was to be something right"

The group nodded at him, and they spent the rest of their time at Hogwarts brainstorming ideas and coming up with a plan to continue their search for the stone. As much as they wanted to continue their search for information about Nicolas Flamel and his stone, the time had come for the winter holiday to start and they had to say their goodbyes to Hogwarts. Hermione, Thomas, James, Michael, and Adam packed their bags and made their way to the Hogwarts Express, feeling a mixture of excitement and sadness. They were all looking forward to spending the holiday with their families, but they couldn't help feeling a little disappointed that they hadn't found any concrete information about Flamel.

Soon, the train started moving, and they settled into their seats before Thomas began the conversation. "I can't wait to go home and see my parents. As well as catch up with Latia," he said, a big grin spreading across his face.

James smirked at Thomas's words. "Oh, we know you're just excited to see your girlfriend," he teased.

Michael chuckled. "Yeah, you talk about her all the time," he added.

Adam joined in on the teasing. "I don't think Hermione knows who Latia is, Thomas. You might want to explain it to her," he said, trying to stifle his laughter.

Hermione looked over at Thomas, curious. "Who is Latia?" she asked.

Thomas's face turned a bright shade of red as he fumbled for an explanation. "Uh, she's just a friend from back home," he muttered.

Thankfully, for him, his friends quickly turn their attention to their plans for the holiday.

James let out a chuckle as he told them his plans. "I'm just looking forward to curling up with a good book and relaxing by the fire, with a nice cup of tea," he said.

Adam's eyes lit up. "I can't wait to teach my sister some spells. She's been begging me to show her some magic ever since I started at Hogwarts."

Michael smiled. "I'm going to take my parents to some of the wizarding places I've discovered. I think they'll be amazed."

Hermione, however, seemed lost in thought. She pulled out her notebook and began jotting down ideas.

"What are you writing, Hermione?" Thomas asked.

"I'm trying to come up with some ideas for where we can look for more information about Nicolas Flamel over the holiday," Hermione said, looking up from her notebook.

James raised an eyebrow. "You're still thinking about that? Didn't we decide to get past Fluffy when get back?"

"I know, but I feel like we are missing something," Hermione replied, determined. "I think we need to keep looking."

Michael nodded in agreement. "That's true, we don't want Snape to get his hands on that stone. Just imagine how he would be in another hundred years..."

"Maybe he'll finally have grown a sense of humor by then," James joked, earning a chuckle from the others.

Adam looked at James skeptically. "I doubt that," he said with a grin.

"Speaking of missing something, James, have you found your sense of fashion yet?" Thomas teased, gesturing to James' pink robes.

The others laughed as James playfully rolled his eyes. "I'll have you know, these unwashable robes are vintage," he said, eliciting more laughter.

Hermione smiled at the lighthearted banter but couldn't help but feel a sense of urgency about finding the stone. "I know we're joking around, but we really should keep looking," she said, her tone serious.

The others nodded in agreement, and they began discussing potential leads and places to search once they returned to Hogwarts.

As the train chugged along, the group settled into a comfortable silence, lost in their own thoughts and excitement for the holiday ahead. But Hermione's mind was still buzzing with thoughts of the stone, and she vowed to continue the search both at home and when they returned to Hogwarts.

As the Hogwarts Express pulled into the station, the excitement of the holiday began to bubble over. The train came to a halt, and the students began to gather their belongings and prepare to disembark. Thomas and his friends quickly gathered their things and made their way out of the compartment and onto the platform.

As they made their way through the crowded station, Thomas spotted his parents standing at the end of the platform, waving excitedly. Thomas couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed as his father shouted his name, drawing the attention of the other students. James nudged him playfully, grinning.

"Looks like your parents missed you," he teased, causing Thomas to roll his eyes and laugh.

The group quickly made their way over to Thomas's parents, who greeted them with warm hugs and big smiles.

When they reached them, Jonathan stepped forward to greet them with a big hug. "Hello, boys! It's so good to see you all again," he said, his eyes lighting up with happiness. "Thomas has told us so much about you."

The boys all smiled back at him, feeling a sense of warmth and welcome from Thomas's family. Kate, who was unable to speak, reached out to each of them in turn, embracing them with a gentle hug and a warm smile.

Thomas beamed with pride as he introduced his friends to his parents. "Mom, Dad, these are my friends Hermione, James, Michael, and Adam," he said, gesturing to each of them in turn.

Jonathan nodded in greeting, a look of happiness spreading across his face. "It's so wonderful to meet all of you. Thomas has been so excited to come home and introduce you to us," he said, his voice filled with pride and joy.

The boys chatted with Thomas's parents for a few more minutes, catching up on their plans for the holiday and exchanging stories about their time at Hogwarts. Meanwhile, Kate could only listen attentively to their conversations, smiling and nodding along in agreement.

While Thomas and his parents chatted with Hermione, James, Adam, and Michael could see their own families waiting for them on the platform. James's mother was waving excitedly, holding a large sign that read "Welcome back, my wizard!". Michael's father was talking animatedly with another wizard, while his mother was trying to take a family photo with their magical camera. Adam's little sister was jumping up and down, holding a hand-drawn sign that read "Welcome home, big brother!", while his parents were smiling beside her.

James turned to the group. "Hey guys, I hate to cut this short, but I see my mum over there. I better go say hello before she has a fit," he joked, waving goodbye to the group.

Michael nodded in agreement. "Yeah, my mum is waiting for me too. It was great seeing you all again. See you back at Hogwarts!" He hugged Thomas and the rest of the group before turning to leave.

Adam followed suit. "My little sister looks like she's going to burst if I don't go say hello to her. It was great seeing you guys again, we'll catch up soon!" He waved goodbye before running over to his family.

"Mom, Dad, this is Hermione," Thomas said, gesturing towards Hermione. "She was my first friend at Hogwarts."

"It's nice to meet you," Hermione said, smiling warmly at Thomas's parents.

Jonathan smiled at Hermione and said, "We've heard a lot about you, Hermione. Thomas has told us all about his adventures at Hogwarts, and how much he's enjoyed having you as a friend."

Thomas blushed slightly at his father's words, but he was secretly pleased that his parents were happy for him. Jonathan then turned to Thomas and continued, "You know, son, there are two other girls who are just dying to meet you. I hope you didn't forget about Latia and Irina, right?"

Thomas rolled his eyes at his father's teasing. "How could you think that, Dad?. But Hermione is my friend from Hogwarts. Latia and Irina have been my friends since I was 9 years old."

Jonathan laughed. "I know, I know. I'm just teasing you, son. But you have to admit, it's not every day that we get to meet one of Thomas's Hogwarts friends that's a girl nevertheless."

Kate, who had been observing the exchange, gave Thomas a knowing look and patted his arm reassuringly. Even though she couldn't speak, Thomas knew that his mother was proud of him and happy that he had made friends at Hogwarts.

Hermione turned to Jonathan and Kate, offering them a warm smile. "It was lovely to meet you both," she said politely.

Jonathan chuckled. "It's nice to see Thomas has finally made a friend," he said teasingly. "You should come back and visit us sometime. I know two girls who are dying to meet you," he added with a grin.

Thomas rolled his eyes, but Hermione just laughed. "Thank you for having me," she said, before turning to hug Thomas tightly. "Have a great holiday, and let me know if you find any more leads on the stone."

"I will," Thomas promised, returning her hug. "Have a great holiday too, Hermione."

With a final wave, Hermione made her way over to where her parents were waiting for her, a smile still on her face from the warm welcome she had received from Thomas's family.

As they made their way out of the station and towards the car, Thomas's father couldn't resist asking about their studies at Hogwarts.

"So, how was your first term at Hogwarts?" he asked, a proud smile on his face.

Thomas beamed with pride as he recounted all the exciting things they had learned in their first term.

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