Chapter 12. Touching a Fairy Tale.

Hermione wouldn't be herself if she hadn't taken it upon herself to push Harry and Ron to work harder on their studies from the very first days of their friendship. She didn't insist on the same level of study she set for herself, but finishing homework became a must. Ron wasn't thrilled about this and sometimes, as it seemed to Hermione, would have preferred to go back to his old ways. Meanwhile, Harry found it helpful since all his free time was now spent on Quidditch practice, leaving little time for homework.

When it came to Quidditch, though, Hermione couldn't help Harry much. She never saw herself as a sports fan. Quite the opposite, she saw no point in riding a bike around a track as fast as possible. If you're going to ride fast, do it to get to work or school! Before becoming a witch, she had never attended a sporting event and didn't plan to in the future.

Coming to Hogwarts made Hermione rethink her views a bit. Quidditch was a big deal in the competition for the House Cup, and she wanted to prove Gryffindor's superiority in everything. But even in sports, Hermione stuck to her principles: theoretical knowledge is always useful. So, she suggested the book 'Quidditch Through the Ages' to Harry. To her surprise, he loved it and hardly ever put it down.

However, the influence wasn't one-sided. Not only did Harry and Ron start spending more time on their studies, but Hermione also began to take breaks from her work more often to spend time with her friends. One day after classes, they gathered in the schoolyard, where Hermione was demonstrating a new spell she had learned - with a flick of her wand, a bright blue flame would ignite. Harry watched the fire, lost in his thoughts, and, as usual lately, held "Quidditch Through the Ages" in his hands.

Suddenly, Professor Snape appeared in the yard and, noticing the friends, immediately headed towards them. Hermione quickly extinguished the flame when she saw him. She knew all too well that punishing Harry was the Slytherin head's favorite pastime. The last thing she wanted was to give Snape another reason to reprimand them. The professor didn't notice the flame, but his attention was drawn to the book in Harry's hands.

"Library books are not to be taken outside the school," Snape said curtly. "Give it to me. Five points from Gryffindor." Taking the book, he turned and walked back to the castle, noticeably limping.

Harry often read 'Quidditch Through the Ages' during particularly intense bouts of anxiety about upcoming matches. That evening, he seemed frantic and decided he had to get the book back at all costs. Despite his friends' pleas not to do it, he went after Snape to retrieve it.

Hermione anxiously waited for his return and, seeing him coming back empty-handed, immediately rushed to him with a question:

"Is everything alright?"

Harry didn't answer right away but led them to a secluded corner of the Gryffindor common room, away from the curious eyes and ears of other students. Only there, making sure no one was listening, did he start to speak quietly:

"I went to Snape's office door and knocked, but no one answered. When I opened the door, I saw the professor standing with his robe lifted to his knees. His leg was covered in blood, and Filch was fussing over his wound, trying to help. Obviously, Snape got hurt pretty badly!" Harry looked at his friends with wide eyes, excitedly recounting what he saw. "He also said it's impossible to watch three heads at once and avoid being bitten by that creature!" Harry emphasized the words 'three heads' and 'being bitten.'

Falling silent, he looked at Ron and Hermione, waiting for their reaction. But they just exchanged puzzled glances and said nothing. Finally, unable to contain himself, Harry continued.

"He tried to get past that three-headed dog at Halloween!" he said to Hermione, "That's where he was going when we saw him – he's after whatever it's guarding!"

Hermione looked at Harry skeptically and said doubtfully:

"No – he wouldn't. I know he's not very nice, but he wouldn't try and steal something Dumbledore was keeping safe."

"Honestly, Hermione," Ron interjected, "you think all teachers are saints or something. I'm with Harry. I wouldn't put anything past Snape."

Hermione, however, wasn't convinced and quickly presented her own arguments:

"How do you know the dog bit him on Halloween? And that he was trying to get past it? Maybe he just came to feed the dog? Did you ever think it might need to eat something too?"

"More like someone, not something," Ron replied grimly. "And why didn't he just go to Madam Pomfrey? She could have healed his wounds quickly. I think he's hiding something..."

"For your information," Hermione said in a matter-of-fact tone, "wounds from magical creatures aren't so easy to heal. It's not just a simple fracture or scratch!"

In the end, each of them stuck to their own opinion, but this conversation planted a seed of doubt in Hermione's mind about their Potions teacher. To be honest, his behavior certainly contributed to it.

***

And so, the day of the match between Gryffindor and Slytherin arrived. Until then, Hermione had never been to a Quidditch match. Everything she knew about the game came from books. The rules, in her opinion, were quite simple. Three Chasers from each team aim to score by getting the Quaffle, the largest ball in the game, through the opponent's hoops. Each goal earns the team ten points. Two smaller balls, Bludgers, fly around on their own and try to knock players off their brooms. To defend against them, each team has two Beaters with bats. But the main objective in Quidditch is the small Golden Snitch, a fast and barely noticeable target. The Seeker must find and catch it to end the game and earn one hundred and fifty points for their team. The Snitch was Harry's goal.

Hermione, along with Harry's other friends, took a seat at the top of the stands. Soon, the Gryffindor and Slytherin teams took to the field, soared into the sky on their brooms, and the game began. Hermione wasn't very interested in the game itself, only half-listening to the commentator's shouts. She was more interested in observing the behavior of other Hogwarts students.

In the stands among the fans, Hermione noticed the tall figure of Elliot Grimm, proudly waving a Slytherin scarf. He enthusiastically supported his team from the very beginning, loudly cheering for every successful move by the Slytherins.

A few days ago, Hermione and Harry accidentally ran into Elliot and a group of Slytherin students discussing the upcoming match. Hermione felt uneasy, knowing how this encounter might add to Harry's already intense pre-game anxiety, especially with the Slytherins loudly mocking the Gryffindor team. But looking around, she realized there was no avoiding the meeting and continued walking as if nothing had happened. As they passed her, Elliot recognized Hermione and, stopping with a smirk, said:

"So, ready for Gryffindor's humiliating defeat?"

Harry, already pale, looked at Elliot in confusion. He didn't know the Slytherin, but before his first match, he saw bad omens in everything. Judging by his expression, he completely agreed with Grimm.

Hermione quickly turned to Elliot and snapped, "We'll see about that. You can be sure there's a surprise waiting for you."

Elliot's face twisted into a smug grin. "Oh, come on... Maybe this surprise is something you found in a dusty antique shop in Diagon Alley, is it?"

His mocking gaze made Hermione's cheeks flush. Elliot hadn't missed a chance to tease her about her fascination with amulets since the first Relicium Club meeting and clearly had no intention of stopping. She was ready to throw a sharp retort his way but held back. Instead, she smiled mysteriously at the Slytherin and said, "Maybe so... you'll see during the match." Then she turned and walked away, pulling along a very confused Harry.

She heard Elliot's sneering voice from behind them, "As I said, amulets are just old junk... I can explain it to you again after the match if you still don't get it..."

"What amulet?" Harry mumbled quietly, looking at Hermione with hope in his eyes. "Did you buy something for me?.."

Emerging from her thoughts, Hermione smiled. She wondered what Grimm would say after the match. So far, the game was going in Gryffindor's favor...

Suddenly, someone loudly drew everyone's attention to Harry. Hermione looked up and gasped. His broom had flipped over in the air, then again, and again… Harry was barely holding on. Hermione, almost forcefully, grabbed the binoculars from Hagrid, who was sitting next to her, and looked at the teachers' stand. Snape was staring unblinkingly at Harry, muttering something.

"I knew it," she shouted, "Snape - look."

With that, Hermione quickly jumped up and rushed through the rows toward the teachers' area. She struggled through the crowd of spectators who were watching Harry in shock as he clung desperately to his crazed broom.

In her haste, Hermione accidentally bumped into Professor Quirrell, who seemed to lose his balance and fell. But she had no time to stop and help him up or even apologize. Finally, reaching the teachers' stand, she took a deep breath to steady herself and, sneaking up behind Snape, cast a spell. The burst of flames distracted the Slytherin head from Harry, and Hermione quickly extinguished the fire and slipped back into the crowd unnoticed.

When she returned to her seat, it was all over. Harry had not only managed to regain control of his broom but had also skillfully caught the Snitch, bringing victory to Gryffindor in the match!

The stands erupted with applause and cheers, celebrating Gryffindor's victory. Slytherin's long dominance in Quidditch had everyone eager to knock them off their pedestal. However, Hermione and Ron didn't let Harry join the well-deserved celebration. As soon as he touched the ground, they hurried him off to Hagrid's hut.

"It was Snape!" Ron blurted out to Harry. "Hermione and I saw him. He was cursing your broomstick, muttering, he wouldn't take his eyes off you."

"Rubbish," Hagrid objected. "Why would Snape do somethin' like that?"

"There's a reason," Harry interrupted. "I found out something about him. He tried to get past that three-headed dog at Halloween. It bit him. We think he was trying to steal whatever it's guarding."

Hagrid looked at them in astonishment and asked, "How do you know about Fluffy?"

He didn't seem interested in their thoughts about Snape at all.

"Fluffy?" Harry said in surprise.

"Yeah – he's mine…"

'Fluffy,' thought Hermione. She knew about Hagrid's fondness for dangerous creatures, but she had never encountered one of his pets up close. At that moment, Hagrid raised his voice, and she tuned back into the conversation.

"Now, don't ask me anymore," Hagrid said, frowning. "That's top secret, that is."

"But Snape's trying to steal it," Harry insisted.

Hermione realized they were talking about the thing Fluffy was guarding.

"Rubbish!" Hagrid snapped. "Snape's a Hogwarts teacher, he'd never do nothin' of the sort."

The gamekeeper seemed to be repeating the arguments Hermione herself had used just a day ago. However, after the incident at the match, her views had changed drastically. Now she couldn't ignore the obvious facts anymore.

"So why did he just try and kill Harry?" Hermione shouted. "I know a jinx when I see one, Hagrid. I've read all about them! You've got to keep eye contact, and Snape wasn't blinking at all, I saw him!"

"I'm tellin' yeh, yer wrong!" Hagrid was clearly getting angry. "I don't know why Harry's broom acted like that, but Snape wouldn' try an' kill a student! Now listen to me, all three of yeh – yer meddlin' in things that don' concern yeh. You forget that dog, an' you forget what it's guardin', that's between Professor Dumbledore an' Nicholas Flamel."

"Aha!" Harry exclaimed. "So there's someone called Nicholas Flamel involved, is there?"

Hagrid, it seemed to Hermione, got even angrier and quickly ushered them out of the hut. 'Probably afraid we'd find out all his secrets,' she thought with a smirk.

***

The first snow had dusted the ground and trees in the Forbidden Forest. The sun, peeking through the clouds, painted the forest with bright sparks wherever its rays touched the snow or ice crystals on the tree branches. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and Hagrid slowly made their way through the Forbidden Forest, admiring the beauty around them. Occasionally, the shadow of a small animal flitted in the distance, but only the friends' footsteps disturbed the quiet.

"I told Starry yeh'd be comin' with me," Hagrid said.

Starry was the name Hagrid had given to the unicorn he was sheltering in the forest. Hermione took Hagrid's words in stride; it seemed the rumors of his ability to communicate with animals might be true. She had learned not to be surprised by the wonders of the magical world. Instead, she asked:

"How did you take care of her, Hagrid? It must have been difficult."

"It weren't easy, nah," Hagrid replied. "But I got right to it soon as I brought 'er from the clinic. Unicorns need very clean water an' special food. I found the perfect spot for Starry here, in the forest near a spring where nothin' would bother 'er. I fed her special herbs an' berries that unicorns love," he said with pride in his voice.

"And she wasn't afraid of you?" Hermione continued to ask.

"At first, she was a bit scared... yeah, she was," Hagrid recalled fondly. "But then she got used to me. I fed 'er by hand till she could walk on 'er own... An' Starry turned out to be very smart. She quickly understood that I was tryin' to help 'er."

"How is she feeling now?" Harry asked. "Fully recovered?"

"Oh, yeah!" Hagrid laughed. "Strong an' healthy as ever. By the way, did yeh know that unicorns bring luck an' health? They say even their presence can heal."

"Bring luck?" Harry asked skeptically.

"Tha's what they say," Hagrid replied good-naturedly. "Unicorns are pure an' kind creatures. Jus' seein' one is great luck. If it lets yeh touch it, expect great happiness. Tha's how it is..."

After a brief pause, Hagrid added with a smile:

"An' soon, we'll have even more happiness. How many babies do yeh think Starry will have?"

"Books say that unicorns rarely have more than one foal," Hermione replied, always ready to share her knowledge. Before the trip, she had read everything she could find in the library about unicorns.

"Tha's a pity," sighed Hagrid. "But yeh're probably right."

The group fell silent again and continued their journey quietly. The forest, though bare of leaves, was growing thicker and darker.

"How much further?" Ron asked, looking around nervously. "We're not supposed to be in the Forbidden Forest..."

"Don' worry, yeh're with me," said Hagrid, then quickly added, "But actually, we're almost there. Wait here for a minute, I'll go ahead an' check on her to make sure everythin's alright."

After saying that, Hagrid turned off the path and soon disappeared into the thick bushes growing on both sides of the road. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were left alone. Ron didn't seem too happy about it, and Hermione began to look around nervously as well.

Suddenly, from the direction opposite to where Hagrid had gone, there was a noise, and through the bare branches of the bushes, a vague figure flickered. The friends instantly drew their wands and pointed them toward the sound. The Forbidden Forest was home to some very unfriendly creatures, so it was better to be on guard. Meanwhile, the creature making the noise moved a bit further, and through a gap in the branches, they saw a majestic animal resembling a deer. However, its antlers looked more like the patterns of a giant snowflake, as if stuck to its head. The upper part of the animal's body seemed covered in a white blanket, while the lower part looked like an ordinary deer.

The 'deer' stopped and turned its head toward the friends. Its eyes sparkled in the sunlight like diamonds, emitting a cold glow. Hermione suddenly felt very cold. A chill went through her to the bone, but she was mesmerized by this fantastic creature. Her consciousness began to slip away, falling into the embrace of the cold. It seemed the same was happening to her friends... Suddenly, the creature turned sharply and disappeared into the depths of the forest, and the cold that had gripped Hermione began to slowly release its hold.

"Looks like yeh met a Snowcorn," came Hagrid's voice from behind them, quiet but sudden enough to make the kids jump and turn around. Ron involuntarily let out a whimper, and Hermione almost cast a spell, only stopping at the last moment when she realized it was their friend, the gamekeeper.

"Jeez, Hag-grid, it-t's you!" Harry breathed out, struggling to speak through the cold.

"Wha' did yeh say?" Hagrid asked, not catching his words.

"I... I wan-nted to know what that an-nimal was," Harry said, clearly shivering, as were the others. "I felt r-really cold all of a sudden," he finished, rubbing his hands and hopping to warm up.

"Ah... well, tha's no surprise," Hagrid explained. "A Snowcorn spreads waves o' cold around it. They say its horn is the essence o' winter itself, an' its appearance usually means harsh frosts are comin'. They don' usually come near people; very few have seen one, even among wizards. But it's fer the best. Bein' close to it fer too long can be very dangerous; yeh could actually freeze to death. Yeh're lucky I was with yeh..."

"And its magic doesn't affect you?" Hermione asked, already feeling a bit better.

"Not much at all affects me," Hagrid said.

"Why?" Harry asked immediately.

"Tha's none o' yer business... let's jus' say," Hagrid replied, somewhat embarrassed. "Come on, follow me, Starry is waitin'."

Impressed by what they had seen and by Hagrid's story, the friends followed him. After making their way through the bushes, they emerged at the edge of a small clearing covered in fluffy white snow. Tall fir trees surrounded it, and the winter air was filled with the fresh scent of fir. There was no sign of the unicorn.

It wasn't until they reached the middle of the clearing that Starry appeared at the opposite edge, cautiously rising from the snow and staring at the newcomers. Until that moment, she had been completely invisible against the snowy backdrop, and her horn, covered in frost and snow, looked more like a frozen icicle than a part of a living creature.

"Wow!" Ron exclaimed, enchanted.

The sight of the unicorn deeply impressed him. Starry's rounded belly was noticeably protruding, indicating that she was due to give birth soon. However, she didn't seem to appreciate Ron's enthusiastic exclamation and began to back away toward the forest.

"Starry, Starry, don' be afraid—it's jus' me an' my friends," Hagrid quickly called out to her. "I told yeh about 'em, remember? This is Hermione—she helped find yeh by tellin' Professor McGonagall where yeh were bein' kept."

But it seemed that Starry recognized Hermione on her own. She looked at her with a special kind of attention. Hermione was once again struck by her gaze, which, although not pleading this time, was still just as captivating. After a moment, the unicorn slightly bowed her head toward her, as if expressing gratitude for the help. Hermione was amazed and could hardly believe her eyes.

"See? She recognized yeh," Hagrid said, confirming that Hermione hadn't imagined it. "Go on, approach 'er, but carefully. I think she'll let yeh get closer. An' you two," he said, turning to Harry and Ron, "try not to make any noise. Unicorns aren' too fond of men, or boys either."

Hermione began to slowly approach Starry. With each step, she expected the animal to suddenly shy away, but it stayed in place. Once she was very close, Hermione cautiously extended her hand and touched Starry's soft mane. At first, she felt the tension in the animal's body, as if it was about to bolt from the unfamiliar touch. However, that feeling soon faded, and Starry seemed to accept her, allowing Hermione to stroke her.

Hermione felt a wave of calm and joy as she touched the unicorn. In that moment, time seemed to slow down, and everything around her ceased to exist except for the quiet clearing, the wondrous creature before her, and the deep sense of inner happiness that filled her heart. She had no idea how long she stood there. It felt like both a single moment and an eternity. She was brought back to reality by Hagrid's voice:

"I think tha's enough fer now," he said softly.

Hermione reluctantly withdrew her hand from the unicorn, giving Starry's mane one last gentle stroke. She felt as if she was being pulled out of a magical fairy tale she had just stepped into. Smiling at Starry one last time, she turned and walked back, while Ron watched her approach with undisguised envy.

On the way back, everyone was silent, each lost in their own thoughts about the enchanting moment. Finally, as they neared Hagrid's hut, Ron spoke up:

"That was really beautiful!"

"Yes! It was amazing! Like a fairy tale!" Hermione said excitedly, still under the spell of the moment.

Hagrid smiled warmly at hearing this and said:

"Aye... Not everyone gets ter see a unicorn. An' touchin' one... that's somethin' only a few can do..."

Back at the castle, the friends settled in the common room and spent a long time sharing their impressions. Late at night, after parting with them, Hermione floated up to her room, buoyed by her overwhelming feelings. An incredible day, an amazing adventure, the best friends! She climbed into bed and fell asleep almost immediately, not noticing the amulet glowing brighter and brighter...