CHAPTER 39

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CHAPTER 39

The common room lay quiet; everyone was asleep, lit by the soft glow of a solitary lamp. Ron was working on his wand movement, and Hermione was reading something next to the fireplace. They were waiting for Harry. As Harry entered the room, he couldn't contain the weight of the revelations any longer. 

"Guys, you won't believe what I heard tonight. Dumbledore and Snape were talking, and it was intense."

Ron raised an eyebrow, and Hermione leaned forward, their expressions a canvas for the anticipation building in the room.

"What were they talking about, Harry?" Ron asked.

Harry hesitated, choosing his words carefully. "Snape owes Dumbledore his allegiance. They mentioned someone, a 'she.' Snape was upset and said they couldn't save her. And... they don't believe Voldemort's threat is over."

Color on Ron's face blanched, and with a hushed voice, he said,

"Don't say his name, Harry."

Harry shook his head and didn't care about it; he was not going to be afraid of saying his name. A contemplative hush settled over the room.

"'She'? Who could that be?" Hermione pondered aloud.

Harry shook his head. "They never said her name. But it sounded like Snape cared about her, and Dumbledore, too."

"So, Snape's on our side, then?" Ron questioned.

"It seems like it. But there's more. They talked about the philosopher's stone. They're worried about keeping it safe," Harry explained.

"The philosopher's stone? Why would that be a concern?" Hermione looked worried. Ron held his head and shook it from side to side,

"This is too much. First, Snape's the bad guy, and now he's the good guy and working with Dumbledore?" Ron rubbed his temples. Ron recalled how Snape treated everyone in his class and said,

"He doesn't feel like a good guy; he feels like the villain in a story."

Harry nodded and said, "I thought the same. But there's a bigger picture here. They're trying to protect this philosopher's stone; we need to learn more about it."

Ron said,

"Didn't you say the thing Hagrid took from the vault was the philosopher's stone? You guys still couldn't find anything about it?"

Hermione put her hands on her waist and, with an angry tone, said,

"It would have helped if you read some book too."

Harry smiled,

"Last time I snuck into the restricted side, I couldn't find the book because one of the books I took out screamed, and I had to run away."

It was like a light bulb had lit on the top of Ron's head,

"Wait a minute, we know someone else who snuck into the restrictive section."

Hermione, while smiling, said,

"Hmph, that is a miracle Ron used his head. Now I know that your head is not filled with only Chocolate Frogs and Honeydukes." 

Ron frowned and said,

"Hey!! I don't always think about eating, but I wouldn't say no to a Honeyduke right now. I am famished from all those thinking and talking."

...

The next day, the trio wanted to talk with Elmi in private, but this time, Elmi brought his friends with him. Ron and Zabini were looking at each other as if they wanted to kill one another. Ron said,

"Do they have to be here? We just wanted to talk with Elmi?"

In an arragont tone Zabini said, 

"I'm not that interested in seeing your face, Weasley."

Then Elmi cut them off,

"I have nothing to hide from them; if you want to tell me something, you can tell them too."

Daphne pulled Zabini from his arm and said,

"Be nice. Are you boys going to play nice, or do you want to leave the table?"

As always, Daphne had taken control of the situation. Ron and Zabini turned their faces away unhappily but stopped bickering with each other. Harry turned to Elmi and said,

"I have confirmed what you told me, but now I have more questions than answers."

...

It was obvious from the way he talked that Harry didn't want to talk about his invisibility cloak in front of them. He already knew who the "she" was, but Elmi couldn't just tell him that she was his mother. He couldn't explain how he knew it, but he could talk about the stone,

"Everyone that is interested in alchemy would know what a philosopher's stone is. It is the pinnacle of alchemy, created by Nicholas Flamel in the early parts of the second millennium; it has many abilities, one of which is the ability to transform base metals, like lead, into precious metals, such as gold. This aspect reflects the alchemical pursuit of turning base substances into something more valuable."

Ron's eyes glowed with golden glint,

"Does this mean if we have it, we will be rich?"

Elmi smiled,

"No, just because you have it doesn't mean you can just start creating gold. To do that, you first need to be a master alchemist."

He turned to others and continued,

"Anyway, that isn't even the most precious ability it has. That would be the elixir of life, or it is called the elixir of immortality if you count turning into brittle and emaciated skeleton immortality."

Hermione was jealous of his knowledge,

"How do you know about those things? I have read about alchemy and potion making and never heard of his name."

Everyone else agreed with her, and Tracey said,

"Elmi, there isn't such a famous alchemist in the world. None of us ever heard of him. Zabini's family business is potion trading. If he was that famous, he would have at least heard of his name."

Elmi smiled,

"Ooh, he is famous or should I say he was famous. His name is stricken from most common books, and he lives a private life away from prying eyes."

Hermione and Daphne realize right away what Elmi said; Daphne cuts him off,

"Wait a minute, you said he lives a private life?"

"Yes, he is still alive; when you have lived more than several centuries, you make a lot of powerful friends that can erase you from the books."

He scribbled a book's name on the parchment and pushed it toward Hermione and Daphne. 

"If you don't believe me, you can read this book from the restrictive section and see for yourselves. Of course, most books don't talk about him still being alive. If you ask Professor Binns, he would most likely give you a permission slip for this book." 

Elmi managed to pull the conversation as he wanted, and now he had to find a moment to catch Harry alone so he could convince him to go touch Querrill in front of a crowded place.