Harry woke up and took a deep breath, happily relaxing in the tranquillity of early morning. The longer nights meant that although it wasn't early morning he could see the sunrise looming over the forest if he looked out his tower window. And he did, after opening his curtains, then falling back in to his soft snug bed. Harry could hardly believe he'd been at Hogwarts 2 months, what with Quidditch practice 3 times a week and his homework on top of that. The castle felt more like home than Privet drive had ever done. Harry sighed, staring upwards, his hands under his head inhaling the delicious smell of baking pumpkin wafting up all the way from the kitchens. It was Halloween.
Ron opened his curtains, took one look at Harry and dived across to his bed, whipping his covers of. Harry yelped at the cold draft and immediately threw a pillow at his friend, landing a nice shot at his head. Ron was too busy laughing at Harry's indignant expression to mind. Finding another pillow Harry took aim, a determined look on his face. This meant war! Ron saw and decided it would be best if he dived on to Seamus's bed (really, he should remember to draw his curtains if he didn't want this sort of rude awakening) within seconds a full scale battle was occurring, every boy for himself. Feathers were flying and Trevor decided it would be best if he hid under his master's bed until later. Dean ran out of pillows (he hordes them) so decided to tackle harry and trap him under his own duvet, whilst Neville, Ron and Seamus were involved in some sort of mass limb entangled free for all.
Eventually, Peace was restored when Ron ('s tummy) pointed out it was definitely time for breakfast and they dressed and trooped out the door. Harry closed the door, smiling contentedly to himself. "Don't worry mate, we'll clean it up later" Ron grinned as he pulled on his arm, leading him downstairs and to some well deserved bacon.
"Now don't forget that nice wrist movement we've been practicing" squeaked professor Flitwick, perched as usual on top of his stack of books. "Swish and flick remember. Or you might end up like wizard Baruffio who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."
"Do you think it's true?" Seamus asked as he and Harry paired off and the class began to chat excitedly. "I don't know, but I'd rather not have any senseless animals on my chest, there was enough of that this morning! ". Seamus snorted and wacked his arm.
It was very difficult, they swished and they flicked but instead of flying skywards, the feather just lay on the desktop. Seamus got so impatient that he prodded it with his wand and set fire to it – Harry had to put it out with his shoe. He glanced over to the next table where Ron was paired with Hermione Granger and waving his long arms like a windmill. "You're saying it wrong" she snapped. "Its wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the gar nice and long".
"You do it then, if you're so clever." Ron snarled
Hermione rolled up her sleeves, flicked her wand and said "Wingardium Leviosa". Flitwick hurried over "see here everyone, Miss Granger's done it"
Ron was in a very bad temper by the end of class.
"It's no wonder no one can stand her" he said to Harry as they pushed their way through a crowded noisy corridor "she's a nightmare, honestly!"
Someone knocked in to Harry as they hurried past him. It was Hermione. Harry caught a glimpse of her face and was startled to see that she was in tears.
"I think she heard you."
"So" said Ron, but he looked a bit uncomfortable. "She must've noticed she's got no friends." Harry silently wondered if that wasn't exactly the reason she was crying.
Hermione didn't turn up to the next class and wasn't seen all afternoon. The two boys overheard Lavender telling her friend Parvati Patil that she was crying in the girl's toilet and wanted to be left alone. Ron looked more awkward at this, but all thoughts of Hermione were wiped from their minds as they entered the great hall.
Hundreds of live bats fluttered from the walls and ceiling while hundreds more swooped over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles stutter. A silver moon shone down from the ceiling and the candle light reflecting off the golden plates and ripe orange pumpkins gave the hall a warm glow. Harry was heartily digging in to a jacket potato when professor Quirrell came sprinting into the hall, his turban askew and terror on his face."TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS" he continued running to the head table "TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS. Thought you ought to know." He sank to the floor in a dead faint. You could have heard a pin drop. Then there was uproar as students panicked and scrambled to their feet. Silence was brought by some bright purple firecrackers from the end of Dumbledore's wand. "Prefects" he rumbled, "lead your houses back to their dormitories immediately!"
Percy was in his element.
"Follow me! Everyone stick together please! No need to fear the troll if you follow my orders!" They passed different groups of people hurrying in different directions; a sense of quiet panic filled the air. Harry's heart was quickening, and from the looks in his fellow student's eyes, their emotions ranged from nervous superiority (Percy) too downright scared (almost everyone else).
As they jostled through a crowd of confused Hufflepuffs, Harry suddenly grabbed Ron's arm.
"I've just thought-Hermione"
"What about her?"
"She doesn't know about the troll".
Ron bit his lip. He took a deep breath.
"Oh alright" he snapped "but Percy better not see us".
They ducked down, joining a throng of students heading in the other direction. Slipping behind a tapestry and heading down a secret corridor they emerged behind a suit of armour and hurried to the direction of the girl's bathroom. Ron stopped and held up his hand "can you smell that?" referring to a faint waft of something resembling dirty socks and an unclean public toilet. Harry was about to reply when he heard quick footsteps behind them. "Potter. Weasly. What are you doing here? when you were specifically told...to return. To your common rooms?" His voice was angry but oh so soft, only hinting at the menace shown in his eyes. Harry felt his stomach drop. His tongue caught in his throat. It was Ron who replied "Professor Snape sir" he squeaked "Its Hermione Granger sir, she doesn't know about the troll and she's in the toilet so we were going to warn her..." he trailed off as Snape drew a breath "and you didn't think to warn a teacher?" he snarled "you better" – but whatever else he was going to say was interrupted by a high petrified scream from somewhere in the distance. Then the floor shuddered. Harry felt his heart skip a beat. In the smallest fraction of a second afterward he was jolted to his senses. Hermione. Troll. Bathroom. Go. It seemed Ron was of the same mind as they briefly glanced at each other before turning tails and fleeing, not even looking back at Snape. Their hearts where pounding as they ducked turned and twisted through passages and halls. In a few seconds they were at the other side of the castle – their destination. They skidded to a halt and only for a split second did it occur to Harry that actually, the last thing he wanted to do was to face a real live troll. Ron was as pale as the bloody baron. They approached the door frame. The girl was cowering underneath a line of sinks a few of which were just ceramic shards on the floor. Two cubicles were smashed and there was a dent in the opposite wall and there, in the centre of the tall room amidst the rubble stood an ugly creature, twelve feet tall its skin lumpy, grey and dull. It's legs where thick and hairy and in its hand stood a brutal looking wooden club. It was advancing on her, knocking through sinks with his club as he did so. Harry picked up a broken tap of the floor and threw it hard as he could at the trolls head. It roared, blinking and flailing its club about wildly. It turned, mean little eyes finding Harry. Ron, from the other side of the chamber, shouted out meaningless insults as Hermione whimpered.
Harry, noticing the things confusion darted around it and skidded on his knees till he was next to Hermione, ducked beneath the sinks. "Hermione we have to go now" he said clutching her arm and trying to drag her to her feet. The girl looked at him, terror in her eyes, her mouth impersonating a goldfish.
"Stupid pea brain, OI... over here"
"Come on Hermione please we have to go" he pleaded. The girl sniffed and, finally, clambered to her feet. Ron threw himself to the ground as the evil club swhooshed down where his head and shoulders had been moments before, only able to crawl to the sink area Harry had just vacated, a sharp piece of something sticking out of his leg.
"Ron its right behind you" he screamed. The girl tripped over a broken, jagged piece of wooden door, falling to the floor crying out in pain and bringing Harry down with her. The troll, finally decided, turned and advanced towards them, its acrid stink filling their nostrils. He pulled them both to their feet. It was blocking the door. No way out. He shoved her behind him. Ron, still trying to distract the thing pulled out his wand, horror in his eyes as he saw it snapped cleanly in half. Desperately now he threw all manner of debris. It was almost upon them. As soon as harry thought to pull out his own wand, mind blank, the troll shoved his arm out, snarling and propelling Harry towards the other side of the room. His elbow hit the wall first, shattering, Then his shoulder, cracking. Then the rest of him. Limbs breaking. And he slid to the floor.
That was only the troll's fist.
It was the other hand that held the jagged wooden club that came sideways upon the screaming child's body, once when she was standing, again when she was on the floor. Legs at a funny angle and barely conscious she tried to raise her quivering torso, pushing herself up on her hands. The club descended a third time. This time on her head. The two boys stared on, unable to move, both lying on the floor in shock as the beast mangled her now still body a fourth time. Then a fifth time. Was it laughing?
It was only sixty seconds after the boys entered the bathroom that Snape did so with McGonagall and the Headmaster behind him. It was a sight to be sure. Amongst the dust and dirt at the far side of the room, a tuft of ginger was crying, blood pooled around his legs. Against another wall, blood pooled around his head, was a conscious Potter so deadly still. But breathing and staring at the, the mangled bloody girl with flesh and blood and bone pooled around her.
And the troll and its gleeful bloody club. With just a wave of the Headmasters wand it was petrified still. McGonagall paled to grey with tears in her eyes. The potion masters' hand went to his mouth the other clenching his wand tight. They didn't approach the girl. It was clear they were far, far too late.
"We tried to save her" Harry whispered, his voice breaking. Ron was at up against the wall crying.
"Well you didn't do a very good job did you" said a very recognisable bossy voice. "Honestly Ronald, swish and flick, we only just studied it today" said the girl floating above her body.
"Miss Granger?"Murmured the Head, looking shocked.
The professors carted the children up to the hospital wing leaving the bathroom in a frozen state, too astonished and shocked by recent events to say much. A silvery child followed her almost-rescuers.
And from that moment on Hermione Granger became their friend. There are some things you can't share without winding up friends with each other, and facing a twelve foot mountain troll was one of them.