A/N I am not J . K Rowling, Yes a lot of these words are hers, I plan on this being a Series and the first two book will be almost identical to the first two in the original series, but some of the small changes are essential to the on going story so I started here instead of Prisoner of Azkaban. I hope you stay with this story because its an idea that I adore.
What could have been.
Halloween.
"Hermione!" they said together, panic coursed through them
Though it was the last thing they wanted to do, they wheeled around and sprinted to the door, what choice did they have, fumbling in their panic they turned the key.
Harry wrenched the door open and they ran inside.
Hermione Granger was curled up against the wall opposite them, looking as though she was about faint.
The troll was advancing on her, knocking the sinks off the wall, as a mere inconvenience, as it marched towards her.
"Confuse it!" Harry said desperately to Ron, seizing a tap, he threw it with as much force as he could against the wall.
The troll stopped a few feet from Hermione.
It lumbered around, blinking stupidly, to see what had made the noise.
Harry breathed a sigh of relief and then, it mean little eye's found Harry.
It hesitated, then made for him instead, lifting its club as it went. Harry's eye's widened and he scrambled backwards
"Oy, pea-brain!" yelled Ron from the other side of the chamber, hoping to save his new and best friend, he threw a metal pipe at it.
The troll didn't even seem to notice the pipe hitting its shoulder, however it heard the yell and paused again.
This time it turned towards Ron, giving Harry time to run around it and try and get Hermione to move.
"Come on, run, run!" Harry yelled at Her, trying to pull her toward the door, but she couldn't move, she was still flat against the wall, her mouth open with terror staring at Ron as the shouting and the echoes seemed to be driving the troll berserk.
It roared again and started toward Ron, who was nearest and had no way to escape.
Harry then did something that was both very brave and very stupid: something they would all make a habit of in the future.
He took a great running jump and managed to fasten his arms around the troll's neck from behind.
The troll couldn't feel Harry hanging there, but even a troll will notice if you stick a long bit of wood up its nose, and Harry's wand which has still been in his hand when he jumped had gone straight up one of the troll's nostrils.
Howling with pain, the troll twisted and flailed its club, with Harry clinging on for dear life; any second, the troll was going to rip him off or catch him a terrible blow with the club.
Hermione had sunk to the floor in fright; Ron pulled out his own wand — not knowing what he was going to do he heard himself cry the first spell that came into his head: "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The club flew suddenly out of the troll's hand, rose high, high up into the air, turned slowly over — and dropped, with a sickening crack, onto its owner's head.
The troll swayed on the spot and then fell flat on its face, with a thud that made the whole room tremble.
Harry got to his feet. He was shaking and out of breath. Ron was standing there with his wand still raised, staring at what he had done.
It was Hermione who spoke first.
"Is it — dead?"
"I don't think so," said Harry, "I think it's just been knocked out."
He bent down and pulled his wand out of the troll's nose. It was covered in what looked like lumpy gray glue.
"Urgh — troll boogers."
He wiped it on the troll's trousers.
Hermione placed her hand on is back and opened her mouth to say something when…
A sudden slamming and loud footsteps made the three of them look up.
They hadn't realized what a racket they had been making, but of course, someone downstairs must have heard the crashes and the troll's roars, not to mention their screams.
A moment later, Professor McGonagall had come bursting into the room, closely followed by Snape, with Quirrell bringing up the rear, not a group anybody was happy to see.
Quirrell took one look at the troll, let out a faint but dramatic whimper, and sat quickly down on a toilet, clutching his heart.
Snape bent over the troll, without fear but wrinkling his long nose in distaste.
Professor McGonagall was looking at Ron and Harry completely surpassing Hermione obviously assuming she was an innocent bystander.
Harry had never seen her looking so angry.
Her lips had gone white.
Harry's hopes of winning fifty points for Gryffindor faded quickly from his mind, he hadn't really expected that anyway.
"What on earth were you thinking of?" said Professor McGonagall, with cold fury in her voice.
Harry looked at Ron, who was still standing with his wand in the air.
"You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you in your dormitory?"
Snape gave Harry a swift, piercing look.
Harry looked at the floor.
He wished Ron would put his wand down.
Then a small voice came out of the shadows shocking them all.
"Please, Professor McGonagall — they were looking for me."
"Miss Granger!"
Hermione had managed to get to her feet at last.
"I went looking for the troll because I — I thought I could deal with it on my own — you know, because I've read all about them."
Ron dropped his wand in surprise.
Hermione Granger, telling a downright lie to a teacher?
"If they hadn't found me, I'd be dead now. Harry stuck his wand up its nose and Ron knocked it out with its own club. They didn't have time to come and fetch anyone. It was about to finish me off when they arrived." Her voice became stronger and more vehement as she grew in confidence, desperate to defend the boys who saved her.
Harry and Ron tried to look as though this story wasn't new to them, unsuccessfully.
"Well — in that case…" said Professor McGonagall, staring at the three of them, her voice uncertain, "Miss Granger, you foolish girl, how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own?"
Hermione hung her head, in a very convincing display of shame.
Harry was speechless.
Hermione was the last person to do anything against the rules, and here she was, pretending she had, to get them out of trouble.
It was as if Snape had started handing out sweets.
"Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for this," said Professor McGonagall. "I'm very disappointed in you. If you're not hurt at all, you'd better get off to Gryffindor tower. Students are finishing the feast in their houses."
Hermione left with her head still bowed.
Professor McGonagall turned to Harry and Ron, who shrank backwards in fear.
"Well, I still say you were lucky, but not many first years could have taken on a full-grown mountain troll.
You each win Gryffindor five points. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. You may go."
They hurried out of the chamber and didn't speak at all until they had climbed two floors up.
It was a relief to be away from the smell of the troll, quite apart from anything else.
"We should have gotten more than ten points," Ron grumbled.
"Five, you mean, once she's taken off Hermione's."
"Good of her to get us out of trouble like that," Ron admitted. "Mind you, we did save her."
"She might not have needed saving if we hadn't locked the thing in with her," Harry reminded him.
Ron flinched "or if she wasn't in there crying because of me anyway" his faced filled with absolute shame.
Harry put his arm around Ron and squeezed comfortingly.
They had reached the portrait of the Fat Lady.
"Pig snout," they said and entered.
The common room was packed and noisy.
Everyone was eating the food that had been sent up.
Hermione, however, stood alone by the door, obviously waiting for them.
There was a very embarrassed pause.
Then, none of them looking at each other, they all said "Thanks," and hurried off together to get plates.
After collecting food the three sat down together and got to know each other all over again, each feeling more comfortable then they ever had before, not a freak or a know it all or just another redhead.
From that moment, Hermione Granger was their friend.
Well there are somethings you just can not share without ending up friends, knocking out a twelve-foot troll is apparently one of them.