Author's note: Okay, not much to say today. Couldn't really combine this with another chapter like I did the last two, so it's kind of short. Sorry.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or Merlin.
Hermione couldn't believe this! How could Marlin be so stupid! He was going to get himself killed, and then where would she be?
And she had no problem of telling him this as he headed on his way to the second floor corridor to fight a troll in a bathroom, where, she realized with a shudder, she would be if Marlin hadn't comforted her.
It was with an indignant squeak that she was pulled into an alcove to find Ron and Harry staring at her.
"What are you doing? We were looking for you!" hissed Ron, and if Hermione wasn't too busy worrying about Marlin, she might've been a bit touched and promptly forgive Ron for his words. As it was, Marlin was occupying the majority of her thoughts, and only a small part of her was happy.
However, it was with no hesitation that she replied, "I was following these idiots! They seem to think they can take on a troll by themselves!"
Then Harry said, "Shh!" and she was silenced.
Hermione looked out from the alcove to see Snape, and stifled a squeak of fear.
"What is he doing here?" Merlin asked.
Oh, I don't know, fighting a troll because he is actually capable of doing it?
retorted Hermione in her thoughts.
Harry then said, "I don't know! Come on!" and they snuck past Snape, Harry and Ron heading towards the Common Room, and Draco and Merlin heading towards the bathroom. Hermione stood there for a moment, then quickly decided that Marlin actually considered her a friend, and she should still try to stop him from facing a full-grown troll.
"Are you crazy? Come on!" she exclaimed, and Merlin shook his head, frustrating her to no end.
"I'm not going to let a troll roam the school!"
"That's the teachers' jobs! Come on!"
Merlin shook his head and turned around, and Hermione sighed in exasperation. They were going to get themselves killed! She was vaguely aware of Ron and Harry following her as she followed Marlin and Draco.
"Hermione! Wait!" they shouted, and she ignored them. "Let's just go back to the Common Room!"
"No!" she shouted with no hesitation, and then there was a crash. Marlin and Draco rushed forward, Marlin stopping with his hand out, which seemed like a futile gesture to Hermione, and Draco glaring at his wand as though he wished it were something else. Hermione wondered what he could possibly replace a wand with in terms of usefulness, but then the troll charged towards Draco and Merlin pulled him to the side and she was snapped out of her musings.
"See, I told you you were a magnet for trouble!" Merlin shouted, and Hermione was stunned that he could possibly make jokes at a time like this, but was jolted back to reality as Draco said something even more strange.
"Well, if I had my sword-"
Hermione briefly wondered how a sword could compare to a wand and why Draco would want a sword in the first place when he could easily use his wand and whether Draco had lessons in fencing, which she doubted was taught to the pureblood families, as it is a muggle sport, before the troll was running towards her and her friends and Merlin shouted some gibberish word that she didn't understand and the troll suddenly had a giant hole through its side, falling to the ground. She stared.
And then Draco hit Marlin over the head.
"Marlin, you idiot! If my father hears I've been expelled-"
"Oi, you clotpole!" What? "What was this you said about how they couldn't-"
"Clotpole?" Snape said, and then Hermione became aware of the teachers that had appeared.
Then McGonagall rounded on the Gryffindors.
"What in the world were you thinking! facing down a troll- why, I should have you expelled!"
Hermione cringed, and then Flitwick stepped in.
"Now, Minerva, I'm sure that they weren't the ones planning on fighting a troll," he said, sending the Slytherins a meaningful look. Hermione admired how level-headed he was being about all of this, but McGonagall looked at him with fury in her eyes.
"Then why weren't they in their Common Room! Really, the thought of my lions going after a troll-"
Hermione was vaguely aware of Snape saying, "Come," in the middle of McGonagall's tangent and walking off with the Slytherins.
"-is preposterous!" McGonagall finished, and then noticed Snape leading the Slytherins away and sent him a thankful look.
Hermione got her courage up when she realized that McGonagall was finished. "It was my fault, Professor," she said, and McGonagall looked at her in surprise.
"Miss Granger, how could it be your fault? Those Slytherins-"
"-Were following my lead," Hermione interrupted, partly horrified at the fact that she had just interrupted a teacher. "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. Harry and Ron went looking for me when they didn't see me going back to the Common Room, and Marlin and Draco were trying to help me."
McGonagall stared at Hermione, then eventually sighed. "Well- in that case..." she said, "Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for this. 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," she said, and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief and headed back to Gryffindor tower, wondering what had gotten into her head to lie to a teacher like that. She heard McGonagall say something including, "Lucky," and "Professor Dumbledore," but she couldn't bring herself to care as she made her way to the Common Room.
"Pig snout," she said, and went into the Common Room, met by several stares from her fellow Gryffindors, which she promptly ignored.
She stood by the door to wait for Harry and Ron. Eventually, Harry and Ron entered the Common Room as well, and there was an awkward pause as they all avoided each others' eyes. Then, they all said "Thanks," and went to join the feast.
But, Hermione liked to think that she had gained a few more friends at that moment, and that that feast was the best meal that she had had at Hogwarts to date.
...
Snape was gobsmacked. Dumbledore was just letting them off like that! He was letting them go without any questions and that flimsy explanation? Sometimes the potions professor worried for the headmaster's sanity.
He was about to call Professor Dumbledore out on this, but was stopped when the headmaster called, "Severus, stay," and the two were allowed to leave the headmaster's office with no problems.
There was a silence as the two left the room, but as soon as the door was closed Snape whirled on the headmaster.
"What do you think you are doing? That weak explanation hardly shows how a first-year can do wandless magic," he said with cold fury, fighting to keep his calm.
Dumbledore just studied him as he waited for an answer, and eventually said, "Have you used Legilimency on the boys, Severus?" leaving Snape with even more frustration at his lack of an answer and confusion at the question.
"You know I don't use it without a reason," he snapped, which was partially true. He did use it on Marlin, but he wouldn't use it on Draco without a good reason, for fear of what the boy's father would do if he found out.
The twinkle in Dumbledore's eye just seemed to get more potent.
"Oh, but if I'm right, you used it on Marlin, did you not?" he asked, and Snape creased his brow. He should have guessed that the headmaster would figure it out.
"I find a first-year knowing wandless magic as a perfectly good reason," he said.
Dumbledore nodded. "Ah, yes, that is a good reason. It is also strange for a first year to know Occlumency, but, tell me, did you think to use it on Draco?"
Snape frowned. "No. I fear what his father would do if he found out," he said, and Dumbledore smiled, his eyes twinkling all the more.
"Ah, but I fear what his father would do if he found out what was in the boy's head. Did you know that Marlin has shared all his secrets with him? The boy's mind is quite surprising."
Snape stared at the headmaster. "Are you suggesting that I go and poke around in one of my student's minds?"
Dumbledore's eyes just twinkled. "I assure you, you have all the reason in the world to investigate Marlin. Now, is there anything else you would like to talk about, Severus?"
