Chapter Ten: Quarrel With Quirrel

After everyone finished DADA the students all went to the Great Hall to partake in some delicious lunch. Dudley began telling everyone who would listen, which was pretty much everyone except for the rotten Slytherins, his daring tales of heroism that day, while Ron ate food and Harry supplemented Dudley's delicious deliveries with some dashing dialogue of his own. Hermione was studying a book that would tell her how to convince someone of Dudley's magnificence that he is perfect for her. All conversations ceased when Dumbledore stood and made an announcement.

"Cease making conversations students," Dumbledore said, winking at Dudley with his twinkling eyes. "I am pleased to announce that you won't have to go without a History of Magic teacher for very long, as our new professor will be arriving shortly."

The students groaned slightly, they were all looking forward to having a free period and already several students had gifted Dudley with gifts in thanks for easing their workload. With a fantastic flourish Dumbledore pointed at the Great Doors and they burst open with a thunderous clatter, and through the doors came:
"Dad?!" Ron said, a cry that was echoed by his four siblings currently attending Hogwarts.

Indeed, it was Mr. Weasley, his bald head gleaming slightly from the red hair covering it. He quickly strode to the front of the Hall and faced the students.

"I am looking forward to teaching you about the History of Magic, because I know a lot about that subject. And don't worry," he said as several students started to mumble suspicions to each other, "Unlike your last teacher, I am definitely not evil!"

With that confident declaration all the suspicious people stopped being suspicious, as there was no way he could still be evil after a statement like that.

"Hmm," Dudley said suspiciously.

"What is it best friend?" Ron asked.

"No one told your father Binns was evil…so how did he know?"

Ron paled dramatically at that, but didn't answer. Dudley merely nodded gravely, and as the three finished lunch they left. They didn't get far before they were stopped by Mr. Weasley on the way to their common room.

"Well hello there, Dudley," Mr. Weasley said, giving Dudley an odd stare.

"Hello, Mr. Weasley," Dudley said as politely as possible.

"Please, call me Arthur Weasley," he said, extending a hand that Dudley shook cautiously. "I thought I should see the student that had just done me a great favor by leaving a job open for me. Well, enjoy the Halloween Feast tonight!"

With that, Arthur Weasley spun around and strode to the Teacher's Lounge, with Ron calling after him like a male anglerfish would call after its mate if it had somehow become unstuck and was capable of making vocalizations several thousand feet below the ocean's surface.

Dudley merely shook as head, a strange cloud settling over his thoughts.

"What's wrong, Dudley?" Harry asked his favorite cousin.

"I just felt a vague sense of foreboding," Dudley said, clutching his head. "As if I was nearing the end of my time here."

"Oh no!" Hermione said, and then she fainted.

Several hours later she woke up in the Hospital Wing, surrounded by her many friends. Madam Pomfrey hissed something that Hermione didn't quite understand, but everyone seemed very relieved that she was still alive. They spent the next twelve hours or so playing various Wizarding Games in the Library, like Wizard Chess and Exploding Snap, all of which was much more fun than the ordinary boring Muggle counterparts, like Risk and Parcheesi. Soon their fun ended though, and it was time to go to the Halloween Feast.

As soon as the nine entered the Hall though, Professor Quirrel charged in and shouted that someone had just let a troll in through the girls bathroom on the second floor. Before anyone had a chance to even scream in terrified fright, he charged right back out, saying something about hiding in the watercloset.

Dumbledore tried to calm all the students down, but Arthur Weasley cut him off. "Everyone, return to your rooms! No one besides us teachers is capable of fighting off a troll!"

As the students panicked and ran, Dudley grabbed his friends and barreled up the stairs. "I have to save everyone!" Dudley said determinedly, both hands holding onto his wand.

At last they reached the third floor and in front of them was a terrifying troll, with a big club and smelly nostrils. It looked like a rock had been carved into the shape of an angry tree, and then the tree tried to uproot itself, but only managed to yank a massive log out of the bog that it was in, and the log in the bog was seven feet eight inches long. That's what ran through Harry's mind as Dudley raised his wand.

"Stupefy!" Dudley shouted, as a jet of red light shot out of his wand…and skimmed off the troll and splattered into the ceiling. The troll roared and raised its club, ignoring Dudley's second Stupefy.

Ron and Harry looked stunned, while Hermione looked at Dudley as he expertly ducked under the club and fired a Diffindo at the troll's chest, opening up a shallow cut on the creature's skin that leaked grayish fluid. The troll ignored the minor wound and turned towards Dudley again.

"Feel free to help at any time!" Dudley shouted, dodging a second swing.

"But we don't know any spells!" Hermione said, "All we've learned is some basic Potions and Transfiguration, our other classes didn't teach us anything, which you know since History of Magic was an evil class and we didn't cover Trolls in Care of Magical Creatures, and we didn't learn any battle-runes yet in Arithmancy and-AH!"

Hermione froze as the troll spun and swung its club at her, her high-pitched nasally voice irritating its dull senses.

"Impedimenta!" Dudley shouted, putting enough force into the spell that the troll was stopped for a moment, long enough for Neville to tackle Hermione out of the way of the club.

The stomped its foot then, fury driving it to greater and wilder acts of violence, but the students were too small and quick for it in the cramped space of the bathroom. But before they could make a plan, a brutal voice cried out, "Abrumpo!"

A bright purple swathe of magic cut through the air and slammed into Dudley's back, propelling him forward and tearing a line of blood through the air. Crying out in pain and surprise, Dudley frantically cast a healing spell as blood poured through the wound. His skin knitted itself back together, almost as if by magic and Dudley turned to face his foe.

"Quirrel?"

"Yes! It is I! The Dark Lord's Greatest Servant!" Quirrel cackled, his turban coming apart and flapping great pieces of cloth around his head. "Die!"

Quirrel shot out another spell that Dudley blocked with flick of his wand. "Why do you want to kill me?"

"You are his greatest adversary, if you die now than you can't stop him! Avada Kedavra!"

The green fire leapt from Quirrel's wand and seemed to burn the air itself. Dudley threw himself to the ground and the spell carved a vicious chunk out of the stone wall. Meanwhile, Hermione managed to recall one of the spells she learned about it Hogwarts, spells that can be used and cast Incendio at the troll. It missed, since she was young and not very good at magic, but it did hit the wooden club and set it ablaze.

The troll screamed and dropped the flaming club, before reaching for Hermione. Panicked, Harry shouted the first thing that came to his head, "Windgardium Leviosa!" and the flaming club slammed into the troll's face, stunning it. It stumbled back until it was near Quirrel who hissed and cast a Petrificus Totalus on the troll with enough power that it froze where it was, not even falling to the ground.

"Let me see the fool that challenges me!" A thin cold voice cried out.

"But master! You are not ready-"

"LET ME SEE HIM!"

"Okay," Quirrel said and poked his turban with his wand. Immediately the cloth forming the turban fell apart and reformed into a hideous face, still connected to Quirrel with a pulsing cloth of turban.

"I knew it!" Hermione said as she and Ron and Harry turned to stand by Dudley, "You ARE a terrorist!"

"I AM THE DARK LORD VOLDEMORT! FEAR ME, FOR I KILLED HARRY'S PARENTS!"

"No!" Harry shouted, "That's impossible! They died in a bombing!"

"Prepare to die Dudley!" Quirrel shouted, raising his wand again.

"Flatus!" Dudley shouted. Quirrel smirked, preparing to block the blasting curse, only to have it miss. Confused, he followed the yellow beam…straight to the troll's leg. With a horrible grinding sound of shattered bone and gristle the leg blew apart, splattering Quirrel with green troll blood. With a roar of pain and death and unbalance the troll tottered and fell towards Quirrel!

"NOOOOOO!" Quirrel said, raising his hands in front of him, as if to block the slowly falling troll.

"AAAAAAGH!" Voldemort said as the troll fell and squished them to death.

Immediately after they fell Dumbledore swirled into the dungeons and froze upon seeing the bodies.

"Go the Great Hall. Dudley, you will be rewarded for this."

Dudley nodded, blinking tiredly as they left. By the time they reached the hall, the teachers were already throwing up banners celebrating Dudley's defeat of yet another teacher and a bad guy. Students were throwing food in the air and clapping their hands and everyone was very happy. However, Harry didn't get far in his meal before he realized Dudley was missing. Confused he tried to look for him, only to find Dudley outside.

A clap of lightning shattered the clear sky and rain poured down as Harry collapsed next to Dudley's corpse. With a cry of rage greater than any he had ever felt before Harry screamed Dudley's murderer's name to the sky.

"CURSE YOU, ARTHUR WEASLEY!"