A/N: Thanks so much to my loyal reviewers Louise Spinster Black and DS2010! I really appreciate the two of you reviewing faithfully on each chapter! Thanks also to those who favourited and subscribed, and I hope to hear from y'all soon too!

Today's chapter is a very long one, and the flashbacks are particularly significant in understanding certain motivations. That's all I will say; now, read and enjoy!

Chapter Five: Halloween Surprises

Due to the excitement of his nighttime adventure, Harry overslept the next morning and only awoke when Seamus yanked the covers off him to allow Dean to splash him with cold water.

"Yow! What the —" Harry spluttered and coughed, and glared reproachfully at the two offenders. "What did you do that for?!"

"Sorry, mate, but you wouldn't wake up," said Seamus — totally unapologetically, of course. "You're going to miss breakfast."

Dean was even less contrite. "I've always wanted to do that," he laughed.

Harry grumbled discontentedly as he got out of bed. "I hate you both."

Ron came in from the bathroom just then — he took one look at Harry's soaked pyjamas and glared at Seamus and Dean. "You splashed him?"

"Mate, it was the only way to wake him up," Seamus defended. "He sleeps like a log."

"I told you I'd wake him up when I got back from the loo!" Ron ranted. "I could've done it without soaking him. Now he has to dry himself and the bed — he's gonna be late for sure! Harry, I'm really sorry," Ron apologised. "I would've stopped them if I'd known."

Harry waved him off. "It's fine. I did need a wake-up call."

"What on earth did you do last night?" Dean wondered. "You're not usually this dead in the mornings."

"Nothing," Harry lied. "Couldn't sleep till past midnight." That, at least, was the truth.

The door to their dorm opened and Neville's round face peeked in. "Aren't you ready yet?" he asked plaintively. "I'm hungry."

"You go on without us, Neville," Ron urged as Harry darted into the bathroom to wash up. "We'll be down in a bit."

Neville looked rather apprehensive. "I don't want to go alone. What if I get stopped by Slytherins?" He was genuinely terrified of the prospect.

"We'll come with you," Dean volunteered for himself and Seamus. "Ron, you waiting for Harry?"

"Dunno. If he takes much longer, I'll abandon him too," Ron admitted shamelessly. "I'm hungry too."

"We'll save you a seat," Seamus promised as he, Dean, and Neville slipped out of the dorm.

"Harry!" called Ron. "Hurry up!"

Lucius arrived at Hogwarts for his sixth year expecting that James Potter would not keep his word about not bothering Severus, and was grimly satisfied to find that he was right. The minute Potter caught sight of Severus in the Great Hall at the Welcome Feast, he nudged Black and they both mimed a snivelling coward in reference to their derogatory nickname for the second-year boy. Lucius was pleased to see Severus pointedly turn his back and ignore the Gryffindors — Potter's gang were, indeed, not worthy of their attention. Potter and Black, especially, brought shame upon the names of their great houses by acting like moronic mischief-makers.

Lucius glanced once more at the Gryffindor table and was surprised to see a young red-haired girl glowering at Potter and Black. When they proved too oblivious to notice her displeasure, she reached across the table and gave each of them a sound whack on the head, muttering angry words Lucius could not hear from across the Hall.

Lucius momentarily wondered why a Gryffindor girl would come to the defence of Severus, but then he dismissed her intervention as being due to pure annoyance with Potter and Black's antics, not out of any altruism for a Slytherin classmate. He spared no further thought for the redhead until the rumours began circulate.

At first he took no notice of these ridiculous claims. Severus knew the importance of blood purity — he would never associate with a Mudblood as closely as people were saying, let alone a Gryffindor. But as the weeks passed and the rumours persisted, Lucius took to observing Severus between classes. He felt oddly responsible for the younger boy since he had taken him under his wing the previous year. And to his dismay, he found that the rumours were true — Severus's best friend was the Muggleborn Lily Evans, otherwise known to Lucius as the redhead who had smacked Potter and Black during the Welcome Feast.

Lucius made up his mind to confront Severus about this. This friendship could not be allowed to continue; Severus was an apt pupil in the Dark Arts, and had plenty of talent that would be wasted if it were not put to use for a noble cause. Lucius had already made up his mind to take the Dark Mark once he was seventeen, following his father's footsteps in service to Lord Voldemort. The Dark Lord was quietly beginning to wage war against the way things were done, taking the first steps to purifying their world from Muggle scum. Severus would be a valuable asset, and Lucius was hoping to recruit him into the Death Eaters when he was older.

But first, he had to remove Severus from the Mudblood's influence.

Harry and Ron made it to the Great Hall just as the owls flew in with the mail. Ron caught his rolled-up edition of the Daily Prophet the same time Hedwig landed on Harry's shoulder with a note clutched in her beak.

"Who keeps sending you these notes, Harry?" asked Ron as they settled themselves at the Gryffindor table and traded looks of greeting with Dean, Seamus, and Neville (who had successfully made it to breakfast without being accosted by Slytherins, if his cheerful demeanour was anything to go by).

"A friend of mine outside Hogwarts," Harry answered absently, trading Hedwig a slice of melon for his mail.

"I thought you grew up with Muggles?" Ron sounded mildly curious.

Harry thought fast. "Er, yeah…but she's a Squib who lives in my neighbourhood, and she knows about Hogwarts. She figured out that I was a wizard after she saw an owl arriving with my school letter."

Ron merely grunted, already distracted by the breakfast foods he had procured for himself. Harry hid a grin and surreptitiously read his note while he sipped pumpkin juice.

Check out today's headline. Think it has anything to do with yesterday's dog? — H

Harry frowned thoughtfully, glancing at the Daily Prophet beside Ron's plate. "Hey, Ron, can I borrow your paper?"

"Sure, go ahead." The redhead's voice was rather muffled thanks to the food stuffed in his mouth, but Harry understood the acquiescence in his tone.

He untied the twine around the thick cylinder and unrolled the wizarding paper, and was instantly faced with a black-and-white photograph of three or four Gringotts goblins pacing and waving their arms in obvious consternation in front of an open vault. The headline read, BREAK-IN AT GRINGOTTS, which surprised Harry a great deal — growing up with the Malfoys, he, like any other wizard, had come to consider Gringotts impossible to break into.

"What's that?" Ron peered over his elbow, his eyes widening at the front page news. "No way!" he exclaimed. "Someone broke into Gringotts?"

"What?!" Seamus exclaimed from Ron's other side — he was reading his own copy of the Daily Prophet.

"'Believed to be the work of Dark witches or wizards unknown, Gringotts goblins confirmed earlier today that there was break-in in one of their vaults on the morning of 30th August'," read Harry out loud. "'The Auror office has been conducting an investigation into the break-in, but the goblins insist that nothing was taken. The vault in question, number 713, had in fact been emptied earlier that same day.'"

"How'd they keep this quiet for two weeks?" Seamus wondered. "Nobody can break into Gringotts!"

"What was in the vault?" Neville inquired from his seat directly opposite Seamus.

Dean snorted as he read from Seamus' paper. "'We're not telling you what was in there, so keep your noses out if you know what's good for you'," he quoted. "From the mouth of a goblin himself."

"Typical," Ron complained. "Those buggers never tell us anything. My brother Bill says they're almost impossible to talk to." With that said, he dismissed the matter and turned his attention back to his breakfast.

Harry, however, had a small frown on his face. Judging from Draco's note, the Slytherin seemed to think that whatever had been in the vault was now in Hogwarts being guarded by the three-headed dog in the third-floor corridor. If so, what was it and why was it being hidden at Hogwarts? It had to be something powerful and extremely magical if it was being guarded by such a ferocious creature.

The bell for class rang just then, and Harry rushed to shove the last of his toast into his mouth. The object from the vault was a mystery best saved until after he had made it through Potions.

It was dinnertime on a Thursday night when Lily and Severus, having walked to the Great Hall together, very nearly ran into a sixth-year Slytherin with smooth blond hair.

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Lily said at once. "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going."

"Clearly," the sixth-year drawled, and Lily noticed the silver prefect's badge on his robes.

"Apologies, Lucius," said Severus neutrally.

"Accepted," Lucius said curtly. He turned his pale gaze on Lily, who shifted uncomfortably under his penetrating stare. "Is this a friend of yours, Severus?" he asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes. This is Lily Evans," Severus introduced hastily. "We've been friends since before Hogwarts."

"I see." Lucius looked faintly disapproving. "How…interesting."

Lily flushed. "I'll, uh…I'll just go in…" she mumbled. "I'll see you later, Sev." She hurried into the Great Hall, leaving the two Slytherins staring at each other.

"I must say I'm a bit…surprised at your choice of companion, Severus," Lucius said coolly. "A Gryffindor?"

"Lily's not like the rest," Severus defended. "She's smart and resourceful and she defends me from Potter and his cronies."

"You should be learning how to defend yourself, Severus. I didn't give you those books for nothing."

"I am learning!"

Severus' outburst attracted the attention of a group of Hufflepuffs who were coming up the corridor; one glare from Lucius had them scurrying on their way. Deciding that they were too conspicuous, he turned back to Severus.

"We'll discuss this later, Severus." His tone brooked no argument.

"Of course we will." Severus met his gaze calmly, showing that he had no intention of backing down where Lily was concerned. Lucius pursed his lips and headed for the Slytherin table.

He definitely needed to have a talk with Severus.

October flew by in a flurry of lessons, homework, and Quidditch practices — before Harry knew it, Halloween was approaching, and the Hogwarts staff began festooning the castle in preparation for the magical celebration.

Harry and Ron were playing gobstones in one of the courtyards one day (because Harry absolutely refused to be beaten in wizard chess again) when a very tall man — about twice the height of an adult — walked by, his arms laden with pumpkins that were significantly larger than average. Harry recognised him at once, though not by name — it was the same man who had led the first-years off the Hogwarts Express and across the lake. The man had long, shaggy black hair and an equally shaggy beard, and he was whistling a merry tune as he made his way up to the castle with apparent ease. Nevertheless, it was clear that he was having some difficulty keeping one or two pumpkins stable on his pile, and Harry immediately jumped up.

"Excuse me," he said politely, "d'you need some help?"

The large man paused and craned his neck to see around his stack of pumpkins. When he saw Harry, his black eyes — kind eyes which Harry liked at once — became somewhat bemused.

"Nah, it's okay," he said. "I don' wanna bother yeh."

"It's no bother," said Harry. "You look like you need a few extra hands. Are those pumpkins for Halloween decorations?"

"Yep," said the man. "I'm s'posed ter put 'em up in the Great Hall."

Ron, taking his cue from Harry, collected the gobstones and stood up. "We'll help."

"That's mighty kind of yeh," said the man as Harry and Ron each picked a pumpkin from his pile. "Thanks, yeh two."

"No problem," said Harry with a grin as they began to walk towards the castle. With two less pumpkins, the man was able to balance his load more easily. "I'm Harry Potter, by the way. What's your name?"

The man's eyes grew large. "Harry Potter? Yeh don' say!" He looked Harry up and down, causing his remaining pumpkins to wobble dangerously. "But now that I look at yeh, I can see it…yeh look a lot like yer dad, but yeh've got yer mum's eyes. Blimey, time flies, don' it? Why, I remember when you were jus' a wee baby in yer mum's arms — seems like only yesterday when I rescued yeh from yer parents' house…"

"You knew my parents?" Harry asked eagerly.

"Well, o' course I knew 'em! Brightest witch and wizard in their day, and real good-lookin' ter boot. Everyone loved 'em. Real shame how they died," the man said sadly.

"You haven't told us your name yet," Ron reminded him.

"Oh yeah — I'm Rubeus Hagrid, Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts. Yeh can call me Hagrid."

"I've heard of you!" Ron exclaimed. "Mum and Dad used to tell me stories about you from when they were at school!"

"Did they now?" Hagrid peered at Ron. "Lemme guess — yer one o' them Weasleys, right? Arthur and Molly's kid?"

"Yeah. I'm Ron."

"Knew it," said Hagrid. "Can't miss that red hair — I spent half me life chasin' yer twin brothers away from the Forbidden Forest."

"Did you know my parents well?" asked Harry.

"Yeh could say that. Yer mum used ter come an' have tea with me every other Friday, and yer dad an' his friends were even bigger mischief-makers than the Weasley twins — they liked ter hide in my hut when they got the teachers on a warpath after 'em," Hagrid said fondly.

Harry was delighted to hear more about his parents — though he loved and was grateful for Lucius and Narcissa, he never called them Mum and Dad (or Mother and Father, like Draco) — and here was Hagrid, who had actually known James and Lily Potter and had stories galore to tell about them. Harry was disappointed when they reached the Great Hall and Hagrid had to stop talking to arrange the pumpkins.

"Thanks fer yer help, Harry, Ron," Hagrid said as the boys set their pumpkins on one of the House tables. "It's good ter meet yeh."

"It was nice meeting you too, Hagrid," Harry said sincerely.

Ron, however, was eyeing the pumpkins, which looked larger now that they were resting on a table. "Blimey, these are huge!"

"Grew 'em myself," Hagrid said proudly. "Gave 'em a little special somethin'."

Ron looked awed.

"Could I come talk to you sometimes?" Harry inquired of Hagrid. "I want to know as much as I can about my parents."

"Well, o' course yeh can!" Hagrid said at once. "Tell yeh what — why don' yeh come an' have tea with me after Halloween? Ron can come too."

"Wicked," said Ron with a grin.

"We will, Hagrid, thanks!" said Harry, beaming at the gamekeeper.

"Why are you associating with Evans?"

Severus glared at Lucius. "She's my friend."

"She's a Gryffindor and a Mudblood."

"Don't call her that!"

"It's the truth," Lucius said indifferently. "People like her shouldn't have magic in the first place, let alone learn how to use it."

"Lily's the smartest witch in our year!" Severus flared. "It doesn't matter that she's Muggleborn."

Lucius observed him critically. "You know it does," he said carefully. "Tell me, does Evans know she's the only Muggleborn you treat with respect? Does she know you look on Muggles with contempt? Does she know you have ambitions of being part of a wizards' takeover in the Muggle world?"

"I…"

"She doesn't, does she?" Lucius went on ruthlessly. "Why is this, Severus? Why do you make excuses for her when you view others of her kind with scorn? You can't actually like her."

"You know nothing," Severus bit out.

"I know that if you desire to achieve your goals, you can't afford to waste your time on Mudbloods."

"Stop calling her a Mudblood!" Severus exploded. "You don't know her! You can't make me stop spending time with her. She's my friend and I'll do what I please."

Lucius eyed him coldly. "I'm very disappointed in you, Severus."

"Too bad," Severus sneered.

Lucius straightened and strode to the door. "You have a talent for the Dark Arts and are a capable wizard, even though you're only twelve. I'd hate to see your potential go to waste, Severus. Is Lily Evans really worth all your ambition?"

He let the question hang in the air as he swept out of the room.

On Halloween night, Harry and Ron made their way to the Great Hall, their mouths watering at the thought of the feast awaiting them. The only thing that marred their enjoyment was the incident after Charms that morning. Professor Flitwick had had them working on levitating feathers, and when Ron kept pronouncing the spell wrongly, Hermione — who was his partner — had been compelled to correct him, in her usual bossy, aggressive tone. Ron had sniped after class that the reason Hermione didn't have any friends was because she was such a know-it-all, and Hermione had overheard. No one had seen her since.

"It's not like it wasn't the truth," Ron was saying to Harry as they descended a moving staircase. To Harry, it sounded like Ron was feeling a little guilty for how mean he'd been and was trying to justify what he'd said, but he kept quiet — he hadn't exactly been very nice to Hermione either.

They joined the other Gryffindors in the milling crowd of students entering the Great Hall, and it was there that they overheard the conversation.

"…you find Hermione?" Lavender Brown was asking Parvati Patil.

"Yes, the poor dear is crying in the girls' toilet," replied Parvati. "She just wants to be left alone."

"Isn't she coming to the feast?" Lavender questioned incredulously.

Parvati caught sight of Ron and shot him a pointed, dirty look. "I believe Hermione is too hurt to eat," she said loftily.

Ron scowled and hurried to take his seat, counting on the food to take his mind off Hermione.

As if on cue, the Halloween feast appeared on their gold plates as Ron stared at his setting, and he immediately forgot all about Hermione. Harry, too, was easily able to take his mind off the fact that he and Draco had had little in the way of correspondence for well over a month, and he dug in just as heartily as Ron.

That is, until Professor Quirrell came sprinting into the Hall, screaming about a troll in the castle.

"TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS!" he shrieked. "There's a troll in the dungeons!…thought you ought to know."

He then proceeded to faint dead away.

Panic and pandemonium reigned for about thirty seconds before Dumbledore exploded purple firecrackers from his wand to restore order.

"Prefects," he said calmly, "lead your houses back to your dormitories immediately."

Percy Weasley instantly stood up and began shepherding the first-year Gryffindors in his vicinity. Over at the Slytherin table, Draco put up his hand and voiced what appeared to have slipped everyone else's mind.

"Sir, the Slytherin dormitories are in the dungeons!"

"Quite right," Dumbledore agreed in the unexpected silence that followed this announcement. "Slytherins, proceed to the Transfiguration Courtyard. Everyone else, back to your dorms now."

The Hall degenerated into chaos once more, but it was at least orderly this time, as the prefects took charge and led the students to safety.

Harry grabbed Ron's arm as they exited the Great Hall.

"Hermione!"

"No, I'm Ron," Ron said, sounding offended.

"No, I've just remembered — Hermione doesn't know about the troll!"

"Blimey, you're right!" Ron looked around furtively and lowered his voice. "D'you reckon we should warn her? The girls' toilet isn't that far from the dungeons," he said in concern.

"Let's go!" Harry said immediately, pulling him through the crowd of students.

Why the dungeons? Draco groused mentally. Every other House gets to go back to their dorms, but we get to go to a courtyard because the stupid troll invaded our space.

"How could a troll get in?" Crabbe wondered out loud. "Isn't the castle supposed to be, like, safe?"

"And aren't trolls supposed to be stupid?" piped up Goyle.

"As opposed to your sparkling intelligence?" Draco snapped irritably. Out of the corner of his eyes he saw a flap of a black cape, and he looked up to see Snape heading not for the dungeons with the other teachers, but somewhere else entirely.

Making up his mind, Draco allowed Crabbe and Goyle to slip past him, and then he navigated out of the group of Slytherins and trailed after his godfather.

Halloween was the biggest festive occasion at Hogwarts, because of its association with ancient magics, witches and wizards, and the supernatural world in general. It was said that the great Merlin himself had once performed a ritual on the night of October 31st (when the day was still known as Samhain) that allowed him to draw on more power, and that as a result of this ritual the veil between the Muggle and wizarding worlds had been thinned forevermore.

Lily Evans had always thought that was just a fairytale until Severus (who was totally ignoring Lucius's stern advice to drop Lily like a hot potato) told her it was in fact historically accurate — and he would know, because Merlin had been a Slytherin.

"Merlin attended Hogwarts?" Lily asked in disbelief after their Double Herbology class.

"He was one of the first students," Severus affirmed. "According to legend, he was Salazar Slytherin's personal protege."

Lily frowned. "How come I've never heard any of this?"

Severus snorted disdainfully. "Of course you wouldn't. The other Houses don't like to mention that the great wizard they all look up to, Merlin himself, was a Slytherin. You know what they think of us — Gryffindor, especially."

"Yes," said Lily with a sigh, "and I think it's very unfair. They can't just assume that everyone in Slytherin is going to grow up to be a Death Eater."

"Indeed." Severus paused. "Wait, 'they'?"

"James Potter and his gang," Lily said contemptuously. "Troublemakers and pranksters, the lot of them. They seem to think that you, in particular, are a mini Death Eater."

"What do Potter and his friends know?" Severus sniffed. He decided not to mention that he did in fact have a keen interest in the Dark Arts, and that Lucius — who was all but a guaranteed Death Eater as soon as he graduated — thought he should take his interest to the next level.

Lily, though, was pleased that Severus corroborated her viewpoint. "That's what I said!"

They walked past the Defence Against the Dark Arts corridor just in time to hear the chandelier shatter.

"Harry!" Ron tugged on his robes and pointed.

Directly ahead of them, the troll had stopped in front of a doorway and was peering into the room beyond, the massive club it held in one of its stubby hands trailing along the stone floor as it investigated. It was taller than even Hagrid, with sickly grey skin and a small bald head perched atop a lumpy body supported by short, thick legs. As the boys watched, it slowly slouched into the room.

"The key's in the lock," Harry confided to Ron. "We could lock it in."

"Good idea," Ron said nervously.

Mouths dry, they edged towards the door, praying the troll wasn't about to come out. With a final, giant leap, Harry slammed the door shut, seized the key, and locked it.

"We did it!" Ron said jubilantly.

They high-fived each other and were about to hurry along to their dorms when they heard a high, terrified scream. Their eyes met in equal expressions of horror.

"Hermione!"

It didn't take Draco very long to realise that Snape was heading for the third floor corridor, and he gulped as he recalled his encounter with the three-headed monster dog. He wasn't keen to repeat the experience, but if Severus was around it would be marginally safer, wouldn't it?

Then again, what in Merlin's name was Severus even doing up here? By all rights he should be down in the dungeons dealing with the troll with the rest of the teachers — the fact that he had snuck up here while there was a threat to the students suggested that he thought the greater danger was…whatever the dog was guarding.

But what does it have to do with the troll? Draco wondered. If it's been here all along it can't be responsible for letting the troll in — His train of thought abruptly broke off as his cunning mind presented the obvious answer.

The troll's a distraction! But — but that means — that means… Draco clapped his hand to his mouth in dismay, squirming farther behind the tapestry he was using to conceal himself.

He's trying to STEAL it? WHY?

Why would Severus Snape, the man his parents trusted enough to make him their only child's godfather and to help them keep Harry safe, attempt to steal a powerful magical object that was clearly under Dumbledore's protection? Snape worked for Dumbledore!

Unless, said a sly, dark voice within Draco's Slytherin mind, Severus isn't actually working for Dumbledore anymore. What if he's got another master? A Darker master?

Draco banished the treacherous thought, even as Snape paused outside the door to the three-headed dog's room. He simply refused to believe the Potions Master would turn against them. Draco trusted his godfather — Severus had turned his back on You-Know-Who, just like his father — for Salazar's sake, he had helped rescue the Boy Who Lived from Muggles! There had to be a good reason why he'd want to steal whatever-it-was — see, he wasn't even trying to go into the room!

But then why —

The answer arrived at that exact moment, hastening purposefully towards the corridor, the purple turban bobbing as its owner climbed up the stairs.

Professor Quirrell? Draco's eyes widened as realisation dawned. Quirrell was the one who wanted to steal it — Severus knew it and had come here to stop him!

Snape was half-hidden in the shadows, and Quirrell completely overlooked him as he flung open the door and darted inside; Snape followed instantly.

Draco could not see inside the room, but he could certainly guess what was happening when an almighty ruckus arose as the dog inside growled, snapped, and barked with all three of its heads. Quirrell let loose a loud, shocked yelp, and Draco guessed that he had seen Severus. The professors' voices mixed with the dog's barks, shouting spells to defend against the beast.

Then Severus gave a low cry of pain, and Draco's heart stopped.

Lily wasted no time in wrenching open the door to the DADA classroom, and she and Severus looked in to find that utter bedlam had overtaken the sixth-year N.E.W.T. class.

Near the back of the room, snapping and crowing viciously, was an enormous cockatrice. Its black scales rippled as it moved its long neck and swiped at students with razor-like claws, its lethally pointed tail swayed to and fro dangerously, and its rooster's head was both topped with an elaborate red comb and equipped with a savagely sharp beak that threatened to dismember anyone who came close. Professor Harfang was unconscious by his overturned desk, bleeding from a head wound, and most of the students had had their wands whipped from their hands by the strong drafts created by the cockatrice's madly flapping wings; but a few of the more perspicacious pupils were keeping a tight grip on their wands and attempting to trap the wild cockatrice in a corner. Lucius Malfoy was at the head of this group, brandishing his elm wand at the cockatrice's head and trying his best to hit it with a Stunning Spell.

A jet of purple light from one of the other sixth-years sliced through the cockatrice's tail, and the creature emitted an earsplitting shriek. The enraged cockatrice, its beak opening to expose its serrated teeth, lunged for the nearest attacker: Lucius Malfoy.

A lightning-quick nip towards his hand had the Slytherin prefect cursing as he dropped his wand, his fingers escaping the clap of the cockatrice's beak by inches. The cockatrice swept its tail along the floor — the appendage was injured, but still more than sufficient to sweep Lucius's legs out from under him. Severus cried out in alarm as the older teen's head cracked soundly against the stone floor.

The other sixth-years who still had their wands attempted to aid the dazed and defenceless Lucius, but their spells merely bounced off the cockatrice's magical scales. The cockatrice itself ignored them, intent on finishing off its immobilised prey. It reared its head back and dove forward.

"Depulso!"

Halfway to Lucius's neck, the cockatrice's head came to an abrupt halt as something hard and rectangular flew into its mouth and lodged itself firmly in its throat. The cockatrice stumbled backwards and made a horrible choking sound, flailing its feet, wings, and tail in a futile attempt to remove the foreign object. As the astounded students watched, the cockatrice shrivelled before their eyes, its massive body appearing to flake into a pile of ash.

Everything had happened in a matter of minutes.

Lucius scrambled upright, ignoring the pounding in his head, and looked around the room. "Who cast that Banishing Charm?" he demanded.

He stared expectantly at the small group of armed sixth-years, but none of them stepped forward to take the credit. Instead, someone cleared their throat timidly, and Lucius's gaze flew to the doorway to see Lily Evans raising her hand. His eyes widened in shock and he stared at her incredulously.

"Evans?!" he exclaimed. "You Banished the snuff box?"

"Um, yes," Lily confessed. Her cheeks were gradually turning almost as red as her hair. "I'm sorry, it was the first thing I thought to aim for — I didn't know it had Cursed Dust in it."

"But — but you're…" The normally composed Lucius was tangling up his tongue, he was so astonished. "You're a…" He wanted to say 'Mudblood', but it wasn't coming out.

Lily seemed to know what he was thinking, though. She raised her chin defiantly.

"A what?" she challenged.

Severus, too, was glaring pugnaciously at Lucius.

"A second-year," Lucius finally settled on. "Banishing is a fourth-year charm."

"Yes, I know." Lily raised an eyebrow. "So?"

Lucius appeared to be struggling for words. "So…that was…a remarkable piece of magic, Evans," he admitted, sounding grudgingly admiring. "I'd give you points if I could."

Lily relaxed, her expression smoothing into a delighted smile. "Thank you. Are you okay?"

"I believe so." Lucius shook his head and winced. "Although I suppose I could use a trip to the Hospital Wing."

"As could several others, including Harfang," added Severus, with a glance at the still-unconscious professor.

"Indeed," Lucius sighed.

Harry ducked as the troll's club took out a toilet cubicle, raining shreds of wood and ceramic onto the tiled bathroom floor.

"Ron, do something!" Hermione shrieked from her position under a sink, as the troll went after Harry again.

Ron wildly scanned the half-demolished lavatory for something he could use. He seized a broken pipe and hurled it at the troll's head.

"Oi, pea-brain!"

The troll didn't seem to even notice the pipe hitting its head, but it certainly heard Ron yelling insults at it. It turned and lumbered menacingly towards the redhead, and Harry scrambled towards Hermione.

"Come on, run!" Harry urged.

Hermione crawled out from under the sink, and Harry helped her to her feet as Ron attempted to back away from the troll's advance, only to find himself up against a wall.

"HARRY!" screeched Ron.

"Hermione, run!" Harry pushed her towards the door and pointed his wand at the troll, shooting the first spell that came to his mind. "Locomotor Mortis!"

The troll's legs appeared to stiffen slightly, but it was able to shake off the Leg-Locker Curse all too easily.

"Harry, it's a magical creature!" Hermione exclaimed. "Spells won't work properly on it!"

"What are you still doing here?!" he yelled at her.

"HARRY, HELP!" cried Ron; the troll had come within striking distance and was groping its fingers at the redhead.

Harry uttered a swear word he had learned from Uncle Vernon and then did something both incredibly brave and incredibly stupid. Taking a running leap, he launched himself onto the troll's back.

The troll stopped trying to grab Ron and reached its hand behind itself in an attempt to catch Harry instead. The troll's distraction allowed Ron the space to squeeze out from his entrapment, and he stood gawking in horrified amazement as Harry held on for dear life while the troll flailed and twisted underneath him.

"Do something!" Harry bellowed at them.

"Do what?!" exclaimed Ron.

Harry ducked to avoid the troll's club and jammed his wand up its nose in desperation., causing the troll to howl in pain and thrash even more wildly.

"Anything!" he cried.

"Swish and flick!" Hermione reminded Ron, moving her wrist accordingly.

Ron gripped his wand tightly and flicked his wrist. "Wingardium Leviosa!"

The troll's club rose into the air, causing it to look up in confusion at the sudden lack of a wooden weight in its hand. Ron cancelled the spell, and the club dropped straight onto the troll's bald head with a gruesome crunch.

Harry jumped off the troll's back just before it hit the ground.

Quirrell raced into the corridor, his turban askew, and bolted down the stairs without a backwards glance. Draco was working himself into a frantic tizzy, wondering whether the timid professor was going to get help or abandoning Severus to the three-headed dog, when Snape himself rushed out of the room, closing and locking the door behind him.

When Draco saw the blood, he couldn't restrain himself.

"Salazar, Severus, are you all right?" he inquired as he whipped the tapestry aside.

Snape whirled around and stared at Draco, the slight flare of his nostrils and narrowing of his eyes the only indications of his surprise.

"What are you doing here, Draco?"

Draco's cheeks coloured. "I…uh…I saw you coming up here, and…"

"And you thought it a good idea to follow me against direct orders from the Headmaster?"

The pink in Draco's face deepened. "I — I wondered where you were going — you weren't joining the other teachers, and when I realised you were coming to the third floor corridor —"

"Draco," hissed Snape, "Your ears are in perfect working order, are they not?"

Draco blinked. "Yes…"

"Then I'm sure you heard Dumbledore when he announced that this area is out of bounds!" Snape snapped. "Where's your common sense, boy?"

"I was worried!" Draco burst out. "I didn't know what to think —" Suddenly realising he'd said too much, he clamped his mouth shut.

Snape studied him for a long time, seemingly oblivious to the blood leaking from his mangled leg.

"You know what's behind that door." It wasn't a question.

Draco nodded silently.

"How?" Snape's tone left no room for evasion.

"Um…I…ran into the room to hide from Filch after curfew."

"And why were you breaking curfew?"

Draco hesitated, and Snape's features sharpened in comprehension.

"I see." He didn't look angry, merely dissatisfied. "I presume that Potter followed you into the room?"

"Yes," admitted Draco.

Snape's lips thinned. "What else do you know?" he demanded. "Do not lie to me, Draco, I will know it."

Draco coughed and squirmed under his godfather's relentless gaze. "I know the dog's guarding something — most likely whatever was in Vault 713 at Gringotts."

"You don't know what the item is?"

"No, sir."

"Does Potter know?"

"Not as far as I know."

"Good," Snape said brusquely. "Make sure it stays that way. This is not a matter for the pair of you to be interfering with. If I even suspect that you are poking your noses in where they don't belong, there will be dire consequences."

"Yes, Severus," Draco acceded quickly.

"And obviously I need not tell you that you are not to breathe a word of this to anyone."

"Of course," agreed Draco.

Snape nodded curtly. "Go back to your housemates," he instructed.

Draco turned and started heading for the Transfiguration courtyard.

"And Draco," added Snape, "in the future, do ensure that any midnight meetings escape Filch's notice. You won't be so lucky a second time."

By dinnertime on Halloween Day, the whole school knew of the incident in DADA class, and poor Professor Harfang was hard-pressed to find a quiet moment to recover from his spectacular failure to restrain the cockatrice after one of the Slytherin sixth-years had accidentally cast an Engorgio on the shrunken version he'd brought in for the day's lesson.

Most of the gossip, however, revolved around how Lily Evans had single-handedly defeated the rampaging cockatrice with a magnificently impressive Banishing Charm.
James Potter's gang of four — the Marauders, as they called themselves — loudly and flamboyantly exalted Lily's talent and quick-thinking, and made sure to emphasise the fact that she had outdone a class of sixth-years; they were downright embarrassing in their effervescence, and only stopped when Lily threatened them with the Curse of the Bogies — after her heroics today, no Gryffindor wanted to test her skill. Meanwhile, the Hufflepuffs were in awe of her, while the Ravenclaws wondered why she wasn't in their House. Even the Slytherins were grudgingly impressed.

The sixth-year class was, of course, rather disgruntled about this — it was embarrassing to admit that a solitary second-year Gryffindor had accomplished what all of them together could not — but Lucius had to admit that Evans had demonstrated outstanding skill and quick-thinking to take down the cockatrice, not to mention the fact that she had saved his life in the process. He was both stunned and dismayed to discover that he now owed her a life debt — he, heir of the proud and ancient House of Malfoy, owed a Gryffindor Mudblood a life debt!

He doubted Evans was aware of this, though.

Severus, on the other hand, knew perfectly well what bond Lily had inadvertently created when she saved Lucius from the cockatrice.

"I see you've ignored my advice to stop being friends with the Mudblood," Lucius said as Severus slid into the seat across from him at the Halloween Feast.

"I told you you wouldn't stop me." The black-haired boy raised one eyebrow. "You know what she did today puts you in her debt?"

Lucius scowled. "I'm well aware."

"You might want to stop calling her a Mudblood, then," said Severus pointedly. "If she's unhappy with you she could call in the debt with something particularly unpleasant."

"She isn't that vindictive," scoffed Lucius.

"Really?" Severus said dryly. "You've seen how she treats Potter, haven't you?"

Lucius stole a glance at the Gryffindor table, where Evans was waving her wand threateningly at Potter.

"Point taken," he murmured.

After a slight pause, Severus spoke again. "She's not like other Muggleborns, Lucius. I choose my friends carefully."

"Mm," grunted Lucius. He sighed. "I can't deny that Evans is equally proficient as many purebloods." He sounded resigned. "Perhaps I will have to trust your judgment that she is the exception to the norm."

Severus smirked.

"Is it dead?" Hermione inquired nervously as Harry bent to retrieve his wand from the unconscious troll's nose.

"I don't think so," replied Harry. "Just knocked out." He eyed the lumpy grey sludge dripping off his wand and wrinkled his nose at the smell.

"Urgh, troll bogies," said Ron in disgust.

Rapid footsteps warned them about the approach of Professor McGonagall, who was white with fury and alarm. She appeared quite taken aback by the extent of the carnage in the bathroom.

"Explain yourselves, both of you!" she snapped at Harry and Ron.

Behind her came Quirrell — who whimpered at the sight of the troll and leaned against a wall — and then Snape. Harry briefly glanced at the Potions Master in concern when he noticed the man's limp, but a sharp jerk of Snape's head warned him to give his attention to the Deputy Headmistress. He didn't look happy either.

"What on earth were you thinking of?" McGonagall demanded. "You could've been killed! Why aren't you in your dormitory?"

"Um…" Harry gave Ron a fleeting glance; the redhead was gulping and it was obvious he would be of no help. "Well…" Harry began.

"Please, Professor McGonagall — they were looking for me."

Harry's and Ron's heads swivelled to stare at Hermione, who continued speaking without acknowledging them.

"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 didn't have time to go and fetch anyone — if they hadn't come looking for me, I'd probably be dead," she finished matter-of-factly.

Harry and Ron tried not to be too obvious about the fact that this story was utterly alien to them. Snape narrowed his eyes.

"Be that as it may," said McGonagall, "I expected more rational thought on your part, Miss Granger, and I am very disappointed with you. Whatever possessed you to think you could tackle a troll all by yourself, you foolish girl?"

Hermione hung her head. Harry and Ron traded glances of discreet amazement.

"Five points will be taken from Gryffindor for your serious lack of judgment."

Hermione nodded meekly, accepting her punishment. McGonagall turned to Harry and Ron.

"And as for you two gentlemen, I hope you realise how lucky you are. Not many first-years could take on a fully-grown mountain troll and live to tell the tale. Five points —" Harry and Ron winced, waiting to hear the damage. "— will be awarded to each of you. For sheer, dumb luck."

The boys grinned at each other.

"Now, if you three aren't hurt at all, go back to your dormitories," instructed McGonagall. "Students are finishing the feast in their Houses."

The three Gryffindors gratefully scarpered, Harry making sure to catch Snape's eyes as he went so that he could assure himself the Potions Master wasn't too livid with him. Snape frowned, but nodded once, and a relieved Harry felt much better.

"Good of you to get us out of trouble like that," he said to Hermione as they walked along a corridor.

"Mind you, we did save her life," said Ron.

"Mind you, she might not have needed saving if you hadn't insulted her," Harry pointed out.

Ron rolled his eyes. "What are friends for?" he asked, exchanging a small smile with Hermione.

A/N: Whew, that was a lot of things happening! As always, please do share your thoughts on anything and everything - particularly the revelations in the flashbacks.

We have another long chapter coming next week. Until next time!