"If you think I'd tell you anything- YOU BROKE MY NOSE!"

-Zachrias Smith

Chapter 21: A Guide In The Dark

"Are you okay?" Dean winced but didn't come any closer. Leanne rested unconscious against his back, held tight by a sort of harness Daphne had fashioned out of my robes. She'd even torn parts to secure and…well…hold together Leanne's leg. Daphne was really good at tying all kinds of knots.

It was all getting to me. The trolls, our close brush with death, the smell that wafted up to me from Leanne's leg as we journeyed back around the lake. My stomach churned and before I knew it, I was throwing up. "I'm fine," I croaked, spitting up the last of it. I was careful not to get any on the birth totem dangling from my wrist. Maah Maah said if we showed this to her son when we found him, he'd trust us enough to return with us. "Let's just get Leanne back and find that troll."

"That won't be happening tonight." The three of us turned to see Cedric emerge from the dark thick brush of the forest, wand first. His face was completely unreadable. His eyes seemed to narrow when they settled on Dean and Leanne. "Follow me." Cedric didn't stop to see if we obeyed and didn't think it would be a very good idea not to.

We followed Cedric into the forest. He didn't speak and neither did we. I noticed Daphne glancing between the two of us, but I avoided her gaze. I could practically hear her questions from here. A couple yards into the forest, not far in enough to encounter any of the creepy sounds emanating from it, we came upon a very large, very wide, tree stump. Cedric spit onto his palm, ew, and pressed it to the surface of the stump for a moment before stepping back.

There was a low rumbling cracking sound as the roots of the stump pulled themselves from the earth. It stood and walked itself out of the way to reveal a large hole and ladder. "Climb in."

Daphne grasped at my hand, giving me another one of those looks almost demanding that I explain. "It's okay Daphne. We should do as Cedric says for now," I smiled before climbing down into the hole. When my feet touched the ground, I looked around and things immediately felt familiar. This earthy tunnel looked almost identical to the tunnels that led to all our after-school lesson rooms. It certainly went on farther than we first-years had ever been allowed to go, but all the way underneath the forbidden forest?

Dean came down the ladder next, very carefully. Then Daphne, and finally Cedric. The stump crawled back over, blocking the little moonlight shining into the dark space. "What is this?" Daphne whispered into the dark.

I was too afraid to attempt to answer with Cedric right there. I could feel anger rolling off him in waves, despite how calm he looked. When he got me to our abandoned classroom in the restricted corridor, I was going to get an earful.

Cedric whistled a tune. Low tempo, with a few high-pitched notes. Shortly after, burrowing out of the sides of the walls came several fireflies lighting the way. We followed after them, turning down many different tunnels. How Cedric knew whether to make a left, right, or straight, was beyond me. There were hills and doors we passed. At one point we could hear laughter and dishes clanging. "The Great Hall," Dean gasped. The light of a small hole shone on his face and when he looked in, he could see everyone attending the Great Feast. His stomach growled again.

"Don't fall behind," Cedric snapped. We came up on a door to our right. "This is you Slytherin." Cedric went to open the door. "You're going to slip into the Great Hall, go to your table. And you're going to keep your mouth shut about all of this."

"About what?" She muttered to herself with a frown. None of her questions had been answered but she snapped her narrowed gaze at me to let me know, this wasn't over.

Cedric opened the door made of cobbled stone, so it disappeared into the wall. As he and Daphne peaked out, they darted back in. "What is it?" I asked.

"It's Professor Quirrel," Daphne whispered. "He's standing outside the Great Hall."

Curious, we all peaked out the door. Sure enough, there was Professor Quirrell standing outside the closed door of the Great Hall. "Ehem," he coughed. "Mi mi mi mi miiiiiii. Aaah aaah AAAH aaaah AAAAAAAH."

Dean snickered. "What's he doing?"

Professor Quirrell then grasped at his own face. "Troll in the- ehm. Um. Troll! Troll in the castle. Troll in the CASTLE!- Oh I know. I need to sell this! Ehem. Troll in the dungeon!"

"I think he's, talking to himself," Daphne said in an equally amused voice.

True, it was amusing but- "Did you hear what he said?" I held up the straw doll tied to my wrist.

Daphne frowned. "Ew, don't touch it."

I ignored her. "He said Troll in the castle. It's here! The troll! We have to get it!"

Cedric closed the wall door again. "We aren't doing anything. Dean is going to give Leanne to me so Professor Sprout can take a look at her-"

"No!" I protested, standing myself between him and Cedric. Daphne and Dean again were confused. "Not Professor. Leanne needs Madame Pomphrey. She needs real help."

Cedric's voice became something sickeningly sweet and, and, condescending. "Mary, Leanne's going to get just the help she needs with Sprout," he smiled. "We don't have time to sit here and argue about it. She could succumb to her injuries at any moment."

"Yeah," I sneered, "You and Sprout would like that wouldn't you."

No one was expecting that from me. Cedric looked as if he'd been smacked, wounded, but beneath all that, guilty. "Mary!" Dean gasped.

Even Daphne was surprised. "Why would you say something like that? It's certainly not Cedric's fault that Leanne ran off trying to do Merlin knows what to a group of trolls. By herself! What else would she have expected to happen?"

I looked back at Leanne resting against Dean's back. Sweat beading on her forehead now. No one could tell, but her eyes were small and squinting open. I felt like she was looking right at me. She needed my help. I couldn't let Cedric hand her over to Professor Sprout. Leanne wasn't a goat and I wasn't going to let them turn her into one. "Dean and Daphne are taking Leanne to Madame Pomphrey." I jabbed a finger into Cedric's chest. "And you and I are going to go get that troll."

Cedric conceded, knowing there was no negotiating this with me. Instead he turned to Dean and Daphne. "You two keep forward. You're going to make two lefts and a right. There is a crawl space that opens under a bed. You'll have to unstrap Leanne from your back to get her through. You tell Madame Pomphrey you found her passed out in the castle like this, and that there is a troll inside. She'll lock you guys down there in the nurse wing and you'll be safe."

Dean nodded, "Two lefts and a right. Got it."

"What if Madame Pomphrey asks questions-"

Cedric waved Daphne off after Dean. "Leanne's a Hufflepuff. She won't be asking you too many questions. Now go."

Daphne looked horrified and lost but ran to catch up to Dean and Leanne.

As soon as they were out of ear shot, Cedric grabbed my wrist so hard, I thought it would bruise. "You really ARE STUPID!"

As soon as I wringed myself loose, I was immediately pulled into the tightest hug I think…I think I'd ever gotten. I don't get a lot of hugs. I think Mama hugged me a couple times. Papa probably hugged me once. "Why are you so damned stupid," he choked out. It was such a pathetic sound, I felt almost bad for yelling at him. The brief flash of his panicked face as he ran down the hall yelling my name, crossed my mind. And remembering how we found Leanne…Cedric must have been so worried.

I didn't know how to console someone. I reached a hand out and patted him on the back. "There, there," I mumbled. "I'm fine. I did it. I found Leanne."

Cedric scoffed but let me go. "The point wasn't for you to find Leanne. You don't get it, do you? The price is going to be paid. There's no getting around it, no matter how hard you try. One of you will die. And if Leanne lives, there's no guarantee that it won't be paid by…someone else." One of his large hands ran down his face. "You can't stop it, Mary. You can try, but you may just end up getting yourself killed too. It doesn't have to just be one of you."

I paled but didn't cower in front of him. I wouldn't let him see how frightened I was but I'm sure he had seen me throw up back at the lake. "I don't believe that," I challenged, "I don't have to either." I held up the doll to him, effectively changing the subject. "You want to be my Guide so bad, then you help me find that troll."

"Mary, you don't know the first thing about killing a troll."

"Well good thing I don't as I'm not gonna kill it. I made a deal with its Mama. I get the troll back to her alive, and they go home to the hills."

Cedric kneeled, gripped my shoulders, firmly but less bruising this time. "You want your live troll, Mary, then we'll get your live troll. But listen to me very carefully. Look me in the eyes- that's it. I want you to remember this bit of advice for the rest of your life. Do not ever, EVER, make deals with non-human magic users. Not a troll and especially not a fairy."

There was a loud bang behind us coming from the Great Hall. "Troll in the dungeon! TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" It was Professor Quirrell. He had stirred the students into a panic. The teachers were making their way down to the dungeons. Students were getting back to their common rooms.

"Dammit," Cedric cursed. "We can't let the teachers get that troll. Anyway, if there's a troll in the building, it's not in the dungeons." Cedric pulled out his wand, tapping it against his pant leg in thought. "We passed the dungeons on the way here. We definitely would have heard it."

I pulled out my wand as well, following suit. "Then where do we start looking?"

Just then, there was a loud scream, followed by a crashing noise. "Follow me." Cedric began running down the tunnel, making a sharp left. Shortly, we came up on a two-way glass mirror. Was this how Cedric spied on girls in the toilet? There was no time to look up at him in disappointment. Hermione ducked out of sight, under our sink. Harold dangled from the troll's grasp.

"Ron," I whispered when I spotted him to the side pulling his wand with that terrified look on his face.

"You know Ronald Weasley," Cedric questioned.

I quickly shook my head. "He's Dean's friend." Cedric raised a brow, but I ignored it. Ron had managed to knock the troll unconscious and soon teachers were clamoring into the room. "Oh, why did they have to but in!" I stamped, furious at Harry Potter and his friends once more. If Hermione hadn't been screaming her head off, the teachers would still be combing the dungeons.

"This isn't good," Cedric winced. "We can't let them leave Quirrell alone with that troll."

I looked up at Cedric. So, he was having the same feelings toward Quirrell that I was. "What do we do?" Everyone was leaving now. Hermione had lied to help Harry and Ron and it seemed everyone thought our DADA teacher was the best one to clean up the mess.

"You stay right here. I'm going to create a distraction." Cedric began walking away. "When he leaves the bathroom, we'll have a small window of opportunity to get it out of the school while the halls are empty."

I stood there alone. Just me, Quirrell, and the troll. "Stupid. Stupid!" Quirrell shouted, delivering a swift kick to a nearby plank of wood.

A scratchy voice drifted out into the air. "I grow weary of your failures, Quirinus."

My eyes searched the room, even glancing at the troll with suspicion for a few moments. There was no one else in the room. Where had that voice come from. Professor Quirrell unwrapped his purple turban. On the back of his head was the gray profile of a monster. "I am sorry, my Lord."

"Keep your worthless apologies." The second face was smooth, almost looked like it was made of smoke. It wiggled similar to someone getting comfortable on a cramped couch.

"It was Severus," Quirrell spat. "He knew what I was going for the stone. If he hadn't stopped me…Master…if we could just tell him-"

"Silence!" The face hissed. "It is you I chose, Quirinus. It is you who will get me that damned Philosopher's stone. Do this, or I will dispose of you and find someone else to do what you clearly cannot," it hissed. Those black eyes moved back and forth and for a moment, I almost thought it saw me. The way it squinted in my direction.

But I stood behind a mirror. Maybe it was looking at itself.

In that moment, there was a loud bang that shook the entire bathroom. "Fire!" I heard one of the portraits scream. Professor Quirrell immediately wrapped his back around his head and darted out of the bathroom. That must have been Cedric's distraction. I wonder what he set on fire?

I bounced on the tips of my toes, waiting for Cedric to round the bend of the tunnel but he wasn't coming. Minutes ticked by and still no Cedric. Where was he? Did he get caught? Oh, if he didn't make it back in time, Quirrell and his second face would be back. Then what would happen to the troll. "Cedric," I hissed down the tunnel, but there was no response. More foot steps back and forth and screams from the portrait. I didn't think there was much time.

On a split-second decision, I press both hands on the mirror glass and, instead of it opening like a trap door, I fell right through.

My jaw banged against the sink on the way down. That was going to bruise. Scurrying to my feet, I scooted around to the head of the troll and poked it with my foot. "Um. Wake up," I muttered, wondering if I really wanted it to. It sneezed but didn't budge. I kicked harder. "Wake up you lazy hound dog!" Still nothing. I huffed, stirring the knotted bangs of my hair. They'd grown too long to be called bangs anymore I think. Walking over to the bathroom door, I attempted to open it, so I could take a peek at my exit strategy. The door wouldn't budge. "Oh no!" I whined. Professor had not only locked the door, but he reinforced it to keep the troll inside. "Mary. Mary why didn't you just wait." I ran over to the mirror, climbing up on the sink trying to get back inside the secret door. No luck. When I pressed onto the glass, I was met with resistance. When I tried to lift it from the bottom, I got old gum stuck to my fingertips. "Yuck!" I tried wiping the sticky gum onto my skirt. It was already dirty. What was a little more gunk? My peripheral vision picked up movement in the mirror and I looked behind me to meet large golden eyes over my shoulder.

It sniffed and sniffed again. Each exhale blew a familiar troll breathy stench into my face. "You smell like Maah Maah," It spoke, leaving me in temporary shock until it shouted. "What did you do to Maah Maah?!"

Its fist reared back, ready to strike. "No wait!" I cried ducking out of the way. I scurried under its arm and planted myself against the far bathroom wall. "I didn't do anything to Maah Maah. Look! Look!" I held out the doll around my wrist. "Maah Maah gave this to me. She wants you to come with me." The troll lowered its fist, recognizing the doll. "Yes. I'm here to take you home."

"Home," it grumbled again. I looked carefully into its eyes, not making any sudden moves.

I untied the doll from my wrist and extended it to the troll. "Home," I repeated.

He slowly reached out, like a racoon scared and hungry. A small part of me sympathized with it. As he pulled the doll from me, a bean in his giant fist, I could sense how it was feeling. Scared, confused, lost. I smiled at it, careful not to show any teeth. I didn't know how I knew, but I felt that would be a bad idea. Gradually, the troll smiled back. I had gained its trust. Thank Jesus its mother gave me that doll. "I want go home." He spoke in grunts but there was that same intelligence in its eyes I saw in the smaller trolls.

Cedric still wasn't back. The commotion outside was dying down and I had to think quick.

In the bathroom, was a large window. Not large enough for either of this troll's brothers to fit, but large enough for this big baby troll to squeeze. I slapped my hands against the colorful flower mosaic. "Smash this."

The troll looked confused. "Smash?"

I ran over, picking up its club and handing it to him, but keeping my distance. My mind still conjured the smells of vomit and Leanne's leg. "Break it! Then we jump."

"But," it looked down at the club, "Pretty."

"What?"

"Pretty flower. No smash."

"Smash it."

"No want."

I growled and stamped my foot before pulling out my wand. Who knew trolls liked flowers? "Flipendo!"

Glass shattered outward. The noise had attracted attention. I could hear footsteps returning. Similar to how I'd noticed the small troll ride the larger one, I quickly scaled up the back of the troll. I gained traction on its back fat and fisted the vest. "Hurry! Professor Quirrell's coming back! You need to jump," I hissed.

It scooted toward the edge, lifting a both legs over the windowsill and crouching down. It almost wasn't far enough. Jagged glass poking from the top of the frame snagged some of my hair. I was able to move in time before it cut me.

The last thing I wanted to do was bleed around a troll.

It finally made the leap. The jarring impact with the floor almost made me lose my hold on him. "Run!" I ordered, kicking my heels like he was a horse. "Hurry!"

There was no real hurry in its steps, but it bounced along away from the castle. I found myself ignoring Cedric's words again.

And almost as soon as I thought of him, did I see him pop out from a nearby bush. "Mary! Get down from there!"

I gasped, surprise causing me to instinctively let go and fall to the hard, cold ground. "Cedric. What…How did you just-"

Cedric held out a hand to help me up while the young troll hovered nearby. He didn't seem violent at all and looked almost sorry to have dropped me. "After I set that tapestry on fire, I couldn't get back into the tunnels so easily. I honestly guessed at you doing something like and came here to head you off before you tried doing anything stupid. Again." I cringed at his tone but couldn't argue that that was exactly what I was just doing. "Tell your new friend to follow along. We've already been at this for too long."

I fell in line behind Cedric, motioning for the young troll to come with. When I turned back to take a quick peak at our escaped window, it was to see Professor Quirrell looking down at us. He didn't move or speak or make any attempt to try stopping us. He just stood there.

I hoped that, from this distance, he wouldn't be able to recognize me or Cedric. I guess I would find out when we returned.

(Lidia- Hey everyone! Thank you for your patience! I didn't really have much time- none really- to proof read this so please forgive if there are more typos than usual. Next up, Mary gets her first peak into hell when she comes across the Hellgate.)