-Chapter Eleven-

Grunt


The hall was silent as everybody processed what had just happened. What in the name of Merlin, as wizards apparently tended to say, was a troll doing in the castle, let alone all the way up on the fifth floor? Unfortunately, the silence lasted long enough for one voice to break through.

"But Millicent's right here, professor!"

Harry's head whipped around to look down the Slytherin table just as the panic started to set in. Screams erupted across the hall and Millicent jumped up, pain evident on her face. Not even stopping to listen to Dumbledore when he started shooting purple firecrackers from his wand, she barrelled through the doors and out of sight.

Dumbledore ordered the professors to join him on the fifth floor and the prefects to guide the student body to their respective common rooms. The order to the prefects seemed second nature, as though it was a default action taken in reflex to any large-scale event.

As Harry joined the line of students, already so close to the door that the orderly lines hadn't merged into a chaotic horde, he imagined that the common rooms probably had the most powerful protective enchantments in the castle, given that they were designed to house large numbers of children. They'd likely be safe from a troll wherever it was in the castle, and any powerful person who didn't know the password. He looked behind to see the crowds approaching, the Weasley twins taking the opportunity to lob food through the air, older students comforting those with tears streaking down their cheeks, the madness, then followed the prefect out towards the dungeons.

Every few steps, Harry had to break into a half jog in order to keep up with the prefect striding down the passage beneath the grand staircase. They passed the corridor that led to the kitchens, with its varied portraits still hanging, uncaring in the face of the danger. He thought of the House Elves, disappointed that their meal would go partially uneaten. He wondered whether more food could be brought to the common rooms. He mused that this would be the perfect time to find out where the other common rooms were, and how to get in. He jumped at the scream.

Instantly, heat flushed throughout his body. He could already feel the prickle of sweat beading across his arms and back as he broke away from the group. Even though he was aware of the prefects shouting at him to come back, none thought to force him to return. Experience said that screams meant punishment, and so screams were saved only for real trouble; trouble that Harry wouldn't wish upon anyone.

The blood pounding in his ears. The swampy stench filling his nose. The sweat forcing him to push his glasses back up to his eyes. The hissing sound of his shoes sliding across the smooth flagstones in the corridor as inertia tried to prevent him stopping outside the splintered door, more effective at keeping him from danger than the prefects had been.

Harry took in the situation with a glance. The door to the dungeon-level bathroom was in pieces, a few scraps valiantly continuing to hang onto the hinges. A lumpy, grey humanoid creature was inside, club raised and looking away from him. No, looking towards someone else. Scraggly black hair, stocky build, brow set in a permanent scowl. Millicent.

"Duro," he said quietly, pulling his wand out and making the required movement. There was no way he was going to attract the attention of the troll. Millicent let out another cry and the club swung down, impacting heavily upon the wooden cubicles blocking the troll's path towards her.

The wood held, crunching ominously but remaining intact as far as they could see. Millicent then spotted Harry by the door with his wand out, flinching at the odd pressure he felt surrounding him when the club had hit. Her eyes lit up in relief and she made to get up and run to him.

Harry scowled as deeply and as menacingly as he could and held up his free hand. He put everything into communicating a simple message: stay there. Millicent looked torn and, in a moment of indecision, almost broke Harry, but he continued, injecting as much malice as he could into his look, channelling every feeling he had about the Dursleys.

#

Sat on the floor, leaning heavily on the doorframe, Harry gestured clumsily for Millicent to leave her position. Legs too wobbly to stand, she crawled along the length of the magically sanitised bathroom, giving the prone form of the troll a wide berth. She mirrored him within the doorway and let out a shuddering sigh.

"Thank you," she said. "I owe you."

"No," Harry replied, letting his head drop onto his chest. "Draco owes you. You wouldn't be here if it wasn't for him." The sound of a throat being cleared made them both look up.

"Whatever the reason for Miss Bulstrode's presence in this bathroom, the fact remains that you enabled her to survive until we got here. You should not make light of someone owing you a debt, Mr Potter." Professor Snape frowned at Harry and resheathed his wand.

"Sorry, Professor," Harry said, looking back down at the floor.

"I should think this deserves some recognition from us," Professor Sprout chimed in. "Mr Potter showed skill in protecting Miss Bulstrode for as long as he did."

"More like Gryffindor recklessness," Snape countered with a sneer.

"Mr Potter did not run in without a plan, Severus. He remained unnoticed by the troll and ensured Miss Bulstrode remained in the safest place for her. I would say he demonstrated skills more befitting of your own house."

Professor Snape raised an eyebrow and clearly looked unhappy with the situation. "I imagine five points will suffice," he said before stalking away with a swish of his cloak.

"Don't worry about him," the kindly Herbology professor said while helping them to their feet. "I'm sure he's just worried. Have another twenty points and let's go and have Madam Pomfrey check you two over."

#

When Harry was finally released from the hospital wing, congratulating himself on being very persuasive and not letting on how tired he truly felt, he found Blaise leaning against the wall in the corridor taking nonchalance to new heights. When he spotted Harry, he pushed away from the wall and draped an arm around Harry's shoulders.

"Looks like someone's had a fun evening," he said with a grin.

"Oh yeah, great fun," Harry said while rolling his eyes. "Me and the troll are best mates, you know, and I just can't get enough of the hospital wing. Ugh, even Millicent got out of there way before me. I mean, I never went near the troll. It never noticed me. Why check me over at all?"

Blaise chuckled at his friend's frustration. "Well, you're out now, so no harm done, I say. Anyway," he said and raised his hand to ward off Harry's rising response, "there's something I need to talk to you about. I heard you refused a debt from Millicent."

"I told Millicent already, I don't want anyone in debt to me. It's not like I put myself in danger for her."

"Look," Blaise continued, stopping and turning Harry to face him. "Are you meant to be responsible for keeping us all safe?"

"Isn't that what friends do?" Harry asked, brow creased.

"That's not what I asked. Is it your job?"

"Well… no."

"Right. Now, did you save, or contribute to saving, Millicent's life?"

Harry sighed. "I suppose." Blaise flashed him a quick smile. "But the teachers were the ones who really saved her."

"And that's their job. Ok, now listen up for the next question. I'm sure you've considered Millicent's feelings about a debt. I'm sure you've also thought about how the rest of Slytherin would feel and react to you saving another member of the house. Plus, what they would feel if you refused that debt and ignored Millicent's feelings. Now, the question: Have I overestimated you in this, or do you have a death wish, or are you just being stubborn for a misplaced sense of justice?"

Harry mumbled and, after further prompting from Blaise, said, "The third one." Blaise was the image of friendly smugness. "Since when did you become an expert in all this?" Blaise's face fell.

"It was my mother. Not that I don't appreciate what she's done for me, but some of those lessons were so boring. But I suppose most wizarding families teach this before Hogwarts just in case we get into trouble. I mean, it's important stuff."

Harry frowned. "Can you teach me?"

Blaise's grin returned and he slapped Harry on the back. "Of course I can. Now let's see about getting you back into our dormitory. Millicent will be there and we can sort all this out."

"In the common room?"

"No, in our dormitory. Millicent's one of us now. She got her token stolen. That's why Malfoy was so rude to her."

"Ah," Harry said, noting the change of address. Neither boy noticed the Herbology professor smiling softly as she watched from the end of the corridor leading to her house's common room.

#

Millicent blinked at Harry's outstretched hand as it hovered in front of her, wavering slightly as he kept it in place. Her eyes rose to meet his and, as she stood, he saw a tightness around them fall away. She grasped the proffered hand and they shook.

"Miss Bulstrode," he began, trying to remember everything from Blaise's hurried lesson. "I acknowledge and accept the debt between us. Until such time as this debt is fulfilled, our families shall be bound in unity and cooperation. None from either family shall move against another, lest a lifelong and unbreakable debt be formed." Here, Harry had agreed with Blaise that he could go off-piste from the standard wording. "I am saddened that this debt needed to be owed, for you were endangered unnecessarily by foolish and unwise actions. However, beyond this debt, know that I am glad to save you and would always do so again. Let us cast aside any enmity and go forth with mutual protection and fondness."

As Harry took a breath and reflected with relief that he hadn't tripped up on any of the trickier words he'd used, Millicent released his hand and dropped to her knee. Her head was bowed and her shoulders shaking slightly.

"My lord," she said. Blaise had warned him that this might happen, that she might go overboard and make this mistake. However, Harry had been well-schooled by his friend in how to respond. He bent down to gently take her chin and lift while he spoke.

"Arise, Millicent, for we are equals. I hold no lordship or dominion over you for I respect your person and your freedom. You are important to me and I will not abuse your kindness. Of that, you have my word."

With that, Millicent smiled and nodded her head towards him, before leaving the common room through the Allies passage. He breathed a sigh of relief. Suddenly, his arm was grasped and he snapped his head around to see Blaise smiling at him. The two boys followed where Millicent had gone before them.

As they approached the door to their dormitory, Harry was glad for Blaise's guiding arm. His legs began to feel like jelly, the adrenaline rapidly draining after the release from the tension of the situation. Harry drew his hand down his face in fatigue - he supposed that Madam Pomfrey probably had a very good reason for wanting to keep her patients in for longer than they desired - and they stopped at the end of the corridor. Blaise directed Harry to place his hand on a carving of a snake.

"Friend," came the faint voice as the snake's eyes glowed a faint green. Harry didn't recognise the carving from before he had spent the last three weeks of October with the Hufflepuffs, but he was ushered into the familiar dormitory before he could give it more than a passing thought. Instead, his attention was drawn to the obvious differences to the room he had seen those weeks before. Firstly, and only unnoticed by those with the intelligence of a rock, the beds were no longer on fire. In fact, there was no evidence that there had ever been a fire in this room. Secondly, there was another door set into the wall next to Tracey's, currently open and moving slightly.

"Did everyone get new stuff?" Harry asked quietly, not wanting to bring attention to the incident.

"No," replied Blaise, drawing Harry's gaze. "Everything's just how it was, all original." He raised an eyebrow at Harry's confusion. "Careful, Harry. People might forget you've got a wand in your pocket."

"Hm? Oh… Magic." Blaise rolled his eyes at Harry's obvious realisation. "Sorry, it's a lot to take in and I'm completely shattered."

"I'm not surprised." Blaise guided Harry to his bed. "I heard you kept that spell going for a long time and the troll was battering away at it. Rumour has it you're the next Merlin!" He grinned at the withering look he got from Harry. "Ok, fine, not the next Merlin, but none of the other kids went anywhere near you guys. Take advantage of that where you can."

"Good point," conceded Harry, finally flopping onto the bed. There was a faint pop as his trunk appeared at its foot. "Merlin's gonna have a nap now." As he yawned through that last sentence, his eyes drooped closed.

#

The bench creaked as Harry plopped into the space created by Tracey and Millicent shuffling apart and reached for the sausage tongs. The sausages landed on top of some toast which had appeared from his left, and next to some eggs shoveled over from his right.

"Thanks, guys," he said, chuckling at his friends' antics. Blaise grinned as he sat next to Daphne, facing Harry. "Not eating anything, Millicent?"

"I'm already finished," she replied, looking at her now spotless plate.

"Yeah," Tracey agreed, "Millie got here super early. It's almost as though she's keen for Potions."

"Nothing wrong with Potions," Millicent said, giving Tracey a sharp look.

"How are you feeling this morning, though?" Harry asked.

"Fine, you?"

"Pretty hungry, to be honest." He let out a massive yawn - the sausage would have had ample opportunity to escape its new tomb. "Tired too, I guess…" Daphne covered her eyes, exaggerating her disgust at the outrageous, unrefined display.

"Careful," Millicent warned. Remember what Snape said about keeping up appearances." Harry and Daphne both flushed and apologised under their breath, returning to their meals. Blaise poured himself a drink and joined them, mirth clear in his dark eyes.

"Shall we go back to get our bags?" Harry asked as he polished off the last corner of toast. Tracey, Daphne and Blaise nodded and started to get up from the table.

"I'll meet you there," Millicent said, staying seated. Harry laid a hand on her shoulder and followed the others, raising a hand towards Neville at the Hufflepuff table.