The weeks passed by rather quickly. Hogwarts professors were quick to assign homework, so most of Harry and Ron's free time was spent in front of the enormous fireplace in the common room doing homework. However, weekends came with a sense of relief and the time to procrastinate. Ron and Harry spent them thoroughly exploring the Hogwarts and using Hagrid's hut as a change in scenery. As October approached, a new note was posted on the common room wall.
"All first year students are expected to complete at least two flying classes before October. The class has already been fitted into your timetable below." Ron read out loud, in front of the first year crowd.
"How much do you wanna bet they paired us up with the Slytherins?" Dean Thomas called out. Ron's eyes slid downwards to the schedule and groaned.
"Slytherin."
"Great." Seamus Finnegan said, rolling his eyes.
"I don't see why we have to learn how to fly anyways." Hermione said, coming down the staircase with Sophia. "It's not really educational."
"Afraid you'll fail?" Ron shot back. Hermione tossed her bushy brown hair and glared.
"Hardly." Throwing one more look of contempt at Ron, she stalked out of the common room.
"We learn to fly?" Harry whispered to Ron excitedly. Ron nodded, a huge grin stretched on his face.
"Yup. Mostly for safety reasons though... But finally something to beat Hermione in!" He said gleefully, rubbing his hands together. "I'll wipe that snotty smile off her face!" Harry laughed.
"C'mon…let's get some breakfast."
"Welcome to your first flying lesson." A tall woman with silver, spiky hair addressed their group. Her eyes were tawny and piercing, similar to a hawk and she was clothed in flowing black robes complete with black dragon hide gloves.
"My name is Madame Hooch. When I'm through with you, hopefully you'll be able to fly at least 10 metres without falling off. Flying isn't for everyone, but it IS a major form of wizard transportation. Those who need extra lessons, a sign up sheet will be given at the end of the second lesson. Any questions?" She barked. A few mumbled no.
"Alright then. Now, see the brooms set on the ground? Please stand next to one. No sharing- this isn't group work. Good. Now I want you to stick your right hand out over the broom and say up." A chorus of ups began ringing out among the first years.
"Up!" Harry was surprised, and beyond pleased when his broom flew into his hand on the first try. He looked up. He saw that Sophia and Dean Thomas had managed to get their brooms up on the first try. Unfortunately, so did Malfoy. He glanced back and Ron, who was shouting up to the point he was red in the face. His broom was rolling on the ground.
"Be firm!" Madame Hooch ordered. Ron took a deep breath.
"Up!" His broom promptly flew up and hit him in the face.
"Weasley! That's good! You can blame that on your lack of coordination rather then the broom. Okay. Three more tries for everyone, then we move on. Those who do not manage to raise your broom will be at a disadvantage." Harry's eyes slid to Hermione. Her bushy brown hair was messier then usual and she looked beyond frazzled. Ron elbowed Harry, a huge smirk on his face.
"Three…two….one…STOP!" Madame Hooch barked, blowing her whistle. At the end, Hermione had not been able to raise her broom. Neville Longbottom hadn't had much success either. Seamus' broom had flown up on the last minute, its handle hitting him in the face, much like Ron's had.
"Those of you who couldn't raise your brooms, just pick it off the ground. Now, I want you to mount your brooms. Hold steady and find the position you feel the most stability. We don't want you flying off. When I blow my whistle, you need to kick off the ground, hard. Hover for a few moments, then touch back down. Everyone understand?" A few nodded. "Very well. Three, tw-" Before Madame Hooch could even say two, Neville, in his desperate attempt to keep up with everyone else, had kicked off the ground early. Much to everyone's surprise, he had actually lifted off. However, instead of hovering, Neville and his broom were floating higher and higher into the sky.
"Mr. Longbottom!" Madame Hooch said, annoyance flashing in her eyes. "Get back down this instant."
"I can't!" Neville wailed, pushing down hard on his broom handle.
"Mr. Longbottom, take control of your broom!" Madame Hooch instructed loudly. "Point it downwards!" Either from the stress and fear brought on by the situation, or if his hands were usually like that, in an attempt to point the broom downwards, Neville's hands slipped. Flailing for a second, he managed to latch himself back on, but at the same time in managed to turn his broom to the right. Also, while trying to regain his balance, he leaned forward. The broomstick shot forward.
"Neville!" Ron yelled. Harry could hear Malfoy sniggering. Poor Neville was trying his best to control his broom, but anyone could see that he was no longer capable. He was flying away from the group now, away from Hogwarts. Madame Hooch began to scream orders at Neville, panic setting in. But, by some stroke of luck, just before he flew out of the courtyard, Neville's robe got snagged on the crossed arrows held by an old stone statue. His broom kept going, flying over the castle walls and out of sight.
"Mr. Longbottom! Don't move, we'll get you down from there-" Suddenly there was a horrible ripping sound as Neville's robe began to rip. Before anyone could react, the piece of fabric that had been holding him steady tore away. He dropped to the ground, landing in a crumpled heap. The Slytherins burst into laughter. Madame Hooch rushed to Neville's aid.
"Did you see that? I'm sure he wouldn't have fell as fast if he didn't have such a fat ass." Malfoy sneered. Ron and Harry turned towards Malfoy, with the intention of telling him off in the meanest way possible, however Sophia spoke up first.
"Shut up Malfoy." She snarled, swinging her broom like a baseball bat. The straw part of the broom hit him in the face leaving small scratches behind. Malfoy stared at her, stunned. The Gryffindors burst into laughter. Malfoy's face twisted into a mask of laughable fury. He stepped towards her threateningly before Madame Hooch returned, supporting a very pale Neville.
"Madame Hooch, Wilder-"
"Be quiet Mr. Malfoy. I'm taking Mr. Longbottom to the hospital wing. I want all of you to stay ON the ground. If I see anyone flying, they will be expelled from Hogwarts immediately." Her hawk eyes flashed. The students looked at their feet and quietly put their brooms on the ground. She nodded, satisfied. She departed, her robes billowing behind her.
"Oh look…Longbottom dropped something." Malfoy crowed bending over, retrieving a clear glass ball.
"It's a remembrall Malfoy." Ron said with sarcastic patience. "If the ball fills with red smoke, it means you've forgotten something. You can get them at a magical place called ANYWHERE." Malfoy flushed.
"Well. Since Longbottom forgot how to land, I'm sure this doesn't assist him in anyway. I'm sure he can practice his flying if I leave it at the top of a roof." Harry's anger rose. He pushed his way through the crowd.
"Give it here Malfoy." Malfoy laughed loudly. Crabbe and Goyle guffawed stupidly alongside them. He tossed it up in the air, and picked up his broom.
"No. I think I'll put it somewhere for Longbottom to find." He mounted his broom and kicked off the ground.
"What's the matter Potter? Too glorified to fly?" He sneered. Fury pulsed through Harry. Without being completely aware of what he was doing, he clambered onto his broom.
"Harry, Madame Hooch said to stay on the ground. And you hardly know how to fly!" Hermione said with contempt. Harry kicked off the ground.
"Idiot."
"Give here Malfoy! Or I'll knock you off your broom!" Harry yelled, while trying to keep himself steady. He had never flown before, and it was much harder then it looked. Malfoy was perched on his broom with ease. He had obviously flown before.
"Come and get it then." He taunted. Leaning forward, Harry rushed towards Malfoy, taking him by surprise. Malfoy hardly rolled out of the way in time.
"Want it? Go and get it." With a smirk, Malfoy raised his arm and threw it as hard as he could off the grounds. Leaning forward again, Harry zoomed past Malfoy. Reaching out, he managed to catch it just before it went through a window. Cheers erupted from below. Pointing his broom slightly downwards, Harry floated back down to the ground, a huge grin on his face.
"That was amazing Harry! I've never seen anyone fly that fast before!"
"The roll you did when you caught it? Can you teach me how to do that?"
"Harry Potter." Harry froze. Turning slowly, he saw Professor MacGonagall striding towards them, her gaze piercing.
"Professor, Malfoy-"
"Do be quiet Mr. Weasley. Follow me Mr. Potter." Harry handed his broom to Ron wordlessly. He was going to be expelled. Dad was so going to flip.
"Mr. Potter, I've written to your father about this. Under normal circumstances, I would wait for his approval. However, I'm sure he'll agree. I'm a very persuasive person Mr. Potter. Come with me- I'll get wood." Harry's stomach dropped. His Dad wouldn't need persuasion to expel him. He would probably send his reply to McGonagall with a Howler. And McGonagall had gone to look for wood. McGonagall had always struck him as old fashioned. Maybe she was going to beat him with wood- a classic form of old punishment. He heard her footsteps down the hall. Harry glanced up. A lean, muscular fifth year was with her. Was he going to be the one to hit him with wood?
"Mr. Potter, this is Oliver Wood, captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch Team." Great. Was he going to be beat up by Wood?
"Professor-"
"Hush Mr. Potter. Wood, I've found you a seeker." Harry's jaw nearly dropped open. He floundered around trying to close it. Wood's mouth had dropped open as well, however, he was much more successful at closing it.
"Harry Potter!" He enthused. Then his thick brows furrowed. "But he's a first year."
"As long as the headmaster, head of house and his father approves, there is no problem." Professor McGonagall said. Wood beamed.
"He's a good seeker build- very slight. Quick reflexes I presume?"
"He caught Longbottom's remembrall right outside my window- it was more than Charlie Weasley could ever hope of pulling off." Wood looked even more excited.
"With a bit of training, we'll have a fair chance of beating Slytherin last year."
"I do hope so Wood. I couldn't look Professor Snape in the eye for days after last year." Wood's face hardened.
"Potter. I'll give you an orientation tomorrow, after classes. Meet me in the courtyard. Do you have a broomstick?" Harry shook his head.
"I mentioned that in the letter to his father. I'm sure James will take care of it. I took the care of mentioning that Harry would be the youngest seeker in a century." Wood brightened.
"We'll get him set up on a Cleansweep for now. The new model just came out, and it's a fair price. Hopefully he'll send one of those."
"Remember Wood…Harry's only eleven. James will most likely send a second hand broom."
"As long as it isn't a bluebottle. He would be better off on one of our brooms."
"Anyways. Potter needs to get back to class." She looked pointedly at Harry, who quickly scurried back to the grounds.
"Seeker?" Ron exclaimed. Harry nodded, unable to keep the smile off his face. He had returned and informed Ron as soon as possible.
"That's incredible. My brother Charlie was the last good seeker Hogwarts ever had…Fred and George are the beaters on the team and apparently we've lost pretty badly to the Slytherins every year since Charlie left. Does your Dad know?"
"McGonagall sent him a letter."
"Congrats Harry!" Sophia enthused, dropping into the empty space beside Ron. Ron blushed a shade of red quite similar to his hair. Hermione dropped wordlessly beside her.
"Thanks Sophia."
"We'll definitely be cheering you on then! Seeker…does this mean you get out of flying lessons?" Harry hadn't thought of that.
"I'm not sure actually." He admitted. He turned to Ron. "Maybe I should write him a letter. Do you have any idea where the Owlery is?"
"No clue." Ron said.
"Hey, maybe we could all go together." Sophia exclaimed. "Hermione and I want to write to our families too. I'm sure between the four of us, we would be able to find it."
Later that day, the four started to search for the owlery. Hermione and Sophia met them by the staircase entrance.
"I've read it's a tower. So, we need to go to the top of the staircases. Maybe there's a door up there."
"We better hurry before the staircases change." Sophia whispered, her eyes casting upwards at the fifty floors of moving staircases. The rest nodded, and hurried up the first floor. However, halfway up the flight of stairs, the staircase lurched, flinging them onto the handrail.
"The staircase!" Hermione exclaimed, clutching at the heavy stone. The four hung on tightly to the railing as the staircase swung up an extra level and settled. They scrambled off quickly, rushing towards the next stair, only to have it swing out of their grasp the last second. Harry shook his bangs out of his face. Ron exhaled, exasperated.
"Great. Now we're stuck."
"We can't be stuck! This is the third floor! It's forbidden!" Hermione exclaimed, her face flushing red. "What if we're caught!"
"Shhhhhhhh!" Sophia hissed, her eyes averting to the left. Settled contently five feet away was Filch's famously nasty cat, Ms. Norris. Her ruby eyes gleamed. The four stood still, staring at her. Ms. Norris stared unblinkingly back.
"Maybe if we back away-" Ron began, putting one foot back. Ms. Norris didn't move. Feeling slightly elated, Ron attempted with the other foot. Yet, before Ron was able to move an inch more, Ms. Norris opened her mouth and began to mewl loudly.
"Ms. Norrrrrrisssssss?" Filch's greasy tone was evident through the silent halls.
"Quickly, hide!" Harry hissed, shoving Ron towards the corridor. Breaking out into a full sprint, the four fled the stairwell, skidding to a stop seconds later in front of an old wooden door covered in cobwebs.
"It's locked!" Sophia exclaimed, slamming against the door as she looked over her shoulder. Filch wasn't far behind.
"Move over!" Hermione commanded. Sophia obliged, quickly stepping to the side. "Aloharmora!" The lock clicked open obediently.
"Quickly!" Harry urged, gesturing wildly for them to go through. Slamming the door behind them, the four leaned against the cool damp wall, panting.
"That was close." Ron muttered. "Stupid cat." His red hair was plastered to his forehead in sweat. The others hadn't fared any better. Hermione was ghostly white, her bushy hair completely mussed. Harry's hair was even more unruly then usual and Sophia's ash blond hair was falling out of her braid. Seeing the state of one another, they burst out laughing until Harry realized something was horribly wrong.
"Guys….do you by any chance feel….a breeze?" They glanced at each other.
"It's an awfully warm breeze." Hermione said, her voice quavering.
"YUCK." Ron gasped in disgusted, putting his hand on his shoulder, only to see it come back covered in a thick substance.
"Hermione…Ron…Harry…." Sophia whispered, her voice catching. Copying Sophia's position of looking up, they found themselves face to face with an enormous three headed dog.
The dog was brown, with three identical heads. Its breath stank of rotting carcass and huge gobs of saliva were dripping from its open mouths. Its teeth dwarfed the length of their wands and its paws were roughly half the size of Harry himself. At first, the four stood there in shock before they realized the danger they were truly in.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" They screamed, fleeing for the door. The monstrous dog growled and sprung for them. Barely making it out of the door on time, they managed to shut it on its three ugly faces.
"What the hell was that?" Ron demanded, breathing hard. No one answered his question. Even Hermione was at loss for words. Finally, she managed to stand.
"I think that's enough for today." She managed. "Come on Sophia…we can send our letters another day."
Days passed and there was still no word from his father. Harry had several orientations with Wood, mostly practicing catching golf balls before Wood would even dream of letting him try the snitch. Wood also wanted Harry to get his own broom and practice on it to achieve consistency.
"You and the broom need to become one." Wood explained. "The more used you are to a certain type of broom, the less focusing you'll need to do to fly it. That means you can focus more on catching the snitch." Harry fought back his laughter.
Days turned into weeks and Wood was getting more and more antsy.
"Maybe something happened and your father didn't get your letter. I'll get McGonagall to write to him again." However McGonagall had declined, telling Wood that James Potter was a very busy man and would get back to them as soon as he had a spare moment. Harry knew his father was a busy man, but he usually always made sure that his letters arrived the next day at the latest. Harry had received one letter from James, a blatantly cheery letter about his well- being and whether he was enjoying his classes or not. Harry wished that he could tell James about the altercation on the third floor, but knew he would reply with a howler. Harry took the time to send Remus a letter, telling him about his Quidditch Victory. Remus never replied either.
Finally, Halloween came. The Great Hall was decorated with jack-o-lanterns and the ceiling the was normally either filled with candles or stars crackled sinisterly with thunder and was darkened by grey clouds. Wizard treats and mouthwatering roast turkeys filled the long tables. Harry and Ron were thoroughly enjoying themselves until they were approached by Sophia.
"Hi Sophia! Feeling any better?" Sophia had been up in the hospital wing all day sick with the flu.
"Much. Has anyone seen Hermione?" She asked, her eyebrows creased. Ron shook his head.
"No. And good riddance." Sophia glared at him, effectively shutting him up.
"I heard from Pansy that she was in the girls washroom, crying." Neville said from his place beside Ron.
"Thanks Neville." Sophia said, and rushed out of the Great Hall. Harry glared at Ron.
"Nice going." Ron threw his hands up in the air.
"I didn't MEAN to make her cry."
~earlier that day~
It had been transfiguration class. Hermione had been the only one that had been able to transfigure a toothpick into a sewing needle successfully. After that, she had taken it upon herself to boss the other students around, noisily pointing out their errors. Ron had then turned to Seamus and said loudly-
"She's a nightmare, honestly. It's no wonder she hasn't got any friends." Hermione had immediately silenced, turned back around and quietly sat down in her seat looking at her hands. Harry hit Ron on the arm.
"Apologize."
"Why?"
"That was rather nasty."
"She had it coming."
Hermione had said nothing for the rest of the class. When McGonagall dismissed them, she was the first to leave the classroom, her gaze fixed on the floor, her brown hair creating a curtain that hid her face and her textbooks clutched tightly against her chest. Harry tried to catch up to her and apologize for Ron, but she shook him off, and walked quickly away.
"TROLL!" Harry was brought back to the present by the panicked voice of Professor Quirrell. The doors to the Great Hall had burst open, revealing the small, stick-like man. His face was white and sweaty, his turban slightly tilted and his robes were wrinkly and dirty.
"IN THE DUNGEON! THERE'S A TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" Quirrell screamed before skidding to a stop in the middle of the dining room. He wobbled for a second before fainting. Thunder rumbled, and the entire Great Hall erupted into screams. Students stampeded towards the doors, some falling over in the sudden madness.
"SILENCE!" The noise immediately faded, mostly over the shock that no one had ever heard Dumbledore speak so loudly.
"Thank you. Now, Prefects, you will take your houses back to the common rooms immediately. All staff will follow me to the dungeon." Percy was the first prefect to pull himself together, realizing his important duty. He puffed his chest out pompously, and called,
"Gryffindors! Please organize yourselves into groups of two and leave the Great Hall calmly and with organization. Stay together, and we will be perfectly fine."
"What is going on?" Harry nearly jumped out of his skin.
"Sophia!" He gasped, trying to slow down his heartbeat.
"Sorry." She whispered. "I was on my way to find Hermione when I saw Quirrell running like a mad man."
"GRYFFINDORS! PLEASE FIND ORDER!" Percy commanded loudly, as he watched the younger students scramble into a line. Finally, once some degree of organization had been made to the point to please Percy, he turned on his heel and led the way out of the Great Hall.
"Stay together please! And stay alert!" He called over his shoulder. Because of the storm that was brewing outside, it had become dark rather early. Because of the emergency measures that were in play, the lights had been extinguished, giving the castle a foreboding look.
"Harry!" Sophia whispered, tugging on his sleeve. Harry glanced off to the side- and saw a huge shadow against the sudden flash of lightning.
"The troll isn't in the dungeon anymore." She whimpered, her eyes wide with fear. "I need to find Hermione."
"I'm sure she's already in the common room." Harry told her unconvincingly.
"I need to look." Sophia said, inching away from the line.
"Sophia!" Harry hissed. "It's too dangerous!"
"Hermione doesn't know!" Sophia hissed back stubbornly.
"It would be suicide!" Ron whispered harshly. He had just slipped away from the group. Sophia glowered at him.
"All the teachers are in the dungeon. It wouldn't be right to leave her behind. Even though you guys don't like her, she's still my friend!" She snapped, anger flashing across her face. An awkward silence stretched between them. Finally, Harry sighed.
"Alright. We'll come with you." He turned to Ron. "She's right…it wouldn't be right for us to leave her."
"Then what are we bloody waiting around for?" Ron demanded. "That thing is still on the loose! The quicker we can find her and get back to the common room, the better!" Sophia gave them a tiny smile and took a deep breath.
"Okay. Let's go."
Before they even reached the girl's bathroom, they could hear it. A series of thumping footsteps, the sound of a club dragging on ancient stone floors and a stream of unintelligible grunting. A disgusting stench filled the corridors.
"The troll's going into the girl's bathroom." Sophia said, desperately looking towards Harry and Ron. "There's no time- we have to help her!"
"GO THEN!" Ron ordered, shoving them both towards the washroom. The three took off at a run, just as loud crashing noise sounded from inside.
"HERMIONE!" Sophia screamed, dashing inside.
"Sophia, wait we don't know-" Sophia screamed.
"Oh for the love of-" Ron swore before he was thrown back by a sudden onslaught of rubble. When the dust cleared, Harry saw Sophia buried underneath a pile of wood, Hermione crouched underneath the sink, screaming for her to wake up and Ron was off to the side, dazed. Grunting loudly, the troll raised its foot to step on Sophia. Harry knew he had to do something. But he knew, whatever he did, wouldn't end well.
"What the hell." He muttered, jumping and grabbing the troll's foot as he raised it. The troll, who was extremely stupid was confused by the sudden weight on his foot. It was all Harry could do to hang on for dear life. The troll lifted his club to hit him, but Harry grabbed the club, and hung on as the troll raised it. He swung around so that he was on the troll's shoulders before letting go. Confused by Harry's sudden disappearance from his foot, the troll looked around stupidly. Finally, Sophia blinked.
"SOPHIA!" Hermione screamed, relief palpable in her voice.
"MOVE!" Harry hollered down at her. Blinking again, Sophia seemed to remember the life threatening situation they were in. She began to squirm, without much success. The heavy rubble pinned her down. The scraping noise she made drew the troll's attention. He raised his club once again, prepared to strike. Desperate to distract the troll from Sophia's movements, Harry stuck his wand up his ugly green snout. Shocked beyond belief, the troll shook his head and sneezed, throwing Harry off, causing him to land on the damp floor. The troll blew into a monstrous rage. He swung his club again, narrowly missing Harry, and smashed more stalls. This is it. Harry thought, sinking back against the wall. There's no way we can beat him. We're doomed.
"Wigardrium Leviosa!" Hermione yelled. The troll's club slipped through his fingers, suspended in mid-air by the charm. Harry looked up and saw Hermione standing, her wand pointed at the club. Her hand was shaking furiously and her face was whiter than the porcelain sink next to her. Despite her fear, she flicked her wand smoothly, dropping the club directly on the troll's head. The troll teetered, swaying back and forth before pitching towards the pile of rubble that trapped Sophia.
"No!" Harry and Hermione yelled. Sophia covered her head, praying that her death would be a quick one. Suddenly, she felt pressure around her elbows, looking up just in time to see Ron yank her out of the pile of rubble and harm's way before the troll fell into the rubble, shielding her from the flying pieces of wood that erupted from the force of impact.
Once the dust cleared, the four looked at each other, breathing hard. Harry's body felt bruised and his robes were filthy from the dust resulting from the destructive rage of the troll.
"Is everyone okay?" He asked hoarsely. Hermione nodded. She had sunk down to her knees, her act of courage dissipating her energy. He saw Ron and Sophia crouched not too far away from the troll. Sophia's face had a nasty scrape marring one cheek, and small scratches flecked Ron's. Sophia quickly turned to Ron, her eyes running across his face.
"Are you alright?" She asked quietly.
"Of course!" Ron said, attempted to hide his grimace. Sophia looked down.
"Your leg!" She whispered in horror, looking at the odd angle it was bent at. "It's broken!"
"Naw, it's honestly nothing-" Ron started, but Sophia threw her arms around him.
"Thank you so much for saving my life." She said quietly. Ron turned beet red.
"Seriously…it was nothing." Harry made a mental note to ask Ron about his crush on Sophia later. He pushed himself to his feet, feeling extremely sore. He wobbled slightly, before steadying himself and beginning to climb the mounds of rubble to retrieve his wand. He barely stopped himself from throwing up at the state of it when he pulled it out.
"Ew. Troll bogeys." He wiped it on the troll's vest.
"Oh my goodness!" Harry looked up to see the panicked expression of Professor McGonagall, followed by the fearful face of Quirrell and the bored face of Snape. "Please, explain yourselves!"
"In all due time Professor." Sophia said calmly. "But please, can we get Ron up to the hospital wing? His leg's broken."