Halloween Night

Perhaps it was because Harry was so busy now, with Quidditch practice two evenings a week on top of all his homework and trying to be with his friends from both Hufflepuff and Slytherin, but he could hardly believe it when almost two months had passed and Halloween was drawing closer. The castle was becoming his home, even though he missed the forest and his family every day, and his lessons were becoming more and more interesting now that they were mastering the basics.

And without even realizing it, Nicolas Flamel slowly faded from the minds of Harry and his friends.

"I can't wait for tonight," said Susan as they entered the Great Hall for breakfast, towards the smell of pumpkin bread that they had woken up to. "My aunt told me about the feast - its suppose to be amazing!"

"Well first we have to get through Charms, History of Magic, and then Double Herbology with Gryffindor," reminded Nevile, and Susan grumbled at that. She didn't like History of Magic, said she didn't want her brain to be filled with unless information like goblin wars and ogre battles.

"Speaking of History - Halloween was said to be the one time of the year when the dead and the living could interact," said Susan, chatting away as they scarfed down breakfast. "That it was the one day of the year that you could speak with your ancestors or loved ones that had already passed. Of course, that doesn't really happen - the closest we get to that is when spirits have unfinished business and become ghosts. But..." she fell silent for a moment. "Wouldn't it be nice? I... I would like to see my parents again."

Harry and Neville looked at her. They knew she lived with her aunt, but she never said how that came to be. Harry felt a shared pain with her, he wished he could see his parents again too. After a long and strange silence, Harry waited for Neville to say something - they all knew he lived with his grandmother, maybe he wanted to see someone he loved too, but he stay silent.

"Yah," agreed Harry. "I'd like to see my parents too."

Charms was their first class after breakfast, and Professor Flitwick announced that they would be learning the Levitation Charm.

"It is a simple swish and flick," said the tiny professor from his stack of books, showing them how to do it with his own wand. "Try it with me, swish and flick - that's it! Now, the spell is Wingardium Leviosa! Repeat it - good! It's on the board with pronunciation if you still have trouble. Say it carefully and clearly, and remember Wizard Baruffio, who said 's' instead of 'f' and found himself on the floor with a buffalo on his chest."

It wasn't an easy spell. Everyone struggled with trying to make their feathers float up into the air. Until finally, Harry managed to get it; his feather floating slowly towards the ceiling. He grinned, and other Hufflepuffs patted him on the back in congratulations.

"Excellent work, Mr. Potter! Five points to Hufflepuff!" Flitwick said when he saw what Harry had done. "You're mother was also good with Charms, I hope to see the same from you!"

Beaming at the thought, Harry continued to practice until his feather went wherever he wanted it, zooming across the classroom like a bird, albeit a slow one, but still. In the end, the only one who had trouble with the charm was Neville, who was disheartened, his shoulders slumped and his head hanging low.

Trying to help, Flitwick held him back, and Harry didn't have to try hard to hear him say, "I've noticed you having trouble with the charms before, Mr. Longbottom. May I ask, if you inherited your wand or bought it?"

"I inherited it, sir," Neville said softly.

"Ah, Well, the wand chooses the wizard, Mr. Longbottom, as Mr. Ollivander loves to say. This wand didn't choose you, it choose someone else. Would you like me to talk with your grandmother, about getting your own wand?" Flitwick carefully. "I think that would help drastically with your wand work."

Shrugging, Neville answered, "I don't think she'll listen, sir. But thank you."

Harry stayed silent as Neville joined him and Susan, and together they went on to History of Magic, the only class where they didn't bother taking notes. Not that Binns noticed or minded.

As their ghost teacher droned on, Harry drowsily stared out the nearby window, with only the occasional bird passing by. It had been awhile since he had been transformed and gone for a run in the forest - he wondered when he'd get the chance again. He hoped very soon. It wasn't like a normal need to change, it was like an steady itch that he couldn't reach, deep under his skin that throbbed in pain.

Groaning lowly, Harry laid his head on his crossed arms and tried to sleep so that time would go faster.

After History of Magic was finished and the trio finished a quick lunch, they headed down to the greenhouses. Surprisingly, Neville didn't perk up like he usually did when they entered their class, and with a worried glance between Harry and Susan, they decided to ask. "What's going on, Neville?" asked Susan. "Is it something Professor Flitwick told you?"

"He told me that I might need a new wand," mumbled Neville.

"Oh. And that's a bad thing," Susan said slowly, not quite understanding what the probably was.

"Its my father's old wand," Neville said with a heavy sigh. "And my gram will be so angry if she finds out that I can't even use it properly."

"But that's not your fault," protested Susan. "Its just not the right wand for you! I'm sure your grandmother and your father would understand!"

Neville flinched, but then shook his head. "She was so proud to give me my father's old wand. I don't think she will..."

Sprout entered the greenhouse before another word was said, clapping her hands together and greeting them cheerfully before explaining what they were going to do that day; take care of planting life, literally. They were going to plant fairy blubs, which when planted properly would grown a beautiful flower that would then give birth to a tiny but full grown winged fae in the spring, which would take care of the flowers they came out of. They also gave off a special pollen that was a potion ingredient. They would die out though when when it got to cold. Most of the girls thought it was sad until Sprout explained that when they died, they would just turn back into bulbs which they planted some time in after their "death" so they would have time to absorb the earth's energy's before spring came.

"Now all you have to do is fill the pot about half of the way, and then place the bulb in before filling it up to the third line and giving it a little pat. Then just give it a cup of water and a sprinkling of this special mix - it'll help them gain more strength. Don't give them too much though, its not healthy for them. Now, get to work, and I'll be making rounds if you need any help."

Harry thought it was a little relaxing - his hands in the dirt as he planted the tiny, multicolored bulb before covering it up so he could give it water and the mix. Even Neville relaxed as he got into it, hopefully forgetting about his father's wand. But of course, that comforting peace was broken soon enough.

"That's too much mix," Granger was saying to Weasley as they worked side by side. "Professor Sprout said just a sprinkle."

"Shut up," hissed Weasley before he added another heavy pinch of mix just as Sprout walked behind him.

"Mr. Weasley, too much mix," Sprout said with a click of her tongue. "And too much water, you're going to drown the poor things, please be more careful. Excellent work, Miss Granger," she said when she looked over at Grangers, who smiled at the praise. "Those look lovely. Five points to Gryffindor."

"God, stop being such a know it all," snapped Weasley when Sprout was out of his range. "Sheesh, its no wonder she doesn't have any friend," he whispered loudly to Labelle and his friends across the table, and they laughed loudly, ignoring the look Sprout gave them before helping another student - Dudley - further down the table.

Tears in her eyes, Hermione stood abruptly and rushed out of the greenhouse, and Harry heard her sob just before the door closed behind her.

"Where does Miss Granger think she's going?" asked Sprout with a frown, glancing out the greenhouses glass walls and looking at Granger, who was running towards the castle.

"She had an emergency," pipped up Labelle, sounding almost sympathetic. "She was having stomach pains."

"Oh - well, will someone please take her bag to her after class?" said Sprout with a worried frown before going back to helping her students.

"She's was hiding in one the bathrooms since Herbology class," reported Susan on Hermione Granger as the trio of Hufflepuffs left for the Halloween Feast in the Great Hall. "Moaning Myrtle told Parvati Patil in Gryffindor, who told Lavender Brown, who told Parvati's own sister Padma in Ravenclaw, who was telling her Housemate Lisa Turpin in the library during break when Hannah overheard them, who of course, told me."

"Wait - whose Moaning Myrtle?" questioned Harry with a raised eyebrow, scratching the back of his neck. His itch was getting worse - maybe after the party tonight he would go for a well needed run.

"She's a ghost that lives in the toilets on the second floor," explained Susan offhandedly. "Loves to gossip. Anyway, after that I'm pretty sure Granger went to her rooms to hide after awhile. That idiotic Weasley really hurt her feelings. What a total prick."

"Lets not think about it right now," said Neville as they got close to the Great Hall, which buzzed with excitement. "Its Halloween, lets just have fun."

"Yah... I check up on Granger later," agreed Susan.

All three of them were amazed when they entered the Great Hall - thousands of live bats fluttered from the walls and ceiling while a thousand more swooped over the tables in low black clouds, making the candles that sat in the carved pumpkins flicker. The full moon and stars were visible in the ceiling, along with hundreds of other candles, and everything was in various shades of orange and black. The feast appeared suddenly on the golden plates, as it had at the start-of-term banquet. There was food of every kind, everyone's favorites along with more desserts and candies then Harry had seen in his life. He practically drooled, and for a moment, he forgot about his itch.

Then someone bumped into him, and as Harry turned to say sorry, he blinked when he realized it was who was about to move passed him. He grabbed her by the arm. "Hey, where are you going?"

When she turned to him, Harry frowned when he saw that her eyes and cheeks were a bright red. Regina ducked her head when she saw him staring. "Hi, Harry."

"Where are you going?" Harry asked, waving towards the feast. "Aren't you hungry?"

Not answering right away, Regina quickly glanced back at her Slytherin table and then back to him. "I'm fine - I'm not very hungry."

"... Go ahead guys," Harry said to Susan and Neville, waving them on. "I'll be there in a bit." After they nodded and went to sit down, he turned back to Regina. "Want to take a walk?"

Hesitantly, Regina nodded, and the two of them walked out the Great Hall, walking in silence until they could barely hear the chatter and noise. Harry glanced over at her. He hadn't seen her since their impromptu picnic. She looked like she hadn't been sleeping well, that much was evident with the dark rings under her grey eyes. So he asked after a few long minutes, "Is everything alright?"

Giving a reluctant shrug, Regina said, "I'm fine."

"You're a horrible liar," remarked Harry, earning a confused look from Regina. "What's wrong?"

Hesitating, as if it was a great crime to talk about what was wrong with her, finally Regina said, "Its just my Housemates. They're just... tough to get along with, that's all. They're not use to me being raised in the Muggle world."

"What do you mean?"

Another shrug. "They like to tease me how Muggles are all primitive, how they're so backwards because they don't have any magic." Regina reached for her neck, grasping at the charm that hung at the end of her necklace. "I don't like to listen to them, its just teasing. But I want to tell them so badly how advance Muggle technology is - how wizards are the ones being left behind."

"How's that?"

"Like communication," said Regina, a spark in her eyes and a small smile that she tried to hide by looking towards the ground as they walked. "With telephones we can call anyone, and it's going to expand with anywhere and anytime with cellulars, with computers we can chat using the command line program, and even fax machines and telegrams - right now the best wizards can do is use the Floo or send letters, and even Muggles can send a letter."

"You really like technology, huh?" said Harry, and Regina, realizing what she was talking about, flushed.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to ramble on," Regina said with embarrassment. "There's even more then that, and I'm not saying everything Muggles do is good, but think what could happen if we manage to mix the two, magic and technology, together!"

"Like how?"

"Well... maybe a new kind of cellular that would never drop a call, despite magical wards or even towers, or have a celluar that is more like the two-way mirrors that I've read wizards used once upon a time, so we can see each others faces, but instead of just being able to see whoever has the matching mirror, being able to talk and see anyone who has one." Regina shook her head. "But it's just an idea - a silly one really."

"No its not," said Harry, and Regina blinked. "I think its brilliant! Does that mean you're going to invent one?"

"Invent - no, like I said, its silly," said Regina with a small laugh. "Besides, who would use it? Wizards aren't going to use technology when they have magic."

"I would, and it's not silly, it sounds bloody brilliant." Harry came to a stop, and after a moment, Regina did too. "Stop putting the idea down, and stop putting yourself down. I'm pretty sure anyone would buy it. In fact, I'll be you're first customer."

"How can you be a customer when I haven't even made anything yet?" Regina countered.

"When you do make this - what would you call it?"

"Uh... well, its a miniature communication mirror device, so I guess... I don't know, a Micro?" said Regina off the top of her head.

"As soon as you make a Micro, from Winters Incorporated," added Harry with a tease, making Regina laugh, "I will be the first one to buy it. Then you can say it's Harry Potter, Boy-Who-Lived, approved."

"I might hold you to that," said Regina with a shy smile.

"So why don't you just tell the ones bothering to just stop?" Harry said, wishing he hadn't brought up when Regina's smile fell away. "Or tell Snape, I'm sure he would do something about it, make them leave you alone."

"Its not that bad, really. I mean... its not like they've hurt me really badly or anything. Plus, I have to live with them till graduation - I don't want to make it worse by tattling on them." Regina shrugged yet again, as if unsure what to say. "I'm fine."

"Regina, I barely know you and even I know you're not fine," pointed out Harry. "Why doesn't you're half-brother help you out? Doesn't he want them to stop?"

"No, not really." Regina stopped to lean against the wall, like talking about it was making her tired. "He doesn't care about me. He hates me, actually. I don't he's said more then five words to me since we arrived here in September, and those words were 'Don't come near me, ever.' I can't blame him though. He's Pureblood, raised with money and privilege. I'm just... me. Poor, raised in the Muggle world, Half-blood who doesn't even remember her own father, me."

"Who is you're brother?"

"Blaise, Blaise Zabini," answered Regina after a moment's pause. "We don't share a last name since his father never married my mother - not that his Pureblood father would ever marry a Muggle."

"You don't look alike at all," said Harry, thinking of the dark-skinned boy that Draco talked to sometimes. He never seemed happy.

The corners of Regina's mouth twitched up. "I'll take that as a compliment."

From far away, screams echoed through the halls that even Regina hear, both of the students sharply turning back towards the direction Great Hall. "What was that?" asked Regina in alarm, standing straight again.

"I'm not sure," said Harry with a frown as the screams continued for a few more seconds before fading away. "But sometimes wrong - maybe we should get back," he suggested, and Regina nodded in agreement, slowly looking more and more panicked. "I'm sure it's fine."

Heading back, they'd managed to get a few halls down before Harry reeled back, wrinkling his nose and grimacing. "Ugh, that's disgusting!"

"What's wrong Harry?"

"Can't you smell that?" Harry said. He sniffed the air again, and recoiled with a gag at the horrible smell - a mixture of socks that been worn for days and the kind of public toilet no one seems to clean. He clasped a hand over his nose and mouth. "Its horrid."

Confused for a moment, Regina sniffed the air for another moment before she started to look a little green. "That is horrible." she groaned, covering her nose and mouth. "Where's it coming from?"

"Its getting closer, whatever it is," said Harry as the smell got more vile, followed by thuds, like heavy footsteps. "Something's really big heading towards us." He glanced around, and saw an unused bathroom a few yards away. "Here, lets duck in here for a moment till it passes."

Slipping inside, the first thing they noticed in the large bathroom was a girl at the sinks, sniffling and splashing her face with water. Startled, the girl looked up, water streaming down her bright red cheeks. "Wh- What are you doing here?" Hermione Granger said with a squeak. "This is the girls bathroom!"

"Something's out there," Harry said quickly, glancing back towards the door and worried that the noise and smell was getting even closer. "I think it's heading this way, so we need to hide, now."

Before either of the girls could protest or ask what was going on, something banged on the bathroom door, making everyone in the bathroom jump. Deciding now was not the best time to question this, Granger scrambled to hide under the sink, quickly followed by Regina and Harry. The three of them huddled under the sinks together, freezing when the door- which apparently they had not completely shut behind them - was pushed open with a low creak, and something came ambling into the room.

It was a horrible sight, a troll Harry recognized from a book he read on magical creature - twelve feet tall, with skin like dull granite, and with its great lumpy body it reminded Harry of a boulder with a small bald head perched on top like a coconut. It had short legs, thick as tree trunks with flat, horny feet. It held a huge wooden club, which was practically a broken log, that it dragged along the floor because its arms were so long, with a ear splitting scrap. It sniffed the air, blinking slowly for a long second before it stared at the sinks. Then, lifting its gigantic club, it smashed into the nearest sink, not even three feet away from Granger.

Screaming as ceramic went flying, pipes broke, and water spewed into the air like a spout, Granger scrambled further away until she was in the bathroom corner across the room, the troll too close to the door to try and make a run for it. Regina gave a cry as the troll then looked their way, and lifted his club again to smash the sink next to them, spraying them with water and sharp shards of porcelain. Harry felt one cut his cheek.

"Harry! Harry!" Someone out in the hall was calling his name.

"Here - we're in here!" Harry called out over the trolls roar and the Grangers loud cries while he stood up and Regina scrambled back, stunned.

Only a few moments later, Susan and Neville skidded into the room, with Draco on their heels. They all screamed as they realized what was in room with them, and the troll, confused with so many people in the room, glancing back and forth around the room and roared.

"What do we do?" asked Neville as he, Susan, and Draco drew their wands. "What are we suppose to do?!"

"Uh..." Harry didn't know. How did you stop a twelve foot troll from bashing in someone's head?

"Confuse it!" said Susan suddenly. "Distract it!" Desperately, she grabbed a chunk of tile and threw it at the wall, and at the noise, the troll paused and turned towards them.

"That was a brilliant plan," snapped Draco. "If I really wanted its attention on us - so now what?"

"We'll distract it - grab the Hermione and get out of here!" said Harry as he slipped to the trolls other side, taking a pipe and bashing it against the trolls back. It didn't respond to the pain, but more to Harry's yelling at it and the others. "Go!"

As Susan and Harry kept it confused, Draco grabbed a frightened Granger and had to practically drag her out of the room, who was so frightened her limbs were locked up. Regina had taken to hiding under a sink that hadn't been destroyed yet, her knees curled up to her chest and her hands over her ears even though her eyes were still wide.

Now getting angrier by the second, the troll swung its long arms with a roar, barely missing Susan and Harry. But to their horror, it hit the bystander Neville instead, and he went flying across the ground, skidding across the floor and only stopping when he hit the wall with a 'thump', yelping in pain.

"Neville!"

"I'm - ouch - alright," said Neville shakily, wincing as he sat up. "I think."

Growling in anger, Harry didn't even think about what he was doing before he took a running start and leapt forward, jumping onto the trolls back. It gave a strange howl as he tried to figure out what was on it's back, dropping its club as it tried awkwardly to reach its back - like someone trying to reach that itch in the middle of its back.

"Do something!" Harry yelled as the others looked on and stared with shocked expressions, tightening his grip as the troll started to try and shake him off, his swinging arms knocking down anything in its path.

Snapping out of some kind trance, Susan pointed her wand at the fallen club. "Wingardium Leviosa!" she shouted, and with only a moment's hesitation, the log flew off the ground and into the air, following Susan's wand motions as she carefully directed over the troll. And then, it dropped like a rock - hitting its head with a 'thunk!' that sounded like someone hitting something hallow. The troll froze, blinked once - twice - and then its eyes rolled into the back of its head before it pitched forward, Harry still clinging to its back when it smashed into the tile.

For a long moment, there was silence, and then Harry carefully disengaged from the troll, his limbs stiff from to hold on. He stepped down to the floor, his whole body trembling while he shook his head. He looked over to Susan, who was wide-eyed again. "Is everyone alright?"

Neville answered with a squeak of fright and Regina dropped her hands from her ears to move them over her mouth, nodding hesitantly. Close by, Susan sank to her knees and just continued to stare at Harry - no, at his hands. Glancing down, Harry saw his nails had grown and darkened - the reason he had probably been able to hang on. He had partially changed into a wolf. Quickly, Harry hid them behind his back, and trying to distract her, asked again, "Susan, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I think so..." Susan looked towards the troll, paling. "Is it - is it dead? Oh god, I think that I killed it!"

"No, I think it you just knocked it out," said Harry slowly as he looked it over. "Wow, nice aim, Susan. And thanks for not hitting me instead."

"And who was the idiot that jumped on a trolls back?" shot back Susan.

"Where did you all come from? Where did that troll come from?"

"It was loose in the dungeon, and when we were heading back we realized you hadn't coming back to the feast," explained Susan. "So we grabbed Draco and came looking for you. And boy, I am so glad to see you're alright."

Abruptly, Regina started sobbing, her hands wiping away tears that wouldn't disappear. "I - hiccup - I thought I was going to die!" she cried, turning to Neville and burying her face in his shoulder. Poor Neville looked uncomfortable, and he awkwardly patted her shoulder.

A sudden slamming and loud footsteps made the four of them look towards the door. It seemed someone had finally heard the racket they had been making and was coming to investigate. A moment later, Professor McGonagall came bursting into the room, closely followed by Snape, who lead in a hesitant Draco and a still petrified Hermione - with Quirrell bringing up the rear.

Pale as a sheet, Quirrell took one look at the troll, let out a faint whimper, and sat quickly down on a toilet with no stall anymore after the troll knocked it down, clutching his heart. Some Defense teacher he was.

"If I get detention - or worse, get expelled - I will personally hold you responsible for the rest of your life," drawled Draco as he and the others were forced to join at his side, Regina still wiping tears from her cheeks.

"I can accept that," said Harry with a shrug.

Slowly, Snape bent over the troll, and then nodded towards McGonagall. "Knocked out."

Professor McGonagall spun to look at the six students gathered together, eyes sparking with anger. "What on earth were you all thinking of?" she said with cold fury in her voice. "You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you all in your dormitory?"

"Its... my fault, Professor," spoke up Regina softly.

"Miss Winters?"

"I panicked and ran off when we suppose to back to our common rooms," lied Regina as easily as breathing. "They came after me, but then we got trapped with the troll, and..." She glanced at Harry. "They saved my life."

"It took all four of you to get her back?" said Snape with suspicion.

"I just kind of... happened?" said Draco with a shrug.

"And you, Miss Granger?" McGonagall asked, turning her attention towards her only Gryffindor.

"I-I was in the bathroom before - I didn't know anything about a troll until -" Granger started to cry, tears rolling down her cheeks that she tried to wipe away, and McGonagall seemed to soften just a fraction before she turned on the others.

"Still, you were all foolish! Anyone one of you could have been hurt! Five points will be taken from Hufflepuff for each one of you, and the same for Slytherin." McGonagall paused. "Not many could take on a full grown mountain troll. Twenty points to Hufflepuff and fifteen to Slytherin. For sheer dumb luck. You may all go back to your own Houses - the feast is being finished in the Common Rooms."

"I can't believe she didn't give us more points," grumbled Draco as the group moved down the hall, taking their time before they had to get back to their Houses. "I mean, we saved Grangers and Winters life."

"So humble," said Susan sarcastically.

"Well, technically we only got five points," pointed out Neville, "after she took all those other points."

"I still don't understand how the troll got into the castle," said Granger with a sniffle, wiping her red cheeks and shaking her head in confusion. "There's barriers and protection spells that should have stopped it! I read that in Hogwarts, a History."

"Oh dear Merlin, its another Bones," groaned Draco, and Susan didn't hesitate before she punched him in the arm. "Ow - hey!"

"Well, I'm going back to Gryffindor - thank you," said Granger with a smile at the Slytherin boy. "I was so scared I couldn't move - you both saved my life."

Draco flushed in embarrassment - he had just saved and thanked by a Gryffindor - as Granger gave the group a wave goodbye and headed back to her own Common Room.

"Is she suggesting that someone let it in?" drawled Draco, crossing his arms. "Why would someone do that?"

"... Someone let it in as a distraction," Harry said suddenly, giving his friends a look.

"What are you talking about?" Regina asked, looking confused. "Why would anyone need a distraction?"

"Someone's hiding something really important on the third floor, in the corridor that Dumbledore said was forbidden," said Harry. "Hiding it behind a three-headed dog."

"A what?"

"Its true - we almost got killed by a giant three-headed dog named Fluffy," said Draco seriously. "Remember the night Labelle challenged Potter to a duel? We ran smack into it when we tried to hide from Filch."

"And its called Fluffy?" Regina laughed a little, some color coming back into her cheeks. "That's kind of cute. But... what's it guarding?" she asked hesitantly, not sure if she should ask the question.

"We don't know," said Susan with a shake of her head. "All we know is it has something to do with a man called Nicolas Flamel. And remember that break in at Gringotts? The one were nothing was stolen? It was taken out that very vault the day before."

"Do you think Snape did it?" asked Neville. "Let the troll in? We did see him head upstairs."

"That can't be right." Draco shook his head. "No, there's got to be something else going on. Snape would never do that - he wouldn't let in a dangerous mountain troll and risk the lives of students just so he can steal something without being seen."

"It doesn't matter right now - its late, and since there's no giant dog running around the halls, I think we can guess no one stole whatever Fluffy's guarding," said Harry. "Lets just go and finish the feast - you guys can join us in Hufflepuff," he said to Draco and Regina.

The Hufflepuff Common Room, shared now by Hufflepuffs and Slytherins, was crowded, but everyone was enjoying themselves - siting where ever they could with plates balanced on their laps, goblets in hand, laughing at each others stories and jokes, and someone had even started playing music from a radio, and there was a couple of Slytherins singing along, people roaring with more laughter when they messed up on purpose.

"What are the Slytherins doing here?" asked Harry, confused.

"They couldn't go to their Common Rooms because the troll was first spotted in the dungeons," explained Susan. "So I guess they're crashing with us till they get the all clear - now come on, I'm still starving!"

Avoiding answering that question and starving after the troll episode, Harry and the group headed straight to the food that was piled in a corner, stacking their plates with food. It was when Harry was going back to dessert that someone behind him spoke up.

"Oh look -"

"Isn't that -"

"It is!"

"Harry Potter!"

Blinking at the two voices saying his name, Harry turned around, a pumpkin shaped biscuit still hanging out his mouth. Standing behind were two teen boys, grinned widely at him as they leaned on each other. Twins, Harry quickly realized, identical with matching orange-red hair and splashes of freckles across their noses and cheeks. They also looked like -

"Fred -" said the one on the right.

"And George Weasley -" said the one on the left.

"At your service!" they finished in unison, each taking one of his hands and shaking them.

"We had a bet you'd be in Gryffindor," chuckled Fred.

"You lost us a few Galleons!" said George with a wink.

When his hands were free, Harry stuffed the remainder of the biscuit in his mouth and swallowing before asking "Aren't you both from Gryffindor?" Both were wearing gold and red ties that hung loosely around their necks, which clashed horribly with their hair. Not that he was going to say that.

"We can't resist a good party -" said Fred.

"And Hufflepuffs throw the best!" finished George. "We snuck into the crowd when they were evacuating us!"

"And we brought party favors," winked Fred, producing from under his robes a bag.

"Uh, just wondering - you wouldn't happen to be related to Ron Weasley, would you?" questioned Harry hesitantly.

"Why yes indeed -"

"Happens to be -"

"Our younger brother!"

"What did he do know?" asked George knowingly.

"I don't want to be a tattle-tale," said Harry with a shake of his head.

"Oh don't worry -"

"It'll be just between us," promised Fred.

"Well..." After some hesitation, Harry told the twins about their young brother's behavior with Raven Labelle, how he had been bullying other students from not only Gryffindor, but the other houses as well. By the time Harry was finished explaining some of Ron's actions, Fred and George were frowning deeply, and then shared a look between each other, almost silently communicating with each other, before turning back to Harry and giving him a grin.

"Thanks for the info, Harry -"

"We'll take care of it." With a nod of acknowledgment towards him, the twins slipped back into the crowd.

After what felt like hours later, even though it was probably only midnight, Harry stumbled back to his bedroom, sluggishly changing into his night clothes. Neville had already crashed for the night, snoring in the next bed. It had been such a long day, all he wanted to do was sleep for a day and a night. But, since he had classes the next morning, he collapsed into the bed and quickly fell into a deep sleep, curled up underneath his thick blankets.

When he woke up the next morning, Harry didn't recall much of the dream he had, but as he remember gentle hands on his head and a kiss on his cheek, he started to cry.

Authors Note: Just a reminded as you think about this chapter, technology was just starting to become awesome - people were just starting to use 2G cell phones, the ones that were still pretty bulky, and starting to use computers more frequently. And yah, Regina's kind of a tech geek. While I love it, at the same time I am hitting myself going - "DO YOU REALIZE YOU HAVE TO LOOK UP ALL THESE TECH FACTS TO MAKE SURE YOU GET IT RIGHT OMG YOU ARE GOING TO HATE THAT LATER ON!"

Excuse me while I hit myself in the hit multiple times.

Anyway, hope you enjoyed the chapter, and don't forget to go take a look at my FB page, the link is one authors profile page!