Chapter 14

0-0

The group were all sat in their usual seats around the Gryffindor table, bar Chloe because she was sitting at the Slytherin table to try and sort things out with her brother. They were all talking about the incident that had previously occurred earlier in term.

"That's one of the many reasons I hate Malfoy." Harry concludes.

Ron had brought up the subject of Draco stealing Neville's rememberall during Madam Hooch's class a while back and they had ended up discussing the events of that day. Harry had also mentioned that McGonagall had came out and lead him away to talk to her but he never said what. Very secretive.

"Where's Hermione?" Harry asks, scanning the Hall.

"I was thinking the same thing," Grace says. "She should be here by now."

"Parvati Patil says she won't come out of the girls bathroom." Neville says, leaning in to them. "She said that she'd been in there all afternoon, crying."

Harry turned his attention to Ron, who looked back with his gob stuffed innocently, shrugging his shoulders. This did not go unnoticed by the others.

"What happened?" Stephanie questions her brother.

"Why is she hiding away crying, Harry?" Jessica asks.

"Ronald Bilius Weasley!" Grace growls, her fist slamming onto the table. Without warning, she stands from her seat and leaves the Hall in a quick motion, before anyone can say anything.

"Ron, what did you do?" George asks, they were all staring at the boy now.

Ron just gulped in response.

"I should've known this was your doing!" Jessica shouts at her brother.

Saved by the bell, Quirrell barged through the doors, so Ron did not have to answer.

"TROLL!" Quirrell screams, running to the head table. "IN THE DUNGEON!"

Everyone was focused on him, as he slowed approaching the table.

"TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" He shouts, Dumbledore rising from his seat.

Silence. Everyone was tentatively listening and still.

"Thought you ought to know." He mutters, before his eyes roll back and he faints, slumping to the ground.

At that precise moment, a crack of thunder boomed and the Hall erupted into screams. People were jumping to their feet in attempt to escape, running mad.

"SILENCE!" Dumbledore's voice resonates throughout the room. Everyone came to a stand still. "Everyone will please not panic."

He looked around briefly before continuing in a lower, calmer manner. "Now, Prefects will lead their house back to the dormitories. Teachers will follow me to the dungeons."

At that everyone started moving again with shouts of 'this way!' or 'follow me!'.

"Gryfindors keep up please and stay alert." Percy says, leading them.

"Gryfindors keep up please and stay alert." Fred mimics in a high pitched voice.

Jessica and Stephanie were walking with them because it had been agreed that because they spent most of their time with the Gryffindors and their siblings, and because they were trustworthy, that they could enter the Gryffindor Common Room as long as they didn't know any of the passwords. The twins had insisted that they come with them as the Slytherin dorms are situated in the dungeons.

"How could a troll get in?" Harry whispers.

"Not on its own." Ron whispers back, brushing it off. "Trolls are really stupid. Probably people playing jokes."

Harry pulled Ron back, causing Jessica and Stephanie to stop with them as well as others kept rushing past.

"What?" Ron asks.

"Hermione, she doesn't know!" Harry replies, the two heading back the way they came with Jessica and Stephanie quick on their trail.

"And Grace, my bet is when she left she went to look for Hermione!" Stephanie adds.

They ran through back, ignoring the looks they were getting and rushed down the halls. Harry and Ron abruptly stopped and the two girls bumped into their backs.

"Hey!" Jessica says, rubbing her nose.

"Watch it!" Stephanie says, copying her actions.

"Shh!" Ron and Harry warn, not tearing their eyes away from the sight in front of them.

Jessica and Stephanie peer over their shoulders and gasp. "Oh."

"I think the troll's left the dungeon." Ron mutters, before Harry pulls him and the two girls to the side out of sight.

From there, they watched the troll enter the bathroom.

"It's going into the girls bathroom!" Harry exclaims.

"Well done, Sherlock!" Jessica says.

0-0

"Hermione, please come out." Grace asks, for about the 60th time since she had located her sister. Hermione had been crying in one of the stalls and ignored her pleas to come out.

Much to her surprise, the door opened and Hermione emerged from behind it. Her eyes were covered by her hair and she avoided eye contact as she walked out from the stall.

"Please, talk to me." Grace all but begs.

Wiping her eyes, Hermione started for the door and before she could answer Grace, she froze and fear crossed her face. Grace turned to follow her sister and had the same reaction. Both girls' eyes scanned from beastly feet right up to the towersome creature's head. My, was it ugly. As Hermione backed up, Grace followed suit, the troll following as well. They rushed into the stall behind them and Hermione slammed the door. Not that that did much because the troll swung its bat across the top of the stalls and swiped the wood away. They screamed, lunging to the floor with the remnants of the stalls falling on top of them. That's when Harry, Ron, Jessica and Stephanie barged in. Hermione and Grace pushed some of the wood away from them and locked eyes with the quartet.

"Hermione!" Harry shouts, them running towards the two. "Move!"

"Grace!" Jessica shouts.

The girls scrambled on the floor out from under the pieces of wood that lay everywhere, only to be buried again in result of the troll repeating its earlier actions.

"Ahhh!" Hermione screams.

Harry picked up a piece of wood and launched it at the troll, the others doing the same.

"Help!" Hermione yells.

"Shhh!" Grace shouts. "Don't attract it!"

"Hey! Pea brain!" Ron shouts, flinging a shard of wood, hitting the troll on the head.

"This way you idiot!" Stephanie shouts, as her and Jessica throw whatever they can find at the beast.

Hermione took her chance and her and Grace crawled across the floor past the troll. However, luck was not on their side, the troll looked down and caught them. Grace pushed Hermione from behind and the two hid under the sinks for minor protection.

"Grrr." The troll growls, bringing its large weapon down, crumbling the sinks next to the girls. They screamed.

"Help!" Hermione shouts, clutching a pipe from under a sink.

Harry whipped out his wand and ran towards the troll, grabbing onto the end of the bat and landing on its head. The troll became immediately fixed on getting Harry off and started flailing about. In one attempt, the troll bowed its head down so far that Harry was able to shove his wand up its nose. This elicited faces of disgust from his companions.

"Eww!" Ron says, Hermione scrunching her nose up and Grace laughing.

"He won't want that back anytime soon!" She laughs.

"Do something!" Harry shouts, suddenly being hung upside down by his leg, lifting his head up to narrowly escape the trolls swing of its bat.

"What?" Ron asks, incredulously, arms flung out words at his sides.

"Anything!" He replies, before escaping another hit. Ron looks around puzzled before reaching into his pocket. "Hurry up!"

Having noticed Ron pulling out his wand, Hermione gains his attention, moving her arms in the spell's motion as she speaks. "Swish and flick."

"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron says, waving his wand in front of him. Suddenly, as the troll tried to hit Harry again, the trolls hand came down empty handed.

"Ooo?" It murmured, confusedly looking up to see its weapon floating in the air above it and then watch it fall down and hit it on the head.

"Cool." Ron says, in awe.

At this, the troll releases Harry from its grasp and wobbles about for a few moments before beginning to fall to the ground. Falling in their direction, Harry and Ron scurry backwards away from the creature as its body makes contact with the floor, dust fluttered in the process. Coughing and wheezing from the smoke, the two girls stand from under the sinks.

"Well there's something you don't see everyday." Grace says, looking at the disastrous bathroom.

"Only you would make a joke at a time like this!" Jessica laughs.

"Admit it, you were thinking the same." Grace retorts.

"Is it- is it dead?" Hermione barely manages, as they walk across to the others.

"I don't think so." Harry answers, looking up from the troll to look at her. "Just knocked out."

Harry bends down and grabs hold of his wand and pulls it from the trolls nose.

"Gads!" Stephanie says.

"Ughhh," Harry says, in disgust. "Troll bogies!"

"Gross." Ron says, his face screwing up as Harry wipes it on his robes.

Not two seconds later, McGonagall, Quirrell and Snape rush into the bathroom.

"Ahh!" McGonagall says, hand to her chest in shock. The she turns to Harry and Ron, pointing her finger at the two. "Oh my goodness. E-explain yourselves, both of you."

"Well-" Ron starts, raising his hands.

"What is, is-" Harry says, at the same time.

"It's my fault, Professor McGonagall." Hermione announces, all heads turning to face her.

"Wha?" Ron whispers to Harry, his jaw practically hitting the floor as Harry's eyes looked ready to explode.

Jessica and Stephanie shared a look before staring wide eyed at the girl.

"Hermione?" Grace whispers, only to be met with her sisters determined face.

"Miss Granger." McGonagall says, still in shock.

"I went looking for the troll. I've read about them and thought I could handle it." She says, firmly. Harry and the Professor shared an unnoticed look. "But I was wrong. If the others hadn't found me, I'd probably be dead."

As McGonagall spoke, Harry glanced at Snape and some of the others' eyes followed. Snape was quick to hide his bloody leg from view, with a swift flick of his robes.

"Be that as it may, it was an extremely foolish thing to do. I would've expected more rational behaviour on your part and I am certainly disappointed in you, Miss Granger." Hermione bowed her head, as she continued. "Five points will be taken from Gryffindor. For your serious lack of judgement."

The Professor sighed a few times before looking to Harry, Ron and the three girls. "As for you two gentleman and young ladies, I just hope you realise how fortunate you are. Not many first year students could take on a fully grown mountain troll and live to tell the tale. Five points...will be awarded to each of you."

Harry and Ron shared excited smiles, as did Jessica and Stephanie. Grace kept her eyes fixed on Hermione as the girl lifted her head and forced a small smile.

"For shear dumb luck." McGonagall adds, leaving the bathroom. Snape and Quirrell shared awkward gazes but then Snape walked past him in a quick motion.

"Perhaps you ought to go, i-it might wake up." Quirrell smiles, hastily to the group as they leave.

The group headed towards the Gryffindor Common Room in silence. Dumbledore had spotted them in one of the halls and mentioned that it would be a good idea for them to settle down and talk in each others comfort. It felt like forever until they reached Gryffindor Tower, the awkward silence still looming. As much as they dreaded it, they knew they had to discuss what had happened.