Minerva walked briskly through the dungeons. "No sign of the troll, Severus, Quirinus. Have you found anything?" "There's no sign of it, Minerva." The Potions Professor replied. "N-n-no sign, M-Minerva." Quirrell echoed.
At that exact moment they heard the crashing sound of destruction and a high, terrified scream. They looked at each other with the exact same thought. "It's one of the students." Minerva struggled to maintain her stoic façade. "Move!" she commanded, and they took off through the corridors.
.o.O.o.
Hermione ducked and screamed as the sink next to her shattered. "Do something!" she shouted at Ron. Harry swung precariously from the troll's back. He was going to be hurt any second now.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron shouted. The trolls club levitated up above. The troll looked up in confusion, and the club dropped on the trolls head. Hermione winced as it swayed and slumped to the floor.
.o.O.o.
Minerva stopped outside the girl's bathroom. The noises of destruction had stopped. "It's in here." She shook away images of what she might see inside.
She pushed the door open, and saw not just one student, but three: Granger, Potter and Weasley. Granger was huddled in a corner, but the boys were standing over the prone body of the troll. Quirinus whimpered and slid down the wall to rest on a toilet. Severus bent over the troll, presumably to inspect whether it was dead or not.
Minerva stared at her three students. What were they doing here! Why weren't they in their dormitories! They could have been killed! Her lips thinned in a mixture of anger, fear and relief. Her anger won through.
"What on earth were you thinking of?" she practically hissed. Weasley was still standing there with his wand held in the air like some idiot. "You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you in your dormitory?"
A quiet voice came from the shadows. "Please, Professor McGonagall – they were looking for me."
"Miss Granger!" Minerva exclaimed. The girl shakily got to her feet. "I went looking for the troll because I – I thought I could deal with it on my own – you know, because I've read all about them." Minerva was surprised. She wouldn't have thought Miss Granger was that kind of person.
Ronald dropped his wand with a clatter. Minerva looked sharply at him. Both boys had looks of shock on their faces. Seeing their expressions, it became clear to Minerva. Miss Granger was hiding the truth for some reason.
"If they hadn't found me, I'd be dead now. Harry stuck his wand up its nose and Ron knocked it out with its own club. They didn't have time to come and fetch anyone. It was about to finish me off when they arrived." the child continued.
"Well – in that case…" Minerva decided to play along. She would talk to Miss Granger about it later. "Miss Granger, you foolish girl, how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own?" the child hung her head. "Miss Granger, five points will be taken from Gryffindor for this." She said. "I'm very disappointed in you." The Professor was actually disappointed; disappointed that Miss Granger was hiding the truth. "If you're not hurt at all, you'd better get off to Gryffindor tower. Students are finishing the feast in their houses."
The girl left quickly.
Preoccupied with thinking about why exactly Miss Granger had decided to lie to her, the Professor awarded Harry and Ron – Potter and Weasley – five points each, and dismissed them.
After they had left, they began to clean up and repair the destroyed bathroom.
.o.O.o.
Hermione hurried out of the bathroom, face burning with shame. She had lied to a teacher! And not only a teacher, but her favourite teacher and Head of House. She walked up to Gryffindor tower and slipped in unobtrusively. She waited by the door for Ron and Harry. When the boys walked in, they immediately saw her. The trio awkwardly said "thanks" and hurried off.
There was one thing good that had come out of the incident, and that was that Hermione now had two good friends.
.o.O.o.
The next day in Transfiguration, Hermione could not meet her Professors eyes. She kept her head down and worked silently.
As soon as class was over, she stood up ready to leave. "Miss Granger." Hermione stopped. "Please stay a moment. I would like to have a word with you."
Hermione turned to face Professor McGonagall. "Alright, Professor." She agreed.
"Why don't you come through to my office?" the Professor offered. Hermione trudged through the door that was held open for her. The room was furnished with Gryffindor colours. Hermione couldn't help but smile; her Head of House always enjoyed showing off her House Pride. "Please, have a seat." Hermione sat across from the Professor at her desk. "Would you like some tea?" McGonagall asked, to which Hermione agreed. Some tea immediately appeared on the desk between them. They both took a steaming cup of fragrant liquid.
There was an awkward silence as they both sipped their tea.
"So, Miss Granger…" The Professor started. "Yes?" Hermione asked. "I would like to know what really happened with the troll. I am aware that you didn't exactly tell me the truth yesterday."
Hermione paled. "Don't worry; you are not in trouble for lying to me. I would just like to know what really happened, and why you thought it was acceptable to lie to me." Minerva reassured her.
"Alright…" Hermione fiddled with her tea cup, and told her the full story.
"I see." The Professor said when she had finished. She leaned back and surveyed the bright young student in front of her. "Thank you for telling me this." There was a pause. "Why did you not tell me of these problems with your housemates?"
"It wasn't a big deal…" mumbled Hermione. "Well, Miss Granger, here at Hogwarts we do not tolerate this kind of behaviour, so we would have put a stop to it had we been informed. Please do feel free to come to me if there are any more problems, or even if there are just some things that you need to talk through. As your teacher and Head of House I want you to know that I am always here to help you."
Hermione nodded. "I will, Professor. Thank you."
"On a lighter tone, I think I shall have to re-delegate some points." Professor McGonagall noted.
Hermione looked up questioningly. "I think I'll give fifteen points each to Mr Weasley and Mr Potter, for aiding a housemate in need." She gave Hermione a minute smile. "Well, off you go, Miss Granger. Enjoy the rest of your day."
Hermione stood and bid her Professor farewell. She left the room with a fresh spring in her step and a smile on her face.
AN:
I promise, I'm trying to write and update more. I really am sorry.
Hopefully the next chapter will be up sooner!
Please review!