Harry's P.O.V
Harry sat in the shattered remains of the toilets the troll unconscious in front of him had broken. The shards cut into his legs making him wish he could stand, but the entire experience with the troll had been extremely nerve wracking. He hadn't been thinking about what he was doing in the moment, but now that the behemoth was unconscious in front of him he was having trouble finding the strength to stand.
'If even one thing had gone wrong I'd be dead. If I'd mispronounced the disintegration charm it would've killed me with the club, if I had put to little force into my chorus Flamma spell it would've killed me, and worst of all if I hadn't called to Hermione in time it would've killed her,' all of these thoughts ran through Harry's mind as he stared numbly at the trolls prone form.
"'Arry what is wrong? Is it moving?"
"N-no, it's nothing," Harry shakily tried pushing himself to his feet but slipped as his hand rolled on his wand under palm. His hand scrabbled across the bathroom floor cuts opening from the porcelain shards on the tile, staining the floor and his wand red as he scooped it up," that spell just took a lot out of me."
It wasn't exactly a lie, casting so many spells back to back wasn't to taxing on him as long as they were simple stunners, but that disintegration curse had taken a considerable effort. He had learned in the chamber a scant few hours ago that he could only cast that particular curse twice in a row before tiring his magic core at his current progression. The only reason he could cast it this once was because he had been resting since the first two, well that and Salazar had a few pepperup potions that had been preserved in vials Harry had greedily consumed.
'I think I need another one of those potions,' Harry thought, groaning lowly as he stood onto his feet wobbling slightly.
"THAT WAS MENTAL!" Ron yelled gawping at the unconscious troll, whose hand had by this point sloughed off into a pile of half ash and gray goo the color of the trolls skin.
'Guess I haven't completely gotten the full disintegration part down, it was much easier on rocks,' Harry noted the liquified skin for later discussion with Salazar, hopefully he would know why that had happened.
"W-what s-spell did you use on its hand H-Harry?" Hermione stuttered not able to help her intellectual curiosity.
"So now is an appropriate time to discuss academics?" Harry snarked deflecting the question.
Hermione looked very annoyed and was undoubtedly about to retort, before the bathroom door slammed open and a cacophony of noise slammed into the quartet. A throng of teachers had burst into the bathroom, and just as soon as the noise had started it subsided as quickly once they had caught site of the unconscious and wounded troll.
The first of the teachers to move was Professor McGonagall bustling over to the students, fussing over each one in turn.
"What ever were you children doing here? What were you all thinking? You could've been injured, you could've died! I never would have expected such behavior from any of you, especially you Miss Delacour. I had heard good things from your previous Headmistress, but I may have to rethink my opinions! And mister Potter, I had thought you above the antics of your father and his friends when they were in school, but clearly you've taken after him more than I had thought!"
"It's my fault Professor McGonagall," Hermione bravely interrupted the fuming teacher in front of them all.
Professor McGonagall for her part just blinked owlishly before schooling her features again," explain then, Granger and if your explanation is not satisfactory enough then you'll all have detentions."
"I heard about the troll in the castle and I had been reading about them, I had told Harry just in case because he had done some precursory reading on them too and I wanted him to know. I guess he got worried and told the others I hadn't come back, so they came looking for me thankfully. It's a good thing they did, without them I'd be dead I think," Hermione looked down at her water drenched school shoes in a passable state of embarrassed admonishment.
Professor McGonagall seemed to want to start huffing and puffing at Hermione, but she inevitably deflated and sighed," that was a very foolish thing you did Ms. Granger, don't let it happen again. Even an adult witch or wizard would have a tuff time dealing with a fully grown mountain troll like this one. You were really quite lucky these three came to your aid. I think fifty points each is in order, so one hundred points in total to Gryffindor and Ravenclaw in total."
Professor Snape, who had been part of the group of teachers storming in the bathroom, broke the silence the other teachers had fallen into gazing at the quartet with dark intensity," do you really think it prudent, Professor McGonagall, to reward this behavior? As you said they very well could have been killed by this troll had they not handled the situation as well as they did."
The Deputy Headmistress nodded at Professor Snape in understanding," I can see why you would find that prudent, however I believe the haste with which they came to Ms. Granger's side should be duly rewarded rather than punished. What sort of president would it set if I punished friends coming to each other's aid?"
Professor Snape sneered at that, but said nothing further turning to gaze at the prone form of the troll; specifically it's mangled hand.
Harry stumbled his way over to Fleur who still stood to the side of the bathroom door, she wrung her robes hem in her hands looking back and forth at Harry and the troll.
"Are you sure you are okay 'Arry?"
"Yeah I'm fine," he said smiling at her warmly, keeping the dawning horror of all of the terrible things that could have happened had any part of the plan failed.
Shakily inhaling he turned away gazing at the teachers bustling around the troll, well except Professor Quirrell who had passed out at the site of the troll. Professor Snape seemed to snap out of his inspection of the troll because he turned to the four children with a glare," all of you retire to your dormitories. And don't take any unnecessary shortcuts, or you may just lose all of those house points you received."
Jumping at the professors warning, all of them rushed out of the bathroom not looking back for fear of catching the angry professors gaze.
"That was mental," Ron thundered not bothering to lower his voice in the empty hallway.
"That was something," Hermione squeaked trying to shush Ron.
"I'm surprised you lied for us," Harry said grinning at Hermione," that was some good on the spot thinking."
Hermione blushed at the praise," i-it was nothing, you all only came to help me I didn't think it was fair for you to get in trouble."
Harry looked over to Ron nodding his head slightly at Hermione as the other boy looked puzzled," don't you have something to say to Hermione?"
After a moment of blank staring an understanding look came over him, and he looked down at his shoes red faced," er, Hermione. I'm sorry I upset you earlier during Charms, I was just frustrated."
"It's fine Ron, I shouldn't have over reacted," as the pair made up, the atmosphere around the quartet lightened significantly.They walked side by side congratulating each other on the success of the hasty plan, and discussing what might be in store for the dueling club in December.
"That spell was great Harry," Ron said breaching the topic yet again.
"It was nothing, just a bit of defensive magic I read about in a book," Harry rubbed at his head, not lying entirely since Salazar had made him read extensively on the spell after being taught it. The old portrait had an odd teaching style, first he would tell you the spells function and dangers, then you would practice it, and once you had the hang of it he would make you read extensively on its theory and uses. While it was oddly backwards, it helped Harry greatly, this way he would have a set image in his head how the spell would work when practicing and then whatever he did wrong was corrected by the spell theory and description.
"I haven't ever come across any magic like that," Hermione absently said looking at a painting of some wizards gathered around an anatomical manikin laughing and pointing at it.
"Well I've been looking into offensive and defensive magic more than you have, so I'm bound to find more sooner or later."
"I suppose that makes sense, just promise to teach it to me when you get the chance," she said eyes alight with joy at the thought of learning something new.
"I promise, but it might be a while before you get advanced enough to learn it."
Hermione frowned at that but before she could make her displeasure known Ron tugged at her robes hood," where are you going? Gryffindor tower is this way."
"Oh, right. We'll talk to you both later. Goodnight Harry, goodnight Fleur," the pair headed up the staircase bickering quietly.
"Zey seem friendly with one another," Fleur posited raising an eyebrow.
"Hardly, I think if they were left alone for to long they would claw each other's eyes out," Harry laughed.
"I don't know about zat, but let's 'urry to our common room. I think Professor Snape would make good on 'is threat to take 'ouse points."
As Harry followed behind Fleur he could feel a familiar tugging at his robes hem, so he bent down and picked Cobalt up," fat lot of good you were during that whole troll fiasco. Some familiar you are, you didn't even try to help."
The kitten gazed into Harry's eyes as he walked along the corridor with Fleur watching the exchange, the kitten yawned lazily and wriggled to his shoulders then down into his robes hood.
"Aaaaaand ignored. I think I'm sensing a pattern," Harry huffed speeding up to walk beside Fleur.
"If you don't admonish 'im 'e will just keep doing it," she helpfully said.
"Oh great advice, so should I wag my finger at him or just deny giving him treats. Cause either way he ignores me and goes to you for about a week," Harry snarked.
"Either one works," she shrugged petulantly," either way I get to cuddle with ze cute kitten."
"Of course," Harry sighed.
The pair of them walked along the corridors in silence for a time, neither of them wanting to break the comfortable quiet. Once they entered the west wing tower and made their way up to the common room they could hear bustling and scattered yelling inside.
"Do you want to answer the riddle or should I?" Harry asked.
"You can do it zis time," she said still very unimpressed with the riddle operated door knocker.
Harry unenthusiastically banged the door knocker waiting for the eagle shaped knocker to ask him the riddle.
"I have no feet to dance, I have no eyes to see, I have no life to live or die but yet I do all three. What am I?" It asked squawking as if it were a real bird.
"A fire," Harry answered only needing a second to pause and think.
"Just so!" The knocker beamed letting the common room door swing open.
"Zat is so stupid," Fleur complained her eyebrows furrowing in annoyance.
"I don't know, I think it's rather fun," Harry smiled impishly.
"You think anything is fun if it's magic."
"I didn't find that troll very fun."
"Ah, so it 'as to try to murder you for you not to find it fun?" She asked walking along the short corridor toward the common room.
"It's a pretty low bar I know, but I usually have fun so it's working out so far."
Fleur laughed, her bell like voice making Harry's head go fuzzy for a few seconds as he tripped on the lip leading into the common room.
"Nice going Potter, if your dueling is half as good as your walking that dueling club of yours is doomed."
'Oh, right. Malfoy and the other Slytherins were brought up here because of the troll.'
"I think we both know how good my dueling is Malfoy, so I wouldn't be snickering so much," Harry quipped not sparing a glance at the other boy. Harry strode toward the first year boys dorm staircase, the day had been long, and all of Harry ached.
" 'Arry. Do not let zat petty little boy get to you, I am sure you will be an excellent duelist. You did an amazing job today and you should 'old your 'ead high knowing zat."
Harry smiled at his friend nodding in appreciation," thanks Fleur you did a great job today too, we all helped save Hermione so I can't take all the credit. I'm heading up you try and get some rest too."
The silver haired girl disappeared from Harry's peripheral vision, the square flagstone of the Ravenclaw tower spiraled past as he walked up to the shared dorms. The inner blue and silver decorations of the room greeted Harry nicely making him sigh in contentment.
"That took you long enough," an irritated and slightly familiar voice said.
Terry Boot was glaring at Harry, not at all happy with him for some reason. A few Ravenclaws glared at Harry sometimes now that he thought of it, he had no idea what he did to make so many of his housemates angry with him.
"Why exactly are you glaring at me like I've copied your potions homework without asking?"
"Well you've been ignoring your housemates except for Fleur Delacour and the occasional conversation with Lisa in favor of two Gryffindor dunderheads. Granger is acceptable she's already well known for her Ravenclaw like love for learning, but I can't condone Ron Weasley. I'd rather you become friends with that troll wandering down in the dungeons, he's just boorish and dull. You'll be dragged down by someone like that and I'd hate to see you waste your natural talent because you're to nice to turn someone away," the long tirade that Terry had gone on surprised Harry greatly, and while Ron might not be perfect he was one of Harry's friends. Even one of the only friends Harry had made ever, so he couldn't just let Terry insult him.
"I appreciate the concern, but I can decide who my friends are and aren't. I haven't talked to many Ravenclaw's because we'll honestly none of them have tried talking to me either. It just so happened Ron and Hermione had been some of the first people to really speak with me, and I couldn't really control that. You could've always tried talking to me before now but you didn't. So why is that?"
Terry seemed to go very pink in the face at that, stuttering and making his face go through a wide variety of odd looks.
"I-I just- we'll it's- you just-"
The deer in the headlights look that Terry gave Harry reminded him of something Susan Bones had said," do you think I'm intimidating?"
"W-well you have to admit you're not the easiest person to approach. You always look like your on guard or something, the only time you relax even a little is when you're with that Veela girl. You even look tense when you lay down for bed it's a little difficult to approach you like that."
"Well here we are now, you're talking to me and I'm not any different from any other student. Am I?"
"No, I suppose not."
"Good, well then I'll say this, I'm not going to stop being friends with Ron or Hermione even if they're in another house, but that doesn't mean we can't be friends."
Terry seemed to think for a second before nodding," that's fine with me, but you're weirder than I expected."
"I get that a lot," Harry smiled removing his school robes and putting on his night clothes.
November 8th
12:30 p.m.
A week had passed since the troll had shown its great displeasure for girls bathrooms, and Harry had quickly fallen into a rhythm for daily school life. He would wake up argue with Terry for an hour in the boys shared dorm about the previous days homework, meet Fleur in the common room, head to breakfast with her and Terry, then go to classes with a few breaks in between depending on the day.
Today Harry was huddled closer than usual to Fleur than he otherwise would be, a heavy snowfall was making the girl very irritable and she refused to settle for Harry just giving her his school robe. A clear ring of snow free cobblestone gave away Fleur's warming enchantment she had erected around the pair. Harry sat mortified with Fleur behind him, her arms wrapped around his stomach as her chin rested on his thick tangle of hair. He read through a defensive dueling style book that Salazar had recommended, while trying to ignore the pair of warm breasts against his back that made him feel as if he were the one that could spontaneously burst into flames.
"I 'ate zis weather, I 'ave told you over and over again England is dreadful. Now we are sitting in zis awful courtyard for no reason I can determine? Why are we 'ere and not in our very comfortable common room reading by a warm fire?" Fleur asked clearly irritated as she dug her fingers into Harry's sides.
"Cut that out," Harry absently swatted at her clawing grip," I'm trying to read this. And I told you it's a defensive dueling book I'll need to practice the moves and I can't do that in the common room. If you complained less about the weather and looked for a room to hold dueling club in we'd be there and not out here in the cold."
"Zat is beside ze point, and besides you should 'elp me look for a room too, you are ze co captain of ze dueling club. I can't do all ze work," Fleur pouted her palms heating up making Harry jump up and away from her.
"That's just uncalled for," Harry groused looking up from his book at the girl, out of the corner of his eye Harry could see a tall black figure approaching both he and Fleur from the south courtyard entrance.
"What are you doing out here in this weather Potter, Delacour?" Professor Snape asked, his hooked nose red with the cold swirling around them.
"I was just reading this defensive dueling manual Professor. I thought I may need to practice the style and we don't really have a room for the dueling club yet, so I figured the courtyard I dueled Malfoy in would be sufficient," Harry explained showing the Professor his book.
"Library books are not to be taken from the library in such weather Potter, if you spend half as much time in their as you do with Delacour then you no doubt know that," the Professor sneered snatching the book from Harry's hands.
"Yes, Professor I know but-" before Harry could explain that the book was his Professor Snape snatched it out of his hands.
"Well then you admit that you know books from the library should not be subjected to such mistreatment, that will be five points from Ravenclaw. Now retire to your common room or somewhere warmer before I deduct more, that goes for you too Delacour," Snape all but glowered at the pair of them as he limped away.
"Ce bâtard de chauve-souris graisseux," Fleur cursed the back of Professor Snape's retreating form.
"That didn't sound very nice," Harry said watching the black cloaked figure limp off toward the teachers staff room.
"It was not meant to," Fleur spat in the teachers direction, her pink lips slightly elongating and solidifying into a sharp hooked beak that replaced her nose as well," Zat conard is being cruel to you specifically."
"It's fine Fleur I can just go to the staff room and tell him the book is mine, that will clear this whole mess up," Harry reasoned trying to calm his very irritable friend.
"I don't think it will go 'ow you think it will 'Arry, every person I've overheard 'as said 'e is a cruel 'ateful man."
"He's certainly unpleasant," Harry smiled over at Fleur giving her a reassuring wave," I'll be back in a few minutes."
Harry trod through the accumulated snow wishing he didn't have to leave Fleur's handy warming enchantment, but he didn't particularly want to listen to Salazar's nagging about losing his book after it being the first time he'd taken one out of the study.
As he approached the teachers staff room he could hear muffled voices and low curses from the other side. Harry knocked on the door expecting an answer from the Professor and whoever was with him, but no such answer came. The only answer Harry received was a continuation of the muffled arguments continuing inside.
Sighing, Harry pushed the door open seeing Professor Snape along with Filch. Filch was wrapping a roll of gauze over a nasty gash in Snape's leg, while the former smeared a paste over the uncovered areas of his wound.
"Damn that Hagrid and his monstrosity! Why Dumbledore allows him to keep that thing in the castle I'll never know. How am I meant to watch all three heads when I need to get down there," Snape hissed as Filch covered the last of the teachers wound.
"Um, Professor? Sorry to interrupt, but I wanted to ask for my book back."
"Potter! This room is meant for staff only!"
Harry rubbed at the back of his head," I know sir, it's just the book you took wasn't a library book. It was my own personal dueling book I kind of need it back, otherwise I won't be very prepared for the dueling clubs first meeting next month."
"Very well Potter, but now isn't the time to discuss this so leave and I will find you later," the glare he was sending Harry made him back up very fast to the door.
"Right. Thank you very much Professor, sorry for interrupting."
Harry glanced one last time at the covered wound on Professor Snape's leg before he slipped out of the room, the memory of the wound was fresh in his head. The wound looked like a large animal had bitten him.
Filch slammed the door shut behind him as the cold winter wind swept up his spine.
Harry had a bad feeling for some reason and he couldn't place his finger on exactly why.
