C13 Bad omen
The first of November was a unique day in so many ways, for most, the popular topic was the subjugation of a troll at the hands of a first year Gryffindor no less, her name, the name of Hermione Granger was spoken and repeated throughout the great dining hall that morning, questions and rumors, but the girl in question did not show up at breakfast, apparently she had spent the night in the infirmary and Miss Pomfrey did not seem to want to let her go so simply.
However, people knew there were more witnesses and try to referrer to them, three first-year Gryffindor boys, the three who were found in the bathroom where the troll was subdued.
Harry and Ron left the infirmary in the morning, but they kept their heads down that morning while going directly and silently to McGonagall's office, and Neville... he hadn't left the infirmary either.
Instead, the one who provided most of the information on the subject was, surprisingly, Draco Malfoy, the students knew he was there because several perfects helped him look for the teachers when everything happened. And so Malfoy's word was the one taken as the absolute truth, and the first person to hear the story was Tanya late at night.
Malfoy was angry at Tanya that night, he was frustrated, and so eager to know where Tanya had gone during the night, yet Tanya didn't respond, her eyes taking on a dangerous gleam when she heard that Hermione and Neville had gotten involved with a troll, at that moment, It was Draco who ended up spitting out the answers, the coldness that Tanya's face took on caused the boy to have nightmares that night, but his work had only just begun.
Tanay headed to the infirmary first thing in the morning, but not before leaving a mission for Draco. "Make a fuss"
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Hermione had a terrible headache, the last night was hard, she had woken up in the middle of the night screaming at the top of her lungs at the feeling of her bones being mended, however it all ended quickly and she was able to go back to sleep, however Hermione had trouble sleeping despite the tiredness of her body, that was a difficult night, not only because of the pain but also knowing that just across the room were the boys who had caused all this chaos, maybe It might be unfair of her to put all the blame for this incident on them, it wasn't their fault that there was a troll in the castle, but Hermione never had the intention of hunting a troll that day, she just wanted to go back to the common room, but Ron cursed her and dragged her to the classroom, the room where Neville...
He... he had spent a worst night than hers, apparently Ron had not only stuck his wand in the boy's eye but had also tried to use a spell, his lack of mastery as well as his speech obstruction seemed to have created a nasty thing in his eye that was not so easy to cure. Neville... Hermione wanted to talk to him, but she just didn't know what to say, so she decided to pretend to sleep, trying not to let her silent crying be noticed by anyone in the infirmary.
She knew that as soon as she got out of bed the first thing she would have to do was answer to the teachers, and she honestly didn't know what she was going to say. Should she be putting all the blame on Harry Potter and Ron Weasley? She would be telling the truth, but… her mind was divided, would they be expelled from school? And if they did, do they deserve it? Didn't they deserve it after what they had caused? A part of her mind, a part that coiled around her consciousness like a snake, whispered spitefully, "They almost killed each other and they almost killed Neville and they almost killed you." "They'll be safer far away, without any power in their hands." "It shouldn't be you who has to cleans up their mess." However, the other party of her objected to forgiveness, she had always heard that people called her a girl who was intelligent and mature, she should forgive them, think that everyone has the right to a second chance, that they had not acted out of ill will, they...were just full of prejudice towards Tanya, and if they changed their mind they would probably improve in the future.
In the morning, Harry and Ron were thrown out of the Infirmary by Miss Pomfrey, Harry wasn't really hurt after all, and Ron had just suffered a concussion, and since they had gotten into a fight with Neville and her, they were quickly sent to McGonagall's office.
Which left Hermione, on the stretcher pretending to sleep, avoiding the inevitable chat with the school teachers and everything that entailed for as long as she could, wondering on many occasions: what she would say to her parents if she were expelled after just a few months at Hogwarts.
At that moment she heard an argument at the door.
"For the last time, Miss Smith, my patients need rest, not visitors."
Hermione thought she heard someone clucking, but her brain refused to believe that anyone would have the guts to cluck at Miss Pomfrey, however, her assumptions seemed wrong when she heard an outraged Pomfrey taking points from Slytherin and threatening her with a punishment if she continued trying before finally closing the door and returning to the room grumbling.
Hermione sat up in her bed and looked out of the bed curtains at the door, but she didn't see anyone, she decided to go back to sleep... a couple of minutes later she thought she heard the window open.
She looked out slightly to be surprised by the image of Tanya slowly entering through the window with a broom and a look of determination.
"Tanya?!"
The blonde girl started before gesturing for her to shut up, Hermione put her hands over her mouth and looked towards the door.
Pomfrey seemed to have heard her, slightly and approached her bed with a pout, Hermione looked towards Tanya with teary eyes only to see... a sheet? The nurse looked at the area where Tanya should be, looking suspiciously at the open window before looking at the sheet on the floor, and discovering, beneath it a broom.
The nurse blinked in confusion and leaned over trying to look under the bed, where Hermione was pretending to sleep, before scratching her head in confusion, closing the window and leaving the room with the broom in hand.
Once alone Hermione opened her eyes again and watched in surprise as Tanya seemed to materialize from under the blanket while gasping for air as if she had run a marathon or had been holding her breath for a long time, she put her hand to her head. as he growled under his breath.
"Y-you, h-how? d-did you disappear?"
Tanya shook her head. "I've been studying how to warp spacetime for a while since I encountered the barrier on platform nine and three quarters." Tanya slowly composed herself. "Being able to warp space and time... such things shouldn't be possible with magic but they are, sooooo... it's a magic trick"
Finally recovering Tanya stood up and walked over to the bed to the right of Hermione's and flung it open without a hint of hesitation. Neville shivered a little under his covers as if he felt Tanya's cold gaze on him.
Unaware of Neville's discomfort, or simply choosing to ignore it, Tanya stood on Neville's stretcher and took his face in her hands, looking directly into his eyes for a moment before taking a closer look at his right eye, Tanya's face took on a a dangerous glow and she spoke firmly.
"Tell me who did this."
Neville looked away but Tanya held his face tighter and brought her eyes closer to his, fixing her gaze on him with such intensity that she seemed to throw knives.
"Tell me," She ordered again.
Neville seemed to tremble for a few seconds before muttering something under his breath. "Ron..."
Tanya didn't move in the slightest for a few seconds before she turned a look of cold fury towards Hermione. "So... I heard the rumors, would you mind telling me what happened?
The girl swallowed audibly, before saying. "It wasn't his fault, I mean, the troll thing was unexpected."
"I heard from Malfoy that you got into a fight, I don't want excuses not even a reason, I want you to explain in detail what happened."
Hermione gulped once more as she looked from side to side of the room nervously before finally confessing. "They believed you had put some kind of brainwashing curse on me and when I told them you wouldn't do such a thing... things escalated and... Neville..." The girl's eyes suddenly filled with tears as she his voice was breaking. Tanya's face softened a little for a moment before resuming that expression of disgust and fury, she then looked back at Neville, questioning with her eyes.
"I-I saw Ron cursing Hermione while the prefects were distracted and decided to follow them. They said some nasty things about you and suddenly, you don't know What happened, I was choking Ron when he stabbed me with his wand..."
Tanya blinked a little before saying.
"Why didn't you use the wand if you had the element of surprise?
Neville turned red and looked away, Tanya sighed and looked at Hermione and Neville for a moment before saying.
"You both need more training, however that can wait, you did well, rest, I'll take care of this."
After saying that she stood up and prepared to leave the room, but before she could leave Hermione's voice stopped her...
"I-I... Y-you won't be very cruel to them... right?
Tanya turned around, and smiled, she gived her biggest smile, showing all her teeth, without saying anything else she left the room.
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POV Draco Malfoy
"Make a fuss."
Make a fuss... What are you supposed to mean?! I watched helplessly as Tanya ran at full speed in the direction of the infirmary, leaving Crabbe, Goyle and me at the entrance to the great dining room.
I guess she wants me to slander Potter and Weasley, well, it's not like their actions aren't bad enough already, but maybe she wants me to increase that mudblood's fame... Really? I mean, she defeated a troll almost with her bare hands, but to speak well of a mudblood... although maybe it's the wrong point of view, I mean, Granger is kind of a traitor to her house, right? , she serves Tanya just like Longbottom, some sort of subordinate.
I guess having as a subordinate someone who can kill a troll with his bare hands is very good, maybe the girl is a mudblood but as long as she knows her place I don't see why a little fame would be good for her, besides, while The more fame she has, the worse Potter's fame will be, no one will want to be friends with the pair of people who cursed the troll killer and partially blinded the boy who tried to save her, perhaps it is somewhat contradictory that two boys can against someone who killed a troll, but I can say that they both attacked her from behind and that she was not expecting the attack because they were from her house.
Also, I can sweeten the story by saying that if it weren't for Longbottom's sacrifice, Granger wouldn't have been able to kill the troll...
Crabbe and Goyle suddenly kicked open the door to the great dining room and came stomping and noisy in, I guess they took the instructions as literally as possible, but maybe it's not the worst of ideas, since what I will be saying is the truth, I think we will have a certain pass from the teachers to avoid punishments if we are too noisy, besides, if I'm not mistaken, no one knows anything yet and Granger hasn't spoken to the teachers yet.
Like that, emboldened by the noisy Crabbe and Goyle were making, I decided to jump onto the Slytherin table and started talking.
"Last night a troll sneaked into the dungeons creating chaos, however, that same night, someone killed that same troll."
I wondered for a moment if talking good about a Mudblood at the Slytherin table would be the best idea. Maybe elevating Granger as a hero would have more effect at the Gryffindor table ... if she weren't a traitor to her house and I wasn't a Slytherin.
"This person, this friend of mine, someone who, although not a Slytherin by blood, is loyal to the house of snakes, She was unjustly attacked by two Gryffindors! Hermione Granger and Neville Longbottom were ambushed by Harry Potter and Ron Weasley!"
After shouting that loud enough for my voice to be projected throughout the dining room, I calmed my nerves and my beating heart with an arrogant attitude and began to walk around the Slytherin table, stepping on the food. I stopped after almost slipping on a bread and jam and looked around the large dining room trying to see if I had managed to get everyone's attention.
"HERMIONE GRANGER, THE TROLL KILLER WAS AMBUSHED BY HARRY POTTER!" I shouted louder. "She was attacked from behind and betrayed by her own house! And with a troll loose in the dungeons no less! Those Gryffindors who boast of their chivalry and loyalty! Where are they?! Where were they when Granger was deemed a traitor and her companions stabbed her in the back in hopes of letting her die at the hands of a troll?!"
I looked for a moment at the teachers' table, neither Dumbledore nor Mcgonagall were present and Snap seemed to be taking his time to get up from his seat, apparently happy to see me besmirching the name of Potter and the Gryffindors.
"And what did Potter and Weasley do when someone tried to stop them?! THEY TOOK OUT HER EYE IN COLD BLOOD! Neville Longbottom, son of Aurors who died fighting you-know-who! Someone from a noble lineage with even nobler intentions who tried to stop the madness happening before his eyes! If it hadn't been for him, Hermione wouldn't have been able to get her wand back and neutralize Potter and Weasley and then kill the-"
"SILENCIUS!"
I felt my voice fade as that spell silenced me, I tilted my head seeing Professor Flitwick standing with a frown.
Internally I thanked him, while I felt my heart fighting to get out of my chest, but this was not over yet, I bowed to the audience before getting off the table and walking towards the professor.
I knew that my little act wouldn't last long, I looked at Crabbe and Goyle, they both finished spreading some rumors before coming to my side.
They both stood next to me and then I turned my gaze to Flitwick.
I couldn't help but try to take a step back in surprise when I saw the angry face of the little professor a foot away from mine. However, Crabbe held me in place.
I was nervous, I can't deny it, even as I saw Professor Snape approaching with a neutral face I couldn't help but feel nervous, but, somehow, I had the feeling that I was untouchable, my father wouldn't allow it, and besides, I'm right about it. the matter, and ultimately, Tanya was there.
So I stood in front of the teachers with a lump in my throat, but confidence behind me.
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Albus Dumbledore stared blankly at his office window. The last night had been even busier than he had anticipated.
He had suspicions and assumptions, more suspicions and assumptions than he would like. He was someone who loved to be at the forefront of the information war, but now, something was missing in his scheme.
He knew that Quirrel was someone suspicious, quite possibly a servant of Voldemort, and if the unicorns killed in the forbidden forest were any proof, then it was also quite likely that Voldemort himself was cohabitating with his body.
His presence at Hogwarts seemed quite logical, given that Voldemort wanted to recover his body through the philosopher's stone. For the same reason, he had assigned Severus to watch it as well as the trapdoor in the third-floor hallway.
However, on Halloween night, when the troll was released into the dungeons, Quirrel did not go to the third-floor hallway, but instead disappeared somewhere nearby only to mysteriously reappear hours later...
Dumbledore frowned as he remembered, once the troll issue had been resolved, and after having heard Severus report, running towards the tests devised by the professors only to find the results.
Burned plants, destroyed chess pieces, and a broken bottle before the last room. All of this, without even waking up or moving Fluffy, almost as if they had appeared inside and disappeared so quickly without having found anything, and without leaving a trace of how did they enter or left.
He had guessed that Quirrel had found another way in, ignoring Fluffy, which, noticing the destroyed bottle, indicated that he had reached the end and turned around without finding anything.
This was annoying, but also an opportunity, now Quirrel wouldn't have the slightest clue as to where the philosopher's stone was, so he would have to keep it away from the mirror for a while, and while he was at it, why didn't he put the mirror in the unfinished room that had just been stolen?
It is often said that the safest place is the one that has just been robbed, however, this security would only be temporary, eventually, if the security did not improve, it would only end up facilitating access to the philosopher's stone.
In any case, Quirrel had no idea where the mirror was, what it was hiding, how did it worked, or how to get through its defenses...
Dumbledore scratched his beard, looking at the cloudy November sky, despite his certainty in his assumptions and plans, there was something else, something that made his hair stand on end.
He remembered.
When he dig deeper, he ends up discovering that some Hogwarts house elves were in the last room when it was being invaded.
And in it, not only was Quirrel, but there was someone else with him, Albus Dumbledore himself.
At that time someone knocked on the door of his office.
Albus Dumbledore was waiting for this inevitable visit, he cleared his throat and wondered what would be the best face to put on in this situation. How should he approach this situation? His mind had been so occupied with the more important aspects of the plan, that he had neglected to think about this situation.
"Enter."
Following his orders, Harry and Ron entered through the door followed by McGonagall.
Dumbledore was quick at reading people, even if McGonagall was trying to cover it up he noticed that she was just as displeased as he was. Torn between her duty and her pride, Dumbledore did not doubt for a second that McGonagall would be someone capable of overlooking some rules or softening punishments for members of her house, however, she had the same facility to apply severe punishments to other students who dishonor the values of Gryffindor.
"Minerva, thank you for bringing the boys, could you give us some privacy?"
McGonagall frowned, and looked, as if she wanted to say something, before turning around she exited, she walked out of the door, but before closing it, she left a few last words.
"Pomffey... she said the boy is likely to lose his eye." Her words were spoken firmly before closing the door.
Dumbledore nodded slowly in recognition of that information before resting his gaze on the boys in front of him.
Guilt, regret, fear... but also... Hate.
He didn't need oculumancy to read their faces which books, they were ashamed of what they had done, and seemed quite aware that things could have gotten much worse because of them, even so, Dumbledore didn't understand why they had done it.
The director took a lemon candy from his pocket and unwrapped it slowly and noisily, before putting it in his mouth, savoring it for a few seconds, before turning his gaze to the boys in front of him.
"What happened?"
Ron gritted his teeth as Harry lowered his head even lower.
"You... They probably already told you." Ron commented with a mixture of shame and indignation as his face turned red.
Dumbledore shook his head slowly. "I only know what I saw: a dead troll at the hands of Hermione Granger, and next to it, three injured teenagers, two of them affected by spells while the third had Ron Weasley's wand stuck in his eye."
Ron swallowed audibly, any confidence or leverage he had completely lost after that comment.
"There are quite a few explanations about what happened not too many hours ago, I want to hear what you have to say to me. Why did you do it?
Ron's head was lowered and red. Dumbledore knew that they had both been questioned ad nauseam by McGonagall. However, he still needed to know what had caused the conflict, and how in the world a first-year girl had managed to choke a troll to the death with little more than her bare hands.
Dumbledore looked at them intently. "I don't need excuses, and McGonagall Could tell me in detail what happened later, instead I want a reason, why Weasley ended up in a situation where he stuck his wand in Longbottom's eye.
Dumbledore's intense gaze did not stop, and finally, Ron spoke.
"I was afraid," his quiet voice was surprisingly clear to Dumbledore, "I thought he was going to kill me."
Dumbledore's eyelid as his eyes widened in surprise. "Why did you think that?
Ron looked away embarrassed, then it was Harry's voice that surprised him. "He was choking him."
Dumbledore softened his gaze a little as he looked at Harry, but the boy didn't look up in the slightest. Dumbledore looked at the two boys for a moment before asking in a softer tone.
"Do you have an idea why would Longbottom try to attack Ron?"
There was silence for a while before Ron opened his mouth.
"He and Hermione are being controlled by dark magic."
Dumbledore considered such an option in his head before leaning back in his chair and saying.
"That would explain how Hermione managed to kill the troll without magic. Has she been acting weird lately?
Ron nodded vehemently, raising his head.
"Ever since she's been seeing that snake she's been acting different! That snake must have used dark magic!
"That snake?
"Tanya!"
Tanya... Tanya... That name echoed in his head, Albus Dumbledore remembered his visit to the orphanage, he remembered the girl's cold attitude, and he remembered the girl's stories of supposed cruelty, and just for a moment, the possibility that a first-year student knew in his head before discarding it by saying to himself: Where did she could learn it? Especially considering that she had lived separate from the wizarding world until now.
The rest of the conversation was easy, especially since the boys believed that Dumbledore was seriously considering their assumption, the punishment they would receive would be postponed until they spoke with Hermione and Neville as well as when they knew if Neville was going to lose his eye or not.
The boys left the office, leaving the director alone. It was said that someone without contact with the magical world couldn't know how to perform dark and occult magic... Any first-year student without contact with the magical world would usually have problems with magic at first...
But Tanya was special, a Slytherin despite being an orphan who lived in the Muggle world, a prodigy for magic, and with violent and bloody memories, even if she was a girl of only 10 years old.
Albus decided to ask Severus to monitor and inform him about Tanya.
The man looked out the window seeing thin black horses like skeletons flying outside his window.
Dumbledore had a bad omen.
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Author's note
Sorry for the delay in updating, I was quite busy with exams and lack of motivation and time.
But here is the new chapter almost filled with bla blah and not so much fun.
In any case, it was fun to write Dumbledore but I still had the instinct to write him as a manipulative madman in the style of Makima XD.
Anyway, I'm still wondering whether to make Neville lose his eye and give him a magical one latter or just give him a cool scar, I need comments on that.
Sincerely.
"Sorry for the almost sure errors in the chapter"
J-More
P.S. The sushi is delicious!