CHAPTER 7

Skirmish with the troll

Alex spent most of the morning describing to Harry and Ron how he had snuck off to Hogsmeade in the at night, Alex kept the details of the graveyard out of the story but the two boys didn't notice and were visibly impressed at how he had managed to sneak out of school. Alex, Harry and Ron also thought that meeting the three-headed dog had been an excellent adventure, and they were quite keen to have another one. They talked about what could possibly be under the trap door and Harry thought that it was something important that Hagrid had moved from Gringotts to Hogwarts. "What could be so important that it needs that much protection," Alex had asked the boys, both of them were as clueless as he was.

Alex's previous suspicions of Malfoy setting a trap were confirmed in the morning when Malfoy had a surprised look on his face when he saw that Harry and Ron were still at Hogwarts the next day, Neither Neville nor Hermione showed the slightest interest in what lay underneath the dog and the trapdoor. All Neville cared about was never going near the dog again. Hermione was now refusing to speak to Harry, Alex and Ron, Harry and Ron saw this as a good thing as they thought that she was such a bossy know-it-all but Alex was a bit disappointed as he had hoped to befriend the intelligent witch.

All they really wanted now was a way of getting back at Malfoy, Alex had been thinking of using the Confundus charm to make Malfoy do something silly and embarrass him but in the end, he did not need to do that as a week later, the owls flooded into the Great Hall and harry received a long package carried by six owls with a note from McGonagall telling harry not to open it, Alex noticed that it was a broom, Harry had difficulty hiding his glee as he handed the note to Ron and Alex to read "A Nimbus Two Thousand!" Ron moaned enviously. "I've never even touched one."

They left the hall quickly, wanting to unwrap the broomstick in private before their first class, but halfway across the entrance hall they found the way upstairs barred by Crabbe and Goyle. Malfoy seized the package from Harry and felt it. "That's a broomstick," he said, throwing it back to Harry with a mixture of jealousy and spite on his face. "You'll be in for it this time, Potter, first years aren't allowed them." Ron couldn't resist it. "It's not any old broomstick," he said, "it's a Nimbus Two Thousand.

What did you say you've got at home, Malfoy, a Comet Two Sixty?" Ron grinned at Harry. "Comets look flashy, but they're not in the same league as the Nimbus." "What would you know about it, Weasley, you couldn't afford half the handle," Malfoy snapped back. "I suppose you and your brothers have to save up twig by twig." Alex wanted to punch Malfoy but admitted internally that Ron had walked into the line of fire willingly, Before Ron could answer, Professor Flitwick appeared at Malfoy's elbow. "Not arguing, I hope, boys?" he squeaked. "Potters been sent a broomstick, Professor," said Malfoy quickly. "Yes, yes, that's right," said Professor Flitwick, beaming at Harry.

Professor Flitwick talked about how Professor McGonagall had told him about the special circumstances, and asked harry what model his broom was. "A Nimbus Two Thousand, sir," said Harry, fighting not to laugh at the look of horror on Malfoy's face. "And it's really thanks to Malfoy here that I've got it," he added. Harry and Ron headed upstairs, smothering their laughter at Malfoy's obvious rage and confusion.

"So, I suppose you think that's a reward for breaking rules?" said Hermione angrily. She was stomping up the stairs, looking disapprovingly at the package in Harry's hand. "I thought you weren't speaking to us?" said Harry. "Yes, don't stop now," said Ron, "it's doing us so much good." Hermione marched away with her nose in the air.

After dinner Alex went to the room of requirement whilst harry attended his practice session with Oliver Wood. He retrieved the journal and Grimoire and began to study it, the grimoire possessed unique spells that leaned towards the dark arts but not inherently evil, such as the protego diabolica curse, which was used by dark wizards such as Grindelwald but if used correctly would be a boon to the caster and his allies, though Alex knew that he was not strong enough to control it without losing control of it, just like the fiendfyre curse. if the descriptions under the spells were to go by. The journals on the other hand mentioned a place called the map chamber that the author had been looking for whilst at Hogwarts, but made no mention on how to access it.

Time flew and two months had passed since Alex had been attending Hogwarts Perhaps it was because he was now so busy, what with class, trying to figure out the mystery of the Map chamber and the object the three headed dog was guarding. The castle felt like a second home and Alex had made more friends. He had introduced harry and Ron to Susan Bones, aunt amelia's niece, she was close to Alex as they had grown up together. The lessons were now becoming more bearable as the class had moved past the basics and were now moving on to actual spells, Professor Flitwick announced in Charms that he thought they were ready to start making objects fly, something the class had all been dying to try since they'd seen him make Neville's toad zoom around the class room.

Professor Flitwick put the class into pairs to practice. Harry's partner was Seamus Finnigan, Alex had been paired with Neville. He succeeded in making the feather levitate on his first try, much to the joy of professor Flitwick, who praised him in front of the class. and had tried to teach Neville how to do the levitation spell after having which he failed. Ron was to be working with Hermione Granger. It was hard to tell whether Ron or Hermione was angrier about this. She hadn't spoken to the boys since the day Harry's broomstick had arrived. Professor Flitwick continued giving advice whilst monitoring the students from the top of his pile of books.

Ron, at the next table, wasn't having much luck. "Wingardium Leviosa!" he shouted, waving his long arms like a windmill. "You're saying it wrong," Alex heard Hermione snap. "It's Wing-gar-dium Levi-o-sa, make the 'gar' nice and long." "You do it, then, if you're so clever," Ron snarled. Hermione rolled up the sleeves of her gown, flicked her wand, and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!" Their feather rose off the desk and hovered about four feet above their heads. "Oh, well done!" cried Professor Flitwick, clapping. "Everyone see here, Miss Granger's done it too!"

Ron was in a very bad mood by the end of the class "It's no wonder no one can stand her," he said to Harry as they pushed their way into the crowded corridor, "she's a nightmare, honestly." Someone knocked into Harry as they hurried past him. It was Hermione. Alex caught a glimpse of her face, and noticed that she was in tears. "I think she heard you," said Harry. "So?" said Ron, "Ron was that necessary." Alex snapped at Ron, he looked a bit uncomfortable and said, "She must've noticed she's got no friends." Hermione didn't turn up for the next class and wasn't seen all afternoon.

On their way down to the Great Hall for the Halloween feast, Harry and Ron overheard Parvati Patil telling her friend Lavender that Hermione was crying in the girls' bathroom and wanted to be left alone. Alex was worried about her but decided that he would talk to her after the feast. Ron looked still more awkward at this, but a moment later they had entered the Great Hall, where the Halloween decorations put Hermione out of their minds. Alex, Harry and Ron were deep in conversation enjoying the food when Professor Quirrell came sprinting into the hall, his turban askew and terror on his face.

Everyone stared as he reached Professor Dumbledore's chair, slumped against the table, and gasped, "Troll, in the dungeons, thought you ought to know." He then sank to the floor in a dead faint. 'Drama queen, 'thought Alex as he looked at the slumped form of professor Quirrell. Everyone began to panic and Dumbledore instructed the prefects to lead the students back to their Dormitories. As the students headed towards the dorms Alex began moving in the opposite direction and Ron and Harry asked him if he was going to find Hermione, "She doesn't know about the troll, we have to find her before it does." Ducking down, they joined the Hufflepuffs going the other way, slipped down a deserted side corridor, and hurried off toward the girls' bathroom.

They had just turned the corner when they heard quick footsteps behind them. "Percy!" hissed Ron, pulling Harry and Alex behind a large stone griffin. Peering around it, however, they saw not Percy but Snape. He crossed the corridor and disappeared from view. "What's he doing?" Harry whispered. "Why isn't he down in the dungeons with the rest of the teachers?" "Search me." Quietly as possible, they crept along the next corridor after Snape's fading footsteps. "He's heading for the third floor," Harry said, but Ron held up his hand. "Can you smell something?"

Alex caught a whiff of the foul stench, a mixture of old socks and the kind of public toilet no one seems to clean. And then they heard it, a low grunting, and the shuffling footfalls of gigantic feet. Ron pointed, at the end of a passage to the left, something huge was moving toward them. They shrank into the shadows and watched as it emerged into a patch of moon light. It was a horrible sight. Twelve feet tall, its skin was a dull, granite gray, its great lumpy body like a boulder with its small bald head perched on top like a coconut. It had short legs thick as tree trunks with flat, horny feet.

The smell coming from it was incredible. It was holding a huge wooden club, which dragged along the floor because its arms were so long. The troll stopped next to a doorway and peered inside. It waggled its long ears, making up its tiny mind, then slouched slowly into the room Ron suggested they lock it in and they did and began making their way back to the common room when they heard a high-pitched scream coming from the room they had just locked and Alex felt a cold shiver run down his spine. The chamber they had just locked, it was the girl's bathroom. "Hermione!" they said together. Wheeling around, they sprinted back to the door and Alex shouted "Expulso!" blowing the door wide open, and they ran inside. Hermione Granger was shrinking against the wall opposite, looking as if she was about to faint.

The troll was advancing on her, knocking the sinks off the walls as it went. "Confuse it!" Harry said desperately to Ron, and, seizing a tap, he threw it as hard as he could against the wall. The troll stopped a few feet from Hermione. It lumbered around, blinking stupidly, to see what had made the noise. Its mean little eyes saw Harry. It hesitated, then made for him instead, lifting its club as it went.

"Oy, pea-brain!" yelled Ron from the other side of the chamber, and he threw a metal pipe at it. The troll didn't even seem to notice the pipe hitting its shoulder, but it heard the yell and paused again, turning its ugly snout toward Ron instead, giving Harry time to run around it. "Come on, run, run!" Harry yelled at Hermione, trying to pull her toward the door, but she couldn't move, she was still flat against the wall, her mouth open with terror.

The shouting and the echoes seemed to be driving the troll mad. It roared again and started toward Ron, who was nearest and had no way to escape. Alex jumped in front of him just as the troll swung its club towards him and shouted "protego!" blocking the hit. Harry looked like he was about to do something either brave or very stupid but had stopped himself and was now watching Alex with his mouth wide open. The troll stumbled back as its club bounced off the shield, Alex took the chance to side step and flank the troll before starting his attack, "expulso, diffindo, reducto, confringo," the troll was pushed back as it roared in pain from the explosions that were being cast at it and hit the wall crushing some of the sinks.

Alex didn't want to kill the troll but instead was trying to overwhelm it with explosive and cutting spells as Harry dragged Hermione to safety. The troll looked injured but was still standing and it roared before raising its club again for another attack. Hermione had sunk to the floor in fright; Ron pulled out his own wand — not knowing what he was going to do he heard himself cry the first spell that came into his head: "Wingardium Leviosa!" The club flew suddenly out of the troll's hand, rose high, high up into the air, turned slowly over, and dropped, with a sickening crack, onto its owner's head.

The troll swayed on the spot and then fell flat on its face, with a thud that made the whole room tremble. Harry got to his feet. He was shaking and out of breath. Ron was standing there with his wand still raised, staring at what he had done. It was Hermione who spoke first. "Is it dead?" "I don't think so," said Harry, "I think it's just been knocked out." Alex walked over to the troll and checked to see if it was still alive. "Yep, still alive, just knocked out, nice shot Ron." He looked at Ron who was positively beaming from receiving a complement on his wand work. Hermione, still shaken looked at Alex and asked, "how are you so good at -," A sudden slamming and loud footsteps interrupted Hermione's questioning and made the four of them look up. They hadn't realized what a racket they had been making, but of course, someone downstairs must have heard the crashes, explosions and the troll's roars.

A moment later, Professor McGonagall had come bursting into the room, closely followed by Snape, with Quirrell bringing up the rear.

Quirrell took one look at the troll, let out a faint whimper, and sat quickly down on a toilet, clutching his heart. Snape bent over the troll. Professor McGonagall was looking at all four of them. She was so angry; her lips had turned white. "What on earth were you thinking of?" said Professor McGonagall, with cold fury in her voice. "You're lucky you weren't killed. Why aren't you in your dormitory?" Alex was About to answer, when a small voice came out of the shadows. "Please, Professor McGonagall, they were looking for me." "Miss Granger!" Hermione had managed to get to her feet at last. "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." Ron dropped his wand. Hermione Granger, telling a downright lie to a teacher? "If they hadn't found me, I'd be dead now.

Harry and Alex distracted it 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." Alex, Harry and Ron tried to look as though this story wasn't new to them. "Well — in that case . . ." said Professor McGonagall, staring at the Four of them, "Miss Granger, you foolish girl, how could you think of tackling a mountain troll on your own?" Hermione hung her head. Harry was speechless.

Alex never thought he would see the day Hermione would lie to a teacher as she was a stickler for the rules, yet here she was, pretending she had broken the rules, to get them out of trouble "Miss Granger, ten points will be taken from Gryffindor for this," said Professor McGonagall. "I'm very disappointed in you. If you're not hurt at all, you'd better get off to Gryffindor Tower. Stu dents are finishing the feast in their Houses." Hermione left. Professor McGonagall turned to Alex, Harry and Ron. "Well, I still say you were lucky, but not many first years could have taken on a full-grown mountain troll. You each win Gryffindor five points. Professor Dumbledore will be informed of this. You may go."

As they left, Alex noticed Professor McGonagall looking at the cuts and burn marks on the Trolls body and the damaged bathroom before looking at the three boys with a look of disbelief. They hurried out of the chamber and didn't speak at all until they had climbed two floors up. It was a relief to be away from the smell of the troll, quite apart from anything else. they said and entered. The common room was packed and noisy. Everyone was eating the food that had been sent up. Hermione, however, stood alone by the door, waiting for them. There was a very embarrassed pause. Then they all said thanks at the same time, for saving each other and went on to get plates. From that moment forth, a bond had been formed between the four of them.