Chapter Nine

The boys knelt on the ground and watched as the two girls each lit a small candle and stood next to one another.

"We are grateful to be here; amongst our friends and for the good fortune that this summer has brought and on this day to remember those who we miss, who cannot be here, on this day when the veil between this world and the next is at it's thinnest." The group said together.

The boys stood up, the five of them forming a circle.

"I'm grateful for my parents. I am grateful that I got into Slytherin house; like the rest of my family." Draco said smiling, "And I wish to send my love onto the other side to every brother and sister I haven't had the chance to meet."

"I'm grateful for my parents and I'm grateful for my new cat." Daphne said staring into the candle, "And I wish to let my grandma know that I love her and miss her."

"I'm grateful for my parents." Harry said, "And I am grateful for my family; they keep me going. And on this day I remember my father, I hope he still watches over me."

"I am grateful for my parents. I am grateful for my two siblings and for my mother finding out she's pregnant again. I can't wait to have a baby in the house." Neville said, "I don't have anyone on the other side but I hope my parent's friends see how safe their sacrifice has made us."

"I am grateful for my parents and for the love they give me; no matter what." Pansy smiled, "I also wish to give thanks for all who aren't here, my grandmother and grandfather who are together on the other side."

The girls passed over the candles to the boys; Harry sharing with Draco.

"As the summer passes and the year moves on we move towards the dark; knowing with love it will always pass and that those who are on the other side watch over us and will greet us when the time comes." The girls recited together, letting go of the candles and kneeling down. They spent a few minutes in silence before they boys blew out their candles. The wisps of smoke floated up towards the darkening sky.

Harry closed his eyes and listened; he could hear the water from the lake moving slowly and the murmur of other groups finishing their ceremonies. He thought of his mother and Danica doing the same thing he was. It was the first year he'd not been with them. He could see Danica in her little white dress; Lily had magically lengthened it just before he left for Hogwarts but he was sure she'd have had to do it again so it would fit. Danica had never met James, just seen the few pictures that they had and the stories they all had but she had always said a prayer for him from the first year she could talk.

"Harry?" Draco called

Harry snapped out of his musings and smiled, "Sorry. Lost in my own little world."

They made their way back into the castle and wandered towards their common rooms.

"HARRY!"

Harry spun round, "Hello Ronald." Harry said coldly.

The red headed boy ran up to him, Ron looked up and down Harry's robes briefly, "I wanted to talk."

"You guys go on, I'll catch up." Harry told them, Neville headed up the stairs to the Gryffindor tower while the others headed down the corridor to the Slytherin common room.

"Can I help you?" Harry asked nicely.

"I wanted a chance for an apology." Ron smiled.

Harry breathed a sigh of relief, the silence grew until it became uncomfortable.

"Well?" Ron said rather snappily.

"I thought you wanted to apologise?" Harry said confused.

"No." Ron all but shouted, "I was giving you the chance to apologise!"

Harry tried to remain calm, "I don't quite understand; why do I need to apologise?"

"You were really rude to me." Ron said though gritted teeth.

"You weren't exactly polite yourself. I-"

"Oh Fuck you!" Ron shouted across him, "I looked up to you but you're a horrible twat! What's so wrong with being proud of what you did?"

"I didn't do anything! I hate the fact everyone only looks at my fame!" Harry shouted back; he could see other students gathering around them now and was feeling rather uncomfortable.

"I'd love your fame! You take everything for granted!" Ron snapped, "I'm going to get you for being such an ass to me. I thought we could be friends but you're nothing like people say you are. You're nothing like your father and you don't deserve to have a family!" Ron turned and stomped up the stairs to the Gryffindor common room before Harry could respond.

"Are you all right?" Pansy's soft voice came over.

"I thought you were going to the common room to get changed." Harry sighed, wiping his eyes of a few stray tears.

"I heard everything." She said coming over and leading him down the corridor where it quiet and they were heading towards the dorm, "Are you OK?"

Harry shook his head, "No. No I'm really not OK. I would have been happy to be friends with Ron but he never wanted to be friends with me just 'Harry Potter! The Boy Who Lived!' I want friend who are friends with Harry just Harry."

"Well I for one am friends with just Harry." Pansy smiled as they stepped through the common room door.

Draco and Daphne were already changed so Harry headed up alone. He dug his nice robes out his trunk and quickly changed. He then sat down on his bed and wrote out a letter to his mother. There was a quiet knock on the door.

"Come in." Harry called.

Snape stepped though the door and closed it quietly behind him locking it with a tap of his wand.

"I've had a rather troubling report Harry." He said

"You heard about Weasley?" Harry spat the name out.

Snape nodded, "Yes. I had a report from Professor McGonagall that you have been...that you have been bulling Mr Ronald Weasley."

"Dad I would never!" Harry shouted.

"Harry lower your voice." Severus told him, "I do not believe you have been bulling him and told as much to Professor McGonagall; she wished me to punish you. I said I would have a word and go from there. What happened Harry?"

Harry leaned against the bed post, "He wanted to be friends but not actual friends he wanted to be my trusty sidekick. I told him I wasn't interested."

"And?"

"He said some not nice things about you and Danica and sort of Mum. He said I didn't have any family." Harry sighed.

"I can understand why that would upset you. You will find that Professor McGonagall had alreasy deducted 50 points from Slytherin but I don't feel that any further punishment is needed. I can't been seen to have favourites Harry."

Snape smiled and gave Harry a hug. "It's OK Harry."

"Can you give this to Mum?" Harry asked after a few minutes of hugging; handing Snape the letter.

"Of course. Are you sure you don't want me to stay tonight?" Snape asked.

"Yeah I'm sure. You have a week on coming up so go home and see Mum and Danica while you can. Give them my love." Harry smiled.

"Ok. Just try and stay away from Ronald; people like that aren't worth the trouble."

Harry nodded and they headed towards the door. Snape said a final goodbye before heading off leaving Harry in the common room with his friends.

They played a few rounds of chess before heading down with the other students to the great hall. They took their seats at the Slytherin table giving a quick wave to Neville.

Professor Dumbledore stood up and welcomed them to the Halloween feast. Harry was just on his second plate of food when the doors burst open.

"TROLL!" Screamed Professor Quirrell running in, the tail of his purple turban flapping behind him, "THERE'S A TROLL IN THE DUNGEON!" He went very pale, "Thought you ought to know." He said before fainting on the floor.

The teachers all stood up as the students burst into chatter, a few screamed increasing the noise level even further.

"Quiet!" Called Dumbledore, silencing the hall, "House prefects please escort the students back to your dorms and stay there; teachers please accompany me to the dungeons."

"Slytherin house follow me." Howard said quickly.

The students rose to their feet and followed him and Sally out the hall; they made it to the door just before the Gryffindors earning them a dirty look from Percy Weasley as he let them past, muttering angrily.

"How on earth did a troll get into the castle?" Draco asked panting to keep up with Howard.

Sally came over to them, "Harry you need to be at the front. This could be an attack on you"

The thought hadn't even crossed Harry's mind. In all his years he's only ever been attacked once and then ten years of peace and normality; or what Harry knew as normality.

Sally took his arm and made him walk even faster so his legs felt like they were going to fall off. He looked around to see Draco and Pansy had managed to keep up with him though he couldn't see Daphne in the crowd.

There was a huge crash and several students screams.

Harry looked up to see a giant mountain troll standing in front of him filling the hall with it's horrific smell. It swung a huge club and Harry ducked down against the wall. Sally wasn't so lucky and crashed to the floor unconscious but at least tucked in against the wall. Draco pulled out his wand quickly.

Harry felt Pansy try to help him up as the other students ran for cover, heading back towards the hall.

"Are you OK?" Pansy asked

"You really need to stop asking that." Harry grinned, "PANSY!" He screamed as Pansy was lifted off the ground and shaken like a rag doll.

Harry stood next to Draco, and pulled his own wand out.

"Put her down!" Harry shouted

"I don't think he's going to be able to understand you." Draco hissed, "Trolls are stupid."

The troll was now looking at Pansy holding her by one ankle while she shouted at him and tried to get free, scratching at his thick hide-covered fingers.

Harry took a leap onto the trolls back and wrapped his arms around it's neck causing a big enough distraction that it didn't slam Pansy into the wall as it had been planning. It's skin was so thick it barely felt Harry's kicks.

He took his wand and shoved it up the trolls nose. The troll moved back a few feet, shrugging Harry off and dropping Pansy as well as it's large club. Draco waited until his friends were clear;

"Wingardium Leviosa" he called, lifting up the club and bringing it firmly down on the trolls head. The troll wobbled for a bit before crashing down to the floor bringing bits of loose stone down from the walls as it went.

Harry and Pansy stood up shakily and moved over to Draco.

"Are all your students in the great hall?" They could hear Professor Sprout call from down the corridor.

"I thought so, apart from Sally but Malfoy, Parkinson and Potter are still missing. I didn't realise." Howard said sounding very worried and upset.

Harry moved over to the unconsciousness Sally and checked for a pulse; at least she was still alive although there was a nasty looking bump on her head.

"Potter?!" Dumbledore said alarmed, "Don't worry no one is blaming you Mr Nightshade. Go back to the great hall, sit with the other Slytherins and we'll find the missing students."

The teachers rounded the next corner and gasped at the scene before them. Harry had pulled his wand from the troll and was wiping it on his robes. All three of the students were dishevelled and Pansy was in desperate need of a hair brush after being upside down.

"She's OK." Draco said pointing to Sally.

"Poppy will you take Miss Maria to the hospital ward." Dumbledore said calmly.

Sally moaned slightly, her eyes fluttering open briefly as she was levitated into the air and floated down the corridor.

"What happened?" Dumbledore asked

"We were walking down the corridor and then all of a sudden there was a huge crash and-" Harry said

"Oh my goodness! What on earth happened here?" Professor McGonagall said rounding the corner and coming to a quick stop.

"We were just finding out Minerva." Dumbledore informed her kindly.

"As Harry was saying, we were just walking down the corridor when the troll arrived, Harry managed to duck out the way; Sally didn't. The troll grabbed Pansy. Harry and I distracted the troll before we were able to knock him out."

"And how were three average first years able to do that?" Professor McGonagall asked snidely.

"Draco was able to levitate the trolls club before dropping it on his head." Harry said crisply, "We learnt it in Charms class."

"Well I think it were might brave of you 'Arry!" Hagrid said patting him on the back, "I think some 'ouse point are deserved?" He looked at Dumbledore.

"Quite right. Ten house points to Slytherin. Each." Dumbledore smiled. Professor McGonagall didn't look so happy.

"You three best get a wash and off to bed." She said smartly.

Harry, Draco and Pansy nodded and stepped over the troll before heading quickly to the common room they were the first ones there.

"How did that thing get in?" Pansy asked, "Trolls are stupid; it would never have been able to get in by itself."

"Someone let it in." Harry said, "They must have."

The doorway swung open and the rest of the students piled into the room talking animatedly between themselves.

"We'll talk about this more tomorrow." Draco whispered to them.

Howard came over and rubbed the back of his head, "I'm so very sorry you three, I really thought you were with us as we went to the hall."

"It's not your fault." Harry said, the other two nodding in agreement, "There was a lot going on and we're all OK."

"Well I'm sorry and I'm glad you're not hurt. I'll see you in the morning." Howard said before making sure that all the students were there.

Harry and Draco trudged up the stairs and into the nearest two showers. They got clean, washing away the troll smell, before heading into the dorm room.

"What happened to you to?" Crabbe asked "Oh, wait, we don't care."

"Just wish the troll had hit harder." Goyle sniggered.

Harry and Draco ignored them, snuggling down under the soft blankets and fell quickly asleep.