Grasping at Straws
Dumbledore: SILLLLLEEENNNNCEEEEE! {Everyone stops.} Everyone will please, not panic. Now, Prefects will lead their houses back to the dormitories. Teachers will follow me to the dungeons.
“The Sytherin common room is IN THE DUNGEONS!” Briar calmly started (but was far less calm by the end of her sentence)
“Oh, yes, he is a brave and noble leader who actively encourages people to hate Slytherin,” Calla added.
“Calla! Respect your elders,” Lily turned to her daughter annoyed
“I respect those who deserve my respect,” Calla hissed
Girl: Hufflepuff, this way!
Boy: Stay together!
Snape looks aghast, and he disappears through a doorway.
“Well it wasn’t like Quirrel was that good an actor,” Calla rolled her eyes at the puzzled glances turned her way.
Scene: Percy is leading the house down a hall.
Percy: Gryffindors...keep up please. And stay alert!
Harry: How could a troll get in?
Ron: Not by itself. Trolls are really stupid. Probably people playing jokes. {Suddenly, Harry stops and pulls Ron aside.} What?
Harry: Hermione! She doesn't know!
Many adults paled.
The two run off, down corridors. They start running down a hall when they stop, because there is a grunting noise. Harry pulls Ron into a doorway and a large, ugly TROLL thunks by into a room.
Harry: He's going into the Girl's Bathroom!
Calla: obviously come on
“When did you get there?” James asked
“Well it wasn’t like I was going to leave Hermione behind.”
Scene: In the bathroom, Hermione emerges from a stall, wiping her eyes. She stops when she sees something. The troll is standing there. Hermione backs up, into the stall just as the troll raises its club and smashes the top part of the stalls. Hermione screams. Harry, Ron, and Calla come bursting in.
Harry: Hermione, move!
The troll smashes the remaining stalls.
Hermione: Help! Help! {The boys start throwing wood pieces at the troll.}
Ron: Hey, pea brain! {Ron throws wood and hits the troll on the head. Hermione escapes from the stalls to under a sink, but the troll sees her and goes to smash her. It cracks the sink and barely misses Hermione. Harry cringes.}
“What was that going to do?” Calla wondered. A scrappy piece of wood wouldn’t cause any real damage after all.
Hermione: Ahhh! Help!
Calla: start coming this way while we distract it
Harry gets out his wand. He runs forward and grabs the troll's club, and is lifted up.
Harry: Whooa! Whoa, whoa! {He lands on the troll's head, and is hurled forward, then back, and his wand goes up the troll's nose.}
Ron: Ew.
Many people in the hall agreed.
(Calla run over to Hermione and rushes her to the other side of the room while the boys continue to distract the troll)
The troll snorts, and whips around.
Harry: Whoa, whoa whoa!
The troll gets Harry off its head and is holding him by one leg, upside down. It gears up its club and swipes at Harry. He pulls himself up, then down. The troll swipes again.
Harry: Do something! {swipe}
Ron: What? {swipe}
Harry: Anything! Hurry up!
Calla: I could cut his ankles but if the troll fall forward he would crush Harry
“With what?” Malfoy snorts
“One of the many knives I keep on me at all times,” Cala responded without missing a beat, her face showing no indication of her emotions.
Ron grabs his wand.
Hermione: Swish and flick!
Calla: what is that going to do
Ron: Wingardium Leviosa! {flick. The club is lifted out of the troll's hand and hovers above its head. The troll looks up, confused, just as the club comes crashing back down.
(Ron: Cool.) It hits the troll's head and the troll wavers, then drops Harry, who crawls away, and comes crashing down, hard.
“And immediately we potentially crush Harry,” Calla pinches the bridge of her nose. The Potters squeak in fear.
“Sorry mate,” Ron blushed
“All's well that ends well,” Harry grinned at his friend
“Not really true but sure,” Calla muttered
Calla: as graceful as a cat
Soft chuckles rippled through the hall.
Hermione approaches carefully.
Hermione: Is it...dead?
Harry: I don't think so. Just knocked out. {He grabs his wand...which is covered in goo.} Ew. Troll bogies.
Suddenly, McGonagall, Snape and Quirrell come rushing in.
They all gasp.
McGonagall: Oh! Oh, my goodness! E-Explain yourselves, both of you!
Ron and Harry: Well, what it is...
Hermione: It's my fault, Professor McGonagall. {The teachers, and Ron and Harry, gape}
Everyone who didn’t already know about this is shocked as well.
McGonagall: Ms. Granger?
Hermione: I went looking for the troll. I'd read about them and thought I could handle it. But I was wrong. If Harry and Ron hadn't come and found me...I'd probably be dead.
McGonagall: Be that as it may...it was an extremely foolish thing to do. {Harry looks at Snape's leg...which has a large cut on it. Snape notices and covers it up, glaring at Harry.} I would have expected more rational behavior on your part, Ms. Granger. 5 points will be taken from Gryffindor for your serious lack of judgment. As for you two gentlemen I just hope you realize how fortunate you are. Not many students could take on a full grown mountain troll and live to tell the tale. 5 points...will be awarded to each of you. For sheer dumb luck. {Snape and McGonagall exit.}
Quirrell: Perhaps you ought to go...M-might wake up...heh. {Exit Ron and Harry and Hermione.} {Troll roars.} Ahh! Hehe....
“Why is his stutter so inconsistent?” a first year asked another sixth year.
“I don’t actually know the answer to that,”.
Scene: The next morning, in the great hall. The gang is sitting, eating. Harry is twirling his food on a fork.
Ron: Take a bit of toast, mate, go on.
Hermione: Ron's right, Harry. You're gonna need your strength today.
Harry: I'm not hungry.
Snape appears.
Snape: Good luck today, Potter. Then again, now that you've proven yourself against a troll, a little game of Quidditch should be easy work for you...even if it is against Slytherin. {Leaves, limping.}
“There was blood on your leg earlier,” Lily narrowed her eyes in suspicion.
Harry: That explains the blood.
Hermione: Blood?
Harry: Listen, last night, I'm guessing Snape let the troll in as a diversion so he could try and get past that 3 headed dog. But, he got himself bitten, that's why he's limping.
“That seems like a lot of speculation.” Luna spoke airily.
Hermione: But why would anyone go near that dog?
Harry: The day I was at Gringotts, Hagrid took something out of one of the vaults. He said it was Hogwarts' business, very secret.
Hermione: So you're saying...
Harry: That's what the dog's guarding. That's what Snape wants.
“As a matter of fact I do not.” Snape narrowed his eyes at Harry who shrugged unapologetic.
{An owl screeches. It is Hedwig. She is carrying a very large, long parcel. She drops it off.}
Hermione: Bit early for mail, isn't it?
Harry: But I-I never get mail.
His parents and many other grown ups look down sadly at this.
Ron: Let's open it.
{They open it.}
Harry: It's a broomstick!
“Could you not tell by the packaging?” Briar looked at her friends wondering if they were stupid.
Ron: Thats not just any broomstick, Harry. It's a Nimbus 2000!
Harry: But who...?
{He sees Professor McGonagall up at the head table, stroking Hedwig. She smiles and Harry nods.}
The entire looked surprised at the now blushing teacher.