10

Chapter 10

The group of worried children arrived quickly at the Hospital Wing, and waited anxiously to the side as they watched Madam Pomphrey work her magic.

"How is he?" Hermione blurted, wringing her hands together and chewing her lip.

"He'll be fine, Miss Granger," the nurse soothed. "He was badly hurt, but I'll have him right as rain in no time. Might I suggest you go and keep Mr Longbottom company if you insist on being here? I haven't been able to see to the poor boy yet, and I'm sure he'd appreciate something to take his mind of his arm."

Nodding, the group migrated to the bed that Neville was laying on and settled themselves around him.

"So, did anything exciting happen after Harry and I left?"

Despite Neville being released from the Hospital Wing that evening, Harry was kept 'prisoner' for two days before he convinced his medically educated warden that he was well enough to leave, and smart enough to take it easy for a couple more days. Apparently the broken collarbone was easy enough to fix, though the three completely snapped ribs and punctured lung was a little trickier to deal with. In the end the nurse had been forced to vanish the ribs entirely and regrow them; an experience that Harry was more than happy to avoid repeating in the future, for all that he'd been through much worse.

In the time before his release, he'd sent word to his men via a message delivered by his frantic puma, and begun manoeuvring his Smith golem into position to replace someone on the Hogwarts Board of Governors. Lucius Malfoy had been invaluable in that regard, his role as Chairman of the Board allowing him to push through "Mr Smith's" complaints about the investigation that Hooch and Snape had done after the incident being buried by Dumbledore. That the Headmaster would not only bury the investigation, but claim that there was insufficient funds available to replace the brooms had the Board in a lather, and based on Lucius's reports, the meetings were devolving into a small scale civil war.

Personally, Harry was content to sit back and watch the chaos; though he contemplated having Lucius leak the information the press if it looked to be dragging on too long, just to keep things interesting. Perhaps that Skeeter woman would like to do a piece about how the safety of the children was suspect if the near death of both the Heir Longbottom and Heir Potter, never mind the fact that one was The-Boy-Who-Lived, was such a low priority. The only downside to that of course was that it might encourage people to start poking around more in Hogwarts itself, and that would make recovering Flamel's stone more difficult.

Harry lagged behind as everyone packed up after Potions. Waving Draco and Zabini off, he slowly tidied up his work station and waited for the other students to leave.

"Is there something you needed, Mr Potter?" Snape sneered.

"Sir, do you know the charm for duplicating documents? The proper one, not the Geminio cop out." He looked up guilelessly, pulling a small brown leather bound book from his satchel and approaching the desk at the front of the room.

"And why would you need something like that?" Snape asked coolly, eyeing the boy with suspicion.

"Because I found my mother's diaries in the family vault, and there's something that I think you'll find particularly interesting in this one. I thought you might like a copy, since I plan to return the original to the vault for safe keeping. I knew you wouldn't trust it unless you perform the charm yourself." He offered the book, watching silently as the still suspicious man carefully took it and flipped through the pages, noting how Snape's eyes softened slightly at the familiar handwriting. His theory was correct, it seemed.

With one last suspicious look at the silent eleven year old, Snape withdrew some blank parchment and placed it on the desk next to the book. Tapping the book and then parchment, he muttered a quick Geminio Scriptum Ipse, and watched impassively as the blank pages filled with writing. Waiting until the ink had stopped running across the page, he tossed a quick book binding charm to keep it organised, and handed the original back to Harry.

Snatching up his copy, he strode toward his office, not even pausing long enough to thank the child who had given him something more precious than he could possibly imagine.

Harry and Warthog were sitting quietly in the courtyard, curled up in a convenient alcove. It had become one of their favourite places to sit, given that it had a perfect view of the surrounding area while keeping them mostly concealed. The afternoon sunlight filtered through the clouds, golden patches of sunlight making patterns on the stone.

Technically speaking, he should have been in charms, they were attempting the Levitation Charm for the first time today, but instead he'd gone to the Hospital Wing and conned a Headache Draft from the nurse, and been instructed to go back to his dorm to rest. He hadn't been ill in the slightest, and he was sure that she knew that, but he was desperate to take some time to himself and relax with his sketch pad. Since arriving at Hogwarts, he'd been working nonstop and was only averaging two or three hours sleep most nights. Even though he spaced his visits home throughout the week, he still had reports and plans to review, things that the Smith golem couldn't handle. As useful as it was, it wasn't a perfect substitute.

The chatter of approaching students drew his attention, and he idly watched them milling around and enjoying the weak sunshine before heading back inside for lunch.

"'It's Levi-oh-sa, not Levi-oh-sah'," a high pitched falsetto mocked. "Honestly, she's a nightmare! It's no wonder she hasn't got any friends! I bet those Slytherins just get her to do their homework for them!"

Harry scowled as he watched Weasley and Finnigan smirk when an obviously upset Hermione rushed past them, clutching her books to her chest defensively.

Standing, he took a step forward to involve himself in the situation, when Neville - who had insisted on Harry using his first name after saving his life from the homicidal broomstick - squared up to the two Gryffindors.

"That was uncalled for," the mousy boy stated quietly. His shoulders were squared, and this obvious shift in demeanour drew the attention of all the surrounding students. "Hermione has many friends, and was only trying to help you."

Weasley sneered, puffing up and trying to intimidate Neville back into his usual timid persona.

"Like I would want the help of a traitor like her? And it's no wonder you're standing up for her, after all, everyone knows you're in Malfoy's pocket now. You're no better than she is, consorting with Snakes!"

Neville's face darkened, taking on a more mature cast.

"I suggest you watch your mouth, Weasley, before someone puts their fist in it."

"Oh yeah? What, afraid to use a wand like a real wizard, are you? Or is it you lack the power? You're barely more than a squib after all!"

Neville scoffed, surprising the observers.

"As if you know anything about being a real wizard. You can't even cast a Levitation Charm without Hermione's help! As for my power, you seem to forget that not all power is about magic. I am the sole Heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Longbottom, and Hermione Granger is under my Protection. If you hurt or insult her again, then I will exercise every right to recompense available to me under the Old Laws. I will ruin you and your family for generations to come. You will not be warned again, and rest assured that your family will be notified of this conversation."

With a subtle flourish, Neville turned on his heel and strode away after Hermione, leaving a roar of shocked students discussing the incident and dissecting how this changed the political dynamic of the school.

Harry watched Neville stalk off, and allowed a small smile to creep across his face. Well now, wasn't that interesting.

Dinner that night was a raucous affair. Not only was it the Halloween Feast, but news of House Longbottom taking a no name muggleborn under their Protection had the school in an uproar.

Harry picked at his food, mulling over the situation. He hadn't anticipated Neville making a move like this; apparently his urging to act more like the future Lord Longbottom had had more of an impact than he'd anticipated. Still, while he hadn't decided for certain that he was going to keep Hermione around, he could work with this. Between the girls insatiable need to know everything, and the Longbottom's resources, perhaps he could manipulate her into a position in the Ministry of Magic. Which branch would bear further thought, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to get someone into the Unspeakables. He hadn't managed to get anyone even close to that department yet.

He nodded absently to Draco's quiet comments about how a crying Hermione had locked herself in the girls bathroom and refused to come out yet, and allowed his eyes to drift over the student body and then up to Snape.

The man was sitting quietly, obviously deep in thought despite keeping a careful watch over his Slytherins. Harry smiled to himself; obviously he'd been reading the copy of Lily's diary. It would be interesting to see how the man reacted when he got to the good part.

Any further conversation came to a screeching halt as Quirrel ran into the Great Hall, his face flushed with panic and exertion. Breathlessly, he shouted.

"Troll! Troll in the dungeon! I thought you ought to know…" Collapsing into a dead faint, he landed with a thud in front of the teachers table.

There was a moment of pregnant silence, before students and teachers alike began panicking, standing and starting to shove past each other in an effort to get out the door.

Standing, Dumbledore fired off a few sparks and bangs from his wand to get everyone's attention.

"Silence! Prefects, please escort your Houses back to your dormitories; Professors, if you will please follow me."

Harry stared after the retreating teachers, gobsmacked.

"Is he serious?" He hissed angrily. "A troll in the dungeon, and he sends literally half the student population down there without even a fully trained adult to escort us? Why did he not keep us here and do a head count, reinforcing the door while they hunted down the troll? Is he trying to kill us?!"

Draco gave him a nervous look.

"Harry, what about Hermione? She doesn't know!"

Harry's Slytherins stiffened, and looked to Harry for instructions. Before he could open his mouth, Neville and Thomas ran over, looking frantic.

"Hermione!" Neville gasped, Thomas nodding frantically behind him.

Harry lightly touched Neville's arm, calming him.

"Neville, try to catch up with McGonagall and let her know, if you can't find her immediately, return to your common room. Thomas, notify a prefect. Both of you keep an eye out for her along the way and once you get back to the common room - we don't want her to arrive and be overlooked."

The two boys nodded and hurried off to follow their instructions. Harry turned back to his Slytherins.

"Zabini, prefect. Tell them Draco and I have gone to notify the teachers of a missing student and will return as soon as we're done. Then I want you, Crabbe, and Goyle listen to the gossip. Try to find out if anyone knows more than they should. Draco, with me."

Splitting up, Harry and Draco quickly left from the group and disappeared down the hallway.

The halls echoed slightly with their footsteps as they made their way toward the bathroom Hermione was obliviously hiding in.

"Not looking for teachers, then?" Draco ventured.

"Not unless we bump into them on the way," Harry replied calmly. "We find Hermione, and stay put until the all clear is given. I have no doubt that someone released it on purpose, and are probably making an attempt for the item 'hidden' on the third floor right now. I just hope that the protections on the stone are sufficient to deter them for the moment. I'll be most displeased if someone gets it before I do."

Draco nodded, glancing around warily.

A shrill scream from the bathroom had both boys breaking into a run, pausing just short of the door to assess the situation. Hermione was cowering in the corner under the sinks, while a twelve foot tall Mountain Troll towered above her, and swung a knotted tree that served as a club threateningly at her.

"Get Hermione clear," Harry ordered, then picked up a lump of broken porcelain and hurled it at the creatures head, mentally reviewing what little he knew about Trolls. He shouted loudly, waving his arms and hurling anything he could lay hands on to distract the beast, while Draco slipped past and grabbed Hermione, yanking her unceremoniously to her feet and looking for any chance to get them clear without getting stepped on or chased.

There were a few Dark and illegal spells that Harry knew would pierce a Trolls hide, but they were very high level spells that he wouldn't be able to explain being able to perform, even if he did manage to avoid getting arrested for using them.

Deciding not to risk it, Harry quickly tapped a button on his cuff, and grabbed the 'tweaked' taser that Shot had given him as a joke. She'd claimed that she'd 'made it less wimpy' and that it would 'turn those fuckers to charcoal'. Dashing forward, he jabbed it against the back of the troll's knee, shouting all the while to keep its attention on him. He saw Draco try to dodge past and to the door, but Hermione was so terrified that she couldn't move, slowing the blond to the point of ineffectiveness.

The taser did its work in terms of keeping the trolls attention exclusively on him, but otherwise did little more than give the hulking monstrosity a mild burn the size of Harry's head.

Harry yelped as a huge wart ridden hand wrapped around his leg, hauling him to the monsters face to dangle upside down. He could see Hermione draw breath and open her mouth to scream, and was infinitely grateful to Draco for slapping a hand over her mouth to muffle her. The last thing he needed was the idiot girl drawing the trolls attention when it was finally focused on Harry. Unfortunately, Draco and Hermione were pinned in a corner, unable to escape without the troll being attracted to the movement. Giving a mental shrug, Harry twisted and bared his teeth to Draco in a manic grin.

"Plan B!" He shouted, and tapped his cuff.

Tightening his abs, he pulled himself up and jammed the taser in the bulbous watery eyeball, depressing the trigger. As the troll roared in pain and reared back, Harry pushed the button on the device in his hand, and tossed the small canister into the gaping mouth.

In its fury and pain, the troll let go of Harry's leg, causing him to drop painfully to the floor. He curled around his still tender ribs, and wrapped an arm around his head. Two seconds later there was a muffled wet pop, and splattered gore rained down on the three children like a scarlet meat based rain shower.

Glancing up, Harry began to scramble over toward Draco and Hermione, slipping gracelessly in the gore. Behind him, the trolls headless body began to topple slowly, before landing on the floor with a meaty, bone shaking thud, just barely missing Harry's foot.

Dragging himself gingerly to his feet, Harry looked down at himself with disgust. He was coated in rank smelling blood, his hair plastered to his head with it and peppered liberally with bone and brain fragments.

"I'll never get this clean," he moaned quietly. Pulling a handkerchief from his pocket, he began dabbing ineffectually at the front of his shirt.

Draco might have voiced some sort of snarky reply, however Hermione currently had her arms in a death grip around his neck, sobbing hysterically. The Malfoy heir was simultaneously attempting to comfort her, and pull her arms away long enough to draw breath. This unfortunate attempt at multitasking left him flailing wildly and making choking noises as his face became progressively redder.

This bizarre scene was what greeted Professors Dumbledore, Snape, Quirrel and McGonagall as they rushed into the bathroom, presumably following the sounds of Troll Screams and property damage.

"My goodness!" McGonagall gasped, her hand flying to her chest.

The teachers took in the destroyed bathroom, noting the headless body and blood spatter coating every surface.

"Harry, my boy," Dumbledore twinkled. "Would you mind explaining how you came to be here with the troll in this state?"

Heaving a sigh and ignoring the twinge it caused his ribs, Harry looked up at the Headmaster with a carefully bland expression.

"Well, Headmaster, it's rather simple really. Hermione wasn't at the Feast due to Weasley being a twat earlier in the day, therefore she didn't know about the troll. So I told Neville and Thomas to notify the Gryffindor prefects that she was missing, and if possible find you, Professor McGonagall, to let you know. Zabini was letting the Slytherin perfect know that Draco and I were going to find the teachers and have you escort Hermione and ourselves to whichever common room was closest, since we would be likely to find where she was faster than someone who didn't know her as well. Along the way, we heard a scream and ran in to see that the troll had Hermione cornered and was about to crush her. I distracted the troll while Draco tried to get Hermione clear but the troll managed to grab me. My father had given me something to use if I ever felt my life was threatened, and so I threw it in the trolls mouth. I wasn't expecting it to make such a mess." He looked around appraisingly. "Poor Filch is going to have a seizure."

Dumbledore sighed, and gave Harry a disappointed look.

"Harry, while I applaud your defence of Miss Granger, was it necessary to kill the beast?"

Biting the inside of his lip hard to stifle the urge to roll his eyes, Harry glanced at the Headmaster from the corner of his eye, then returned to his useless dabbing with the now thoroughly soaked handkerchief.

"Well," he quipped dryly, "I invited it for a cup of tea and some crumpets, but it wasn't interested; and I'm afraid I don't take rejection well."

Snape made an odd choking noise that Harry decided was a swallowed snort of amusement. Progress!

Dumbledore's disappointed look intensified.

"It is the mark of a great wizard who is able to offer mercy to even the greatest of foes."

Harry levelled a flat look at the man.

"Headmaster, I do hope you're not implying that I should have spared the life of a Ministry Classified XXXX Creature that was actively attempting to kill and eat three of your eleven year old students. Though while we're on the topic, might I ask why when you were informed of the troll, you decided to send literally half the student population to the last place it was spotted, without even a single adult to escort and defend them? From what I understood when I read Hogwarts: A History, and the school Handbook, in times of emergency all students are to congregate in the Great Hall since it's more easily defensible." He looked up at the Headmaster with a carefully innocent expression, head tilted questioningly.

Behind Dumbledore, both Snape and McGonagall jerked slightly, as they realised what a precarious position they'd inadvertently put their students in.

"That is an excellent question, Mr Potter," Snape spoke up, surprising everyone present. "Ten points for questioning dangerous instructions, and another ten points for using your head in an emergency."

A moment passed while everyone stared at the normally acidic man, before McGonagall roused herself, not to be outdone.

"Fifteen points to both yourself and Mr Malfoy for coming to the aid of a student in another House," then, with a look of distaste at the headless corpse, "And another ten points to you, Mr Potter, for sheer dumb luck!" Drawing herself up, she brushed her robes down primly. "Now, all three of you will be escorted to the Hospital Wing so that Madam Pomphrey can check you over, and you will explain to me what Mr Weasley has to do with Miss Grangers unfortunate location this evening."

Anything Dumbledore might have said in response was ignored as McGonagall and Snape both swept from the room, ushering the blood soaked children ahead of them. Sighing, the old man began the trek to his office, intending to notify the students that all was now well.

Quirrel, forgotten in the bathroom, eyed the troll corpse thoughtfully.

Lily Potter's Diary

August 1st, 1980

Yesterday, I gave birth to my son, Harry James Potter; and while I will never regret bearing my child, the rest of my world is in ashes. What should have been a joyous time is tainted by the realisation that James is not the man I thought he was. This morning I was informed that now that I had provided him an heir, there was no need to continue with the love potion that he'd been slipping me since seventh year.

I don't know what to do. We're in hiding under the Fidelis charm due to a prophecy that says that Harry might be the one who can defeat He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and between my forced isolation and James gradually distancing me from any old friends that might have been able to help me, I'm trapped. It's been made abundantly clear that I'm disposable, and that now I've delivered a healthy heir, any 'misbehaviour' on my part will be dealt with harshly. In public I am to play the perfect loving wife and mother. At home I will care for Harry but leave any actual child rearing to James and Sirius, so that he won't be tarnished by my 'muggleborn nonsense'. If it wasn't for Remus, I'm sure I would have 'died in childbirth'. While Sirius is right there with James, fully aware and complicit with my husband's actions, I've taken to thinking of Remus as my Guardian Angel. He doesn't seem aware of the actions of James and Sirius, and cares for Harry and I as gently as if we were his own. If he wasn't so obviously in love with Sirius, I'd wonder at his feelings for me. Sadly for him, I'm almost completely certain that James and Sirius are… well. That's neither here nor there, really.

As I look back over my past, I can't help but think about Severus. I miss him…