Alvena Connor
Not handed in.
__________________________
Icarus Keii
Not handed in.
__________________________
Jess Baress
Not handed in.
__________________________
Ophelia Statton
**some language present...?**
The candlelight paints an eerie glow on every inch of the Hall, dimly mysterious and almost watery in illumination.
It's not the warm glow I expected; maybe it's just the fact that it's Halloween, supposedly the Day of the Dead. I spear a potato with my fork, a sense of unease stirring as everyone else stuffs their face in logical obliviousness. I've never really liked Halloween--it's always freaked me out, so much so I spent much of my earlier years hiding under my bed when the time came.
"What's up?" Kaz asks, raising her pencilled eyebrows as she pours gravy over her food.
"Nothing," I say, trying to shake the weird feeling off. I take a roll and keep eating, the food surprisingly tasteless. What's wrong with me? Usually I love food. I chew mechanically, eyes roaming the Great Hall as if I expect a giant boulder to swing in through the wall or the ceiling to collapse.
My friends seem completely at ease, while only serves to make me even more jittery. Elena is reading a book while eating, while Rachel and Ash are at the Gryffindor table chatting freely. Though even as I watch, I realise a weird trend carrying on along their table. The source is easily identified by suspicion; I pull my wand out of my robes, hatred intensifying in my chest.
Calla Shaw and her crew are jinxing plates in such a way that they fly into the Gryffindors' faces. One of them, Daniella Harmus, grins callously, twirling her black hair as she flicks her wand under the table. A first year squeals as his plate of mash flies into his face, leaving him with a mask of potato; another has the contents of her goblet splashed onto her robes, and another's food keeps disappearing. Jerks. After five years, I don't think I'd be in Slytherin for anything now.
"Look what--" I begin, turning to Elena, but the doors of the Hall suddenly burst open. The figure of Filch the Caretaker looms into view as he staggers down the aisle like a drunkard.
"TROLL!" Filch screams hoarsely, his sallow face contorted in a spasm of fear. His eyes are almost protruding from their sockets as he whirls on the spot, Mrs Norris mewing scratchily in the sudden dead silence. "TROLL IN THE DUNGEONS!"
The Hall erupts as the dread in my chest sinks into fear; my fork clatters as the sudden surge of adrenaline knocks the breath out of me for a minute. "I knew it," I whisper to myself, looking at Kaz as her face drains of all colour.
And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why I hate Halloween.
"Prefects!" The Head yells over the hubbub. "Lead all your students to the dormitories! Slytherins, please enter the spare classroom on the third floor, next to the painting of Merlin!"
"Come on!" Katherine hisses, grabbing my sleeve as we push towards the exit. Our common room is in a high tower; the six Ravenclaw prefects start yelling orders over all the other houses. Some of the first years seem about to burst into tears as they stumble in messy lines towards the staircase.
"You look scared, poor baby," a familiar, lazy voice drawls in my ear. I ignore Milani. She's Shaw's friend, and almost as big a pest. "Running away from the trollsie?"
"I do believe she is rather scared," the boy, Auslaufen, says in cultured tones. I shoot him a dark look as Harmus ignores me completely, pushing off to the front. Obviously a fifth year like me is way below her notice. I don't hate her, but as for her friends--well.
"Piss off," I say rudely, pushing past the other three, but the thick crowd prevents me from going any further than two steps.
"You're shaking," Shaw taunts, raising an eyebrow and nudging Milani as she keeps pace. I've lost Kaz in the crowd--I keep my head high, but the grip around my wand tightens. "You're going pale--look, Az, she's actually scared of a troll!"
Auslaufen bestows a haughty, though somewhat strained laugh, while Milani smirks at me.
"Why don't you and your girlfriend--" I say, glancing from Milani to Auslaufen as coolly as possible, "get lost, and drag that--" I nod at Shaw-- "along with you too. Yeah, sorry, but I didn't realise that a troll attack involved dealing with unicellular idiots."
Shaw rolls her eyes, her wand flicking idly as she shoves away the people jostling past her. We're walking side by side now in the corridor, to my annoyance. "For a prissy Ravenclaw, you sure don't know when to shut up."
Milani laughs, tossing her long black hair as several seventh year Slytherins walk by. They wolf-whistle--Auslaufen coughs as subtly as one can, but she doesn't seem to notice. I gag very audibly, but manage to deflect the bat-bogey hex Milani sends just in time. It's not as if I would care about her love life anyway.
"I believe we should go," Auslaufen says almost too hastily, as he gestures towards the third floor staircase. He smiles politely at me, with the kindness of a silver razor. "Azel, Calla, come on. Leave Statton."
"What're you so jumpy about?" Milani asks curiously. Auslaufen averts his gaze, momentarily facing my direction. Due to good memory, I know he has the face of a gentleman, clear and calm but moulded with cunning and intelligence. That face is set like plaster at the minute, and only by the tempo of his foot tapping do I know his true feelings. I take the opportunity to insult him; I always rather disliked the way he seemed so immune to fear.
"Knew you were a coward," I say haughtily, leaving for my own common room. "If you were brave enough, then you'd go find the troll and knock him out yourself, wouldn't you?"
A bright spark lights in Calla's green eyes, her blonde hair shining almost white in the torchlight. A small grin spreads over her face as she contemplates, then smiles properly. Yet I'm not expecting her next words at all.
"Huh, as if you would be able to do that, Statton. Come on, Azel, Azazel, let's find this troll."
Auslaufen edges towards the staircase, shaking his head. His tall frame slouches against the staircase railing, his shadow dancing on the walls. "There is no point, the teachers are dealing with it anyway."
"So? I bet you they haven't found it yet. Let's go, Az!"
Auslaufen shakes his head again and disappears up the staircase. Milani lets out an exasperated sigh. "Is he afraid or something?"
Calla shrugs. "Whatever. Let's go." She gives me a cursory glance. "What are you looking at, Statton? Run along, then, or I'll hex you."
I'm shaking my head. "Don't be stupid. You'll get killed!"
"Shut up."
"I'm serious, Shaw. Believe it or not I don't actually want you dead. Or you, Milani." I look away as I choke the words out. It almost hurts physically to say.
"Gee, thanks, I'm ever so grateful," Azel says, rolling her eyes. I find myself taking my wand out and pointing it at her face. "Ooh, gonna hex me, little Lia--"
"Lia!" Someone bursts out from around the corner just as I'm about to jinx Milani, running at top speed. She whips round so fast her robes look like a black blur as she speeds towards me. "Lia! Oh my gosh-"
Ash Morse's big green eyes blink rapidly at me from behind glasses, ombré hair falling in messy tangles around her face. Calla sighs, as a bored office worker would.
"Ash!" I hiss. "What--"
"Alice--" Ash pants. "Alice Fawley--she's gone."
There's a potent silence. Alice Fawley is a third year--I don't know her all that well, but I've talked to her several times. I knit my eyebrows together, frowning as my heartbeats picks up. "Where could she be?"
"Oh," Milani suddenly snaps, staring at Ash and her red-and-gold tie. "You're a Gryffindor. Know Rachel Johnson and Analisa Hathaway by any chance?" The way she says their names makes each sound like a disease.
"Um...I know Rachel. She--she's in my year," Ash stutters, glancing at me and then back to Milani. "Uh...Azmin, right?"
"Azel," Milani growls. "And I can see you're all as useless as one another." She whirls on Shaw. "Why're we sticking round with these two losers? Let's go!"
The two of them start running down the corridor. "Hey!" I yell, pelting after them. Luckily Ash doesn't ask any questions, just zips along after me. "Wait!"
Shaw only sends a jinx over her shoulder in response--it misses me by an inch. "We need to find Alice," Ash whispers, catching up to me. "Nobody knows anything--I came after her but then I found you and those two Slytherins. They your friends?"
"You kidding? Blondie here just tried to jinx my legs to jelly," I pant in indignation, still sprinting. We skirt a corner, Milani and Shaw still in sight, all four of us with our wands out. "Where'd Alice go?"
"I don't know--but what if the troll--"
I don't let her finish that thought. Maybe we're just paranoid--but if the troll is running rampant around the school, there's a chance that...bad things could happen.
"We just need to check that she's not with the troll," I sigh, running my hand through my loose hair and shoving it out of the way. Of all the days to take it out of its braid, it had to be the one where I'm sprinting through the corridors after two brats to try and find a missing third year. We follow Azel and Calla religiously, who (unfortunately) are much better at running than they've let on. I have to push my legs to just keep them in sight.
"Go away," Shaw says in annoyance once we've come to a tired standstill next to the ladder leading to the Divination classroom. "If you're thinking about tattling like the goody-two-shoes you are--"
"Just shut your mouth for once," I retort, using my height to my advantage. "We have to find Alice."
"Nothing to do with us," Milani says, waving her hand dismissively. "Now, piss off. Oh, please."
"If the troll's got her," Ash argues, straightening her glasses, "she could die. It's a possibility--we need to find the troll, and then we need to make sure that Alice is safe--"
A deafening roar, a tangle of unintelligible sounds, and a banging above our heads startle us out of our conversation. I gasp as the ceiling actually cracks, a spiderweb of lines running along the grey stone; more yelling and crashing send my eardrums into overdrive. Milani's sour expression turns into one of genuine astonishment and maybe fear, while Shaw pulls out her wand and blasts the trapdoor to the astronomy classroom open.
"It's up there," I say in dread.
Ash, standing right under the trapdoor, pulls out her wand just as a great lumpy hand plunges through the hole in the ceiling. It hooks its fingers through the back of her robes and yanks her upwards. Ash screams, kicking, but it's no use. Shaw and Milani use a curse simultaneously but it has no effect.
"Ash!" I scream. The troll tries to yank her upwards, but the hole's too small so all that happens is that Ash gets her head cracked sickeningly against the ceiling. I widen the hole, and she gets pulled upwards into the wreck of what was once the Divination classroom.
Wordlessly, I scramble up the ripped ladder and into the chaotic attic of Hogwarts. I choke on a cloud of dust, before staring at the scene before me in almost reverent shock.
It looks like something straight out of a detective crime show. The chairs and tables are in pieces against the walls; books are crumpling in ruinous piles and under smashed bookshelves; bits of ripped paper and china are scattered everywhere like demented confetti. The thick smell of sickly incense has been replaced by the scent of mildew, dirt--and troll.
The horrendous thing looms above us all, twelve feet tall and as ugly as all the books say. A look of great stupidity is etched on its face as it swings a fist around towards the end of the room. How it got in here without smashing the trapdoor to bits is beyond me.
"Watch out!" Milani yells. I send a skewed jinx towards the troll, trying not to hit Ash. She seems to have fainted in the troll's grasp--well, at least we know that Alice isn't endangered by the beast--
"Azel!" Shaw shrieks as the troll crosses the small space, swinging its club downward towards Milani--
"Wingardium Leviosa!" I yell, the club floating out of the troll's grasp.
Milani rolls out of the way as the thing stops, thinks for a moment, then advances on me. Oh crap. I scramble up next to a demolished chair as Shaw manipulates the club to hit it in the face. It growls and drops Ash right on top of me. I grunt, winded, then pull her out of the way and point my wand at the troll's squished face, trying to think up all the possible curses that could stop it, ignoring the frantic pounding of my heart--
"Sectumsempra," I mutter. A few gashes appear over its body as it howls in anguish. I duck between its legs, just as Shaw grabs the dropped club. She yells at Milani, "Azel! Leg-lock him!"
Milani casts the spell and the troll topples forward. "Petrificus Totalus," I scream, blinking sweat and grit out of my eyes as I immobilise the thing. Shaw then proceeds to whack the troll on the head as hard as possible, knocking him out.
"Merlin's beard," she breathes, nudging the inert thing with her toe.
I grab a piece of linen with tarot cards sewn on and wrap it tight around its wrists and ankles, before running over to Ash. She's lying on her side, barely breathing.
"Rennervate," I gasp, pointing my wand at her forehead. She blinks through the smashed lenses of her glasses, then groans, rolls over, and throws up what must have been part of the Halloween feast. I sigh as Milani audibly gags.
"Guys?" A small voice pipes through the air. My head whips up. A girl is climbing shakily over a pile of wrecked boxes, having emerged from behind the bunch of demolished wood. She looks sickly pale; her eyes are ringed with a silvery gold in the moonlight, making her look more like an unearthly spectre than ever. A mess of dark hair falls in ragged waves over her shoulders as she stumbles over to us.
"Who're you?" Milani demands.
"Alice...Alice Fawley," she says faintly.
"Where were you?" I jab, just as sharply as Milani. The whole reason for this was to find her--I couldn't have just left her to wander and possibly be taken for the troll's dinner, though that didn't actually happen by some miracle. "Why'd you go missing, for Merlin's sake?"
Ash only sighs in relief. Gryffindor through and through; she did volunteer to find Alice first. "How'd you notice I was gone?" Alice asks us all, a slight tremble in her voice.
"I saw you run off down some corridor after the Feast," Ash says, setting her jaw. "You have some explaining to do."
Alice looks conflicted, before confessing in an shrinking tone. "I--I didn't go to the Feast. I just wanted to go to the library--"
"Are all Ravenclaws total nerds?" Milani sighs dramatically. Alice's face fires scarlet as Shaw chuckles corroboratively. She opens her mouth but I jump in before some cat-fight ensues.
"Shut up," I snap, whirling on them both. I glare at Shaw contemptuously. "Isn't your brother, what's his name, Parker, in Ravenclaw anyway? Might want to shut your mouth, as I'm sure he'll do brilliantly with us."
I smile sarcastically, enjoying the dark flush on Shaw's face before turning back to Alice. "Right. Okay, then what?"
"Well...the door was locked. So I was walking along the corridors and maybe I would have gone back, but then I saw someone climbing up into the Divination classroom."
"Who?" Milani cuts in.
"I--I can't say for certain. But I decided to follow whoever it was because I thought it might have been someone I knew--and once I was in here I saw them take out their wand." She blushes, as though embarrassed to have witnessed these events. "And I tried to call out to them, but they didn't notice and then the t-troll--"
"Hurry up, will you," Shaw snaps.
"The troll was pounding on the ceiling--and the guy opened the trapdoor and did a spell, Diminuendo orReducio, and the troll shrunk, and they lifted the thing into the classroom and enlarged it again--I don't really know what they meant about it--but then the guy left without even glancing at me. I'm sure they meant for the troll to be some diversion. Anyway, I was left alone with it and I hid behind those boxes--and then you guys came. I couldn't really hold it off."
After a million years, Shaw breaks the silence. "I think we'd better go," she says in a strained voice, throwing the trapdoor open. She looks as though she wishes she had never gone after the troll.
"Not so fast," says a familiar voice. "What do we have here?"
I sigh inwardly as the Headmaster clambers up into the ruined room, raising his eyebrows as he takes in the unconscious troll lying smack in the middle of the mess. Several of the staff follow. Milani hastily tries to look innocent while Ash smiles shakily, Shaw places a mask of cheerful indifference on and Alice looks as if about to cry.
"Um...Happy Halloween?"
__________________________
Chance
Not handed in.
__________________________
Alice Fawley
Wandering around the halls of Hogwarts, I debated whether or not to go to the feast; on one hand, all my friends woud be there, and the food was, quite frankly, amazing every year. But on the other hand, I was supposed to be doing my homework, some of my friends had been ignoring m, and I didn't know why. Besides, didn't those Slytherin jerks bully me, and call me fat all the time? Was it time I went on a diet?
Needless to say, I was at war with myself. And neither side was winning. Sighing, I decided to let my feet take me wherever - if it was the Common Room, I could get my homework done, but if they took me to the Great Hall, I would just go in anyway, and enjoy myself. Before long, however, I found myself in a random corridor, and, abandoning all trust in my feet, I decided to go to the library. To my complete dismay, however, I found it to be closed. Typical.
I knew I couldn't spend much longer wandering around - for one thing, if Filch saw me, he'd wonder why I'm not at the feast, and land me in detention. Glancing at my watch, I saw that half would've passed by now anyway, so I finally made up my mind and headed back to the Ravenclaw Tower, stopping by the kitchens on the way - I was still hungry, and had no intention on going without dinner.
As I headed down the stairs to the kitchens, I noticed Professor Quirrel flying - well, running - along the corridor in the direction of the dungeons. Huh? Abandoning all thought of food, and against my better judgement, I decided to follow him. I always thought that I had a rather good knowledge of the castle and it's old winding corridors, but as my Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher ducks into one, then swerves round a corner into another, I realise that I know far from what I thought I did. Actually, I rarely go into the dungeons. Potions is the only reason for me really needing to do down to the dim, chilling area under the castle, where the stone walls seem to reflect the biting cold that usually comes for holiday during winter.
Vaguely, I wonder how the Slytherins live in these conditions all year ound, for seven years - it must bee so cold during winter - even now, during October, I wished I'd taken my cloak and scarf. Then, I thought of the Slytherins in my classes, and those who bullied me. I guess perhaps their ice-cold hearts made the temperature seem like a beach in Cuba; any higher than 10°C, and their hearts would melt like a snowman.
Yes, I'm steryo-typing them. No, not all are like that, but the majority are.
Coming back to my surroundings, I saw a whirl of cloak and catiously followed it, only to find Quirrell at a pair of doors. What? He spun around and saw me.
"Girl, I suggest you leave at once. You shall tell no one of this, or I shall personally make sure that you will be worse than dead. Now scram whilst you can."
"What? Professor, what's going on?"
"Flee, child."
"No. Not until you tell me what's happening." I knew that I shouldn't be arguing with a teacher who looked mad, and had a dangerous glint in his eye, particularly whilst we were alone in a cold corridor, where no one could hear a thing, and eveyone else was at the feast.\
"Run." A small voice at the back of my head told me. I tried to, but my legs were frozen with fear, and unable to move an inch.
"Stubborn, are we? Well, don't say I didn't warn you." A smirk formed upon Quirrell's face, and I was both scared and scarred beyond my wildest of nighmares.
"Quirrell, think of the plan. Forget about the girl, she'll tell no one. Obliviate her if you must, but soon enough, somebody will notice your absence." A high, cold, cruel voice spoke, yet I could not tell where it came from.
"Yes-yes my Lord." The teacher who taught seven years worth of students how to defend themselves was shaking in fear. With that, I saw a flash of white obscure my vision, and felt my head come into contact with the stone brick floor, and I remembered no more.
************************************************************
An aching pounded in my head, as I tried to lift my eyelids, to no avail. They felt like iron and I was a feather; they crushed me, shrouded my vision, and I could sence that something was nearby, which, unless they opened, would kill me brutaly.
I pushed. I felt my heart pounding as I used every ounce of strength that I had to open them. I could hear a large tudding noise stomp closer and closer towards me. Opening my eyes was now something I needed to do, or else I could die. I could... die.
Realisiation washed over me as those three words echoed round my head over and over again. I could die. Survival instinct kicked in, and my eyelids flew open as I sat up. The pain in my head was overwhelming, and as my surroundings came into focus, I was thrust into the fact that I had no clue as to where I was, how I got here, how to get out, and that there was not a single ounce of hope that anyone could find me.
And it was horrible.
I curled up, and let my pain out in the form of tears; I never got to say goodbye. To anyone. Not to my family, not to my friends. I'd never get the chance to grow up. Finish school. Learn how to cast more spells. Come of age. Pass my apperating test. See the Quidditch World Cup. Find a nice guy. Get married, have kids. Do anything I've ever wanted to. I'd never get to have a life.
"I could do so much more." I whispered to myself, as I rocked backwards and forwards. "I-I don't want to go."
I repeated the words over and over to myself. There was no point in denying it. I was lost, and would die of either hunger, the cold, or dehydration. That was when I heard a large stomping noise. It came closer towards me, and the floor shook as it did so. A smell that was worse that a thousand rotten eggs filled my nostrils. Whatever it was, the smell empowered me, making me gag on it. Looking up, I found the owner of this hideous odour, and felt myself slowly freeze.
Towering over me was a fully-grown mountain troll. It snarled, and I stood up as though a bolt of lightening had struck me. Finally coming to my senses, I ran. I ran as far and fast as I could, adrenaline pumping through me. I curved round a corner, and then another, before coming to a fork. Which way to turn? I could hear nothing but two separate thudding sounds; the troll's feet thundering towards me, and my heart that was racing at Olympic speed. Hesitating, I turned left. It led me to more choices. I went straight ahead, then right, left, right, straight, left... Dead end. I looked around, desperate for an escape route, but the troll blocked the only one, as he rounded the corner.
He leered over me, smiling a maleficent smile that made me want to puke. He lifted his club, and smashed it downward, right to where I had been a minute ago. The impact caused the stone floor to crack, and I felt myself tremble with fear. He raised it agin, and I dove onto the ground, army crawled under his legs, and into the corridors. I found a set of stairs, and flew up them. I found myself in a corridor not far from the potions classroom. I ran to it as fast as I could; from there, I could find the Great Hall where most people must be. I could warn the teachers.
I looked behind me, and couldn't see anything. Following the route I usually took on a Thursday, I silently thanked Merlin that my timetable made Potions right before Lunch last year; it became a second nature to walk from the potions classroom to the Great Hall, and the shortcuts I had found helped magnificently. As I came out of one, I bumped into a group of four. I recognised one to be Ophelia Statton, a fifth year Ravenclaw. I didn't know her all too well, but we'd talked a few times before.
"Alice! Thank Merlin you're okay, we've been looking for you everywhere!" She said, as I bent down, panting.
"Listen, all of you, there's a- a troll. *Wheeze* It's came from the dungeons."
"Well of course we know that, you idiot. Why else would we be looking for you? And to think that Ravenclaws are supposed to be clever." A Slytherin snidely remarked. She was pretty, I guess, with dark wavy hair, bright green eyes, yet her personality was such a contrast - those three sentences reflected that she was a typical Slytherin - a shiny green apple, but inside was rotten to the core.
"Yet sarcasm is said to be the lowest form of wit." I shot back. "Besides, I don't even know you - why would you try to find me?"
"Says who I came along willingly? And anyway, all I know is that you're called Alice, which is something I got from those two-" she jerked her head in the direction of Ophelia and the other girl, who I now recognised to be Ash Morse "-when they were discussing that you had gone "missing"."
"Well all I know is that you're another Slytherin jerk who is wasting time that we could be using to distance ourselves from that ruddy troll."
"You mean you didn't get rid of it? It's still out there?" Ash gasped.
"I never said I got rid of it! Look, I don't know about you, but I want to get away from that thing! As quickly as possible! Besides, shouldn't we go to- sorry, why are you all moving round in circles? And-and there's two of you! All of you! Ugh, stop it. Stop moving around so much-" I was getting dizzier by the seconds.
"Besides, what're your names? Huh? I know Ophelia a-and Ash, but I don't really tend to socialise with Slytherins, they - ahh!" Pain rippled through my head as though a bullet had been shot through it.
"Do you think she's okay?"
"Merlin's beard, look at her head! I think we should get her to the Infirmary."
"Seriously? Look, our common room is just there, I reckon that us two should leave you to with her. Evidently you know her, and as she said before, why would I help her if I don't know her?"
"Because she's a third year who's been drastically injured and is seeing doubles? No, definitely not any reason at all." One of them said. I don't know who it was - their voices all merged together to sound like a blob of nothingness' voice. It sounded like a Willow voice.
"Ugh. Okay, how about we go with you there, but we can leave you two idiots there with her. I know that I for one am not going to stay at that Hospital Wing with her. You know her, you wanted to go look for her, you can go and look after her."
With that, I felt myself being lifted into the air, yet at the same time felt myself falling; falling into darkness.
When I became aware of surrounding noise, there was nothing to hear but the conversation between who I assumed were Ash, Ophelia, and Madame Promfrey.
"Is she going to be alright?"
"Yes, she should be fine. Nasty head injury though. And it seems that a memory charm has been put onto her judging by the results from the multiple tests and spells I performed on her… it's just lucky that you two, Milani, and Shaw found her when you did. I fear that if you hadn't brought her here when you did… well, there may have been no patient for me to attend to."
So the mean and sarcastic Slytherin was either called Milani or Shaw…
Curious, how very curious…
With no time to think about anything else, I found my eyelids being forced open, a few drops of something stinking being put onto them, then seeing darkness again. I was too tired and exhausted to do anything, so instead let myself comfortably slip back into a deep sleep…
__________________________
Jessica Graves
Not handed in.
__________________________
Azel Milani
"Azazel! Get back here!" I heard Calla's voice shout down the hall. I smiled deviously to myself, knowing that my part of the plan was approaching quickly. The first weeks of class had gone by quickly and I had had no troubles keeping up with the homework and continuing my favorite pastime of causing trouble. I was very good at time management.
"Give me back my wand!" Calla yelled again. I tensed my legs and gripped my own wand tighter. I could hear their footsteps pounding on the floor as they sprinted down the corridor towards my hiding space. I was crouched behind one of the many statues in Hogwarts, waiting for the unsuspecting Azazel to run past.
Finally, they skidded around the corner, a smile on Az's face as he held onto Calla's wand teasingly. Without any hesitation, I jumped out and tackled him to the ground. Calla's wand skidded out of his hand as we both went sprawling. I laughed as I pinned him down and pointed my own wand at him in a mock threatening gesture.
His mouth curved into a playful smile as he said, "I see I have been deceived."
I laughed in triumph. Something was alluring about his gentlemanly personality. But, I always loved it when he let go a little. When he would be playful and carefree. It was a rare thing, but at the same time it was given in the perfect amounts.
I finally allowed him to stand, and as I waited for him to get to his feet, I stretched my back, determined to keep my eyes anywhere but on him. I had come to realize something different about my feelings for Az this year. Over the summer my feelings had shifted from friend to the desire for something more.
"What no apology?" Cala grumbled in a fake anger. Az chuckled lowly before responding.
"Nope."
"You're lucky I don't tackle you myself," Calla said pointing her wand, which she had retrieved, at him. I smiled broadly at the thought. Calla was short, but I had no doubt that the little spit-fire could easily take him out. Calla was fierce when she wanted to be.
The thought of Calla tackling Azazel did not bother me as much as the thought of Daniella doing it did. Calla and Az were like brother and sister, but even after six years of knowing her, I still could not gauge Daniella's feelings.
"So," Azazel began with a mocking tone, "if you two are finished, could we finally go to the Great Hall and eat?"
Calla smiled broadly, her eyes lighting up. I nodded and we all started down the corridor. We weren't too far from the Great Hall, and I soon began hearing the growing sounds of voices talking over each other. It sounded as if dinner had just begun.
As if sensing our closeness to food, my stomach growled loudly. Loud enough to be heard outside of my body. afar raised his eye brows questioningly, and Calla broke out laughing. My face flushed in embarrassment, but trying to pass it off, I shoved Calla playfully in the shoulder, throwing her off balance. She continued to giggle, but it soon died off as we entered the Great Hall.
The aroma of food hit me hard and caused my mouth to water. The main courses were still on the tables so we quickly made our way to an open spot at the Slytherin table and sat down.
If someone had asked me what I ate, I don't think I honestly could have answered them. The second the food touched my plate I had engulfed it without even tasting a bite. But, nonetheless, I was soon satisfied and passed on the desserts that soon appeared. Calla on the other hand, scooped some pudding onto her plate along with some treacle tart. Even Az tentatively slid some sweets onto his plate. Content with what I had eaten, I leaned back and scanned my eyes around the Great Hall. Something suspicious caught my eye.
A fifth year Ravenclaw, I recalled her name being Ophelia, scooted into the hall nervously. Her eyes glanced nervously from side to side and I could visibly see her hands trembling. She shuffled to the Gryffindor table, which shocked me, and began conversing with Rachel Johnson, another fifth year. She talked frantically, waving her hands a little bit before Rachel calmed her down. But, I didn't care if the little brat was all worked up, I cared why she became so flustered in the first place. She might not be as brave as Gryffindors, but something that would scare her is definitely interesting to me.
Ophelia continued talking, calmer and quieter this time, but I noticed a third person had joined the conversation. Annalissa leaned in curiously and furrowed her brow. I had to crane my neck to the side to see clearly, but she definitely seemed intrigued at Ophelia's words. She started to talk, but I was snapped out of my snooping right after she began.
"Azel, what are you doing?" Az said, looking at me weirdly. I turned my head to look at him.
"Spying," I said quickly, eager to return to my previous action. But, as I turned to look back at the Gryffindor table, Annalisa wasn't there. It only took a quick scan of the Hall to spot her following Ophelia out the doors. Immediately, a desire rose up in my mind, and I knew I had to follow them. I had to know what they were up to.
"Be right back," I said to Calla and Azazel. Before they could respond, I was up out of my seat and heading towards the doors, my long strides moving me across the distance with good speed. I did not look back at the Slytherin table for I honestly did not want to see Azazel and Calla's questioning looks.
The doors swung open easily, and as I slipped out into the Entrance Hall I noticed a lone figure peering around the corner of the corridor, her Ravenclaw scarf twitching nervously in her hands. Without making a sound, I crept up behind Ophelia. I didn't speak until I was directly behind her.
"Where did she go?" I asked menacingly. The fifth year Ravenclaw spun towards me, her eyes wide. As soon as she realized who it was, her fearful expression hardened into that of frustration and disgust.
"Why would I tell-," she began to reply, but I cut her off by grabbing her by the collar of her robes. She was shorter than I was, so when I pulled up, her feet began to leave the ground. Only her toes remained brushing the floor beneath her.
"I'm not really giving you a choice," I said, my eyes glaring down at her, "now, let's try this again. Where did Annalissa go. And while you're at it, why don't you tell me what happened to you before you came to the Great Hall."
Her nose scrunched, and a look of defiance flashed in her eyes, but as I tightened my grip on her robes, it disappeared. She sighed something unintelligible. In response, I pulled her over to the wall and leaned why weight into her, keeping her in place.
"I didn't catch that," I taunted, "would you like to try again?"
"Fine!" she huffed, her face red. I finally let her go, and as she steadied herself, she took large heaving breaths. I did not rush her, but instead crossed my arms and shifted my body into my left leg.
"I was leaving potions class a little late," she began, "by time I packed all my ingredients and cauldron away, everyone was gone. I quickly hurried out, not wanting to be in the dungeons longer than I had to. But, as soon as I stepped out of the classroom, this odor hit me. I almost gagged. Then I started to hear shuffling sounds coming from down the hall, deeper in the dungeons. I bolted and didn't slow down until I got to the Great Hall."
"And that's where Annalissa went? To investigate like the stupid Gryffindor she is?" I said, connecting the pieces in my head.
"She's not stupid!"
"So I will takes that as a yes," I sneered at her.
"Why do you even care?" she shot back at me. I paused, unable to explain my curiosity to her. Instead, I played it safe.
"And why would that be any of your business?" Not giving her the chance to respond, I shoved her once against the wall and headed in the direction of the dungeons. My head was spinning with the possibilities, but mostly I kept coming back to one topic.
Why did I care?
I had no concern for Annalissa, but yet I felt the need to follow her. Curiosity was definitely a factor, but there was more to it than that. A chance to corner her? Perhaps, but not quite.
Footsteps broke me out of my daze, and I quickly slipped behind a suit of armor. Barely peeking out, someone streaked past my hissing place, a cat close on their heels.
Filch.
I waited until I was sure he was gone before slipping out from the niche in the walk and continuing on my way. I was close enough to the dungeons to feel the cold draft that was normally present underground.
I continued to move quickly, keeping my ears open for not only Annalissa, but also the mysterious noises Ophelia had heard. I tried to push my nerves down, attempting to convince myself of how foolish her story was, and that I was acting silly for getting so worked up over it.
Suddenly, a noise caught my attention. The sound of feet hitting the cold stone floor echoed through the damp air and I immediately slowed down. Stealthily, I snuck to the nearest door and peered inside, trying to see but not be seen.
The room was extremely large, with multiple work tables and a professor's desk. Probably an old potions room. Inside, her back turned to me, was Annalissa. She walked between the row of tables towards the professor's desk, momentarily unaware of my presence. She did not try to conceal herself in any way, so each of her footsteps rang through the silent air. Even her breathing seemed loud. Using her moment of distraction, I slipped into the room and stood in front of the large door. Not directly in front, but to exit she would have to go through me.
Finally, she seemed to realize the room was of no importance and turned to leave. Her shocked expression upon seeing me caused my mouth to twist into a devious grin. Her moment of surprise did not last long, and soon her eyes had shifted to glaring at me. Her eyes burned with deep hatred and I also allowed my eyes to form into the glare I was used to wearing in Annalissa's presence.
"What are you doing down here?" Annalissa snarled. I laughed, the light sound echoing through the caverns.
"Isn't it obvious? I'm here to make your life miserable."
I whipped out my wand as quickly as I was able to, and shot a curse in her direction. But, no matter how fast I was, Annalissa still managed to deflect the curse with her own wand. Instead of hitting its mark, the curse flew into one of the work tables, sending it flying into another of the tables.
Just as fast as she deflected, Annalissa retaliated, sending a jinx in my direction. It was through sheer luck that I sidestepped out of the way and missed her spell. I could feel the force of the spell sear my skin as it passed my face.
"Stupefy!" I shouted, pointing my wand directly at her chest. Even at our close range, her speed was unmatched. My spell was sent flying in another direction and this time when she sent a spell at me, I was unable to dodge.
"Expelliarmus!" she yelled, and my wand went flying out of my hand against my will. I lost track of it in the dark room, only lit by a few torches, and instead of scrambling to find it, I launched myself at Annalissa.
She did not expect the move and I was soon on top of her pinning her to the ground. She squirmed and I almost lost my hold, but my larger size made it easier to subdue her on the ground. I had locked on of her arms in my grasp, keeping it down on the ground, when a piercing pain struck my cheek. My vision darkened, and I was barely able to see her other arm drawing back to hit me again. She did not hesitate to do so, and I was sent sprawling onto the cold floor, my head banging into the concrete.
For a moment I lost track on where I was. my thoughts swam in pointless circles, and I could only take in minuscule details. A shuffling noise sounded near my head and I looked up to see a blurry Annalissa standing above me. She glared down at my prone figure, and I was sure she was going to kick me, but then she turned her attention elsewhere. My confusion increased when a foul odor began to fill my nostrils. I began to cough, the smell overpowering. Yet, despite how horrible the smell was, it cleared my mind a little and allowed me to sit up with only a little difficulty.
It was as if I was seeing but not comprehending. A large form loomed in the door way, barely fitting through the frame. Confusion was first and foremost in my mind, and as I looked to Annalissa, her face was an expression of pure and utter terror.
Finally, something in my brain slid into place, as if the last piece of the puzzle finally connected, and I was able to understand what I saw. But, I wasn't sure I believed it.
A Mountain Troll, about ten feet tall, squeezed through the door way, blocking the only exit from the room. I tried to scramble to my feet, but moving so quickly made the world tip underneath me. I fell back down, narrowly avoiding hitting my head again. The troll grunted angrily and used one of its large hands to send a table flying across the room. I began scooting backwards as fast as I could, sure that it would do the same to me if given the chance, when I felt a tugging sensation on my robes. Looking up, I am shocked to see Annalissa dragging me as quickly as she was able to, and I attempted to help as much as possible. The troll noticed the movement and then focused its attention on us. As it locked eyes with us, I could not help the squeak of terror that escaped my lips.
Annalissa finally let me go when we were safely behind the desk, but it was too late, the troll had already noticed us, and seemed quite determined to dispose of any nuisances.
Roaring loudly, it charged towards us, not bothering to walk in between the tables, and instead sent them sliding in random directions. Annalissa sprung out from behind the desk and sent a silent curse towards the troll. It hit it right in the face, but the troll seemed largely unaffected. In fact, the spell seemed to only make the troll angrier.
I slid myself to the side of the desk, so as to see better what was going on, and what I saw scared me as much as it awed me. Annalissa weaves around the troll dodging tables and his lumbering fists. She would constantly send a jinx at it, attempting to hit the troll in a vulnerable location, but the troll was moving and made it nearly impossible for her to hit her mark.
It was as a particularly bright spell lit up the room that I saw it. My wand was just a few tables away. I could reach it if I simply slid across the floor about twenty feet. So close, yet a nearly impossible distance for my current state. Yet, I had to try.
Mustering any strength I had, I pushed my self up from the floor, using the desk as support and stumbled my way across the floor. I was almost half way there when the troll turned its beady eyes onto me.
I was petrified in place, unable to move in fear of angering it more, but it was too late. With a frustrated grunt he lumbered towards me, his beefy hands balled into fists. I tried to run, but instead the floor came up to meet me. I fell straight into my stomach, once again feeling the hard impact of the stone.
Annalissa darted forward, hoping to distract the troll, but it saw her coming. With one swipe of its hand, the troll sent her flying over two tables where she disappeared and did not get back up.
I was hoping it would be stupid and forget about me, but this troll seemed to be smarter than the rest of its kind. It turned its attention back to me and brought its foot up to step on me. Adrenaline pumped through my veins and I desperately clawed myself out from under its looming form. With a force that felt like the whole school shook, the troll slammed its foot into the ground, causing tiny cracks to appear in the floor.
I was just mere inches from my wand when a rough hand grabbed me from behind. I screamed and lounged forward, grabbing my wand by its last few inches. The troll lifted me into the air and for the first time, the true stench of it hit me. I became woozy from his odor, but forced myself to focus. His face was in front of me, if I could just lift my wand.
But, with little strength, I could not muster the energy to preform a spell. Instead, I jabbed my arm forward, plunging my wand straight into the troll's eye. It bellowed in pain and dropped me to the ground. But, I had underestimated the size of the fall and landed hard into my leg. With a distinct crack, my left leg bent wrong and I knew immediately that it was broken. I also screamed, clutching my leg in pain. I knew it was over. There was no way I could fight my way out, especially with a broken leg. I was going to die there in that cold dungeon.
The troll seemed to sense my weakness and was preparing to deliver the blow when a blinding spell hit it straight in the back. I was in shock as the troll turned and focused its attention on the person that had just entered the dungeon.
Even in the face of danger, Az was suave. He flicked his wand quickly, hitting the troll in its bad eye once more. He did not hesitate when the troll charged him, but instead pointed his wand at the table closest to him and sent it flying into the air. It hit the troll with such a force, even I could feel the crack of its skull against the wood. Its large form crumpled to the ground with a limpness that could only be achieved from being unconscious. Despite that, Az lifted his wand once more and brought another table down upon its head. Only after that did he turn his attention to me.
"I had to be sure," he said, gesturing to the second table. I smiled slightly at him, but it felt more like a grimace. Immediately his face turned to an expression of concern and he raced over to me.
"Oh Azel," he said upon seeing my leg.
"Can you help me up?" I asked him.
He looked shocked for a moment, but obliged. I kept all my weight off my left leg, and instead balanced in my right and used his shoulder for support. Overcome by emotion, I buried myself into his chest in a comforting hug. He was surprised for only seconds, but soon he wrapped his arms around me too. He had saved my life, and I was still in a daze at the whole situation, but being in his arms made me feel safe, as if nothing would ever be able to harm me while he was around. I never liked to feel weak or need help, but for Az I made an exception.
After what seemed like forever, McGonagall's voice cut through my thoughts, ending our moment.
"What on earth happened here?!"
__________________________
Azazel Auslaufen
Unable to hand in entry.
__________________________
Daniella Harmus
Not handed in.
__________________________
Calla Shaw
I watched the tiny, vibrant emeralds tumble out of the hourglass and disappear, as Snape gripped my sleeve, keeping me in place. Azel stood next to me in the same position and my stare flickered in her direction.
She did the same things and we shared a grin which unfortunately failed to go unnoticed by Snape.
“Something amusing about this is there? I personally do not find it humorous that you two are constantly losing points for my house,” he sneered.
We were standing in the empty entrance hall and his voice resounded off of the walls.
“Miss Shaw what do you notice about the Slytherin hour glass?” He asked, giving me a pointed glare.
“It’s green Sir,” I said and Azel nearly cracked beside me, stifling a laugh.
Snape strode in front of me. “I am not in the mood for your games. The Slytherin hour glass is dangerously low thanks to the antics of your little group and you two seem to have a big influence on that. We are less than halfway through the first term and even Hufflepuff are beating us! Detention tonight during dinner, now get out of my sight.”
Azel and I stood there, waiting for him to realize we would be missing out on the Halloween feast but apparently he had made no mistake.
He arched an eyebrow and I gave a defeated sigh, spinning around and dragging Azel along beside me. Once he was out of earshot I let out a growl of frustration.
“I was looking forward to the feast! He can’t take eating privileges away from us can he?”
She shrugged, “I don’t think he cares whether he can or not.”
***
The rest of my day I sat with the prospect of detention hanging over me and my mood turned sour every time I thought of it. Before I knew it, we were heading to Snape’s office and everyone else was on their way to dinner.
Azel and I moaned to each other the whole way down there and we bumped into a certain someone I really didn’t want to see.
“Hey, Ophelia,” I called, glowering at the Ravenclaw that had been in my bad books since second year.
She whipped around, “It’s Lia.”
I smirked at her and shrugged. “I know. Besides, I didn’t stop you to argue about your stupid name. Flitwick was looking for you, he says it’s something urgent about quidditch? I don’t know.”
“Wait, what?” She spluttered. “But I’ll miss dinner!”
“He said it would be quick and to tell you if we saw you. Oh, and if he isn’t in his office when you get there, just wait for him. Goodbye,” I said dismissing her quickly before she could question me further and so Azel would stop giving me her confused look.
Lia left and we continued.
“Flitwick isn’t looking for her. Care to explain?” She queried.
“I hate her. If I’m missing out on the feast, so is she. It will be too late by the time she realizes Flitwick isn’t coming and I will still be laughing,” I said with a satisfied grin.
Azel smiled. “You are evil sometimes you know that?”
I laughed as we reached Snape’s office and were let inside by the teacher.
He explained to us what we would be doing, then was about to send us to start sorting papers when Dumbledore burst into the office.
“Professor, we have a situation. Similar to the occurrences two years ago, a troll has been set loose in the castle and Ophelia Stratton is missing. We fear the two happenings are linked. All the teachers are meeting in the entrance hall and the students must return to common rooms.”
Azel and I looked at each other and she smiled a little, obviously amused by the fact.
“You two, off to the meet up with the rest of your house in the hall and stay with them until you get to the common room. Report back here same time tomorrow, no arguments,” Snape said.
We didn’t hesitate and set off, me heading to the common room but Azel holding me back.
“Didn’t you hear him? Lia is missing! If they find out we were the ones who sent her astray, Snape is bloody likely to expel us,” Azel said in a hushed voice, only exaggerating a little.
My eyes bulged. “You’re right! We have to find her before the troll does or we are done for.”
The both of us took off at a run towards Flitwick’s office where I had sent Lia. When we came close to the entrance hall, which was unfortunately close to the route we had to take, we crept up the stairs, keeping pressed against the railing so we kept out of sight of the teachers huddled down there.
Once we were free of them we began sprinting again. We nearly had a completely clean run, until we rounded a corner and saw a great big figure near the end.
The troll had pale yellow skin with cracks and a dusty looking substance covering its skin. It was lumpy and disproportionate and overall extremely unattractive.
“That’s a desert troll,” I whispered to Azel and she nodded, looking apprehensive.
“Look, we don’t have to deal with it. Here’s what we’ll do, get as close as you can to the troll. Once it realizes we are there- which it will at one point- send an immobility spell at it. It won’t last long so keep going and don’t stop. Hopefully by the time it can move again we will be long gone. Okay?” Azel said hurriedly.
“Okay.” I consented and as if we read each other’s mind, we both took off running full pelt at the troll.
We got surprisingly close to the brutal looking creature before it saw us and turned around, wildly swinging its fists.
I pointed my wand and yelled, “Immobulus.”
Azel echoed the spell beside me and the troll froze in the midst of throwing his tantrum, turning him into a savage looking statue.
We kept going and safely rounded the corner before we heard the frustrated yelling of the troll continue.
I grinned at Azel as we kept running, her plan having worked perfectly. The west wing of the castle now passed beneath our feet and soon enough we were climbing the steps to Flitwick’s office, the same time as Lia was hurtling down them.
She and I crashed, knocking me backwards and sending me tumbling painfully back the way I came. Dizziness overcame me as I stood up and my body tingled from everywhere I had landed on during my fall.
Lia didn’t even look sorry and I glared at her. “We come to save you and this is what I get?” I said angrily.
“Save me? You two sent me on a wild goose chase and I missed dinner!” She yelled.
“There is a troll in the castle, heading your way and if we weren’t here you wouldn’t even know,” I retorted.
Her eyes flashed angrily and she balled her fists. “The troll wouldn’t be heading my way if you hadn’t sent me here and you are most likely only here to save your own skins.”
Azel broke in. “You can argue later but we have to go before the teachers come and the troll gets to us okay?” She shouted, pulling me along behind her.
I looked back to see Lia standing still. “Come on unless you want to be troll food!”
This time, seeing as we knew where the troll was, we cut through a few classrooms and hallways to avoid the troll before coming out on the main staircase where the teachers were heading right towards us.
“Silencio,” I whispered and pointed my wand at Lia, effectively stopping her from inputting anything as I worked up an excuse in my head.
“What do you three think you are doing?” McGonagall said furiously.
Azel looked dumbstruck and Lia thankfully stayed silent.
“We were heading up from and I saw Lia walking around. It took a while to catch up to her but seeing as everyone was looking for her we decided we had better get to her before the troll did. We were just heading to meet back up with our houses,” I quickly explained.
Dumbledore nodded. “Why was Miss Stratton wandering around?”
“She had gone to the bathroom I believe.” I looked over my shoulder at Lia and raised my eyebrows at her.
She scowled but nodded in agreement to my story.
“Alright, go join your houses and head to the common room, thank you girls,” McGonagall said.
I left and grabbed the other two, getting out of there before the teachers were able to find a detail of the story that maybe didn’t add up.
“Calla, you are a genius. You totally just saved our asses,” Azel said.
I breathed a sigh of relief. “Yeah, that was pretty close.”
***
Eventually I let Lia out of the silencing charm and we rejoined our houses. We were lead to the common room and later the night Snape came in to tell us the troll had been dealt with but they were still trying to figure out how it got in.
“Calla and Azel, come here please,” Snape said.
I felt worried as I headed over to him and it was rightly so.
“I don’t know what you two thought you were doing earlier but it was reckless. You are lucky more points weren’t deducted from you. Do not pull something like that again.”
With that he left the room, sweeping away with his robes flowing behind him.
Maybe we should have been put out by Snape’s little speech but we grinned at each other, happy that the teachers seemed to have bought our story and that we were somewhat off of the hook…for now.
__________________________
Lily Annabeth Soreli
Unable to hand in entry.
__________________________
Ash Jamine Morse
Ash walks into the great hall, ready to eat at the Halloween feast. She sits down on the bench, by her friends, Fred and George.
"This looks delicious." She states, ready to eat. Ash hadn't eaten much at lunch because she wanted to be able to eat a lot at dinner, knowing how good the food always is. The girl grabs a chicken leg, ready to take a bite when professor Quirell comes running through the hallway screaming; "Troll in the dungeon! Just thought you should know." He says before fainting.
She bolts out of her seats and looks to Fred and George, fear in her eyes. "I thought you locked the door!" She yelled at them, her words barely audible around all the commotion.
"You were supposed to lock the door!" Fred yells back while George has a shameful look on his face.
"You guys told me to lock the door..." He says and Ash turns to yell at him but stops herself.
"Okay," she takes a breath "I think we should try to stop him, I mean it is our fault."
"Ash, no." George and Fred say in unison.
"Fine, but I'm going." She says and runs towards the door of the hall. The twins are planted where they are standing, contemplating whether to go or not. Finally, they run after Ash, calling her name, just like she knew they would.
Once the three of them made it to the dungeons, they didnt see the troll. "I don't see it..." Ash observes.
"Maybe we should go back-"
"No! This is-" but she is cut off by a high pitch scream from nearby. She sprints out of the dungeon and into the hall. The scram is heard again, coming from the girls bathroom. Ash runs in and sees Harry and Ron, trying to fight the troll while Hermione sits in a corner.
"Hermione! Come here!" She says and tries to get to the girl who was always like a sister to her. Hermione tried to make a dash for it but she couldn't.
"Hey troll!" Ash yells and throws a chunk of broken sink at the back of his head. He turns around and starts to walk towards her.
"Stupefy!" She yells while pointing at the troll. He's hit with the spell and falls backwards, until he hits the ground with a loud thud.
Three professors come into the bathroom a moment later. "Merlin! Did you take out this troll?" Professor Mcgonigall shouts loudly.
"Well-"
"It was my fault!" Ash says truthfully, I thought I could take the troll by myself but all of them-" she points to the twins and the trio-" tried to save me."
"Well-do you know how the Troll got out?" Mcgonigall asks.
"No-no Professor." She lies, she knew exactly how he troll had gotten out.
*FLASHBACK*
"Ash!" The twins yelled at Ash as they ran into the common room, disrupting her studying of potions.
"Yes?" She asks, clearly annoyed as she was mid sentence.
"We think we found a secret passage." They say and Ash perks up.
"Really?"
"Yeah, come on!" Ash jumps up and drops her potions book on the table, eager to find a new way to sneak to hogsmeade. The three of them were pretty sure that Filch knew all the passages so a new one would come in handy.
Ash took the lead, even though she didn't know where she was going. At a fork in the road, she stopped."Um-"
"That way." Fred said, pointing to the left. They ran down, Ash still leading. She kept running until she realized that the twins weren't following her. They were abor ten feet behind waiting outside a Door, laughing quietly at Ash. She blushed a deep shade of red from embarrassment and went back to where she was.
They opened the door to reveal a dark room. "Lumos " all three of them whispered and their wands lit up. They closed the door and began to walk, not really knowing where they were going.
"I'm scared." Ash admitted.
"Here," Fred said, grabbing something from his pocket, "have a redvine." She smiles and takes some of her favorite candy. They walks few more feet in the cold dark room that they can barely see in but Ash stops them.
"What is that ?" Ash asks. There is snoring from around. Fred whips his wand around and points his light at something sleeping. It's huge and green. It stirs a little and opens a white eye.
"Is-is that a-"
"Troll? Yeah." Ash says. "Run!" The three of them run towards where the door was and they can beat he troll getting up.
"Where's the door?"
"Right here!" Ash yells and opens it, dashing out, fred hot on her hells and George in the back.
"George, lock the door!" They yell and run away from the room, heading to the great hall like nothing thing ever happened.
*NOW*
"Well, Ash ten points from Gryffindor for your foolishness. And ten points to everyone who helped with the troll. Miss Morse I really hope you won't be as foolish next time."
"Yes professor." Ash hangs her head in shame. "It won't happen again, I promise."
"I do hope so."
"Hey, this time I didn't get in trouble." Harry says happily.
"Well duh. Your harry freaking Potter the coolest boy in the world. Everything is awesome for you." Ash jokes.
__________________________
Rachel Johnson
“OPHELIA!” I cry as I run to the Ravenclaw table. The after effects of the potion that Madame Pomphrey gave me had finally worn off just in time for halloween. Ophelia hears me. Her blonde hair whips around as she faces me, a smile growing on face.
“RACHEL! Thank Merlin you’re feeling better. What happened?” She asks. My face saddens and creases appear on my forehead. Ophelia understands the message I’m giving off and she mutters an apology.
“Dont be sorry. Its okay.” I scan the table for a distraction and spot a tower of black and orange cakes. “WOAH! Look at these cakes!”
“I know!” She picks up an orange one. “They’re so good.” I pick up a black one and bite into it.
“Mmm...Tastes like chocolate. When was the last time I had chocolate?”
“On the Hogwarts Express. You ate a ton.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. Dont you remember?”
“I dont remember much. I had a temporary amnesia moment. I dont remember anything for the train except for...Robbie.”
“Oh yeah. I forgot.” She finds a cupcake and hands it to me. The frosting is drawn over the top to resemble a spider web. I happily bite in. I love cupcakes.
“Chocolate was always your favorite.” She says smiling.
“You know me so well.” I say laughing.
"Hey, where is Azel going?” She asks, pointing at a Slytherin girl.
“Azel who?”
“Azel Milani. Your arch enemy! Don’t tell me you forgot that!”
“I’m just messing with you.” I say.
“So where do you think she’s going?”
“Who cares? She can be eaten by a dragon for all I care.”
“Where’s Fred, George, Lee and Angelina? They’re almost never out your sight.”
“Well they visited everyday when I was in the Hospital Wing so I figured it was time to visit my best friend.” She laughs. “So tell me about the new Defense Against The Dark Arts teacher.”
“Uh, well, he’s kinda...weird.”
“What do you mean?”
“The way he acts. He’s always fumbling around, he’s a bloody coward, and I swear I heard his turban sneeze the other day.”
“Where is he, anyw-”
“TROLL! IN THE DUNGEON!” A girlish voice squeaks. I whip around and see Professor Quirell. Well, that was a coincidence. The entire hall hushes up. Dumbledore stands and watches the cowering man. “Thought you ought to know.” he says before he passes out, face flat on the floor.
Chaos
People scream and run about everywhere. I see ‘The Great and Powerful’ Robbie running around in circles.
“Silence!” Dumbledore demands. “All prefects will lead their houses to their dormitaries.” I walk with Ophelia and the Ravenclaws until I see the Gryffindors again. Before I have a chance to even crane my neck to spot them, I hear an ear-splitting scream from the next hallway.
“Rachel…”
“Yeah?”
“Are you thinking what I am thinking?”
“Oh Merlin. She’s gonna owe us so much for this.” I say as I begin to run towards the hall.
“AZEL!”
“AZZZEEEEELLLLLLL!!!”
“Shh! What if a prefect hears us.”
“You were yelling first.”
“Oh yeah. Whoops.”
“AZEL!” We reach an abandoned room. Azel sits in the corner with the troll towering above her.
“Well dont just stand there! DO SOMETHING!” She cries.
“We can leave as quickly as we came.” i say, heading out the door.
“NO! PLEASE HELP!” The troll lifts his club, ready to hit her.
“STUPEFY!” Ophelia cries. The troll smashes against the wall, sending chunks of brick flying.
“Wingardium Leviousa.” I say once the troll has been knocked out. The troll floats in the air, almost gracefully. “Okay..What do we do with this?” I ask.
~*~
We decided to leave the troll near an abandoned bathroom. Although, I could’ve sworn I heard wailing in there. Oh well. We venture on to the dungeons. Azel has a bad case of shock so we’re helping her. Why are we helping her? No idea. I guess that, despite how I hate her, when you’re used to being in so much pain with no way out, you dont want anyone else to feel that way.
When we reach the dungeons. Azel has, almost, fully recovered herself. She walks to the entrance. Before she speaks the password, she looks at us. “Dont think this changed anything, Johnson! Or you, Statton!”
“Oh of course not. We only just saved your life!” Ophelia yells.
“I was doing perfectly fine without you!” Ophelia raises her arm, ready to punch Azel in the face. I pull her arm back.
“Dont. As tempting as it seems to punch that disgusting beast in the face, you know that we’ll be the ones getting in trouble.” She lowers her arm and nods. We separate after promising to see each other again at breakfast.
~*~
“WHERE WERE YOU!” Fred and George yell.
“We were worried sick!” Angelina scowls.
“And I can handle myself so calm down.”
“YOU COULD’VE BEEN KILLED, RACHEL!” Lee shouts.
“In case you’ve forgotten, Lee, I’ve already been in near death experiences. I told you. I can handle myself.”
“Right, because you handled yourself perfectly with Robbie.” Fred says. I stop dead in my tracks, my back turned to him.
“You shouldn’t have said that, mate.” George says.
“No,” I say turning around, “you shouldn’t have.” I walk up to Fred. “You know what, Fred. Im going to bed and when I wake up I hope you learn to respect other people’s feelings. And I especially hope that you grow a brain and learn to never say ANYTHING like that again!”
I strom up the stairs and slam the door behind me. With a leap, Im on my bed, crying. I repeat what I told myself everyday since I was a kid.
“Tomorrow will be better.”
__________________________
Okay, this is every entry we recieved! Sorry about the delay, illness and homework got in the way. Voting will be posted momentarily, and....
We're sad to say that two contestants have decided not to continue participating :'( There character profiles now appear as "TRANSFERRED", and only TWO people will be eliminated at the end of voting. We hope you guys will be able to participate in a future contest once school and stuff lighten up!
Thanks for participating :D