Halloween arrived much sooner than I expected it to — but I'm definitely not complaining. I already loved Halloween before going to school, but somehow Hogwarts makes it even grander. Maybe it's all the spooky decorations and promises of a Halloween Feast — or maybe it's because Professor Flitwick said that we were going to finally learn how to make objects fly. Either way, I'm super excited for today.
Unfortunately, I wasn't having much luck getting my feather to fly. Neither were Ron, Harry, or Dean Thomas — my partner and fellow Gryffindor.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Ron shouted at the feather. He and Hermione were sitting in front of us.
"You're saying it wrong," Hermione hissed. "It's levi-o-sa, not levi-o-sa!"
What's the difference?
"Fine, then, you do it if you're so clever," Ron challenged. "Go on, go on."
Hermione cleared her throat, and said, "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The feather floated into the air. I clapped silently for my friend, while Ron grumpily sat back in his chair.
"Oh, very good!" cried Professor Flitwick. "Everyone look here, Miss Granger has done it!"
I walked out of class with Harry, Ron, Dean, and Seamus Finnigan, who had been Harry's partner. I had managed to get my feather to lift an inch or so off the table at the very last second, so I was pretty happy with myself.
"Evie, I'm sorry to tell you, but Hermione's still a know-it-all once you get to know her," Ron said to me.
"How would you know if you haven't gotten to know her yet?" I said.
"Trust me, you get to know her very well when you're partners with her in class," said Ron. "She never stops talking! She's a nightmare, honestly."
I glared at him, but before I could tell him off for being a jerk, he was shoved aside by Hermione. Her head was down and she was walking quickly away from us.
"Hermione!" I called after her, but she ignored me.
Before I could go after her, Harry whispered, "Maybe you should just leave her alone for a while, Evie."
I sighed, but agreed and continued walking with the boys to the Great Hall.
Hermione didn't show up for any other classes that day. Whenever I had a break, I tried looking for her everywhere —the library, the common room, our dorm, a few bathrooms— but I couldn't find her. I decided I'd go on a complete search for her with Lavender and Parvati after dinner.
The Great Hall was completely decked out for the Halloween Feast, including probably a thousand live bats fluttering around the room. Carved pumpkins decorated the tables, and black and orange streamers hung neatly above our heads.
I sat down next to Harry and Ron at our table, and the three of us talked until food appeared on the golden plates in front of us — just like the feast at the beginning of the year. I grabbed a piece of steak, and just as I was about to add some mashed potatoes to my plate, Professor Quirrell came running into the hall.
"Troll! In the dungeons! Troll, in the dungeons!" he yelled. He was a lot paler than usual. "Thought you oughta know." He then fainted and fell on the ground.
There was a moment of eerie silence, before everyone started screaming. I mean, who wouldn't? There's a troll in the dungeons.
"SILENCE!" Professor Dumbledore yelled.
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Evelyn Riddle and the Philosopher's Stone
Fanfiction"If my dad could hear us, you'd already be dead, Ron." My name is Evelyn Willow Jane - or, as most people call me, Evie. I've lived with the Malfoys for my whole life because of one teensy problem - not long after I was born, my father tried to murd...
