Chapter 59: The Troll in Class
A new week arrived, and the Halloween spirit grew stronger by the day.
As her friend, Ethan began keeping an eye on Hermione to prevent her from being trapped in the bathroom by a troll and getting into life‑threatening danger.
After all, with him in this world, who could say what might change?
He vaguely remembered that she'd had an argument with Ron during Charms class and ended up crying in the bathroom.
Having been study buddies for over two months, he knew that Gryffindor had Charms class on Halloween morning.
He was ready. Now it was just a matter of whether the event would actually happen.
On Thursday morning, after Ethan finished Herbology, which ran at the same time as Gryffindor's Charms class, he waited for Hermione in the library as they'd agreed the previous day.
Unfortunately, she didn't show up until lunch.
Ethan sighed. "It seemed Hermione was still hiding away, crying. Some things clearly weren't easy to change."
He checked the Great Hall but didn't find her there either. So he headed to the Gryffindor table and approached a first-year girl who looked familiar. He vaguely remembered she was Hermione's roommate, though he couldn't recall her name, and asked where Hermione had gone.
"Hello, why isn't Hermione here? Do you know where she went?" Ethan asked politely.
The girl, Patil, immediately recognized the boy who was often with Hermione.
"Hermione had some kind of emotional breakdown this morning and she's been crying in the third-floor bathroom. She won't let us comfort her. You came just in time. I think you'll be able to get her to stop."
"Okay, thanks. I'll go check on her."
He grabbed some food and walked toward the third floor of the castle.
Standing outside the bathroom door, listening to the sniffling inside, he gently called out, "Hermione! Hermione!"
"Ethan, wha... why are you here?" Hermione asked between sobs.
"We agreed to meet in the library, but you never showed."
"I didn't see you in the Great Hall either. Worried something had happened to you, I asked a girl from Gryffindor. She said you were crying here."
"Come on out. If something's bothering you, you can tell me, and you'll feel better."
"No, my eyes are swollen from crying. They're... they're so ugly."
"That doesn't matter. Come on out. I brought some food. You must be hungry."
"Okay, just give me a minute." A moment later, the water shut off, and Hermione emerged, her eyes red and swollen.
"Eat something first. Do you want to go to the Hospital Wing later? I'm sure Madam Pomfrey can fix the redness."
"Mm." Hermione ate the pizza and fries Ethan had brought in silence.
Once Ethan explained why they were there, Madam Pomfrey quickly took out a jar of ointment, took a small amount, and applied it around Hermione's eyes.
After applying it, she said, "Rest here for ten minutes. Your eyes might feel a bit cool. That's normal."
"Yes, Madam."
Madam Pomfrey turned to look at Ethan as if he were some kind of troublemaker and warned, "Don't make girls cry!"
"I didn't!" He felt like crying but had no tears. Heaven knew some boy had made Hermione cry, but it hadn't been him, and he certainly wasn't interested in her that way.
"It really wasn't him, Madam," Hermione added, defending him.
Madam Pomfrey looked between the two of them for a moment, realizing she might have misjudged the situation, before leaving, somewhat embarrassed.
Hermione closed her eyes to wait for the potion to take effect, while Ethan finally relaxed. Hermione was out of the bathroom now. Even if Quirrell released a troll tonight, it wouldn't matter as much.
Magic potions truly were magical. Ten minutes later, Hermione's eyes had returned to normal.
Leaving the Hospital Wing, Hermione said goodbye to Ethan and went back to the dormitory to freshen up and get ready for the afternoon Herbology class.
Ethan returned to the dungeons, grabbed the textbooks he needed for Charms, and stopped by the library first.
The afternoon Charms class was wonderful. They spent it practicing the classic spell, Wingardium Leviosa, the Levitation Charm.
At Professor Flitwick's command, the feather spun and danced, never stopping, moving in waves and sharp angles, executing complex maneuvers in the air.
But once the feather was in their hands, it was a completely different story.
Those who did better, like Draco, could make their feathers float, but those who struggled, like Goyle and Crabbe, could barely produce sparks from their wands, leaving the feathers motionless.
"Don't be so rough. Remember that subtle wrist motion, swish and flick, swish and flick." Professor Flitwick stood atop the pile of books, demonstrating the proper wand movement for Goyle and Crabbe.
"Also, never mispronounce the spell..." Before he could finish, a bison appeared in the classroom.
It was Crabbe, eager to try, who had unfortunately mispronounced the incantation.
The bison planted its front hooves on the table, mooing as it tried to get its remaining two hooves onto the ground.
"Alright, Mr. Crabbe has given us an example of what not to do. Does everyone remember the importance of correct pronunciation?"
Professor Flitwick swished and flicked his wand, and the huge bison levitated into the air, its four hooves kicking helplessly as it mooed in terror.
Professor Flitwick hopped down from the pile of books. "You guys keep practicing. I'll handle this."
With that, he headed toward the castle gates with the floating bison in tow. Apparently, he planned to release it into the Forbidden Forest.
"Wow! The Levitation Charm can actually move something that heavy!" The Slytherins didn't tease Crabbe too much; they were too busy focusing on Professor Flitwick's spell.
Inspired by the display, everyone practiced with renewed determination, hoping they would be the next to levitate a bison.
Thanks to this interruption, the class proved surprisingly effective. By the time it ended, most students had mastered the charm.
Ethan, needless to say, had long since mastered the spell and could now levitate a log and send it flying around the room.
The Charms class, full of "surprises," came to an end, and all the Slytherins were excited, including Crabbe, who had summoned the bison.
With Hermione's situation settled, and with her attending Herbology class in the greenhouse, Ethan decided to take this opportunity to visit Hagrid again.
As the supplier of Halloween pumpkins, Hagrid had asked Ethan a few days ago to help enlarge them using the Engorgio Charm for decorating the Great Hall. Ethan just wanted to check if the spell's effect had held up after a few days.
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