"Ahhh!!!"
Before Filch could even go in to investigate, a child's scream burst from inside the room. Then the door flew open, and three young wizards came running out in a panic, their faces white with terror.
Behind them were three enormous canine heads, each as large as an adult man. Their fangs were razor-sharp, their eyes a savage crimson. One look was enough to make Filch, the Squib who had guarded Hogwarts for so many years, lose his composure completely.
"A... a three-headed dog!"
Filch shrieked. Mrs Norris, who had been so brave just moments ago, instantly lost all courage as well. With a yowl, the cat practically launched herself into the air. Her paws skidded against the floor for a few frantic beats, then she spun around and bolted out of sight.
"Shut the door!"
Hermione was the first to react. She threw herself against the wooden door with all her strength. Luckily, the three-headed dog was chained up and could not leave the room. With Harry and Ron helping her, they finally managed to force the door closed again.
Whew.
The three of them let out a breath of relief, only then noticing the grim-faced Mr Filch standing right behind them. Their expressions changed at once. They exchanged glances, clearly intending to sneak away while they still could.
"Stop right there! I know you three! First-year Gryffindors!"
Filch shouted, his face twisting into something almost feral. Mrs Norris had been frightened half to death, and who knew whether she would fall ill after this. All of it had to be blamed on them.
"Come with me to Professor McGonagall! The three of you are going to pay for what you've done!"
With a cold snort, Filch turned and strode off.
Hermione looked utterly miserable, and the way she looked at Harry and Ron had turned distinctly unfriendly.
Now they were truly done for.
Who knew how many points would be deducted?
Hermione felt wronged and aggrieved. In her heart, she swore she would never meddle in those two boys' business again. With a huff, she followed after Filch.
Harry and Ron looked at each other and could only let out helpless sighs.
What happened after that, Altair did not know. Once he saw Filch taking Harry Potter and the others away to find Professor McGonagall, he went straight back to his dormitory.
The three boys in his room were sleeping like piglets, especially Goyle and Crabbe. Those two loved sweets more than anything, and they were so fat it was ridiculous. Their snores shook the room like thunder.
Altair genuinely had no idea how Malfoy managed to fall asleep in that noise.
The moment he returned to his own bed, everything around him finally became quiet again. Thinking that Gryffindor would lose at least thirty points today put him in an excellent mood. Before long, he was fast asleep.
The next morning, Altair arrived at the Great Hall early.
Hermione had not come yet, so Altair found a seat at the Slytherin table. He tapped his plate twice, and a delicate breakfast promptly appeared before him.
"Oh? Why aren't you over at Gryffindor today? Had a quarrel with your little girlfriend?"
A mocking, sneering voice drifted over from nearby. Turning his head, Altair saw that it was Pansy, that nasty little bitch.
She was staring at him, and there was a faint trace of excitement in her eyes.
Altair rolled his eyes, ignored her entirely, and continued his battle with his fried eggs.
That woman had issues.
Ever since he taught her a lesson last time, something seemed to have gone wrong with her. Instead of backing off, she had started paying even more attention to him.
Was there something fundamentally wrong with her wiring?
"Hmph!"
Seeing that Altair was ignoring her, Pansy clenched her fists and let out a huff. She viciously stabbed her fork into a piece of fried sausage several times, then angrily shoved it into her mouth.
Not long after that, Hermione came hurrying into the Great Hall like a storm. She swept her gaze around, spotted Altair sitting with Slytherin, and without saying anything, went straight over and sat beside him.
"I'm so furious!"
That was the very first thing Hermione said after sitting down.
"I'm never speaking to them again!"
She looked exhausted, as if she had barely slept at all last night.
Altair handed her a glass of milk, dabbed at his mouth with a napkin, and asked, "What happened?"
"I..."
Hermione hesitated. Her lips pushed out in a pout, and all at once her eyes turned red.
"I lost fifty points for Gryffindor last night! Waaaah!"
Altair's hand twitched. A flash of delight flickered through his eyes, but he hid it immediately. The corner of his mouth twitched, and he gave a light cough before reaching out to pat Hermione on the head.
"Why? Did you sneak out after curfew last night?"
At the neighboring table, Pansy saw this scene, and with a sharp clatter she threw her fork onto the table. She did not even bother finishing her meal. Letting out a cold snort, she turned and stormed off.
"What is wrong with her? If she doesn't want to eat, she shouldn't ruin it for everyone else," Altair muttered, then gently wiped away Hermione's tears.
Hermione sniffled twice before finally continuing.
"I... I heard Harry and Ron talking last night about going out to duel Malfoy, so I wanted to stop them. But... but the two of them still ran off. I was afraid something would happen, so I followed them."
"It turned out Malfoy had been lying the whole time. He never came. Instead, he told Filch. We heard Filch's voice and ran, and then we ended up on the fourth floor. To hide from Filch, we went into a room there."
A look of lingering fear appeared on Hermione's face. She lightly clutched Altair's arm and said in a low voice, "There was a gigantic three-headed dog inside that room. It was terrifying. After we ran out, we happened to run straight into Filch outside the door, so he caught us."
"Professor McGonagall said that not only had we snuck out after curfew, we'd also trespassed into a forbidden area, so we had to be severely punished. She deducted fifty points from Gryffindor for each of us... and on top of that, we all got detention."
"Harry and Ron have to help Filch polish trophies, and I have to go to the library to help Madam Pince organize all those old books..."