As we arrive at our next class I notice the seat next to me is empty. Hermione isn't here…

When classes let out instead of heading to the great hall for the Hallowe'en feast we head back to the common rooms to check for Hermione. After a bit of searching and asking we conclude, she isn't in the common room so we ask a girl to check the girl's dorm rooms but she wasn't there either.

I get a bit worried so we start asking around outside the dorms, turns out the Slytherin girls have been talking about it almost all day. Since this morning Hermione has been in the girl's bathroom on the bottom floor crying since around lunchtime.

When I hear this I gave Ron another glare, I am tempted to hit him again, but he already looks remorseful so I decided to let him off… this time. As we start heading down we are blocked by a large crowd of students heading away from the Great Hall. I decide to stop someone I recognize and ask why they were they were all leaving the feast.

The first person I notice is Dean so I quickly grab him out of the crowd. "What happened? Shouldn't you all be eating at the feast right now? It doesn't end for another hour and a half?"

Dean looks kind of rushed. "There is a troll in the dungeons, Quirrell found it. He rushed into the Great Hall shouting then passing out cold on the floor."

I let go of his arm and he runs off following the pack of students. I turn to look at Harry and Ron, they are both wide-eyed.

"I'll grab Hermione, you two head back right now."

Ron and Harry both shake their heads "We are coming with." Harry says with confidence.

Ron nods in agreement "It's my fault she is in danger in the first place, I have to go help." For once Ron says something I actually agree with.

I stare at them for a second obviously a bit hesitant "Fine, but if we run into the troll you guys have to run when I say." they both agree with a small nod like baby chicks. I take off first as we start running down the stairs. I'm tempted to fly but I don't want to get expelled or worse, hunted down as a dark wizard further ostracizing my family. So instead I just do my best to rush down.

She shouldn't be in immediate danger if the troll was spotted in the dungeons not that long ago. Although the bathrooms are close to the dungeon he still has to head out towards the stairs.

As we get to the bottom of the staircase I can see the girl's bathroom entrance near the very end of the hall. As we start running towards the bathrooms we can see a large figure around three and a half meters tall come out from the entrance of the dungeons. My eyes narrow.

"Run faster," I say as I speed up even more.

The troll is around 13 feet tall and is carrying a 4-foot wooden club. It has rough grey skin, with broad shoulders, and a stupid-looking long face. It is heading straight towards the girl's bathroom, probably because you can hear running water coming out of it.

We are still around 20 meters away from it so all I can do is pull out my wand to prepare. By the time the troll steps into the bathroom, we are only 50 or so feet away from the entrance. That's when we hear a scream and a crash.

We run inside to see the giant staring down at Hermione as it brings up its club to swing at her.

As it swings down its club I chant "Confringo!" I hit the Troll in the small of its back causing a small explosion knocking it forward. Thanks to that it missed Hermione and crushed the stalls next to her while falling over.

I turn to see Harry and Ron running in. I hold my wand towards the troll to make sure it doesn't move again.

"Hermione, hurry up and get over here," I say with a loud yet calm voice. "Grab her," I order Harry and Ron.

She starts to stumble over the rubble that used to be the toiletries but Ron and Harry run up and grab her. The troll rolls over to its back looking down at me over the fat lump of a belly. I shake my head as it starts to get up.

"Glacius!" a beautiful frosty blue light flies off my wand at the troll. Just as It can finally stand up it freezes in place, covered by a thin layer of ice.

"Go" I gesture my head toward the door without looking away from the troll.

Ron and Harry nod but Hermione protests "No we won't just leave you here." Ron and Harry start to pull her along but her protests turn louder "What are you guys doing?! He can't just fight a troll alone!"

"We will only get in the way trying to help," Harry admits.

"Yeah, you should have seen him duel Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle," Ron adds.

"This is a troll it's different!" Ron and Harry continue to drag her out anyway.

"Hurry up, I insist." I just want them out of my hair at this point. The troll is of no real threat to me, to them, it may be different. To me, this troll is nothing more than a minor annoyance. That being said it is a bit intimidating as the first beast I've actually fought.

My serious face breaks a bit as I hear Harry's desperate voice from the hallway "We need to find a teacher!" He yells.

Once I hear them a fair distance away my face turns from serious into a smile. The troll begins to break the layer of ice encasing it with a loud cracking sound. I cross my arms as I rub my chin, I am pondering how to kill the troll.

Then it comes to me "Sin, you wanna have some fun?" I can feel him rapidly tapping my shoulder causing my smile to widen playfully.

The troll looks furious as it starts to completely break the ice waving about its club wildly. I grab Sin from my neck and throw him into the air. Once he reaches a few feet above me he expands to the size of a blanket and floats toward the troll.

The troll just stares at it coming at him with a dumb look. Sin gently lands on the troll's face but the troll doesn't seem to mind much. Only once he tries to get Sin off his face does he begin to get agitated.

The troll squirms as he drops his club and claws at Sin on his face but to no avail. His hands seem to go right through Sin like Sin isn't even wrapped around his face. I just stand there and watch as it falls over struggling to breathe. The beast's struggle seems to be getting weaker and weaker, its breathing becomes ragged then drastically lighter.

Once its struggle finally stops Sin slowly unravels from its face and flies over to me going back to normal size. As it coils off the troll's face and heads towards me Sin seems to be 'strutting' a bit in his own way causing me to laugh.

As he wraps around my neck again I ask him with a smile "Have fun?" Sin taps my shoulder again and seemingly purs with a small vibration. I give him a few pats and tuck him lower into my robe so I won't get into trouble for being against the dress code.

I walk up to the troll's face and look down observing it, I notice it is still breathing a little. I assume since Sin is a predator he didn't want to steal his master's 'prey'. So stand over the troll I raise my wand at its head and chant "Reducto".

A red light strikes the crown of the troll's head and the area from head to shoulders is obliterated into dust. I feel kind of bad for the troll, after all, it's too stupid to understand what it's doing is wrong. But I won't allow anything that threatens my friends to live, this new life is a gift and I intend to treasure it.

I hear running coming from the corridor so I step away from the corpse. McGonagall and Dumbledore come running through the entrance with their wands drawn. Ron, Harry, and Hermione weren't far behind.

McGonagall upon seeing the corpse is about to speak but she is cut off by Hermione "Soren!" she ran at me and wrapped her arms around me in a hug.

"Quite forward I see, a bit out of character." I tease her with a smile. But she doesn't seem to care and buries her face in my chest. I just pat her head like a good older brother.

I look at Ron and Harry who are standing there awkwardly. "Thanks for listening to me," I say with a smile.

They look a bit awkward but still say "We trusted you." which made me pretty happy.

McGonagall breaks the moment "As touching as this is you will all still need to be punished. Why were you here anyway when the school went into lockdown?"

"We wer-" Ron was about to make an excuse but was cut off by Hermione.

She pushes off of me and wipes her face "It was my fault," Hermione explained turning to face McGonagall still teary-eyed.

"Indeed," I say with a smile, Hermione looks at me with a glare which makes me smile more.

"Indeed, we heard Hermione was still in the bathroom when the lockdown was called, so we decided to come to get her. We didn't expect the troll would show up so I told them to run while I hold it back. But I ended up getting lucky and killed it." I explain

Harry, Ron, and Hermione look astonished I told the truth. Well, at least my altered version of the truth at least.

McGonagall just shakes her head "You are aware you could all be expelled for what you just said?"

I look at Dumbledore "But we won't will we?"

Dumbledore nods and speaks "You will never be expelled for trying to save your fellow student… However, you have to be punished 25 points will be taken from Gryffindor… for each one of you four. For being out during a lockdown and breaking the rules." He took a long pause and looked a bit hesitant.

...In spite of that, you three showed excellent bravery when learning your friend was in danger. 20 points for each of you. Soren." He locks eyes with me "You have shown the very ideal of a Gryffindor… Courage, Bravery, Chivalry, Daring, and Nerves. You will be awarded an additional 50 points."

I smile along with a cheering Ron, Harry, and Hermione.

McGonagall still has a stern scowl but does indeed look a bit happy. "Tell me, Mr. Black, How did you defeat the troll?"

"Yeah, how?" everyone looks at me expectantly.

I rub the back of my head "I got off a lucky reducto?" Everyone looks taken aback even Dumbledore.

"But Reducto isn't taught until the fourth year." McGonagall looks skeptical.

"My older sister is an Auror in training so I know a lot about Defense Against The Dark Arts," I use Sis Dora as an excuse again.

'Please forgive me Sis.' I think to myself.

A look of realization dawns on everyone and McGonagall nods "I will be taking you all back to the Gryffindor house, do not talk about what happened today." With that, we head back to the dorms hungry.

Even with her saying to not spread it, Ron's big mouth couldn't keep shut. The entirety of Gryffindor found out in a day and the whole school knew in a week. I became rather famous… more like infamous since a lot of kids seemed scared of me now.