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HP Chapter 11: Halloween
🕑 Added 2025-08-01 17:17:11 +0000 UTCBy the time Halloween arrived, Anne realized she had already been at Hogwarts for two months.
On the eve of the holiday, a strong scent of pumpkin filled every corner of the school.
But Hogwarts’ first Halloween wasn’t going to be a peaceful one. Professor Quirrell had likely already begun moving behind the scenes, and the main characters were about to experience a turning point in their friendship.
Anne had no intention of getting involved. She told herself firmly: Stay far, far away from the protagonists. Their adventures always involved danger and near-death experiences. They only survived each time thanks to their protagonist halos.
That evening, after tending to the plants in the greenhouse, Anne made her way to the Great Hall to enjoy the Halloween feast.
She had just sat down when Fanny leaned close and whispered, “Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be in the bathroom comforting her?”
Anne sliced a golden roast chicken leg, took a bite, and replied casually, “I’m here for dinner. Why would I go to the bathroom?”
“But your good friend Hermione is crying in there. I just overheard Patty from Gryffindor say she saw Hermione rush into a girls’ loo in tears earlier!”
Wait, Hermione, crying in the bathroom? That… wasn’t in the plot, was it? Didn’t the three of them defeat a troll together? Anne dug deep into her fuzzy memories. And since when was she considered Hermione’s good friend?
“When did I become her good friend…” Anne muttered, determined to squash any misunderstanding at its roots.
“But you’ve talked to her a few times. And didn’t you lend her that map once?”
That was only because I accidentally mentioned it and had to let her take a quick peek to satisfy her curiosity, just to keep her from blabbing. But that’s not something I can explain to a kid.
“Just talking a few times makes us friends? By that logic, I’m friends with Malfoy too. She and I just… know each other.” Anne reached over to grab a baguette and a cup of English milk tea from in front of Fanny.
Fanny gave her a weird look but said nothing, turning instead to nibble slowly on a lamb chop.
Anne was halfway through a bite of pumpkin pie when the doors to the Great Hall suddenly burst open. Professor Quirrell stumbled in, wild-eyed and panicked.
“Troll, in the dungeons, thought you ought to know…” He collapsed to the floor mid-sentence.
Panic exploded across the Hall. Anne cast a mournful glance at the feast spread before her. I hadn’t even finished eating…
It took several loud firework-like blasts from Dumbledore’s wand to restore order.
“Prefects!” he called, his voice calm yet commanding. “Lead your Houses back to their dormitories at once.”
The prefects immediately began organizing the students into lines.
In the middle of Slytherin’s group, Fanny tugged urgently on Anne’s sleeve. Her face was tight with worry. “Anne! There’s someone who doesn’t know what’s happening!”
“Who?” Anne asked, thinking Fanny was just scared.
“Hermione! She didn’t come to dinner, she’s still in the bathroom. She doesn’t know about the troll. What if she runs into it…”
Anne’s heart skipped a beat. That… shouldn’t happen, right? Okay, she had to admit, her memory of the finer details was basically gone. She only vaguely remembered key plot points. In the first movie, the three of them bonded over defeating the troll, Harry got the Philosopher’s Stone, and Quirrell turned out to be evil. Hermione was the main character, she wouldn’t die in the first book. If anything happened, it should be in the Chamber of Secrets.
Fanny added nervously, “I saw a troll once when I was little. It was huge. Terrifying.”
Anne craned her neck, trying to see the Gryffindor line ahead of them. “Can you check if Harry and Ron are still there?”
Fanny stood on tiptoe. “They’re there… they’re going up the stairs.”
Anne frowned. She didn’t want to get involved with the trio, and it would be best if the plot stayed intact. But knowing what she now knew, she couldn’t just do nothing.
“They’re leaving, Anne…” Fanny’s voice was growing panicked.
“Alright, I get it. Fanny, here’s what you’ll do. Follow the prefect back to the dorms and keep an eye on Harry and Ron. If they slip away, don’t worry about it. I’ll talk to the professors.”
Without waiting for a reply, Anne darted around the Slytherin group and headed toward Professor Snape and Professor McGonagall, who were kneeling beside the unconscious Quirrell.
Snape’s face grew even colder at the sight of her. He opened his mouth, likely to scold her for not returning to the dorms, but Anne spoke first, putting on a worried and urgent expression.
“Professor Snape, I think I just saw one, or maybe two, students break away from the group. I’m not sure which House they were from, but I saw them heading toward the upstairs bathrooms!”
McGonagall’s eyes widened in alarm. She exchanged a quick look with Snape. Snape stared at Anne as if trying to detect a lie, then finally said, “Alright. Thank you, Miss Reeve. Now return to your dormitory.”
Anne nodded and quickly ran off.
Back in the Slytherin common room, it was absolute chaos. The place was packed, and the feast had been brought in from the kitchens.
Fanny rose as soon as she saw Anne, but Anne hurried over and plopped down beside her. No way was she giving up one of the few empty seats.
“I told the professors,” Anne whispered while picking up a slice of raisin cheese. “They’re on it. What about your side?”
“They slipped off right after going up the stairs,” Fanny said.
“Then we’re good.” Anne quickly downed the cheese and reached for a mini pork floss cake.
The next day at breakfast, Anne learned that Gryffindor had been awarded five points, and surprisingly, so had Slytherin. Apparently, by the time the professors reached the bathroom, Harry and Ron were already battling the troll. They managed to hold it off until help arrived. Hermione had taken the blame for sneaking off, and the professors saw Harry and Ron as heroes helping a friend.
Gryffindor lost five points due to Hermione’s actions but gained ten thanks to Harry and Ron. As for Slytherin, Anne’s timely warning had earned them their own five points.
When Anne sat down at the table and saw the way Malfoy was glaring at her, she felt like even jumping into the Nile wouldn’t wash that look off.
Fanny was grinning at her mischievously. As soon as Anne sat down, she leaned in and whispered, “Hermione asked me to tell you, she wants to meet you this afternoon in the library. Second floor. Quidditch section.”
“I’d rather not. What do you think?” Anne nearly choked on her bread.
Fanny shot a glance at the trio at the Gryffindor table, then gave Anne a bright-eyed nod. “I think you should go.”
“Fine…” Just to make things clear, Anne thought. From now on, I’m staying far away from the trio’s business.
She recalled a letter she’d recently received from Aaron. He’d praised her actions with Malfoy, calling her clever, lively, and adorable, and encouraged her to keep it up.
That afternoon, Anne and Fanny arrived at the library. From the door, Fanny immediately spotted the trio on the first floor. They were already watching the entrance and lit up when they saw Anne. Then the three of them headed up to the second floor.
Fanny nudged Anne with her elbow. “They’re going up. Go on.”
Anne tucked a flipping silver Sickle back into her pocket. “I will, but not too fast.”
She took her time settling at a table, unpacked her books, and worked on her homework for a bit before finally grabbing a parchment slip with a book title and making her way upstairs.
The second floor of the library was lined with towering shelves and very few people on a Monday afternoon. Anne walked calmly to the Quidditch section.
The trio was there, and they looked happy to see her.
They exchanged glances. Ron nudged Harry, but Harry stayed quiet. Hermione spoke first.
“I asked them to come with me. We just wanted to say thank you.”
“For what?” Anne’s tone was flat.
“I heard from the professors, you were the one who told them you saw someone sneaking off. If not for you, we’d never have survived the troll…”
“And with Malfoy,” Ron added, excited, “that was brilliant! You really put him in his place! I bet that’s the first time anyone’s ever done that to him!”
Harry nodded along.
“…Are you done?” Anne’s voice didn’t change. The three of them were caught off guard by her cold reaction.
“If you think those things mean I wanted to help you, let me set that straight. I retaliated against Malfoy because he provoked me. As for the troll, I only went to the professors because Fanny asked me to. And I didn’t know it was you.”
“But on the Quidditch field, after class, you said McGonagall wouldn’t expel Harry. I heard you!” Ron said quickly.
“I was stating a fact, answering Fanny’s question.”
“You gave me candy on the train!” Ron insisted.
“We made a trade. You told me how to open the wrappers.”
Harry and Ron looked at each other, speechless. Hermione tried again, more hesitantly.
“But in the library, you told me not to read Quidditch books… that was helping me, right?”
“I was bored and being nosy,” Anne said coolly. Then, without giving them a chance to speak again, she added, “Besides, I’m a Slytherin. Why would I help Gryffindors?”
And with that, she turned and walked away.
The trio stared after her.
“…I think she just… doesn’t want to be close to us,” Harry said finally.
“Maybe because she’s in Slytherin?” Ron muttered. “But she did help us.”
Hermione, meanwhile, was still staring at the shelves. She whispered, “Why, though?” She didn’t believe Anne’s words. If she was just being nosy, why had her advice been so thoughtful?
Anne, of course, had no idea what they were thinking. From her perspective, acting cold was the fastest way to be forgotten. Kids moved on quickly, they’d find new friends and new drama in no time.
That was for the best, she thought. As long as Dumbledore was around, Hogwarts was a safe place. She’d study what she was interested in, then maybe disappear for a while. Let the main characters save the world.
Thinking about the Eastern wizarding world, Anne recalled a book she’d read called An Introduction to the Eastern Wizarding World. It was about India, its magical history, and how much of its modern magical system came from British colonialism.
