Chương 32: ITW,H - Chapter 32 - (1) Halloween

(Word Count: 1, 501) The night before Halloween, they had their weekly Wednesday night Astrology class. The astronomy tower was redecorated with many carved pumpkins and turnips with a bunch of candles. These candles were the only source of light in the whole tower, giving an eerie feeling. Apparently, Professor Sinistra was a fan of Halloween.

"Samhain is tomorrow!" Professor Sinistra greeted them with a smile, holding a candle in her hands, making it cast shadows across her face. Even with the ominous glow, this was the most cheerful they've ever seen her.' Saa-win?

'Harry had to search through his memories for what she was talking about.' Ah, Samhain. I was pronouncing it wrong all this time then.' It wasn't Sam-Hane, it was pronounced Saa-Win.' Why the frick do we spell it with an 'mh' then? It makes no sense!'

"Samhain marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter. It is also the time of the year when the veil between the living and the dead is the thinnest, when malevolent spirits and magic creatures run amok. So be careful out there," Sinistra cautioned.

"It's an auspicious time of the year." ~~ ITW, H ~~"That was an… ominous lesson," Ron murmured as they made their way back down the tower. He and Neville glanced around at every shadow.

"She was right though. I hate Halloween," Harry grumbled.

"Speaking of tomorrow, I need to talk to you three. It's another… midnight duel situation." That caught their attention, and they gulped nervously.

"You don't mean…" Hermione looked around at the passing students and she stepped in closer to whisper.

"You mean… the death eaters are going to make a move to steal the stone?" Well, technically, Quirrell did try to make a move for the stone, but he was stopped by Snape.

"Technically, yes, but let's find somewhere private to talk, and I'll explain." With a subtle notice-me-not charm, they ducked into an unused room.

"What's going on, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"You all got mad at me for not giving you a heads up on my visions before, so I thought I should tell you this one. It's about tomorrow. During the Halloween feast, Professor Quirrell bursts into the great hall yelling about a troll that is loose in the castle dungeons. All the students are guided back to their dormitories safely by the prefects and teachers, but Hermione, you weren't at the feast for some reason and didn't hear about the troll.

The rest of us noticed you were missing and went to tell you about the troll, and we ended up coming face to face with it." They all paled at the thought.

"So whatever you do, make sure you come to the feast tomorrow, and everything should be fine. The teachers can handle a troll easily, and no one else should be hurt.' They relaxed.

"Phew, yeah, I imagine Dumbledore could take on ten trolls at once," Ron said.

"A single troll won't be a problem."

"Thanks for the warning, Harry. I'll make sure to attend the feast," Hermione said gratefully.

"But why didn't I attend in the first place? I wouldn't miss out on the Halloween feast without a good reason."

"Well…" Harry glanced at Ron, "in my vision, none of us were friends yet, and you were the target of some rather nasty comments. You spent the day crying. But! We're friends now, so no one's bothering you, are they?" The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Oh," Hermione said awkwardly. Of all the things, it just had to be her inability to make friends? She could see that if it weren't Harry finding her in the bookshop before school, she likely would have been stuck in a similar situation as she was back in the non-magic schools.

"No. No one's been mean. I've been enjoying my time here, so… Thank you."

"It was my pleasure!" Harry grinned.

"Still, just to reiterate, everyone make sure you attend the feast on time, yeah? Then everything should work out without danger. We'll be escorted back to our dormitories, and Dumbledore will handle the troll."

"S-Sounds easy enough," Neville agreed, "I can do that." They hurried to catch up to the rest of their classmates and returned to their rooms. Harry checked his Quest Page, and scowled when he saw that the troll quest still wasn't completed.

"Whatever. If it comes down to it, I'll just kill the thing." ~~ ITW, H ~~ Halloween day came, and Harry still had classes to attend. One of which was 3rd year Divination. Ever since Dumbledore told Professor Trelawney about his visions, Harry had quickly become one of her favorite students, because he was actually a seer like her. She had taken it upon herself to treat him as a sort of apprentice to pass on everything she knew. Though for the most part, that just meant assigning him more homework.

This week, they were still going over palmistry, or palm reading, and going over the various lines and interpretations. Harry's fate line was deep, suggesting an impactful event that happened, and a clear direction for where his life's going. Or, in other words, the prophecy still holds sway over him. His sun line, or Apollo's line, was just as strong, which indicated public acclaim and influence. After class, Professor Trelawney took him aside.

"Potter, after your classes, come and see me. This time of year, when the veil is at its thinnest, is the perfect chance to divine more about your visions of the future! I've already gotten permission from the Headmaster."

"Can it wait until after the Halloween feast?" This is really going to screw up his plans to ensure Hermione was at the feast.

"No, this ritual must be performed as the sun goes down." Meaning roughly around 4: 30. Okay, this shouldn't go on for an hour and a half, right?

"Very well, then, Professor, I'll be there." And if it did go over, then Hermione is smart enough to make sure she gets to the feast on her own. Surely the quest wasn't considered completed yet because it's just waiting for the feast to be over. He hurried to get to his next class. After classes were over for the day, Neville and Ron just went directly over to the great hall to hang out and play wizard's chess. They didn't want to take any chances at encountering the troll. Hermione went to the Library.

"Hermione…" Harry started worriedly.

"Oh, relax, Harry. I'll be sure to keep an eye on the time. We have two hours before the feast starts, and I don't intend to waste that. You said the troll gets loose in the dungeons, right? I'll just make my way to the feast through the upstairs bridge. I won't be anywhere near the dungeons. Besides, I have to help Lavender and Eloise with their charms essays." With nothing to say against that, they parted ways. Harry made his way back to Divinations.

Trelawney had set up the room so that all the windows were closed and shuttered, preventing any light from coming though. Instead, various incense sticks were burning, filling the room with vapors.

"Harry Potter. Come in, sit," Trelawney murmured. She was sitting on a cushion with her eyes closed like she was meditating, but she was gripping a crystal ball on a small table in front of her. He sat down on the free cushion across from her.

"Close your eyes…. Cast yourself into your mind, focus on the vision you want to learn more about. Let the incense fill you. When you feel you are ready, place your hands over mine." Of all the visions that he had, most of them revolved around the canon timeline, and/or were inconsequential. The only real vision that he had questions about was the one of him in the cave with Excalibur. Meditating, Harry quickly fell into a trance-like state. He placed his hands over Trelawney's on the crystal ball.

When he did, she started… praying? She was beseeching the three crones, or Fate, for a greater exposition on his vision. They were pulled into a vision. He was back in that cave. It was the same vision as before. An older Harry was wielding Excalibur, walking carefully down a cave that had a stream of water flowing upwards. Then the monster screeches. Harry's face pales. Then the vision continued on. From behind the older Harry, a figure came running around a corner.

It was an old man, with stark white long hair and beard that went past his knees. The old man was extraordinarily gaunt.

"Sweet Mother Magic, Harry, slow down!" The old man gasped as he tried to catch his breath.

"I'm not as spry as I used to be!"

"Quiet!" Harry hissed.

"Don't you hear them?" The old man finally registered the screeches and paled in fright as well.

"Daemons! Here?" The older Harry paused, then had a look of realization.

"Wait a minute. I remember this… YOU NEED TO—" And the dream faded.