Troll

Just as everyone was tucking in with gusto, Professor Quirrell suddenly burst into the Great Hall. His large turban sat crookedly on his head, and his face was full of terror. Everyone stared at him as he staggered to Dumbledore's chair, leaned against the table, and gasped, "Troll—in the dungeons—I thought you ought to know."

With that, he collapsed onto the floor and fainted.

The Great Hall instantly descended into chaos. Dumbledore had to set off several ear-splitting explosions from the tip of his wand before everyone quieted down.

"Prefects," he said in a deep voice, "immediately lead the students of your Houses back to their dormitories!"

Penelope rose at once. "Ravenclaw students, follow me." Her words were brief and to the point. Compared to Gryffindor's prefect Percy, Allen preferred Penelope. At that moment, Percy looked like a pompous rooster leading a flock of chicks swiftly back to their nest.

"Allen, shouldn't Halloween be when all kinds of monsters, ghosts, pirates, alien visitors, and Witches come out in force? How did it turn into a Troll at Hogwarts? Professor Quirrell acted so realistically! Could this be how wizards celebrate Halloween? What a pity—I hadn't eaten enough of that food yet!" The carefree Edward actually thought this was part of the Halloween celebration, leaving Allen both amused and exasperated.

The Golden Trio encountered a Troll on Halloween. Did Dumbledore know about this? If he did, why did he allow Quirrell to wander around Hogwarts? If he knew, why was he still standing at the teachers' table without the slightest sign of concern? Were three young wizards who had only recently enrolled really supposed to rely on luck against an adult Troll?

Thinking of this, Allen could not help worrying. He searched everywhere for Harry, Ron, and Flag. Flag was safe; Allen spotted him at once, dragged along beside Percy, likely with no chance of slipping away. But Harry and Ron were nowhere to be seen.

Allen patted Edward on the shoulder, signaling that he was leaving the group. Edward wanted to follow, but Allen hurriedly stopped him. As the Ravenclaw group turned a corner, Allen slipped behind a suit of armor standing beside the corridor.

Professor Quirrell said the Troll had appeared in the dungeons, but according to Allen's memories of the original story, the Troll should have been in the girls' bathroom by now.

Allen raced upstairs. Before long, a foul stench filled his nostrils, a mixture of dirty socks and an uncleaned public toilet. Then he heard low grunting and the sound of enormous feet dragging across the floor.

Allen immediately saw Harry and the others crouching and shrinking back into the shadows, watching the Troll slowly step into a patch of moonlight.

Allen activated the invisibility function of the Miaomiao Wizard Robe and prepared to observe how things unfolded. This Troll incident was vital and indispensable to the birth of the Golden Trio's friendship. Unless absolutely necessary, Allen had no intention of intervening and changing anything.

The scene before him was terrifying. The Troll stood twelve feet tall, with dull, granite-gray skin. Its huge, clumsy body resembled a heap of massive mud clods, topped by a tiny head like a cocoa bean. Its short legs were as thick as tree trunks, ending in flat, rough, callused feet. The stench emanating from it was nauseating. It held a thick wooden club in its hand, which dragged along the ground because of its long arms.

The Troll stopped beside a door and peered inside. It waggled its long ears, made up its tiny mind, then lowered its head and slowly squeezed into the room.

Allen watched helplessly as Harry and Ron cleverly locked the Troll inside the girls' bathroom. Hermione's terrified scream soon rang out from within. Harry and Ron froze for a moment, then immediately turned back, clumsily pulled the door open, and rushed inside.

Allen followed close behind. The Troll swung its enormous club, smashing the bathroom fixtures to pieces. Shattered tiles and stones flew everywhere, and the stalls collapsed one after another. The situation was already extremely dangerous. The Troll quickly smashed apart Hermione's hiding place, and she scrambled away.

In Hermione's eyes, Harry grabbed a tap and hurled it hard against the wall. His plan worked. The stupid Troll stopped only a few steps from Hermione. It turned clumsily, blinking foolishly as it tried to see what had made the sound. Its ugly little eyes spotted Harry. It hesitated, then started toward him, raising its club as it went.

Then Harry bravely jumped onto the Troll's back and shoved his wand into its nostril. Ron successfully cast the Levitation Charm, and the club fell squarely onto the Troll's head with an earth-shaking boom. The Troll swayed where it stood, then fell face-first onto the floor with a thunderous crash that made the whole room tremble. The Troll had fainted.

In reality, there was no way they could have been so lucky. Ron's Levitation Charm had indeed worked, but the falling club did not have enough force to knock out a Troll.

Allen sprinted forward, launched himself high with the help of the wall beside him, grabbed the Troll's club, and brought it down viciously. Since he was wearing the invisible Miaomiao Wizard Robe, Harry and the others only saw Ron accidentally knock out the Troll.

Soon afterward, Professor McGonagall, Professor Snape, and Professor Quirrell hurried over. Reassured, Allen left.

When he returned to Ravenclaw Tower, the common room was unexpectedly empty. Allen found it especially strange and ran back to the dormitory. On the table, Edward had left him a note. The handwriting was extremely messy, clearly written in great haste.