Running into someone in the Castle in the middle of the night was nothing unusual.
The school staff assigned someone to patrol the Castle every day, both to check for disobedient young wizards sneaking out of bed to wander the Castle at night and to keep anything nasty from slipping inside.
Although the Castle had magical wards that kept ordinary dark creatures and dark wizards out, it stood beside both the Black Lake and the Black Forest, so there was no guarantee that something dangerous that was not a dark creature would not get in.
For instance, a troll had got in on Halloween during his first year. Though they later learned that Professor Quirrell had probably let it in deliberately-it had most likely originally been meant to guard the Philosopher's Stone.
Besides the school staff, the prefects from each house also made a round of the Castle before half past eleven. They did not, however, have night-watch duties.
So Harry did not pay much attention when he spotted someone ahead, but as he drew closer, he visibly froze for a moment.
The person coming toward him was not a professor, a member of staff, Filch, or one of the house prefects, but a petite little girl who looked even younger than he was.
The little girl had golden-brown hair, though it was a mess at the moment. Her features were very pretty, especially her eyes.
It was the first time Harry had ever seen gray eyes so beautiful and clear.
Gray eyes usually made a girl look alluring, like Hufflepuff's Megan Jones. Every time her long, narrow eyes glanced at Harry, he felt an electric jolt.
But the girl before him was completely different. Her eyes bulged slightly, making her look as though something had surprised her. They were