In the girls' restroom, Hermione was immersed in her sadness when she heard a gentle knock on the stall door.
"Hermione, is that you?"
"Who's there?" Hermione choked out, "Are you here to mock me too?"
"It's Padma Patil," Padma said gently. "The Halloween feast should have already started, Hermione. Wade and Michael are waiting outside for you—they're very worried about you."
"You go on to the feast. You don't need to worry about me! Just let me be alone for a while," Hermione said stubbornly, wiping away the increasing tears.
She had been crying for so long that her tears had run out, and she was hiding here merely because she was upset and didn't want to face others. But hearing her friends' concern and receiving kind words of comfort made the tears well up again.
Padma placed her hand on the stall door and said softly:
"Hermione, what Weasley said was nonsense. But I don't understand why you'd be so upset over an unfair comment from a foolish boy and ignore the friends who genuinely care about you.
Everyone says you're the smartest witch in the year—don't you know what truly matters?"
Hermione's sobbing stopped, and she was silent for a long time.
"Here's a secret—those who speak ill of you behind your back are often driven by insecurity and jealousy. You're smarter and better than others, and they want to hurt you by saying bad things.
If you let their words make you utterly miserable and push away your friends, then the bad guys win."
Padma continued: "The best way is to ignore those who try to bring you down. Shine your light and don't focus on the shadows in the corners—if it still doesn't feel satisfying, just give him a punch in the face!
After all, you're a lioness of Gryffindor, right?"
"Creeeak—"
Moments later, the door was pushed open.
Hermione, with red eyes, walked out and her voice still carried a trace of her tears. "I'm not the smartest witch—Padma, you're the truly smart one."
Padma smiled and gave her a hug.
---
Wade and Michael had been waiting in the corridor for a long time and finally saw the two girls emerge from the restroom. They had actually overheard Padma's comforting words to Hermione, but no one mentioned it.
Michael opened his arms and jokingly said, "Do you need a big hug from me, Hermione?"
The brown-haired girl wiped her eyes and gave Michael a fierce hug that could have cracked ribs. After releasing him, she turned and gave Wade a strong hug as well.
"Thank you—sorry," Hermione said softly.
Wade ruffled her hair with a casual gesture and didn't say anything.
"No need to apologize, but I'm really eager to enjoy the Halloween feast. I hope they haven't finished all the desserts!" Michael said, rubbing his stomach. "Otherwise, we'll have to sneak into the kitchen for some food."
Padma asked curiously, "Where is the Hogwarts kitchen? I've never seen it before."
Michael immediately perked up. "The kitchen is very hidden. If it weren't for Theo and Ryan—"
Wade halted his steps, raised his hand to signal everyone to stop, and quickly drew his wand.
"—What's going on?" Michael asked, lowering his voice.
Wade asked, "Didn't you hear that sound?"
Michael didn't answer because they all had already seen it—a huge, grey-green hand was gripping the corner of the wall, and a wheezing sound came from an unseen place.
The group's faces turned pale instantly, and Padma groaned, "Merlin—what kind of monster—"
A gigantic creature lumbered out from around the corner.
It stood a full twelve feet tall with its head almost touching the ceiling, and its weight seemed to be at least two tons. Its skin was as revolting as a toad's.
With a massive body, a huge belly, and a short neck topped with a bald head, it had few hairs.
The creature emitted a nauseating stench, and its long arms nearly reached its knees. It was carrying a wooden stick that resembled a tree trunk.
"It's impossible, how could there be a troll in the castle?" Padma's face went pale, her legs felt weak, and she relied on Hermione to support her.
The troll lowered its head and saw the group. Its small eyes revealed a cruel excitement. It began to lift its heavy legs and lumbered toward them, raising the wooden stick.
Hermione's hands trembled uncontrollably as she pointed her wand at the troll, unsure of which spell to use.
Michael kept casting spells: "Petrificus Totalus! Petrificus Totalus!"
He hadn't mastered the spell yet, and when it hit the troll, it was like raindrops hitting a rhino's hide—completely ineffective. Wade raised his wand and quickly reviewed all the spells he knew in his mind.
He knew many spells, but the troll had extremely high "magical resistance," with a robust physique that made even an adult wizard's spells difficult to affect—this is a creature that, even without a brain or magical power, is rated XXXX for danger, on par with a Thunderbird or a Sphinx.
Although Wade had thought when first reading Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them that this classification must have been flawed, facing such a towering monster in reality was still stiflingly oppressive.
"Boom!"
A bucket suddenly crashed down on the troll's head. Harry, having popped up from somewhere, shouted at them, "What are you standing around for? Run!"
Michael, coming to his senses, turned and dragged the two girls to run. Wade, however, stepped forward and pointed his wand. "Avis!" (Bird-Conjuring Charm)
A swarm of chattering little birds flew out from the tip of his wand and attacked the troll's face. The simple-minded troll immediately became distracted, making grunting noises and clumsily swatting at the birds with its huge hands.
Seeing that it was effective, Michael and the others also shouted, "Avis!!"
But their spells had little effect; their wands only produced a spark that briefly attracted the troll.
The dozen or so birds that Wade summoned surrounded the troll.
The massive creature roared in fury, making terrifying growls and smashing nearby decorations with its stick, but it couldn't deal with the agile birds. However, as time passed, the birds were rapidly diminishing.
Michael shouted, "This spell can only hold it for ten seconds at most!"
Wade swung his wand forcefully. "Glisseo!!" (Sliding Spell)
The floor beneath the troll suddenly became extremely slippery. Caught off guard, the troll slipped and fell heavily to the ground, shaking the entire floor, and its stick flew out of its hand.
Hermione, who looked like she might pass out at any moment, gathered her courage and pointed her wand. "Wingardium Leviosa!"
The stick flew up high and then came down, crashing onto the troll's forehead with a loud thud.
The troll shook its head and roared as it struggled to get up. Hermione gritted her teeth, maneuvering the stick to hit the troll a second time, then a third, and a fourth...
Finally, the troll blissfully passed out.
Hermione, out of breath, stopped and turned around to see others looking at her with shock and awe.
"What's wrong?" The girl's face flushed slightly. She tried to act nonchalant and said to Padma, "Well, you were right—giving it a punch really felt satisfying."
Padma was left speechless and dumbfounded—Did I teach that?
She found it hard to look at Wade and Michael.
"Harry—troll! There's a troll in the castle—hurry back to the dorms! Troll—"
Ron came running, shouting, but his voice suddenly cut off. He took in the scene before him, gasped, and asked in stunned disbelief, "What happened?"
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