A Young Wizard's Journey - Philosopher's Stone (Hermione Granger X Male Reader)

Those Who Matter

He wasn't sure how long the pain had been coursing through his body. He could hear yelling, but didn't know whether it was his own or someone else. He just wanted it to end. He wanted to die.

Finally, after an agonisingly long wait, the pain vanished. But Y/N still couldn't see straight, his mind was swimming and he didn't even know where he was. It took him a few moments before any of the voices he could hear actually rang through and began to make sense.

'Why do you think he wanted to referee your next match? He was trying to make sure I didn't do it again. Funny, really, he needn't have bothered. I couldn't do anything with Dumbledore watching. All the other teachers thought Snape was trying to stop Gryffindor from winning, he did make himself unpopular. And what a waste of time, when after all that, I'm going to kill you tonight.' Someone snapped their fingers and he heard someone grunt.

He recognised that voice, it was his Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher. Professor Quirrell. He'd taught him a decent amount; he knew all about trolls and vampires now. He hadn't been able to use it during his last battle with a troll but that was okay. He had it now if he needed it again.

'You're too nosy to live, Potter. Scurrying around the school on Halloween like that, for all I knew you'd seen me coming to look at what was guarding the Stone,' Quirrell's voice continued.

Ah yes, Halloween. That night had been interesting. That'd been the time of the troll he'd just been thinking about. That had hurt, badly. Probably second worst pain of his life. First being-

His eyes shot open and his head raised.

Quirrell was facing towards the entrance, and trapped, bound by rope in front of his vision was Harry.

'You let the troll in?' asked Harry. 'You almost killed Y/N!'

'Shame it didn't manage it,' said Quirrell savagely. 'Would have saved me a lot of trouble. I have a special gift with trolls, you must have seen what I did to the one in the chamber back there? Unfortunately, while everyone else was running around looking for it, Snape, who already suspected me, went straight to the third floor to head me off. And not only did my troll fail to beat you or Y/N to death, that three-headed dog didn't even manage to bite Snape's leg off properly. Now, wait quietly, Potter. I need to examine this interesting mirror.'

Y/N span his eyes onto Harry. Harry was looking at the mirror, then turned his eyes on Y/N. He could see the worry in them, but watched it fade slightly as he saw Y/N was okay. Y/N moved as little as he could placing a finger to his lips. His entire body screamed at the movement, but he had no choice.

Harry nodded a fraction of an inch, then turned his eyes back on Quirrell. The two continued their back-and-forth conversation. Harry asking him about the Quidditch match, the meeting in the forest, the interaction Quirrell had whilst in an abandoned classroom. Quirrell explained it all. That it had been him trying to kill Harry and Snape trying to stop him.

Snape had been trying to save Harry the entire time. Y/N felt at least a little bit of satisfaction in that. Despite his other failures, he had at least found the correct culprit.

Quirrell was talking now about the day Harry had run into him in Diagon Alley. Harry, however, seemed zoned out. He was trying to move himself so that he was in line with the mirror. He'd clearly figured something out that Quirrell hadn't yet, but a moment later and Harry had tripped and fallen.

Y/N saw his wand a few feet away. He went to go to crawl it, hoping Quirrell's mutterings would cover for him, when he heard the last voice he'd wanted to hear.

'Use the boy,' spoke the high cold voice.

Y/N had to put everything he had into not moving as Quirrell turned and moved his way over to Harry. He watched as Harry's bonds fell away and he got to his feet. Quirrell pointed Harry to the mirror and Harry stepped over.