Chapter Four

Power And Potions

Snape had looked up in surprise when McGonagall entered with Nott in tow, and sneered when he realised what had happened. "Couldn't even prevent injury with just the one duel going, Minerva?"

The older teacher just scowled and guided Nott to a spare bed. As soon as he was settled, she turned to the other professor. "Severus, I'm going to go back and tell the students to get to their common rooms. I think we both agree that it would be foolish for the club to continue tonight, yes?" Snape inclined his head in agreement, and she stood up. "You'll stay with Nott until Madam Pomfrey comes to deal with him?" Snape looked as though he was considering argument, but decided against it. He nodded curtly and Professor McGonagall swept out of the medical wing.

Snape sat stiffly in one of the chairs that Madam Pomfrey kept by the beds and looked at Nott who was staring sullenly up at the ceiling. With a sigh he leant back in the chair, a little bored. The doors at the entrance suddenly banged open with a surprising ferocity and he looked up to see McGonagall again entering the hospital wing with wounded in tow. In seconds he took in the bushy-haired girl in her arms, the blonde being hovered along behind her, and Crabbe, limping in holding his groin and whining softly. He was on his feet in an instant. "What happened here?"

"Just find Madam Pomfrey, please Severus." The fatigue was obvious in the woman's eyes, so Snape decided not to push her for now. He left the room quickly, and McGonagall placed Hermione gently on the bed, indicating to Harry to do the same with Draco. In spite of the horrendous pain in his legs, Draco's eyes were flashing at the idea of Harry having got him to the infirmary. Crabbe was given no help, and climbed up onto a bed, flinching a little as he sat down.

Madam Pomfrey hurried in, tutting and sighing like a mother hen. "Why do they have these duels, honestly? Six injuries in less than an hour. It's just ridiculous. Neville, dear, you're OK to go now." He nodded and slipped off the bed gratefully. He hesitated next to Harry who nodded for him to go back to the common room. Madam Pomfrey looked from one to the other. "Can anyone tell me which curses these three children have been hit with?"

Harry, who had been hovering hesitantly in the doorway, nervously stepped forward. "Go away, Potter. No sane person would take your word for anything," Snape spat out.

"Would you prefer we get a Slytherin in to testify? Cunning and deceit are celebrated in your house, are they not?" McGonagall turned to glare at Snape, who looked like he was considering using his wand.

"For goodness sake, you two." At the sound of her voice both frowned sharply at the angry healer, but Madam Pomfrey was not to be interrupted. "Take a look at the children that you have brought in. Look at them." She pushed them both round to look at the students. It wasn't a pleasant sight. Draco had curled herself into the foetal position and was crying softly staring blankly at a spot on the wall in front of him, and Hermione was drifting in and out of consciousness, too weak even to cry. The teachers took in their students and, suitably chastised, turned back to Madam Pomfrey, whose voice became gentler now that they had stopped arguing. "Severus, Minerva, if there is anything we have learned today it is that house rivalry is dangerous. That is the same whether between student and student, teacher and teacher, or teacher and student. We can talk about truth and stories later, but for now I need to know how to cure these children. Their health is the first priority for me. Mr. Potter?"

Harry, who had stepped back again during this speech, uncomfortable with seeing his teachers told off, now stepped forward once more. "Crabbe got hit first, Madam. The impotus curse." He winced as he said it, well aware of what it was. Even Snape shot the big boy a semi-sympathetic look.

The medi-witch turned briskly to her cabinet. "Well that's OK. I know it hurts terribly at the moment, boy, but I doubt lasting damage has been done." She carried two potions over to the bedside. "Pain relief and sleeping potion should do the trick, and you'll be OK by tomorrow. How strong was the curse, Harry?"

"I'm not sure. It was Hermione's, and she looked pretty pissed off when she used it. Sorry Madam, I mean annoyed. But it was aimed at Draco and he deflected it. That should make it softer, yeah?"

Madam Pomfrey nodded. "Yes, you should be absolutely fine Mr. Crabbe. I'll just keep you in for now." She turned to smile at the boy, but found he had already gulped down both potions and was fast asleep on top of the covers. "Oh dear. Severus, would you help me with him?" Snape nodded and got his wand out. "Now, Harry, what of the other two children? Who was hit first?"

"Well they were both fighting pretty hard." Harry hesitated, reluctant to tell the truth. But a surreptitious glance at Snape told him that honesty was probably best at this point. "Malfoy was, Madam. Hermione hit him with something I've not heard of before. It was a stream of harsh red light that kind of whipped itself around his legs before disappearing. I think the incantation was - Spasmodia?"

Snape looked up sharply, regarding Hermione with an inquisitive look, and Professor McGonagall's eyes narrowed. Madam Pomfrey was at Draco's side in an instant. "Oh dear me. That will certainly need more than a few days recuperation. If he has been hit by the Spasmodia curse he won't be able to drink any potions to relieve the pain. A clever witch, that Hermione." Here, Snape coughed irritably, and Madam Pomfrey began to bustle again. "Disgraceful, of course, but it is a very advanced spell." She attempted to pull Draco's hands away from his legs, but he wasn't letting go. She looked down at him compassionately. "Mr. Malfoy, I understand that it hurts at the moment, but you have to let me help you. It will only worsen the longer it is left untreated, child." This time he let her at his legs and she took the paste that McGonagall had got from the cupboard, then began applying it to the boy's tender legs. "This will sting a little, but it is necessary to alleviate the damage caused. If it is not treated it could well spread to your upper torso and arms." She released his legs and Draco immediately rolled over and vomited. Unfazed, Madam Pomfrey scourgified the mess and stroked Draco's hair. "I know it's bad now, Mr. Malfoy, but it will get better, I promise. In a couple of days, when it has died down a bit, you can have some potions for the pain, and to help you sleep. For now I'm afraid you'll just have to bear it as best you can." She turned to Harry once more, waiting for him to continue.

"Right. Well she hit him and then he hit her with something called Incendus. I've never heard of it, but it made Hermione scream horribly." He shivered, remembering that sound. "Then she just fell to the ground panting." It seemed that if Spasmodia was a bad spell to use, Incendus was worse. McGonagall looked shocked, Madam Pomfrey was worried, and even Snape looked somewhat concerned. Harry looked from one to the other. "What's wrong? Is she going to be OK? Help her!"

Madam Pomfrey turned to Professor McGonagall. "Take Harry away and calm him down, please. Severus, I will need a potion brewed immediately."

Severus nodded brusquely. "I know. I'll go now. It will be ready by early tomorrow morning."

"Hopefully since he was nowhere near full strength himself, this will not be as serious as it seems at this moment."

Professor Snape hurried out of the large hospital wing, straight into McGonagall who was attempting to soothe Harry. He ignored the 17-year-old's tantrum and moved swiftly to the dungeons. "There is nothing you can do for her except wait, Harry. You must understand that."

"No, I can't. There's got to be something I can do."

"There is nothing. I know that it is hard for you to hear that, but you have to accept it, Harry. We are going to your common room, Harry, where you will go to sleep. Tomorrow morning you may get up and see your friend first thing. Until then, you will not help her by standing here and arguing. You must go and reassure Hermione's friends that she will be alright. And she will be alright, Harry, I promise you that. Madam Pomfrey is an esteemed medi-witch, and Snape a master of potions. Come on now." She was well aware that it would be better for him to be among friends than to let him sit and brood on his own.

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Harry was besieged with questions as soon as he stepped into the common room, but McGonagall waved them off. "Please, give Harry some space." She pushed him over to where Ron, Ginny and Neville were sitting, features wrought with worry. When the students transferred their attention to McGonagall she put her hands up to silence them, then spoke. "Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Crabbe will all be fine after they have had time to recuperate. Still, I ask that for now you do not go down to the hospital wing as they all need to rest. There really is no need to worry." She ignored all further questions and made her way over to the small group that were Hermione's closest friends.

"Professor, what's really wrong with her? We won't sleep tonight unless we know."

Professor McGonagall regarded Ginny's solemn expression thoughtfully then nodded. "OK, you're all mature students, and I appreciate your concerns. Miss Granger really will be fine as soon as she has had the potion that Professor Snape is making up for her. The Incendus curse is not quite dark magic, but it's close to it. It works very slowly, which is why we're don't have concerns about Hermione's health failing. It takes more than a week to actually kill the victim." The four friends watched her with alarm. It seemed none of them had actually considered the possibility of Hermione dying. McGonagall noticed this and put her hand out to calm them. "Really, that's a god thing. It means there is time for Hermione to recover fully."

When McGonagall paused for them to ask questions, Ginny spoke again. "But what does it actually do? I mean, what's happening to Hermione right now? Is it hurting her?"

"The Incendus curse slowly but surely speeds up the heart-rate. There is some discomfort, but the victim is usually unconscious before they feel too much pain." The professor was telling them the facts as if she were giving a lecture, in the hope of distancing them from the situation. "Ultimately the patient dies from something akin to a heart-attack, when the heart-rate is faster than the body can cope with. The potion that Professor Snape is working on will restore her body to normal, but it takes time to make. It will be ready, though, by tomorrow, and I promise you that Hermione will be as good as ever and back to classes by next week." She smiled reassuringly as she stood up to leave.

"Professor." She paused and turned back to the students, and nodded for Harry to continue. "Why did she – I mean, that scream…" Even Neville and Ginny, who hadn't been present, looked unnerved at the thought of that sound, and Harry shuddered again.

The woman sighed as if she had wanted to avoid giving them this information. "It –" she hesitated again. "A by-product of the curse is the feeling that the skin is on fire. It's caused by the sudden increase in blood pumping around the body, and does generally make the victim scream. It is believed to be the sudden shock that causes the scream, though, and does not necessarily mean that Hermione felt a lot of pain." She paused, then studied each face in turn. "I trust you not to tell your classmates about the curse. We are attempting to avoid upsetting people unnecessarily."

She made her way to the portrait hole without saying anything further, and glanced over her shoulder at the friends before leaving. Harry had his arms around Ginny, who was resting her head on his chest. Neville was running his hands through his hair and over his face compulsively. And Ron, worryingly, hadn't moved. He was staring into the fire, unblinking, as if he hadn't noticed anyone around him. Professor McGonagall sighed as she left the common room, hoping that she had done the right thing.

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Snape proceeded directly from the hospital wing to the dungeons and began gathering ingredients. He knew that the girl would be at no true risk once she had the potion, but that did not slow him down. With a point of his wand he lit the fire underneath the nearest cauldron, and flicked through a book until he found the right potion. Although certain of his own skills, he knew it could be life-threatening if he made any mistakes. He muttered to himself as he worked swiftly, occasionally checking in the book for confirmation.

Three difficult hours later the first part of the potion had been almost completed. It would be a long night, he was prepared for that. What he wasn't prepared for was a knock on his door at 11 pm. "Enter." He looked up and was not surprised to see Harry standing in front of him. "Potter." He spat the word out. "What on earth do you want?"

"Sir, I can't sleep, and --"

"And what? Looking for some sleeping potion, are you? I'm afraid I'm a little busy saving your little friend Miss Granger at the moment."

"I know, sir. Professor McGonagall told us about the potion. I want to help."

"You," he sneered, "would probably ruin it all. Want to see a dead little girl, do you?"

To his credit, Harry didn't respond to the jibe. He took a deep breath and continued putting his case. "Sir, I can't sleep knowing that Hermione is in danger. And I was almost top in potions in my OWLs. I went to the library and found out about this potion. 'It is always easier and quicker when brewed by more than one person,'" he quoted triumphantly, knowing that Snape couldn't argue with him there.

The professor glowered a little then appeared to relent. "Fine. The book is on my desk. This first section just needs finishing off, which even your small mind should be able to manage. I will get on with the second, which is the most complex. When you are finished you may prepare the ingredients for the third and final part of the potion. Do not speak unless absolutely necessary. And remember, you get this wrong, your friend may die." There was a pause. "Just to motivate you, Potter." Relieved, Harry took the opportunity to do something constructive and didn't allow himself to be put off by Snape's snide comments.

Minutes changed to hours, and Harry and Snape worked side by side in a way James and Lily Potter would never have believed possible. It was just gone three am, and they were about to mix the three potions that they had made. According to Snape it was important that they were mixed in exactly the right proportions, and he wouldn't entrust the task to Harry.

Conversation had been kept to a minimum with no small talk, of course, yet Harry couldn't help feeling a little softer towards Snape. He could have sworn that the potions master was a little concerned about Hermione's well-being himself. Harry was not to know that Snape was showing a side of himself rarely seen – it was true that Snape had barely a compassionate bone in his body, but he would not allow his dislike of any student to disrupt his work to save them. The students at Hogwarts had not seen this since the incident with the basilisk, four years ago. "Don't daydream, Potter, or we'll never get this done. I need you to stir as I pour these elements in." Harry snapped back to the situation at hand, and began stirring the potion diligently.

As the last section was poured in it turned a foul green colour and began to smell. Snape glanced at it and then noted Harry's reaction. "Yes, well not everything in life can be puppy-dogs and roses, Potter. Deal with the smell." He got a flask and poured in some of the vile potion. "Come along. If you want to feed this to your precious Miss Granger, we may as well get it done sooner rather than later." He did, however, take a vial of pink liquid down from the shelf before they left and put a few drops into the flask. Harry noticed with a small smile that the potion now smelt nowhere near as unpleasant.