Hogwarts was in an uproar the day after Harry dreamt that Sirius was captured. The golden trio went down to the Great Hall a bit later than usual; Ron woke up a bit late due to how late they were able to sleep the night before. They arrived when the owls were already done delivering the mail and the day's issue of the Daily Prophet.
The moment the three of them arrived at the Great Hall, majority of the student's eyes were on them. They took their seat at the usual spot, Neville was already there holding a newspaper.
"I think you should read this." Neville said as he handed the paper to Harry.
Harry scrunched his brows as he took the paper from Neville, "What happened?"
Neville didn't bother to answer, he just pointed at the headline: HE WHO MUST NOT BE NAMED RETURNS. Harry quickly devoured the article, the more he read, the more he felt overwhelmed.
Ministry of Magic – Last night, the Ministry of Magic was infiltrated by none other than the He Who Must Not Be Named himself along with a number of his loyal Death Eaters. It is not clear yet as to what they were after, but it is quite clear now that the rumours regarding the return of the darkest wizard of all time was true and that the Ministry was covering it up.
Due to valuable information coming from a reliable source, the Department of Magical Law Enforcement (DMLE) along with Hogwarts Head Master Albus Dumbledore were able to mobilize before You Know Who and the Death Eaters managed to get what they were after. A duel ensued between the Aurors and the Death Eaters. Rodolphus Lestrange, a death eater who had just recently escaped Azkaban was killed in the fight by Auros Kingsley Shacklebolt. Two more Death Eaters, Peter Pettigrew and Lucius Malfoy were captured after being stunned by Auror Nymphadora Tonks. The two have now been taken into custody for further investigation.
A duel also broke out between You Know Who and Albus Dumbledore as the former was on his way to escape the Ministry, despite being overpowered by Hogwarts' current Headmaster, You Know Who as able to escape due to the assistance of Bellatrix Lestrange.
It is now unclear as to why the Ministry has kept its citizens in the dark of You Know Who's return. Minister Cornelius Fudge has yet to release a statement regarding the incident.
Harry's eyes were wide as he put down the newspaper, he didn't know what to think or feel. The only thing that he was sure was that if the three of them had went straight to the Ministry last night, they were heading straight into a trap.
He handed the paper to Ron and Hermione who read it together. The moment Hermione finished reading; she quickly turned her gaze toward the Slytherin table. Harry was sure that she was looking for Syrine Lestrange.
Harry also turned his attention towards the Slytherin table, he noticed that both Draco Malfoy and Syrine Lestrange were not there. He didn't know if they were avoiding to be seen or public or if they were still unaware of what happened.
Harry looked at Ron and Hermione and saw that they had pensieve expression on their faces, "What's wrong?"
Hermione smiled at him, "Now everybody knows that you've been telling the truth."
Harry smiled back, "I don't know exactly what happened last night, but I think that 'reliable source' that the paper mentioned was Sirius."
"I'm just glad that we didn't go there. I don't think I'm quite ready yet to duel with a death eater yet." Ron added as he started to eat breakfast.
Harry just nodded, deep inside he agreed. They weren't ready for that yet.
As Harry was about to start his breakfast, Draco Malfoy suddenly arrived sprinting towards the staff table. He had frantic expression on his face, he hadn't even changed into his school robes yet. He ran to the Professor Snape the moment he saw him.
Harry had no idea what the blonde Slytherin told their Head of House, but as soon as he was finished, Snape quickly stood up and left the Great Hall with Malfoy.
"Harry," Hermione called. "I need to borrow your cloak."
Harry stared at Hermione a few moments before he finally nodded, he had a feeling that the incident they just witnessed was related to the fact that Syrine Lestrange was yet to be seen.
Hermione stood up without taking a single bite from her breakfast, Ron looked up from his plate and eyed her curiously, "Where are you going? You haven't eaten yet."
"I forgot one of my books. I need to get it before class begins." Hermione answered quickly before she left the Great Hall.
"She didn't actually forget her book, did she?" Ron asked as he finished drinking a cup of pumpkin juice.
"Not really." Harry answered with a smile.
Ron just shrugged and Harry just wondered when Ron became too perceptive.
*HP*
Under the protection of Harry's invisibility cloak, Hermione waited outside the Slytherin dungeons for Professor Snape to leave. She had the Marauder's Map with her and she saw that the Potions professor was still insidet together with Malfoy and Syrine.
Hermione waited there patiently before the Professor finally left the dungeons, behind him was a worried looking Draco. Syrine was also there, but she was unconscious and was being levitated by Snape.
"You can go to your classes now, Mr. Malfoy." Snape ordered his charge.
Draco frowned, "With all due to respect, Sir. But, I need know that Sy is okay, so I'll be going with you to the hospital wing."
Snape frowned, "Fine. Let's go then."
Professor Snape and Draco proceeded to walk towards the hospital wing, Syrine's unconscious body floated behind them.
"Have you had word from your mother?" Snape asked the blonde Slytherin.
Draco shook his head, "I'd rather not talk about that yet, Sir."
Snape looked at him and nodded, they remained quiet until they reached their destination. Hermione was still trailing them from behind.
Upon seeing the unconscious Slytherin, Madam Pomfrey quickly lowered her on to one of the beds and cast a series of diagnostic spells.
"What happened, Severus?" Madam Pomfrey asked. "How long has she been like this?"
Snape signalled Draco to answer the mediwitch.
"I'm not exactly sure, Madam Pomfrey. I started to get worried this morning when it was already a bit late and Sy hadn't gone down yet. I asked Pansy to check on her and she told me that she couldn't wake her up. That was when I quickly called Professor Snape since I couldn't go inside the girl's dorms." Draco answered.
The mediwitch looked worried, "I checked her pulse, it's slower than normal." She pointed her wand at Syrine and muttered a spell, a jet of white light erupted from it and struck the Slytherin's chest but she remained unconscious.
"Severus, is it really okay for Mr. Malfoy to stay here?" Madam Pomfrey asked as she continued to assess her patient.
"Yes, Poppy. You may proceed." Severus replied.
Madam Pomfrey nodded. She did a series of complicated wand movements and spells again, the movements were already familiar to Hermione. It was the spell used to see the person's magical core. After the mediwitch finished, a small ball of light erupted from Syrine's chest and floated just a few inches above her.
Hermione stayed quiet as the mediwitch started to inspect Syrine's magical core. She made sure to get closer so that she could fully hear what they were talking about.
"What is that?" Draco asked, eyeing the ball of light.
"That is Ms. Lestrange's magical core. I know that this is your first time seeing it, but your Head of House and I have seen it before." Madam Pomfrey explained.
"I feel like it's more unstable than before." Snape observed as he inspected the ball.
Madam Pomfrey nodded, "The black mist that has been swirling inside of it has lessened. Unfortunately..."
"What is it?" Draco asked worriedly.
Madam Pomfrey cast a few more spells and sighed, "It's fractured. Some cracks have appeared and it seems as if a lot of her magical essence has already leaked out."
"Can you fix it?" Snape asked.
"I don't understand what's happening." Draco said weakly, "Is Sy going to be alright?"
Madam Pomfrey's expression wasn't optimistic, "As a mediwitch, I cannot lie about my patient's condition." She looked at Severus first, the Professor signalled her to continue. "I don't know what caused this fracture but I know that the cracks are recent. If it's not fixed as soon as possible, Ms. Lestrange will die soon."
"DIE?!" Draco shouted, "That can't happen. If you can't help her, then I'm taking her to St. Mungo's right now!"
Severus stared at his student severely, he had no idea that the blonde Slytherin could be that passionate. "Mr. Malfoy, I would appreciate it if you didn't forget who you're talking to."
The expression on Draco's face remained the same, "I'm sorry professor, but I stick by what I said."
"Calm down, Mr. Malfoy." Madam Pomfrey said. "I said that if it's not fixed as soon as possible. I didn't say that I couldn't fix it."
Draco looked quite embarrassed, "I apologize, Madam Pomfrey. I'm just worried, Sy is..."
"I know she's important to you." Madam Pomfrey said to Draco with a smile on her face. "I'll do my best to help her."
"Is there anything you need?" Snape asked.
"In order to fix this, I need a person with a similar magical signature to her. Since Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Lestrange are cousins, I'm pretty sure that you're compatible with her. Witches and wizards who are blood related have very similar cores." Madam Pomfrey explained.
Draco went paler than usual, "What would happen if the cores aren't compatible? And how will it be done?"
"The process is simple enough as it is. The spell is complicated but it's nothing that I can't do. I just use some of your magical essence to seal the cracks on Ms. Lestrange's core. Don't worry about yours not being compatible with her, both of your mothers are Blacks. That alone is proof enough that you have compatible magical signatures." Madam Pomfrey answered.
"But, what would happen if it's not compatible?" Snape asked as he looked at Draco, "Just a hypothetical question."
The mediwitch thought deeply for a moment before she replied, "The cracks will get worse. It may cause the patient's condition to decline faster."
"How long can you keep her condition stable enough before things turn for the worst?" Snape asked.
"I can stabilize her for at least a day, but I need to repair it soon. The longer we wait, the harder it will be to fix."
"Is there anyone else who can provide the compatible magical signature?" Snape inqured, he had a hunch that Draco was withholding information. He needed to find out what his charge was hiding first.
"I would prefer a sibling or a parent. But I understand that Ms. Lestrange is an only child, and her parents..."
Snape nodded in understanding, there was no way for them to get Bellatrix Lestrange inside the school. Rodolphus was also out of the question, since he was already dead.
"I'll be back in a few hours, Poppy. I need to talk with Mr. Malfoy first since we still have to inform his mother of this incident. Please take care of Ms. Lestrange while I'm gone." Snape directed the mediwitch.
The mediwitch nodded, Severus Snape left the hospital wing together with Draco. The blonde Slytherin didn't want to leave, but one look from his Head of House told him that he had no choice in the matter.
Hermione waited until she was sure that the coast was clear, once she concluded that nobody else was going to arrive, she took off the invisibility cloak. Madam Pomfrey almost had a mini heart attack when Hermione suddenly appeared out of thin air.
"Ms. Granger, what in Merlin's name are you doing here? How did you even get here?!" The mediwitch exclaimed as she clutched her chest.
"I'm sorry for scaring you, Madam Pomfrey. And I also apologize for eavesdropping on your conversation with Professor Snape a while ago." Hermione said with a determined expression on your face.
"You should leave now, Ms. Granger. Classes have already started for the day." The mediwitch advised, she wasn't thrilled that a student spied on her.
"I'm afraid I can't do that yet. I can help you." Hermione said.
"Help me with what dear?"
"I can help you make sure that Syrine doesn't die anytime soon."
Madam Pomfrey smiled, she was touched that Hermione wanted to help. "And how do you plan to do that, Ms. Granger?"
"If I understand the situation correctly, you need someone with a similar magical signature, right?" Hermione asked, she already knew the answer but she wanted to be sure.
"Yes, but I don't understand on how you can be of assistance Ms. Granger." Madam Pomfrey said sadly. The only person in the school who could help her was Mr. Malfoy.
"But I can." Hermione assured the mediwitch.
"And how can you?"
"She's my sister."
A/N: The End. Lol. Please leave a review, pleaseeee. If you see a few typos here and there, I apologize for that. It's hard to edit when all these ideas are filling my brain. Once I finish the entire story, I'll be sure to fix it.
