"Then what's going on? If she's not dying , what's happening to our girl?"
And Charlie just smiled once more.
"She's not dying Poppy...she's aging."
"Aging? You're going to have to give me more than that Charles, my patients only have two legs...well...most of the time anyway, so I'm afraid I still don't follow you"
Charlie grinned once more, not at all perturbed and set about cancelling the cooling charms on Hermione, despite Minerva's indignant squawk at the action.
"Chimaera's run hot, hotter than animagi even. She's not running a fever, her body's just trying to regulate to it's new normal. It seems that the fact Hermione is a lioness animagus, has somehow allowed the chimaera's blood that seeped into her system to become a part of it. Her body couldn't destroy it, so it was a case of be destroyed by it or learn to live with it. Instead of rejecting it and risk being further damaged by it, the leonine aspect in her blood has somehow embraced it and she's gaining traits from the chimaera, though the Chimaera won't settle with being dormant in her blood like the animagus is, which is why some of these aspects are bleeding over into her waking life. I've heard of a few people who supposedly have Animagus forms that are of mythical beasts, though the only one I've known was a Finnish banker who was a Niffler! They are momentously rare, but in this case it's almost like she's gained...a hint of chimaera , for lack of a better term?"
Severus brushed her hair out of her face gently, she certainly felt warm to the touch, though she wasn't sweating or feverish. It was like she'd simply walked in out of the sun. Or was made of sunlight herself.
"Say you're right, it looks like you may well be...but why has this taken so long to happen? Why now ?" Minerva asked. "And why is she aging of all things? "
There was an indecipherable look between Charlie and Severus before Charlie began to speak once more , as Severus added a second nutrient IV for Hermione.
"So... not a lot of research is done into Chimaeras. Same as dragons. Same as any XXXXX dangerous beast really, people usually want to know how to kill them, or what their parts are useful for and that's it...No Offence". The last was directed at the potions master , who waved off his statement as inconsequential.
"But not a lot of research is done into the LIVES of these animals, mainly just their deaths. However , I was fortunate enough to study with a Magizoologist by the name of Scamander, who you might recognise"
There were nods all round. Everyone had heard of the Scamanders. Newt of course being the most famous, and his grandson Rolf who was currently making waves in the american magical community.
"So we all know the 'basics' on Chimaeras right? Resistant to magic, aggressive to a fault , wouldn't want to be caught in the path of one etc etc."
Nods from the witches all round and raised eyebrow from Severus had Charlie continuing with his description.
"But how many of you knew that Chimaeras mate for life? They form something of a soul bond with their partner, and will never take another if their original partner dies. A mated Chimaera , or one with young won't attack unprovoked. However most Chimaera attacks are from unattached individuals or one that's lost it's mate. When one part of a pair dies, the other is inconsolable. They'll fight and attack anything until something eventually kills them. Many believe that's what they're looking for and it's why they're so ferocious. They WANT a fight to the death in that scenario. They're also massively maternal. Like these things will take on a Dragon when it comes to protecting their young. Females will always take on abandoned chimaera cubs when their parents are dead or lost, and it's not just the females. Hell even bonded males have been known to frequently bring stray cubs home back to their nest and to their females, but the females...damn... they are scary good mommas. They've even been seen to take on youngsters of almost all other similar felinesque species like Nundus, Metagots, there was even a rumour of one caring for a Zouwu, can you imagine?! But I digress, anyway. Chimaera's are very different from any other species, they seem to have a form of ancient magic that is all their own, and this is where we come to Hermione. Chimaera's don't age or mature, fully mature into adulthood that is for decades...or until they are triggered to do so"
"Triggered? Triggered how?" Poppy asked in curiosity as she assisted Severus in hanging more nutrition for Hermione's feeding tube, having seen already that her vital signs were improving slightly.
"Well , they go through an infancy like any other animal and eventually become well... teenagers I suppose for a lack of a better term, I would say young adults but this stage of a chimaera's life can last quite literally decades until they become fully mature around 60 years or so , so they're not really young by that point..."
"Charlie" Minerva said sharply, well aware of the Weasley boy's ability to ramble endlessly when it came to a topic that interested him.
"Sorry Professor. So where was I? Right triggers, yes. So for a 'Teenage' or Young Adult chimaera to become a mature adult takes decades, they have a lifespan similar to witches and wizards in that regard and regularly reach up to and over 150 years old... But this is where it gets interesting."
He smiled and paused for what could only be dramatic effect and it made Severus roll his eyes and scoff.
"Let's talk hypothetically for a moment? Say you've got a big mature female chimaera, she's 70 years old and she's in the prime of her life. Along comes a young male , he's 20 years old and the instant they cross paths, they know they're meant to be together. The younger male Chimaera is triggered by the presence of his mate, to go into something called the quickening. The Chimaera's body will rapidly age, until it's at the 'right' age, then there you have it...happily bonded chimaeras. But the quickening doesn't come without a price. During this stage the body needs a huge amount of energy to go through the process as it's extremely taxing to age so rapidly and In the wild, the Chimaera's new mate would go into a sort of blood lust and hunt and provide an endless supply of food for the one going through the quickening. Again , this is a point when Chimaera's are most dangerous as they will be hunting non stop on whatever they think they can take down to provide food for their mate"
Severus had silently summoned a number of nutrient potions with a nonverbal accio, unknown to the others in the room and when they sailed into his palm it made both the witches jump, which caused him to smirk slightly in amusement and Minerva indignantly slapped him upside the head which made Charlie chuckle and Severus scowl, though it ended with a smirk as he found only amusement and no offence in Minerva's treatment.
"But get this, remember how I said Chimaera's are wickedly maternal? Female's have also been known to go through this quickening not only when their mate appears, but when confronted with abandoned or orphaned young. The drive to protect young has been enough to trigger the quickening before. This is when lone female Chimaeras are most dangerous as if they are alone and unbonded, they will hunt voraciously for the energy to change as they don't have assistance like they would from a mate."
Taking a deep breath, Charlie continued.
"I think this is what's happening to Hermione. I've not spent as much time with her as my brothers, but from the time I did get to spend with her, I know she's crazy smart, hella protective and won't take any bullshit from anyone." He looked Severus up and down. "No offence mate, but I can't think of another witch who would put up with your shit and give it back in spades, let alone one who could be as scary smart as you either. The two of you getting...friendly... as innocent as it has been, could've been enough for the Chimaera to consider you a potential mate. It's not the act but the intention to act if you get my drift ? If the thoughts were there on her part, it could be enough. Perhaps that alone would not have been enough to trigger her, I don't know how you see each other in that regard or how she really feels about you, that's your business not mine, but then there's these... Chicks?"
He looked to Severus for assistance but it was Poppy who corrected him with a dry chuckle. "Ducklings"
"Right these ducklings. Children who she saved and now they see her as this big heroine, and among them this boy she rescued, who's come from a bad background, who's been rejected by his parents, who for all wants and purposes is abandoned, who seeks Hermione out as a maternal figure and then to top it off, you Severus, the potential mate, you go and become his legal guardian. I think that was the final nail on the coffin. Because when you put it all together, as far as Mama Chimaera's concerned... Her mate just brought an abandoned cub back to the nest."