Chapter 30: Poisoned Mind
March 17th
Elara blinked heavily, rubbing her eyes and trying to make sense of the volumes she was taking notes from. It was close to eight in the evening and she had skipped supper to go to the library. She was thankful that she had thought to ask Professor Snape to give her permission to look in the restricted section. He had given her a note to give to Madam Pince explaining that she was doing extra research for him and she was to be granted access to the restricted section of the library as it was necessary for the project he had assigned her.
Madam Pince read the letter a few times, pursed her lips as she glanced at Elara, looking at her from head to toe, but she said nothing as she gave her access and explained that she could not leave with the books. That any research she had to do with them was to be conducted in the library and the books returned to the shelves.
That was fine with Elara. She didn't want anyone questioning her choices with titles like "Discovering the Dark Arts" and "Controlling Magical Cores: A Guide to Becoming a Stronger Wizard". It was enough that since she had broken up with Harry, everyone was back to treating her as if they were terrified to be around her. All she needed was someone to see her taking notes on how to control Dark Magic.
So far, the books had proven to be relatively useless. She had taken a few notes on the mind altering differences that having a prolonged connection to Dark Magic could do, read page after page of conflicting ideals of magical core theory and stared at a few strange diagrams about siphoning magic from another being- diagrams that seemed as if they were drawn by a first year as a joke to their friends.
This simply wouldn't do.
The only book in her stack that piqued her curiosity was an ancient book about the idea of bloodletting to rid a Dark Wizard of their Dark Magic. The only problem was a good majority of the book was still in Runes and hadn't been deciphered. Judging by the bit she could quickly decipher, it seemed close to what had happened when her arm had suddenly begun to split open in the room of requirement. She decided she would take this book back to Draco and have him help her decipher the Runes.
As the hour closed and nine o'clock approached, she was feeling peckish from skipping supper and slipped the book into her bag, returning all others to the shelf. She would make sure to return the book as soon as possible, but so far it was the only thing that seemed to have any similarity with what she was experiencing, and she needed to look further into it.
She exited the Library and took the stairs to the Room of Requirement, hoping that Draco would have had the sense to grab some food for her. As she began down the corridor of the sixth floor, she watched as Harry walked toward her with Ron stumbling behind him in tow.
Ron looked drunk. He was nearly tripping over his feet and was giggling and singing. Harry seemed thoroughly annoyed.
"Too much Firewhiskey?" Elara called out, a smirk tugging at her lips.
"No." Harry said. "Ron is-
"Elara?" Ron asked, his voice singsong and his eyes vacant. "Does Elara know where she is?"
"Where who is?" She asked, completely confused.
"Romilda! Harry's taking me to see her." His smile was wide, and he looked like he was going to start drooling soon.
"Romilda?" Elara asked, looking between Ron and Harry. "Wasn't she that dark haired tart that-
"Hey!" Ron rounded on Elara. "Romilda is not a tart!"
Suddenly the pieces clicked together in Elara's head as she remembered Harry mentioning that he thought the chocolates might be laced with something, but he felt rude to throw them out.
She chuckled as Ron danced over to a window and shoved Harry off him as he stared into the moonlight. "Never threw away those chocolates then?" She whispered.
Harry shook his head. "I guess I forgot about them." He gave Ron another tug, which was met by a strong shove. "Oi! What'd you do that for?!"
"The moon is beautiful. It reminds me of her!"
"Harry, you know the potency can strengthen over time… If it's not consumed within a certain time frame, it just keeps getting stronger." Elara said, walking toward the window Ron had claimed. "Where are you taking him?"
Harry pointed down the hall and Elara nodded. Slughorn's quarters were that way.
"Ron, darling…" She said, lightly placing a hand between his shoulders. He turned to look at her, his smile so wide Elara thought his face may split. "If you want to see Romilda, you need to keep on with Harry, yeah?" She tried to keep her voice soft and pleasant as she spoke.
He gave a nod. "Won't you come with us? I'm so nervous to meet her. If you came, it would be like we're doubles!"
She looked at Harry. He sighed and then shrugged. "If it gets him to move, then fine."
"Of course, I'll come along Ron. That's a fabulous idea."
She listened with an amused smile as Ron talked on and on about the things he liked about Romilda Vane, a girl she was positive he had never paid any attention to before now. She could feel Harry's aggravation as it took them more than twenty minutes just to get down the corridor. But he was looking at her and exchanging a few words with her. She couldn't help but let her heart flutter a bit when he laughed as Ron spun in so many circles, he got dizzy and fell over.
"You're lucky it's Ron who ate this, and not you." She said. "I can't imagine Ron having the patience to deal with you acting like this."
He chuckled. "Probably not. I'm sure he'd just get you or Hermione and-
He stopped talking as he realized what he said, his cheeks flushed a bit and jogged ahead, grabbing Ron before he tumbled down a flight of stairs.
"Ron, come this way. I need to make a stop before we go see Romilda!" Elara called.
Ron pouted and fought against Harry who was now dragging him to Slughorn's office door.
"I need to see her now!" he whined.
"Yes, I know. But it's very important I talk to Slughorn before we go! It'll take just a moment. We'll pop in and be out in no time!" She assured him, plastering a smile to her face as she knocked on the heavy door.
Harry finally dragged Ron to her side, and they waited a minute before Slughorn answered the door.
"Oh. Harry! I'm sorry but I'm terribly busy and I haven't-
"Professor Slughorn." Elara greeted him, nearly pushing past him to enter the room. Harry looked uneasy but grabbed Ron and shoved his way through behind her.
"As I said, Ms. Malfoy, I'm sorry but I'm busy at the moment and-
"I understand, Professor." She said. She lowered her voice, looking over her shoulder at Ron. "We believe Ron has ingested something."
"Amortentia, by the looks of it." Harry said, joining the conversation after placing Ron on the sofa.
"I'd think between the two of you, you could whip something up for this in no time!" Slughorn said, looking slightly put off.
Elara could feel his apprehension and suspicion, which seemed to be directed at Harry. Odd. She thought.
"Yes sir, well I thought it could use a more… Experienced touch." Harry reasoned.
As if on cue, Ron began complaining about the wait to see Romilda Vane and fell backward from the sofa, toppling to the floor.
"Ah yes, well… Perhaps you were right. I can make an antidote quickly, shouldn't be but a few minutes." Slughorn said, scurrying over to a cabinet and opening the door.
"Why is he so suspicious of you?" Elara whispered to Harry as they stood across the room, keeping an eye on Ron and watching Slughorn work.
"Long story." Harry said. "What were you doing up here, anyway?"
"I was heading up to the Astronomy Tower to study a bit. It's a clear night, I thought I could use the air and look at the stars." She lied.
Something flashed in Harry's eyes as he looked at her. Recognition. She looked at Harry for a long tick. He was nervous and flustered but he was also curious. She groaned inwardly, curiosity, recognition… She clearly had not gotten any better at memory manipulation. He must have remembered that night, that conversation.
"You know, it was the strangest thing…" He began, talking so softly she could barely hear him. "But I had a dream about you the other night. It felt real. Like it was happening right then."
She closed her eyes for a moment and when she opened them, he was looking at her expectantly. "Very strange." She agreed.
He opened his mouth to say something more but Professor Slughorn returned with a glass that held a clear liquid and Elara blew out a tiny sigh of relief.
"Okay, Mister Wallamby-
"Weasley." Elara and Harry said in unison.
"Weasley, yes of course. Here you are, Mr. Weasley!" Slughorn said, trotting over to him and handing him the glass.
"What is it?" Ron asked, accepting it and looking around.
"Just a tonic for the nerves." Slughorn said, a bright smile painted on his face.
"We've already had ours." Elara said. "While you were trying to fix your hair in the window."
Harry chuckled and they watched as Ron nodded and took a few sips. Within seconds his vacant expression and happy grin began to fade, and his mouth turned down into a frown.
"What's this then?" He asked, looking around.
Harry and Elara both laughed and Slughorn began to move around the room again.
"Love potion, mate." Harry said. "You ate those chocolates Romilda Vane gave me."
"I feel terrible." Ron said. "Ellie? What are you doing here?"
"She got you to come with me. You punched me!" Harry laughed.
Elara's stomach fluttered at the sound and she quickly schooled her face, willing herself to not blush.
"Yes, you just need a pick me up!" Slughorn said. "Let's see… I have butter beer… Or… I have this mead, I had meant to give it to Dumbledore but… Ah, that's alright. It'll be better suited here. Nothing like a good mead to chase away the pangs of heartache!"
Elara jumped slightly as the cork popped from the bottle and Slughorn conjured four large glasses, filling each with a bit of mead. Ellie sighed. It would take more than a glass of mead to chase away the heartache in this room.
They raised their glasses to each other and as Slughorn opened his mouth to give a small toast, Ron tossed back his glass in one gulp. Just as Elara put the rim to her lips, she felt Harry panic as he quickly crossed the room.
"Ron?" He asked.
Elara noticed it as well. Ron had frozen in the spot he stood. Suddenly, he dropped his glass. Elara flinched as the glass shattered on the floor and Ron hit the ground with a loud thud. Her eyes grew wide as Harry stared between her and Ron.
"Ron!" He said loudly, panic in his voice.
Ron's limbs began violently twitching as he writhed on the floor. His head thrown back as foamy spittle seeped from the corners of his mouth.
"Professor! Do something!" Harry called, looking around.
Elara moved to Ron, sliding next to Harry, her knees in the broken bits of glass. "What's happened?!" She said, pushing his hair from his face. She couldn't feel anything from him but fear and confusion.
"I don't understand!" Slughorn repeated over and over.
"Harry! We have to do something!" Elara said, her voice urgent as Ron's eyes rolled into his head and his face began to turn blue. She could see the veins bulging from his throat as it continued to close.
Harry jumped up and raced across the room to the cabinet that Slughorn had opened moments before. She could hear him rifling through the drawers.
"Harry! Quickly!" She said. "Quickly!"
Ron was dying. She could feel his life draining from him as the seconds passed. His gasping turned into sputtering as his body thrashed as he choked on his foaming spit. Harry nearly dove next them, a box in his hands.
"Pry his mouth open!" Harry said.
Elara grabbed his jaw and pulled it down. He was clenching his teeth so hard she could barely make a space in his mouth. She inserted her fingertips into his mouth, pushing down on his mandible and forcing his mouth to open further. Harry fumbled with box and pulled out a small kidney like stone, shoving it into Ron's mouth.
"He's got to swallow it!" Harry said.
Elara forced his mouth shut and held his nose closed, forcing him to swallow. When she felt his throat relax a bit, she let go of his face, leaning back on her knees to watch.
"Come on…" Harry said. "Come on Ron! Breathe!"
Elara's eyes were wild with fear as she turned to Harry, placing a hand on his shoulder. Just as she opened her mouth, Ron began choking, gasping for air and turning on his side.
Harry and Elara both breathed a sigh of relief, looking up to the ceiling. Harry moved first, going to Ron's side as his body went limp.
"I've just killed a student." Slughorn whimpered, a look of complete disbelief on his face as he stared at the bottle of mead still clutched in his right hand.
"He's alive." Elara said. "He's alive. We need to get him to the Infirmary."
"Professor, we should probably inform Dumbledore." Harry said, looking over his shoulder. "Will you help me get him to the hospital wing?"
Elara nodded. "Yeah, of course."
Elara cast a body binding curse before levitating Ron. She stood, wincing as she felt the blood from her knees trickle down her stockings. Harry led the way, guiding Ron carefully as they walked swiftly to the first floor.
"What do you think that was?" Harry asked. "You didn't drink it, did you?"
"No. I was about to take a sip, but I felt… I felt you panic. I felt the room shift and I realized there was something wrong with Ron."
"You could feel him dying?" Harry asked.
She nodded and then realized he couldn't see her from his position in front of them. "Yeah. It's like everything he ever felt was slowly draining from his body. It was terrifying."
"He's alive now though?"
"Yes." She said. "I can feel him now. It seems like he's in pain. But, he's alive. What'd you put in his mouth back there?"
"A bezoar." Harry said. "You missed potions last week when we went over antidotes to poisons and I used it."
"That clever prince at it again?" She chuckled. "Good thinking, Harry."
He looked over his shoulder at her and gave a small smile. "Thanks."
Uncomfortable. That was the only word to describe what Elara was feeling as she sat outside the Hospital Wing, several hours later. Harry was sitting across from her and he seemed to have a flurry of emotions pulsing through him. They had told Dumbledore and Madam Pomfrey what happened in excruciating detail several times. Dumbledore had sent for Ron's parents, who were now in the room with him, and they had also told a few other family members to come to the castle.
Elara still hadn't removed the glass from her knees, and she wasn't sure if she could leave, or if she should stay. Finally, she had decided to stay and took her place on the bench across from Harry to wait it out until she could go in and check on Ron. They had been friends, after all.
She was reminded of her first trip to Hogsmeade, when she had given the necklace to Katie Bell and she sat in the hall outside of McGonagall's office for hours. Only this time, she had didn't know what had happened and no one was crying next to her.
She pulled her wand from the pocket of her robe and pointed it to her stockings. Harry looked at her, an eyebrow raised as he watched. She whispered "Diffindo" and sighed as the cool air hit the small gashes in her knees.
"What happened?" Harry asked.
"I kneeled in the glass that shattered when Ron dropped it." She said. "I wasn't thinking, I just slid into it."
She winced as she pulled a rather large splinter of glass from her skin below her knee. The blood trickled down her shin, soaking into her stockings.
Harry moved, kneeling before her. "Here, let me help." He said.
"No." She said. "I can manage."
"Please." He said, moving his left hand to the back of her calf and looking closely at her knee. "It'll help me get my mind off Ron."
She nodded. "Okay, sure."
He slowly trailed his right hand over her knee, plucking the small shards of glass that were protruding out of her skin. She could hear them plink as they hit the stone floor. He maneuvered to her other knee, doing the same thing. She gripped the edge of the bench, clutching it tightly and wincing. When Harry pulled the last bit of glass from her knees, he placed his wand above each one, muttering Episkey over each laceration. He stayed crouched before her for a few minutes after he had finished, staring at his hands on her legs.
Her heart was thrumming in her chest, beating hard against her rib cage as he gently massaged her calf, seemingly absent minded. She thought to break the moment, to say something, but he seemed so lost in thought.
"Oi! What'd you do to our ickle Ronniekins, Potter?"
Harry quickly withdrew his hand from Elara and stood up. They both looked to the direction the voice came from and Elara saw Ron's older twin brothers, Fred and George, approaching.
They were both smiling as they hugged Harry. "All right?" One asked.
"Been better." Harry admitted. "What are you two doing here?"
"Well, we were in Hogsmeade this week-
"Looking to purchase the old Zonko's space-
"Dumbledore told mum what happened-
"Mum told Dad and he-
"Told us. So here we are!"
Elara smiled slightly at the dizzying conversation. She and Draco never finished each other's sentences like that. She imagined they would look silly doing it, but the two lanky, identical redheads in front of her made it seem charming.
"Girl Malfoy. What're you doing here?"
"Yeah, I thought you broke our Harry's heart?"
She could feel Harry's mood shift between annoyance and embarrassment.
"I ran into Harry and Ron just before…" She said, looking into her lap. "I was on my way to the Astronomy Tower and Ron was giving Harry a hard time."
Both twins sat on the bench across from her and Harry took the spot next to her, sitting closer to her than she thought he would. She could practically feel the heat coming from his body.
"Well go on, give us the run down." They said, in unison.
For what felt like the hundredth time that night, Harry and Elara told Fred and George what happened. Elara stayed quiet through most of it, only adding in small bits here and there. She was exhausted. She had hardly slept in days and it was getting into the early morning hours.
She stifled a yawn and leaned her back against the cool stone, blinking heavily. She listened to the twins chat with Harry about new products and the possibility of Ron being poisoned. As the time moved on, she could feel more emotions swirling around her, nearly suffocating her. She groaned. Her potion was wearing off. She reached down for her knapsack, thankful it had never left her back throughout all the commotion and pulled it into her lap. She caught a side glance from Harry but continued looking through her bag until she pulled out the bottle.
"Little early in the morning for spirits, innit?" One of the twins joked.
"It's a tonic for my headaches." She said, pulling the stop from the bottle and taking a few sips.
Harry turned his torso to look at her, full on. "Has it gotten worse?" He asked, worry in his tone.
She put the cap back on the bottle, slipping it back into the bag and waited a moment before answering. She sighed, when thirty seconds or so passed and she could feel the walls go up in her mind, as if blocking out all the extra emotion and noise. She was thankful to have her abilities back, but it was exhausting trying to control them constantly when they had strengthened so much. She was grateful for the reprieve the potion gave her.
"I'm fine." She said. "Really. They've gotten worse, but the tonic works. Its when it wears off that it's uncomfortable."
Harry nodded and turned his attention back to the twins, who were studying them with a strange look of mischief on their faces.
"Peculiar, isn't Georgie?"
"What's that Freddie?"
"The way these two act with each other." Fred said, pointing between Harry and Elara.
Elara arched an eyebrow at them. "And what do you mean by that?" she asked.
"Don't encourage them." Harry groaned, under his breath.
"Oh, just that you both seem rather fixed on one another-
"Even though you're 'not together'."
"Well you see," She began, fixing her face in a very unamused mask as she crossed her arms over her chest. "We've both just experienced something traumatic together. Generally, when two people witness a mutual friend almost die in their company, they tend to put away any ill harbored feelings they had in order to deal with the situation at hand."
"Ill harbored feelings, eh?" George said.
Harry eyed her momentarily and returned his gaze to his lap. She sighed in frustration, rolling her eyes.
"It's three in the morning and I don't have the patience to continue to play your head games. Say what you mean or say nothing at all." She said, haughtily.
"Oh. She's a feisty thing, isn't she?" Fred chuckled.
"No wonder Harry likes her." George agreed.
"Reminds me of mum with that tone though."
"Can you please shut up?" Harry asked, exasperated. He ran a hand through his hair and set his head back against the stone, closing his eyes.
"Ooh. Apparently, we're both a little testy!" They said in unison.
Elara yawned and crossed her legs over one another at the knee. She smoothed out her skirt and straightened her back. She opened her mouth to tell the twins exactly where they could shove it when the door to the infirmary opened and Madam Pomfrey poked her head out.
"Fred, George, you can come in. Harry, Elara stay out here a moment. Professor Dumbledore will be out soon to talk to you."
Fred and George stood and entered behind Madam Pomfrey and Harry sighed in relief. "They really grate my nerve sometimes."
Elara chuckled. "I don't know. They seem harmless."
Harry was quiet, still leaned back against the stone. Elara thought maybe he had fallen asleep until he began to whisper. "Do you have ill harbored feelings?" He asked. "Toward me, I mean."
She sighed. "No. I don't. Poor choice of words, I suppose."
Harry gave a slight nod.
"Do you?" She asked.
He kept quiet for several minutes before answering. "I don't know." He admitted.
Another hour passed in silence. Elara remained locked in her own thoughts; it wasn't until she felt the weight of Harry's head sag onto her shoulder that she pulled her mind from the vice grip her thoughts had on her. She craned her neck to look down at him. His mouth was slightly opened, his eyes moving rapidly beneath his closed lids. The nap was not a peaceful slumber. She gently pressed her fingers against his temple and sighed, pushing a content warmth into his mind.
It was the least she could do.
Her back end had gone numb by the time Dumbledore stepped out of the Infirmary. Her shoulder ached from the weight of Harry against her, but she sat still, allowing him the precious sleep he obviously needed.
"Harry…" She whispered, moving slightly to wake him.
Dumbledore put up a hand in protest, taking the spot on the other side of her. "Let's allow him a few more moments peace." He said. "I would like to speak to you, if you would agree, Elara."
"Of course, sir." She said. "But I've already explained everything I know to you. It all happened so fast…"
"I am more concerned, my dear, that the poisoned mead that Professor Slughorn had in his possession was intended to be given to me." His tone was light and conversational, which unnerved Elara. Even more so, that she couldn't read him. He was a completely blank slate. Even with the potion she had taken, she should be able to read something off of him, if she focused.
"I'm sorry Professor, but I'm not sure I follow." She admitted.
"I would like to know if you have any idea of the origins of this mead."
She turned slightly, careful to not disrupt Harry. "Sir?"
Dumbledore's blue eyes were sparkling. She could see years of wisdom and understanding behind them. He seemed to gaze into her, holding her eyes at his for a long moment. Finally, he began to rise from the bench, slowly standing to his full height. "Forgive me," He began. "Age has a way of reminding one that rest is more of a necessity than a luxury. Should you find yourself as old as I one day, I think you will find it to be true."
He turned to walk away and Elara careful untangled herself from Harry, helping him shift to the bench and walked swiftly to Dumbledore. "Sir?" She asked. "Sir!"
He turned, the same pleasant look on his face. "Yes?"
"Professor, I don't know who sent that mead." She said. "But…" She trailed off, her heart racing.
"Yes?" He urged.
Her eyes flickered to his hand, black and shriveled. Had it looked that bad all year? Was it only because she was standing so close to him that she realized how awful it looked? She felt her stomach twist, acid from it creeping into her throat. She swallowed, trying to push it down. "I believe the school is in danger." She whispered.
Her heart was pounding. What are you doing?! She thought. She began to take in sharp breaths, trying to remain calm. Seven words. She had just muttered the seven words that could seal her fate and have her slaughtered. Did it matter? Was she guaranteed immunity from that fate? The Dark Lord had clearly manipulated her, using her extremely unfortunate lack of foresight against her. Using her abilities against her. Threatening her with magic she didn't understand. Would he hold up his end? He had promised to reinstate her family's standing. To give her father back his place at the top, to keep her mother and brother alive. To make them powerful again. Yet, her father still sat in prison. Her brother still haunted the cabinet, obsessing over the task and terrified for his life. She had no idea how her mother was doing.
Had it even been him that made her abilities strengthen? She swore she could feel the Dark Magic coursing through her, could feel the Dark Lord's hold on her. But what if she was wrong?
"Hogwarts is in danger of many things, Ms. Malfoy." Dumbledore said. "You are not one of them."
With that, he turned and walked on. She watched as his form continued down the corridor until he disappeared into the castle's darkness, his words weighing heavy on her heart.
.
.
a/n: Hey all! Hope you enjoyed the chapter! I'm also glad you're happy with the quick updates! I've been writing like mad with being locked in my house form the whole pandemic business... I don't watch much TV, so I've just been writing like crazy.
****song for thoughts after this chapter was idontwannabeyouanymore by Billie Eilish****
So, the next chapter may be posted tomorrow, possibly the day after. fair warning, it is a very important chapter for Ms. Elara. So make sure you're following that way you don't miss it!
Please keep reviewing! Tell me what you like or dislike (but, you know, don't be a dick about it.) Let me know your thoughts! I would really love to get to 100 reviews!
Thank you for reading though, seriously. I love you all so much! Sidenote, if you've read my first chapter for Alliance, I am FINALLY working on the second chapter, and it should be up tomorrow! So keep an eye out for that.
xo
mimi
