A/N: This story was born of a combination of the coronavirus news, me writing lab reports and semi-formal emails all the time, and a bit of Harry Potter. Enjoy!
IWSC Round 2 - School: Mahoutokoro, Year: 1, Theme: two or more magical nations/governments/schools working together, Main Prompt: (object) Floo Powder, Additional Prompts: (spell) Portus, (emotion) excitement
Word count: 1728
"Anything else to report?" Kingsley leaned back in his seat. Hermione, deep in thought, roamed her eyes around the small office. There was a dark oak table in the centre and a couple wooden bookshelves lined the walls from all sides. Kingsley himself was sitting in a leather-bound chair that looked too comfortable to be work-efficient. Now that she thought of it, the office seemed way too small and way too dark for the highest-ranking person in the entire Ministry. It was fitting for the current atmosphere, though.
"I do, actually," she said, the hypothetical flashbulb going off in her head. "We received an owl this morning from the Japanese Ministry."
Kingsley, without a word, gestured for Hermione to continue.
"They have an idea. Of what might be causing the outbreak, that is. We might be able to find the cure if what they say is true, but we need your approval first," she rambled in excitement. "Basically, this is not a Dragon Pox. At least, not the normal one. It could be a variant, but either way, the cause is not exactly the same. According to the Japanese Department for Magical Research, the disease seems to be triggered by Floo travel."
"Floo travel," Kingsley reiterated, blinking one, two, then three times. "Is this confirmed?"
"Not yet." Hermione bit her lip. "But!" she added before Kingsley could interject. "We did run a few tests ourselves, and it looks plausible."
"And if it does turn out to be true, what do you propose we do?" Kingsley massaged his forehead. "We can't shut down the entire Floo network in the country. Not to mention telling other Ministries to do the same."
"I'm not the Minister," Hermione said, "so I can't make a decision, but this is the only way to stop the spread of the disease. With some luck, we could have the cure ready in a week or two, but we need to go through the literature on Floo travel and find the counteragent to the exact component that's triggering the disease. Once we have that, we can make a cure, but you have to understand that this is not something we can do overnight. Even with the funding from St. Mungo's, there are only so many of us."
Kingsley contemplated this for a moment. Hermione was borderline shaking in anticipation. She had not realised before, but she really wanted to do this project. She had been doing the small, meaningless work ever since she had joined the Department of Mysteries, but this, this was finally something stimulating. Finally, something that would actually have an impact, something that would help the wizarding world move forward. Finally, something Hermione could feel excited about.
"How many people would you need to have it done in 3 days?" Kingsley asked after what seemed like an eternity.
"A lot," Hermione replied. "We'd need to double the size of our current research team."
"If I were to alert the Dutch and Belgian Ministries, would you be able to work together with their people? Word has it they have excellent facilities, and it would be in their best interests to find the cure as well. The number of reported cases is growing day-by-day across Europe, so it is imperative to find a solution as soon as possible, both for the general wellbeing and the public image of Magical Britain. I hope you can understand that."
"Indeed, Minister." Hermione nodded. "Once we have the cure, we can begin looking for preventative measures as well. If you ask me, a refurbishment of the Floo system is long overdue anyway."
"Let's focus on the cure first, Hermione," Kingsley instructed. "I will send a message later today, but expect to be Portkeying to Brussels tomorrow morning. In the meantime, you may proceed with your research."
"Thank you," Hermione said. "Nevertheless," she added, "I would still suggest shutting down the Floo network."
"We'll see," Kingsley replied in a noncommittal tone. "Anything else?"
"No." Hermione shook her head.
"Then you may go." Kingsley nodded. "I'll see you around, Hermione," he noted, his tone noticeably more lighthearted. Magical Britain might have been facing a crisis, but friends were still friends.
"You too, Kingsley." Hermione let out a faint smile as she left the stuffy office. She was bubbling with excitement; she couldn't wait to visit the extensive library in the Department of Mysteries and delve into the Floo network's history.
The next morning, Hermione flipped through the morning news as she waited for the Patronus that Kingsley promised would let her know about her departure Portkey's whereabouts. The first headline she saw caught her eyes instantly.
Floo network shut down: Portus charm to be removed from Ministry-only whitelist?
Skimming through the article, Hermione noted that Kingsley had apparently taken her advice and banned Floo travel across Britain. It only made sense that he would make Portkey travel more accessible, she supposed, by lifting the restriction on the Portus charm as well. She also noted from the article that various countries across the continent also implemented the Floo ban overnight.
As she pondered the sheer efficiency of this whole operation she dragged herself into, a silvery lynx materialised in front of her.
"Be in my office in 15 minutes. I have notified the rest of the team as well. You have been given special permission, so will be able to apparate straight there," Kingsley's deep voice boomed across the small living room. The message was short and succinct, and the lynx disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. Hermione got to her feet, scanning the room for her suitcase. She did not expect that she'd have to be ready so quickly; she had so much packing to do still!
Hermione reappeared in Kingsley's office not long after. Her colleagues were already there, greeting her with nods.
"Good to have all of you here," Kingsley said as Hermione faced him. "Everyone here should have received a memo with all the necessary information already, so I hope you all know the importance of this project. Currently, we have a death toll of around a thousand across the continent, but a sharp rise in this figure is predicted, unless we act quickly and find the cure, which is why we need to collaborate with other authorities on the mainland. Hermione will be writing daily reports about the progress of your research. All clear?"
The cohort of wizards and witches nodded in unison, Hermione included. The group consisted of some of the best Unspeakables in the Ministry, so it only made sense that Kingsley had high expectations of them.
"Excellent," the Minister said. "I hope to see you in a few days, then." With that, he handed a rusty, bent cauldron to the group and casted a quick Portus charm on it. Hermione, as her world began to spin in a haze of blue, was again overwhelmed by her previous feeling of excitement. She would be working with the best Unspeakables for the next few days, and on such a high-reward project as well!
New Dragon Pox Cure - Report #1
We have identified the component that triggers the disease. Pixie tears, the sticking agent in Floo Powder, seem to be reacting with the source of the disease. We are still unsure what the source is, but one of our Dutch colleagues hypothesised that it could be one of the new components in the robes recently introduced across the European market. It would make sense, since the primary target of the disease coincides with those among the first to purchase these new robe types.
A portion of our group will follow this lead, and the rest will be working on finding the counteragent to Pixie tears. In the meantime, our recommendation is to remove the robes from the market as soon as possible but sustain the Floo network ban.
Hermione J. Granger
New Dragon Pox Cure - Report #2
Incredible breakthrough today! We had made an extract from the leaves of bulbous figs that seemed to nullify the effects of the Pixie tears in the Floo powder. We now need to combine this into a potion or ointment, and we can start producing the cure on a larger scale.
The robe focus group also had some interesting findings. The Belgian Head of Delegation found that Pixie tears are being used in the production of these robes as well, but they are apparently a modified, synthetic variant of the same ingredient, and it appears that the interaction of these two variants culminates in Dragon Pox-like symptoms. It is less contagious, but more deadly.
You were right, Kingsley. It is of utmost importance to get this cure out in the world as soon as possible. We hope to have the final version ready tomorrow. Once that is done, we will Portkey back to Britain to discuss the next steps.
Hermione J. Granger
New Dragon Pox Cure - Final Report
The cure is ready. We tested it, and it seems to be counteracting the Pixie tear-interaction, but we have not yet tried it on any patients. I would suggest doing that as soon as possible, though.
It is a potion, although its consistency is more viscous than standard potions. One of our Dutch correspondents cleverly named it 'Pixie Power Potion.' We voted down the idea.
The potion takes roughly 3 hours to brew, but we will need professional potioneers, as the recipe is quite complex. In any case, I will enclose the ingredient list and the brewing instructions. We will be Portkeying back tomorrow morning.
Hermione J. Granger
As Hermione's feet touched the Ministry's marble floor again, she could barely contain her smile. They had done it! She had not thought it would be possible to find a cure to such a weird and wildly spreading disease, but they had done it!
"Hermione," Kingsley greeted her. "Good to see you."
"You too, Kingsley." Hermione nodded, her smile still playing faintly on her lips. "I trust you have the ingredient list and the brewing instructions?"
"Yes, I do." The Minister nodded. "Thank you." It was simple, but it meant the whole world to Hermione. For perhaps the first time in her life, she felt like she had done something truly remarkable.
"I…" she began. "It wasn't really me," she said, fixating her eyes on the floor. "I couldn't have done it without the others."
