"Hey Patrick," I asked casually, "where'd you get talent like that? You're amazing!" I expected him to become very uneasy, and I was more than right. He squirmed and blushed nervously, and stammered, not at all his usual self.
"I, uh," he replied, "I've always been like this. What, jealous?" He let out a feeble attempt at a laugh, and my worst suspicions were confirmed. He had "traded" with Neborth. But if this Neborth was so powerful, why couldn't he rise the Shade himself?? Questions swam in my head, and I resolved to answer all of them that very night, when I went to see Dumbledore after executing my plan - but a sudden thought struck me.
Hey, Dasher?
Yes?
Do you know where Dumbledore's office is?
Nah, but I'll ask around. My, uh, friends may be able to tell me something.
Friends?
Umm..just friends.
You can tell me - what friends?
Well, uh, the mice, actually. I wouldn't normally make friends with the small ones, but, uh... I restrained myself from laughing out loud. Dasher seemed so uneasy, all about talking to the mice a bit!! I guess animals had their own inferiority complexes.
I don't mind, and I'm sure they don't, either. Ask them, and tell me ASAP, please.
Sure thing.
As I made my way over to the dormitory stairs, when most Gryffindors had gone to bed, I felt a hand catch my shoulder from behind. I whirled to face the most unlikely person - John Weasley.
"Jade, what's up with you and Patrick??" He looked worried - and maybe a bit possessive of me, which I surely didn't mind at all. I decided to tell him the truth.
"There's nothing like - like that between us, John, don't worry!!" His expression filled with relief as I continued. "It's actually...well, let's go somewhere private," I suggested in a very low voice. He nodded, clearly puzzled and suprised, and led me over to a small alcove by a tall window. We sat together on the window seat.
"This is all I know," I began, and he nodded again, intently listening. "A few nights ago, I saw Patrick and - and Professor Snape casting a spell on the Quidditch field on the grounds." He gasped, confused.
"But -"
"Listen...and I got Dasher to watch for them. I've lately been able to talk to her because of some weird but good mistake in Charms. She says they do the same thing every night, and then she recently caught him in his dorm room, muttering. He said that he roused the Shade of Snape and agreed to cast a Broom-Throwing Charm for this Neborth, whoever he is, in exchange for his talent in jokes and performing."
John stared at me, astounded. "So that's why you asked him..."
"Exactly." John's face showed a deep look of concentration, and I knew his Weasley mind was plotting. I smiled in spite of myself - I loved everybody in that family - their wit, their loyalty, their mischief, their cleverness, the way their minds worked, everything.
"So what are you going to do about it, Jadey?"
"I'm going to cast three Elven spying charms on myself and sneak out to the Quidditch field to videotape them doing whatever they're doing," I informed him, surprised at what had come out of my mouth. He looked devilishly delighted.
"Videotape? What's that??? Can I come?? Can you cast the charms on me??" asked John in a flood of questions, and I grinned mischieviously.
"A Muggle thing, I'll explain later, of course, and I think so," I answered.
Jade?? They're on the Quidditch field.
I groaned, but leaped out of bed once the meaning of Dasher's words sunk in.
Thanks, dear heart, I replied, changed quickly into my robes, grabbed my camcorder, and left to rouse John. He got up easily and followed me to a storeroom in the back of the library that I had been using to cast my spells in. We were both charged up with excitement and the importance of our mission, and agreed to go to Dumbledore the minute this was over. Thank goodness I had thought to bring my camcorder - and a spare tape!!
While I explained video recordings to John, I added the last-minute ingredients to the two mixes - only the Thaetls Charm required no liquids or preparation beforehand - and got ready to cast the spells.
I did the Elbatcetedne Charm first, reading the directions carefully before casting it on John.
"Hey, that tickles!" he protested, but I kept drawing my mixture-soaked wand over his forehead.
"The directions say to completely cover your face...hold still," I scolded him. He closed his eyes again and stopped squirming, and I finished quickly. I walked around him in a full circle, my wand in both hands, and the mixture on his face flickered, then disappeared. Odd charm, but then, these were Elven, and not cast in the traditional way.
"'Kay, I'm done...the trigger word is 'garlic bread,' say that to become invisible."
"Garlic bread??" John laughed.
"Italian Elves, I suppose," I replied swiftly, and giggled. "Now don't move for the Esraehe Charm, it's simple and won't take long."
He obediently stayed still while I dipped my wand in another mixture and dabbed it twice on each of his cheeks, saying, over and over, "ketchup," while doing so. Finally, after I had said "ketchup" thirty times, the mixture disappeared again.
"Trigger word for that one's 'ketchup,' as you may have guessed, and it heightens your senses of sight and sound," I told John. He grinned, and said he was ready for the last charm.
I waved the wand in complicated patterns around him, trying hard to do it all right, and he shimmered light yellow for a second, confirming that the spell had worked. The Thaetls charm continued to work for the full duration of the spell, giving the object of enchantment added speed, agility, and ability to move very quietly.
John was pretty good in Charms, so I didn't feel nervous handing the books and the mixtures over to him to cast the spells on me, and he did so without incident. Soon, I showed him how to work the camcorder, and we headed quietly downstairs to the grounds, hoping that they hadn't gone already with all the time we'd taken. But I was reassured by the fact that the clock in the hall showed that they had only been outside for five minutes - and they usually took forty minutes. The Elven spells would wear out in an hour, two minutes of which had already passed.
Once outside, we creeped as near as we dared to get to them, and started taping. Everything seemed to work fine - I'd completely double-checked the camcorder before I went to sleep - and we captured thirty-seven minutes on tape of them. That would be enough for Dumbledore!! And he had no reason to distrust me - I'd never lied to him before, much less spoken!!
But there was still the problem of his office...I had hoped Dasher would be quicker...
Jade, I just found out where his office is. The Mouse Chieftain says it's across from and to the right of the Transfiguration room, and the password is 'lemon drop.'
Good work...lemon drop??
Think it's some Muggle treat Dumbledore's quite fond of, she replied. I turned to John, happy now that our plan was almost complete.
"Dasher says -" I began, and then stopped short at the sight of his face. He was bright blue from top to bottom, his hair was completely electrified, his eyes were glowing different colors fast, and he seemed not to hear me talking at all. "John?? John??"
"What is it??" he asked, much louder than usual. I hissed and put my finger to my lips, trying to communicate with body language too. His eyes suddenly grew very large, and he pointed at my hair, my eyes, my face, surprised and dismayed. I suddenly remembered seeing something in my Charms textbook about layered enchantments, and groaned, shaking my head at myself for my stupidity. I didn't know when the after-effects of these spells would wear off, but I was sure it would take at least a day. We didn't have that kind of time...I gestured for John to follow. We had to tell Dumbledore, even if we would get in trouble for casting the charms. At least we'd get fixed!!
I put my finger to my lips again, and together we raced up to the Transfiguration room and whispered the password. It was as I knocked on the door that I remembered the time. Had I been this careless in my planning?? Forgetting layered enchantment backlash, forgetting that even Dumbledore slept, and forgetting that wizards may not trust a Muggle video. I felt quite the fool, but resolved to keep going along with my plan as the great headmaster opened the door, groggy and surprised. There must have been something good in it that I thought of.
A/N: Yes, I KNOW this is short. I can't let the entire mystery unravel in one story, now can I?? More speculations on Neborth, please, people...I wanna know what you think and if I'm doing this right. And I would have gotten this out later, but Ashlie insisted *smile* so I just had to. Oh, and Neborth is kind of like a parallel to Voldemort...but less...wait, I'm not going to tell you so easy!! Wait for part seven!! *grinz evilly* Love you all!!