Padma's Quest - Chapter 9

By Poppy P

A/N: Okay, if you don't remember what Parvati is talking about regarding Snape, it's her prediction from Ch 4. If you still don't remember, the answer is in the A/N's at the end of this chapter. Great, big hugs for all who have reviewed, especially Trinity Day!  You made my day!  Sorry for the whining about reviews last time.  Cheers!

Padma and Dean stood face to face with Professor McGonagall in the entrance hall. The only sound was that of Padma and Dean's breath coming out in frightened gasps. Professor McGonagall's fury seemed beyond words.

Just as Padma things couldn't possibly get any worse, Filch burst out from behind a tapestry wearing a long, red-and-white striped nightgown and a malicious grin.

"Well, well my sweet, I see you found them!"

Professor McGonagall's stony expression was quickly replaced by a look of shock. "I beg your pardon!" she said indignantly.

A sudden, loud 'MEOW' made them all look down and catch sight of Mrs. Norris who was rubbing herself against Professor McGonagall's wooly, red nightgown. Mrs. Norris stared up at them impertinently, her yellow eyes glittering insolently.

If Padma hadn't been so scared, she might have giggled at the blush that crept over Professor McGonagall's face. The look on Filch's foul face, however, was anything but amusing.

"Sneaking out in the middle of the night! A good punishment should cure them of that. I'd be happy to give you some recommendations." He rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

"Yes Argus," said Professor McGonagall with a note of impatience, "there will definitely be a punishment of some sort, however, there's another matter at hand." She turned to Padma, her stern expression softening ever so slightly. "Ms. Patil, the reason we've been looking for you is because your sister is in the hospital wing. She's not in danger," she said quickly, seeing Padma's stricken expression, "but she had a bit of a fright and she's been asking for her sister."

Padma's eyes filled with tears thinking of Parvati needing her, hurt and afraid. Filch squirmed uncomfortably, apparently put off at the sight of a young girl's tears.

"Y-you seem to have everything under control Professor, so I'll just be going then, shall I?" He hardly waited for Professor McGonagall to respond before he whistled softly to his cat and made a hasty retreat, his slippers flapping, Mrs. Norris at his heels.

Professor McGonagall said, "Ms. Patil, run along to the hospital wing, I'll be there shortly. Mr. Thomas, you go on up to Gryffindor Tower. We will discuss your detentions in the morning. Naturally, this will also involve a loss of points from Gryffindor."

Padma opened her mouth to protest, but stopped at a slight warning look from Dean. "Yes Professor," she said meekly. She started towards the marble staircase when Dean spoke.

"Please Professor, may I accompany her? She's really upset." Dean looked imploringly at Professor McGonagall, ignoring her tight-lipped look. Professor McGonagall looked quickly between Dean and Padma. A corner of her mouth twitching slightly, she said, "Very well Thomas. Since Ms. Patil is so upset, you may accompany her. However, I want you to go right back to your common room afterwards. No detours!"

With that, Professor McGonagall started up the right side of the marble staircase while Padma and Dean started up the left. They walked in silence for several seconds. Padma found Dean's presence both comforting and unsettling. She looked over her shoulder to make sure they were out of earshot of Professor McGonagall, then she looked up at Dean shyly. "You didn't have to come with me, but thank you anyway."

Dean kept walking, but answered gruffly. "Parvati's my friend. I'm worried about her too, you know."

Padma felt taken aback. She wasn't quite sure what she had expected Dean to say, but for some reason she didn't think this was it. Padma knew she had no right to expect anything from Dean, but she tried again. "Dean…thank you for coming out to warn me. I'm sorry I got you in trouble."

Dean shrugged. "Don't worry about it. Just don't let on to McGonagall that you're not Parvati. You'll be in worse trouble if she finds out you two switched places and exchanged passwords." He kept walking, gaze fixed straight ahead.

Padma despaired at the deadened look in his eyes, the lack of emotion in his voice. She reached out and touched his arm, causing him to stop. "Dean, I…" she faltered. "I'm sorry about…" she looked up into his eyes, willing him to understand what she couldn't put into words. "I'm sorry about…the double loss of points for Gryffindor," she finished lamely. She bit her lip nervously, awaiting his response.

Dean avoided her eyes, fixing his gaze on her hand which was still resting on his arm. It was several seconds before he spoke. "There are worse things than losing house points." He turned abruptly, and began walking again, Padma's hand sliding off his arm.

Padma let him walk a bit ahead of her, trying to make sense of all the emotions coursing through her. Padma followed Dean silently the rest of the way.

They entered the hospital wing to find a sullen Madam Pomfrey. "Ms. Patil! Whatever took you so long? Your sister has been asking for you. She's over there." She pointed towards the end of the ward. "Her Prefect is sitting with her."

Padma and Dean approached the screen shielding Parvati's bed from view. Padma went around at once but Dean held back.

"May I come in?" he called out.

"It's all right," responded Padma in a loud whisper. "She's just sleeping." Padma turned to Penelope Clearwater who was sitting in a chair close to Parvati's bed. "Penny, how's my sister?"

Penny looked at Padma sharply, confusion evident on her face. Padma realized that she had forgotten that she was pretending to be Parvati and that Parvati and Penny were not all that well acquainted with each other. Penny gathered herself and answered, "She's resting now, but it was awful. I was studying in the common room when her roommates, Lisa and Mandy, came down in hysterics. They said Padma was having some kind of seizure or something. I ran up there and found her in her bed, rigid, eyes glassed over. I tried to talk to her, but she wasn't responding. Then, all of a sudden, she broke out in a sweat, shaking, then she started talking in a strange voice. Like it wasn't her talking." Penny shuddered.

Padma looked towards her sister in alarm, then turned back to Penelope. "What did she say?"

Penny shook her head, rubbing her hand across her tired eyes. "It didn't make sense, really. Perhaps you can figure it out. She said something like:

There's an imposter among us who serves the snake. He brings the lion ever closer to him. Death to those who stray across his path. Let not the lion out of your sight. She kept repeating it over and over, several times until she collapsed or fainted and we brought her here."

Padma couldn't make sense of the words, but for some reason she felt her flesh prickle with goose bumps.

"Do you have any idea what she was talking about?" asked Penny hopefully.

Padma shook her head then turned towards her sister. She sat down softly on her bed so as not to wake her up. Parvati remained oblivious as Padma gently smoothed Parvati's tousled hair away from her pale, sweaty face. Parvati stirred softly, but didn't waken.

"Madam Pomfrey thinks she may have had a vision of some sort, but it spent all her energy as she isn't a trained Seer." Penny got up from the chair, stretching and yawning. "I'd better get back to Ravenclaw."

Dean and Padma murmured goodnight to Penny as she walked out. Dean slipped into Penny's chair. He exchanged a worried glance with Padma as Parvati began tossing and turning as though in the grips of a nightmare. Padma talked to her soothingly as Dean stood up next to the bed. Finally, with a startled cry that brought Madam Pomfrey out of her office, Parvati work up, looking around like a frightened animal. Her gaze fell on Padma and she relaxed. Parvati reached out for Padma's hand, smiling weakly. "You're here."

Padma squeezed her hand and smiled at her twin. "I'm here."

Madam Pomfrey grimaced. "And about time I might add. It seems that a search of the castle had to be done to find your fine sister. Apparently she was out on a midnight stroll with a certain young man." She eyed Dean sternly. Parvati gave Padma a raised eyebrow look. Dean looked chagrinned.

Fortunately they were spared further embarrassment by the sound of the hospital ward door swinging open followed by an unfamiliar, misty voice. "Where is she? Where is the student who had a vision?"

The voice that answered here was that of an extremely irritated Professor McGonagall. "Really Sybil, must you come pester the girl right now? She's resting for Heaven's sakes!"

"Minerva," said the misty voice with exasperation, "I am the Divination Master of this institution. If there is an untrained Seer in our midst, then it is my responsibility to…"

The voice was cut off as Madam Pomfrey interrupted. "Professors! This is a hospital wing, not a Quidditch pitch. Keep your voices down!" She pushed the hospital screen aside revealing Professor McGonagall, Professor Trelawney and to Padma's great surprise, Professor Dumbledore. Parvati tightened her grip on Padma's hand.

"Good evening ladies," said Professor Dumbledore kindly, "and you Mr. Thomas."

Professor Trelawney's huge eyes widened further as she surveyed the scene. "Argus told me the Ravenclaw Patil, Padma, had a vision. Is it true?" she asked eagerly.

Professor McGonagall let out an exasperated snort. "As far as we know, the girl could've been delirious from fever and nothing more."

"Minerva," hissed Professor Trelawney struggling to retain her misty tone. "Do you have any idea how significant this is? This student may be a Seer and I haven't even trained her yet. Don't you see? This proves my theory about identical twins having a psychic link. Do you have any idea how significant this is?"

Professor McGonagall was quite red in the face now. "Do you have any idea how…"?

"Ms. Patil," interrupted Dumbledore, "can you tell us what exactly you Saw?"

Parvati glanced at Padma with frightened eyes before answering hesitantly. "I…I didn't really see anything. I just remember feeling extremely odd, then everything went black and I woke up here."

Padma spoke up, "Professor, my sister's roommates heard her say something. They said she repeated this over and over until she passed out." Padma proceeded to relate the strange words Penny had related.

Professor Dumbledore looked very grave and muttered, "Indeed." After a moment he turned to Professor McGonagall. "Minerva, might I ask you a favor? Could you escort Mr. Thomas up to Gryffindor Tower? It's rather late and I imagine Ms. Patil will be wanting to spend the night with her sister." Both Padma and Parvati nodded gratefully. Madam Pomfrey looked slightly disapproving, but she didn't comment. Professor McGonagall beckoned to Dean who hesitated before following her. Dean reached over to Parvati and shyly patted her hand. "Glad you're okay," he said softly before leaving the room. For some reason this gesture caused a flood of conflicting emotions in Padma. She watched Dean until he reached the door, hoping to catch his eye, but he slipped out the door without turning around.

Professor Trelawney turned to Dumbledore, her eyes shining. "Excellent, Headmaster! The less people in the room, the better the psychic reception!" She gave a pointed look to Madam Pomfrey who scowled and took a step closer to Dumbledore.

Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat. "Yes, well, Sybil, since you're our resident Diviner, I have a task for you as well."

"Yes?" said Professor Trelawney practically quavering with excitement.

The Headmaster spoke slowly, as though he was doing some quick thinking. "I need you to…consult…"

"The Orb?" Trelawney burst out breathlessly. "To see if Ms. Patil's vision is concurrent with the rising of Gemini over Venus?" She clasped her hands together, waiting for his reply.

Professor Dumbledore's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Why Sybil, how did you know that?"

Professor Trelawney gave him a smug, mystical smile. "When one is a true Seer, one knows many things." She turned her smile on Parvati. "Isn't that right Padma, dear?"

"Right," answered Padma and Parvati simultaneously. The girls froze, staring at each other in horror over Padma's mistake.

Professor Trelawney didn't seem to notice. Her smile grew wider and she said, "See? Psychic twin link." She practically floated out the door. Madam Pomfrey locked the door behind her, muttering darkly about the hospital wing being busier than King's Cross and then retired to her office.

Professor Dumbledore's mouth twitched under his mustache, as though he was trying to contain a smile. His eyes, however, were grave. "If its any consolation to you ladies, I knew you were misrepresenting long before Padma let it slip," he said quietly.

The girls flushed with shame. Padma didn't know how she could ever look her Professor in the eye again. Parvati spoke up hesitantly. "H-how did you know, Professor?"

Dumbledore's eyes softened, a slight twinkle evident in their blue depths. "I'll just attribute it to many years of dealing with a certain pair of red-headed twins. I thank my lucky stars every day that they were sorted to the same house. Who knows what kind of mischief those two might get into otherwise?"

Parvati smiled weakly, but Padma didn't, unable to banish her one horrible thought. "Professor," Padma asked, her throat tight with fear, "are you going to expel us?"

Parvati gasped in surprise, as though the thought had not crossed her mind. Both girls turned towards the Headmaster expectantly, holding their breaths.

Dumbledore regarded them seriously for several seconds before he answered. "No, you won't be expelled" The girls exhaled simultaneously. "However, I cannot impress upon you the gravity of breaching castle security. Exchanging common room passwords is a serious offense." Padma and Parvati hung their heads in shame as Dumbledore continued. "Now, I don't mean to frighten you, but currently, there are forces at work that indicate that now, more than ever, we need to practice strict castle security. Indeed, Parvati's prediction makes it even more so."

"It does?" asked Padma and Parvati incredulously.

"Indeed it does. Although I am not at liberty to discuss anymore than that." He looked at Parvati. "Ms. Patil, have you had any other visions or predictions?"

Parvati hesitated and looked over at Padma. "I've had a few visions and such, but nothing really like this."

Padma thought about all the times she had made fun of Parvati's affinity for Divination. It was no wonder Parvati was reluctant to speak. "Go on Parvati," urged Padma, "tell the professor what you've Seen."

Parvati began hesitantly. She told Dumbledore about her ability to predict Quidditch match outcomes several years into the future. He chuckled, saying that for the Cannon's sake, he hoped her predictions came true. However, when Parvati told him about her vision regarding Snape, he choked, succumbing to a violent coughing fit that didn't subside until Madam Pomfrey came out and handed him a steaming mug of liquid. Once he had regained his composure, he looked at Parvati appraisingly. "Ms. Patil you have a gift, a rare and powerful gift." He turned towards Madam Pomfrey. "Shall we let these girls rest then Poppy?"

Madam Pomfrey sighed loudly. "Exactly what I've been saying, but nobody ever listens to me," she said sniffily.

"Now Poppy," said Dumbledore taking her arm. They left the hospital wing, talking in hushed voices, without paying further attention to the girls.

When Padma heard the door close behind them, she slipped into the bed next to Parvati's, suddenly feeling very tired. She pointed her wand at the nearby lamps and extinguished them so that they were thrown into darkness.

"Padma?" said Parvati, her voice cutting through the darkness. "I'm glad you're here. I was really sacred."

Padma murmured sleepily, "It's usually the other way around, isn't it? I'm usually the one who's afraid of everything and you're comforting me."

Padma heard Parvati swallow hard before she answered. "Padma, I know you think Divination is a load of tosh, and I know that I'm not as smart as you, but…"

"Parvati," interrupted Padma shakily.

"No, no, just listen," said Parvati doggedly. "I know I couldn't get into Ravenclaw like you, but I'm happy being a Gryffindor. It's where I belong. But that doesn't mean I don't miss you. Lavender's my best friend at school, but you're my best friend always."

It took Padma a long time to answer. When she finally spoke, her voice was choked with tears. "I'm not smart at all. If only you knew what a mess I've made of things with Ron. I don't know I'll ever face him again. He probably thinks I'm a great dunderhead!" she cried passionately.
Parvati listened sympathetically as Padma talked about the evening's disastrous events. Parvati didn't even complain when Padma told her about having been caught by McGonagall, losing points and getting a detention. When she was finished Parvati Summoned her a box of tissue.

"Parvati," said Padma croakily, "have you really Seen anything about Ron in the…the…Orb?"
Padma heard the bedsprings squeaked as she shuffled in her bed. "Um…no, not really. But…" she paused, "I've seen Ron's astrological birth chart, you know in Divination class. And one night, for fun, Hermione let us do hers in our dorm room and…they're a perfect match. They're destinies are aligned." Parvati paused, letting Padma take this in.

"Does Hermione know they align?" asked Padma in a small voice.

"She wouldn't believe me if I told her. She doesn't set much store by Divination. Padma?" asked Parvati, "Why was Dean with you?"

"Yes, let's talk about Dean," said Padma sharply, sitting up in bed.

"What do you mean?" asked Parvati nervously.

"For starters, why didn't you tell me he asked me to the Yule Ball?"

"Padma, don't be angry," she said quickly. "it's just that I really wanted to go with Harry, but I didn't think he'd go if I couldn't find a date for Ron."

"He's a champion. He had to go no matter what," pointed out Padma.

"Oh! Good point."

"And why did you pretend to be me when you snogged Dean behind the Quidditch stands?" asked Padma indignantly.

"I can't believe he told you that!" groaned Parvati. "I just thought it might be cool if I went out with Dean because Lavender liked Seamus. I'm sorry."

"Let's just say we're even since I lost house points for you and I got you a detention." Parvati agreed amiably. "Parvati," said Padma hesitantly, "do you like Dean?"

"Well, I like him, just not that way." Padma heard her sit up in her bed. "Besides…he really likes you."

"I know," whispered Padma.

"Oh Padma!" said Parvati breathlessly. "Couldn't you like Dean? He's not bad looking and he's so nice. He's a good artist too."

"I know," whispered Padma again. Suddenly she remembered something. She reached into the pocket of her robes and pulled out a crumpled piece of parchment. She reached for her wand and murmured, "Lumos." The wand light fell across Dean's crumpled drawing of Padma standing on the shores of the Hogwarts lake, watching the little butterfly clips sink into the water. Padma realized she must have crushed it when she kissed Ron.

"That's a beautiful drawing," said Parvati in awe. "Too bad you crushed it. Do you think you can fix it?" she asked.

Padma considered the drawing for a long time before she answered, "I hope so. I certainly hope so." She placed the portrait on the nightstand next to the bed and extinguished her wand.

Padma snuggled down into the bed, physically and mentally exhausted. Just as she was about to drift off she heard Parvati ask, "Padma, did you really throw my butterfly clips into the lake?"

A/N 2: This is Parvati's prediction from chapter 4: Parvati claimed to have had a vision concerning Professor Snape. Some rubbish about him quitting Hogwarts to join a satanic wizard rock group and getting a tattoo. Padma thought it was nonsense, of course, although the thought of Snape singing did unsettle her for some reason.