9.
Vivian stared at them.
"What do you mean?"
"She got a letter in herbology this morning." Harriet said, "I don't know what it said but it must have been pretty bad - she just went completely white and stormed out, she looked absolutely devastated."
"And you haven't seen her since?" Vivian asked.
"No." Diana replied. "She hasn't been in any lessons. I've been looking everywhere for her but no one's seen her."
Suddenly something occurred to Vivian.
"It wasn't about that date she had with Marcus Fowler was it?" Vivian hadn't seen Lorna after the visit to Hogsmeade because by that time she had been lying unconscious in the hospital wing, so she had no idea if the date had been a success or not.
"I don't think so." Harriet said, " I think it went pretty well. She didn't get back until eleven!"
"And she seemed really pleased with herself." Diana added. "I think they're going out, but Lorna's so annoying, she won't tell you anything."
"Well that's something." Vivian said.
*
Snape left Dumbledore's study with his mind busy. He had told Dumbledore everything he knew about the curse which Vivian seemed to have received: he had seen it before on the bodies of David and Gabrielle Knott, whom Claudia had tried unsuccessfully to win over to their cause. He shuddered, thinking of the charred, mangled bodies, each missing a face; only their wrists were intact, bearing an identical sign, the symbol of infinity. This curse combined inevitable death with hideous pain; this was all he could remember for sure, he hadn't even known what the curse was called. Claudia Slane had known how to keep her secrets - she had probably realised his loyalties were wavering. He had never even seen her perform the curse; Avada kedavra had been a different matter: he could see her now, her beauty taking on a diabolical edge in the green light..but all that was over now.
"What do you want me to do?" he had asked Dumbledore, already knowing the answer.
"I want you to research this curse," Dumbledore had replied, "and to remember all you can about Claudia's methods of killing. You're obviously the best person for the job. We need to know all we can. I'll also contact the experts at St Mungo's."
Snape sighed. Not only did he now have to waste his time and intelligence on a brat who would never appreciate them, he also had to recall the past he had tried to shut out forever. Trust Vivian to survive a fatal curse, he thought with a wry smile, and then scowled as he remembered Harry Potter, who had done exactly the same. Damn him.
Then his mind returned to the curse. There was something he knew, a clue in the name, which remained tantalizingly out of reach.
If only he could remember what the curse was called.....
*
It was later on the same day. Harriet and Diana had had to go to potions, so Vivian was lying alone in bed with a book, feeling slightly smug. There were benefits to being ill, she thought comfortably, sinking into the soft mattress.
She was almost asleep when she was disturbed by the sound of running feet. A few seconds later, Lorna burst into the dormitory. She looked terrible; her eyes were red and her hair was streaked with dust.
Vivian sat up in bed, temporarily speechless. Lorna jumped as she caught sight of her.
"Oh, it's you." She said. Vivian could see she was making an effort to act normally. "How are you feeling?"
"What happened?" Vivian asked. Tears welled up in Lorna's eyes, and began rolling down her cheeks. Vivian wondered whether to put her arm around her, and thought better of it.
"What is it?" she asked gently. For an answer Lorna passed her a crumpled piece of paper.
"I thought her really liked me." She muttered indistinctly. "And then the next day he sent me this."
Vivian quickly scanned the letter - it was short, cruel and to the point: not only was Lorna dumped, she was dumped as painfully and humiliatingly as possible. The nicest thing Marcus had called her was a slag.
"I don't believe it." Vivian said.
"That's not the worst of it." Lorna said bleakly.
"What do you mean?"
Lorna shook her head: she was crying again. Vivian made herself stand up and put her arm round her. It was strange and slightly horrible to see Lorna's complete loss of self-possession.
"Don't let it get to you." Vivian said, "It's him who has a problem, not you. You mustn't let him know he's got to you."
Lorna gave a weak smile.
"You sound like a magazine." She sat down on the bed and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.
"I don't know what's come over me." She continued, "I never get this worked up over boys." There was a pause, as Lorna tried to tidy her hair. Vivian watched her with concern.
"So what else happened?" She said at last. Lorna sighed.
"You might as well know. Everyone else will. I went completely mental when I got the letter; I just took off. I was hiding in one of the closets near the defence against the dark arts classrooms -"
"Good hiding place." Vivian commented, trying to cheer her up. "So what happened next?"
"Well I was writing Marcus a letter, asking him what I'd done wrong, and it must have been time for potions, we have it around now on a Tuesday, and Snape must have realised I was missing, because he went looking for me.
"Uh oh." Vivian said.
"Exactly. The first I knew of it was when he yanked open the cupboard door and started yelling at me."
"Didn't you explain?" Vivian asked indignantly.
"Yes." Lorna's face twisted, she was trying not to burst into tears again. "I said I had some personal problems, which was a really stupid thing to do, because then Snape took my letter off me. And then he made me read it."
"What?" Vivian gasped, "The one you wrote to Marcus? In front of the whole class?" Lorna nodded grimly.
"They all found it hysterically funny of course. I don't want to think about it. The worst thing was, Marcus was there."
Vivian felt a surge of anger. Her friend, usually so happy and outgoing, had been reduced to a pitiful, tear-drenched wreck because of Marcus Fowler and his colossal ego.
Lorna lifted her tear-stained face to Vivian's.
"I can't stand thinking about it." She sobbed.
Vivian passed her a tissue from her bedside and tried to comfort Lorna as best she could. Eventually Lorna stood up.
"I should go. They'll all be up in a minute." Vivian understood: Harriet and Diana were nice, but they weren't really the best people to see if you were in trouble as they both had a weakness for gossip.
"Go to the hospital wing." Vivian suggested, "Say you've got a migraine."
"Thanks." Lorna gave Vivian a grateful look and left. Vivian noticed that she walked with her head bowed, and her shoulders bent; her confidence had suffered a huge blow.
Alone again, Vivian moved to the window, and looked out at the darkening grounds.
"They're not going to get away with this."
Vivian stared at them.
"What do you mean?"
"She got a letter in herbology this morning." Harriet said, "I don't know what it said but it must have been pretty bad - she just went completely white and stormed out, she looked absolutely devastated."
"And you haven't seen her since?" Vivian asked.
"No." Diana replied. "She hasn't been in any lessons. I've been looking everywhere for her but no one's seen her."
Suddenly something occurred to Vivian.
"It wasn't about that date she had with Marcus Fowler was it?" Vivian hadn't seen Lorna after the visit to Hogsmeade because by that time she had been lying unconscious in the hospital wing, so she had no idea if the date had been a success or not.
"I don't think so." Harriet said, " I think it went pretty well. She didn't get back until eleven!"
"And she seemed really pleased with herself." Diana added. "I think they're going out, but Lorna's so annoying, she won't tell you anything."
"Well that's something." Vivian said.
*
Snape left Dumbledore's study with his mind busy. He had told Dumbledore everything he knew about the curse which Vivian seemed to have received: he had seen it before on the bodies of David and Gabrielle Knott, whom Claudia had tried unsuccessfully to win over to their cause. He shuddered, thinking of the charred, mangled bodies, each missing a face; only their wrists were intact, bearing an identical sign, the symbol of infinity. This curse combined inevitable death with hideous pain; this was all he could remember for sure, he hadn't even known what the curse was called. Claudia Slane had known how to keep her secrets - she had probably realised his loyalties were wavering. He had never even seen her perform the curse; Avada kedavra had been a different matter: he could see her now, her beauty taking on a diabolical edge in the green light..but all that was over now.
"What do you want me to do?" he had asked Dumbledore, already knowing the answer.
"I want you to research this curse," Dumbledore had replied, "and to remember all you can about Claudia's methods of killing. You're obviously the best person for the job. We need to know all we can. I'll also contact the experts at St Mungo's."
Snape sighed. Not only did he now have to waste his time and intelligence on a brat who would never appreciate them, he also had to recall the past he had tried to shut out forever. Trust Vivian to survive a fatal curse, he thought with a wry smile, and then scowled as he remembered Harry Potter, who had done exactly the same. Damn him.
Then his mind returned to the curse. There was something he knew, a clue in the name, which remained tantalizingly out of reach.
If only he could remember what the curse was called.....
*
It was later on the same day. Harriet and Diana had had to go to potions, so Vivian was lying alone in bed with a book, feeling slightly smug. There were benefits to being ill, she thought comfortably, sinking into the soft mattress.
She was almost asleep when she was disturbed by the sound of running feet. A few seconds later, Lorna burst into the dormitory. She looked terrible; her eyes were red and her hair was streaked with dust.
Vivian sat up in bed, temporarily speechless. Lorna jumped as she caught sight of her.
"Oh, it's you." She said. Vivian could see she was making an effort to act normally. "How are you feeling?"
"What happened?" Vivian asked. Tears welled up in Lorna's eyes, and began rolling down her cheeks. Vivian wondered whether to put her arm around her, and thought better of it.
"What is it?" she asked gently. For an answer Lorna passed her a crumpled piece of paper.
"I thought her really liked me." She muttered indistinctly. "And then the next day he sent me this."
Vivian quickly scanned the letter - it was short, cruel and to the point: not only was Lorna dumped, she was dumped as painfully and humiliatingly as possible. The nicest thing Marcus had called her was a slag.
"I don't believe it." Vivian said.
"That's not the worst of it." Lorna said bleakly.
"What do you mean?"
Lorna shook her head: she was crying again. Vivian made herself stand up and put her arm round her. It was strange and slightly horrible to see Lorna's complete loss of self-possession.
"Don't let it get to you." Vivian said, "It's him who has a problem, not you. You mustn't let him know he's got to you."
Lorna gave a weak smile.
"You sound like a magazine." She sat down on the bed and wiped her eyes with her sleeve.
"I don't know what's come over me." She continued, "I never get this worked up over boys." There was a pause, as Lorna tried to tidy her hair. Vivian watched her with concern.
"So what else happened?" She said at last. Lorna sighed.
"You might as well know. Everyone else will. I went completely mental when I got the letter; I just took off. I was hiding in one of the closets near the defence against the dark arts classrooms -"
"Good hiding place." Vivian commented, trying to cheer her up. "So what happened next?"
"Well I was writing Marcus a letter, asking him what I'd done wrong, and it must have been time for potions, we have it around now on a Tuesday, and Snape must have realised I was missing, because he went looking for me.
"Uh oh." Vivian said.
"Exactly. The first I knew of it was when he yanked open the cupboard door and started yelling at me."
"Didn't you explain?" Vivian asked indignantly.
"Yes." Lorna's face twisted, she was trying not to burst into tears again. "I said I had some personal problems, which was a really stupid thing to do, because then Snape took my letter off me. And then he made me read it."
"What?" Vivian gasped, "The one you wrote to Marcus? In front of the whole class?" Lorna nodded grimly.
"They all found it hysterically funny of course. I don't want to think about it. The worst thing was, Marcus was there."
Vivian felt a surge of anger. Her friend, usually so happy and outgoing, had been reduced to a pitiful, tear-drenched wreck because of Marcus Fowler and his colossal ego.
Lorna lifted her tear-stained face to Vivian's.
"I can't stand thinking about it." She sobbed.
Vivian passed her a tissue from her bedside and tried to comfort Lorna as best she could. Eventually Lorna stood up.
"I should go. They'll all be up in a minute." Vivian understood: Harriet and Diana were nice, but they weren't really the best people to see if you were in trouble as they both had a weakness for gossip.
"Go to the hospital wing." Vivian suggested, "Say you've got a migraine."
"Thanks." Lorna gave Vivian a grateful look and left. Vivian noticed that she walked with her head bowed, and her shoulders bent; her confidence had suffered a huge blow.
Alone again, Vivian moved to the window, and looked out at the darkening grounds.
"They're not going to get away with this."