| + |
CLAWS
OF A RAVEN
by Tyde
| + |
Chapter Nine
| + |
After making sure Madam Pomfrey had the affected students safe in the infirmary the rest of the Hogwarts staff squeezed into McGonagalls office that was just down the hallway. Snape still annoyed at his sister's behaviour at dinner tried to get as far away from her as possible and she didn't seem too keen to be standing anywhere near him either.
Her mind was ticking into overtime and she wondered if the mass poisoning had come into effect after his lengthy conversation with one particularly nasty Malfoy at a certain Quidditch match. She was always first to suspect her brother at anything sinister (worse than Ron at jumping to conclusions) and she scowled at him, her arms crossed and her eyes filled with hate.
Dumbledore closed the door quietly behind him and Minerva gave him her seat behind the desk.
"Poppy is hopeful that the students will recover. Some have woken up but others remain unconscious"
McGonagall's face looked pinched and white. "Whatever can it be Albus? They just dropped like flies"
"I fear that our Butterbeer supply has been compromised. A sample has been sent to the Ministry for analysis"
Snape spoke up, determined that he could contribute to the investigation. "Headmaster, I..."
"No Severus. I've sent it to the Ministry for analysis"
Snape looked like he'd been slapped in the face. Sorora smirked.
"As for you Sorora may I suggest you wipe that smirk off your face? In light of things I am not at all amused by your antics at dinner tonight nor were your colleagues. When will you two learn to grow up? This is not the playground where you pull each other's hair and throw fruit. The school is under siege. And if you two don't call a truce and start acting like the grown ups you're supposed to be I will send you both away. Having ridiculous sibling spats in front of the student body in times like these are highly inappropriate. They will be looking to us for reassurance and stability, something neither of you are instilling in me at this moment"
The other professors in the room shuffled nervously. It wasn't often that Albus lost his cool like this in front of a lot of people. Normally if he wished to speak to certain people about their behaviour he would take them aside privately. Obviously there was no time for this. He gestured for them to shake hands to cement the truce.
The siblings stepped towards one another reluctantly with hands outstretched. Identical stormy looks on their faces.
"Truce" they said at the same time in the same sullen tone.
"Right. Now if we could put into action the same measures as during the threat of the Basilisk and Sirius Black. Students will be lead to each class by a teacher, no wandering around the school or grounds and so on and so forth. Teachers and faculty staff will patrol the castle in four-hour blocks outside of class times. Professor Sinistra you, Professor Palgetti and Madam Hooch are to take the first block starting effective now. I suggest you split up and cover certain floors. Could Heads of House please go to your respective common rooms and set down the rules for the students. It's important that panic is squashed and morale is instilled. Voldemort has penetrated our defences but he has yet to break our spirit!"
The professors all left the room except two. Professor Snape was looking at the Headmaster but it wasn't in anger. It was with curiosity.
"Headmaster I'm curious as to why you sent the sample to the Ministry to be analysed. You know that I have the proper equipment and supplies here to do my own procedures on it"
"I do Severus. But I thought perhaps sending it to the Ministry would finally wake old Cornelius Fudge up to the fact that Voldemort has indeed risen and is plotting his revenge on the world. He can spend the rest of his life with his head stuck in the sand as far as I'm concerned but for the good of the magical community he has to act now. Evidence glaring him in the face like that cannot be ignored"
| + |
Hermione held up the other thing so they could see it clearly. It was a half empty bottle of Butterbeer. "This is the one Susan Bones was drinking from before she passed out. If the Butterbeer was indeed poisoned then this is our clue"
Harry caught on. "And you want us to sneak out of the common room to somewhere we can analyse it, without being caught by any teachers patrolling the castle"
"Exactly"
"Girl's bathroom, here we come," said Ron.
Once they arrived in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom Hermione headed straight to the fourth cubicle to retrieve a cauldron she had kept there ever since second year 'just in case'. Ron poured the Butterbeer into the cauldron and sat down next to Harry.
Hermione rolled up her sleeves and seemed to be concentrating on something very hard. Harry and Ron just looked at each other curiously.
"Ah, Mione. How are we going to find out what the poison is?" Ron asked.
The Prefect screwed up her nose as if trying to remember something. "Sssh. There's an incantation that I read about in a Transfiguration book in the library that will reveal what ingredients the potion contains. It's a lot quicker than using formal testing methods which no doubt whoever is analysing it will be doing. I'm just trying to remember what the incantation is"
Ron's eyes seemed to pop out of his head. "You can do that? Figure out ingredients with just an incantation?"
"Ron, it's Hermione"
"Oh yeah, I forgot"
"Okay here goes" The words she uttered were terrible, and not fit to be repeated here. The power in them alone would make one shiver in fright. The cauldron in front of them started to bubble violently and spit little flecks into the air. They all stood back a bit as smoke began forming and a list of ingredients painted itself in the air.
"Oh blast it" That was the closest Hermione ever came to swearing and Ron raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"The potion must have had a protection spell cast on it, an ingredient revealing charm won't work on it. All it's giving me now is the ingredients of Butterbeer" But as she spoke two words floated up in front of their faces. "Conlabor Imbibo"
Ron looked at it uncertainly, his skin prickling. "What's that?"
"I think it's the name of the potion," answered Harry. "Mione?" He turned to her and she looked horrified.
"I think you're right Harry. Conlabor Imbibo. If my Latin serves me correctly it means to drink, to suck in, death. Someone put that potion in the Butterbeer to kill the students"
"Then why aren't they dead?"
"It must be diluted, just to give Dumbledore and everyone a scare. A calling card from You Know Who to let us know that we're not safe even at Hogwarts"
"Well we already knew that"
"Yeah. We better get to the library then. Learn more about this potion" said Ron. Harry looked at him oddly. "What? I'm not allowed to suggest the library once in a while. Hermione's right, you can learn an awful lot in there"
"Come on you two, stop wasting time" Hermione flung the invisibility cloak over the three of them and they headed towards the library.
| + |
Author's note: Thanks again Corrie :o) Not sure if this chapter is as 'fab' as the last one, but I try!
