Disclaimer - All JKR's, nothing mine! Except for a few characters I added.
Disclaimer 2 - Draco drawing dragons belongs to PikaCheeka. Sorry I forgot to mention that in the first chapter of MNS. I sort of adopted the idea subconsciously.
Disclaimer 3 - Severus' raven belongs to J. L. Matthews. I just borrowed him because he's such a perfect pet for Sevi and promise to return him unharmed.
The catar however are all mine and I love them so please don't use without asking me first.
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A/N - Can you believe it? I'm updating on time! . . . Sorry, the scene with Luci and the traitor just didn't fit into this one anymore. Remus suddenly had the idea to give us a lesson in school democracy instead.
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Chapter 17: A Wizarding Vote
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"I can't believe Theodore is looking for the traitor." Draco shook his head. "And he used to be one of our top suspects."
They were once again in their hiding place in the last shower stall trying to sort out all of their lists.
"And Blaise doesn't want to become a death eater." Severus grinned. "This last attack actually worked for our side."
"One less recruit won't win the war." Draco pointed out.
"No, but Blaise won't be the only one who thinks that way and once the younger students hear of our little talk at dinner, some of them will start thinking as well." Severus explained. "Okay, here's the list of classes for the third attack. You read out the list, I'll adapt our suspects list."
Draco took the list and stretched out his legs as far as the tight space allowed to make himself more comfortable.
"The first year Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors were in Herbology." he read out. "Does that give them an alibi or nor? We didn't count the glass houses as an alibi for the second attack."
"Because they could see the Quidditch pitch from there and they can see Hagrid's hut as well, so we won't let it count this time either. On the other hand they can't perform a severing charm, yet, and they also had Herbology just before the first incident which does give them an alibi." Severus decided. "The only one that doesn't have one for that time is Missy Clay."
"A Hufflepuff who's too young to know a severing charm." Draco shook his head. "The Ravenclaws and Slytherins were all in History, no bathroom breaks."
"The only chance there would be is, if Binns miscounted his students again." Severus nodded. "And considering that they're all unable to perform severing charms, I'll take that chance."
"Second year Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw had Charms."
"And most of those have an alibi for all three former incidences as well, the rest only for two. What about Gryffindor, though? We still have Quintus Palmer and Vestalia Flemming."
"They had DADA, but both took bathroom breaks." Draco said.
"What of Selina Mandrake?" The girl wasn't very suspect, but she didn't have an alibi for any of the first three attacks either.
"DADA." Draco grinned. "No bathroom break. Clarissa Chariton and Elena Wilder, though . . ."
"Were in Herbology last time." Severus interrupted. "All Slytherins of that year are cleared."
"Third year Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were in Transfigurations, but Caius Rude and Miles Miller went to the bathroom."
"Rude again." Severus frowned. "Does Miller have an alibi for any of the other attacks?"
"No, only the Muggle Studies students do for the second incident and he was in Care for Magical Creatures. Aemilia Andres is cleared, though."
"But we have to add Miller instead." Severus sighed. "Ravenclaw and Slytherin?"
"Potions. Father claims they were all in class and Dumbledore added a note that he believes him this time."
"That would clear four suspects." Severus hesitated. "The ones you picked at dinner in fact. Albus must have had good reason to write that he trusts Lucius, but how can he?"
"We're not clearing them, then?"
Severus didn't answer for almost a minute.
"Mike Marst." he finally declared.
"What?"
"We'll ask Mike Marst as our witness. He's a Slytherin friendly Ravenclaw and generally rather quiet. As a Ravenclaw he isn't that close to any of our suspects and he isn't very likely to go talking to the other Ravenclaws either." Severus explained. "For now lets just continue with the fourth years."
"Ancient Runes." Draco smirked. "We don't know who takes it, except for those who went to the bathroom."
"Which are?"
"Keith Gorl . . ."
"Cleared since the second incident."
"And Diana Bardon."
"Cleared after the first. What of Iago Orsen and Mattis Parker?"
"It doesn't say. We'll have to ask Rosetta."
"Okay, I'm still waiting for half of the fifth years' electives list. Mally should deliver it any moment now. And we know about our own year. Lets move on to seventh year."
"Wait a minute." Draco said. "We don't know who was in Muggle Studies and I could go get that fifth year list, if you want me to."
"Later." Severus decided. "I want to finish the seventh years first. And I don't think we should ask Julian for a class list."
"Who?"
"The Muggle Studies teacher. He's a hopeless dreamer and much too trusting. Almost like Hagrid in that respect." Severus thought for a moment. "Do we know anybody who's in that class?"
"No, no Slytherins at all." Draco shook his head. "I think Parvati takes it, but we might as well shout it out to the whole school that we're looking for the traitor."
"Ask Ginny then. Maybe she can find out who else takes Muggle Studies."
"I thought we weren't supposed to get anyone involved?"
"Explain to her how we're all nervous about it possibly being a dorm mate. Theodore's worries will be all over the school in a day or two anyway. That will lend you credibility." Severus suggested. "Seventh year then?"
"Our suspects the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors had Latin. Only Eudora Scattering went to the bathroom."
"According to Nicodemus Hanson all Hufflepuffs were in Potions during the third incident. He also counted all five Gryffindor girls, but only three boys. From the description it's most likely Alcott and Barnes that were missing." Severus reported. "That clears all of them. What about Ravenclaw and Slytherin?"
"Study hour."
"So Neel Ferris and Stephan LaCroix remain on the list." Severus stated. "We need the fifth years."
He picked up Greenie, slipped out of the shower stall and returned to the dorm where he found four very bewildered and amused boys.
"You have to see this, Severus." Theodore greeted him. "This crazy house elf keeps popping in and out of the room every few seconds."
Severus groaned. "Oh no, Mally!"
"You know her?"
"Yes, she's a particularly hard case." Severus sighed. "Too clumsy for almost anything so the headmaster gives her all sort of busywork to keep her from getting depressed. She's supposed to deliver my latest detention slip, but Dumbledore told her to do it in private, so she must be waiting for you to leave."
"So you're kicking us out of the room now?" Blaise frowned.
"Unless you want her to keep popping in all night." Severus smirked. "Or do you want her to catch you while you're changing?"
Blaise actually blushed.
"Come on, guys." Theodore suggested. "Lets check what Lupin's up to today. Maybe he's got something interesting again."
Blaise grumbled a little, but did follow the others down to the common room.
Only a few seconds after they had left Mally popped in again. Severus held out his hand, but Mally shook her head.
"No, no, no. Headmaster Sir is says, puts next to bed when nobody be there. Mally is good elf. Mally does exactly what headmaster Sir is tells Mally." she declared and popped right out again.
"Sniff?" commented Greenie wrinkling his little green nose at the spot where Mally had just disappeared.
Severus had no other choice than to return to the bathroom and tell Draco the whole story. Draco of course found it very amusing and when Severus tried again ten minutes later the parchment was lying next to his bed as promised.
"Okay," Severus said as he once more returned to the bathroom. "We already know that the Ravenclaws who had study hour during the third incident were Bianca Gale and Dunja Downs. For Slytherin we have Hieronymus Mattels, Patrick Syrer and Nicholas Elvers. The rest of the Slytherins were in Care for Magical Creatures during both the first and the third attack."
"The Slytherins had a study hour this time, so none of the three has an alibi and they should have had that cancelled Latin class during the second attack." Draco reported.
"Among the Ravenclaws we have some that had Muggle Studies, which doesn't give them an alibi for the third attack, but does for the first one." Severus continued.
"And they all were in Latin this time." Draco confirmed. "Including Gale and Downs."
"Lets take a look at the Hufflepuffs then." Severus unrolled Mally's list and noticed that some sort of liquid had apparently been spilled over it. Luckily the pencil had proven to be very water resistant. "Andrews, Norbert," he read out. "Divination and Ancient Runes. No alibi, but I can't see him working for the dark lord."
"Why? Which one is he?"
"That tiny dark haired Hufflepuff who keeps misplacing his wand." Severus answered "Usually sits with the girls during meals. Muggle born."
"Okay, lets forget him then. Who else?"
"Beretti, Tonio, Muggle Studies and Divination." Severus reported. "I call him Dreamer Beretti. He can sit motionless and look straight at you for an hour and not hear a word you say. Anyhow, he has an alibi for the first incident. Then we have Dorrel, Lara, with the same subjects and the same alibi, Lindsey, Nala, with Muggle Studies and Arithmancy, and another Muggle born called Mason, Olivia, with Divination and Ancient Runes. Olivia is a bit distanced from her classmates and doesn't have an alibi, but does appear to be your usual socially inclined and friendly Hufflepuff."
"She'd better be." Draco grumbled. "Ginny's picked her for her latest effort at finding a best friend. From what she says it seems Nala's trying to push them together."
Severus nodded. "Sounds like a typical Hufflepuff idea. And it might just work. They're both the ones left on the side in a group of five, though Olivia has never been as left out as Ginny. If they can find some common points to start from, they'll probably do each other good. Next we have Meyer, Doris, an immigrant from Germany, who takes Divination and Ancient Runes and Katarina Orloff from Russia, with Muggle Studies and Arithmancy."
"Why didn't those two go to Durmstrang?" Draco asked surprised.
"Well, Doris, like I said, is an immigrant. In other words she was born in Germany and German is her first language, but her family lives here. In Katarina's case I don't know, but for some reason her parents must have decided they dislike Durmstrang. They probably chose Hogwarts, because Katarina doesn't speak French."
"Do you think Doris could be our traitor, then?"
"She's Muggle born, no connections with the dark arts." Severus sighed. "Very unlikely, but possible. All the Hufflepuffs are rather unlikely suspects. Next we have Rost, Herbert, called Herb, the herbal expert. According to Sprout he's almost as good with plants as Longbottom and he has more theoretical knowledge. She says he knows an entire plant encyclopaedia by heart. He also memorises texts from his Potions book excellently, but stutters so badly I don't usually have the patience to let him recite them. His written works are excellent, though."
"So what electives does he take?"
"Muggle Studies and Divination." Severus answered with a slight frown of distaste. "Not the best choice, but I suppose nobody thought to warn him of Trellawney. His classmates Singh, Rabdan and Strunks Phillip both take Care for Magical Creatures and Divination."
"Rabdan?" Draco asked incredulously.
"Yes, Rabdan." Severus repeated. "I've heard stranger names over the years. Like Draco, for instance."
"Alright, alright. Rabdan Singh cleared, okay." Draco conceded. "Who else?"
"No more Hufflepuffs. What about the new attack?"
"They had a study hour."
"Gryffindor next then." Severus decided. "We have the walking camera Colin Creevey, who takes Care for Magical Creatures and Divination. I don't know how one can divine through a camera, but then I can't divine without one either, so it probably makes no difference. Nina Ellis takes Muggle Studies and Divination. How such a self centered bitch ended up taking Muggle Studies I don't know."
"You really don't like that one, do you?"
"No, definitely not." Severus admitted. "Ermaine Walter, Muggle Studies and Arithmancy. Rather plump, clumsy boy, has problems dosing his magic. Sometimes his spells turn out so weak you think he's a near squib, and then you suddenly get one spell that is much too powerful. Luckily I don't have to deal with that much in Potions, but McGonagall and Flitwick are quite worried for their students."
"Why would the inconstant performance of one student be a problem for the others?" Draco asked surprised.
"Because when the students work in pairs or actually practise on each other explosive Walter might unintentionally hurt his partner."
"Explosive?"
"A too strong spell can be a lot like an explosion of magic and Walter causes a lot of explosions in Potions thanks to his clumsiness." Severus explained. "Mariah, the Gryffenqueen, Farson takes Muggle Studies and Divination. Maybe that's why Nina Ellis chose the same subjects. Mariah's Miss Popular and actually rotates best friends. Ginny's the only one left out of the rotation, which is why I said she's more left out than Olivia Mason. Olivia's classmates don't rotate, but they at least invite her to sit close to them and join their conversations. Merlin Fornet takes Muggle Studies and Ancient Runes. I'll never understand why that one didn't end up in Ravenclaw. He doesn't fit into Gryffindor at all. A quiet, studious loner."
"I don't think I've ever heard his name before. Is he new in class?"
"No, just near-invisible thanks to being so quiet. Ginny probably has nothing to tell about him." Severus shrugged. "Next there's Ulric Keaton. Divination and Ancient Runes. A bit of a loudmouth with no interest in Potions and no will to work for his grades either. A typical Gryffindor, really. Janus McGregor, Muggle Studies and Divination. I sometimes think that boy secretly has an identical twin. Sometimes he's diligent and a little snappish and on other days he won't stop chatting with his neighbour long enough to even open his book."
"Ginny doesn't like him." Draco reported. "At least that's the feeling I get when she talks about him. She's never actually said so."
"The one that doesn't have an alibi is Keaton, though." Severus commented. "The next one that doesn't is Ambrosia Melter, the younger sister of Zachary Melter. She's not quite as bad as her brother, but a lot more likely to talk in class, especially when sitting next to Mariah Farson. She too takes Divination and Ancient Runes as does Bibiana Morris, the shiest Gryffindor I've ever seen, but at least she isn't as snotty as her friends. She's the one of the quartet I can almost stand."
"Ginny says they're all snobs."
"Mariah's the boss and she is a snob. So's Nina. Bibiana and Ambrosia will do whatever Mariah says." Severus explained. "Ginny doesn't have an alibi either, by the way. She takes Arithmancy and Ancient Runes."
"She didn't want to get bitten by any of Hagrid's animals or have her death predicted by Trellawney and Hermione told her those two subjects were her favourites." Draco grinned. "She likes Ancient Runes, too."
"Nothing wrong with the subjects and I'm not really suspecting her of trying to kill her brother's best friend. Where were the Gryffindors today?"
"Latin. Bathroom breaks for Ulric Keaton and Ambrosia Melter."
"Both without an alibi, but it clears Bibiana and Ginny." Severus commented. "Tomorrow we'll have to try to catch Marst and Rosetta and you have to ask Ginny about the sixth year Muggle Studies class. Then we should have a considerably shortened list and will be able to identify the top suspects. It's time we find our traitor."
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True to his word Severus went straight to the Ravenclaw table when they arrived for breakfast the next morning.
"Marst, I need to talk to you. " he informed a small boy who was sitting a little separately munching on a piece of toast and reading a thick book full of formulas that Draco assumed must have something to do with Arithmancy.
Mike looked up and paled. "I didn't do anything, Severus, I swear."
"Of course not." Severus confirmed and Greenie gave a little snort as if in confirmation. "I just need to ask you something."
Mike gulped. "Okay, what do you want to know?"
"Not in here. Wait for me after History. Don't leave the classroom until we've spoken. "
"Yes, Sir. I won't." Mike assured him hastily.
Severus glared at him. "My name's Severus, not Sir."
"Yes, Sir. . . I mean Severus. Yes, Severus." Mike stuttered.
Severus decided to let him go and headed for the Slytherin table, Draco as usual right behind him. It was a stroke of luck that the Ravenclaw third years had History in the first lesson on Friday right before the Slytherin sixth years. After a whole hour of Binns Mike's classmates would most likely be much too drowsy to wonder what he and Severus were talking about and their own classmates wouldn't be surprised that they were investigating the third years after Draco had called them the most likely suspects at dinner the day before.
Right now Severus had different plans, though. The first lesson was a study hour for the sixth year Slytherins, so they didn't have anywhere to be and though he would have loved to return to his gummy bear experiments, Severus had decided to use this chance to catch the always elusive Professor Rossetta.
As usual it turned out to be a bad time for that. The Ancient Runes classroom was locked and remained so until the start of the lesson. Rossetta might be in the habit of always being late, but his students would have been there, if he'd had a class right now.
"So what do we do now?" Draco asked staring darkly at the closed door. "Try again second lesson?"
"Can't. That's when we meet, Marst, remember? And Binns knows my name. He might actually miss us."
"Maybe Rossetta will come early." Draco suggested.
Severus shot him a look. "Rossetta?"
"Okay, maybe not. What else can we do, though?"
"Check his office." Severus said simply.
Draco rewarded that remark with a sceptical look, but Severus marched all the way down to the other end of the corridor and knocked on Rossetta's office door anyway. Complete silence answered him.
"When has anyone ever found Rossetta in his office?" Draco asked rolling his eyes at him.
"It has been known to happen." Severus returned. "Lets try his quarters."
Though Draco could have sworn that there were voices coming from behind the door of Professor Rossetta's quarters, there was once again no response there either. As a last resort the boys even tried the teachers' lounge, but it was empty as well.
"They're all working." Draco stated dejectedly.
"Except for Rossetta." Draco sighed. "We'll have to try to catch him at lunch."
At least that was an event Professor Rossetta rarely missed.
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Thanks to their fruitless search they were the first of their class to arrive outside the History of Magic classroom. The hallway was silent. The armour that had fallen on Potter was still missing and it's platform looked oddly empty and out of place.
Inside Binns was probably droning on and on about some goblin rebellion, but the boys couldn't hear him through the closed door. Only occasional muffled laughter from the Transfigurations classroom broke the silence from time to time.
Estella arrived a minute or so after them from the direction of the library.
"I tried to find a connection between severing charms and Transfigurations." she told the boys. "No luck."
"It's probably unconnected." Severus said. "For all we know somebody might have transfigured his shoes into boots to keep the snow out."
"But then he'd have answered the headmaster's request to inform him of any magic performed in that class, wouldn't he?" Estella asked.
"Maybe he did." Draco said. "He just didn't shout it out to the whole great hall right away."
"Any luck with your third years?" Estella asked him and Draco shrugged slightly embarrassed even though he knew it wasn't as ridiculous as some of his classmates thought.
"We found out that they should have had Potions with Ravenclaw." Severus helped him out. "And are planning to ask Mike Marst whether they were all really there as soon as Binns lets us in."
Blaise and Theodore were the next to arrive, followed by Pansy, Millicent, Gregory and Vincent.
"We asked some questions about Finnigan." Alice reported eagerly. "It looks like he has a great uncle who's suspected of being a dark wizard, though nothing has ever been proven. And Finnigan visited him during the summer."
"Do you know exactly when and how long?" Severus asked her. If this coincided with Voldemort's announcement that he had an agent close to Potter, it might indeed be important information.
"No," Alice shook her head. "I only have it from my cousin Sandy, who overheard him mention it to one of his friends. Why is that important?"
"Well, if it was only a one day visit, there wouldn't have been much of a chance for that uncle to influence him, but if he stayed for several weeks, he might indeed have been recruited." Severus answered.
"Maybe Draco's Ginny could ask him." Theodore suggested. "He shares a dorm with her brother after all."
Draco shook his head. "She doesn't know him well enough, but maybe Neville would help us."
"After Finnigan set that pit bull on him?" Blaise snorted.
"Right, but maybe he told his dorm mates when he returned to school." Theodore decided. "Greg could ask him. That wouldn't look suspicious."
"Yes," Pansy laughed. "Nobody would expect Greg to play detective."
The bell rang just as Alice and Juliana joined them and the door of the Transfigurations classroom burst open and a horde of shouting and laughing Gryffindors raced out.
"Yeah, Flying time!" they heard Ulric Keaton yell over the rest of the noise.
Behind them their Hufflepuff classmates walked out more orderly and there was Ginny smiling happily beside Nala and Olivia. She ducked out of the group for a hug and a kiss when she saw Draco, though.
"Hey, Ginny." Theodore addressed her. "Do you know where Finnigan spent his holidays?"
Ginny blinked at him a little distrustfully. Theodore had never spoken to her before.
"No, I'm not exactly friends with him, you know." she answered. "He's . . . Well, a girl can't feel safe around him, though some of them appear to like that. And he won't respect, if you tell him you already have a boyfriend either. Why do you want to know?"
"No reason." Theodore was no good at playing innocent. "I just heard a rumour that he spent the summer with a dark wizard and he was in that class with us yesterday. "
Draco felt Ginny shudder in his arms. "Ron would most likely know, and maybe Hermione. I should probably warn them about him, too."
"Talking about that lesson, do you know which sixth years take Muggle Studies?" Draco asked her just as another door opened further down the corridor and the sixth year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws burst out of Latin class.
"Well, Parvati Patil does, but I think she's the only Gryffindor." Ginny answered and waved at her brother who was glaring over at them from beside his friends. "You'd have to ask her about the rest."
Harry grabbed a hold of Ron's sleeve and pulled him along towards the stairs. He sometimes shot Draco angry looks as well, but had never actually challenged him about Ginny and apparently he wanted that to remain so.
"I absolutely don't want gossip center Patil to know I investigated who had a study hour during one of the attacks, Ginny." Draco tried to explain. "Isn't there anybody else?"
"No." Ginny said a little hesitantly. "Nobody I know of. I could try asking Hermione, though. She took the class in third year, but quit after that. She might remember some names."
"Please do, but don't forget to ask her about Finnigan as well."
The Slytherins moved closer together as more and more Ravenclaws joined them in front of the door. What was Binns doing in there?
Finally the door opened and a yawning third year stepped out. His classmates behind him were almost run over by the horde of impatient sixth years, but they were too sleepy to really put up a fight and just moved a little to the side to let the older students pass.
Ginny gave Draco one final peck on the cheek and took off in the direction of the library. For a moment Draco hoped that she was going after Hermione, but then he remembered that the Gryffindors had been headed for the stairs. They usually had Herbology while the Slytherins were in History.
When he entered the class he found that Severus had cornered Mike Marst in the back row with all the rest of the Slytherins either openly or secretly watching. Poor Mike was shaking like a leaf.
"Yes, Si . . . Severus." Mike nodded. "The entire class was there. Nobody missing."
"No bathroom breaks?" Severus demanded.
"No, Si . . . Severus. Only the Alton girl, Marsha, spilled frog's blood all over herself and went to change her robes." Mike volonteered. "She really was wearing a fresh robe when she came back. You could even still see the folds from ironing."
"How long did she take?"
"About ten minutes, maybe less. The Slytherin common room is somewhere near the real Potions classroom isn't it? I don't think that's too long for running through half the castle and changing clothes."
"And Pince said she was just answering a question from Marsha when she heard that armour fall last time." Draco reminded Severus.
Severus shot him a warning glare and Draco remembered too late that he wasn't supposed to talk about the information they had from the teachers in front of their classmates.
"Well, that shoots down your theory that it's a third year." Theodore grinned at Draco.
"Not entirely." Severus commented. "I won't trust Marst about his fellow Ravenclaws and we don't know where the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were. We know that it isn't a third year from our house, though."
"Which makes me feel so much safer." Juliana sneered. "It might well be a seventh year. Why hasn't anyone checked those out, yet?"
"I'm working on it." Severus lied. "They had a study hour this time, so I have to check into the earlier attacks. It'll take some time to find out what classes they had then."
"Can't Draco just go and ask them to compare time tables?" Estella suggested. "He could say he'd like extra Quidditch practise."
"I can't afford extra Quidditch right now. Not with my father on my case because of my DADA grades." Draco hissed. "And it's Stephan's job to decide whether we need extra practice or not anyway."
"I know how to get at it." Severus interrupted. "I just can't do it overnight."
Up in front Binns was taking attendance completely ignoring the fact that most of the Slytherins were still standing.
"Guys, I think we'd better continue this later." Estella marched off to her chair.
As the group dispersed Draco looked around for Mike Marst and found that the third year had disappeared. He wondered whether he'd managed to make it to his next class on time.
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Neville was back at lunchtime. Seeing that all the sixth year Slytherins were there today he pulled over a chair from the Gryffindor table to squeeze in between Draco and Severus.
"I'm not eating sitting next to Seamus." he explained. "I swear he did that to me on purpose. He has turned so mean this year that he really scares me."
He looked a little embarrassed about it, so Draco decided to give him a little consolation.
"Ginny says he makes her nervous, too, but he wouldn't actually kill someone, would he?"
"But Alice said his uncle is a death eater." Gregory said. "And you said death eaters kill."
"I said his uncle is suspected of being a dark wizard." Alice corrected. "We just thought that that might mean that he's a death eater."
"But Seamus visited that uncle." Gregory insisted.
"That's what Sandy says." Alice amended. "I'm not sure where she heard it and she's only a first year."
"He did say something about spending a month with his uncle Baccus in London during the summer." Neville confirmed at a whisper. "Didn't want to say where in London, though, only that that uncle was really cool and knew all sorts of strange potion ingredients. He's been talking about nothing but Potions and girls, or 'chicks' as he calls them, all year."
"You're lucky you weren't in Care for Magical Creatures yesterday, Neville." Draco said. "I'd rather get bitten by a dog than attacked by that yeti."
"Harry was cured much faster than I was and nobody else got hurt." Neville reminded them. "That traitor is only after Harry."
"That was pure luck." Theodore stated. "The traitor doesn't care who else he kills as long as he gets Harry. The yeti might just as well have taken one swipe at Potter then moved on to tear somebody else's throat out.."
"Yeah, you'd better stay away from Finnigan." Gregory warned. "He's dangerous."
"You think Seamus is the traitor?" Neville asked nervously.
"We think he might be." Severus explained. "But we're also suspecting a few other people. Finnigan is the one Harry is most likely to trust, though, so we thought we should warn you."
Neville nodded. "You're right. It has to be him. That's why he's suddenly become so mean. He's a death eater."
"We don't know that." Severus reminded him. "He might just have taken on some nasty habits from an antisocial uncle and the traitor might be Stephan LaCroix, for example. He's meaner than Seamus any day."
"You didn't see his smile when that dog bit me." Neville insisted. "Seamus is at least as bad as LaCroix."
"You'll keep an eye on him for us then?" Draco asked. "Just to make sure he doesn't blow us all up in the next Potions class?"
Neville swallowed hard and nodded. It was a bit ironic to ask Neville of all people to prevent an explosion in Potions.
Professor Rossetta was apparently really skipping lunch for once and Severus finally went to Remus for help.
"He has the third years during fourth lesson today." the werewolf reported after checking the Slytherin schedules. "That's his only class today."
"I have Herbology after the break, then Charms in the fourth lesson. I'll never make it from the glass houses to Rossetta's classroom and from there to Charms in time, even if Rossetta is in class early, which he usually isn't. Do you mind if I might be a little late for your class today? If I'm lucky I could manage to catch him after Charms." Severus looked at Remus with big puppy eyes.
"You know, sometimes I find it very hard to believe you're not really a child." Remus smiled. "We'll just say I sent you to bring me a book from the library that I want to show the class. Priscilla apparently wasn't there when I wanted to get it myself."
He wrote a short note for Madame Pince and handed it to Severus.
"If you don't get the book just say that you looked for her, but couldn't find her."
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Mike Marst shot Severus a nervous look as he dashed out of Ancient Runes class. If only he'd needed the third year class list rather than the fourth year one. All he would have had to do was write down the students' names as they passed him.
"Richard?" just where was the teacher.
"Huh? Oh, hi Severus." Ah yes, under his desk. "I'm just looking for my quill. Ah, here it is. Ouch!"
Severus waited until Professor Rossetta climbed back up from under the desk holding his head. He wondered what exactly he had bumped into.
"I need a list of your fourth year students, Richard." he announced.
"The fourth years?"
"Yes, and fast please, before Remus misses me. I'll bring it back this evening, if you want me to."
"I erm . . . will be busy this evening." Rossetta blushed. "I'm meeting somebody."
"Then I'll bring it back tomorrow morning." Severus promised.
"I . . . I'll be gone all weekend."
Severus sighed. "Fine, I'll get somebody to put it on your desk in the teachers' lounge."
"Yes," Rossetta agreed after a moment. "Yes, that might work. Now where is it?"
It took him about a minute of digging through the papers on the desk to find the list. "Here, but I have to go now."
Of course so did Severus. He raced to the library almost colliding with Mr. Filch ("Sorry Argus. Urgent mission for Remus.") and rushed straight to the librarian's desk.
Madame Pince looked slightly affronted when he burst in panting and slammed Remus' note on her desk, but didn't argue. She brought him the book from the restricted section and sent him off with a warning not to run in the corridors.
Severus wasn't planning to anyway. If he arrived in class out of breath somebody might wonder why it had taken him so long to get the book. Let them assume that he'd walked slowly.
Remus was talking about wards against demons today. So that was why he needed, or at least had a use for, a book about demons.
The Hufflepuff girls shied away from the pictures Remus showed them in the book, though, and Pansy quietly stepped behind Blaise to peek at it over the boy's shoulder. Justin Finch-Fletchley looked a little green after the picture of a feeding demon and Severus noticed that Draco wasn't actually looking at the book at all keeping his eyes on Remus' face the whole time.
"It looks almost like Hagrid's half-yeti." escaped Alice at the sight of a Siberean snow demon.
That was too much for those students that had been in Care for Magical Creatures when Harry had been attacked. Blaise flinched away from the book and collided with Pansy who'd huddled closer to him, Millicent closed her eyes, Sissi squeaked and Juliana very softly asked Remus to close the book.
Remus did so and looked slowly from one student to the other trying to judge their emotional state.
"I was going to show you a small imp next week." he stated finally. "But in light of recent events, that might not be entirely appropriate. I assure you that the cage I have prepared for the creature is perfectly safe and I will ward it against severing charms. Imps aren't strong enough to kill with their claws and their poison is slow acting and Madame Pomfrey has a sufficient supply available. Do you want to see the imp, or does it worry you?"
"See it." declared Nicodemus Hanson.
"No, please send it back where it came from." begged Sissi. "It scares me."
"Coward." sneered Nicodemus. "You are pathetic."
The students exchanged uneasy glances. Nobody wanted to seem a coward in their classmates' eyes.
Remus smiled. "Maybe it's better, if we cast an anonymous vote." he decided. "We can do some political education while we're at it and vote just like the wizengamot. Return to your seats."
While the students sat back down he rummaged through the drawers of his desk and came up with a fistful of paperclips which he transfigured into pebbles. A pack of tissues became a wooden box with a small hole on top.
"Now when I call your name you are to come to my desk, take one, and only one, pebble, hide it in your closed fist and change its colour. White if you want to see the imp, black, if you don't. Keep your back to the class while you perform the charm so nobody can guess how you have voted. Then throw your pebble into the box." Remus announced. "Severus, please go first to demonstrate."
Remus waited until Severus had sat down again before calling up the next student.
Despite the slow going there was almost complete silence in the classroom as one student after the other walked up to the urn to vote.
"Oh, it's hopeless." Sissi's whisper sounded much louder in the silence than she had most likely intended. "The Slytherins and Nico will all vote for and there are more Slytherins in class anyway."
Agian there was silence.
Then Juliana slowly turned around to face Sissi. "I just wanted to tell you I voted against and I think Alice is about to do the same."
If Nicodemus was the only Hufflepuff who voted for seeing the imp that would put against in the lead by one voice.
Once they were done Remus waved them all back to the front to gather around his desk.
"Normally we would require two impartial witnesses to evaluate the votes. Since I am the only one who hasn't voted, though, I'll let all of you watch to confirm that I don't manipulate the vote." he declared and then opened the box.
It was obvious from the start, but Remus counted out every single vote anyway.
"Five for, sixteen against." he announced finally. "Should the other sixth year class vote differently, I will try to arrange the chance to visit their lesson for those of you who want to see the imp. Should they decide against seeing it as well, however, I will try to stop its delivery and have it returned to the ministry right away. Maybe we can arrange for a ministry expert to visit us and tell us about the banishing of demons instead."
Nicodemus was the only one who actually looked disappointed after that announcement.
The next Tuesday at lunch the Slytherins would learn from a very relieved Neville that the vote in the Ravenclaw/Gryffindor class had gone nine to ten against.
Blaise Zabini would put it down to the "Foolish, brave Gryffindors.", but perhaps the famous Ravenclaw curiosity had a little to do with it as well. After all there were only eight Gryffindors and at least Neville definitely had voted against.
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Pam Briggs - Ah, but if Nicodemus did it, how could Ines see him in Potions at exactly the same time? . . . Well, Mally did her best not to make a mistake, but how do you know when a room's full of students? . . . That talk unfortunately didn't make it in here. Next time, I promise.
Ezmerelda - Yes, and he's been having troubles recruiting for a while now. These young Slytherins today . . .
Aku Maru - Oh yes, Greg would have made a good Gryffindor, though he might have a touch too much Hufflepuff loyalty. The sorting hat understood his worries about disappointing his parents, though and he absolutely wanted to be in the same house as Vincent and Draco. . . . I was going to list the suspects once again in this chapter (one last time before completely throwing you all back into confusion), but somehow a completely unplanned DADA class ran away with me and filled up the chapter. I'll try to stuff it in next time along with Luci's scene. (At least he got to read his paper in peace this chapter, so he's not completely mad at me.)
EriEka127 - Thanks!
RandiWeasley - Don't worry, Sevi and Draco are still guessing as well, though they're pretty sure it's Stephan right now.
Yanagi-sen - I'll start that mini sequel I planned just as soon as I finish this. . . . well, I might just take a tiny little break first, because there's something else I need to write in German, but it shouldn't take long.)
Iremione - Hey, you didn't have to hurry that much. Friday, remember? . . . He/she didn't fully take care to protect the others, but didn't deliberately choose methods that were that unpredictable in their results either. This time he/she took a big risk and hoped that the first one killed would be Harry. He/she also didn't stay around to watch the result. Better not to be anywhere near when Snuffy runs out of targets. . . . Harry could use some help after Sirius' death as well, but he's not getting any. I guess he'll just have to deal. Maybe Hermione and Remus can provide some help. Albus certainly won't. Sevi won't bother with a Gryffindor in emotional need (though he has the experience needed to deal with kids with emotional problems.) Minerva might try, but just like Hermione, I doubt she has the experience to know what Harry really needs. They can be there and listen. Maybe that will help Harry sort himself out. . . . Maybe I can do a POV change for that certain scene again. Neville perhaps? I'll have to see what feels right for that one. It's one I find rather hard to write, so I might end up going with an offstage POV. . . . I don't think Draco would truly break down, but he'd have spent the rest of the day on that bed most likely. The entire class was shaken, though, so nobody would have found it that odd. . . . Anyone who looks more closely can see, but still the Gryffindors either don't notice, or don't know what to do with it. (And they aren't as open with the Gryffs as they are with each other.) . . . Yes, sounding board. Talking to you about it helped me sort out a few things about how to handle the traitor. You probably never noticed, because I only thought it through later, but you started a few thinking processes that helped me clarify and connect my plot hedgehogs. . . . Yes, I very much suspect you would have befriended Nico. I tried to imagine what it would be like to be a Slythehuff rather than a Huffleslyth and there's a bit of me in him. (Though I might have liked story telling sessions and I hate pepperoni.) . . . I'm not sure whether JKR doesn't like it. It's not part of the style she's chosen. Maybe it actually serves the purpose to hide some things that will surprise us in the end. . . . Arthur?! First?! I can't imagine. Arthur is a nice overgrown boy, but hardly has Hermione's intelligence. No, I suspect Arthur is quite a bit older than Luci. (Remember all the older Weasley kids!) I'm thinking of another Weasley here, a girl, most likely, might have been Arthur's sister, but more likely a cousin. . . . There are still other Slytherins that we haven't heard from. I suspect Stephan and his gang would have spoken differently, for example. But then they didn't go through the shock the sixth years did. . . . Yes, poor children. and the only one who can help them is Sevi and he can't even save them from being abused. He could really use some help, but except for Remus nobody is able to provide it and he's always had acceptance problems thanks to being a werewolf. (Maybe his stint as head of house will help that.)
Hermy - Greenie. All plot hedgehogs come from Greenie. (Which of course raises the deep philosophic question where Greenie came from. He is a plot hedgehog after all.)
JerseyPike - Sevi still hasn't even eaten a gummy bear, but we will get a look at what has him so fascinated about them next chapter. . . . Confused again? And I didn't even try to explain the Austrian school system to you. (That's a good one to confuse people with it seems. Odd it's the only one I know . . .)
Preppygirl - Sevi innocently: 'What do you mean turning the other Slyths? It was Theodore's idea to go searching for the traitor.' . . . Not telling. You'll see in only a few more chapters.
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A/N: Are our two secret agents finally on to the traitor? Will Theodore's efforts help or hinder them? And what will Remus do with his little demon until he can send it back? (Guesses about the identity of the traitor as always will be read with great interest, but not answered, yet.) Please R/R.
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Next: Severus demonstrates the powers of gummy bears on Harry, Draco discovers that Greenie is right and Lucius finally has that talk with the traitor.
Disclaimer 2 - Draco drawing dragons belongs to PikaCheeka. Sorry I forgot to mention that in the first chapter of MNS. I sort of adopted the idea subconsciously.
Disclaimer 3 - Severus' raven belongs to J. L. Matthews. I just borrowed him because he's such a perfect pet for Sevi and promise to return him unharmed.
The catar however are all mine and I love them so please don't use without asking me first.
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A/N - Can you believe it? I'm updating on time! . . . Sorry, the scene with Luci and the traitor just didn't fit into this one anymore. Remus suddenly had the idea to give us a lesson in school democracy instead.
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Chapter 17: A Wizarding Vote
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"I can't believe Theodore is looking for the traitor." Draco shook his head. "And he used to be one of our top suspects."
They were once again in their hiding place in the last shower stall trying to sort out all of their lists.
"And Blaise doesn't want to become a death eater." Severus grinned. "This last attack actually worked for our side."
"One less recruit won't win the war." Draco pointed out.
"No, but Blaise won't be the only one who thinks that way and once the younger students hear of our little talk at dinner, some of them will start thinking as well." Severus explained. "Okay, here's the list of classes for the third attack. You read out the list, I'll adapt our suspects list."
Draco took the list and stretched out his legs as far as the tight space allowed to make himself more comfortable.
"The first year Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors were in Herbology." he read out. "Does that give them an alibi or nor? We didn't count the glass houses as an alibi for the second attack."
"Because they could see the Quidditch pitch from there and they can see Hagrid's hut as well, so we won't let it count this time either. On the other hand they can't perform a severing charm, yet, and they also had Herbology just before the first incident which does give them an alibi." Severus decided. "The only one that doesn't have one for that time is Missy Clay."
"A Hufflepuff who's too young to know a severing charm." Draco shook his head. "The Ravenclaws and Slytherins were all in History, no bathroom breaks."
"The only chance there would be is, if Binns miscounted his students again." Severus nodded. "And considering that they're all unable to perform severing charms, I'll take that chance."
"Second year Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw had Charms."
"And most of those have an alibi for all three former incidences as well, the rest only for two. What about Gryffindor, though? We still have Quintus Palmer and Vestalia Flemming."
"They had DADA, but both took bathroom breaks." Draco said.
"What of Selina Mandrake?" The girl wasn't very suspect, but she didn't have an alibi for any of the first three attacks either.
"DADA." Draco grinned. "No bathroom break. Clarissa Chariton and Elena Wilder, though . . ."
"Were in Herbology last time." Severus interrupted. "All Slytherins of that year are cleared."
"Third year Hufflepuff and Gryffindor were in Transfigurations, but Caius Rude and Miles Miller went to the bathroom."
"Rude again." Severus frowned. "Does Miller have an alibi for any of the other attacks?"
"No, only the Muggle Studies students do for the second incident and he was in Care for Magical Creatures. Aemilia Andres is cleared, though."
"But we have to add Miller instead." Severus sighed. "Ravenclaw and Slytherin?"
"Potions. Father claims they were all in class and Dumbledore added a note that he believes him this time."
"That would clear four suspects." Severus hesitated. "The ones you picked at dinner in fact. Albus must have had good reason to write that he trusts Lucius, but how can he?"
"We're not clearing them, then?"
Severus didn't answer for almost a minute.
"Mike Marst." he finally declared.
"What?"
"We'll ask Mike Marst as our witness. He's a Slytherin friendly Ravenclaw and generally rather quiet. As a Ravenclaw he isn't that close to any of our suspects and he isn't very likely to go talking to the other Ravenclaws either." Severus explained. "For now lets just continue with the fourth years."
"Ancient Runes." Draco smirked. "We don't know who takes it, except for those who went to the bathroom."
"Which are?"
"Keith Gorl . . ."
"Cleared since the second incident."
"And Diana Bardon."
"Cleared after the first. What of Iago Orsen and Mattis Parker?"
"It doesn't say. We'll have to ask Rosetta."
"Okay, I'm still waiting for half of the fifth years' electives list. Mally should deliver it any moment now. And we know about our own year. Lets move on to seventh year."
"Wait a minute." Draco said. "We don't know who was in Muggle Studies and I could go get that fifth year list, if you want me to."
"Later." Severus decided. "I want to finish the seventh years first. And I don't think we should ask Julian for a class list."
"Who?"
"The Muggle Studies teacher. He's a hopeless dreamer and much too trusting. Almost like Hagrid in that respect." Severus thought for a moment. "Do we know anybody who's in that class?"
"No, no Slytherins at all." Draco shook his head. "I think Parvati takes it, but we might as well shout it out to the whole school that we're looking for the traitor."
"Ask Ginny then. Maybe she can find out who else takes Muggle Studies."
"I thought we weren't supposed to get anyone involved?"
"Explain to her how we're all nervous about it possibly being a dorm mate. Theodore's worries will be all over the school in a day or two anyway. That will lend you credibility." Severus suggested. "Seventh year then?"
"Our suspects the Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors had Latin. Only Eudora Scattering went to the bathroom."
"According to Nicodemus Hanson all Hufflepuffs were in Potions during the third incident. He also counted all five Gryffindor girls, but only three boys. From the description it's most likely Alcott and Barnes that were missing." Severus reported. "That clears all of them. What about Ravenclaw and Slytherin?"
"Study hour."
"So Neel Ferris and Stephan LaCroix remain on the list." Severus stated. "We need the fifth years."
He picked up Greenie, slipped out of the shower stall and returned to the dorm where he found four very bewildered and amused boys.
"You have to see this, Severus." Theodore greeted him. "This crazy house elf keeps popping in and out of the room every few seconds."
Severus groaned. "Oh no, Mally!"
"You know her?"
"Yes, she's a particularly hard case." Severus sighed. "Too clumsy for almost anything so the headmaster gives her all sort of busywork to keep her from getting depressed. She's supposed to deliver my latest detention slip, but Dumbledore told her to do it in private, so she must be waiting for you to leave."
"So you're kicking us out of the room now?" Blaise frowned.
"Unless you want her to keep popping in all night." Severus smirked. "Or do you want her to catch you while you're changing?"
Blaise actually blushed.
"Come on, guys." Theodore suggested. "Lets check what Lupin's up to today. Maybe he's got something interesting again."
Blaise grumbled a little, but did follow the others down to the common room.
Only a few seconds after they had left Mally popped in again. Severus held out his hand, but Mally shook her head.
"No, no, no. Headmaster Sir is says, puts next to bed when nobody be there. Mally is good elf. Mally does exactly what headmaster Sir is tells Mally." she declared and popped right out again.
"Sniff?" commented Greenie wrinkling his little green nose at the spot where Mally had just disappeared.
Severus had no other choice than to return to the bathroom and tell Draco the whole story. Draco of course found it very amusing and when Severus tried again ten minutes later the parchment was lying next to his bed as promised.
"Okay," Severus said as he once more returned to the bathroom. "We already know that the Ravenclaws who had study hour during the third incident were Bianca Gale and Dunja Downs. For Slytherin we have Hieronymus Mattels, Patrick Syrer and Nicholas Elvers. The rest of the Slytherins were in Care for Magical Creatures during both the first and the third attack."
"The Slytherins had a study hour this time, so none of the three has an alibi and they should have had that cancelled Latin class during the second attack." Draco reported.
"Among the Ravenclaws we have some that had Muggle Studies, which doesn't give them an alibi for the third attack, but does for the first one." Severus continued.
"And they all were in Latin this time." Draco confirmed. "Including Gale and Downs."
"Lets take a look at the Hufflepuffs then." Severus unrolled Mally's list and noticed that some sort of liquid had apparently been spilled over it. Luckily the pencil had proven to be very water resistant. "Andrews, Norbert," he read out. "Divination and Ancient Runes. No alibi, but I can't see him working for the dark lord."
"Why? Which one is he?"
"That tiny dark haired Hufflepuff who keeps misplacing his wand." Severus answered "Usually sits with the girls during meals. Muggle born."
"Okay, lets forget him then. Who else?"
"Beretti, Tonio, Muggle Studies and Divination." Severus reported. "I call him Dreamer Beretti. He can sit motionless and look straight at you for an hour and not hear a word you say. Anyhow, he has an alibi for the first incident. Then we have Dorrel, Lara, with the same subjects and the same alibi, Lindsey, Nala, with Muggle Studies and Arithmancy, and another Muggle born called Mason, Olivia, with Divination and Ancient Runes. Olivia is a bit distanced from her classmates and doesn't have an alibi, but does appear to be your usual socially inclined and friendly Hufflepuff."
"She'd better be." Draco grumbled. "Ginny's picked her for her latest effort at finding a best friend. From what she says it seems Nala's trying to push them together."
Severus nodded. "Sounds like a typical Hufflepuff idea. And it might just work. They're both the ones left on the side in a group of five, though Olivia has never been as left out as Ginny. If they can find some common points to start from, they'll probably do each other good. Next we have Meyer, Doris, an immigrant from Germany, who takes Divination and Ancient Runes and Katarina Orloff from Russia, with Muggle Studies and Arithmancy."
"Why didn't those two go to Durmstrang?" Draco asked surprised.
"Well, Doris, like I said, is an immigrant. In other words she was born in Germany and German is her first language, but her family lives here. In Katarina's case I don't know, but for some reason her parents must have decided they dislike Durmstrang. They probably chose Hogwarts, because Katarina doesn't speak French."
"Do you think Doris could be our traitor, then?"
"She's Muggle born, no connections with the dark arts." Severus sighed. "Very unlikely, but possible. All the Hufflepuffs are rather unlikely suspects. Next we have Rost, Herbert, called Herb, the herbal expert. According to Sprout he's almost as good with plants as Longbottom and he has more theoretical knowledge. She says he knows an entire plant encyclopaedia by heart. He also memorises texts from his Potions book excellently, but stutters so badly I don't usually have the patience to let him recite them. His written works are excellent, though."
"So what electives does he take?"
"Muggle Studies and Divination." Severus answered with a slight frown of distaste. "Not the best choice, but I suppose nobody thought to warn him of Trellawney. His classmates Singh, Rabdan and Strunks Phillip both take Care for Magical Creatures and Divination."
"Rabdan?" Draco asked incredulously.
"Yes, Rabdan." Severus repeated. "I've heard stranger names over the years. Like Draco, for instance."
"Alright, alright. Rabdan Singh cleared, okay." Draco conceded. "Who else?"
"No more Hufflepuffs. What about the new attack?"
"They had a study hour."
"Gryffindor next then." Severus decided. "We have the walking camera Colin Creevey, who takes Care for Magical Creatures and Divination. I don't know how one can divine through a camera, but then I can't divine without one either, so it probably makes no difference. Nina Ellis takes Muggle Studies and Divination. How such a self centered bitch ended up taking Muggle Studies I don't know."
"You really don't like that one, do you?"
"No, definitely not." Severus admitted. "Ermaine Walter, Muggle Studies and Arithmancy. Rather plump, clumsy boy, has problems dosing his magic. Sometimes his spells turn out so weak you think he's a near squib, and then you suddenly get one spell that is much too powerful. Luckily I don't have to deal with that much in Potions, but McGonagall and Flitwick are quite worried for their students."
"Why would the inconstant performance of one student be a problem for the others?" Draco asked surprised.
"Because when the students work in pairs or actually practise on each other explosive Walter might unintentionally hurt his partner."
"Explosive?"
"A too strong spell can be a lot like an explosion of magic and Walter causes a lot of explosions in Potions thanks to his clumsiness." Severus explained. "Mariah, the Gryffenqueen, Farson takes Muggle Studies and Divination. Maybe that's why Nina Ellis chose the same subjects. Mariah's Miss Popular and actually rotates best friends. Ginny's the only one left out of the rotation, which is why I said she's more left out than Olivia Mason. Olivia's classmates don't rotate, but they at least invite her to sit close to them and join their conversations. Merlin Fornet takes Muggle Studies and Ancient Runes. I'll never understand why that one didn't end up in Ravenclaw. He doesn't fit into Gryffindor at all. A quiet, studious loner."
"I don't think I've ever heard his name before. Is he new in class?"
"No, just near-invisible thanks to being so quiet. Ginny probably has nothing to tell about him." Severus shrugged. "Next there's Ulric Keaton. Divination and Ancient Runes. A bit of a loudmouth with no interest in Potions and no will to work for his grades either. A typical Gryffindor, really. Janus McGregor, Muggle Studies and Divination. I sometimes think that boy secretly has an identical twin. Sometimes he's diligent and a little snappish and on other days he won't stop chatting with his neighbour long enough to even open his book."
"Ginny doesn't like him." Draco reported. "At least that's the feeling I get when she talks about him. She's never actually said so."
"The one that doesn't have an alibi is Keaton, though." Severus commented. "The next one that doesn't is Ambrosia Melter, the younger sister of Zachary Melter. She's not quite as bad as her brother, but a lot more likely to talk in class, especially when sitting next to Mariah Farson. She too takes Divination and Ancient Runes as does Bibiana Morris, the shiest Gryffindor I've ever seen, but at least she isn't as snotty as her friends. She's the one of the quartet I can almost stand."
"Ginny says they're all snobs."
"Mariah's the boss and she is a snob. So's Nina. Bibiana and Ambrosia will do whatever Mariah says." Severus explained. "Ginny doesn't have an alibi either, by the way. She takes Arithmancy and Ancient Runes."
"She didn't want to get bitten by any of Hagrid's animals or have her death predicted by Trellawney and Hermione told her those two subjects were her favourites." Draco grinned. "She likes Ancient Runes, too."
"Nothing wrong with the subjects and I'm not really suspecting her of trying to kill her brother's best friend. Where were the Gryffindors today?"
"Latin. Bathroom breaks for Ulric Keaton and Ambrosia Melter."
"Both without an alibi, but it clears Bibiana and Ginny." Severus commented. "Tomorrow we'll have to try to catch Marst and Rosetta and you have to ask Ginny about the sixth year Muggle Studies class. Then we should have a considerably shortened list and will be able to identify the top suspects. It's time we find our traitor."
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True to his word Severus went straight to the Ravenclaw table when they arrived for breakfast the next morning.
"Marst, I need to talk to you. " he informed a small boy who was sitting a little separately munching on a piece of toast and reading a thick book full of formulas that Draco assumed must have something to do with Arithmancy.
Mike looked up and paled. "I didn't do anything, Severus, I swear."
"Of course not." Severus confirmed and Greenie gave a little snort as if in confirmation. "I just need to ask you something."
Mike gulped. "Okay, what do you want to know?"
"Not in here. Wait for me after History. Don't leave the classroom until we've spoken. "
"Yes, Sir. I won't." Mike assured him hastily.
Severus glared at him. "My name's Severus, not Sir."
"Yes, Sir. . . I mean Severus. Yes, Severus." Mike stuttered.
Severus decided to let him go and headed for the Slytherin table, Draco as usual right behind him. It was a stroke of luck that the Ravenclaw third years had History in the first lesson on Friday right before the Slytherin sixth years. After a whole hour of Binns Mike's classmates would most likely be much too drowsy to wonder what he and Severus were talking about and their own classmates wouldn't be surprised that they were investigating the third years after Draco had called them the most likely suspects at dinner the day before.
Right now Severus had different plans, though. The first lesson was a study hour for the sixth year Slytherins, so they didn't have anywhere to be and though he would have loved to return to his gummy bear experiments, Severus had decided to use this chance to catch the always elusive Professor Rossetta.
As usual it turned out to be a bad time for that. The Ancient Runes classroom was locked and remained so until the start of the lesson. Rossetta might be in the habit of always being late, but his students would have been there, if he'd had a class right now.
"So what do we do now?" Draco asked staring darkly at the closed door. "Try again second lesson?"
"Can't. That's when we meet, Marst, remember? And Binns knows my name. He might actually miss us."
"Maybe Rossetta will come early." Draco suggested.
Severus shot him a look. "Rossetta?"
"Okay, maybe not. What else can we do, though?"
"Check his office." Severus said simply.
Draco rewarded that remark with a sceptical look, but Severus marched all the way down to the other end of the corridor and knocked on Rossetta's office door anyway. Complete silence answered him.
"When has anyone ever found Rossetta in his office?" Draco asked rolling his eyes at him.
"It has been known to happen." Severus returned. "Lets try his quarters."
Though Draco could have sworn that there were voices coming from behind the door of Professor Rossetta's quarters, there was once again no response there either. As a last resort the boys even tried the teachers' lounge, but it was empty as well.
"They're all working." Draco stated dejectedly.
"Except for Rossetta." Draco sighed. "We'll have to try to catch him at lunch."
At least that was an event Professor Rossetta rarely missed.
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Thanks to their fruitless search they were the first of their class to arrive outside the History of Magic classroom. The hallway was silent. The armour that had fallen on Potter was still missing and it's platform looked oddly empty and out of place.
Inside Binns was probably droning on and on about some goblin rebellion, but the boys couldn't hear him through the closed door. Only occasional muffled laughter from the Transfigurations classroom broke the silence from time to time.
Estella arrived a minute or so after them from the direction of the library.
"I tried to find a connection between severing charms and Transfigurations." she told the boys. "No luck."
"It's probably unconnected." Severus said. "For all we know somebody might have transfigured his shoes into boots to keep the snow out."
"But then he'd have answered the headmaster's request to inform him of any magic performed in that class, wouldn't he?" Estella asked.
"Maybe he did." Draco said. "He just didn't shout it out to the whole great hall right away."
"Any luck with your third years?" Estella asked him and Draco shrugged slightly embarrassed even though he knew it wasn't as ridiculous as some of his classmates thought.
"We found out that they should have had Potions with Ravenclaw." Severus helped him out. "And are planning to ask Mike Marst whether they were all really there as soon as Binns lets us in."
Blaise and Theodore were the next to arrive, followed by Pansy, Millicent, Gregory and Vincent.
"We asked some questions about Finnigan." Alice reported eagerly. "It looks like he has a great uncle who's suspected of being a dark wizard, though nothing has ever been proven. And Finnigan visited him during the summer."
"Do you know exactly when and how long?" Severus asked her. If this coincided with Voldemort's announcement that he had an agent close to Potter, it might indeed be important information.
"No," Alice shook her head. "I only have it from my cousin Sandy, who overheard him mention it to one of his friends. Why is that important?"
"Well, if it was only a one day visit, there wouldn't have been much of a chance for that uncle to influence him, but if he stayed for several weeks, he might indeed have been recruited." Severus answered.
"Maybe Draco's Ginny could ask him." Theodore suggested. "He shares a dorm with her brother after all."
Draco shook his head. "She doesn't know him well enough, but maybe Neville would help us."
"After Finnigan set that pit bull on him?" Blaise snorted.
"Right, but maybe he told his dorm mates when he returned to school." Theodore decided. "Greg could ask him. That wouldn't look suspicious."
"Yes," Pansy laughed. "Nobody would expect Greg to play detective."
The bell rang just as Alice and Juliana joined them and the door of the Transfigurations classroom burst open and a horde of shouting and laughing Gryffindors raced out.
"Yeah, Flying time!" they heard Ulric Keaton yell over the rest of the noise.
Behind them their Hufflepuff classmates walked out more orderly and there was Ginny smiling happily beside Nala and Olivia. She ducked out of the group for a hug and a kiss when she saw Draco, though.
"Hey, Ginny." Theodore addressed her. "Do you know where Finnigan spent his holidays?"
Ginny blinked at him a little distrustfully. Theodore had never spoken to her before.
"No, I'm not exactly friends with him, you know." she answered. "He's . . . Well, a girl can't feel safe around him, though some of them appear to like that. And he won't respect, if you tell him you already have a boyfriend either. Why do you want to know?"
"No reason." Theodore was no good at playing innocent. "I just heard a rumour that he spent the summer with a dark wizard and he was in that class with us yesterday. "
Draco felt Ginny shudder in his arms. "Ron would most likely know, and maybe Hermione. I should probably warn them about him, too."
"Talking about that lesson, do you know which sixth years take Muggle Studies?" Draco asked her just as another door opened further down the corridor and the sixth year Gryffindors and Ravenclaws burst out of Latin class.
"Well, Parvati Patil does, but I think she's the only Gryffindor." Ginny answered and waved at her brother who was glaring over at them from beside his friends. "You'd have to ask her about the rest."
Harry grabbed a hold of Ron's sleeve and pulled him along towards the stairs. He sometimes shot Draco angry looks as well, but had never actually challenged him about Ginny and apparently he wanted that to remain so.
"I absolutely don't want gossip center Patil to know I investigated who had a study hour during one of the attacks, Ginny." Draco tried to explain. "Isn't there anybody else?"
"No." Ginny said a little hesitantly. "Nobody I know of. I could try asking Hermione, though. She took the class in third year, but quit after that. She might remember some names."
"Please do, but don't forget to ask her about Finnigan as well."
The Slytherins moved closer together as more and more Ravenclaws joined them in front of the door. What was Binns doing in there?
Finally the door opened and a yawning third year stepped out. His classmates behind him were almost run over by the horde of impatient sixth years, but they were too sleepy to really put up a fight and just moved a little to the side to let the older students pass.
Ginny gave Draco one final peck on the cheek and took off in the direction of the library. For a moment Draco hoped that she was going after Hermione, but then he remembered that the Gryffindors had been headed for the stairs. They usually had Herbology while the Slytherins were in History.
When he entered the class he found that Severus had cornered Mike Marst in the back row with all the rest of the Slytherins either openly or secretly watching. Poor Mike was shaking like a leaf.
"Yes, Si . . . Severus." Mike nodded. "The entire class was there. Nobody missing."
"No bathroom breaks?" Severus demanded.
"No, Si . . . Severus. Only the Alton girl, Marsha, spilled frog's blood all over herself and went to change her robes." Mike volonteered. "She really was wearing a fresh robe when she came back. You could even still see the folds from ironing."
"How long did she take?"
"About ten minutes, maybe less. The Slytherin common room is somewhere near the real Potions classroom isn't it? I don't think that's too long for running through half the castle and changing clothes."
"And Pince said she was just answering a question from Marsha when she heard that armour fall last time." Draco reminded Severus.
Severus shot him a warning glare and Draco remembered too late that he wasn't supposed to talk about the information they had from the teachers in front of their classmates.
"Well, that shoots down your theory that it's a third year." Theodore grinned at Draco.
"Not entirely." Severus commented. "I won't trust Marst about his fellow Ravenclaws and we don't know where the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs were. We know that it isn't a third year from our house, though."
"Which makes me feel so much safer." Juliana sneered. "It might well be a seventh year. Why hasn't anyone checked those out, yet?"
"I'm working on it." Severus lied. "They had a study hour this time, so I have to check into the earlier attacks. It'll take some time to find out what classes they had then."
"Can't Draco just go and ask them to compare time tables?" Estella suggested. "He could say he'd like extra Quidditch practise."
"I can't afford extra Quidditch right now. Not with my father on my case because of my DADA grades." Draco hissed. "And it's Stephan's job to decide whether we need extra practice or not anyway."
"I know how to get at it." Severus interrupted. "I just can't do it overnight."
Up in front Binns was taking attendance completely ignoring the fact that most of the Slytherins were still standing.
"Guys, I think we'd better continue this later." Estella marched off to her chair.
As the group dispersed Draco looked around for Mike Marst and found that the third year had disappeared. He wondered whether he'd managed to make it to his next class on time.
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Neville was back at lunchtime. Seeing that all the sixth year Slytherins were there today he pulled over a chair from the Gryffindor table to squeeze in between Draco and Severus.
"I'm not eating sitting next to Seamus." he explained. "I swear he did that to me on purpose. He has turned so mean this year that he really scares me."
He looked a little embarrassed about it, so Draco decided to give him a little consolation.
"Ginny says he makes her nervous, too, but he wouldn't actually kill someone, would he?"
"But Alice said his uncle is a death eater." Gregory said. "And you said death eaters kill."
"I said his uncle is suspected of being a dark wizard." Alice corrected. "We just thought that that might mean that he's a death eater."
"But Seamus visited that uncle." Gregory insisted.
"That's what Sandy says." Alice amended. "I'm not sure where she heard it and she's only a first year."
"He did say something about spending a month with his uncle Baccus in London during the summer." Neville confirmed at a whisper. "Didn't want to say where in London, though, only that that uncle was really cool and knew all sorts of strange potion ingredients. He's been talking about nothing but Potions and girls, or 'chicks' as he calls them, all year."
"You're lucky you weren't in Care for Magical Creatures yesterday, Neville." Draco said. "I'd rather get bitten by a dog than attacked by that yeti."
"Harry was cured much faster than I was and nobody else got hurt." Neville reminded them. "That traitor is only after Harry."
"That was pure luck." Theodore stated. "The traitor doesn't care who else he kills as long as he gets Harry. The yeti might just as well have taken one swipe at Potter then moved on to tear somebody else's throat out.."
"Yeah, you'd better stay away from Finnigan." Gregory warned. "He's dangerous."
"You think Seamus is the traitor?" Neville asked nervously.
"We think he might be." Severus explained. "But we're also suspecting a few other people. Finnigan is the one Harry is most likely to trust, though, so we thought we should warn you."
Neville nodded. "You're right. It has to be him. That's why he's suddenly become so mean. He's a death eater."
"We don't know that." Severus reminded him. "He might just have taken on some nasty habits from an antisocial uncle and the traitor might be Stephan LaCroix, for example. He's meaner than Seamus any day."
"You didn't see his smile when that dog bit me." Neville insisted. "Seamus is at least as bad as LaCroix."
"You'll keep an eye on him for us then?" Draco asked. "Just to make sure he doesn't blow us all up in the next Potions class?"
Neville swallowed hard and nodded. It was a bit ironic to ask Neville of all people to prevent an explosion in Potions.
Professor Rossetta was apparently really skipping lunch for once and Severus finally went to Remus for help.
"He has the third years during fourth lesson today." the werewolf reported after checking the Slytherin schedules. "That's his only class today."
"I have Herbology after the break, then Charms in the fourth lesson. I'll never make it from the glass houses to Rossetta's classroom and from there to Charms in time, even if Rossetta is in class early, which he usually isn't. Do you mind if I might be a little late for your class today? If I'm lucky I could manage to catch him after Charms." Severus looked at Remus with big puppy eyes.
"You know, sometimes I find it very hard to believe you're not really a child." Remus smiled. "We'll just say I sent you to bring me a book from the library that I want to show the class. Priscilla apparently wasn't there when I wanted to get it myself."
He wrote a short note for Madame Pince and handed it to Severus.
"If you don't get the book just say that you looked for her, but couldn't find her."
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Mike Marst shot Severus a nervous look as he dashed out of Ancient Runes class. If only he'd needed the third year class list rather than the fourth year one. All he would have had to do was write down the students' names as they passed him.
"Richard?" just where was the teacher.
"Huh? Oh, hi Severus." Ah yes, under his desk. "I'm just looking for my quill. Ah, here it is. Ouch!"
Severus waited until Professor Rossetta climbed back up from under the desk holding his head. He wondered what exactly he had bumped into.
"I need a list of your fourth year students, Richard." he announced.
"The fourth years?"
"Yes, and fast please, before Remus misses me. I'll bring it back this evening, if you want me to."
"I erm . . . will be busy this evening." Rossetta blushed. "I'm meeting somebody."
"Then I'll bring it back tomorrow morning." Severus promised.
"I . . . I'll be gone all weekend."
Severus sighed. "Fine, I'll get somebody to put it on your desk in the teachers' lounge."
"Yes," Rossetta agreed after a moment. "Yes, that might work. Now where is it?"
It took him about a minute of digging through the papers on the desk to find the list. "Here, but I have to go now."
Of course so did Severus. He raced to the library almost colliding with Mr. Filch ("Sorry Argus. Urgent mission for Remus.") and rushed straight to the librarian's desk.
Madame Pince looked slightly affronted when he burst in panting and slammed Remus' note on her desk, but didn't argue. She brought him the book from the restricted section and sent him off with a warning not to run in the corridors.
Severus wasn't planning to anyway. If he arrived in class out of breath somebody might wonder why it had taken him so long to get the book. Let them assume that he'd walked slowly.
Remus was talking about wards against demons today. So that was why he needed, or at least had a use for, a book about demons.
The Hufflepuff girls shied away from the pictures Remus showed them in the book, though, and Pansy quietly stepped behind Blaise to peek at it over the boy's shoulder. Justin Finch-Fletchley looked a little green after the picture of a feeding demon and Severus noticed that Draco wasn't actually looking at the book at all keeping his eyes on Remus' face the whole time.
"It looks almost like Hagrid's half-yeti." escaped Alice at the sight of a Siberean snow demon.
That was too much for those students that had been in Care for Magical Creatures when Harry had been attacked. Blaise flinched away from the book and collided with Pansy who'd huddled closer to him, Millicent closed her eyes, Sissi squeaked and Juliana very softly asked Remus to close the book.
Remus did so and looked slowly from one student to the other trying to judge their emotional state.
"I was going to show you a small imp next week." he stated finally. "But in light of recent events, that might not be entirely appropriate. I assure you that the cage I have prepared for the creature is perfectly safe and I will ward it against severing charms. Imps aren't strong enough to kill with their claws and their poison is slow acting and Madame Pomfrey has a sufficient supply available. Do you want to see the imp, or does it worry you?"
"See it." declared Nicodemus Hanson.
"No, please send it back where it came from." begged Sissi. "It scares me."
"Coward." sneered Nicodemus. "You are pathetic."
The students exchanged uneasy glances. Nobody wanted to seem a coward in their classmates' eyes.
Remus smiled. "Maybe it's better, if we cast an anonymous vote." he decided. "We can do some political education while we're at it and vote just like the wizengamot. Return to your seats."
While the students sat back down he rummaged through the drawers of his desk and came up with a fistful of paperclips which he transfigured into pebbles. A pack of tissues became a wooden box with a small hole on top.
"Now when I call your name you are to come to my desk, take one, and only one, pebble, hide it in your closed fist and change its colour. White if you want to see the imp, black, if you don't. Keep your back to the class while you perform the charm so nobody can guess how you have voted. Then throw your pebble into the box." Remus announced. "Severus, please go first to demonstrate."
Remus waited until Severus had sat down again before calling up the next student.
Despite the slow going there was almost complete silence in the classroom as one student after the other walked up to the urn to vote.
"Oh, it's hopeless." Sissi's whisper sounded much louder in the silence than she had most likely intended. "The Slytherins and Nico will all vote for and there are more Slytherins in class anyway."
Agian there was silence.
Then Juliana slowly turned around to face Sissi. "I just wanted to tell you I voted against and I think Alice is about to do the same."
If Nicodemus was the only Hufflepuff who voted for seeing the imp that would put against in the lead by one voice.
Once they were done Remus waved them all back to the front to gather around his desk.
"Normally we would require two impartial witnesses to evaluate the votes. Since I am the only one who hasn't voted, though, I'll let all of you watch to confirm that I don't manipulate the vote." he declared and then opened the box.
It was obvious from the start, but Remus counted out every single vote anyway.
"Five for, sixteen against." he announced finally. "Should the other sixth year class vote differently, I will try to arrange the chance to visit their lesson for those of you who want to see the imp. Should they decide against seeing it as well, however, I will try to stop its delivery and have it returned to the ministry right away. Maybe we can arrange for a ministry expert to visit us and tell us about the banishing of demons instead."
Nicodemus was the only one who actually looked disappointed after that announcement.
The next Tuesday at lunch the Slytherins would learn from a very relieved Neville that the vote in the Ravenclaw/Gryffindor class had gone nine to ten against.
Blaise Zabini would put it down to the "Foolish, brave Gryffindors.", but perhaps the famous Ravenclaw curiosity had a little to do with it as well. After all there were only eight Gryffindors and at least Neville definitely had voted against.
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Pam Briggs - Ah, but if Nicodemus did it, how could Ines see him in Potions at exactly the same time? . . . Well, Mally did her best not to make a mistake, but how do you know when a room's full of students? . . . That talk unfortunately didn't make it in here. Next time, I promise.
Ezmerelda - Yes, and he's been having troubles recruiting for a while now. These young Slytherins today . . .
Aku Maru - Oh yes, Greg would have made a good Gryffindor, though he might have a touch too much Hufflepuff loyalty. The sorting hat understood his worries about disappointing his parents, though and he absolutely wanted to be in the same house as Vincent and Draco. . . . I was going to list the suspects once again in this chapter (one last time before completely throwing you all back into confusion), but somehow a completely unplanned DADA class ran away with me and filled up the chapter. I'll try to stuff it in next time along with Luci's scene. (At least he got to read his paper in peace this chapter, so he's not completely mad at me.)
EriEka127 - Thanks!
RandiWeasley - Don't worry, Sevi and Draco are still guessing as well, though they're pretty sure it's Stephan right now.
Yanagi-sen - I'll start that mini sequel I planned just as soon as I finish this. . . . well, I might just take a tiny little break first, because there's something else I need to write in German, but it shouldn't take long.)
Iremione - Hey, you didn't have to hurry that much. Friday, remember? . . . He/she didn't fully take care to protect the others, but didn't deliberately choose methods that were that unpredictable in their results either. This time he/she took a big risk and hoped that the first one killed would be Harry. He/she also didn't stay around to watch the result. Better not to be anywhere near when Snuffy runs out of targets. . . . Harry could use some help after Sirius' death as well, but he's not getting any. I guess he'll just have to deal. Maybe Hermione and Remus can provide some help. Albus certainly won't. Sevi won't bother with a Gryffindor in emotional need (though he has the experience needed to deal with kids with emotional problems.) Minerva might try, but just like Hermione, I doubt she has the experience to know what Harry really needs. They can be there and listen. Maybe that will help Harry sort himself out. . . . Maybe I can do a POV change for that certain scene again. Neville perhaps? I'll have to see what feels right for that one. It's one I find rather hard to write, so I might end up going with an offstage POV. . . . I don't think Draco would truly break down, but he'd have spent the rest of the day on that bed most likely. The entire class was shaken, though, so nobody would have found it that odd. . . . Anyone who looks more closely can see, but still the Gryffindors either don't notice, or don't know what to do with it. (And they aren't as open with the Gryffs as they are with each other.) . . . Yes, sounding board. Talking to you about it helped me sort out a few things about how to handle the traitor. You probably never noticed, because I only thought it through later, but you started a few thinking processes that helped me clarify and connect my plot hedgehogs. . . . Yes, I very much suspect you would have befriended Nico. I tried to imagine what it would be like to be a Slythehuff rather than a Huffleslyth and there's a bit of me in him. (Though I might have liked story telling sessions and I hate pepperoni.) . . . I'm not sure whether JKR doesn't like it. It's not part of the style she's chosen. Maybe it actually serves the purpose to hide some things that will surprise us in the end. . . . Arthur?! First?! I can't imagine. Arthur is a nice overgrown boy, but hardly has Hermione's intelligence. No, I suspect Arthur is quite a bit older than Luci. (Remember all the older Weasley kids!) I'm thinking of another Weasley here, a girl, most likely, might have been Arthur's sister, but more likely a cousin. . . . There are still other Slytherins that we haven't heard from. I suspect Stephan and his gang would have spoken differently, for example. But then they didn't go through the shock the sixth years did. . . . Yes, poor children. and the only one who can help them is Sevi and he can't even save them from being abused. He could really use some help, but except for Remus nobody is able to provide it and he's always had acceptance problems thanks to being a werewolf. (Maybe his stint as head of house will help that.)
Hermy - Greenie. All plot hedgehogs come from Greenie. (Which of course raises the deep philosophic question where Greenie came from. He is a plot hedgehog after all.)
JerseyPike - Sevi still hasn't even eaten a gummy bear, but we will get a look at what has him so fascinated about them next chapter. . . . Confused again? And I didn't even try to explain the Austrian school system to you. (That's a good one to confuse people with it seems. Odd it's the only one I know . . .)
Preppygirl - Sevi innocently: 'What do you mean turning the other Slyths? It was Theodore's idea to go searching for the traitor.' . . . Not telling. You'll see in only a few more chapters.
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A/N: Are our two secret agents finally on to the traitor? Will Theodore's efforts help or hinder them? And what will Remus do with his little demon until he can send it back? (Guesses about the identity of the traitor as always will be read with great interest, but not answered, yet.) Please R/R.
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Next: Severus demonstrates the powers of gummy bears on Harry, Draco discovers that Greenie is right and Lucius finally has that talk with the traitor.