"We need to talk. Come with me to the Prefect's bathroom," she whispered.
"Breaking the rules, Herm?" Gris grinned.
"Normally I wouldn't but a jacuzzi full of bubbles is conducive to conversation," she said.
"Right," Gris replied and they left the tower. They tiptoed their way to the bathroom.
"Tittilandus," Hermione said to the mermaid. She moved out of the way and they went in.
"Take that one over there, but don't go past the mirrors," Hermione instructed.
"Why?" Gris asked.
"That's the boys' side," she replied.
"Right," her cousin said. She started the water and bubbles. She hopped in and nearly fell over. Hermione laughed.
"The bubbles make the bottom slippery," she said.
"So I gathered," Gris said, sitting down gingerly. "You wouldn't happen to have half dressed Swedish masseurs would you?"
"That's exactly what I want to talk about," Hermione said, getting into her tub.
"Half dressed Swedish masseurs?"
"No, your flirting," she said.
"Please, I haven't done that since Fred," Gris said, blowing bubbles off of her hand.
"You must be doing something to get two guys fighting over you," she said. "You're never happy with one person. You were with Fred and you started with Harry. You were with Harry and then the thing with Lupin comes up. Can't you just stick with one?"
"I can't control how they feel about me," Gris said.
"But you don't have to encourage them. You could have said no to Lupin," Hermione insisted.
"You say no to him," Gris said. Hermione sighed.
"You just aren't seeing this, are you?"
"I know what you want. You want me to go with Harry. What's in it for you?" Gris asked.
"Nothing. He's my friend and I don't want to see him hurt," she replied simply.
"I think it's too late for that. Besides, shouldn't you be focusing on your love life instead of mine?"
"What do you mean?" Hermione questioned. Gris leaned over to her cousin's tub.
"A girl as smart as you should be able to see that Ron turns pink every time he sees you, sits next to you every chance he gets, and the like. It's totally blatant," she said.
"Stop trying to change the subject," Hermione said.
"Don't deny what you can see in front of your own face," she said.
"Well I," Gris stopped Hermione's retort.
"Do you hear that?" she asked. Hermione looked around.
"Hear what?"
"That singing," Gris said. "Wait here." She pulled a bathrobe off one of the hooks and got up. She went over to the mirrors and peeked behind one of them. On the boys' side were three angelic looking women. They were singing, but Gris could barely hear them. She knew instantly what they were.
"Sirens," she ran back to Hermione. "Wake up the other female prefects and get McGonagall. Whatever you do, don't let any men within ten feet of this door," Hermione nodded.
"What are you going to do?"
"See if they've drowned anyone yet," she said. Hermione left the bathroom and Gris crossed over to the boys' side. What she saw almost scared her to death.
The sirens had caught someone and were holding him under. There was only one way to kill a siren. Gris was going to have to sing. She racked her brain and burst out into the first one that popped into her head. The sirens stopped and stared at her. Gris sang louder. One vaporized almost instantly. The other two covered their ears. Gris yanked one's hands off its ears and sang as loud as she could. That one vaporized, leaving one left. She tried to run, but Gris tackled her and used the final note to destroy her. She ran back to the tub to save the boy they'd caught. She plunged in the water and pulled him out. When she got him on his back, she gasped. It was Ron.
"Oh no," she whispered. She rolled him on his side and gave him a few firm slaps on the back. He coughed once and then again, spitting water.
"That's it, keep coughing," she said. He pushed himself up onto his hands and knees and gave a few feeble hacks.
"What...happened?" he coughed.
"Somebody let sirens in and they caught you," she replied.
"Sirens?" he said. She nodded. Ron sat up and wiped his face. Then Hermione, McGonagall, and the other female Prefects came running in.
"Ron?" Hermione said.
"He's okay, he's a little wet but I got to him before they could finish him off," Gris said, helping him up.
"Where are the sirens?" McGonagall asked.
"I killed them," Gris said.
"How do you kill a siren?" One of the Prefects asked.
"They hate the sound of women's voices. Singing will kill them. Of course one could argue the worse the singer the faster they're destroyed," she said. "Seventh year Defense Against the Dark Arts."
"I'm impressed Granger. Seventy points to Gryffindor for your knowledge and heroics. Now, let's all go back to bed," McGonagall said. They walked out of the bathroom and saw Dumbledore, Snape, and Lupin standing there with their hands over their ears.
"It's okay gentlemen. The sirens have been disposed of by Miss Granger," she said.
"Excellent work," Dumbledore said. "I trust points have been awarded." McGonagall nodded.
"Now, to bed," Lupin said. The Prefects dispersed and Gris watched as Ron and Hermione walked off, chatting away. She smiled and went to get her clothes out of the bathroom.
"Good work tonight," Lupin said behind her. Gris jumped.
"You startled me," she said.
"Sorry," he said. "How did you know the sirens were even here?"
"I heard them," she said.
"Are you sure?" he said.
"Positive,"she replied.
"Didn't Aidan teach you? Only men can hear the song of a siren," he said.
"Maybe I'm just special," she said. Lupin waited for a moment and then opened his mouth.
"Have you ever had sex?" Gris nearly dropped everything she was holding.
"That's a bit...forward," she said, still surprised.
"No, I only ask because a woman 'untouched' by a man can't hear a siren. That would be the only reason you could hear it and your cousin couldn't," he said.
"Oh," she said. Gris wasn't especially interested in giving him the litany of her sexual history in a bathroom at one in the morning. However, he seemed uninterested in pressing the issue.
"I'm going back to bed," he said.
"Okay, good night," she said.
Friday morning dawned rainy and cold. No one was in a particularly cheery mood. Hermione and Gris were dozing off from lack of sleep. Ron was still harried from his incident the night before and Harry just said nothing.
"Pass me some orange juice," Gris asked groggily. Harry poured some and passed it to her. She took a couple of sips and began coughing.
"Are you okay?" Hermione asked. Gris nodded as she coughed a few more times. She swallowed and held up her hand for them to wait. Suddenly her eyes rolled back in her head and she fell off the bench onto the floor.
Lupin and Snape saw it from the teacher's table. Lupin ran down to her and Snape followed close behind. A crowd had formed around the unconscious Auror.
"Out of the way," Snape barked. He leaned over her and smelled her lips.
"She's been poisoned. We need to get her to the hospital wing," he said.
"Too far," Lupin said.
"What do you suggest?" Snape asked. Lupin picked Gris up and looked square at Snape.
"Follow me," he said. He ran as fast as he could out of the Great Hall, Snape struggling to keep up. Lupin ran up to his room in the Professor's Tower. He lay her down on her stomach in the center of the bed.
"Can you help her?" Lupin asked.
"I have some abezol in my office. It should bring her back," Snape replied. "Give me five minutes." Lupin nodded.
"Go,"
Downstairs, everyone was buzzing over who could have poisoned Gris.
"Maybe it was Draco," Hermione suggested.
"Or any Slytherin for that matter," Ron said. "What do you think, Harry?" Harry was staring blankly at Gris's half full glass. It was bubbling unnaturally. One single tear rolled down his face.
"It was me," he said.
"What?" they cried. "Why?"
"After I saw her with Lupin, I thought if I can't have her then no one could. I can't believe I did that," he said. "I've been feeling funny ever since I accidentally hit her."
"How funny? Like sick funny?" Hermione asked.
"I've been thinking things I wouldn't normally think, evil things. Like poisoning the only person I love," he said. Hermione pulled out Gris's potions manual and rifled through it.
"What are you looking for?" Ron asked.
"I think, ah ha! You have been the victim of a Transfer poison," she said.
"A what?" Harry asked.
"Did you cut yourself when you hit her?"
"I cut my hand," he replied.
"Your anger in that hit combined with Gris's evil heritage, which would be in her saliva, caused it. Basically, you have a small amount of evil circulating in your blood. It's extremely rare and we're going to have to ask Snape for the antidote," she explained.
"Oh, great," Ron groaned.
"If he saves Gris, I'll tell her and she can get him to do it," Hermione said.
"Wait, if?" Harry said.
"If," Hermione repeated. They all sat there, looking nervous and hoping their hated Potions Master could save her.
Back upstairs, Snape was wielding a large syringe full of milky liquid.
"You're going to have to restrain her. She'll panic when she comes back and we don't need her hurting herself or either of us," Snape explained.
"Okay," Lupin said. He crawled on the bed and lay on top of Gris.
"Get ready," Snape warned. He opened her mouth and squeezed it down her throat. She didn't move for a few seconds and then suddenly she began thrashing around and screaming.
"It's okay, you're fine, calm down," Lupin grunted, trying to comfort her and hold her down at the same time. "Just breathe." Gris stopped, panting.
"What happened?" she asked.
"You were poisoned. You're in my room now. Professor Snape brought you back," he explained.
"Okay," she replied, still digesting the information. Snape stood wordlessly in the corner.
"I'm going to get up now," Lupin said.
"No, stay," Gris pleaded. His body on hers was a comfortable pressure. She felt safe with him there.
"As you wish," he said. Gris closed her eyes and Lupin ran his fingertips up and down her forearm.
"Thank you, Severus, for bringing her back," he said. Snape stopped in the door.
"I didn't do it for you. I did it for Grissa," he said and left the room.
"Liar," Grissa said. Gris didn't reply. She was already asleep.
It took a considerable amount of begging, but Snape finally agreed to brew the antidote for Harry. Late Friday night he delivered it and Harry was back to himself again.
"This better work, it cost us twenty bloody points," Ron said.
"That's what I'm thinking," Harry said right after he drank it. Gris came stumbling in with the help of Lupin. She still wasn't totally over the effects of the poison. He helped her into one of the chairs and, seeing Harry and Ron, left without a word.
"Gris! I still haven't thanked you for saving my life," Ron said. She looked at him weakly.
"No problem," she said.
"Chocolate frog?" he offered.
"No, thank you," she said. "Snape said I shouldn't eat until tomorrow."
"Okay," he said. He went back to his Potions homework. Harry got up and knelt before Gris as if she were about to deal his death blow.
"I'm so sorry," he began, his voice shaking.
"For what?" she asked.
"I'm the one who poisoned you. I wasn't myself and I went crazy. I'm so sorry for what happened. I deserve your hatred," he said.
"What?"she said.
"Crucio me or tell Dumbledore everything. I have to pay for what I did to you," he said. Gris put a cold hand over his.
"You've died a thousand deaths today with all that has happened. You've punished yourself more than I ever could," she told him softly.
"But, I don't understand. Aren't you angry?" he asked.
"Harry, I am your Auror, your love, and above all your friend. I know why you did it because I know you better than you know yourself. I knew about the poison, but I said nothing. You learned today not to be impulsive and get angry. Now you know to look for the root of strange thoughts. Sometimes it isn't as obvious as we'd like. Remember that," she said. "Now if you two could help me to my room, I'd like to go to bed." They scrambled up, eager to help her to her room.
Saturday was a Hogsmeade day. Everyone was excited. This would be the third years' first trip to the wizarding town. Gris had gotten most of her strength back and decided to make the trip. Lupin would be coming along to make sure she was okay. That made Harry, Ron, and Hermione uncomfortable.
"I feel like he's always watching us or something," Ron said as they walked down to the village.
"I can't picture Gris and him together," Harry said.
"I can," Hermione chimed in. They stopped and stared at her.
"Have you gone totally off your rocker?" Ron asked.
"I was thinking about it last night. Who better to be with her than a Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher?" Hermione said.
"Aren't you forgetting about Harry?" Ron questioned.
"Harry, I don't mean to be rude, but they're perfect together. Didn't you see the way he carried her out of the Hall yesterday?" she said.
"Harry would have done the same thing," Ron said.
"If he hadn't been the one who tried to kill her. I bet you anything he'll propose by Christmas," she said.
"What if Harry proposed first?" Ron asked. They both started talking at once. That progressed into shouting.
"Shut up! Both of you!" Harry barked. They jumped and fell silent.
"Stop talking about it. We're going to Hogsmeade to have a good time and I don't want it ruined by you two fighting about my business," he said.
"Sorry," they said.
"Thank you," he said and they kept walking.
The chill had stayed in the air from yesterday's rainstorm. Worried Gris would fall ill, Lupin took her to the Three Broomsticks for lunch.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
"A little tired, but more like myself," she said.
"You really gave us a scare yesterday," he said. "We thought we'd lost you."
"I'm a fighter," she smiled. He gave her hand a squeeze.
"That you are," he said. He kissed her hand and then a voice echoed through the tavern.
"Remus? Remus Lupin?" They looked up and saw a blonde about Lupin's age coming over to them.
"My heavens, it is you," she said.
"Tara," he said. "What a surprise."
"It's been ages," she said. Then she caught a good look at Gris. "Who's this?"
"My girlfriend, Gris," he said.
"Oh," she said. "Nice to meet you." Gris smiled and gave a small nod.
"Would you excuse us for a moment?" Tara asked.
"Sure," Gris said, taking a sip of her butterbeer. Tara practically dragged Lupin outside by the collar.
"How old is she, Remus? Twelve?" Tara demanded.
"She's seventeen," he said.
"Seventeen? She's half your age!" she cried.
"What did you want?" he asked.
"I was hoping for a nice chat and maybe lunch until I saw that teenage tramp of yours," she said.
"She's not a tramp," he said.
"Then what's she doing dating a man who could be her father? She can't be a gold digger because you're broke," she snapped.
"Why the hell do you care? You haven't spoken to me in fifteen years," he snapped back.
"And you haven't changed a bit," she retorted. "You're still as shady as ever."
"I was shady because I knew what would happen when you found out I was a werewolf," he said. "You dumped me like a bad habit."
"Does she know? I bet you've kept it from her, too," Tara accused.
"She knows and she doesn't care. She's not like you, Tara. She isn't shallow," Lupin shot back.
"She's a whore. A dirty, cheap whore!" Tara yelled.
"Tell her that to her face, I dare you. She isn't just any girl. She's Gris Granger the Auror. She's the girl assigned to protect Harry Potter. She's the girl who can perform a Crutiatus Curse with her bare hands. Go in there and tell her that to her face. I want to watch," he snarled. The color drained out of Tara's face.
"She can't," she said.
"She can and she will. She was the victim of a Living Death poison yesterday and today she's alive. Go on, call her a whore to her face," he said.
"No matter what you think, she doesn't really love you. No one can ever really love a monster," she said. With that, she swept up her amber robes and stormed off down the road. Lupin was still fuming as he went back into the tavern.
Gris was still at the table, placidly eating a sandwich. iShe doesn't look dangerous,/I Lupin thought as he slid next to her.
"Who was that?" she asked.
"Old girlfriend," he replied.
"Oh," she said. "I went ahead and ordered."
"That's fine," he said.
"You gonna eat?" He shook his head.
"She always made me lose my appetite," he said.
"Great gal," Gris said sarcastically.
"You have no idea," he said.