Remus found himself awake again with Dumbledore, Arthur and Harry standing over him. He'd apparently been moved to the old drawing room, but how de did not know.
"No…….. get him…… out of here" He gasped as looked at the fear in Harry's eyes. Still struggling to draw a complete breath.
"It's alright Remus. Can you tell us what happened?" Dumbledore responded.
Remus didn't know what to say, after all he'd just been out for a walk and then suddenly his world had seemed to fall apart. Concentrating on continuing to stay conscious he replied with as much information as he could. He told them in short, brief sentences about his decision to go for a walk and the sudden onset of his symptoms.
"Did you see anyone while you were out?" asked Dumbledore
"No, no one" Remus replied. Somehow keeping his eyes closed helped so he didn't look at Dumbledore. Instead he focused blindly on every word that was being said to him.
"Think Remus, think. Was there anyone else there in the park today? Did you speak to anyone, even in passing?" Dumbeldore was more urgent now.
Then Remus remembered the old woman.
"Yes…… an old woman……..bumped into each other" Remus started coughing between each breath and as he briefly opened his eyes, the room started to blur around the edges.
"You ran into each other? Did she touch you anywhere?" Dumbledore queried.
Remus mutely held up his right arm, now feeling very swollen near the elbow. Dumbeldore raised Remus' sleeve, took one look at his arm and sighed.
"Just as a I thought, looks like an entry wound" Dumbledore proclaimed to the room at large. Remus felt Dumbledore put his arm down. He could no longer keep his eyes open and he knew he was going to pass out again. Dumbledore's awakening spell was only a temporary solution and he knew in his heart that it wouldn't work a second time. He tried to stay awake but with each passing moment the room grew black.
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"What do you mean, an entry wound?" Harry asked Dumbledore as they watched Remus finally lose consciousness. He continued to struggle to breath but the pain left his face and for that at least, Harry was grateful he had finally passed out again.
"I believe that Remus was poisoned by the person he ran into in the park this afternoon" Dumbledore replied with a frown.
"Poisoned? But why?" Arthur asked.
"I'm not sure but probably due to his work in the Order. This isn't the first attack on one of our Members and unfortunately I doubt it will be the last." Dumbledore said as he rose from where he had been kneeling by Remus' head.
"Professor, if Lupin's been poisoned then we need to get him to Hospital now" Harry said with worry.
"No I'm afraid he can't be moved and we can't risk bringing anyone here. Besides whoever did this would be expecting that and has probably given him something not easily cured" and with this Dumbledore walked out of the room, seeming lost in thought.
Harry couldn't believe his ears. Not call for a doctor? What was he planning on doing then, letting Lupin die? This was ridiculous he told himself and set off to follow Dumbledore.
Harry found him in the kitchen near the fireplace, apparently having just spoken to someone in the fire. But to whom? If Dumbledore couldn't call a doctor, who else could he call to help Lupin?
"Professor sir, did you just speak to someone?" he asked as he crossed the room.
"Yes I just called Professor Snape" Dumbledore replied, eyeing Harry closely.
Snape? Harry's mind screamed the name. What good could he do? Professor Snape hated Harry and Lupin both with a seemingly equal passion. He seemed to want to go out of his way on a regular basis to hurt either of them. What was Dumbeldore thinking?
The look on his face must have communicated something for Dumbledore motioned for Harry to sit at the table with him.
"Harry have you ever wondered why I haven't given Severus the Defense Against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts?" he asked quietly.
Harry looked at Dumbledore, afraid to answer. He had always assumed that Snape either couldn't be trusted with the job or wasn't good enough for it.
Again seeming to read his mind, Dumbeldore responded to his mute reply. "No, it doesn't have anything to do with his abilities as a Dark Arts instuctor. On the contrary I believe his past experience as a Death Eater would be nothing if not an asset to the post. Who else do you know that has worked with Voldemort in the past and yet lived to tell the tale?" he asked and suddenly his eyes grew steely.
"Do you think Harry" he continued " that I would allow a teacher on my grounds, instructing my students, whom I did not trust down to my very bones?"
Harry looked down and mumbled something sounding negative. Of course he trusted Dumbledore but he also had been on the end of many of Professor Snape's tirades. How was he expected to feel about the man except the same loathing that he had been shown? But, he reminded himself, Dumbledore had trusted some people that others' wouldn't have. Who else would have hired a full- grown werewolf to instruct students in Defense Against the Dark Arts? Harry was intrigued now.
"I'm going to tell you something I've never told you before. Something that I'm sure even Severus himself hasn't yet realized. For I believe even he too has wondered why I have continued to make him Potions Master despite his rather vocal wishes for another post" Dumbledore sighed again.
"The reason is that Professor Snape is, by far, the finest Potions Master I have ever met" with that Dumbledore stopped and looked at Harry again as if daring him to deny it. Seeing no response forthcoming he continued.
"I won't let him stop being Potions Master simply because I do not want to deny my students of his teachings. Professor Snape can make the most complex and difficult potions with ease AND (at this point Dumbledore eyed him closely again) he is the best diagnostician I know. If anyone can figure out what poison was used on Remus and find the antidote, it is Severus" he said with a finality that couldn't be denied.
Harry was dumbstruck. The mere idea that Snape was actually a good teacher had never crossed his mind even in his wildest imaginings. But here was Dumbledore telling him just that. Also he realized with a shock, Lupin himself had even said something to this effect. When Lupin had taught Defense Against the Dark Arts in Harry's third year, it had been Snape who had made the wolfsbane potion for him. A potion, Lupin had said, that was so complicated that only few wizards could master it. Harry began to doubt everything he thought he knew about Snape.
"Albus I have transferred Remus to his room. I thought the poor chap would be more comfortable in his own bed. Is Severus coming?" Arthur asked, walking into the room right then. Dumbledore nodded.
Harry came to the present with a jolt, suddenly remembering why Snape was being called. He looked at Dumbledore and Mr Weasley with a fresh onset of panic.
"How is Lupin? Shouldn't someone be with him in case he gets worse?" he asked both of them anxiously and rising from his chair.
Both were about to reply but at that moment they heard the front door open. With his long traveling cloak swishing regally behind him, Snape entered the kitchen.
"I am sorry for the delay, Headmaster. I had to get well off of the school grounds of course before I could Apparate. I made sure to appear in the secluded area we discussed for just such an emergency" he said as he took off his cloak. He was carrying a large black satchel, similar to an old-fashioned Muggle doctor's bag. He glanced briefly at Harry but continued to speak to Dumbeldore.
"What has happened?" Snape asked and Harry realized that Dumbledore must have simply told him to come urgently, not risking giving too much information over the floo network.
"It's Remus, he was out this afternoon and I believe he came into contact with someone who has managed to poison him" Dumbledore replied.
With this Snape looked again in Harry's direction but the glance was so brief that he couldn't fathom the emotion or intention behind it.
"Where is he?" Snape asked.
"In his room, Severus, follow me" and with this Arthur lead them all to Lupin's room on the third floor. There they found Remus still struggling to draw a complete breath. Harry was startled to see him looking much worse than he had earlier. But Mr Weasley had him propped on pillows and this seemed to be helping a little.
Snape walked into the room and began what was apparently an examination. Harry stood fascinated by the foot of the bed as Snape first looked into Lupin's eyes and mouth, then felt his forehead with the back of his hand. He continued by stooping low to listen to Lupin's labored breathing and (to Harry's surprise) even appeared to smell his breath. Finally he stood and addressed Dumbledore.
"Was there evidence as to how he ingested the poison?" he asked.
"Yes, on his right arm near the elbow" Dumbledore replied. Snape kneeled on Lupin's right side and extricated his arm from under the sheets. With the same intensity he examined the wound closely. Then taking out a small vial from his bag, he poured a small drop from it onto the welt that had now formed there. What this was supposed to do, Harry had no idea but after a few seconds Snape stood up.
"Did he give an indication of his exact symptoms, when they started or anything of that sort?" he asked the room at large. Harry was fascinated to see that he still showed absolutely no emotion.
"Yes" Arthur replied "He said that he had been walking in the park when he bumped into and old woman. He had started to come back here when he noticed his vision getting blurry and suddenly started having difficulty breathing. He said from that moment it just got worse and worse" he finished in a rush.
Snape pondered this information for a moment.
"I will get to work at once Headmaster, I believe there is more than one poison at work here. His symptoms could mean a number of things so I must consult some references" he said.
"Thank you Severus, please do what you can" said Dumbledore and Snape quietly left the room, bag in hand and determination in his step.