The Rod of Asclepius
Chapter VIII
The doctor rose early the next morning with the intention of checking on his patients before attending his first spells class. Pinoko was still sleeping soundly in her bedroom when Kuro peeked in there before heading over to the hospital wing. He noticed that she'd been sleeping with some kind of nik-nak that she'd picked up. He carefully lifted the crystal globe that had rolled out of her grasp and placed it on the night stand.
Madam Pomfrey ran over to the doctor the moment he entered the room that had been set aside for the patients under his care.
"I was just about to send for you, Doctor!" she cried out. "Our patients were spirited away in the middle of the night!"
It was obvious that the four beds were now empty. None of the night staff in the hospital wing had noticed anyone entering or leaving the room and the guard that had been stationed in the hallway hadn't seen any of the four patients moving about.
"I was expecting something like this to happen," the doctor replied, "Though I was certain that it would not be for a few more days at least."
"You should have mentioned that, we could have increased security in this wing." Pomfrey replied.
"Perhaps, though I don't think that it would have made much difference." The doctor said as he hurried about the room drawing the shades over the windows. "Would you please extinguish the lights?" he asked as he reached into his pocket for the wand.
Madam Pomfrey quickly reached for her own wand and ordered the room lights to go out. "What are you trying to do, doctor?"
"I want to see just how our patients were removed from our care." he said holding the wand in his outstretched right hand. "I'm not sure if this is going to work, but perhaps I can look back a few hours in time ..."
Kuro held his left hand over his eyes and concentrated. He didn't utter a sound as he imagined going back in time and standing in the darkened room during the previous night. The tip of his wand glowed a golden color, and a mist started to flow from it and fill the room. Within the mist a holographic image formed.
Madam Pomfrey and the doctor watched as the image in the mist slowly sharpened in focus and became clearer. It was now two o:clock in the morning, if the clock on the far wall was correct. All was quiet except for the ticking of the clock, and the breathing of the four patients. Eventually, the quiet was broken by the scampering sound of a small rodent running across the wooden floor. It was a black and brown Norway rat, clutching silver spoon in its mouth. The rat stopped when it reached the intersection of the four beds in the middle of the room and it slowly began to grow in size, reverting to its original human form.
"I know that man." Pomfrey said. "That's Peter Pettigrew, he was a student here some years ago. He was a talented shape-shifter, along with James Potter, and Sirius Black."
They watched as Peter placed the silver key on the medical table near the four beds. He produced a wand and silently uttered an incantation while waving the wand over each of the patient's heads. Peter then walked away and shrunk back to the form of the rat and scurried out of sight. They watched the hands of the clock slowly advance. Perhaps thirty minutes after Wormtail had left the room life started to stir in the four patients. They sat up in their beds, and swung their legs out onto the floor. For a moment, the doctor and the head nurse got a glimpse of their eyes.
"My God!" Black Jack exclaimed, "They look like Zombies possessed by an evil power."
The four patients looked at each other and nodded, they seemed to agree on a singular purpose. Ron Weasly noticed the silver spoon sitting on the table, and motioned to it. All four of them reached out to place a hand on the spoon, the last one to touch it was Kiki. As her fingers made contact with the object it began to glow with a brilliant silver light that overpowered their eyes. The image in the mist became blinding, and then all went nearly dark. The four students were gone, so was the spoon that had been brought in by Wormtail. Then all went dark and the misty hologram was gone.
"What just happened?" The doctor asked.
"Amazing!" Madam Pomfrey said. "That was quite an impressive bit of magic for a tyro such as yourself. I'm impressed! As for what we have just seen, it would appear that Peter brought a portkey in the room with him, and left it to transport our patients somewhere. He also seems to have had the spell to awaken them, although it would appear that they are not in control of themselves and are possessed as you surmised."
From the windows of the corner upstairs bedroom in the Riddle house a bright flash of a sliver colored light could have been seen, if any of the neighbors were looking out of their windows in that direction. The being sitting in the large chair wasn't startled by the sudden apparition in the middle of the room, he had been expecting it.
"Welcome!" he cackled in an evil voice to the four zombie like youngsters now standing in the room in their nightshirts. "So good of you to drop in on me!"
Looking about the room he added, " Wormtail, Where are you!"
The quivering excuse for a human being that was Wormtail nervously entered the room from the far door. "I've done as you asked, master!" he said with much fear.
"Yes, and this time all seems to have gone according to plan." came the voice from deep in the chair. "Now perhaps we can spring our trap for Potter."
Doctor Black Jack and Pinoko were among the last of the stragglers that entered the main dinning room for breakfast. Albus Dumbledore motioned from across the room for the doctor to join him at his table, where Augustus Slytherin and Minerva McGonagall were also seated.
"It seems that there has been a rather worrisome turn of events during the night." The headmaster said.
"News seems to travel fast around here." the doctor answered.
"I had instructed Madam Pomfrey to keep me informed of events." Dumbledore explained. "I also understand you discovered how to time vision without any instruction, most impressive! So it now appears that whoever is really behind this so called disease has showed their hand."
"I was expecting something of the sort." The doctor said. "Though not for a few more days. Things are happening at a quicker pace than I had expected."
"I think we may very well find ourselves facing a much more serious situation rather quickly." The headmaster said.
The doctor nodded his head in agreement and looked around him. Pinoko who was sitting next to him was toying with the crystal sphere that the doctor had found her sleeping with a few hour ago.
"You've been rather quiet, Pinoko." he said, "Not that I'm complaining, but that's rather unusual for you. Are you OK?"
The doctors young assistant turned toward Kuro and yawned. "I'm OK, but I had some strange dreams last night." she said, turning her head away to gaze again into the crystal.
"Looks like we have ourselves a new Scryer," Professor McGonagall said as she got up from her seat and moved closer to Pinoko. "Look into my eyes, child," she said, placing her hand under Pinoko's chin to lift her head up. As their eyes met, McGonagall took the glass ball out of Pinoko's hands and placed it into the pocket of the doctor's robe. Pinoko smiled at the professor, and then suddenly exclaimed, "I'm hungry! Let's eat already!"
"Indeed!" Dumbledore exclaimed, as he stood up and waved his hands. At every table in the room, plates containing bread, fruits, and sliced meats appeared. Huge steins of Butterbeer, milk and apple cider materialized. "Dig in!" the headmaster ordered, and the breakfast began.
McGonagall found the doctor's ear and whispered into it. "There is something wrong with that bauble that Pinoko was playing with. I've put it into your pocket for now, it may be a clue to what is going on."
Forty minutes later the crowd hurried out of the great room bound for their first classes of the morning. Pinoko had a large smile on her face of one who was totally satiated. She suddenly emitted a loud belch, and quickly covered her mouth with her hands.
"I see you enjoyed the Butterbeer!" the doctor laughed, "but perhaps three steins full was a bit too much."
"Maybe, but it was delicious!" she said, "Even better than a parfait!"
The doctor and Pinoko made their way back to their room and entered. Black jack picked up a pile of books and stuffed them into a leather satchel. "I'm going to be attending a few classes this morning, and you are going to have to remain here," he told Pinoko. "For the moment we don't seem to have any patients, though that could change."
"You mean I'm stuck in here all day?" the young girl complained.
"We'll see." The doctor replied. "I've been told that there will be a demonstration of Quidditch this afternoon, and that I would be able to bring you along."
"What's Quidditch?" Pinoko asked.
"I'm not sure, but I've been told it is some kind of wizard's sport that involves flying on broom sticks."
"Now THAT, I want to see!" Pinoko said with enthusiasm.
"Well if you behave and don't leave the room, you will." the doctor said.
He picked up the leather bag and headed toward the door. As he exited, Pinoko could see the glow from his back left robe pocket.