Chapter 15

Hermione had made good on her threat and put Morgan in detention for a week first thing the next morning. Though Morgan had tried to explain to her that she had been in the common room the entire time, Hermione wouldn't believe her. What was worse, Hermione said she was going to personally see to Morgan's detention, along with Professor McGonagall.

"How am I supposed to watch Potter if I'm stuck in detention?" exclaimed Morgan as soon as she was alone with McGonagall in the staffroom the next day.

McGonagall sighed. "You should have thought of that before you snuck out at night."

"But Professor, it's my job to follow Potter around. That's the only reason I'm even in this school! And it's not my fault that boy likes to stay out late!"

"Miss Granger is a very observant and bright girl, you know that. You should have been more discreet when tailing Potter."

"But I –"

McGonagall held a hand up for silence. "Enough. Miss Risika, you will serve out your week's worth of detention starting tonight in my office. Be here by seven. You're dismissed."

Morgan wanted to argue more but McGonagall's tone left no more room for arguing. So instead, Morgan stormed out of the staffroom muttering darkly under her breath. This was so unfair. She was only following orders – order that she needn't be given if it wasn't for a certain wizard boy, but that said wizard boy's best friend was being a real pain in the rear and hounding Morgan with detention, making her job as a body guard ten times more difficult than it already was. Gods she wanted to scream out her frustration!

Morgan was still cursing her predicament when she accidentally ran into someone in the Entrance Hall.

"Sorry," she muttered, moving around the boy.

"It's okay – Hey, you're that transfer student, right?"

Morgan looked up and suddenly realized she had bumped into one of the Weasley twins. Was he Fred or George?

"Er, yeah. Sorry about that," Morgan muttered hesitantly.

"Don't worry about it. We've been looking for you."

"We?"

Morgan nearly jumped a foot into the air as his twin seemed to have magically stepped out from behind him. "Yup," smiled the newcomer.

"Oh er…what for?" asked Morgan. She was starting to feel dizzy at the sight of them standing next to each other like some twisted mirror game.

"Well Harry told us to spread the word that our first meeting is tonight at 8," said the first twin.

"Meeting? What meeting?" asked Morgan, drawing up a blank.

"Did you forget already?" The second twin leaned in closer to whisper, "The secret Defense Against the Dark Arts meeting."

"Oh… damn. I can't go," replied Morgan in an equally low whisper.

"Why not?"

"I have –"

"Detention?" filled in one of the twins.

"Yeah." Morgan sighed. "Hermione put me in detention for a week."

"Whoa!"

"Merlin's Beard! That's harsh."

"What did you do?"

"I, uh, kind of snuck out at night one too many times…" she muttered, rubbing the back of her neck.

The twins blinked. "That's it?"

"Er… yeah?"

Identical fires of mischief bloomed in their blue eyes. Morgan took a step back, wary of what was going through their minds. They each draped an arm over Morgan's shoulder and steered her towards the Great Hall while smiling brightly.

"Don't you worry about a thing."

"This," one of the twins pulled out a half-purple, half-orange chewy candy from his pocket, "is the solution to all your problems."

Morgan blinked in confusion. "Er, what is it?"

"This, my fair lady, is a Puking Pastille," said the first twin with pride.

"You eat the orange half and you'll start puking like mad."

Morgan grimaced. "That's disgusting!"

"Ah! But wait, there's more. After you're excused from detention –"

"You eat the purple half and you're cured!"

Morgan eyed the candy warily. "That can't be good for your stomach."

The twins shrugged. "What's a little stomach ache compared to a whole night of freedom?"

They did have a point, thought Morgan. And she'll be able to meet up with the others for the secret club meeting. Hermione would probably find a way to wiggle out of detention tonight to go to the meeting as well.

She can't be mad at me for wanting to go to the meeting. After all, this club was her idea…

"All right, I'll take it." Morgan reached out to grab the candy but Fred pulled it out of her reach.

"Tut tut tut." He wiggled his finger. "You didn't think we'd actually give it to you for free did you?"

"We're trying to start a business here, my lady," said George. "We'll give you a discount as a new customer. Two sickles for a week's worth of Puking Pastilles."

Morgan folded her arms and frowned. "How do I know they actually work?"

"I can demonstrate right now."

"But you might want to step back," whispered Fred behind one hand. "He doesn't have the best of aim when he's puking."

Morgan cringed in disgust. "Never mind. Forget I asked."

"Okay, how about this: We'll give you this one for free as a trial run, and if you're happy with your result, you can come to us tomorrow for more."

Morgan sighed. "I doubt I'll be happy with puking my guts out but if it gets me out of detention then it's fine by me."

Fred placed the candy in Morgan's hand and shook it. "Glad to do business with you Miss –"

"What was your name again?" asked George.

"Risika. Morgan Risika."

" – Miss Risika."

"We hope you continue to buy our products."

"Enjoy!" They winked and sauntered off to sit with their friend, Lee Jordan.

Morgan examined the little chewy candy after taking her seat at the Gryffindor table. It was lunchtime and most of her fellow Gryffindors were almost done with their meal. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were farther down the table talking in hushed voices – probably about the meeting tonight, suspected Morgan.

She returned her attention back onto the little chewy candy from the Weasley twins. Holding it up to the light, the candy looked harmless enough. No one would ever suspect that one side would make the user puke while the other side would cure the user. It truly was a work of ingenuity if she ever saw one.

If this works I swear I'll buy a month's worth from those two….

I'm going to kill them the next chance I get, thought Morgan darkly as she laid awake in the Hospital Wing that night.

The night didn't exactly go according to plan – actually it went nothing close to how she planned!

Morgan had arrived in McGonagall's office right at seven and at quarter to eight, she ate the candy. She tried to excuse herself to go to the Hospital Wing but that was where everything went horribly, horribly wrong.

McGonagall insisted on escorting her while Morgan tried to argue between mouthfuls of puke. In the end, McGonagall won and had her at the Hospital Wing in a heartbeat. There Madame Pomfrey gave her a giant bucket for her vomit while she bustled about looking for a cure. Morgan was about to eat the other half of the Puking Pastille when the school nurse bumped into her, knocking the candy out of her hand and into the bin.

But wait, things got even better.

At that exact moment, McGonagall decided to vanish the contents of the bin.

Good bye, cure. Hello, nightmare.

Morgan spent the rest of her night drinking some horrible-smelling potion – which burned her throat and set her stomach on fire – and puking into a bin. Luckily, by midnight, the potion finally kicked in and the puking ceased.

Unfortunately, Morgan was left feeling weak and feverish. She could barely move her head and her limbs might as well have been made of lead. Madame Pomfrey said it was the side effects of the potion and that Morgan only needed to sleep it off.

"You'll be good as new by morning," said the nurse as she turned off the lights and closed the door to the Hospital Wing.

Good as new my ass, thought Morgan as she glared up at the ceiling.

I knew I shouldn't have eaten that stupid candy. Hell, I should've just manipulated McGonagall's memory into thinking I'd served detention and gone to the meeting; but no, I had to take the Weasley twin's advice. I swear, tomorrow, as soon as I get out of here, I will hunt them down and wring their stupid necks!

But as her luck would have it, she ended up staying in the hospital wing for the next three days lying in bed suffering from some form of pain or another. She kept experiencing strange side-effects from all the potions Madame Pomfrey shoved down her throat. Morgan was starting to dread the sound of the witch's office door opening. It only meant another round of choking down some disgusting liquid and then probably puking it back up.

God damn it, I need a real Healer. If only Laris was here…

Morgan knew her best friend would be able to figure what was wrong with her in a heartbeat and fix her right up. Too bad Morgan hadn't stayed conscious long enough to ask if Leita had stopped by since Madame Pomfrey kept insisting she sleep and gave her a potion to knock her out. That was probably the only potion that was actually doing what it was supposed to.

Just then, the dreaded nurse walked into the Hospital Wing bearing a steaming goblet of another round of hell. Morgan eyed the bronze cup with dread and tried to bolt out of bed, but in her haste, her feet got tangled in the sheets and she toppled painfully onto the stone floor.

"Now, Miss Risika!" exclaimed Madame Pomfrey with one hand on her waist. "What are you doing? Lying on the stone floor will certainly not help you get better. Now get back into bed and drink this. It should fix you right up."

Lady, that is the five hundredth time you've said that and I am still in the Hospital Wing! Like hell I'm going to take anymore of your crazy medicine!

Morgan tried to scramble away but Madam Pomfrey bewitched the sheets to drag her back onto the hospital bed and wrapped around her like a straightjacket. The nurse then forced the disgusting red liquid down Morgan's throat, causing her the choke as the smell of licorice and bitter melon assaulted her nose. She ended up hacking the whole thing back up and shuddered from the aftertaste.

"Miss Risika! We cannot have you spitting up every potion I give you! You'll never get better that way. I'm going to go fetch another goblet and this time you better drink it all in one gulp."

As the nurse headed back to her office, Morgan began frantically trying to free herself from her restraints but to no avail. The sheets were wrapped too tightly around her. Her arms were bound to her side and she couldn't move her feet. Morgan doubted she'd be able to even stand up straight without falling over.

Morgan flopped back on the pillow with a frustrated moan.

Laris, save me! This crazy mortal is trying to kill me!

oo00oo000oo00oo

Several weeks later,

"Ooooo! Wow, it's so big," breathed Laris, craning her neck up to try and see to top of the castle. "I've never seen anything this huge before in my life!"

Bane snorted and rolled his golden eyes. "Humans…always finding ridiculous ways to waste space. What's wrong with a simple cottage or a tent?"

"I'm sure these mortals have a lot of apprentices that need to be sheltered and tutored – unlike the Sorcery." Laris sighed. The numbers in each generation of Sorcery was growing smaller and smaller. This year the School only accepted twelve apprentices – that was half as many as the apprentices accepted when Laris first started attending the School. They were a dying race. No one was sure exactly why fewer and fewer Sorcery were born each year but Laris suspected that being cooped up in an artificial world on top of having five times the lifespan of a normal human was the main reason for her people's rapid decline. Then there was the threat that existed outside their world…

Laris glanced around nervously across the grassy grounds but then shook her head, feeling silly. What was she getting all jumpy about? There was no way she'd run into Redia here. Sure this was her first time going off-world alone but that didn't mean she'd immediately run into the rogue sorcerer, right? There are hundreds – thousands – of different worlds. What was the chance of him being on this one?

I'm just being paranoid, she told herself but that didn't stop her hands from growing damp as they clutched the strap of her brown messenger bag.

Right, I'm on a mission. I came to this world for a reason and I'm not going to let my imagination scare me off.

Determined to see this through, she marched up the stone steps and proceeded with knocking on the giant double doors. Each knock was like thunder, echoing down the stone hallway inside the castle.

Laris waited patiently for someone to let her in but after several minutes she started tapping her feet irritably. Normally, she could wait a whole hour before growing impatient but she had been feeling on edge ever since she stepped through the portal that she couldn't help her moodiness. Besides, they were supposed to be expecting her – at least she assumed they were since Morgan was sick.

Ten minutes went by and Laris finally reached the end of her patience.

"Bane, open the door," she ordered.

"Wouldn't that be rude? We'd be barging in, uninvited," said the spirit wolf.

"And we've been standing out here for twenty minutes. I call that rude too now hop do it," snapped Laris.

The wolf sighed. "Yes, my lady." The wolf got off his hunches and proceeded straight for the door – passing right through the thick wood. His body shimmered in white light as it passed through the door and in a few seconds he'd completely vanished.

"Laris, are you sure this is a good idea?" asked Leita, who had been sitting on Laris' left shoulder. "What if there are wards and spells? Bane can't undo those."

"Oh no! I hadn't thought of that! Why didn't you say something sooner?" exclaimed Laris and she hastily began pounding on the door. "Bane! Can you hear me? Bane! Are you all right?"

"Of course I'm all right. Why wouldn't I be?" replied the wolf. "Please just be patient. I'll unlock the door for you in a min –" Suddenly, the wolf went very quiet.

"Bane? Bane? Hello? Can you hear me?" called Laris anxiously. "Bane!"

"I'm… I'm fine Laris but we have a problem," said the wolf hesitantly.

"What is it?"

"The uh, door… I can't open it."

"Why not?" asked Laris.

"Is it because its warded?" asked Leita.

"No it's not that. It's just locked… we're going to need the key to unlock it."
"Oh… darn," muttered Laris.

"Would you like me to search for the key?" asked Bane.

"No that'll take too long and Morgan's message sounded urgent… Leita, how do you get in everyday?"

"Through the mail window. I follow the owls. There's a window that leads to the great hall but don't tell me you're going to go in through there! What if the mortals see you?" exclaimed Leita.

Laris frowned. "Would you please give me some credit, Leita. I am training to be a member of the Scry-Web and that means I do have a brain, you know."

"Yes but scrying and shape-shifting are two different types of magic," said Bane as he reappeared on their side of the door and sat down on his hind legs. "Scrying is telepathic magic, including illusions and wards. Shape-shifting, on the other hand, is a more practical magic that requires both mental and physical strength. You're obviously an accomplish scryer, Laris, but do you have to strength to match it?"

Laris sighed. "No… I'm not like Morgan and Matthew. I don't enjoy partaking in sweaty exercises. I prefer quiet meditation over hand-to-hand combat. But what else do you want me to do? Morgan needs me!"

Leita and Bane exchanged worried glances but they nodded in understanding.

"Very well, Laris. Leita will guide you inside. Leave you pack with me. I will find my way through the forest and meet you on the other side. This castle will probably have a bad door of some sort. Find and open one and I will enter through there," said Bane.

"Oh thank you, Bane. You're the best!" Laris knelt down and hugged him around his neck. Then she quickly removed her bag and tied it securely around the wolf, making sure the bag wouldn't get in his way when he ran. "There. All set."

"Okay. It's your turn Laris. Start off with something small so you won't get as tired. It's a long way up," said Leita and she took flight.

Laris took a deep breath and concentrated. She pictured Leita in her mind – a small, yellow canary. She held the image in her mind and summoned her magic from deep inside her to begin the change. The shape-shifting was the easy part, actually. It was the flying that nearly killed her.

Laris pumped her tiny wings wearily as she followed Leita up along the castle walls. Everything seemed twenty times as big and that included the distance to the open window. Laris had to rest twice and catch her breath. Flying was a lot harder than she'd thought. She had to constantly pump her wings to climb up and her arms were completely sore.

I should practice shape-shifting more often. I never thought I'd have this much trouble with flying…

Finally, after she had rested enough, the two canaries made it to the open window and sat on the ledge to peer cautiously inside. It looked pretty deserted but Laris suspected it wouldn't be for long. They had arrived around late morning and she predicted lunch would soon be served. They needed to use this small window of opportunity to get in and out of sight.

Laris led the way, leaping off the window ledge, descending down and landing on the stone floor. By the time Laris had returned to her original form, Leita was already fluttering by the double doors, chirping for her to follow.

"Do you even know where you're going?" hissed Laris as she hastily caught up to her spirit beast.

"Nope but at least I've been inside the castle," said Leita. "Come on. This way! There's a big door down this hallway."

But Laris had only taken a few steps into the Entrance Hall when suddenly the door Leita was referring to burst open and a very angry and stern looking woman marched in followed by three boys in matching scarlet robes. Two of them looked exactly alike with flaming red hair and bright freckles on pale skin. The third boy had jet black hair and round glasses. Laris thought the dark boy seemed vaguely familiar and it took her an extra second to recall his name – Harry Potter.

Unfortunately, the extra second she spent digging through her memory cost her the chance to hide and the stern woman spotted her standing awkwardly in the hallway.

"Excuse me, young lady, but who are you?" asked the woman in a sharp tone.

Laris flinched under the woman's close scrutiny and answered politely. "I'm here to see Morgan. She's apparently very ill."

The woman's dark eyebrows rose above her hairline and she quickly glanced behind her at the three boys she was obviously in charge of. She seemed to be doing some quick thinking and obviously came to a decision as she turned back to address Laris.

"Very well. Would you follow me? I'm afraid I must take care of some business first but I will escort you to the Hospital Wing right after I'm done," said the woman.

Laris nodded and bowed out of courtesy. "Thank you, ma'am."

The woman nodded then rounded on the three boys. "To my office, now!" she barked.

Laris flinched again and was secretly grateful that fierce tone wasn't directed at her – though she did pitied the boys.

I wonder what they did to make this woman so angry…

Just then a howl from the window sounded. Laris gasped as she realized she'd forgotten about Bane. Laris quickly rushed to the door and heaved to push the giant piece of wood open. The door creaked open just enough for Bane to slip through before it was closed shut by the wind outside.

"Thanks for remembering me," he growled.

"Sorry," whispered Laris as she caught the four mortals eying them curiously. She cleared her voice and spoke in a louder tone. "Er, sorry about this. He's my assistant you see and um…" Laris trailed off, not too sure how or if she should even explain to mortals what a spirit beast was.

Luckily she was saved. The woman scowled and ignored Bane like he was just a normal wolf and said, "If you're done dawdling, please come this way." The woman turned and began marching up a flight of stairs. The boys followed and Laris and Bane brought up the rear.

Apparently, the woman's office was on the second floor and after she directed the boys to enter, she politely asked Laris to wait outside before slamming the door in her face. After several long seconds of silence, she heard the woman's voice break out in a furious snarl as she yelled at the boys for misconduct and poor sportsmanship. There was something about a game and competition, and the word "Quidditch" kept popping up along with "Gryffindor" – whatever that word was…

As Laris waited awkwardly outside in the hall, she noted the sounds of people entering the castle from the grounds getting steadily louder. She assumed they were heading for the Dining Hall to have lunch.

"Where do you supposed the Hospital Wing is?" asked Laris as she leaned against the wall.

"No idea," said Leita as she hopped onto the window sill next to Laris. "This castle is really big. Without someone to guide us, I think we'll get lost."

Laris sighed. "This is taking too long. Morgan needs me. I have to find her."

Bane stood up and stretched. "I could try sniffing her out, though I fear her scent might be buried under these mortals'. They permeate the air and everything just seems so stuffy in here." Bane wrinkled his nose for emphasis at his annoyance.

"It can't hurt to try. Go for it, Bane," said Laris.

Bane nodded and began sniffing the air and stone floor. His head swung side to side as he tried to pick out Morgan's immortal scent among the thousands of mortal ones. There was nothing in the immediate vicinity so Bane decided to move closer to the stairs, where more people tended to traverse. He had just turned his head around the corner when someone shrieked in fright, causing Bane to jump backwards and make a hasty retreat back into their corridor.

"What is that thing doing in here?" came a disgusted, high-pitched voice.

"I don't know, Professor. But I'll catch 'em," came a scruffy reply.

Suddenly two mortals came around the corner – one was a squat, toady woman in pink and the other was a hunched back man in a brown coat with thin, gray hair. He was advancing on Bane with a broom in hand, as if he intended to beat the wolf with it. The man moved with a slight hobble and by his side was a dust-colored cat with luminous yellow eyes who also hissed at Bane as it followed its master.

"Wait, stop! He's with me!" exclaimed Laris, jumping in front of Bane with her arms out to protect him.

"And who are you?" asked the short woman, looking Laris up and down. "Since you're not wearing the school uniform you're obviously not from Hogwarts. State you business young lady."

Laris lowered her arms as she hastily tried to come up with an answer. "I, uh… I'm here to see a friend. I heard she was ill and I was worried so I came to see her. And a woman told me she'd take me to see my friend after she finished some business so she asked me to wait here."

Laris fidgeted with the sleeve of her pink sweater nervously. There was something about this woman that she didn't like, though just looking at her face was enough to let anyone know she was an unpleasant person. It was her aura… Laris could sense something dark and sadistic in this woman and it made Laris' skin crawl.

The squat woman glanced at the door on Laris' left and scowled. "So you're waiting for Minerva," she muttered to herself. And then she proceeded to march past her and threw open the doors without knocking.

"Dolores!" exclaimed Minerva in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, well you see I was wondering…" Dolores' girly, fake voice was silenced as the door swung shut behind her and Laris was left to stand in the hall with the hunchbacked man for company. He was eying Bane with distain and mumbling to himself.

"Dragged in a load of mud, no doubt… gonna take me hours to scrub all that off, good for nothing mutt…"

Bane growled at the mortal. Laris sensed the wolf was going to pounce if the human said one more insulting word about him. She hastily wove a binding ward with one hand behind her back to keep the spirit animal in place. Bane glared up at her as he tried to break free but Laris' ward was too strong for him. The animal eventually gave up and sat obediently at her side, though he still bared his teeth at the human threateningly.

After several long minutes, the door was finally thrown open and the three boys trudged out looking devastated. The look on their face seemed to indicate they had just been told they were sentenced to death or something of that gravity. Behind them came Dolores, who looked eerily pleased with herself, and Minerva who just looked troubled about everything.

"I hope you see now, Minerva, that these boys need to be taught a lesson so that this can never happen again," said Dolores. "I see you have other matters to attend to so I will bid you good day."

"Yes, have a good day too, Dolores," bit out Minerva in a stiff tone. When Dolores and the hunchbacked man were gone, the woman turned to Laris with a weary sigh. "You're here to see Miss Risika, correct?"

Laris blinked in confusion. "Who?"

"Miss Risika. Morgan Risika? You're friend?"

"Oh… right. Morgan." Laris pasted a smile on her face even as inwardly she cringed, heart twisting in guilt.

Laris had not known Morgan's last name was Risika. Personal information like family surnames was a guarded secret for each individual Sorcery. Morgan did not know Laris' last name and Laris shouldn't have learned Morgan's without the girl telling Laris herself. Laris felt like she'd betrayed her best friend and couldn't help feeling there was now a stain in their relationship. Something Morgan kept so guarded a secret had been revealed to Laris without the girl knowing was completely unforgivable!

I have to beg for Morgan's forgiveness. This is unacceptable!

Even if Minerva didn't know this, it was inexcusable. Laris was overcome with a need to get on her knees and plead for Morgan's forgiveness.

"Could you take me to her, please?" asked Laris, urgently.

Minerva nodded. "The Hospital Wing is this way."

The woman led them back to the marble staircase and up two more flights of stairs until they were on the third floor. As they climbed, they'd received curious looks from many of the students passing by. Most were staring at Bane since they've obviously never seen a wolf indoors before. But some people were also giving Laris curious looks and she supposed that she too stood out. While everyone here was dressed in black or dark robes, Laris was wearing a bright pink sweater with white jeans and a peach sash that acted like a belt around her waist. If anything, Laris felt she stood out even more than Bane did simply because his dark fur allowed him to blend in better with this dreary stone castle.

"Am I correct to assume you are the Healer Miss Risika personally requested?" asked Minerva over her shoulder.

Laris automatically flinched upon hearing Morgan's last name again but managed to keep her discomfort from showing in her voice. "Yes, I received word that she was ill yesterday and immediately made preparations to depart." Though she would have gotten her sooner if someone hadn't thrown a fit and almost chained her to the ground in objection.

Honestly, Matthew needed to have a little more faith in her. She wasn't completely defenseless on her own and she wasn't a fool. She knew it was a big risk going off-world alone and she would have welcomed his company, but Isis had insisted that two Sorcery in one world at the same time was risky enough. Anymore and they were likely to draw too much unwanted attention to themselves so Matthew had been ordered to stay at home while Laris went alone. Luckily Ransho had been able to persuade Isis to allow Bane to accompany Laris in Matthew's stead. That had somewhat appeased her disgruntled friend.

He's just worried about you, Laris. He really cares for you, said Bane telepathically.

I know… but sometimes I think he's just a little too protective. It's smothering me and often unbearable.

"Here we are," said Minerva, stopping in front of a pair of round double doors. She pushed open the doors and stood back to allow them to enter first.

The Hospital Wing was enormous, like the castle. Laris estimated that there were thirty hospital beds set up but she suspected that they could fit another twenty more if need be. There was a door on their right which immediately burst open and a scowling women dressed in red robes with a white apron over it appeared. She looked like she was about to tell them off when she spotted Minerva behind them.

"Minerva? What's going on here?"

"Afternoon, Poppy. These are the guests Miss Risika requested. They're here to attend to her," explained Minerva.

Poppy turned and seemed to be studying both Laris and Bane – she even spent a few seconds assessing Leita. Her lips then thinned into a disapproving frown. "They send a child to heal her? What do they take me for, a novice?"

Out of courtesy, Laris stepped forward and bowed. "Forgive my intrusion, ma'am. I mean no offense by coming here. I only wish to heal my sick friend. My name is Laris and I would greatly appreciate any help you can give me."

"I'm the school nurse here and you may call me Madame Pomfrey," she said, still scowling. "I don't know what more you can do for the girl. She is an unusual case. Every treatment I give her results in more unusual symptoms and illnesses. She's been in my care for almost a full month now."

Laris paled as anxiety took over. If Morgan had been sick for that long, why didn't Dumbledore contact the Sorcery sooner?

"Please, allow me to see her," said Laris.

"This way." Madame Pomfrey turned and led them down the rows of beds until they reached the only occupied one at the far back, next to the window. "I've decided to keep her unconscious for the time being since that is when her condition is the most stable."

"Morgan!" Laris rushed to her friend's bedside. It had been a little over a month since Laris last seen her and the difference was heart-stopping. Morgan's skin was chalky white and she'd lost a lot of weight. She was barely skin and bones. It was deathly frightening how fast Morgan's health had deteriorated.

"How long has she been like this?" asked Laris to Madame Pomfrey. "How long has she been in this condition?"

"Nearly a fortnight now –"

"Then why did you wait so long to contact me?" asked Laris, rounding on the woman. "I would have been here in an instant. How could you just leave her like this? Didn't she ever ask for the aid of one of our Healers?"

"Well yes but the Headmaster felt that we could come up with something –"

"And did you?" Laris watched as the mortal nurse opened and closed her mouth, gaping like a fish while remaining speechless. "Obviously not! Dumbledore as a lot to answer for. This is unacceptable! Where is he?"

"In his office," replied Minerva in an even tone. "If you like I will escort you to him."

"I don't have the time for that! Morgan's health comes first." And with that, Laris began unpacking her messenger back, pulling out her crystal blue scry stone along with a small leather pouch. She then set to work analyzing Morgan's condition using her scry stone. By focusing her mind on Morgan with the scry stone as a medium, she was able to send her mind into Morgan's body and slowly try to figure out what was wrong with her friend.

After several long minutes of intensive scrying, Laris finally returned to her own body and set down her scry stone on the nightstand.

Well? asked Bane. What's wrong with her?

There's a lot of internal damage. She's got tons of foreign chemicals in her systems – many acting like poison and slowly eating away at her organs.

But how did someone manage to slip her poison? You're all trained in how to detect them, said Bane.

That's what's worrying me… the nurse did say that they've been using different types of treatments on her… maybe all those potions mixed together inside her is the reason she's in such critical condition.

"I need a list of all the potions you have given her," said Laris while she began rummaging through her bag, pulling out more bottles and leather pouches. "I need a detail description of each one, including the ingredients and how they were made."

Madame Pomfrey seemed outraged at being ordered around and looked to Minerva for support but the woman just shook her head.

"Do it, Poppy."

The nurse scowled and stormed off, slamming the door of her office behind her.

Minerva sighed and turned to Laris, who had started to mix some herbs together in a ceramic bowl. "How is she?" asked the woman.

"Whatever you mortals gave her, it's killing her. You should have contacted me immediately when she fell ill, especially when the first of your potions didn't work," said Laris angrily. "Our bodies are not the same as yours. Dumbledore should have known that by now. The fact that our lifespan is much longer than yours should have given you the impression that we are different beings."

"I am sure the Headmaster had his reasons."

"He may have his reasons but that doesn't mean they're good reasons," muttered Laris as she then poured some water from a flask into the bowl and mixed the ground-up herbs with the water.

"May I ask what it is you're making?"

"This is just a simple strengthening brew. Her body's weak from the poisons. This will help her fight them off," said Laris. She then reached into the first pouch she had pulled out and plucked out a green flower. The blossom had only three petals and the center was brilliantly yellow. Laris crushed the flower in her hand and lifted Morgan's head up just enough so that Laris could place her open hand under the girl's nose.

The unconscious girl breathed in the scent and slowly her eyes fluttered open.

"L…Laris?" It pained Laris to hear her usually energetic friend sound so weak and hoarse. Her green eyes were dull and glazed. Pain and exhaustion reflected from those pupils and it only fueled Laris' determination to heal her friend.

"Hey, Morgan. How are you feeling?" asked Laris softly.

"I've had… better mornings," she muttered.

Laris smiled and gently laid Morgan's head back down on the bed. "Don't worry. I'm here. I'll put you back together again and then I'm going to give these mortals a piece of my mind."

Morgan cracked a weak smile. "Poor mortals… Even Matthew doesn't question you when you're riled." She then closed her eyes and sighed in exhaustion. "I'm in your hands, Laris."

Laris nodded. "I'll take care of you. You'll be on your feet in no time."

Morgan snorted, eyes still closed. "I don't know how long I've been here but it must have been a while. I'm not looking forward to catching up on my school work so take your time, Laris."

"But if you keep putting off your school work you'll have even more work to do – plus there's Isis' assignment…" mused Laris.

Morgan groaned. "Don't remind me…"

The clicking of heels on stone floor signaled nurse's return. "Here's the list of potions I've given Miss Risika," said Madame Pomfrey and she practically slammed the small notebook on the nightstand. The woman was still steaming at having her authority as a Healer usurped by Laris. Normally, Laris didn't like making others upset with her but Morgan's life was in danger. She didn't have time to play nice with the mortals.

"Thank you. I'll call you if I need anything else," said Laris coolly and promptly began scanning the list of potions and their ingredients, analyzing what might be the cause of Morgan's condition. But the list was over ten pages long – front and back.

Laris sighed as she realized she had her work cut out for her.

Looks like I'm going to be here a while…