Of Boys and Spells
Chapter 4: The Interrogation
-
James was right on time. However, he wasn't alone. His whole gang – two girls and four boys, one of whom was Jean-Paul Weasley – was assembled at the meeting place.
"A bit of back-up won't hurt," he said, sounding for all the world like Grandma Weasley. "I bet you haven't thought of Yaxley's buddies. There's no guarantee that he'll be on his own."
Albus, feeling embarrassed, simply shook his head. It irked him that James, of all people, was the one who spotted a flaw in his fine plan, especially because the flaw was the same one as in the last endeavour – he hadn't considered the possibility of outsiders appearing on the scene by sheer coincidence.
"That's good foresight on your part," Scorpius said, looking up at James who was nearly a foot taller. "But Yaxley mustn't see any of you or he will know at once it's a trap."
"You want us to hide?" James asked with sincere disappointment.
"No way!" the blonde girl protested. The other one, dark-skinned and wearing dreadlocks, muttered something about finally getting even with the bloody bully.
Albus turned to his brother. "Our plan won't work if you're-"
"What plan?" the blonde girl interrupted him. "I thought Jimmy was in charge here!"
"Apparently not," Jean-Paul said. "Come on, Al, introduce us to your marvellous plan."
"The most important thing is that he drinks the juice!" Albus said, looking beseechingly at his cousin, his brother, and the other third years. "Afterwards, you can come out and present yourselves."
"Okay, as long as we can have a go at him we'll wait and look what your mysterious brew does, little bro," James conceded generously. He turned to his comrades and said softly, "Marauders, hide."
They disappeared within seconds and almost without noise. Luckily, there was no shortage of hiding places. The hallway was cramped with rusty suits of armour and some of the ugliest statues Hogwarts had on offer. The girls slipped into a niche obscured by an array of armour suits, James and Jean-Paul crouched down behind the nearest pedestals, and the other boys ducked out of sight behind the massive statue of Crassus the Large.
Albus and Scorpius hastened to set up their chessboard. They placed two half-filled glasses of pumpkin juice right next to them on a plinth. It was nearly half past eight; Yaxley was bound to arrive at any moment.
They had to wait less than three minutes. Albus felt a surge of gratitude towards his brother as soon as he spotted – out off the corner of his eyes – three seventh-year Slytherins approaching. He didn't turn his head, however. Like Scorpius, he pretended to be immersed in the game.
"Ah, what do we have here?" Yaxley sneered, bearing down at them. Turning to his companions, he asked, "Aren't they cute? The unnatural colour of the hair so highlights the unnatural relationship."
His classmates laughed obediently.
Yaxley frowned at Scorpius. "What are you doing here?" he demanded sharply.
"Er... we're playing chess," Scorpius said.
"Ah, I can see that. But why here, in this remote part of the castle?"
"Because people laugh at our hair," Albus snapped. "And that is your fault!"
"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Yaxley made. He casually raised his left foot and knocked one of the glasses over. The juice spilled out over the chessboard. The drenched pieces ran for cover, screaming.
"Hey! That was my pumpkin juice!" Scorpius shouted.
"Ah... yours, was it? Won't the son of righteous and selfless Harry The Hero Potter share his pumpkin juice with you?"
"That's not the point!" Albus yelled, trying not to panic. Yaxley had to drink the potion, not to spill it!
"Ah, is it not? What is the point?"
"The point is that you can't just come here and drink our pumpkin juice!"
A bout of nasty laughter erupted from Yaxley's chest. "Ah indeed, can't I?" He crabbed the remaining glass and raised it as if in a toast. "Here is to splitting up your revolting alliance!"
He downed the liquid in one go.
Although Albus and Scorpius exchanged glances that conveyed at once relief, excitement, and triumph, the two other Slytherins only became suspicious when the glass fell from Yaxley's suddenly limp fingers.
"You little imps," one of them yelled in alarm, "what was-"
Yaxley swayed dangerously. His classmates leapt to his side and struggled to keep him upright. He was heavy, though, his knees buckled, and they had to lower him to the floor.
That was the moment for James and his friends. They emerged as one and cast Stunning Spells, causing the Slytherins to slump down on either side of Yaxley.
Yaxley definitely looked drugged – his eyes were unfocussed, and his mouth hung slightly open.
"What was in that juice?" the dark girl asked nervously.
"Truth Serum," Albus said.
The girl gasped and took a step backwards.
James stared at him. "Truth Serum? Are you out of your mind?"
"No, I'm not! We have to find out what he did to Sepho-"
"Sepho?" Jean-Paul cut across him. "What-"
"Stop! Please, stop!" Scorpius cried imploringly. "We mustn't waste time! The effect won't last very long; we used only two drops." He crouched down in front of Yaxley and asked, "What is your name?"
"Julius Gaius Yaxley," came the impassive answer. The potion seemed to work like described in the book.
"What curse did you use on Nancy Donovan?" Scorpius asked.
"I put her under an Imperius Curse."
There was absolute silence. Nine pairs of eyes stared down at the burly Slytherin. It was so quiet, Albus could hear his chessmen shuffle their feet.
"Why?" Scorpius breathed.
"Ah, she is a worthless Mudblood, isn't she. I used her as a tool."
Albus could hardly believe his ears. This was unadulterated Death Eater ideology!
Since Scorpius seemed too baffled to continue, James took over. "What did you use her for?" he asked.
"First, I ordered her to join the competition for the longest Transfiguration essay. Then, I ordered her to steal the essay of that Auror offspring. A few days later, I ordered her to walk around in her underwear. Bragging, stealing, and behaving indecently will make the so-called 'Muggleborns' look bad. This morning, I ordered her to stop eating and drinking. That will make sure there is one of those Mudbloods less in the world."
"You want her to die?" the dark girl asked, outraged.
"I don't care if she does."
"Why?" Scorpius asked again.
"Ah, why should I... She isn't worth anything. Besides, it's fun to see the teachers fret. They never bother that much if a Slytherin is suffering."
The last sentence caused a series of hissed comments, stretching from he does have a point there to who cares. Scorpius tried in vain to calm the others down; nobody paid heed to him. And nobody paid heed to the approaching footsteps. Albus positively jumped when all of a sudden a warm, mellow voice asked behind him, "What happened here?"
The man wore a brown cape and a soft-brimmed hat of the same colour. Albus saw only his back because the stranger bent down to examine the three motionless figures on the floor.
"They're only Stunned," James said. He seemed unusually subdued.
The man looked up. "James, aren't you?"
The dark girl moved forward. "Dad," she croaked, pointing to Yaxley, "he's put a girl under the Imperius Curse!"
The man straightened up. "Ella?" he said in surprise. "What are you talking about?"
"He's that Yaxley of Slytherin," Ella said, fighting for composure. "He admitted that he's put a first-year Hufflepuff, Nancy Donovan, under the Imperius Curse."
"And he just told you that?" The man regarded Yaxley again. "He's not master of his senses. What happened to him?"
Ella looked down at her feet and said nothing.
"James?" the man said sharply. "What is going on here?"
James looked down as well, blushing profusely.
"It was our idea," Albus heard himself say. "We gave Yaxley Veritaserum, but only-"
The man spun round, seized Albus and forced his chin up so he had to look him fully into the face. With a mixture of relief and dismay, Albus realised that he'd seen him before. He was a colleague of his father's.
"Veritaserum?" Mr Thomas exclaimed. "Are you mad, boy?" Over his shoulder, he thundered into the direction of his daughter, "Bloody hell, Ella! What did you think you were doing?"
"We didn't know about the Truth Serum, Dad!" the girl said defensively. "James only said his brother wanted revenge for that violet hair."
The man scrutinised Albus again and then released him. "I almost didn't recognise you," he muttered. "Don't tell me dishing out Veritaserum was your idea!"
"Sir?" Scorpius said urgently. "Can't we sort that out later? We still have to ask what curse he used on Sepho. The potion won't work long. We used only two drops-"
Hearing about the low dosage caused Mr Thomas to snap into action. He knelt down and asked Yaxley, "Can you understand me?"
"Yes, I do." Yaxley spoke as dispassionately as before.
"What Curse did you use on Mr Sepho?"
"None."
Albus heart skipped a beat. Was it already too late? However, Yaxley's gaze was still unfocused and his muscles slack.
"But he did!" Scorpius said with vehemence. He knelt next to Mr Thomas. "What Curse did you put on Persephone Ackerley?"
"I put Locomotor Mortis on her."
"Did you make it a Lingering Curse?"
"I did."
"What was the exact wording of the curse?"
"Locomotor Mortis Aliquamdium Vigintiduum."
"How are the last two words spelled?" Scorpius inquired, while wrenching a notebook out of his coat. He also produced a fountain pen. "Letter by letter?"
Scorpius carefully wrote down what Yaxley recited. He wasn't aware that everyone, including Mr Thomas, was watching him.
Once Yaxley had uttered the last letter, Mr Thomas gently touched Scorpius's shoulder. "You do this quite professionally, young man," he said, "but now let me conduct my interrogation."
Mr Thomas reeled his questions off rather quickly. Most of them concerned the Imperius Curse and the things Nancy had been forced to do. Yaxley answered them all, promptly and stoically. He again voiced his contempt for Muggleborns. Without the slightest trace of emotion, he told the Auror that he wouldn't mind if Nancy Donovan starved to death.
When the topic seemed sufficiently explored, Mr Thomas turned to asking about Persephone again. "Why did you hex Miss Ackerley?"
"She got in the way. I had aimed at that Auror offspring."
Yaxley suddenly gave a violent shudder and sat up straight. His eyes widened in shock when he found himself face to face with a stranger.
The Auror had his wand ready. He calmly murmured a spell, and Yaxley sank back and closed his eyes.
"Sleeping Spell," Mr Thomas said, raising. "Nothing to worry. – But now to you, ladies and gentlemen. I imagine you're bursting with desire to tell your friends and housemates what you've just witnessed. Here's a piece of advice: Don't. Your teachers might consider the use of Veritaserum on fellow students an offence worth expulsion. There's the possibility that they won't distinguish between the mastermind who actually devised the plan and those who just came along. You know the saying: In for an egg, in for a dragon. Right?"
Two or three of the children nodded.
Albus did not nod, though. The amount of adrenaline that pounded through his veins made him dizzy. He was going to be expelled for helping to save a girl's life? And there was Yaxley using an Unforgivable Curse, and this Mr Thomas – an Auror! – stood here and said nothing about the hateful Slytherin deserving to be expelled?!
"At the very best, you'd lose your house an estimated thousand points," Mr Thomas went on.
"But that's not fair!" Albus burst out. A hand grabbed him from behind. Shaking it off, he cried, "We only tried to help!" He was seized again, with two hands this time, and a firmer grip. It was Scorpius.
"Al, calm down!" Scorpius pleaded, stricken with panic.
"No!" Albus retaliated. He didn't quite succeed in shaking himself free, but he rounded on Mr Thomas nonetheless, "Look, Etienne Delacour tried to use Veritaserum, but he messed up. The potion is no use when the drinker knows about it, and that's why the teachers couldn't try again. And you couldn't have done it, either. Yaxley would have known you're an Auror. See? We could! He had no suspicion because he thought those drinks were ours-" He had to pause for breath. To his horror and chagrin, there lingered a half-smile on the Auror's lips. "Nancy Donovan could have died!" he said, exasperated. "They thought Yaxley put a Lingering Gastroenteritis Curse on her. Without knowing the exact wording, even the healer from St Mungo's couldn't do a thing to help her! I'm going to be expelled for this? What about Yaxley, then? He used an Unforgivable!"
At least, the provocative smile had vanished from Mr Thomas's face. The man shook his head. "Albus Potter," he said softly, "why am I not surprised?"
Albus held the man's gaze. He wasn't going to cringe now.
"I assure you, Julius Yaxley will be punished accordingly," Mr Thomas said to the audience in general. "But what you did was... well, you can't expect me to say well done. Your headmistress called me to investigate into the mysterious curses placed on first-year students. In a sense, you saved me work. But still, besides being illegal, what you did was pretty reckless. Do you have any idea what Julius Yaxley could have done to you?" He turned to Albus, asking, "And this was truly your idea? You're not just covering up for your brother?"
"James is here because I asked him to," Albus said firmly. "And he brought his friends because he thought we needed more back-up."
"Which was probably a good thing, considering that you're a first-year and your target wasn't alone." The odd half-smile reappeared to the man's face. "On the other hand, I've heard of two first-years bringing down mountain trolls on their own. Anyway, Albus, where is the remainder of the Serum?"
Albus looked round for their bag. They had stuffed it somewhere, but where?
"Here," Scorpius said, pulling it out of the narrow gap between one of the plinths and the wall.
Mr Thomas unceremoniously snatched the bag out of Scorpius's hands and searched its contents. He confiscated the little flask without another word. He also brought out the pastry, wrapped in paper tissue. "What's that good for?" he wondered.
"Er..." Scorpius said, "that's because of the side effect."
Mr Thomas gave Scorpius a slow, probing look. "Are you Albus's friend?" he asked at length.
Scorpius nodded.
"May I have your notes concerning the Lingering Curse?"
Scorpius nodded again. He ripped the page out of the book and handed it to Mr Thomas. "Here you are. Show it to Madam Smethwyk, please."
The man cleared his throat. "Thank you."
"It's all right," Scorpius muttered. "We wanted to help."
For some reason, Mr Thomas seemed slightly taken aback. He looked Scorpius up and down, slowly and carefully. Scorpius shifted uncomfortably under the intense gaze.
The others were getting restless, too, and Mr Thomas returned his attention to them."Back to business, ladies and gentlemen. Do I have your word that you will keep quiet about the incident?"
They all nodded, mutely.
"Well, I will take the blame for the unauthorised use of Veritaserum. I hope nobody will kick up a fuss. After all, a student's life was at stake," the man said gravely. Turning once more to Albus, he added in a low voice, "I will have to report to your father, though. And I have an inkling that he won't be overly delighted."
"Yes, Sir," Albus mumbled. Not being overly delighted was definitely an understatement. Parents had a tendency of getting into a state if their children did something dangerous. "But you won't tell him the names of the others, please?"
For the third time, the curios half-smile was back. "Since I don't know most of them anyway, I won't."
"Thanks."
"All right," Mr Thomas said more loudly. "I want you to leave now, without further delay and as inconspicuously as you can manage. And Ella, tell the first teacher you meet where I am and that I would like Professor McGonagall and the Head of Slytherin House to join me."
-
They walked down the corridor in silence. Despite the telling-off, despite the prospect of getting another one from his father soon, Albus felt he had achieved something worthwhile.
Once they were out of earshot, one of the boys said, "We were damn lucky, Ella, that was your Dad instead of just any Auror."
Ella didn't answer.
"Wrong," Jean-Paul said in her place. "We are damn lucky that my cousins are involved because their Dad is Mr Thomas's boss."
- - - - -