A/N: In Greek Mythology, Argo was the ship that Jason and the Argonauts sailed to retrieve the Golden Fleece (the fleece of a golden-haired, winged ram). Argo was named after its shipwright, Argus. The constellation of Argo is right under 'Sirius' or the 'Dog Star', the brightest star in the night sky. 'Sirius' is part of the Canis Major constellation.

A/N #2: Thank you reviewers, no matter how few of you there are! Special thanks to yamanana for the awesome review. If there's one thing an author needs, it's a dangerously inflated ego :)

Harry, Snape, and Legilimency

I don't use drugs, my dreams are frightening enough. -M.C. Escher

Dear Uncle Matt,

Sorry that its been a while since I last wrote. This past week has been hectic. Mostly it's just school and all the bloody work they make us do. At least Ancient Runes is picking up. I am starting to see why mum liked it so much. Hermione suggested that you might have some of her old school things. If you do could you send me some of her stuff? It would help a lot with my studies. Other than that, all the commotion happened this last weekend during the Quidditch match.

A legion of Dementors went into the Quidditch Pitch and caused a panic. Cedric Diggory (he's the hufflepuff seeker) and I ended up crashing into the forbidden forest. The Dementors didn't affect me as seriously as they did on the train, but it was still aggravating. Right before I blacked out in the forest, I heard screaming and saw a flash of green light. I don't know why but it gives me a very uneasy feeling that I can't exactly explain. I don't know what it means but I think it is a memory of some sort. Before the Dementors I never recalled any sort of memory like that. I had the same thing happen when I first encountered the Dementors on the train. Do you know if there is a way to repel the Dementors? You were the one to tell me about their effects in the first place, so I was hoping you had more useful information to impart. I hate seeing that green light and hearing that awful screaming. I hate blacking out and waking up not knowing what happened. It's annoying and embarrassing and I don't want it to happen again! The last thing I want is for people to remember me as the Boy-Who-Pissed-Himself-Whenever-He-Came-Across-A-Dementor!

On a less hysterical note: How are things on the home front? Tell Jordan to expect an owl in a week or so for his birthday (I got him a wizards chess set). Tell him that just because he is turning 11 doesn't mean he can throw my bed out of the bedroom and claim the whole thing just for himself. Since you didn't write last week, I was wondering if there has been anymore news on Eddy. Did things go well at his court hearing? Will he be able to come back home soon?

I'll stop pestering you with questions about my cousins. There is this Professor I have to tell you about. Remember during the summer when the Daily Prophet announced there was a new DADA teacher? Well, his name is Remus Lupin. He is a really cool teacher but creepy too. Since the moment he saw me all he does is ask how I'm doing. After every class he always wants to visit with me and chat about nonsense. After the Quidditch match (we kicked ass, by the way) he kept asking me weird things about when I crashed into the forest. Seriously, what's his deal?

Also, he is always missing class and when he comes back he looks like shit. Do you think he's a drug addict like Eddy? It seems very likely to me. Do you know if wizards do muggle drugs or do you think they have their own type? I tried asking Hermione about it but she refused to answer, saying it was ridiculous to think a Professor was using drugs. I'm starting to think she just didn't know the answer.

Hermione told me that during dinner after the match, the Headmaster said it is suspected that Sirius Black was close by. Hence the reason for the Dementors to terrorize everybody. I personally think that the Dementors were hungry for some soul-sucking and took advantage of the opportunity to feast on the young snacks they're protecting. Bastards. I hate Dementors and would rather risk the chance of Black sneaking into the castle than have to rely on those creatures from hell!

After that announcement the entire staff went out and searched the Forbidden Forest trying to see if Black was hiding around there somewhere. The only thing they found was two brooms. YES! I was so sad when I thought my broom was lost forever. It would have been awful finishing the Quidditch games this year on a school Clean-Sweep!

Anyways, I hope you are enjoying yourself and that Jordan isn't annoying you too badly.

H. P.

Harry tied the parchment to Hedwig and sent her off to deliver the letter. He had been up all night trying to get some sleep when he finally decided to write a letter to his Uncle. Usually his letters weren't so lengthy, but he had tons of time on his hands and figured it couldn't hurt to fill his Uncle in on the happenings of Hogwarts.

Harry slowly made his way to the Great Hall for breakfast, extremely dazed and fatigued. Sleep has been more elusive than ever and it didn't help that all the potions he took added to the fatigue. Never mind that the potions were the cause of his insomnia in the first place.

As he entered the Great Hall he was immediately aware of the unusual volume of chatter that reached his ears. Not only that, the Great Hall was filled with more students than usual. Breakfast was usually small compared to the rest of the meals. Most students either slept during breakfast or studied at the library before the days classes began. Finding Ron and Hermione in the crowd of students at the Gryffindor table, he sat next to them and began pouring himself a cup of much needed coffee.

"Hey mate, why are you so late to breakfast?" Ron asked as Harry drank heavily from his coffee mug.

"I was up at the Owlery, delivering a letter to Matt."

"Well you could have sent it with Hedwig during breakfast after the Daily Prophet delivery." Ron suggested, stuffing his mouth with a forkful of eggs.

"I don't get the Daily Prophet." Harry mumbled, irritated at being interrupted during his coffee intake. "What's with all the students anyway? Did something happen while I was at the Owlery?"

Ron pointedly looked at Hermione, with her nose poked into the Daily Prophet, and shrugged as he continued to devour his breakfast.

Harry was about to pour himself another cup of coffee when Hermione suddenly shrieked and shoved the paper in front of Harry and Ron.

"Look! This is what all the students are talking about. It's because of the Daily Prophet!" She exclaimed excitedly. "Look at this article." She insisted.

Ron rolled his eyes as Hermione waved the paper in front of his face. "Honestly, 'Mione. Whatever it is it can't be that exciting. Just tell us what the article says."

"Just read it!"

Harry snatched the paper from her hands and looked at the article she had pointed out, hoping to diffuse the argument before it got out of hand. Ron reluctantly looked over Harry's shoulder to read the article.

Is Sirius Black at Hogwarts?

Late last night, St. Mungo's orderly Thomas Plund, reported to Daily Prophet officials disturbing events that have transpired at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Last evening, Thomas Plund and another orderly were sent to Hogwarts to transport Draco Malfoy, an apparently comatose student, to St. Mungo's for long term care.

"The school Mediwitch reported to St. Mungo's the condition of Mr. Malfoy at the beginning of the school year." Plund said. "It is unknown what happened to the boy, but it is suspected by the Mediwitch and other Professors that it was the work of Sirius Black."

The report St. Mungo's received stated that Draco Malfoy was found by a Professor, unconscious in a school corridor, not even a week into the school year. So far there aren't any students suspected of rendering Mr. Malfoy comatose. However, Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, commented when asked about Mr. Malfoy.

"Dark Magic was used to incapacitate Mr. Malfoy, and it was done without alerting any of the wards in the school. It is highly improbable for a student to be able to achieve this." He also stated that the entire staff is working "day and night" to cure Mr. Malfoy so that he can continue with his magical training.

When the orderlies arrived to transport the student, they were faced with opposition from the Headmaster and some school Professors.

"They said it would only hinder his recovery." Plund scoffed. "One of the Professors, Severus Snape, seems to think that with a little more time and research, that they will be able to bring Mr. Malfoy out of his spell-induced coma."

Thomas Plund and other St. Mungo's officials seemed to disagree and are worried about Mr. Malfoy's health. "The only way to ensure Mr. Malfoy's health, is to let a team of medical experts examine him." Plund explained, disappointed in how carelessly he thinks the school staff are caring for Mr. Malfoy.

"It is hoped that Mr. Malfoy will be able to shed some light on what happened to him when he awakens." Dumbledore reported. "As we speak, we are getting permission from Lucius Malfoy to put a plan into action that will shed some light on what curse was used to incapacitate his son."

Does this mean that Sirius Black has somehow managed to take refuge within Hogwarts without a trace of detection? If so, what does this mean of the hundreds of Dementors sent from Azkaban to guard the wizarding school? Are Dementors an asset of safety for the school or a safety hazard? Many outraged parents seem to think that the Dementors need to be removed from Hogwarts, especially after they became aware of what happened at last weeks Quidditch match.

Many angry letters to the Ministry from parents and students instigated an investigation into the events that transpired during the first Quidditch match of the year. An unprovoked Dementor attack caused a panic among students and a major disruption during the game. Minister Fudge's spokesman stated that the Dementors would only have attacked if Sirius Black was nearby, and that the students just happened to be "in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"Despite the general uneasiness in the community, the Dementors will remain at Hogwarts until Black has been captured." Fudge stated. "Black is a very dangerous wizard. The safety of the children is at stake."

"All of this happened last night?" Harry wondered. It was amazing how much happened just a few floors down from where he tried vehemently to get some sleep.

"Seems so." Ron stated. "I can't believe all of this fuss is over Malfoy. Am I honestly the only one that doesn't care if he is comatose?" He scoffed at the thought.

"I just can't believe how Snape is so actively involved in this." Harry commented. "I wonder why he cares so much. I know he cares for his Slytherins but I didn't know it reached such an extent."

"I just want to know what the Professors plan is to cure him. Whatever it is, its huge. The fact that they have to get permission from Malfoy's father means it's something that just might work." Hermione remained in quiet contemplation as the three of them headed to Defense Against the Dark Arts, their first class of the day.

If Harry didn't know what spell he had used on Malfoy he would be a lot more worried about what the Professors were planning. However, he knew that the Tacenda Vis spell would protect his identity, even if the spell was discovered.

xXxXxXx

"Since the class schedule has been a little hectic due to my absences, I have decided to put more class time into practicing the fundamentals of Chapter 4." Professor Lupin motioned for everybody to open their textbook.

"Although we passed this chapter several weeks ago, I feel that as students you were unable to get the most out of it due to Professor Snape implementing his own schedule." The Slytherins snickered as the Gryffindors glared at them. "Since we are ahead of this years curriculum, we will once again practice disarming low-level charms and wards."

All of the chairs and desks were stacked in the back of the classroom. The students were separated into two lines, one line on either side of the room. They then began practicing disarming charms and wards. One line would conjure up a charm or ward and the other line would find a way to disarm it.

At first Harry was a little rusty as he tried to remember the counter curse for each separate charm or ward. After 20 minutes he was disarming everything perfectly. He started getting extremely bored as the same charms or wards kept coming up over and over again. The fact that all the spells were verbal, Harry would know the counter curse before the charm or ward was even put in place.

As the class continued he got frustrated at how ridiculous he thought this exercise was. If this would actually work in real life, he would have been able to break into Snape's storage room by now.

"Is everything alright Harry?" Professor Lupin had come up next to Harry and watched him as he continued to easily disable every charm and ward. "You don't seem to be having any trouble."

Harry started casting wards for his partner to disarm as he spoke to Professor Lupin. "Nothing is wrong Professor. I was just wondering about the reading you had assigned for Chapter 4."

"What about it?"

"It explains about disarming simple charms and wards but it doesn't mention anything about detecting them." Harry explained.

"Would you mind elaborating?" Professor Lupin asked, listening intently.

"Well, when we do these exercises we can hear what spell the other student is using. There isn't any work on trying to figure out what it is. In real life if there is a charm or ward, you find it. The chances aren't very high for you to be there to listen to what spell the caster used."

Harry could see Hermione gushing at him in pride at his logic. Professor Lupin seemed to think over what Harry said before calling the class for attention. He paced in front of the class as he explained what Harry had just told him.

"So what do you think?" He asked his students. "How would you detect a charm or ward? Especially one you haven't heard of before."

"You could just try all the counter charms until one of them worked." One Slytherin suggested.

"Perhaps." Professor Lupin said. "But as you know there are dozens of counter curses you can use. As third years you haven't even learned all of them. How would you be able to detect the charm or ward in a faster amount of time?"

Hermione's hand shot up. "What about magical sensitivity? Isn't it possible to detect it by reaching out with your magic and seeing if it is familiar to you?"

Professor Lupin nodded. "Yes it is, but that can take just as much time in order to focus your magic like that. It takes some magic folk a lot of practice in order to detect magic like that. Even then, what if the ward or charm ended up being something they weren't familiar with? They would be back where they started."

After several futile attempts at guessing the answer, Professor Lupin finally gave the students a break and explained.

"This isn't something that is normally brought up in a third year defense class. This topic is discussed in great detail in higher level defense and charm classes. The only way to get past or disarm a ward or charm you aren't familiar with, is to incorporate your magical signature with it." Many of the students mumbled to themselves in confusion before the Professor continued.

"Every ward or charm that is cast is infused with the casters magical signature. As all of you have noticed, when your wards are disarmed you canfeel it in your magic. In 6th year you will start to learn how to incorporate your magical signature into something. However, you must understand that you can't do that with every single ward or charm. The wards around Hogwarts are nearly impossible to penetrate. They prevent Apparating and Disapparating, the use of Portkeys and many other things. Those charms are not able to be broken through or passed. The reason for that is because of the nature of the charms and wards."

Hermione once again raised her hand. "So, your saying that wards either can or can't be incorporated with your magic? It just depends on the nature of the spell?"

Professor Lupin nodded. "I know it isn't a very detailed explanation, but you will learn more as you continue your education. Right now, just focus on the basics so that it will be easier to understand your classes in future years."

At the end of class, while Harry sipped on his Pepper-Up potion, he considered what he had just learned. Although it wasn't the exact answers he wanted, it still gave him a good idea of how he could get into Snape's storage room.

Harry and Ron left class together and headed towards Herbology.

"Where did Hermione go?" Harry asked, turning around and realizing that his friend had just disappeared.

"Who knows? She probably went to the bathroom to gossip or something." Ron said sarcastically. "Don't worry, I bet she makes it to class before we do."

xXxXxXx

Hermione had to quickly duck out of the classroom, making a run for it before too many students entered the corridor. If she intended to find out what the Professors were planning, she had to do it now. The longer she waited to use her Time-Turner, the longer she would have to wait to get back to the present.

Once confident that Harry and Ron weren't trying to find her, she went down the stairs and headed towards the Hospital Wing. The only way to ensure she hears what happens between the Professors and St. Mungo's orderlies, is to be in the Infirmary when she uses the Time-Turner.

The Hospital Wing was empty of everybody except Malfoy when she arrived. Madam Pomfrey wasn't anywhere to be seen, but that didn't mean the mediwitch wasn't in her office. Stepping carefully, Hermione peered around the room, trying to find a place where she could hide and listen undetected.

"Is something wrong, Ms. Granger?"

Hermione jumped and shouted in surprise as she realized Madam Pomfrey had come up behind her.

"I'm sorry Madam Pince." Hermione gasped out. "I thought you were gone when I arrived and didn't see you."

Madam Pomfrey chuckled slightly. "Sorry to give you a fright, dear. Is there anything you need help with?"

"A student is sick." She blurted out. I just want you out of the Hospital Wing! "Someone sicked up on the second floor corridor just a few minutes ago."

Madam Pomfrey immediately entered nursing mode, grabbing all the supplies she might need before heading out to help the poor student. "Thank you for reporting this Ms. Granger. They were probably too sick to come by themselves." She said sadly.

Once Pomfrey was out, Hermione finally decided on a place to hide. Going over to Malfoy, pausing to look at his too still form, she crawled under his bed. Once sure that all body parts and school bag were hidden under the bed, she took out her Time-Turner.

The hours rewinded at lightning speed, and soon day turned into night. After putting her Time-Turner away, Hermione peeked out from under the bed to look at the clock. 10pm. The students should be in their dorms by now. Settling herself down, she waited patiently for the orderlies to arrive, the only sound audible to her ears was Malfoy's shallow breathing.

45 minutes Hermione heard echoes down the hall, and soon the door to the infirmary opened up and several footsteps made their way over to Malfoy's bed.

"See? I told you he is perfectly alright. We haven't been neglecting him!" Madam Pomfrey seethed.

"We have orders to bring him to St. Mungo's." A male voice said. Hermione guessed it was one of the orderlies.

"You also know that the Headmaster sent word to St. Mungo's delaying the time to move Mr. Malfoy." Pomfrey snapped back. "By moving him now all progress made towards researching his recovery will have been for nothing!"

"We were told to come here at this time and remove Mr. Malfoy to the St. Mungo's long-term care ward." The orderly argued. "Whether your Headmaster sent word or not, St. Mungo's officials obviously didn't agree with it."

"Is there a problem, Poppy?" The distant voice of Dumbledore broke up the little spat between the Mediwitch and Orderlies.

"We have orders to remove Mr. Malfoy immediately." The same orderly said, obviously not deterred by the Headmasters presence.

"I am afraid you no longer have authority to have Mr. Malfoy under your care." The Headmaster replied calmly. "Lucius Malfoy has denied St. Mungo's permission to take custody of his son at this time."

"When did this happen?" Another male voice said. Most likely the second orderly. "None of the officials told us of this news."

"Lucius informed your superiors of the change about a week ago." Severus Snape's voice drawled out. "It doesn't matter what you've heard. You have no authority to be here so you might as well just leave. We don't have time to argue with dim-wits such as yourself."

"But it isn't safe!" The first orderly shouted. "It said in the report that all of you believe Mr. Malfoy was attacked by Sirius Black. The only way to help him recover is to move him to a safe environment."

"There is no safer place than Hogwarts." Dumbledore proclaimed. "Our protection and security barriers rival those of Gringotts. As for suspicions on Sirius Black, there is no such evidence at this time to believe it is true."

"Well then we demand to be updated on Mr. Malfoys condition and any progress made towards his recovery." The second orderly stated. "Since his condition was reported to us, St. Mungo's has a legal obligation to keep records regarding his treatment."

"You're hardly in the place to be demanding such things." Snape sneered. "Mr. Malfoy's health is no longer your concern."

"Now, Severus." Dumbledore softly chided. "No need to be rude to these two gentlemen. After all they are just doing their job." Hermione could imagine the Headmaster's blue eyes twinkling madly as he spoke those words.

"We will need to make a brief report on your current treatment plan for Mr. Malfoy before we leave." The second orderly stated.

"I am going to be performing Legilimency on Mr. Malfoy." Snape said. "And before you start assaulting my ears with ridiculous arguments, we are actively working with Lucius to give us legal authorization to search Mr. Malfoy's mind."

"What evidence do you have to suggest this will help in his recovery?" The first orderly demanded.

"Based on our observations of Mr. Malfoy," Pomfrey interjected, "we know that the spell cast on him is directly affecting his mind. The only way to help break it is to look in his mind and hopefully discover the nature of the spell."

Oh, no. Hermione thought. This can't be happening. Moving slowly, she reached in her bag and brought out a book with several page marks sticking out of it. Using the moon and candle light, she was able to confirm her worries. If Snape enters Malfoy's mind, the spell Harry used would automatically start to infect his mind as well.

The Professors and orderlies continued to argue while she scanned through the book. Finding the passage she was looking for, she read hurriedly, as her worry continued to grow.

It is unknown how to reverse this curse. She read. Tacenda Vis is hardly ever discovered until it has run its course and erased the memory from the victims mind. The only way it has been known to be discovered, is when a witch or wizard had attempted to enter the victims mind, only to be infected with the curse as well. There have only been a few cases of this happening, as there aren't many in the magical community skilled enough in the magical art of Legilimency. None of them recovered from the exposure to the Tacenda Vis curse, living out the rest of their lives in a comatose state. Experts have theorized that when the curse jumped from the host body, it would rampage the recipients mind without any purpose. Thus the curse wouldn't release it's hold from the witch or wizards mind, because it wasn't given any objective to complete in the first place.

The nature of this spell is vicious and usually underestimated. Since its use died out several hundred years ago, no further research was conducted to learn the properties of this spell. One Mediwizard commented in a Special Issue Medical magazine in the early 1900's, that the reason this curse was unique to all others was because it acted as though it were a living organism, with characteristics of a virus feeding off its host.

Hermione was brought out of her thoughts as she heard the occupants of the Hospital Wing depart. There was some shuffling about as Madam Pomfrey bustled around Malfoy, making sure he was comfortable and not in need of anything. Soon the Mediwitch retreated to her office and Hermione was once again left only with the sounds of Malfoy's breathing.

After waiting several moments to ensure the Wing was empty, Hermione crawled from underneath the bed and tip-toed out of the Infirmary. She found an empty room to stay in for the night as she waited to get back to her time. Because of what the Professors planned to do, Hermione knew she had to inform them of what the spell is. If she didn't, Snape would be comatose for the rest of his life. A huge Ministry investigation would be held and all students interrogated. Harry would most likely be discovered as the one to cast the spell and be expelled, and most likely sent to Azkaban. Even though he is the Boy-Who-Lived, Dumbledore wouldn't be able to get Harry out of a mess like that.

One the other hand, if she told the Professors she had discovered the spell, they would want to know why she looked in such an old spell book in the first place. Since she learned the Professor Snape is a master at mind reading; he would know the moment she lied. Harry would get in trouble either way.

She sighed as she tried to solve this problem. What am I going to do? Harry's life would be ruined. Am I capable of doing such a thing, even if it is the right thing to do?

A/N: Read and Review! Thank you!