disclaimer: all hail JKR, the goddess of imagination.
Chapter 20
Friday, October 14, 2011
Charlie arrived to pick me up the afternoon before Petula's wedding, we were going to spend the night at his apartment. We were walking back to my suite from Hagrid's cottage where we dropped Pitch off for the weekend when I heard Christopher Roverner's panicked voice shouting behind me. "Professor Goode!" he shouted, "help!"
"What's wrong, Chris?" I asked the boy as Charlie and I stopped in our tracks.
"It's Teddy, mam," he said breathlessly. He noticed Charlie, "Oh, I'm sorry to interrupt sir, but it's an emergency, Teddy Lupin's been hurt."
"That's all right, Chris." I said.
"Take us to him." Charlie ordered. I knew that Teddy was like family to him, and his family. The child was Harry's godson.
Chris took my hand and led us into the Forbidden Forrest. "What in the name of bloody Merlin were you boys doing in here?" Charlie asked tersely, as we followed the path.
"We were sent here, Mr. Weasley," Chris explained. "Professor Nott caught me, and Teddy and Michael Reed horsing around in the halls, and he assigned us detention this afternoon in the forrest to gather plants for his potions." We followed him deeper into the forrest, "Teddy stepped on some sort of metal thing, his leg is caught."
"Metal thing?" Charlie looked mystified, I just shrugged.
"Yes, Michael stayed with Teddy, I came to get help. I was going to look for Professor Hagrid, but I found you first, please come quickly mam, he's bleeding."
"All right," Charlie said, "lead on."
We found Teddy and Michael several feet off the path. We spotted the boys abandoned herb baskets. And, Michael was sitting in a clearing, next to Teddy whose ankle was trapped in an old style muggle bear trap. Michael was staunching the wound with part of his sweater. Poor Teddy appeared to be in agony. I noticed that the trap was chained to a large oak tree. "I tried casting alohamora twice, mam," Michael explained, but it didn't work.
"You did very good, Michael," I said. "We're here now."
"What the bloody hell is this thing?" Charlie asked me.
"It's a muggle bear trap," I explained, "the metal jaws are designed to close around the animals leg and hold it till the hunter can find it." I spoke very quietly, as to not spook the boys. "The muggles
use them to trap wild animals. My uncle and I used to go hunting up in Maine when I was a kid, he taught me about them.
"Alohamora!" Charlie shouted, as he took out his wand. The trap held firm.
"There should be a release lever, I'll step on it, and you pull Teddy free."
"Uncle Charlie?" Teddy asked, weakly. "What are you doing here?"
"Saving your little arse."
"Oh all right," Teddy then fainted. I don't know if from pain or blood loss.
"On three then?" I suggested.
Charlie nodded and grabbed a hold of Teddy.
"One," I said.
"Two," Charlie said.
"Three," We said in unison, I stepped on the release lever and not a damn thing happened.
"Dammit," I shouted. I cast a quick revealing charm to see if the trap had been cursed.
"Charlie," I whispered, "the trap's cursed." I have to see if I can break it. I pulled out my wand, then stepped on the lever one more time, as I cast a dispellment incantation. I pressed the lever one more time, and nothing. "The curse is gone but it's still locked, maybe another unlocking charm?"
"Both of us." I nodded. "Allright," Charlie motioned to the two boys. "Come here chaps," he said.
"What do you need us to do sir?" Chris asked.
"When the Professor and I cast the spell and the trap opens you fellows pull Teddy out. Got it?"
Both boys nodded and each grabbed one of Teddy's shoulders. "Ready boys?" I asked.
"Yes mam."
I grabbed Charlie's hand and we aimed our wands at the lever. "Alohamora," we said in unison, and the trap released. The two other boys pulled Teddy free. Charlie carried the still unconscious Teddy out of the forrest as I led the other two boys along the path, carefully scanning for signs of other traps.
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Madame Pomfrey had Charlie put Teddy down on to one of the beds. I gently untied his shoes, and helped her pull off his sock. "What happened?" She asked us.
"Someone set a bear trap in the forrest the boys were gathering herbs when Teddy stepped on it."
"Why were the boys in the Forrest unescorted?"
"I'm about to find out," I turned to Chris and Michael who were standing in the door anxiously.
"Why were you in the forrest with out an escort?" I asked.
"Professor Nott sent us in with a sixth year Slytherin girl. She left when her boyfriend showed up. Told us she had more important things to do than 'nurse maid a trio of undersized hooligans'. She told us to bring our filled baskets to the potions dungeon, and then she left." Chris explained "That's a direct quote by the way. She called us a 'trio of undersized hooligans'."
"What's her name?" I asked.
"Linda something," Michael said, "I heard her boyfriend call her Linda."
"Allright, Chris, I need you to go to the Headmistress's office and Michael, can you find Professor Longbottom?" Both boys nodded, and headed out to complete their missions. I turned back to Charlie and Madame Pomfrey, and relayed what the boys had told me. To say that they were pissed off is gross understatement. Charlie and I sat by Teddy's bed as Madame went to get the proper healing potions.
About ten minutes later, Michael returned with Neville. "What's happened?" Neville asked anxiously, "Mr Reed said there's been an accident in the forrest."
"Someone's been seeding the forrest with claw traps," I explained. "Teddy got caught in one.
He and Michael, and Christopher Rovener were gathering herbs for a detention."
"What the hell were they doing in the forrest unescorted?"
"Apparently, their assigned escort got bored and left them." I explained, absolutely disgusted, if I ever got a hold of the upperclassman assigned to escort them, she'd be toast.
"What is going on here?!" Mcgonagall stormed into the infirmary angrily, followed closely by Nott, and Christopher.
"Ah Minerva," Poppy said calmly. "Mr Lupin has a broken ankle, serious lacerations and has lost quite a bit of blood. I'll leave Glinda and Weasley to explain the circumstances, I have to get back to my patient."
Charlie and I explained how we found the boys and what had happened, with Charlie sending accusing looks at Nott then entire time. "The forrest will have to be searched," I said as I finished my story, there may be more traps out. I also want to study them, to get a better idea of what kind of curse was cast on them."
"Certainly, Glinda. Mr Lupins' guardians will need to be informed." As she spoke, I saw Remus and Tonks appear over their son's bed looking anxious. There were tears in Tonks' eyes, as Remus held her tightly. "Mister Rovener, Mister Reed, you two boys can return to your common rooms. You did admirably today."
"How is he, Poppy?" I asked for Remus and Tonks' benefit.
"He's stable," she explained. "I've given him pain and blood restoring potions. I've set the ankle, tomorrow, I'll mend it. He's going to be in here for a few days but he'll be all right."
"Thank you, Glinda," Remus said quietly. I just nodded and smiled, and turned back to Minerva and Neville.
"I'll deal with Linda Skeeter," Nott said. "She was supposed to be gathering herbs with the boys as detention, I'd assigned to her for catching her , half undressed, with David Banks in the Slytherin common room."
"Why did you send her and the boys into the forrest without an escort?" I asked.
"Miss Skeeter is of age," Nott explained. "Had she done her job, she'd have been an adequate guardian."
"Actually, I'll assign the proper punishment to Miss Skeeter," Minerva stated, with an ominous
smile.
"Certainly, headmistress," Nott complied.
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Charlie and I stayed with Teddy until Harry arrived with a fairly tall, thin older woman who looked quite a bit like Tonks, with gray streaked black hair and a considerably more conservative sense of fashion. Charlie and Harry made the introductions. My first impression of Andromeda Tonks was that she was not a woman I'd want to be on the bad side of.
"Oh mum," I heard Tonks cry. I watched as the ghost tried to touch her mothers hair, the only indication that Mrs. Tonks noticed was a shiver as her daughter's ghostly hand passed through her shoulder.
"Are you all right, Andromeda?" Charlie asked her.
"Yes, dear," she said, "just a momentary chill. Madame Pomfrey, how is he?"
"He's stable," Poppy explained, "I've given him a pain potion, and some Skelegrow for the broken ankle. He'll sleep through the rest of the night. You're welcome to stay in the guest quarters for the night.
"Thank you, I shall."
Charlie, Harry and I took our leave from the infirmary, to attend a meeting in Mcgonagall's office. Nott and Neville were there with the head, and Hagrid. Charlie's brother Ron also arrived.
"How is Teddy doing?" Minerva asked us.
"Madame Pomfrey says he's stable, she gave him some Skelegrow, and a pain potion. He'll be out until tomorrow, Andromeda Tonks is with him." I explained.
"Excellent, I've informed Hagrid and Ronald of the situation."
"Glinda," Hagrid asked, "Did you say that there might be more of those vile things out there?"
"I'm almost sure of it."
"We'll have to search the forrest then," Charlie said. "We were lucky enough to find Teddy quickly, but what happens if a centaur or a unicorn steps on one of those vile contraptions?"
"I'd hate to think of it," I didn't want to consider the consequences.
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Six of us ended up in the search, Hagrid, Neville, Harry, Ron, Charlie and myself. The search took us about ten hours and we found eight traps, fortunately, we didn't find any more victims. As we found each trap we removed the chains that anchored them to the trees, and dumped the evil contraptions into a large box, Harry wanted to bring them to Auror headquarters to be studied and destroyed. I'd was glad to have them off school grounds. I explained their mechanism, as we walked back to the castle. We brought the box with the traps into the headmistress's office.
"Those muggles are diabolical," Ron observed.
"They certainly have a talent for mayhem," Neville commented.
"Yeah," Harry and, I agreed in unison.
Ron peered into the box. "Really amazing, they are," he said, "in a totally horrifying way."
He reached his hand in to pick one up. I watched in horror as his hand touched the trigger plate.
"I think this one's a dud." He held the open trap for us to see.
"What?" I asked, let me see that. I grabbed the trap from the bottom, as soon as my fingers touched the plate, the jaws matched shut. "You were saying?" I asked sarcastically.
"Blimy," Ron said sheepishly.
"BE CAREFUL!" Charlie, Neville and Harry all shouted at him, at once.
"Gentlemen, and Glinda," Minerva said, "It's almost four in the morning. I think we need to get some rest. She motioned to Harry and Ron, "I've had rooms prepared for you in the guest wing. Charlie, I assume you'll be staying in the DADA suite?" We just gaped at her. "We're all adults here," she chuckled. "I know that you'll be discreet, it is the twenty first century, after all."