Author's Note:
I'm extremely sorry about how long it's taken for me to write this chapter and get it posted. A few days after I posted the last chapter, one of my family members died, so that involved a rather long trip to his funeral and back. At the same time, all of my teachers decided I need to be bogged down with homework, so the past few weeks I either haven't had time to write because school comes first, or I fell back into a depressed state of grief which is a mood I never seem to write well in. In short, please forgive me for situations beyond my control.
This is a shorter chapter than I wanted it to be, but it could be broken into two where this chapter ends now, so I figured you all would like an update. I'm not taking anything out of the story, just splitting this chapter into two parts so you all get a quicker update. The other part will be its own chapter.
Chapter 3
Professor Snape pulled out of Harry's mind, afraid that his worst fears were indeed coming true. Hours before, his Dark Mark had burned, but he couldn't answer what he assumed was a call from the Dark Lord until his cover wouldn't be blown. He had gone back to his quarters after the Triwizard Tournament had ended since it had stopped burning and he had essays to grade. He hadn't thought that Dumbledore and Pomfrey would need his help with their patients. In fact, he was hoping to relax by the fireplace with a glass of wine.
The Dark Lord had indeed returned, killing Mr. Diggory along the way. Of course he had been speaking for too long to actually kill Harry. That would be his downfall one day, talking long enough for Harry to develop a well thought-out plan and kill him before anyone could try to stop him.
The much more pressing matter, however, was that Severus had correctly figured out what was wrong with the boy. Lucius must have cast the spell since only he, the Dark Lord, and himself knew that Stupesquamis Incursio could be used with the same eventual effects as the Avada Kedavra and had the reasons to actually put the spell to use. Of course Lucius would use it rather than attempt an Avada Kedavra. If a Ministry official ever had need to check his wand, he wouldn't want the evidence of a kill attached to his wand, and in turn, him.
Severus shook his head and stalked to the fireplace in Madam Pomfrey's office. Grabbing a pinch of the floo powder and tossing it into the fire, Severus said "The Headmaster's Office" and stuck his head through. Dumbledore was standing with an empty box of lemon drops in his hand, and he turned around once he saw the visitor in the fireplace. "Well, Severus, what did you find out?"
"I found many things, but you'll see the boy's memories while I'm brewing the potion. I was correct in my assumption, and the only way to save him is to introduce Dragon genes into his system. Do you have the Portkey to Romania ready yet?"
"Yes, Severus, I'll be leaving right now. I expect you to begin making the potion to save us time. I'll bring the Dragon blood to you when I return. Please check in with Pomfrey first, as I'm certain you failed to inform her of the situation."
"As you wish, Sir," Severus pulled his head out of the fireplace and walked to the mediwitch. "It seems I was correct, Poppy. Dumbledore is leaving right now for Romania by Portkey. Please keep me updated with how much time we should have left before we'll be too late. The potion will take about two and a half hours to brew. I'm not sure if you can put Mr. Potter into stasis, but I would recommend it if at all possible."
"Get everything done as quickly as possible. I can't put him in stasis when he's in such an unstable condition. We only have a few hours at the most, but I'll give him a vial of Dreamless Sleep to buy us any time we can get."
Severus nodded. "I'll brew the potion as quickly as I possibly can, but it takes time to simmer and gather its magical potential. Hopefully Charlie Weasley can get us what we need to save him by the time I need to add it to the potion." Severus left through Madam Pomfrey's floo system for his own quarters. He headed to his lab, knowing that he could find the exact potion in one of his personal journals.