Living without Danger
Chapter 33: Getting Answers (Year 2)
By Anne B. Walsh
Chapter 33: Getting Answers
Aletha sat beside a bed in the hospital wing, glad that Poppy Pomfrey had barred student visitors for the last week, and would continue to do so for the rest of term. Meghan was well-behaved, but there was only so much temptation a nine-year-old could handle. Teachers were still allowed to visit, but she was the only one who did. Probably because she was the only one with actual family, rather than just students, who’d been Petrified.
Because of the way they’d been found, Sirius and Hermione remained side by side on the same bed, and would until the Mandragora potion could awaken them. "What did you see?" she wondered aloud, looking at them. "What frightened you so badly? You’re both usually so hard to scare." Her eyes shifted to her husband. "What did you give pinkeye to? I bet, whatever it is, it still has it. When you curse something, Sirius Black, it stays cursed."
Her hands itched to touch her loved ones, but she kept them folded in her lap. She had felt the chill and hardness of the other Petrified people’s flesh, very much like polished stone. She knew that if she touched her beloved or her Pack-daughter now, it would take a long time for her to stop associating them with that deathly chill, that unnatural stillness. Better to keep her distance and remember.
"Do you remember our wedding night?" she asked Sirius quietly. "Or I should say, wedding afternoon. We were still denning at nights. Remus and Danger took Harry and Hermione out, so we had the house all to ourselves. I remember how unsure you were. It had been so long, and you were still so weak. But we managed. I suppose you could say that’s how our marriage has always been. Managing in spite of uncertainty."
If Sirius were awake, he would be making smart-mouthed comments by now, Aletha knew. He hated sentimentality and trips down Memory Lane. She grinned. This is my big chance, then, isn’t it?
"I want you to know something. You’re the most important person in my life. Not even Meghan is more important to me. If you were in trouble, in danger, I would drop everything and come to you. Well, some things I might put down gently, but that’s all the time I would take. All the best days of my life have you in them, at least peripherally. The day I found out you were innocent, the day I got you back, our wedding day, Meghan’s birthday, the day you were acquitted... even you have to be seeing the pattern by now."
Great. He can’t make the smart comments, so I make them myself.
She leaned forward. "And I want you to know one other thing. If that monster, whatever it is, had killed you, I would make certain Meghan was provided for, and then I would go after it myself. I would tear this castle apart if I had to, to find it and to kill it. And if anything ever does kill you, other than old age, I will do the same. You belong to me. I’m the only one with the right to kill you."
She shook her head, not really surprised at her constant jokes. He’s obviously rubbed off on me after all these years.
"Remus misses you, you know. It’s not just Hermione he was upset about. He thought you were pretty near invincible. Come to think, so did I." She sighed. "Which brings us back to our first point. What in the world did this to you?"
This is our "story without an ending," I suppose. At least right now it is. Aletha smiled reminiscently. Around the time they’d started dating, she’d found out that Sirius had never seen a movie. She had done research into London cinemas, found one that played old classics, then dragged him out one night to see Casablanca with her. He had complained all the way there, but when the lights came up, he’d had only one thing to say: "Can we do that again?"
"As Time Goes By" had been their song ever since. If they’d had a fancy wedding, that would have been what they had their first dance to. "You know, that’s something we could do one of these days," she told him. "Have a big, fancy second wedding. Get married magically, to go along with the Muggle vows. Just for the fun of it. It would be nice to have a wedding with our own daughter as a junior bridesmaid."
She spent a little longer planning out their future, then talked to Hermione for a little while, relaying news of the Pride, assuring the girl she’d have no trouble catching up with the work she was missing. Even though she knew they couldn’t hear her, it was somehow comforting to talk to them this way. She was reaffirming that they weren’t dead, that they hadn’t left for good.
Aletha’s heart felt lighter when she finished. She blew Sirius and Hermione each a kiss before turning to leave.
They’ll be underfoot again soon enough. Pomona says the Mandrakes ought to be full-grown by the beginning of June at the latest.
The thought put a smile on her face as she went down to lunch.
After the meal, she considered leaving by a side door, but decided it would be too mean to the small group obviously waiting for her by the great main doors. She stepped off the dais and walked along one side of the Great Hall absent-mindedly, as if she hadn’t noticed them at all.
"Excuse me, Professor," said Harry as she got close to them.
Oh, what did they do now? Harry, Draco, Ron, and Neville all looked guilty, while the girls looked anxious, even Luna. "Yes?"
"May we speak with you privately, please?"
Proper grammar, and a please. This must really be bad. "Yes, of course. But don’t you have class now?"
"Yes, Professor. I — I didn’t mean now. Maybe after dinner?"
Aletha put her hands on her hips and studied the Pride. Either they’ve finally pulled something too big to get themselves out of it, or this is an act. Or it could be both. "After dinner is fine. I’ll escort you up, and back to the Tower afterwards."
"Thank you, Professor." Harry offered her a fleeting smile, then turned to the Pride, getting in on a whispered conversation between Ron and Neville. Aletha let her eyes rove over them for a moment, lingering longest, of course, on Meghan. Barred from the hospital wing and not allowed to roam the castle by herself, her Pearl had taken to spending days with the first year Gryffindors. Though she couldn’t do the practical lessons, not having a wand, she could listen to lectures and take notes, and answer questions, though Aletha discouraged this.
Bad enough to have her here, attending class even, when she’s too young. Worse still if she starts "showing off."
Someone jostled her elbow. She looked around to see a Ravenclaw sixth year, smiling apologetically. "Professor? You’re supposed to take us to class."
"I’m so sorry, Miss Clearwater, you’re quite right. I was daydreaming. Forgive me." Aletha nodded to her class of Ravenclaw and Slytherin sixth years. "Come on, everyone, let’s see if I can do any better than my husband at keeping you safe. If everything runs true to form, it shouldn’t be too difficult." She made her tone very dry, and was rewarded with a few chuckles and a handful of smiles.
If they see me laughing at it, they’ll feel more free to do the same. Which is good. They shouldn’t treat this as a joke, but neither should they let it steal all the joy from their lives.
The line of students moved off through the halls, snake-like. Would that make her the snake’s head, Aletha wondered whimsically?
She hissed experimentally, under her breath, and wondered what Harry would tell her she was saying.
I’ll have to ask him tonight.
xXxXx
Aletha shut the door behind Draco. "Speak up," she said bluntly. "What’s going on?"
Harry took a deep breath as the Pride found seats. "We were at Hagrid’s," he said. "The night he got arrested."
Aletha sat down behind her desk. "Is this what you’re so nervous about telling me?"
"Sort of."
"Why should you be? I already knew that."
"How—" Harry stopped. "Moony told you," he said. "But how did he know?"
"How did he know?" Aletha shook her head. "Harry, he saw you. All three of you," she added to Ron and Draco. "Standing in front of the window with your mouths open like baby birds waiting to be fed."
"But he can’t have seen us!" protested Ron. "We were hidden!"
Aletha frowned. "Hidden? How? He said you were standing in plain sight."
"Nice," muttered Draco to Ron.
"Oh, like you’ve never said something and wished you could take it back," retorted Ron, whose ears had gone pink.
"I might have made a mistake," said Neville from the corner of the room where he was occupying a large armchair, playing cat’s cradle with Meghan.
Aletha turned to him. "What do you have to do with — never mind. I don’t want to know. Do I?" she asked Harry, who shook his head. "Though I’ll probably end up knowing in any case, and we’re not exactly short on time..." She sighed. "All right. Tell me. No punishments unless absolutely necessary."
Neville explained about the new talent he’d discovered. "I used it first the night Colin Creevey was Petrified," he said. "I just wanted to look in on Harry and Meghan..."
A small mystery resolved itself in Aletha’s mind. "I saw you, didn’t I? In the doorway of the hospital wing?"
Neville nodded.
"But I wasn’t sure if I was seeing anything or not." Aletha brushed her finger along the edge of a quill. "So. I saw past your magic, at least partly, and so did Remus. But no one else seems able to. Correct?"
Another nod.
"It might be something about the Pack," mused Aletha. "Maybe our magic and yours overlaps, since we’re sworn by the same oaths..." She pulled herself back to the moment with a jerk. "Enough. Time for magical philosophy later. Is that all you wanted to tell me?"
Harry shook his head. "Hagrid said something before he left," he said. "He told us that if we wanted answers, we should follow the spiders."
"So we’ve been looking for spiders," said Ron, with an expression on his face that indicated he hadn’t been a very willing participant in this quest. "But we didn’t see any until this morning. And they were headed towards the Forbidden Forest."
"And Moony said you might be willing to help us with some things," finished Draco. "We’re none of us crazy enough to go out to the Forest alone."
A round of fervent nods.
Aletha repressed an urge to laugh. "Do you want me to go with you, then?" she asked with a straight face.
"What we’d really like," said Harry, his eyes on the floor, "is a chance to talk with Hagrid. Really talk, and find out what he means about the spiders."
"We’d write to him, but it’s too risky," said Draco. "Someone might intercept the letters. Besides, he might not be able to get a hold of ink and quill, wherever he is. And it’s hard to keep things straight, asking a lot of questions in a letter."
"You think writing to him would be more risky than visiting him?" Aletha kept her tone level. "And why would you think he’s even nearby?"
Ginny, silent until now, raised her head. "Hogwarts is Hagrid’s home," she said. "He loves it here. I don’t think he’d go very far. There are caves in the mountains near here. He could live in one of those, and hunt in the Forest for food for him and Fang."
"There could even be somebody at the school helping him," added Luna. "Sending him packages with food. If you know the house-elves, it wouldn’t be hard. They love to feed people."
"That explains why you think he’s nearby. Not why you think paying him a call would be a better idea than writing. You could send him writing things, if you think he doesn’t have any."
"But we’d have to write a lot of letters to get the answers we need," said Harry. "And a lot of letters take a lot of time. The Heir of Slytherin could Petrify more people, or kill them, if we don’t get answers soon."
Low blow, Harry. But Aletha stayed calm. Her Pack-son had a good point. Still, there was something he hadn’t thought of.
"Before this, the Heir had an alibi," she said. "Hagrid had free access to the school. It could have been him — I’m not saying I believe it was, or I would never have done as I did. But it could have been. Now he’s gone. He’s not in custody, but there are precious few ways for a man his size to sneak into Hogwarts. If the Heir Petrifies or kills anyone now, it will be obvious to everyone that Hagrid’s innocent, and that will start the hunt all over again."
The Pride looked at each other, exchanged grudging nods. Draco flashed a signal to Harry, who gave him the go-ahead.
"A lot of letters still means a lot of owls," he said, fixing his grey eyes directly on Aletha. "And wizards notice owls. They might notice if a lot of owls kept coming to one place, and think maybe there was a person there. But if we visited, we’d only have to go once, and no one would think much of a family out for a weekend excursion."
Most people think in straight lines. But you, little fox, you think in corkscrews.
We may have need of that before we’re through.
"You make a good point, Draco. But—" Aletha raised her hand, cutting off an incipient celebration. "Nothing’s settled yet. I do not know, myself, where Hagrid is. It is possible I know someone who knows. If I do, and if that person will take you there, his hiding place is to be a den-secret, is that entirely clear? One word, one hint that he’s anywhere near here, and the Ministry will be here in droves. Is that entirely understood?"
A ragged chorus of "Yes, Professor," and "Yes, ma’am."
"I will let you know if and when anything is to happen. Now come on. It’s time you were all in the Tower." Aletha got up.
Luna looked up at her. "Thank you, Professor Freeman-Black," she said politely. "I like you a lot."
"Thank you, Luna. That’s very nice of you."
"The house-elves like you too," said Luna, following her out into the corridor. "But some of the students call you rude names. Did you know?"
Aletha glanced behind her. Luna looked completely unaware that she was saying anything out of the ordinary. Draco appeared to have received all of her awareness in addition to his own, as he was slowly strangling himself with his school tie. "Yes, I knew. Some people are rude to Muggleborn witches and wizards."
"It’s very foolish of them," said Luna. "The only people who have muddy blood are the ones who’ve been attacked by Hemogoblins." She treated them all to a discourse about Hemogoblins, where they lived, how they attacked, and how to ward them off, all the way back to Gryffindor Tower.
Aletha pulled Draco aside for a moment while the rest of the Pride climbed through the portrait hole. "Problem?"
The blond boy sputtered, then managed to say, "She believes these things!"
"Yes. And she probably always will. I know you like her, fox. You’ll need to make up your mind about whether you can keep liking her, even when she says odd things in public and makes herself, and the people with her, look a little foolish. If not... no law says you have to keep liking her. But you’ve sworn to her as a Pridemate, and that I think you’re pretty well stuck with."
Draco looked insulted. "I’m not about to stop liking her! I just wish..."
"You wish she didn’t. I know. She may grow out of it, or she may not. Be prepared for either outcome, although I think the latter is the likelier. Do you want my advice on how to deal with that?"
Draco nodded.
"Learn to laugh about it. And take a lesson from the lady herself. She doesn’t seem to care what anyone else thinks of her. We could all use a bit of that."
Draco looked at the floor, then back up at Aletha. "Do you ever get tired of being right?"
"Hasn’t happened yet." Aletha kissed his forehead. "Behave yourselves, if that’s possible. Good night."
"Night."
Draco climbed through the portrait hole, and the Fat Lady’s portrait swung shut. "Fine children you have," she remarked to Aletha. "Some of the most promising I’ve seen. They’ll make great witches and wizards one day."
"Yes." Aletha smiled crookedly. "If we can keep from strangling them first."
xXxXx
The next weekend found Harry and Draco following Moony up a trail outside Hogsmeade.
"Did it have to be just us?" asked Harry as they walked, ignoring Draco’s elbow to his ribs. "Couldn’t Ron or the girls have come?"
Moony sounded somewhat impatient when he answered. "This is illegal and unwise enough already, Harry. It’s unusual for parents to visit during the term, doubly unusual for them to ask to take their children away from the school for brief periods, and for those requests to be granted is practically unheard of. If I were to ask to take someone else’s children along as well, and that were to be granted, someone would hear of it and protest it. And if they found out where we were planning to go..."
Harry grinned at Draco and interrupted. "The sky would fall."
Moony stopped and turned around. "Are you trying to imply that I’m a chicken, Harry?"
Harry shook his head vigorously, biting his lip hard so as not to laugh and spoil the moment. Draco had his most innocent expression on. "You’re not fooling anyone," Moony said to him. "And one more remark from either of you, and this little expedition heads straight back to Hogwarts."
But he sounded more cheerful than he had, and when he turned around again, Draco gave Harry the thumbs-up.
The path grew steeper as they got farther from Hogsmeade. It was nearly half an hour from the time they’d set out when Moony stopped again. "Back up a little, boys," he said. "I need some room for this."
Draco edged back, leaving Harry room to do the same. Moony transformed and shook back his mane. Harry felt excited. Was Moony going to roar to tell Hagrid they were nearby?
But instead of a roar, the sound that came from Moony’s mouth was a strange wail that reminded Harry of Moaning Myrtle, although it was several octaves deeper than her usual noises. It made all the hair on Harry’s arms stand up.
From somewhere nearby came a dog’s howl. Moony retransformed and beckoned them forward.
"That was scary," said Draco with deep feeling.
"Thank you." Moony looked rather smug.
The cave where Hagrid was staying was around several twists and turns more of the path, but the entrance was hard to see unless you were looking for it. Fang charged at the visitors as they entered, barking happily, and Hagrid got up to greet them.
"Wonder if yeh could do me a favor, Remus," he said to Moony. "Fang’s picked up fleas, livin’ rough..."
"And you didn’t think to get your umbrella. I can handle that. Oh, and this is for you." Moony took off the backpack he was wearing and extracted a large box. "From the kitchens, with love."
Hagrid’s eyes gleamed. "Thanks. Thanks a lot."
"Don’t thank me, thank the boys. They insisted on coming to see you." Moony walked towards the entrance of the cave, Fang following him. "We won’t go far, but this spell’s easier when I can see what I’m doing."
"All right," said Hagrid, sitting down on the floor of the cave. Harry and Draco copied him. "What can I do fer yeh, then?"
"We wanted to know what you meant when you said to follow the spiders," said Harry. "What would we find if we did?"
Hagrid sighed. "That. I was afraid it’d be that. Goes a long way back, this story does. Back ter when I was in school. Back ter the reason I got expelled in me third year."
"They thought you’d opened the Chamber of Secrets," said Draco.
Hagrid stared at him. "How’d yeh know about that?" he demanded.
"We found a diary," said Harry. "It had the story written in it. It was written by a boy named Tom Riddle."
Hagrid’s fists clenched. "Tom Riddle. Aye, he’d write that story down. Right proud, he was. Proud of catching me. Sneaking Slytherin. No better’n You-Know-Who, that one. Don’ think he ever told the truth in his life."
"Did he lie, then," began Draco, but Hagrid cut him off.
"He said I’d opened the Chamber o’ Secrets! I was Slytherin’s Heir! More likely ter be him than me, but he was the prefect, the bes’ student o’ the year, an’ I was just a big blunderin’ oaf like I am now, an’ it were his word agains’ mine. An’ he went an’ told everyone about the monster he’d seen me with, an’ how he’d nearly got it, but it got away from him..."
"Was that true?" asked Harry quickly.
"What? Yes, that was true, but I never got what he saw from no secret chamber!" Hagrid picked up a rock lying nearby and began to crumble it into gravel. "That was Aragog he tried ter murder. An’ Aragog was terrified o’ Slytherin’s monster, whatever it was. He’d never tell me."
The boys looked at each other nervously. Draco asked the question. "Hagrid, who’s Aragog?"
"Aragog’s who yeh would’ve met, if you’d’ve followed the spiders. He’s an acromantula. Hatched him myself, I did, right in the castle. But he never hurt no one." Hagrid turned away, wiping his eyes on his sleeve. "That poor little girl..."
"Acromantula?" mouthed Draco.
"BIG spider," Harry mouthed back, spreading his arms as wide as they’d go. "What little girl?" he asked aloud.
"The one who was killed, las’ time the Chamber was opened. They found her in a bathroom, lyin’ there starin’ at the ceiling, stone dead." Hagrid looked back at them. "I know yeh got no reason ter believe me..."
"We believe you," said Harry, making up his mind.
"Yeh — yeh do?"
Draco nodded. "That’s the other reason we wanted to come and talk to you," he said. "We were sure it couldn’t really be you."
Hagrid swept them both into a bone-crushing hug, which fortunately only lasted a few seconds. "It’s good ter have friends," he said, smiling at them. "Isn’t it?"
"Sure," gasped Harry, recovering his breath. "Sure, it’s great to have friends."
They talked a little while longer, giving Hagrid the greetings of the Pride, but when they offered to tell him the news at the castle, he shook his head. "Already know it," he said proudly. "Dumbledore’s been visitin’ me himself. Keepin’ me up ter date on things. He wasn’ too happy ter hear about Norbert." He looked rather sheepish. "I knew it weren’t a good idea, but I just couldn’ pass up an opportunity like that..."
"The man from Control of Magical Creatures said something odd," said Draco. "Something about boys. Like boys had told him that you had a dragon."
"They did — oh, that’s true, yeh wouldn’t know. They had two letters o’ complaint about me, down at the Ministry. From a pair o’ second year Slytherins."
"Probably Nott and one of his toadies," said Harry in disgust. "Do you know their names?"
"Nott was one of ‘em. But the other was yer cousin, Harry. The Dursley boy. An’ they said specifically they’d seen a dragon in me house." Hagrid looked confused. "Unless they saw him in the firs’ couple’a days, I don’ see how they could’ve. Neville had him hidden after that."
"Unless they lied," said Draco. "Slytherins are good at that."
"But how would they have known?" asked Harry. "And why would Dursley do something like that? I thought he was on the outs with Nott and his gang."
Draco shrugged. "Maybe Dursley bought his way back in by telling them about Norbert."
Moony came back into the cave, Fang lolloping at his side. "One de-fleaed dog," he said, presenting Fang like a master of ceremonies might. "And I put a spell on his collar that should keep them away for a couple of months at least."
Hagrid got to his feet again. "Yeh didn’t have ter do that."
"It was no trouble. And it’ll be easier for you." Moony shook Hagrid’s hand. "I’m afraid we have to get going. Danger and Aletha send their best, Hagrid."
"An’ I send mine right back. That was some neat work they did." Hagrid chuckled. "I’d bet Scrimgeour won’t ferget that night in a hurry."
"I bet not," said Harry, grinning up at Hagrid. "Bye, Hagrid."
"Bye," echoed Draco, who looked slightly more somber.
"What’s wrong with you?" asked Harry as they started down the path.
"Harry, Hagrid could be lying."
"About what?"
"Not opening the Chamber. He could have made all that up."
"Draco, everything else fits about it... wait, you never saw Riddle’s memory, did you?"
"No, I didn’t. Why?"
"Because the monster Riddle surprised there did look like a big spider. And all the spiders we’ve seen have been running away from the castle, towards the Forest. Wouldn’t they do that if there was a really big spider in there? One who could protect them?"
Draco thought about this for a second. "Moony?" he called.
"Yes?" answered Moony over his shoulder without breaking stride.
"You’ve been out in the Forest in lion-shape sometimes, haven’t you?"
"Yes."
"Have you ever met anything like a really big spider out there?"
"Not met, but I know they’re there. There’s an entire colony of acromantulas in the Forest, actually. I assume this has something to do with following the spiders?"
"Yeah," said Harry when Draco didn’t answer.
"I’m just as glad you didn’t. Acromantulas are vicious. They can speak and reason, but they’re more likely to eat you than talk to you. Still, if Hagrid had done something for them, they might respect him enough not to eat his friends." Moony sounded doubtful.
Harry seized the moment to ask what he hadn’t wanted to ask Hagrid. "Can acromantulas Petrify people?"
"Hmm." Moony seemed to be giving the matter serious thought. "I don’t believe they can," he said finally. "They do have a paralyzing venom, but paralyzed is different than Petrified. Easier to cure, for one thing. Besides, if an acromantula were the monster that’s been Petrifying people, we would have found marks on their bodies where they were bitten. No one’s been marked at all."
Harry glared at Draco, who raised his hands in surrender. "Fine, you win," he said, but Harry could see a smile sneaking onto his brother’s face, and couldn’t stop one from coming to his own in return. Hagrid was innocent. He’d never opened the Chamber of Secrets, he’d never done anything worse than raise an enormous, bloodthirsty spider in Hogwarts...
Well, all right, that’s not so great. But it’s better than Petrifying and killing people.
The walk back to Hogwarts didn’t seem nearly as long as the walk up.
xXxXx
The rest of the Pride was overjoyed to hear that Hagrid was innocent. They had to be overjoyed quietly, though, as the new rules meant the common room was so crowded that they couldn’t go down to the Hogwarts Den. Even stealth mode wouldn’t get them past the three fifth-years standing right by the entrance. So they had to have their conversation in a corner of the common room. It helped, of course, that Fred and George had chosen tonight to liven things up by releasing a dozen fairies in the common room, forcing the Gryffindor prefects to chase them down with nets.
"So let me get this straight again," said Ron. "Not only was Hagrid’s monster not the monster from the Chamber, but it was scared of the monster from the Chamber?"
Harry nodded. "But it would never tell Hagrid what the other monster was."
"Almost like Voldemort," said Meghan, ignoring the shudders that ran through Neville and the Weasleys. "The way people are even afraid of his name."
"And Hagrid’s monster was a big spider?" asked Neville. Harry and Draco both nodded.
"It’s nice that Dumbledore is going to see him," said Luna, as Percy and a fifth year collided behind her and fell to the floor, the fairy they’d been chasing zooming off gleefully. The rest of the Pride stifled giggles.
"Wait a minute," said Ginny. "Harry, where did you say that girl was found again?"
"A bathroom," said Harry. "Hagrid said they found her in a bathroom. Why?"
Ginny made a face. "This keeps happening. I’ll almost have a thought, and then it gets away from me."
"Moaning Myrtle lives in a bathroom," observed Luna.
"That’s nice," said Ron, sounding bored.
Harry sat up straighter, feeling again the tingling rush of an idea, though this was more like an understanding. "You’re right," he said. "It is nice. What if Myrtle is the girl who was killed?"
"What?" said Ron and Neville together.
"Think about it," said Harry, leaning forward, certain he was right. "Letha told me once that unhappy people are more likely to become ghosts. Myrtle’s obviously not happy now. I bet she was like that when she was alive too. She probably went in the bathroom to cry..."
"And never came out." Draco was nodding. "It makes sense."
"So what should we do?" asked Neville.
"Move over," said a loud and bossy voice from behind him. Neville jumped and hastily moved. Percy, looking hot and cross, stepped into Neville’s place and netted the last fairy, which had been sticking out its tongue at him, obviously thinking itself out of reach. "And then go to bed. It’s too crowded down here, and it’s getting late."
"Who put a wand up his bum?" muttered Ron as Percy strode away.
"He was born with it, I think," answered Ginny, twitching her eyebrows.
Heads turned all over the common room to see who was laughing so loudly.
xXxXx
Professor McGonagall had been escorting the Gryffindors to breakfast every morning since the new rules went into place, so Harry wasn’t surprised to see her in the common room the next morning. However, he was surprised by the grim look on her face.
"Is everyone out of your dormitory, Potter?" she asked him.
Harry looked around, seeing Dean and Seamus on the hearthrug, and his Pridemates talking with the girls near the back of the room. "Yes, Professor."
"Your attention, please," Professor McGonagall called out. "I am afraid I have some bad news to report. As of this morning, Professor Dumbledore has been suspended from his position as Headmaster."
Whispers broke out everywhere. Harry felt as if the rug had been Summoned from beneath his feet. Dumbledore’s gone?
"Why?" asked a seventh year.
"Has someone else been attacked?" called another voice.
"Who’s going to replace him?"
"Is the school going to close?"
Professor McGonagall lifted her hands for quiet. "The reason for his suspension is none of your concern," she said rather sternly. "No one else has been attacked, and there is no reason to suppose anyone will be. The school is not going to close. And no one will be replacing Professor Dumbledore, because he will be back as soon as the charges against him prove groundless. Now. Our day-to-day routine continues as usual, and I expect good behavior from all of you. Is that clear?"
"Yes, Professor," rang throughout the room.
"Good. Follow me, then."
"We’ll ask Letha," Harry told the Pride on the way down to the Great Hall. "We’ll wait for her right after breakfast."
But this proved not to be necessary. Letha was waiting for them at the entrance to the Great Hall. "I’ll see you all in my office after you’re finished eating," she said bluntly. "We have things to discuss."
"That doesn’t sound good," muttered Draco as he watched his Pack-mother walk stiffly away.
xXxXx
He threw himself down on the bench beside the other boy. "Did you send one too?" he demanded.
The other boy looked up from his breakfast insolently. "Yeah."
"Why?"
"Because he asked me to."
"Why’d he ask you to?"
"Because he wasn’t sure if you were going to or not."
"What? Why would he doubt me? You’re nothing to him! Nothing at all!"
The other rolled his eyes. "You almost didn’t, last time," he said. "He had to tell you twice."
"I just..." He scowled. "I just didn’t want to lie."
The other didn’t deign to reply.
xXxXx
"I assume," said Letha in the deadly quiet tones she almost never used, "that you want to know why Professor Dumbledore has been suspended."
Harry nodded, almost timidly.
"He has been suspended because of a number of anonymous complaints. Complaints which stated that he knew the whereabouts of one Rubeus Hagrid, and was visiting him."
"Uh-oh," said Meghan under her breath.
"I can think of only one set of people in this castle who should know that. And I am looking at all of them right now. I am quite sure they would never send letters of complaint in that way. So it must have been someone else. But that someone else could not just pluck this information out of the air. They must have heard it somewhere." Letha fixed Harry with a glare. "I wonder where they could have heard it."
"We didn’t tell anyone else," Harry protested weakly. "Honest, we didn’t."
"You must have been indiscreet, then. Speaking where someone else could hear you." Letha sat back with a sigh, closing her eyes. "We’re going to have to rethink a lot of things we do with you cubs," she said quietly. "Because a lot of what we did was based on trust. And now we can’t be sure that we can trust you anymore."
Harry felt a nastily familiar sensation. He’d felt the same way the year before, after he’d made his mistake in Defense Against the Dark Arts, when Draco and Hermione had told him they couldn’t trust him to be the alpha anymore. It was as if he’d been climbing stairs in the dark, and the last stair not only wasn’t there, but was a step down instead.
"This will be all over the castle by tomorrow, I’m sure," said Letha, opening her eyes. "But don’t help it along, please. Now come on. Back to the Tower with you."
Harry saw his own feelings mirrored on six other faces as he got up and turned around. Draco and Meghan showed it the most, of course, but Ginny’s eyes were a little brighter than they should have been, and Neville looked again as he had for most of their first year, as though he were expecting a punch in the nose any second.
The mood in Gryffindor Tower matched their own. Everyone was scared and disheartened. Ron gave voice to the general mood around ten o’clock.
"Without Dumbledore, we’re all doomed."
xXxXx
But they weren’t doomed, at least not right away. Weeks crept by; spring began to give way to summer. Final exams were scheduled as usual, to begin on the first of June. There were no more attacks. Harry didn’t dare mention what they had worked out about Moaning Myrtle to Letha, though. She’d probably think he was asking for more special treatment.
But he wasn’t, Harry thought moodily three days before exams were supposed to start, poking at his eggs. He was just trying to help...
Ron poked him. He looked up. Professor McGonagall was about to address the school, and she was smiling.
"Good news, students," she announced, and the Great Hall erupted into cheers.
"Is Professor Dumbledore coming back?" shouted several people.
"Has the Heir of Slytherin been caught?" cried a Ravenclaw.
"Is Quidditch back on?" bellowed Wood. Harry looked away so no one would see him laugh.
Professor McGonagall let everyone scream themselves out before she continued. "Professor Sprout tells me that the Mandrakes are ready to be harvested. Madam Pomfrey, Professor Snape, and Professor Freeman-Black will be preparing the Mandragora Potion tonight. There is every probability that the person behind these dreadful attacks will be identified and apprehended by tomorrow morning."
The cheers were even louder this time. Harry joined in with a glad heart. By this time tomorrow, Padfoot and Hermione would be awake again, Hagrid’s name would be cleared, and everything would be all right again.
"Did you hear?" said Draco, leaning across the table. "Letha’s helping Snape make the potion!"
Meghan was beaming. "My Mama Letha is the bestest potion maker anywhere," she said.
"You know better than to say bestest, Pearl," said Harry, slipping his arm around his sister’s shoulders for a quick hug. "Should we go say something to her?"
Draco shrugged. "Why not? She can’t stay mad at us forever."
The three cubs hurried up the aisle when breakfast was over, just catching Letha before she left by a side door. "You’re helping make the potion," said Harry, then wanted to kick himself for stating the obvious. Letha hated when people did that.
"Yes, I am. And I’m glad you’re here. I have to tell you something." Letha pulled her pendants out of her robes. "This potion is very difficult to make. I’m going to need my full concentration. So I’m going to be turning off my pendants while I make it, so that I’m not distracted if one of you gets angry or upset." She smiled. "So don’t go getting into any mortal danger, all right?"
"We won’t," said Draco. "Promise."
The Great Hall was almost empty. Letha gathered them into a quick hug. "I’m still a little disappointed," she told them when she let go. "But it seems there was no permanent harm done, and you’re young. You make mistakes. I will be glad when this year’s over, though."
"Us too," said Harry.
"Go on, your professors are waiting," urged Letha, shooing them towards the main doors.
xXxXx
He spent the day thinking, and wondering, and worrying. What was it like, to be Petrified? Did it hurt? Would it hurt, if you got the full dose and were killed?
He’d seen someone die, once. It had been awful. It still made him feel a little sick to think about it.
Did he really want lots of people at Hogwarts to die?
Finally, when they arrived back from dinner, he snatched quill and parchment and scribbled a note. Eight words on the inside, two on the outside. Then he summoned a house-elf and told it to convey the note, and not to say who’d sent it.
He wondered how ten words could make him feel like such a traitor.
xXxXx
While Poppy double-checked the ingredients they’d need and Snape locked the door of the dungeon, Aletha pulled out her pendants. "Cesso Nuntius Insignis," she said.
How much trouble can even they get into in a couple of hours?
xXxXx
"Meghan, we really shouldn’t be here!" Neville protested.
"It’s my last chance," Meghan shot back. "Mama Letha said not to heal anyone. So I’m not. I’m just going to look." She slipped between the screens which hid the bed with two occupants.
xXxXx
"Harry Potter, sir?" A house-elf appeared at Harry’s side. "Grabe has a note for Harry Potter."
"Thanks," said Harry, accepting the note. It was addressed to him, but not in any handwriting he knew. He shrugged and went to sit by the fire with Ron. "Where’s everyone else?" he asked.
"Don’t know. Draco and Luna’re getting an early start on den-night, but I haven’t seen Neville or Meghan, or Ginny. What’s that?"
"Note for me. A house-elf brought it to me." Harry handed it to Ron. "You know the handwriting?"
xXxXx
Draco lounged in a chair in the library, playing little snatches of tunes on his recorder, while Luna browsed through the books. She reached up and pulled an ancient tome off the shelf, and began to flip the pages.
"What’re you looking for?" asked Draco, taking the pipe from his lips.
Luna didn’t answer.
"Luna, is something wrong?"
Still no answer.
Draco got up and crossed the room, starting to get worried. "Luna, say something."
She looked up. "I think this might be important," she said.
xXxXx
"Meghan, he’ll be better in a few hours," said Neville. He hated to see her like this, so obviously not crying.
"I know." Meghan sniffled. "I know," she repeated more firmly. "I’m almost ready to go. I just want to do one thing."
She bent and kissed Professor Black on the lips.
xXxXx
"Nope. Never seen it before. You going to open it?"
"Only way to find out what’s inside."
Harry ripped the note open.
xXxXx
Draco took the book from Luna.
Professor Black’s lips moved. A thread of sound came from them.
"Basilisk..."
xXxXx
It’s a basilisk. It gets around in pipes.
There was no signature.
xXxXx
"Luna, this is it!" Draco stared at her, feeling a wild excitement. "This is the answer! This is what the monster is in the Chamber of Secrets! You found it!"
"I did? That’s good."
Draco wanted to laugh. I swear, nothing ever gets her excited.
The door of the library slammed open. Harry and Ron burst through. "We know what the monster is," said Harry, who was holding a piece of parchment. "Read that."
"You read this," said Draco, holding out the book.
They traded.
xXxXx
Neville backed away. "Did you hear that?"
"Basilisk," Meghan repeated. "Isn’t that a kind of monster?"
Neville nodded, but that wasn’t what interested him. "Meghan, you healed him just a little bit with your Ravenclaw power, just by touching him!"
"Wow." Meghan pressed her hand to her chest. "Thank you, Rowena."
A quiet grating sound made them both whip around.
xXxXx
Pandemonium reigned in the library of the Hogwarts Den.
"Spiders flee before it — that’s why they’ve all been running away!"
"And why Hagrid’s acromantula was so scared!"
"It kills by looking at people — that’s why Padfoot did the Conjunctivitis, so it couldn’t look at them!"
"And Colin looked through his camera, and Justin through Nearly Headless Nick!"
"And Siss didn’t have anything, that’s why it killed her—"
A section of the bookshelves swung out. Meghan and Neville tumbled out of a stone slide, breathless. "We know what the monster is," they babbled in unison.
"So do we," said Harry, helping Neville up. "It’s a basilisk."
"How did you know?" asked Meghan.
Harry opened his mouth to answer and froze, as did everyone else.
His pendants had just gone very, very cold.