Blood Of The Unicorns

Chapter Two

Term continued apace, with the teachers piling more and more work on, much to the despair of much of the year. OWLs seemed to have taken on a new importance, as they blotted out all thoughts of what might be coming. The events of their Fourth Year were still fresh, and the possibility of Voldemort's appearance weighed heavily. While the younger students seemed unaffected, their elders, for the most part, knew better, and the situation was not helped by the fact that five Slytherins in the fifth, sixth and seventh years had not returned from the summer holidays, including Draco Malfoy. Which, as Ron pointed out, could only be a good thing. Harry, however, wasn't so sure. Returning to Hogwarts had made him remember Cedric Diggory again, and, try as he might, he couldn't get rid of the feeling that something was going to happen. This wasn't helped by Malfoy's sudden disappearance, or Snape's "sabbatical".

Potions lessons, however, had improved. Only in one respect, but an important one: Professor Loveday was impartial in her criticism and sarcasm. Be you a Slytherin or a Gryffindor, Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff, if you got it wrong, you heard about it. Unfortunately, she had as little - or possibly less - patience than Snape, so for people like Neville, the lessons were still something to fear.

Five weeks into term it was Ron who managed to melt his cauldron whilst trying to make a levitation potion. It wasn't as complex as some of the potions they'd been doing, but Ron hadn't been paying much attention (having mastered Wingardium Leviosa in the first year, he was rather blasé about levitation) and had ended up with a week's detention.

"I don't know why she's acting like this," he moaned to Harry and Hermione after spending the evening with Filch and Mrs Norris. "I thought she'd be nicer."

"Why?" asked Harry idly, as he sat in the Gryffindor common room, polishing his broomstick, and carefully snipping the odd wayward twig. "Seems to me that all potions professors are as bad as each other."

"Well, if you paid attention in lessons, Ron, maybe she would be nicer." Hermione's tone was cutting, and Ron glared at her. Harry sighed. Why his two best friends had to argue all the time, he had no idea. It got a bit annoying, really, having them always sniping at each other. However, before they could really get going, there came the sound of running footsteps, and Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil came rushing into the common room, both of them looking pale and scared.

"Whassamatter?" asked Ron around a mouthful of Bertie Botts' Every Flavour Beans.

"Come and see," whispered Lavender, and they followed the two girls out of the entrance to Gryffindor Tower into the corridor. It was awash with what looked like silver paint, and Harry and Ron looked at it, bemused. Hermione knelt down, and touched a finger to it. She swivelled round to gaze at them, her expression serious.

"I-I think it's unicorn's blood." They stared at her, then Harry got down on his knees as well, and reached out, but before he could touch it the sound of staccato footsteps echoed down the corridor, and Professor McGonnagall swept up, followed by Professor Loveday. The two women looked at the little group before them, and the pool of silver liquid.

"What is this?" enquired Professor McGonnagall abruptly.

"Unicorn's blood, I think, Professor." Professor Loveday looked at Hermione sharply.

"How do you know?"

"I've seen it before. In the first year, when someone killed a unicorn in the Forbidden Forest," she clarified. Professor Loveday frowned, but forebore to say anything, and Professor McGonnagall ushered the students away, back into the tower. Parvati and Lavender went straight into the common room, eager to tell everyone what had happened, but Harry, Ron and Hermione hovered behind the portrait, and were rewarded as they heard Professor McGonnagall speak.

"Was the unicorn…murdered?" Her voice was unusually tentative, and the three friends held their breath waiting for the answer, knowing full well what the answer could portend. There was a moment's silence, then a low voice answered.

"Yes."

"There can be no doubt?"

"None at all. This is very serious, Minerva."

"Yes, yes." But the Transfiguration professor's voice was vague, and she said suddenly, "Deal with it, please, Ianthe. I don't want any of the other students to see it."

They heard her leave, then there was silence again, followed shortly by foosteps as Professor Loveday also walked away. Harry carefully opened the portrait door, and peered out.

"It's okay," he said, looking back over his shoulder. "They've gone." He jumped out, Ron and Hermione at his heels.

"The blood's gone too," observed Ron, fortunately not seeing Hermione as she rolled her eyes. "Do you suppose… You Know Who…?" He didn't need to finish his question. Hermione looked solemn, but Harry shrugged.

"Seems a bit of a waste. I mean, if he still needs unicorn's blood to stay alive, why chuck it around the school? And how would anyone have got in? They're stricter than ever, and they've got loads of charms and stuff."

"Someone from inside the school, then, trying to scare us." Hermione bit her lip, deep in thought, then her eyes widened, and her hand flew to her mouth in horror. She turned on her heel, and went running down the corridor. Harry and Ron exchanged bewildered looks, then took off after her. She stopped, not surprisingly, outside the library. They went inside, and she made a bee-line for the shelves where the various magical journals were kept. Passing over Transfiguration Today, Which Broomstick, and Divining Divination, she gave a triumphant squeak, and grabbed the latest copy of the potions journal, Ars Alchemica.

"I was doing a bit of research," she explained, as she flicked through the journal, "and came across this - no, it's not in this one." She flung it aside carelessly, and the cavalier attitude from Hermione, who, as far as Harry and Ron could tell, practically worshipped books, made them blink. She ran her fingers along the spines of the other journals, then started pulling them out. "Aha! This is the one!" She displayed the front.

"Healing Potions and the Use of Unicorn's Blood," read Harry. "So?" Hermione shook it at him.

"Look who wrote it." Ron took the journal from her, and flicked open to the right page.

"Professor Ianthe Loveday." Hermione nodded, and looked at them significantly, taking the journal back from Ron.

"She's an expert in unicorn's blood," she explained. "Listen: 'Ianthe Loveday is a research professor at the Thaddeus Bindleweed Institute for Experimental Potions, where she has pioneered experiments for potions involving unicorn's blood. She attended Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry before studying Advanced Potions at the Idlewild Academy in Shrewsbury.'"

"No." Ron's voice was emphatic, and Harry and Hermione looked at him in surprise. Hermione opened her mouth to speak, but he was too quick for her. "No, Hermione. Professor Loveday is not a Death Eater."

"Ron-"

"Well, that's what you were going to say, isn't it?"

"Ron, think about it! We all know-" and here Hermione suddenly looked around cautiously, aware for the first time that this wasn't really a conversation that should be happening in public - "that Professor Snape was going to spy on Voldemort. And we get back after the holidays, and he's not here, and Professor Loveday's suddenly appeared. And a unicorn's murdered and she's an expert in how to make their blood heal people. I mean, come on, Ron! You've got to admit it's suspicious." But Ron was obstinate.

"No way, Hermione. You've got it all wrong." Hermione, who never took kindly to being told she was wrong, especially by Ron, glared at him.

"How would you know?" she asked rudely. "And apart from anything else, what's she doing here? I mean, she's a research professor at one of the biggest academic institutes in the country, and she suddenly decides to come and teach elementary potions to a bunch of kids? And it's not as if she even likes teaching."

"She's a Loveday!" Ron shouted at her. Hermione and Harry both looked at him blankly and he groaned. "I keep forgetting you two come from Muggle families. Look, the Lovedays are an old wizarding family."

"Like the Malfoys?" Harry didn't see that this was a good reason for Professor Loveday not to be a Death Eater.

"More like the Weasleys," replied Ron. His expression was earnest as he continued. "We've known them for years. Professor Loveday's younger sister was a Gryffindor with Bill and Charlie. Actually, I think she might have gone out with Bill for a while. Anyway, they're good people."

"Just because her family's nice doesn't mean anything," objected Hermione. "Look at Harry's family. They're vile, and he's still okay."

"It's not the same, Hermione. It would be like…like Fred and George suddenly ending up as Death Eater, or even Percy. It would never happen."

"So that's why you were so happy when Professor Dumbledore announced her at the start of term," said Harry out of the blue. Ron nodded, but before he could say anything, Hermione was off again.

"Yes, and look how wrong you were there. I think Professor Loveday is up to something." And with that, she swept out of the library, leaving behind a seething Ron.

"She thinks she's so smart," he complained bitterly, kicking the table leg. Harry shrugged.

"She usually is." Ron glared at him.

"I suppose you think she's right about this, don't you. Well, thanks a lot, Harry." Without giving Harry time to say a word, he stormed off as well, making a first year Ravenclaw jump back in surprise as he flung open the library door.

Ron and Hermione's behaviour was sadly reminiscent of their third year after that, as they spent much of their time pointedly ignoring each other. What was most odd, though, was Hermione's behaviour in Potions classes. Normally eager to please (with the noted exception of Professor Trelawney), Hermione seemed to take delight in being as rude as possible to Professor Loveday which, in Harry's opinion, wasn't the cleverest thing to do. After all, if the professor was a Death Eater, which seemed possible, though there wasn't really any evidence to prove it, it probably wasn't a good idea to make her suspicious. Maybe, thought Harry, she was trying to provoke Professor Loveday into actually doing some dark magic, but if that was the reason, it wasn't working, because the professor remained as cool as ever, though she was taking a lot of points off Gryffindor, until Angelina Johnson, who was their head of house, had to have a word with Hermione. Hermione's behaviour improved, and she and Ron started speaking to each other again (sort of) and life returned to some semblance. There was no more unicorn's blood, and Hermione was overheard to say that perhaps they had been a little hasty.

But then they found the second years.