The Last Sanguimagus

Harry looked up from his plate and watched as Hermione paged through a very large and dusty book. Just like her to bring something like that to lunch, he thought. She had a look of deep concentration on her face.

"I can't remember anything about the properties of moonstones," said Ginny, rubbing her eyes. "This is the worst assignment ever!"

Hermione didn't respond, but Neville looked glum.

Ron stared at the Head Table for a long moment. "This is the week for those 'Hex Avoidance' classes Marten's on about," he said, his attention back to the tray of tarts in front of him.

"Yes," said Harry, with a strange sense of satisfaction. "It'll be us against the Slytherins."

"I hope I get a chance to curse Malfoy," said Ron grimly.

"I hate moonstones!" said Ginny emphatically, scribbling madly.

Lunch finished, the three watched as the rest of the students in the hall rushed off to their classes. They made their way to the mirror in the fourth floor corridor. Hermione hadn't cleaned up yet; the few cauldrons she'd left were still bubbling, and the samples were exactly where they had been left. She put the book down on the table. Harry noticed that its title was Olde and Forgotten Potions and Antidotes.

"I spoke with Professor Tanner yesterday," she said. Ron's eyebrows shot up. "I've been thinking about what Ron said about her abduction, and I've come to the conclusion that I had the wrong idea about her."

"The wrong idea...?" said Harry, relieved yet surprised.

"I still think that she is dangerous, but I don't think she's a threat to Harry," she continued. "As awful as blood magic is, I think it may be useful against Voldemort. I think that he used blood magic himself, both to survive the Killing Curse and to regenerate himself."

"So Tanner might know a way to hurt him, then," said Harry thoughtfully.

"Exactly." She looked triumphant. "I asked her to help us--"

"Hang on!" interrupted Ron. "After the rollicking you gave me for asking her to host the DA, you go and--"

"I asked her and she said no," continued Hermione, as if Ron hadn't said a thing. He flushed and looked angry. "But we have to convince her to help us. There must be some way to get her to teach us Blood Magic."

"What?" asked Harry, confused. "Why do we need to know blood magic?"

"We need every advantage we can get," said Hermione impatiently. "He's shielded somehow, protected against the Killing Curse. I think he knows how to use it, and I think it will help us figure out his weakness."

"Oh," said Harry.

"I don't want to know blood magic," declared Ron.

"Then I'll learn it," said Hermione with a touch of exasperation. "Tanner has to show us."

"I don't think she will," argued Harry. "She didn't even want us to know that she was a Sanguimagus, let alone give us a lesson in it."

"Did you hear something?" frowned Ron, moving closer to the back of the mirror. He listened for a moment.

Hermione looked horrified. "I forgot to cast the Anti-Eavesdropping Charm..."

Ron opened the mirror and peered out into the hall.

Harry could just make out the sound of receding footsteps. "Do you think they heard us?"

"I dunno," said Ron, looking worried.

***

Monday went by quickly in a flurry of exploding cauldrons, hasty meals in the Great Hall, and a fruitless interrogation of Nott. The evening was cool and still, and Severus marked the last essay with a feeling of relief, putting aside his quill and stoppering the red ink.

He stared at the poppet on his desk, wondering anew at its purpose. Crude yet effective, the little fetch stared up at him blankly. He grimaced and rubbed his eyes. What could Sarah possibly be thinking? Despite his recent incarceration, Lucius remained nearly as powerful as always, and Sarah's risky actions could have repercussions that might cause problems for the Order, or even for himself.

The journal in which he had recorded the progress of his experimental potion caught his eye, and he could not help but feel a pang of guilt at the nasty turn his antidote had taken. Which made him remember that he had not finished the last entry. He looked at the poppet again, thinking. Perhaps he could kill two birds with one stone. He stood up and made his way to her rooms.

The door to Sarah's office was open, and he entered, closing it behind him.

She stared into the fire, a pensive look upon her face.

"Is something the matter?" he asked.

She blinked a few times, turning to face him. She seemed to hesitate, as if weighing something on an invisible scale. "Hermione Granger came to speak with me yesterday," she said slowly. "She attempted to blackmail me."

Severus sat down in the nearest chair. "Granger?"

"Yes," she said, looking troubled.

"Have you gone to the Headmaster?"

"No." She seemed to hesitate again. "Actually, I am uncertain as to how to proceed."

"Speaking to the Headmaster would be the logical course."

"Yes, in most situations..."

"What makes you think that this is an exception?" he asked, mystified.

"There are repercussions to consider," she said quietly. "She said she would reveal that I am a Sanguimagus to her friends in the publishing industry." She stared again at the fireplace. "She seems willing to do nearly anything to achieve her ends."

"You can't possibly mean to let the little know-it-all get away with it," he said, beginning to feel angry.

"And what would you have me do?" She turned to look at him once more, and he could feel a conflict within her that was deeper than she had revealed. "It is my word against hers, after all; and I would have to reveal that she wished for me to tutor her in blood magic, and that her threat involved revealing that I am a Sanguimagus. I would hang myself with my own rope."

"How does she know you are a Sanguimagus?" he asked suddenly.

"I told her," she said reluctantly. "They--Granger, the Weasley boy, and Potter--witnessed me performing a small piece of blood magic in a corridor. I thought that they were to be trusted, especially considering what esteem the Headmaster holds them in."

"You should have performed a Memory Charm," he said angrily. "You could not have behaved more foolishly."

"I am not so accomplished in Memory Charms as to be able to cast them upon three students several yards away simultaneously."

"I can't believe that you put this secret in their hands."

"It seemed like the logical course at the time."

"What will you do now?" he asked coldly. Yet again a Gryffindor was caught, red-handed, and suffered no consequences. Anger welled up within him.

"I don't know," she admitted. "I tried to use reason. She did seem to be somewhat repentant at the end. She thinks that this magic holds some sort of key, that it will somehow form the basis for the Dark Lord's defeat."

The anger dissipated suddenly as he digested what she had just said. "Do you think that blood magic could be harmful to the Dark Lord?" he asked cautiously.

She frowned. "It isn't as simple as that. Certainly it is powerful in its own way. But my knowledge and ability are too limited to be of much use against a wizard as powerful as the Dark Lord." She paused for a moment, thinking. "I can't imagine that anything I know would have an advantage over him. I know only vaguely the magic that he presumably used to thwart the Killing Curse. I've told the Headmaster anything that could possibly be of use to him. And I explained to Granger that nothing I could teach her would be of use. In fact I truly think that it would hinder her practical studies and waste her time. But she seems to want to seek danger out. Actively, I might add."

"Potter draws danger to himself like drapes draw doxies. The Granger girl, no doubt, is caught up in the same reckless attitude."

Sarah closed her eyes. "She cannot see the consequences. She has no idea where this path could take her."

"They are quite immune to consequences," said Severus bitterly.

"Perhaps for now," she said softly. "It will not always be so." She reopened her eyes suddenly and seemed to gain back her usual composure. "What was it that brought you to my office?"

"I wish to finish my notes regarding the antidote I developed," he said.

"What is it you require from me?" she asked.

"I will need to see the wounds again," he said, feeling sudden warmth suffuse his face. "I have also brought a salve which might reduce some of the scarring."

"Very well," she said, standing up and walking towards her bedroom. She still moved in a rather reserved way, though more quickly than before. She began to pull off her robe, and he noticed that she was still using primarily her right arm. She wore two sets of lightweight robes, which accounted for the rather lumpy appearance of the fabric.

His eye fell on the fire in her room, which stood untended. "When was the last time you checked this?" he exclaimed.

"The fire?" she asked, confused. "This morning, perhaps."

He waved his wand quickly, and the fire sprang up anew. "I would advise keeping a more careful eye on it, or letting the house-elves know." She still seemed confused. "Obviously you have forgotten about Ashwinders," he said, opening his journal and laying it on the table. He set his auto-quill on the page, and it perched gracefully, awaiting his dictation.

"Ashwinders? Oh, the fire snakes," she said in sudden recognition. "Yes, I had forgotten entirely about them. I will mention it to Dobby."

He began to scrutinise each scar in turn, using a healing potion to take care of the few that were still bleeding. The scarring was not quite as terrible as he had feared it might be, and he felt a sense of relief as he began to apply the Scar-Reducing Salve. "Have you noticed anything unusual since the last application?"

"No," she said quietly.

"A few of the cuts were not completely healed."

"Yes."

"You should have let me know."

"They have almost healed on their own."

He finished treating the last scar. "The salve seems to be working," he said. "It won't make much of a difference in their appearance, but it should help with their flexibility." She did not respond. He spoke to the Auto-quill in a low voice, recording all he had done so far. When he finished he spelled his hands clean and stoppered the bottles, placing them in a pocket. "Have you decided what to do about Granger?" he asked, and he could not keep the edge out of his voice.

"She does not understand," she said wearily. "She thinks that she is helping her friends. She is completely convinced that blood magic will somehow save them or protect them."

Many thoughts crowded his mind. "Have a care," he said softly. "They are more dangerous than you think, those three. Despite the protections lavished upon them they deliberately put themselves in danger time and time again. All of the sacrifices of others to keep them safe mean nothing to them. They continually pry into things best left hidden." He took a deep breath. "I believe that Granger may have absconded with some of the antidote."

She looked up at him. "How do you know?"

"I left the potion on the burner for a few extra days to monitor its stability," he said. "During class there was a distraction, and the only students left in the room were Nott, Granger, and Thomas. I took Nott aside today and questioned him. He had nothing to do with the theft. Of the two remaining, Granger is by far the nosiest. Thomas could have done it as a senseless prank, perhaps, but I don't believe so."

"How can you be certain that Nott was innocent?"

"I know my students very well," he said smoothly, "especially my Slytherins."

Her eyes narrowed slightly, but she dropped the subject. "Why would she require a sample of the antidote?"

"You don't seem to grasp their nature," he sneered. "Since they have arrived, they have left no stone unturned in their continual quest to flaunt authority and break rules. I have brewed it before in an earlier class, and curiosity must have gotten the better of Granger."

Sarah was silent for a moment, absorbing the information. "Will she deduce the potion's purpose? Will she be able to understand or recreate what it was created to cure?"

"She might be able to understand its binding properties, but I would be surprised if she guessed at the original potion. To recreate the Lingering Wounds Potion would require skills far in advance of hers, as well as an ingredient that is all but impossible to obtain."

"You obtained it."

"I had...access to a well-stocked storeroom at that time. I depleted its supply, and it isn't likely that anyone else will have such an ingredient." She seemed satisfied with that, and he continued. "Nott would have been the greater threat."

"His father is a Death Eater," she said softly.

"Yes," he said, surprised.

"He watched for a moment as Crabbe and Goyle...prepared me for my audience for the Dark Lord," she said, a faint frown appearing. "Crabbe called him by name."

"His son might not have known what it is, but if he had sent it to his father..." He repressed the urge to shiver. "There are other potion brewers who could analyse it, and that would have created a difficult situation. Tomorrow I will find out from Granger what she has done with it."

"You don't think that Thomas is involved?"

"Granger seems the most likely suspect."

"I think," she said slowly, "that it is time for another talk. A more serious one than I had intended."

"You think talking will have an effect upon her?" said Severus, trying to remain calm. "I have taught them for five years, and I can testify to you that talking has absolutely no effect at all."

"I will appeal to her intellect," she said. "I think that I may still be able to reach her. If I can impress upon her the gravity of the situation..."

"You may as well tell the statute of Phaedrus," he spat. "At least you'd hear a song in return. You will do nothing except hand her more weapons with which to harm you."

"I have little choice in the matter, I think."

He stood for a moment, staring at her, the heat of his anger boiling. Firelight lit her too-thin body, her eyes reflecting the flames. "Your gamble is too dangerous. Inform the Headmaster of her behaviour and be done with it," he said softly.

"I will tell him," she said simply. "But I will also speak to her. There is still a chance that I can make her understand where her path is leading."

"She can't," he said angrily. "All three of them are far too reckless. Granger has the most brains of the three, but she still is a foolish, stubborn girl."

"If I were to explain blood magic to her...in its simplest terms..." She closed her eyes. "I think she would finally see that it would be of no use to her."

"I would strongly advise against it." He scowled at her. "If you still insist upon this course of action, then you had better arrange your little chat soon, because she will be serving detentions for most of the foreseeable future once I wring the truth from her."

"Very well."

He strode out of the room, irritated.