The Stirring

7. Interrogation

Róisín woke with a painfully dry throat and a headache that felt like a giant was trying to pop her brains out with a nutcracker. She squinted against the bright light of the room and jerked when she noticed two tall shadows standing just outside the curtain at the end of her bed. They were murmuring in low, insistent tones. The shadows noticed her movement and pulled aside the curtain to reveal Professor Dumbledore and Professor Snape. The headmaster, who was in his usual flowing robes, stood in colourful contrast to the sinister, black-clad form of the potions professor.

"Miss Feral, how are you feeling?" Dumbledore spoke softly, although his voice lacked its usual warmth.

Róisín began to speak but her dry throat made her cough. The headmaster conjured her a glass of water which she gulped greedily.

"Em... I don't know Professor... what-"

When her eyes landed on Snape's the memories of the previous day washed over her like an ice-cold waterfall. She gripped her face, horrified, as she searched her professors' expressions.

"Oh God! please tell me she's ok? Please-" Her voice broke.

"Miss Bathworth is alive," Snape said, watching her closely. "She should be fully recovered in a matter of weeks."

Róisín cried as the relief washed over her.

"I'm so, so sorry, I can't believe I...h-hurt her, she's my best friend." Róisín gasped for breath between her words. "Is she awake? May I see her?"

"Madam Pomfrey has decided to put her in a potion induced sleep for two days, to allow her body to heal."

Róisín took deep breaths as she absorbed the information.

"Miss Feral, would you tell us what you recall of the events leading up to the accident?" Dumbledore asked.

Of course, they're here to interrogate you.

Róisín sniffled and rubbed her leaking eyes and nose.

"Well, Anna made a plan, she was going to use equiperture to unbalance Snape... I mean Professor Snape, and I was supposed to disarm him... um I mean, you." She glanced at the potions professor. "Ida cast a protego amicis. But Anna and my spells were both blocked by Professor Snape's shield, and a spell of his, I don't know which, somehow slipped under Ida's protego."

"It was a titillatio spell, a sensory delusion curse which can penetrate protego shields," Snape explained.

"Oh... well it made me feel..." Róisín blushed as she remembered the effect of Snape's titillatio. It was strange that a spell from the cold, callous professor could initiate such a feeling of excitement and glee, however undesired the feelings were. Róisín swallowed. "It felt like someone was pinning me down and tickling me, I completely lost my concentration, but the feeling disappeared when the professor put me under the mutafidus."

The shame rose in Róisín like an ocean wave as she remembered the moments before she cursed Anna.

"I had these strange thoughts of... respect towards the professor." Róisín winced as she heard her words. "Not strange because I don't normally respect you sir, but just-"

"Relax Miss Feral, I have no doubt that you hold me in very high regard." Snape's sarcasm made Dumbledore's lips quirk.

Róisín swallowed again. "I had this feeling that I needed to protect Professor Snape, and to do that I had to stop Anna, and I must have cast the first spell that came to mind."

"Where did you learn the volat pulsum curse?" Dumbledore asked

"I... I didn't know I had learnt it sir, I know I learnt of it when I came across it in the book: "Advanced duelling techniques" by... who's your one... oh yeah, Esther Hornsthrottle." The two men didn't reply so she added, "I gave it to Anna for Christmas last year, she loves Hornsthrottle and I borrowed it because I was interested in the theory. I didn't practice any of the spells. I don't understand how I cast it, I didn't even know I had remembered it." Róisín's brow creased as she tried to recall what she had read about the spell. Dumbledore watched her from behind his famous half-moon glasses. "I know this must seem crazy, but I never meant to hurt her, the mutafidus was messing with my head. I don't know what possessed me to use a spell that I never had before, I suppose when I read about it I didn't realise it was that powerful-"

"- It's not," Snape cut her off.

"Pardon sir?"

"It's not a particularly powerful or violent curse. A normal casting of the volat pulsum will fling an opponent a couple of feet backwards. Your spell, however, threw Miss Bathworth high in the air and six metres backward, although it would have been farther if there had been no wall to obstruct her path."

Róisín grimaced.

"I don't understand sir."

"Neither do we," Dumbledore replied. "Although Professor Snape has some interesting theories-"

Dumbledore was cut off by Madam Pomfrey throwing back the curtain fully. She sent Róisín a tight smile.

"Miss Feral, glad to see you up, after the shock you got yesterday."

"What happened after... did I faint?"

"Well, you seem to have had a panic attack dear, so we gave you something to calm you and brought you here to get some rest."

Róisín looked away from the three staff members standing over her bed and focused on the rain tapping at the window, anxiously trying to recall what had happened yesterday but she could remember nothing but the image of Anna's limp body.

"Miss Bathworth is still asleep, but you may come with me to see her if you'd like." Pomfrey said.

Róisín nodded to her professors and slipped out of the sheets to follow the matron, too anxious about Anna to care that she was only wearing a hospital gown.

At the other end of the hospital wing Anna lay deep asleep. There was blotchy purple bruising around her normally pearly white neck and shoulders. The sight caused guilt to writhe like worms inside Róisín.

"You may stay with her for a little while but I expect you to attend your afternoon classes. I will let you know when she wakes tomorrow."

"Ok, thank you."

"And the headmaster would like to see you in his office at seven this evening."

"Ok," Róisín replied quietly.