Fire and Ice (Book 2)

Chapter 16 - Puzzle

ROSE'S POV-

"Drugs?" I asked, completely and utterly shocked. "Well, technically it wasn't drugs. Just an illegal potion used to harm others." Said Scorpius. "So, drugs." I concluded. "Well, kind of." He replied. "So, like 24 years ago, before we were born and after the war, Lucius was like, a drug lord?" I asked. "I don't think he'd be classified as a drug lord. Just a maker of an illegal potion he forced into other people." He said. "Are you seriously sticking up for him?" I asked shocked. "No! I'm just saying the report doesn't associate him with drugs. It says he was involved with illegal potions." He said. "As you've said." I muttered sarcastically.

When we first opened the thick file dedicated to Lucius Malfoy we had no idea what to expect. The first 20 pages detailed back to his life as a death eater and small time spent in Azkaban. Then, in the very back, a burned and crumpled paper lie. After smoothing it out we figured out what had happened. 24 years ago, so in the year 2000, Lucius started to gather materials. At first no one knew what it was for. His family claims he would go on long outings and come back exhausted and very dehydrated. Nobody thought much of it until wizards and witches all across Europe started to disappear and drop dead. The death polls began to climb and investigations began. All of the murders had certain things in common. They were all done it extremely gruesome ways that left the wizarding world disgusted and scared. Each person was also found with a certain drug in their blood. A mix of several illegal ingredients and to top it all off, heavy amounts of pherenixon. Pherenixon is one of the most dangerous ingredients in the wizarding world. If anyone comes in contact with it they start to hallucinate vividly. Their throat closes up and their organs start to shut down. There's no way to escape it's tight grip and in minutes you are dead.

Pherenixon is very dangerous and only a few select ministry employees are in possession of it for investigation purposes only. When these murders started happening the employees were suspects. But when they started dying we knew it was something much worse. After almost 2 years of investigation things started leading back to Lucius. He was brought in for several different questionings. A factor that proved him guilty is his son and wife testifying him being constantly dehydrated. Pherenixon practically sucks all moisture from ones body. In order to work with it you need to be drinking liquids constantly. They also searched his house. After finding traces of the illegal ingredient near his living room floor boards were torn up. A secret room filled with the drug were found. He had been growing it and turning it into liquid form. After looking back at all of the connected murders it was discovered that after he hurt his victims he injected the pherenixon into there blood steams. He was pronounced clinically insane. There was a debate on wether he should be kept in St. Mungos or Azkaban. He was put in St. Mungos but killed 3 healers in one day. He was then put in Azkaban for life and all traces of the pherenixon were destroyed. It was decided that it should be totally eliminated. Ministry workers no longer experimented with it. It was torn off of the face of the earth. The article ended with recognition to junior aurors Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley for finding the actual lab in Lucius's house.

"Why didn't he tell me." Scorpius muttered to himself. "Who?" I asked. "My dad. We were tortured by this man and he didn't think to tell me about any of this?" He practically shouted. "I'm in the same boat as you! My dad discovered what he was doing and he didn't tell me either." I said trying to calm him down. "It's different for me. I already hate Lucius for hurting you. Now I find out the horrors of his past and my dad didn't even have the decency to tell me about them! Do you know how that feels?" He yelled. "No, I don't. But you don't have to take your anger out on me." I said trying to stay calm. "I'm not trying to. I'm just saying you don't know how I'm feeling." He snapped. All feelings of calmness were suddenly washed away. "Like hell I do! I hate Lucius just as much as you do. He turned my cousin against my family. He made Lily hurt my cousin. He hurt my best friend. He hurt you, and he hurt me. On top of that, my father never told me either. So you can stop throwing a pity party for yourself. It's pathetic." I spit. He looked at me shocked and we sat in a stunned silence for a few minutes.