Curious and Curiouser

18: Answers At Last Part II

So sorry about how late this update is- I ended up getting caught up with a lot of work and then realized that I hadn't completely gotten rid of a plot hole I discovered so that took some time with some slight restructuring to the story. Which in turn is why this chapter ended up being so short.

In better news though, I've fixed the outline for the rest of the chapters so I won't need to spend a whole bunch of time rewriting the main story there.

****

Harry was halfway back up to the castle when Ron's patronus materialized in front of him informing him that they were in McGonagall's office and that the password was 'the one thing that Hermione's rubbish at'.

Harry had correctly deciphered this to mean 'chess' and was now on the moving spiral staircase that led to the headmistress's office.

When he entered the room however he was greeted only by his former transfiguration professor sitting behind the large oak desk. She answered his unasked question saying, "I expect you colleagues will be out of there soon," with a quick gesture to the open cabinet of the pensieve.

"Right," Harry said with a quick nod, standing awkwardly halfway between door and desk.

McGonagall looked up at him over the top of the book she was reading and said, "For Merlin's sake Potter, have a seat,"

"Err- right," Harry said as he slid rather awkwardly into the hardback wooden chair facing her. It was somewhat unsettling to be back at a place he had spent so much time at as a student.

He was content to sit in some silence as he reflected on his conversation with Malfoy. If anyone had told him he would ever be this invested in helping his arch-enemy he would have called them crazy. And he hated to admit it but the system that had so often been against Harry himself was now against Malfoy. He hadn't told Malfoy just now but the only reason Lucius had even been given a trial was because he and Ron had pressured them into it. Being Harry Potter did have its benefits and thankfully Emmaline Vance, the current minister, had been a member of the Order of the Phoenix and had helped to persuade the Wizengamot to grant a trial. On top of that the trial was scheduled for an hour before the kiss was set to be given which made the whole thing seem like a farce. A show put up just because Harry Potter had asked them to.

He rubbed his temple in frustration. He had never thought he would end up in the middle of political games like this. He had signed on to help catch dark wizards, to stop the next Voldemort, but it honestly felt as though he was fighting the people who claimed to be 'on his side'.

"Everything alright, Potter?" McGonagall asked after Harry let out an audible frustrated sort of sigh.

Harry looked up in surprise- he hadn't meant to let his frustration show- "Fine, professor," he responded on autopilot.

"It's been quite sometime since I've been your professor," she said with a comforting sort of smile.

Harry's brain, still on autopilot muttered out some type of apology, hoping McGonagall would get back to her book.

"In your fifth year you met with me for career counseling, you said with the utmost conviction that you wanted to be an auror," She let her sentence hang in the air and Harry quickly spoke so that she wouldn't get the wrong idea, unsure of why she would choose to mention his career.

"I did- I do- I am an auror," His voice came out almost defensive and he inwardly cringed, hoping she wouldn't take it the wrong way.

Professor McGonagall leaned back in her chair and Harry's level of discomfort increased as he became acutely aware of the fact that the portraits that lined the walls of the study were no doubt watching him through their eyelashes while pretending to be asleep.

"I-" Harry was saved from having to say anything else by the appearance of Ron, Hermione and Blaise, and Cassie. He spun around in his chair quickly, grateful for the interruption, "Did you learn anything?" he asked.

"Yes!" Hermione said, her face flushed with excitement, "We ought to head back to the ministry-- thank you so much professor!"

Harry tuned out the rest of the conversation as the others took turns thanking Professor McGonagall and wishing her a good night, and a few moments later they were all lined up in front of the fireplace.

****

They had had a quick meeting at the ministry and Hermione and Cassie had concluded that whoever had attacked Kingsley, Blaise and the others had in fact used a basilisk fang. With some help from Ron the two girls had also determined that the effects of actually hitting the mirrored the effects of the dreamless sleep potion.

Ron, having had actually experienced the effects of the dreamless sleep potion was able to describe them- and after a few quick tests in a potions lab they had been able to tell the healers at St. Mungo's what they suspected was causing the prolonged state of unconsciousness.

All of them had agreed to go home and try and get in a few hours of sleep before someone inevitably collapsed from exhaustion, by the time they were leaving the ministry the six AM shift had just started filtering in.

****

Hermione woke around five hours later to an insistent knocking sound coming from the main door to her flat. She had been too tired to get changed when she had crawled into bed and was still wearing her work robes, with her eyes still closed she stretched her hand out to feel through the covers for her wand before getting up to answer the door.

She found Ron with a large muffin and a coffee.

They had some answers now, but they still had quite a bit of work to do.

The majority of the auror department was working to track illegal basilisk fang trades while Hermione and Cassie had been asked to stop by St. Mungo's and answer some more questions the healers had before heading back to the department of mysteries.