The Curse and The Cure *Snamione*

Chapter 3.

3

Hermione sat waiting patiently for Harry to arrive at his office at 8am the next morning.

He already knew she was there as he'd been pre-warned by his over enthusiastic assistant - an elf called Motley - and ordered coffee and 'the best biscuits' to be brought to them immediately.

"Well hello again Minister" said Harry grinning at Hermione who was absentmindedly sorting his paperwork.

"Good morning Harry" she looked up with her eyebrows raised "You do know you've got paperwork sitting on your desk that's almost a year old, don't you?"

"Errrr, yes. Of course. It's all 'pending'" he grinned again as she rolled her eyes. The little elf then appeared with a large tray of coffee and biscuits and actually squealed in delight when Hermione thanked him. He then decided that squealing was a bad move and grabbed a stapler off the desk, intent on stapling his hand in some kind of masochistic punishment. Luckily Harry realised what he was going to do and pulled the stapler away from him and forbade him to hurt himself. He then ushered him back out of the office and into his own work station beyond.

"Sorry about that" said Harry pouring the coffee. "He's a great worker but goes to pieces when anyone he deems important visits" he chuckled. "I'll not get any work out of him today now. Anyway..." he pulled up the chair opposite and sat himself down "What brings you here twice in two days? People'll start thinking I'm your favourite."

"I came to return your Invisibility Cloak and to thank you for lending it to me."

"Did it work?"

"It did actually" she replied, casually dunking a chocolate biscuit and sucking it hastily into her mouth. "I managed to get into Severus' house and talk to him."

"He didn't throw you out?"

"I thought he was going to but to be honest I think he was too ill to do it."

"Did you find out what's wrong with him?"

She nodded. "Sadly yes. He's dying Harry." Harry put down the biscuit that was almost to his mouth."

"What? No? Surely not?" he exclaimed.

Hermione continued. "The bite he received from Nagini was cursed. It's been slowly killing him. Have you heard of the Horn of the Coronial Maltswift?"

"Yeahhh I think so. Maybe. The beast was killed off a few years ago wasn't it? Didn't it have highly toxic venom or something?"

"It did. Do you remember not long after we joined The Ministry there was a protest to stop the culling of the Maltswift?"

"That was one of your causes wasn't it?"

"Well yes and all was going well until one killed a Minister and his family. Anyway, the beast was driven out and the last known one was killed a few years ago. At the time Severus had asked The Ministry to keep some of the horns as it was the vital ingredients in a potion to cure him but they wouldn't and they refused to help even though they knew that without it he would die."

"So that's why he's still so pissed off with The Ministry?"

Hermione nodded. "Yep. He's been searching for a source ever since but he's not found any at all. We need to help him Harry. And quickly. He's not got much time left if we don't."

"But it's on the Prohibited List of Potion Ingredients. Even if we could find some it's a ten stretch in Azkaban if we're caught with it..."