Tweak

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Tweak says, "It's big, heavy, and wood."

Lily Evans (lily_or) wrote,
@ 2008-01-19 17:11:00

Private to Severus
Had an... interesting night in the dorms, so to speak. Have you noticed anything off the new students? I hate to say anything about it, but it's so strange I thought I would bounce some things off of you. We had already noticed the whole staring business, and now I've noticed it for me too... Some more than others.

Anyway, I'll tell you about the conversation I had once you tell me if you've noticed anything. I don't want to cause undue paranoia or anything.

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Private to Lily/Severus

severus_or
2008-01-20 12:55 am UTC (link)

Sorry I didn't notice this earlier. I've been rather preoccupied lately.

Now you mention it, I did notice something odd the other night before I went on my evening rounds. But I don't want to bias you, either, so I'll simply tell you what happened, and you can tell me if I'm just reading too much into this. I came across two of the new students: Miss Ashford of Hufflepuff (the girl who mentioned having trouble sleeping) and Mr Newcastle of Ravenclaw (the one on crutches). They'd got themselves lost in the dungeons, and I had to point them back to their common rooms.

They were staring at me -- as usual -- and I'll admit, I rather lost my temper and finally asked them why. Newcastle said they'd heard about my reputation with Potions, and as they were always big on brewing in their village, I was something of a celebrity. Later on, he mentioned how they were theorising that their extensive work with various potions and repeated handling of same may have acted as a vaccine, which is why they survived the plague.

Now, does any of that strike you as odd?

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Re: Private to Lily/Severus

lily_or
2008-01-20 07:45 am UTC (link)

That's... quite odd.

Well, I spoke to two of them (Parvati Pawar, she had just came out of the hospital wing that morning, and Hermione Puckle). Parvati woke up from a terrible nightmare screaming her own name, and said she was dreaming of the plague. It must be some horrible plague, as it sounded more violent than disease-like.

Then, they were talking about finding a cure, for their sick parents... didn't Dumbledore say there were no survivors? I suppose he could mean no one else was unaffected, but it still strikes me as odd.

I think the strangest thing was that Hermione said no one could help them find a cure for the plague except themselves... no professors would be useful. If you were looking for a cure for a plague, wouldn't you go to experts in potions, herbology, mediwitchery, anything? Why are these children so apt to deal with this?

The potions thing seems a little off. For one, the Gryffindor boy, Harry, asked me specifically for help in Potions when I ran into him, and if these kids were all Potions whizzes they'd probably be beyond pre-OWL potions at Hogwarts. Especially out of that ridiculous book. And wouldn't some adult have been skilled enough at potions that they'd be handling the same amount?

Oh! The last thing. Apparently, the students stare at me because I look like that boy Harry's dead mother. Strange?

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Re: Private to Lily/Severus

severus_or
2008-01-20 04:43 pm UTC (link)

That is beyond strange. It's downright morbid, actually~~, and coming from me, that's really saying something~~.

I believe you're right -- Dumbledore did say they were the only survivors. That would seem to imply curing their parents was out of the question. You don't think they've gone mad, as well? And if they can't make a simple sleeping potion on their own, ~~why are they considered Potions experts, again~~ how are they supposed to discover a cure for ths plague?

I think I've just had an idea. Why don't you ask Miss Puckle and Miss Pawar why they stare at me, and we'll see if their story tallies with Newcastle's? I'll ask Maltian and Cragwitch (my roommates) why some of them stare at you, and compare that to what your roommates told you. We can only hope we haven't tipped them off to the point that they've already compared notes.

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	Re: Private to Lily/Severus lily_or 2008-01-21 12:09 am UTC (link)
	That's what I thought! They say we have similar eyes or something, and red hair, which I guess he has green eyes also, but still. I think Dumbledore would have noticed if they'd gone mad and kept them in the hospital wing, don't you? The potions thing very much does not add up. I'll see if I can get another conversation with them and somehow bring that up. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Private to Lily/Severus

severus_or
2008-01-21 03:33 am UTC (link)

Because all girls with red hair and green eyes look just alike, of course! (Pity you can't see how I'm rolling my eyes at the moment, but I'm sure you have seen it enough previously that you can imagine.)

Well, he appears to have let one girl out of the infirmary, regardless of her being a bit mad. But then again, this is Dumbledore we're talking about. Solidarity, perhaps?

Very little of it adds up, if you ask me. But that begs the question of why they're attempting such an elaborate charade in the first place. What could they possibly be hiding?

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Re: Private to Lily/Severus

lily_or
2008-01-21 03:59 am UTC (link)

Of course! But something about me must have made them say that...

Haha, well, at least I think Dumbledore wouldn't put us at risk. Hopefully not, anyway? I think Dumbledore would have figured out immediately what's going on, at least. So he, for one, knows.

I have no idea. I have no idea what kind of problem would necessitate bringing a bunch of students to Hogwarts and fabricating any of these things, if they are indeed lying about anything. And if they are, where did they get their education before, if not in a plague-ridden village? Do they have families somewhere or no?

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	Re: Private to Lily/Severus lily_or 2008-01-21 04:05 am UTC (link)
	And, er, I was just wondering... do you think my eyes are ~~striking~~ ~~particularly att~~ unusual? Because they were talking about that... (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Private to Lily/Severus

severus_or
2008-01-21 03:44 pm UTC (link)

I wouldn't say your eyes are all that unusual. They are a peculiarly bright, liquid shade of green, but that isn't out of the ordinary in Wales and Ireland. I suppose that would narrow their origins down a bit -- to England or Scotland -- wouldn't it?

I was only joking, really. Dumbledore would never knowingly put students in danger~~, even if he doesn't give a damn about Slytherins, in general~~. Though I wonder if he told us about the plague before he'd worked it all out -- or talked to them about it -- and that's why the new students can't quite seem to keep their story straight.

Whatever it was, it would have to be earth-shattering if the truth came out. Otherwise, I can't imagine Dumbledore attempting to orchestrate deception on such a scale. It's hard enough to get one person to keep a secret. I simply can't imagine doing so with ten or more.

I wonder if we should get And Appraisal of Magical Education in Europe out of the library and see which of the smaller schools we can eliminate?

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	Re: Private to Lily/Severus lily_or 2008-01-21 09:52 pm UTC (link)
	Perhaps he did come up with the story before relaying it to the students - as I recall, not all the students were awake yet. What could be that earth shattering? You're right, it's a huge risk to keep up a story with that many people. As it is, they are doing a shaky job. Good idea. I can run and get that book between classes. (Reply to this) (Parent) (Thread)

Re: Private to Lily/Severus

severus_or
2008-01-21 10:21 pm UTC (link)

That's true. ~~They were all still in 'quarantine,' weren't they? I wonder if that was just to keep us from talking to them until he'd explained their cover story to them?~~

I can't imagine. Well, perhaps terrible Dark magic, but I can't really see Dumbledore dabbling in that sort of thing. Then again, maybe that's why it is earth shattering? But if that were the case (and I'm not saying it is, mind you), wouldn't it be easier and safer just to Obliviate them all?

Let me know if you find anything promising.

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