Agents of Discord

by KittyrinnAiko

Chapter 93: Clues adding up.

Up in the Gryffindor tower, a moderately subdued party is going, Aerie’s absence weighing heavy on everyone there.

OK, look, she’s like me. She can transform,” Aurora was explaining to the Quidditch team and pretty much anyone within earshot. “When that Bludger swept her off her broom she tried to use her wings. She is probably stuck like that until they are healed up properly. She’ll be back just as soon as she’s healed up enough to stow those wings.”

“Never mind that,” Seamus interjected. “What was that armor?”

“Moonie made a reproduction of the Iron Man armor,” Aurora informed him. “Unfortunately it looks like Aerie hadn’t a chance to try it out.”

“Iron Man armor?!” Dean Thomas blurted out.

“Well, why didn’t she just stay here,” Louise asked ignoring Dean’s outburst. “I can’t visit her out there.”

“I suspect that part of her decision was so that no one would be wandering the halls when we have a person using dark magic in the school,” Alicia offered. “We still don’t know who attacked Mrs Norris.”

“Aurora, maybe you and Louise could fly out to see her?” Isolde asked. “After all, you can both fly.”

“We’d need escorts and permission,” Aurora offered. “And we aren’t likely to get either.”

As for Aerie, shortly after arriving at the Silver Wood grove, she was given a pain killer, a very careful sponge bath, dried, clean splints on her wing, dressed in cozy flannel pajamas, and placed in the very same bed Isolde had been in after getting rescued from the forest.

“Aerie, any chance you can transform the rest of the way into your pony form?” Nova Silverwood asked as she sat in a large low chair near the bed. She’d remained in pony form. “Given you need to lay on your front I think you’ll be more comfortable.”

“Is that even a good idea?” Aerie asked.

“Given our pony body is about the same size as our human body, and the wings stay the same, I think you’ll be fine. Just take it slowly and stop if it hurts too much. It’s going all the way back to human that would be problematic. As is, you are putting a strain on your back every time you try to look around.”

“Alright, I’ll give it a shot.” Aerie closed her eyes, thought about the transformation, and willed herself to transform while putting as little strain on her back as possible.

“Congratulations, you did it. Now, I’ve something you need to drink,” Nova Silverwood offered as she used her magic to wheel over a cart with a covered dish.

“A bit soon for more painkillers isn’t it?” Aerie asked. Her head bobbed about now that she could get a good look at where she was. She zeroed in on the bowl as the cover was removed.

“It’s a curative that’ll knit your bones together faster, mixed into some fish broth.”

“Um… alright, and now that the painkiller is kicking in I am kind of hungry.”

“It’s specially formulated for me, ergo it should work wonders on you.”

“And you needed me to come here so you could give it to me?”

“I was a little worried that Poppy might try her standard potion for humans. It tends to have unpleasant side effects when used on a pegasus.”

“What kind of side effects?”

“Nasty bone spurs and warping. The problem is that the potion attempts to mend the break too fast. We’ve gotten it outlawed for use on pegasi.”

“She’d see me as a human who sprouted wings and we don’t want to have that conversation, do we.”

“She’s an understanding woman, but yes. We want wizard-kind thinking of us as wizards and witches who have an innate ability to transform into ponies, and not the other way around.”

“Something…” Aerie took a sip of the soup. “Not bad. There’s something that’s bothering me.”

“Why didn’t Moonie’s shielding protect you, I gather.”

Aerie took another sip. “Afraid I can’t help but wonder about that.”

“I suspect that creating and maintaining that armor may have been taxing her limits. In short, her shielding was tied up into the armor.”

“Makes sense. Everything happened so fast,” Aerie admitted. “Now that I think about it she probably just assumed that I’d use the features of the suit. And is feeling horrible that I left her behind.” Aerie let out a sigh and then took another sip. “By any chance did you get my glasses?”

“Trampled, I’m afraid. Came off with your goggles when you got gut-punched. You’d been hit pretty hard.”

“Beyond repair then? I kind of got used to having them filter out auras.”

“I can set you up with a new pair. The lenses are made from oxynitride ceramic with silver embedded in the matrix. Very durable, but not indestructible. It’s made using the same process as transparent aluminum.”

“Silver?”

“It’s the purity of the silver that filters out the ambient energy we see as an aura around things.”

“If Riddle’s book had been placed inside a silver case or binding?” Aerie asked urgently as she sat up. The movement caused her to flinch from pain.

“Whoa now, you’re not going anywhere. I suggest you lay back down. If you remember a silver binding…”

“My head’s all muddled,” Aerie admitted and lay back down. “I think my glasses did more than just filter. They had been given to me by Discord after all.”

Nova Silverwood stood up, turned, walked a few paces, and turned back. “Does Isolde have a silver-bound book? Afraid I was just looking for anything that stood out to me as being tainted… and… now that I think about it, I can’t quite recall.”

“Afraid I’m a little too muddled right now.”

“The effects of the meds I’m afraid. As soon as you are done eating, go freshen up, and then be prepared to sleep for the rest of the afternoon.”

“Lovely.” Aerie thought about it for a moment. “She wouldn't hide something would she?”

“Short of it already had its hooks in her I doubt it. She’s a good girl. Draco was torn between trying to measure up to his father and entitlement. When she first came to us, the concept that she couldn't get her way any time she wanted was foreign to her. She no longer had her father to fall back on nor was she able to pit her caretakers against each other. She had to abide by strict rules. Once she began to understand what was appropriate, her attitude changed dramatically. That and her meeting the Crusaders had a big impact on her.”

“They taught her about the magic of friendship, didn’t they.”

“They taught her about friendship.
“I can ask Aster if she saw anything, but that’s the best I can do.
Just one thing I should tell you. I lied to Dumbledore. Well, not technically. You'll be back in time for classes on Monday… Monday next week. It’s going to take a week for your wing to heal up enough to stow them.”

“Aurora,” Isolde called softly as she entered the bedroom. Behind her followed the Crusaders. Behind them, Ginny followed.

“Isolde?” Aurora asked. She’d only just gone to bed. “Is everything alright?”

“No, everything is not alright. I think it happened again.”

“Isolde had a nightmare,” Ginny informed Aurora as they entered.

The following morning Dumbledore requested the entire school to turn out for Sunday breakfast. Something that was markedly unusual. Dumbledore hated to get up on Sunday Mornings.

“I’ve asked you all here this morning to inform you that there has been another attack. For those of you who think your blood status will protect you, I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that who your family is doesn’t seem to matter to the culprit. Young Mr Wilbur Nott got it into his head to wander about after curfew last night and is presently in the medical wing. He has been petrified.” He waited a moment to let what he’d said sink in. “We can restore him. However, to avoid another such incident, no one is to go anywhere who is not with a group. Effective immediately. I want everyone to travel with your class groups when you are outside of your dorms, and I’m asking the sixth and seventh-year students to escort the first and second-year students. I’d like to reassure everyone that these measures are only temporary until the culprit is caught.

“Regarding Miss Potter, she is recuperating in the Silverwood community. The bludger that struck her had been tampered with. The incident is under investigation. And yes, both incidents are related. Not to worry as our own Professor Lockhart is on the case.” He took a moment. Sure the incidents were loosely related, but there was no point in telling anyone that the bludger incident had been perpetrated by a different individual, and telling them the perpetrator was a house elf could be disastrous. Let them think Aerie had been specifically targeted to get her out of the way. After all, he was aware of the rumors that had been spread concerning the previous incident and this just looked like a good opportunity to stymie the perpetrators of the rumors. “I’ve been informed by owl this morning that Miss Potter will be back with us Monday morning, in one weeks time do to a need for a little extra time to allow her wings to heal properly. I'm told that if they aren't allowed the time they need they might heal wrong and she'd be unable to stow them away. ”

📰

Aerie learned of the attack at her breakfast table via the morning paper.

“Thank you, Mable,” Aerie said as the paper was set down on the table nearby. She was still a pony, and her wings were still immobilized. “Nott? Nott got petrified?”

“Forgive me, but you sound more surprised than disturbed.”

“I’ll have to second that,” Nova Silverwood said as she entered the room. She’d decided to be a pony that morning as well. Given that the two were different versions of the same individual they looked very much like mare and foal. Mother and daughter.

“Good morning, would you like to join me for breakfast?”

“I was planning on it. About Mr Nott…” Nova pressed as she sat down.

“He should be… that is to say, they should be able to revive him. Assuming I can’t do it with my hammer.”

“You don’t think he’s dead then.”

“Have you encountered the petrifaction?”

“No, I haven't. To be honest, the individuals who’d looked directly into the eyes of the creature my Moonie killed, their hearts stopped and they just dropped right where they stood.”

“In the books, people who looked at the eyes via a reflection were petrified. I suspect it’s a magically induced form of suspended animation. Originally Colin Creevey was the first human victim. Not Mr Nott. That’s what surprised me. I’d rather hoped that my being here would mean that there’d be no one out and about.” Aerie took a bit of sausage, and Nova helped herself to the various items available on the table.

“Ah, your reaction is understandable then.”

“Mr Nott was a person of interest due to his behavior. Not that I ever seriously suspected him.”

“And you're not too terribly worried about Nott either it would seem.”

“Afraid his behavior has been more entitled than Draco Malfoy was. It’s Isolde that I’m worried about.”

“I understand that Mr Malfoy senior helped her when she dropped her books at the bookshop,” Mable informed them. “Aster and I are good friends.”

“I talked to her yesterday afternoon,” Nova informed Aerie. “It struck Isolde as odd, but Aster doesn’t remember a silver-bound book.”

“If her father had given her the book,” Aerie mused. “Might she have picked up a silver binding for it later on? I’m not suggesting she might have done it just to hide the gift from her father. She’d not likely know that silver can block magical auras. We need to keep in mind that she’s likely been exposed to that book for eleven years. And Moonie says it’s the most like herself. There’s no reason to think it can’t exert influence on people who have it. It might even be able to influence people who are near it.”

“You think the book itself may be actively hiding itself? Causing us to look anywhere but at it?” Nova asked. “That’s a horrifying thought.”

“The thing that’s been bugging me is my aura flairs. I wake up, I’m glowing, I wake up Aurora, she checks the wards, and nothing. What if when I’m waking up it’s the culprit returning? What if they’re right there nearby? I’ve had Moonie patrolling, but what if she needed to be right there in the dorm?”

“How well can you use the fox fire?”

“Pretty good.”

“Can you project a screen with it? Predict with it?”

“Yes, I’ll put a thin layer on my goggles.”

“No, I mean like this…” Nova Silverwood held up a hoof from which she produced a sizable blue flame and with a sweeping motion turned into a flat screen.

“Kind of. What did you have in mind?”

“Instead of searching for something dark, try searching for something hidden.”

“She might not want anyone to know her father gave her something coupled with the book’s desire not to be discovered,” Aerie mused. “It’d need to be somewhere close by where she can get at it, and I honestly think she’d want to get rid of it if she understood the danger.”

“Are you going to have Moonie watch her?”

Aerie let out a sigh and then touched a hoof to her medallion. “Moonie, it might be Isolde, but don’t press her. The book might be able to sense your presence long before you can sense it. “Just do your best to keep people safe until I’m back.”

Aerie was convalescing on an enclosed balcony when her Moonie appeared before her.

“Moonie?”

“I’m sorry, I need some downtime. Afraid we are too far away for me to stay in the school very long.”

“I thought it might be. It’s why I wanted to give my amulet to Louise.”

“And if you had, Dumbledore would have realized just how important that amulet is. There is no telling what harm he might do to me.”

“Sorry… Moonie, by any chance…”

“I let Silvermoon know. Her priority is keeping an eye on Hoshiko though.”

“Here’s hoping they keep a close enough eye on everyone, and that there’ll be no more incidents.”

Comments

[Dravkwn]

👍

[KittyrinnAiko]

11876928

[harts fire]

I am really liking this puzzle of the book.

awesome chapter.

[KittyrinnAiko]

11877153
Thanks.