debjunk – Meteoroid Beater

Disclaimer: All J.K.R.'s.

Severus looked up from his desk as the owl tapped on his window. He went over and let the bird in. Relieving it of its burden, he shooed it away. He looked at the plastic cylinder in his hand. It certainly was an odd way to send a message.

Going back to his desk, Severus placed the cylinder on it and pulled out his wand. He began shooting spells at the small gray container. After exhausting every spell he knew to detect evil intent, he finally deemed the package safe to open. Pulling the lid off, he shook the rolled scroll into his hands. Unwrapping it, he furrowed his brow as he saw an empty page.

Why would someone bother to send me a blank letter?

Within seconds, words began to form on the page in what evidently was charmed ink. He watched as the letter revealed itself, then began to read.

Professor Snape,

Hermione Granger

Severus arched an eyebrow. To his knowledge, Hermione Granger was an Unspeakable. He couldn't imagine what information he could give to her that she couldn't already have at her fingertips in an instant. He had to admit, he was intrigued.

Severus eyed the seedy pub. For the life of him, he couldn't understand why Granger would choose such a place for a meeting. The pub's letterhead sat at an odd angle, the windows were cracked, and the door looked like it was about to disintegrate any second. He reached out and pushed it open gingerly, careful to avoid the splinters.

The inside of the pub was no better than the run-down outside. Dilapidated tables and chairs were haphazardly placed. The room was quite dark, and Severus had to let his eyes adjust before he moved. He grimaced at the decor. Large trees rimmed the room, hanging over almost every table. The place was an eyesore. Searching the room, he finally spied Granger, hidden away in a booth in the back. He stalked over to her and gave her a reproving look.

"Miss Granger," he said curtly. "I thought you would choose somewhere more voluptuary than this dive that probably can't even make fish and chips correctly!"

Granger eyed him, but instead of the retort he was expecting, she motioned for him to sit down. He was a bit surprised at her. She evidently had learned to control her need to be in charge of every situation.

"Professor Snape," she began once he'd settled into the booth across from her. "I chose this pub for its privacy."

Granger ran her fingers through her hair. Severus noted a bracelet around her wrist. A small, round Sneakoscope was at the center of the bracelet.

"A touch paranoid, Miss Granger?" he mocked as he motioned to the Sneakoscope.

Granger looked crossly down at her bracelet.

"I am here at the risk of being found out. If our meeting were to be discovered, it could have serious repercussions to our world."

"Miss Granger, the Dark Lord has not risen again, has he?" Severus asked sarcastically.

She looked him in the eye. A sudden fear enveloped him, even though he had no idea what she was about to say.

"We haven't counted out that possibility yet," Granger said grimly.

Severus' heart leapt into his throat. It took all he could muster to not show the fear that her statement had caused.

"Would you care to explain?"

"Before I begin, I need to make sure you understand the seriousness of what I'm about to tell you. The Head Unspeakable, Sibelius Croaker, has given me permission to bring you aboard on this investigation. What you hear from me is not to go beyond these walls. Can you agree to that?"

"I believe that you know I am capable of keeping secrets," he retorted dryly.

Severus watched Granger as he mulled her words over in his head. He was curious to know what mystery could be so hard that the Unspeakables would need outside help. Observing Granger's face, he saw that she would not tell him anything until he agreed to her terms. He finally gave a quick nod, motioning for Granger to continue. Before she could speak, the barkeep slammed two mugs down in front of them. Severus eyed his beverage.

"I hope you don't mind, I went ahead and ordered us some butterbeer," Granger explained.

He arched an eyebrow at her. "I would expect you to choose something with a little more kick."

"I don't drink when I'm working, Professor Snape." Granger then leaned forward and began to speak in softer tones. "Are you familiar with lineaments?" she asked.

Severus eyed her darkly. "I can't say that I am."

"I thought you of all people would know," she said with some disappointment. "Lineaments are any linear geological feature that form lines when viewed from above. An example might be a fault line. Many are known for their magical qualities."

Severus frowned at her. "You expect me to recognize such an innocuous term? I did not study Muggle geography, Miss Granger!" he snapped.

"Of course you didn't, but I would think you would be familiar with highly magical landmarks."

Severus looked at her crossly. "Just get on with it. What is so important about these lineaments?"

"As I said, they have magical properties. Studies have found that there are larger amounts of magical growth in these areas, and a wizard's magical influence can increase when they are in such locations."

Severus sat back. "I've actually heard of these areas. I was just unaware they were called lineaments."

Granger nodded. "Someone has been taking advantage of the magical properties of one of these areas. The perpetrator repeatedly raids certain objects when they're at the height of their magical peak, always striking at the full moon, which, as you know, increases magical essence."

Severus nodded, his interests piqued. "What do you think this person is trying to do?" he asked.

"We believe the suspect is brewing a potion and harvesting ingredients when their magic is the strongest. This person is aware of our knowledge of them and has been very brazen, casting the equivalent of a Morsmordre whenever raiding the lineament."

Severus inhaled sharply. "The Dark Mark is being cast again?"

"Not exactly. The mark is in the shape of a dragon spitting fire."

Severus furrowed his brow. "You haven't been able to catch this person in the act of raiding?"

Granger shook her head. "No. We know when the suspect will strike because it's always on a full moon. Unfortunately, the lineament is so large that we have been unable to divine exactly where each raid will be. Also, the suspect always seems to be one step ahead of us, raiding just hours before we plan to stake out the area. Unspeakable Croaker thinks there might be a mole somewhere in the Ministry."

"How could that be? The very nature of your organization precludes anyone knowing what you do," Severus mused.

"If the mole has infiltrated the Unspeakables, he or she would be privy to our secrets."

Severus became troubled. He stared at the table for a while as Granger finished her explanation.

"The suspect leaves notes for us, mocking our efforts and claiming willingness to go to any extreme necessary, including killing, to accomplish the intended task. Once this task is accomplished, the letters vow that the most powerful wizard of all time will be restored."

Severus' eyes widened. Can there be any doubt who this madman wishes to restore?

"How could anyone do such a thing?" Severus whispered.

Hermione shook her head before continuing. "There are several rare varieties of magical plants in this lineament. The suspect has harvested these, other more common magical plants, soil and rocks, and even living things from the area. On the last raid, the perpetrator left behind a sacrificial altar constructed out of the surrounding rocks. We're not sure whether the sacrifice was that of a human or an animal. The note left stated that the suspect was one step closer to restoring the greatest wizard ever known, telling that there was just one more item to gather at the harvest moon, and then the wizard would come back to life."

Severus frowned while deep in thought. "The next harvest moon happens to coincide with the blue moon."

Granger leaned even further in. "Exactly. Any magic done during this unusual combination is guaranteed to be the most potent possible. We have no doubt that whomever this person is trying to resurrect, the attempt will be successful."

"What can I do to help?" Severus asked gravely.

"We don't know what the suspect is brewing or exactly how it will work. Because of the mole, I cannot seek answers from my colleagues. I need your help in figuring this out. We have little time to discover exactly what is at stake."

Severus sat back, his arms folded. "Where will we perform this investigation?"

"I have set up a secret lab at my flat. We'll start there."

"Where is this lineament located?"

Granger looked to the side. "It is in the UK," she muttered.

Severus scowled. "Where in the UK?"

She looked back at him. "In a mountainous region."

"Must you equivocate, Miss Granger? Why can't you just tell me where this blasted lineament is?"

"I'd rather not at this time, Professor Snape. The less you know about everything, the safer you'll be."

"This is ridiculous. You ask me to help, but you will not tell me everything? I will not do it!"

Granger bit her lip. "I'm sorry, Professor. I've told you what I can." Her voice hardened. "If we need to visit the lineament, I will inform you where it is."

Severus had the feeling that he would not be able to argue the location of the lineament out of her.

"Will you help me or not?" Granger asked finally, her eyebrow arching in mocking of his own signature expression.

Severus frowned. "It seems there is no choice in the matter. If I don't help, we might find ourselves under world domination in a matter of months."

Granger smiled ruefully. "I'm glad you see things my way." She checked her watch. "Perhaps we should adjourn to my lab."

Severus nodded and rose from his seat. Granger followed suit, and they made their way out the door. As soon as they reached the sidewalk, the mini-Sneakoscope on Granger's wrist began to blare.

Everything happened so fast, there was little time to react. Severus saw an orange light heading right for Granger. He threw himself at her and knocked her to the ground, but the hex followed their downward fall and struck him in the back. In an instant darkness enveloped him.

He awoke to the sight of Granger's worried face peering into his. She sat back and ran her wand over him, chanting some healing spells softly. He sat up.

"Are you all right?" Granger asked.

He rubbed his head, but nodded to show he would recover. "Were you hurt?" he asked as his eyes quickly examined her.

"No, but by the time I got out from under you, whoever hexed us had gotten away."

Severus felt relief and a bit of anger surge through him. "Miss Granger, if you want my help, you'd better tell me everything. Obviously, someone wants you stopped. If I am to put my life in harm's way, I will only do it if you tell me everything you know... Now!"

End notes: This is week one of the Intergalactic Quidditch Cup Tournament! We hope you've enjoyed our start. Remember, please help us out by leaving a review, even if it's just to say "Thanks!" or "Update!" please.

The word prompts we were given for this week were:

1. voluptuary

2. forest

3. ink

4. fish and chips

5. equivocate

6. lineament

7. sneakoscope

See you next Sunday with a chapter from beaweasley2.