Return of the Thornwood Family

Chapter 22

Hello Ladies and Germs! I have but one thing to say. Who indeed is potioning the Potter family? Anyway, ON WITH THE SHOW! I shall take the name Sorcerer King. WRONG SHOW!

"This is quite serious." Harry spoke.

"How could a whole family be potioned inside their own manor?" Tracey asked. The group thought in silence for a moment.

"The only thing that I can think of is if the person who dosed them was already accepted into the wards." Daphne said.

"Then the rest of us are not in danger as our families do not traverse the same circles." Blaise retorted. Everyone let out a sigh of relief.

"But we still should be cautious. Even if we are not being dosed, we still have Dumbledore's game to be wary of." Harry added. The group nodded before their conversation turned more light hearted.

...

"Welcome back all!" Dumbledore said from behind his podium. "I hope you all had a great Christmas before returning to these grand halls."

"Dumbledore seems quite cheerful this evening." Harry said, frowning when Dumbledore said Christmas. Whilst Yule is not the original name that ancient wizards used for the winter solstice, it is used quite heavily by wizards of today. Christmas is a holiday that muggles and muggleborn most celebrate as a good portion of them, in England, worship their singular god.

"Probably too many lemon drops." Tracey whispered, causing a chuckle to pass over the Slytherins around them. Harry joined in with them before something strange caught his eye.

"Take a look at Quirrell." Harry said.

Quirrell had undergone quite the change over the holidays. His skin, while pale before, now was pasty and unhealthy. His eyes held dark rings around them and his face was sunken. When he went to grab his chalice, his hand shook uncontrollably.

"What do you think happened?" Blaise asked. Everyone thought for a moment before Harry spoke up.

"I have an idea, but there are too many people around."

...

"Quirrell has to be possessed." Harry spoke once they were in the safety of their room.

"He could be. But what if this is the result of the Vampires?" Blaise suggested. Harry shook his head.

"There would have been signs before we left. What ever happened to him is new. Being possessed drains the life force of the person unlucky enough to be under possession." Harry explained.

"What ever he did strained his body and now he is paying for it." Daphne added.

"So what do we do?" Tracey asked.

"...I believe we should alert the professor's. A soul tethered to this world that is strong enough to overtake someone's body puts the whole school in danger." Harry suggested.

"Wouldn't Dumbledore know of the possession based on his connection to the castle wards?" Daphne asked.

"He might. But as none of us are extremely versed in runes, nor have we seen the ward stone, we cannot assume anything." Harry countered.

"We should watch and wait like we did before break. If he is possessed his body will start failing much faster now. Unless he's taking potions of some sort, he might just fall over and we won't have to worry about it." Blaise added.

The room was silent as each weighed the options before them. "We wait. But only until Quirrell moves against the school."

...