Unfortunately Sticky Fingers || Meeting

Saturday, December 1, 1923
~ 10:00AM

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She wasn't in the mood.

The little tolerance that the Slytherin typically exhibited when it came to the hospital wing had evaporated into a sea of anxiety and building pressure from all around her. There was hardly anything left by the time Healer Graham told her that...certain vials were coming up missing with increasing frequency. Naturally, it was up to her to have a look into it, being the one with more hourly contact with the volunteers even outside of their volunteer hours. Playing detective had never been one of her many great ambitions, and with how she'd been feeling lately, Rae could think of a million things she'd rather do.

But it was important. Forgetting anything about the possibility of the unknown idiot hurting themselves with incorrect doses, it was starting to affect the ability of the other volunteers to do their damn job. There were enough students around the castle who partook in questionable behaviour to make a shortage of pain potions...not ideal. Add magic to the mix and the nature of the injuries could spiral outward exponentially.

That made it her concern.

She was looking to make it someone elses.

Rae leaned against the arm of one of the couches in the lounge, waiting for the others to pile in. She'd given a notice on Monday and another as a reminder on Thursday that they would be meeting on Saturday at 10AM. Could she have been studying instead? Almost certainly. NEWTs would be there before she knew it and failure was not an option. Did she need to continue obsessing over the coming winter break? Without a doubt. It was petrifying and slow approaching. There was a steady march that would end in a collision with her freedoms, and there was nothing she could really do about it but wait.

Wait and interrogate the volunteers. With so many of them now volunteering around the wing, someone had to have seen something. Healer Graham had already insisted that they wouldn't be using veritaserum on any of them--fine, sure, whatever, but it didn't mean that there weren't other ways of making a canary sing.

There were no snacks set out, no signs that it would be a meeting to shoot the breeze. Ideally, Rae hoped to catch the criminal before lunch so they could all be on their way. Should they choose to confess early, well, that would be all the better for her.

"Watch for anyone who looks a little too suspicious, Kathryn. We'll weed them out one way or another," she said to her boyfriend's younger sister. The Ravenclaw wouldn't be much for discussion even when the meeting started, but she was certainly observant. "You, too, Avery."

He liked helping, and she liked not doing all the work herself. Merlin knew the fog in her brain would make it a bit of a challenge.

---

OOC: Welcome to the hospital wing's meeting! It's one of two ways to earn 10 pts toward passing the hospital wing. It's not OOC mandatory, but IC Rae would've made it clear that there's no choice. During that week or so, some of your characters would've noticed the shortage themselves or been hearing little whispers. They also may not have. It's entirely up to you about how informed you'd like to have them show up to the meeting being! The only thing I ask is that you neither claim the thefts nor knowledge of the thief, as this will be revealed later. For now, you can have them arriving. I'll be back to move the meeting in approximately 3 days from now~

The meeting was planned. Notices went up earlier in the week alerting all Hospital Wing volunteers of the time and place. At first, it didn’t register. Dec 1st. Saturday. She was so busy with her studies and the greenhouses that the date didn’t click…

Until it did.

Hogsmeade Weekend.

FORTY-TWO days since she last saw Drago. Forty-two days since her last kiss. Her last hug. Forty-two long days since he held her in his arms and made her feel cherished and safe. And now, when she should be running into his arms, she was headed to the wing for a FREAKING MEETING.

Walking into the room, anyone would be able to see how angry she was. The usually approachable and happy seventh year had her arms crossed, eyes intense, foot tapping and mouth pressed in a tight line. She didn’t take a seat, instead opting for mindless pacing back and forth with her eyes on the other assistants.

One of these little terrors was a thief. And said thief was cutting into her snogging time with Drago, so they might end up dying before the meeting was done.

She was only slightly emotional… and a lot hormonal. Not a good mix for the ginger.

Seeing Rae, Tilly looked at her friend with a scowl on her face. She made her way over to have a short private discussion. She came prepared with ideas on how to catch the thief, all effect, most illegal. ”I can give you thirty minutes. An hour tops. Any longer and Drago may storm the castle.”

She didn’t smile, because honestly she wasn’t joking.

”Have we given any thought to Veritaserum? There may be legal implications, but I’m sure Bram could get us cleared of charges.”

Again… she really wasn’t kidding.

”Summoning? Maybe putting some sort of tracking spell or dye that colors their hands? I’m sure we would love for them to confess, but if that doesn’t happen, I think we need to get creative.”

Looking around at the growing group of assistants, Tilly turned her eyes on the students, looking for signs of nervousness. Sweat on their brow, fidgeting, averting their eyes. There would be signs.

”At the very least, maybe we need pocket searches and bag checks at the end of each shift. Dorms and trunks searched. We’re smart, I’m sure we can smoke them out if we work together. Forget the adults, they will want to follow rules. We have youth on our side.”

It was starting to seem like whenever someone made a nuisance of themselves, Kathryn was dragged into the solution. It happened nearly every time they had class with the Gryffindors; it happened sometimes at their communal meals; it was happening with the hospital wing.

Detached as she tended to be on any matter Avery hadn't filled her in on, even she knew that someone was pilfering from the potions storage room. The Ravenclaw hadn't seen anything herself, spending no real time in the apothecary and being unable to administer medication anyhow, but there had been whispers. There had also been loud, sometimes obnoxious groans from the apothecaries who discovered their stores were being shared by some unknown spectre of a volunteer. Of course, this couldn't simply remain a matter for the budding potioneers. The entire cohort of volunteers was required to be there.

Kathryn didn't suppose she minded one way or another. She'd known about the meeting for a week and had had time to adjust her schedule. It seemed to her that the only real grumblers were the ones who'd made plans to be in Hogsmeade that weekend.

She had no such hang-ups.

When the meeting was done, she would return to the small, disused classroom she'd commandeered and check on her birds. They were growing more ravenous by the time, no longer being content to pick at the grains that her mother had provided. Whether that was a good thing was hard to say, but she was ready to see how they continued to develop.

"Watch for anyone who looks a little too suspicious, Kathryn. We'll weed them out one way or another."

She nodded, appreciating that nothing more was needed. Ruth had long since stopped expecting heavy engagement, allowing her to settle into a more subtle rhythm that didn't demand much of her. So, yes, if she needed her – and apparently Avery – to stare everyone down until someone crumbled, she was perfectly capable of doing just that.

One might argue that staring was all Kathryn Elise ever really did.

It was the reputation that had settled on her, one she was in no rush to correct. She'd already seen what could happen when others realised she was full of words--she'd seen both extremes. The little girl preferred the happy middle, where all but the most determined left her alone.

Across from her and her friend, she noticed that Matilda was...more high-strung than usual. The Gryffindor usually had a sassy comment about meetings, but today she appeared a little ...tense.

Perhaps she was another of them who'd been looking forward to the day outside of the castle.

Hadn’t it been for the reminder last Thursday, Maevie would have already been on her merry way to Hogsmeade. Instead, she sat on one of the sofas in the volunteers’ lounge, trying in vain to stop her legs from bobbing, her gaze wandering the room in aimless patterns as she waited for Rae to begin.

She really wanted to go to Hogsmeade, but skipping was out of the question. Pretending ignorance had never been one of her strong suits, and lying in general wasn’t either, so Maevie didn’t have much of a choice.

Although she supposed it was an important matter to solve, Maevie wished they could have done this tomorrow or any other day of the week. What was one more day? The potions had been vanishing for a while now.

Hopefully it wouldn’t take too long to find this culprit.

She wasn’t sure how Rae was planning to go about this, though. It seemed unlikely that someone would step forward and simply admit their thievery, especially with everyone present.

But Rae probably had her plans. If anyone could figure this out, Maevie was sure it was the Slytherin girl with the attitude and fierceness of a wolf.

With her thoughts drifting far away, Maevie paid no attention to the room’s movements. More volunteers arrived, murmuring conversations brushed her awareness, but she was too distracted to listen. Daydreaming about shopping and hot chocolate with her friends was too captivating.

The whole sofa shook with the erratic bouncing of her legs.

A thief was among them.

Avery glanced over the others he was forced to call 'colleagues', a tut dropping from his lips as he shook his head in dismay. A thief was the lowest of the low, especially medical ingredients and tinctures that were very much needed for the patients that walked through these doors.

Quidditch was in full swing, and with all the airborne idiots in the school, those supplies were desperately needed.

He hadn't noticed any shortage especially, but he also wasn't responsible for inventory, last he checked. He'd never been assigned the task and thought better of it anyway, considering his talents were better utilized on the floor, tending to those who needed him. There was such a lack of knowledgeable healers-in-training anyway, it only made sense to make use of him in regard to patient care.

Avery was no thief. He borrowed, with the understanding that one day he'd pay it all back when he had the means to. What he utilized from the apothecary stores and greenhouses for his experiments were minimal, and mostly discard. He'd love to partake of the fresher, more potent ingredients, but he did what he could to minimize his footprint.

He smiled at Rae, nodding with understanding as he crossed his arms over himself. She could count on him. The boy would keep his eyes peeled for anything untoward and would be sure to snitch the moment he did. The boy was shameless. Whatever affected the wing, affected him and his ability to concoct in peace.

They'd catch the rat, he had no doubts about it.


”At the very least, maybe we need pocket searches and bag checks at the end of each shift. Dorms and trunks searched. We’re smart, I’m sure we can smoke them out if we work together. Forget the adults, they will want to follow rules. We have youth on our side.”

Perhaps he'd been too rash in offering his assistance.

Avery's expression faltered. In their effort to track down this idiot thief, they were getting dangerously close to Avery's own trunk. Pocket searches were one thing. Bag checks were reasonable enough. Dormitories and trunks, however, seemed unnecessarily invasive. There were personal effects in trunks. Private belongings. Experimental materials that, when removed from their proper context, could very easily be misconstrued by someone without the necessary intelligence to understand what they were looking at.

His arms loosened from across his chest.

"Searching dormitories seems excessive," he said carefully. "And inefficient. We'd waste an enormous amount of time searching people who haven't done anything."

Like him.

Because Avery hadn't stolen anything.

Borrowing was fundamentally different. Theft required an intention to permanently deprive someone of their property, and Avery fully intended to replace everything he'd used once he had the resources to do so. Admittedly, there was no formal record of this arrangement, and the apothecary stores themselves had not technically agreed to it, but that seemed more like an administrative oversight than criminal intent.

He cleared his throat.

"Perhaps we should begin with observation."

Fiona had arrived on time, which she thought was important considering she was one of the youngest in the room. She had no intention of drawing any additional attention to herself by arriving late. She took a seat near the edge of things and kept her hands folded in her lap and her expression pleasant and uninvolved, which was a look she had a lot of practice with.

She knew nothing about missing vials. She’d been told there was a meeting and she had come to the meeting, and now she was sitting it trying to look like someone who had definitely not been in a supply closet letting a second year experiment on her.

She listened while Tilly suggested Veritaserum and dorm searches with the energy of someone who had genuinely considered committing a crime about it, and while Maevie’s legs bounced hard enough to shake the sofa. Rae looked at everyone like she was already fairly certain which one of them was the thief.

“Searching dormitories seems excessive. Perhaps we should begin with observation.”

Fiona looked over at Avery, her head tilted slightly and her brow raised.

She thought about the supply closet. The vials lined up in rows. The pale blue one with the fleck in it. Could it have been him?

Fiona definitely wasn’t going to voice that question out loud. Instead, she remained still. She’d heard murmuring of missing supplies. But when Fiona was in the Hospital Wing, it was specifically the Greenhouse she was in. Her work didn’t bring her to the supply closet very often.

Pulling weeds is what she tended to gravitate towards. It was good for getting her frustrations out.

”I can give you thirty minutes. An hour tops. Any longer and Drago may storm the castle.”

"Good. Let him." Having a former idiot Gryffindor storm the castle, while a hassle for the professors, might have brought her some modicum of amusement amidst this growing nuisance. "Maybe he'll be the one to corner the thief." The situation could only improve. They'd already been deprived, and if the boy was heated enough, he might make for a good executioner on her behalf. It was doubtful Healer Graham would believe she'd hurt the idiot by 'accident',

"Since when did you start caring anyway?" Rae wouldn't pretend to know much about whatever had eventually transpired between the two. It had been ages since Matilda had shared any real news about her love life, and from the outside, Drago had only ever seemed uptight and controlling. Not a good fit, she thought, for her fiery friend, but stranger things had happened, and she couldn't deny that Tilly seemed rather taken with the idea of eventually being able to leave the castle to see him – taken enough to be making more questionable suggestions than usual.

More often, she was the sensible, albeit exasperated one.

"Nothing doing with the veritaserum. I've already asked. As for the searches—"

"Searching dormitories seems excessive," he said carefully. "And inefficient. We'd waste an enormous amount of time searching people who haven't done anything. Perhaps we should begin with observation."

"No one's searching dorms." That particular idea, funnily enough, had already been shot down, too. Rae had been fully prepared, at the risk of death by strange and offensive stenches in some living quarters, to march in, dorm by dorm, until she found what she was looking for and the person responsible. But she had observed and was fairly certain they were closing in. It was only a matter of taking care of the actual business.

"Alright, let's make this quick." With the same vigour that the girl had herself been looking forward to the weekend outside of the castle, she was aching for a nap. The girl had always had a tenuous relationship with sleep. Lately, it had gotten even worse. Rae paused, letting her gaze linger around the room. Many of them were present. A certain someone was not. She thought she'd heard some stirring over in the apothecary when she'd first arrived but had chosen to ignore it for the sake of not drawing attention to it.

"I lied."

That seemed a good place to start.

"We're not here to talk about grand ideas of catching a thief. We're here for an intimidation ritual. One that should get the point across." The Head Girl had hoped – perhaps naively – that the boy would've turned up to the meeting, felt the pressure of his peers, and then willingly confessed. As it stood, he hadn't bothered to arrive at the meeting. They always made it harder than it needed to be, and her patience was already in limited supply. Rae nodded towards the door. "He's still in there, lucky us. I'm not saying we'll hurt him." That would get her lectured. "I'm just saying... we should probably get our hands on him before he thinks he's gotten away again."

She drew her wand then gestured for them to follow.

In silence, Rae crossed the floor of the hospital wing, heading for the door that led to the apothecary, a floor down. The door creaked open slowly, only the pale candlelight escaping from the spiralling stairs.

---

OOC: Sorry for the lateness, the last week has been... something. Anywho, we're moving the meeting along. Rae has no real patience for surveillance when she's already got a hunch and someone playing in her face and has led everyone to the apothecary. Inside, there will be a boy. His name is Ralph, say hi to Ralph. He's a 5th year Slytherin who thinks he's been very smooth but the moment you enter, he'll be jittery. He's acting suspicious, jittery and his left pocket is bulging from a vial stuffed in there but he's also immediately defensive. Seeing so many of you enter, he'll try to make a speedy exit, insisting he can't stop and has suddenly forgotten something over in the greenhouses. A simple 'stop, we have you cornered' will not work, though you're free to have your character trying to reason with him if that would be how they handle things! It's up to you but he will be attempting to barrel past you up the stairs.

No one was searching dorms. Well, that was a relief. Missing supplies aside, Avery didn't fancy some idiot Hufflepuff rifling through his carefully organized belongings. He'd have to stand there over their shoulder, watching intently to ensure they didn't get their grubby fingers in his concoctions, lest they end up with a molted thumb and he'd be held responsible. Avery would have to go on a ramble to Healer Graham about all the reasons he had what he had, and he was in no mood to break down the compound ingredients that would molt said thumb.

"I lied."

Unsurprising. As much as he appreciated what Ruth Elliot had done for him last year, and as much as he'd found a new respect for the older girl, he wasn't at all surprised to hear she'd lied. She seemed like a liar.

....lied about what?

"We're not here to talk about grand ideas of catching a thief. We're here for an intimidation ritual. One that should get the point across."

Avery's eyes widened as he glanced at Fiona and then at Kathryn. Both of them knew what he'd been up to, but neither of them seemed like a snitch. Kathryn certainly not; she didn't speak and only stared unnervingly at people. Fiona, admittedly, was more of a stranger to him than friend so far, so he didn't really know. Still, out of the three of them, Avery felt he was more likely to tattle - if it benefited him, which it wouldn't here - and he certainly hadn't snitched on HIMSELF.

"He's still in there, lucky us. I'm not saying we'll hurt him."

If Avery hadn't felt the flutters of panic steadily rising in his stomach and stretching towards his throat, he might have noticed that Ruth was indicating to the closet and how the culprit was still in there, not sweating nervously in his chair with fingers gripped around the edges of his seat. He might have used logic, observation, instead of instinct that told him to get up and flee before she could...do whatever she was gonna do.

Ban him from the Hospital Wing?? She couldn't! He had important work to do! He had a dad to save and a mum to reassure and brothers to prove he could fix things to.

"I'm just saying... we should probably get our hands on him before he thinks he's gotten away again."

When she drew her wand, Avery's mouth went dry. "OKAY WAIT!" he shouted, standing from his chair as the group began to rise. "I didn't steal anything, exactly. I was just borrowing stuff and...." he gulped, his eyes never leaving Ruth's wand, "Most of it was discard anyway, but I'll restock it as soon as I can and...."

Oh. She was moving...towards the closet. Avery's head cocked slightly, not unlike a puppy's. Hmm? There was someone in there?

He glanced around at the others, offering a sheepish smile. "Just kidding. Lightning the mood. Sarcasm is a sign of intelligence, you know."

When Rae finally addressed the gathered group with the most unexpected opening, Maevie’s leg stopped bouncing at once. Brow drawing, her head snapped around.

Lied? What did she mean, lied? Weren’t they here for some thief?

But her next words quickly shed clearer light on the whole thing, and suddenly Maevie didn’t feel as agitated about leaving the castle anymore. Sure, she still wanted to go to Hogsmeade—hot chocolate still hovered heavily at the back of her mind. Though, a little delay didn’t sound all that bothersome anymore if it meant catching the thief in the act. That sounded rather fun, actually.

As Rae drew her wand, Maevie did the same and jumped off the sofa, grinning. No hurting, the Slytherin had said, but maybe a bit of stinging? She had found so many spells during one boring library shift, and she had even managed to remember some. Would be the perfect time to give them a try.

"OKAY WAIT!"

The shrill exclamation made her startle, her head whipping around to look at Avery in confusion. Was he…confessing? Had he been the thief all along? Had Rae known and just set this up so Avery would confess, and that was the lie?

Her eyes darted to the older girl, but apparently the other thief still had to be caught. Two thieves then. Maevie grinned at Avery.

“Such intelligence.” She chuckled lightly. “Almost had me fooled.”

Did she care who was stealing? Or why? Or at all?

Not particularly.

Following Rae towards the apothecary door, Maevie’s focus had already redirected. Inside was an older boy she didn’t know. Looked suspicious enough for her. Acted like it, too.

Maevie tried to block his way, wand pointed forward. “What’s that in your pocket there?” she asked, eyes squinted, but her grin mischievous. “Immobulus!”

"I lied."

Unlike her friend, Kathryn was surprised to hear that. Not because Ruth held some sort of moral high ground that made it impossible for her to bend reality—the girl certainly had an active imagination when she was ready—but because... in her experience, people only ever lied to avoid trouble. Her brother's girlfriend – well, she supposed fiancée – wasn't the sort to particularly care about the trouble she got into. The older girl was more known for her irreverence and disregard for consequences. And if they were looking for the thief, wouldn't the thief be the one in need of concealment?

She asked none of that, of course, seeing no need to interrupt whatever was happening for the sake of understanding. One way or another, it would make sense eventually. The little girl needed only to remain standing by where her friend sat, waiting for the next set of instructions.

"We're not here to talk about grand ideas of catching a thief.

Oh?

We're here for an intimidation ritual. One that should get the point across."

Oh.

Kathryn wouldn't have guessed such an outcome no matter how much time she'd been given. 'Security' wasn't exactly in the description of a hospital wing volunteer and she'd never considered herself to be particularly intimidating. There was a time or two when she silently entered a space to find that others were talking about her. Usually whispering as if they expected her to appear like a spectre, usually on about how unnerving they happened to find her. Nothing that would suggest she could stop a thief who truly wanted to continue helping themselves.

Avery was one such thief, though he'd found many explanations for his actions. There those excuses went now.

The second year gave no visible reaction to his sudden outburst; she was by now used to the spontaneous way in which he sometimes changed volumes. Icy glaciers remained fixed on the lead nurse while Avery poured his soul out in a confession she hadn't thought necessary. Better to remain silent and force them to prove it than to utter words and condemn yourself. At that point, staring at him might only bring further attention to the boy than he'd already gained for himself.

"Just kidding. Lightening the mood. Sarcasm is a sign of intelligence, you know."

Hardly convincing her quill helpfully wrote. It was better to have him under no illusions he'd saved himself, lest he follow Ruth onto this new nonsense and find he later still had things to answer for.

Kathryn followed the others out, taking Avery by the wrist to take him along. It wouldn't do to remain standing there sheepishly while the action moved on. He might miss it then ask her for details, and her patience for his interrogations only ever went so far.

Over in the apothecary, she hung back, not at all interested in herself catching the thief. She would watch Maevie and the others step up and wait to be dismissed.

"OKAY WAIT!"

For what?

Rae hesitated at the door, wondering what fresh nonsense Avery was about to unleash when they had an actual thief to corner to instil the fear of God into – within reason. She really wasn't in the mood for a lecture, and Ralph was hardly worth it. What came next... she hadn't been expecting. Taking things? 'Mostly discard'...

She would be the judge of that.

Dark eyes momentarily shifted to the little blonde by his side, the one that stared solemnly as if she weren't likely a silent accomplice. At the very least, Rae knew Kathryn must've known, but as was often her... MO, she wasn't saying jack shit. They would have to work on that. Her almost‑sister needed to understand that not every snitch got stitches. Some could be handsomely rewarded. Never mind that she wasn't sure what the Ravenclaw might consider a reward. Very hard to please that one.

"Just kidding. Lightening the mood. Sarcasm is a sign of intelligence, you know."

Her eyes narrowed.

"We'll talk about this after." Right now, she had another fish to fry. Annoyed as she was to now have a second matter to address, it wasn't something she could very well let go. If things were going missing – and they were – anyone helping had become a problem, and when they were small enough, Rae ended up being the one who needed to fix them.

The Slytherin could see the crazed look in Ralph's eyes. There was recognition. He knew he'd been caught and that there wasn't a world where he got past them all. Would he still try? Apparently he would. The boy barrelled his way up the stairs, heedless of the people already standing there. Should've been a Gryffindor, honestly. His reasoning ability was about on par.

Thankfully, Maevie's immobulus did the trick. Ralph fought the spell but eventually went still mid‑stride.

"Nice," she commented mildly, giving the younger girl a pat on the shoulder for saving her the effort. "Search his pockets, take everything you ca—"

The door snapped open back at the top of the stairs and a frantic whisper came before the person could realise what was happening.

"Oi! Ralph, hurry up! They aren't in the lounge anymore. I think they might be—"

Jane. She was in the same year as Ralph and frequently seen whispering with him during the shifts they shared. Rae had never thought much of it. Back when Benji used to volunteer, they spent a lot of shared shifts together. Kathryn and Avery had a weird sort of antagonistic headache‑inducing 'for the love of Merlin just leave each other alone if it's gonna be this much of a problem' thing going. Most people simply had their person in the wing. A best friend, a sibling, a rival – it didn't matter and had never really been her problem. She hadn't known the girl was involved.

Jane turned pale as a ghost, swallowed roughly as she took a step back.

Without warning, the girl turned and booked it back across the hospital wing.

Rae gave a long‑suffering sigh. When it wasn't one thing, it was another. She was getting too nauseous for this.

---

OOC: The plot thickens. Ralph wasn't alone. Unfortunately the confrontation has spooked his accomplice and she's likely halfway out the wing by now. The potions still need to be recovered but she needs to be caught. You can choose either path for your character. As this will be the last post needed, you can assume they've caught her or recovered the potions. For anyone who would still need a final post, you can get it in after I come back to post the wrap‑up.

Avery's confession earned him a slow blink. She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Avery. You're either the world's worst criminal or the most honest one. We can unpack your definition of the borrowing later.”

She barely had time to process the conversation before Maevie's spell locked Ralph in place.

"Nice shot!"
"Nice. Search his pockets, take everything you ca—" Tilly was already walking forward to do just that.

Tilly wasted no time removing the vial from Ralph's pocket before checking the others. Sure enough, more little glass bottles clinked together as she emptied them into her satchel for safe keeping.

"Well, I think we've found where the pain potions have been disappearing to." She said, holding up one of the vials.

Then, the door burst open. "Oi! Ralph, hurry up! They aren't in the lounge anymore. I think they might be..."

Jane. Her stomach dropped. More?! "You've got to be kidding me." Before she'd even finished the sentence, Jane was running.

"Oh, absolutely not.” Tilly took off after Jane, along with a few others. She would not let her get away that easily. Rae would have them scouring the castle for hours. She had PLACES TO BE.

Years of chasing students through the halls as Prefect came in handy. The bottles clinked together in her bag as she ran. [b]"Jane! Running is basically telling us your guilty!”

The group continued after her down the hall. She had no place to go. Even if she got away, she couldn’t escape the castle. It was only a matter of time before she was caught.

Her spell hit, and after a moment, the older boy stilled mid-movement.

“Ha! You loser!”

Maevie thrust her fist in the air and did a little hop of joy. That had been way easier than she’d thought! Maybe that was a career path she should consider: Hit Wizard. It had never crossed her mind, but perhaps it wasn’t such a bad idea. Certainly seemed fun.

At least as long as things seemed to go right.

Frozen where he stood, the thief had no choice but to let them search his pockets. Tilly soon retrieved the potions he’d been trying to nick, and for a short, sweet moment, it seemed like the whole thing was resolved. Time for hot chocolate in Hogsmeade!

Only it wasn’t.

The door opened, and an urgent whisper drifted down the stairs.

Another one?! Holy Merlin, what was going on here? Was everyone at this school serving themselves but her? What for? Maevie didn’t spend long on these thoughts before rushing up the stairs after Tilly and the girl who had to be in cahoots with this first guy. Adrenaline was pumping in her veins, a grin on her lips as she burst through the door and down the hallways with the other volunteers.

Tilly was calling out, but Maevie saw little use in that.

“Flipendo!” she tried instead, pointing her wand at the second thief’s back and hoping the spell would trip her up.

Only one way to find out whether Hit Wizard truly was her call.

Everything happened very fast.

Avery stood up and shouted OKAY WAIT and began explaining himself. Fiona’s eyes went wide at that, looking at him, and then at Rae, then back at him. He was saying things like borrowing and mostly discard and she sat very still trying to look like someone who had no idea what he was talking about. But she did know what he was talking about.

The cough had lasted about a week, but her throat and chest still hurt when she thought about it.

Then Avery said just kidding and somehow that worked, or at least everyone moved on. Then there was a fifth year to catch and apparently that was more pressing than her friend’s creative accounting practices. Fiona exhaled slowly and fell into the back with the others.

She stood near the back of the group for the rest of it, which was where she had positioned herself when they were sitting as well. It was best to not be too involved in these things. She was eleven. She was one of the youngest here. She had no spells to offer and no real role in any of this beyond standing around looking like she belonged.

But then Jane came barreling back through the wing, and Fiona found herself directly in the path of a panicking fifth year girl with nowhere else to go.

She did the only thing she could think of.

Fiona spread her arms as wide as they would go, planted her feet, and made herself as big as possible (which was not very big at all). She was eleven and small, but she had grown up in these corridors and she knew where the doorframes were and she stood in the middle of one. She looked up at Jane, the expression on her face determined. She had no intention of moving out of the way.

“You have to stop,” she said, in her most authoritative voice. “Everyone’s right behind you.”

She was hoping very much that Jane would opt to stop rather than try to run straight through her.

These were key sunbasking hours. Inside. The windows let in a bit of something but it wasn't the same as painting yourself in sunlight. He could be fishing. He could be skipping rocks. The lady in charge - was she a professor or a big kid? - made a big hullabaloo about being here on time. As if he couldn't remember when she told him the first time.

They were short on pain potions. Big whoop. Couldn't magical people deal with pain the normal way and bite down on a stick real hard? They couldn't. Gruff stayed shut-up. Another professor (or big kid) changed how long the meeting would go for. She talked about being youthful, but Gruff could see the old-person wrinkles and he wasn't fooled. His mouth grew small at her suggestion of pocket-searches. She would let all his bugs out and somehow make it his fault that there were bugs loose in the wing. It wouldn't be the first time.

Kids stayed quiet. Kids spoke. Nothing got done. Yadda yadda. Didn't anyone have a spell that let you wave your stick and big letters came out that told you what the answer to your question was? That seemed a lot more efficient. Instead, their sticks made stuff float.

The lady who started the meeting starting casting magic but she didn't use a stick. The incantitition (or whatever) was very-tah-seer-umm. Gruff would remember it and look it up.

"I lied."

She had lied! Was the very-tah-seer-umm spell not even in effect? He had noticed nothing, but plenty of spells didn't look like anything.

"We're here for an intimidation ritual."

Intimidation was when you scared someone really badly. Sometimes intimidating someone meant a few punches to make sure they didn't do stuff again. He would get in trouble for doing that, but the lady wouldn't. Gruff grinned. Then she let all the air out of the bag and Gruff fell into confusion once more.

Follow. He knew following. That one was easy.

Avery lost his cool. Sneak-thief? Or was he pretending? Gruff kept his lips together, but he watched the lady's stick just in case. But he was pretending. Sarcasm is a sign of intelligence. Gruff didn't have time to figure out what he meant. The joke hadn't been funny. Noone even laughed. Some of the other kids even got mad at him. Was the truth that he had stolen, or was the truth that he had been joking. Noone at this school got jokes, least of all Gruff.

The other lady starting using her magic stick. Imm-mobe-yull-isk. Confusing, confusing. Why was Gruff needed here? Were they teaching Gruff something, or was he just here to see some kid get exploded by magic?

Ralph. Of course it was Ralph. Ralph was always being weird. Lots of Slytherins were always being weird.

Then there was more yelling. Some kids were running. Chasing a girl. Was Gruff supposed to chase her too? He pulled out his wand - taking special care to hold it right - and lowered it. Did he want to embarass himself again? No, sir. He had to go after Ralph. Noone would say Gruff went after girls. There were plenty of people over there.

"Immobeyellisk," he said, pointing his magic stick at Ralph's heart.

Why was he here? This was not the job of a novice nurse, he was pretty sure.

"Hey lady," he looked up at the bossy woman [Ruth], "How come we don't have to follow the rules about fighting this time? Can we practice more spells on him?"

Let the record show that Kathryn Elise wanted no part in the nonsense unfolding before her.

The little girl gave no visible reaction to the reveal of the second thief or the way the first had fallen under Maevie's spell. Her wand, all 12 inches of unyielding ash with its thestral hair core, remained firmly in her holster, where it wouldn't be disturbed by all of...this.

She had never been inclined to become involved, and that weekend seemed a poor time to start. It was certainly unfortunate that Ralph had chosen to help himself to their supplies – she'd been made to help with the brewing of some of them – but it didn't stir any particular emotion within the Ravenclaw, one way or another.

She remained a porcelain pillar at Ruth's side, icy blues surveying the scene as it unfolded. Jane was a complication, but even that revelation wasn't enough to stir her from the equilibrium her body maintained. The two would be punished. If they had even more accomplices, Kathryn felt confident enough that between the healer and her brother's girlfriend, they would find ways to make them talk.

The silver lining was simple. She would no longer be required to help in the making of potions that would only be stolen after. Avery had tried explaining the merits of extra practice, but Kathryn despised waste. Efficiency. Precision. Competence. Those were the things she valued. None could be found in the futility of what they'd been made to endure.

When the others sprang into action, she moved closer to the older Slytherin's side.

In her experience, the students at Hogwarts were an excitable bunch. They were even more so when given an action to complete. Should things become more...hands-on, she didn't suppose she fancied being shoved or otherwise bodily moved in the pursuit of the sticky-fingered fiends.

Her gaze shifted briefly to the first year with his nonsensical, made-up spell.

Only the most perceptive in the micro-expressions of Kathryn Barlowe would be able to spot the judgement and disdain before she returned her attention to the older boy now on the ground.

He would be appropriately punished and it would be no less than he deserved.

Little Kathryn Barlowe wasn't worth the brow she'd felt trying to rise.

From the outset, had she given it any real thought, Rae would've known that the girl's usefulness extended only as far as she herself would allow. Running? Tussling? Tangling with others? Merlin forbid anyone should catch her in any of those acts. No. The moment things became physical, there really was nowhere else she would've tried to be. The Head Girl didn't blame her either. Benji's little sister had always been the delicate sort. That hadn't stopped the others from getting physical with her in the last year.

And anyway, what would she do? Stare them into submission? It was better she stayed out of the way while more willing and able volunteers took up the task.

Tilly, determined Gryffindor that her friend had always been, was already hot on Jane's heels. Had to admire the dedication, even if she couldn't quite relate. That wasn't to say that Rae wasn't dedicated; she just...liked to display it with...less exertion. Frankly, just the sight of the others running off was enough to make her want to sit down. Her energy was nowhere near what it needed to be, and she didn't fancy pushing just to make a point. She'd rather hex the pair into the next century and serve the detention that came after.

Thankfully, that wouldn't be necessary. Maevie's 'flipendo' tripped the other girl, sending her skidding across the freshly mopped hospital wing floor. Poor Jane likely hadn't seen it coming, but now flat on her stomach, it was all too easy for the others to catch up.

Ralph, she could handle.

Apparently, Gruffudd also thought the thief was his to handle with a...er...did it even count as a spell? It wasn't any that she knew and reminded her of her earliest days when she made up incantations on the fly.

"How come we don't have to follow the rules about fighting this time? Can we practice more spells on him?"

She waved a hand lightly.

"Try not to think too hard about it, yeah?" The last thing she needed was him asking that same question to the healer who'd explicitly told her that they would not be conducting target practice when they found who they were looking for. "Put your wand away before you hurt yourself. We've already got what we need."

The potions had been recovered – the newly taken ones, anyway – and they now had some concrete leads should the operation turn out to be larger than the pair of bumbling idiots.

Rae flicked her wand back in the direction of the hospital wing's entrance. A soft click confirmed the doors were now locked.

"Let's get them to the healer's office. She'll be thrilled to know what we've discovered."

---

OOC: Aaaaand that's a wrap! Thanks for sticking it out, everyone. I know updates were sporadic with the new job and all but I loved reading your posts and am glad you stopped by! We'll assume the thieves were turned in. You don't actually have to post again unless you didn't get in the three needed posts for full credit. I'll be leaving the thread open a few days just in case anyone wants to get a final post in.

Tilly let out a long breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding.

"Well," She clapped her hands together once. "I'd call that a success."

Ralph was caught. Jane was caught. The missing potions had been recovered. House rivalries had been forgotten for all of five minutes while half the Hospital Wing united to chase down two idiots through the castle.

Honestly. They'd done rather well. She was very proud of her co-workers.

"Good work, everyone." She smiled brightly, though anyone who knew her could see it was just a touch too enthusiastic.

"Excellent teamwork. Very inspiring. Gryffindors, Slytherins, Ravenclaws, Hufflepuffs, look at us, we really came together today."

She nodded several times smiling a slightly manic smile. "Right then!" she said, looking to find Rae in the crowd.

"You've got the thieves. You've got the evidence. You've can find Healer Graham." She counted each off on her fingers, as if solving a difficult math problem. "I don't think you need me anymore. Nope. We good?” She asked no one in particular.

Before anyone had a chance to answer, she had taken two steps back in the direction of the main staircase.

"Rae, brilliant work. Maevie, fantastic spell. Fiona, nice job trying to... well, trying. I'll see you on Monday. Gruff, let me know if you'd like to learn about plants. I'm your girl! Avery Umm… we'll circle back to your definition of borrowing another day. Everyone else, great job and all that with whatever."

Her attention flicked to the two thieves. "You two, are rather stupid honestly. You should probably start apologizing now. It will save time."

She offered everyone one last bright cheerful smile, turned on a dime and was walking with purpose down the hall. "Alright! Bye!" She called, waving at the group behind her.

Before anyone could suggest another task, bring up paperwork, or Merlin forbid, request another meeting, Matilda was already halfway down the stairs and running to the front door.

Forty two days.

Drago was waiting.

Jane did not stop.

Jane also did not run through her, which would have been worse.

What happened was that Maevie’s spell hit Jane from behind before she reached the doorframe at all, and then went down on the freshly mopped floor. Fiona stood there with her arms still spread wide like she was trying to hold up the walls.

She lowered them.

No one had to say anything about it. She already knew.

The rest of it happened quickly: Ralph turned over, Jane caught, potions recovered, Rae locking the doors with the effect of someone who had already mentally moved on. And then Tilly, who had been a blur of ginger and righteous fury for the better part of the last twenty minutes, was suddenly doing maths out loud and counting things off on her fingers.

"Fiona, nice job trying to... well, trying."

Fiona stood up a bit straighter, which was the correct response to being told you did a good job at trying. She was going to take the compliment. Even though she felt they could have handled the situation without her.

She watched as her greenhouse mentor disappeared down the stairs at a pace that said she had somewhere much better to be.

“See you Monday,” she said, to no one in particular since Tilly was already gone.

Fiona’s blue eyes looked around at what remained of the group: Rae, Kathryn, Avery, and Gruff, who had pointed his wand and said something that was definitely not a real spell. That boy needed help.

It had been quite a morning.

"We'll talk about this after."

No they wouldn't. Avery would avoid Ruth Elliot like the plague for as long as it took the older girl to forget he ever existed. The second year had absolutely zero desire to explain himself or receive the tongue lashing that was no doubt coming for him. He'd double-down on his insistence of joking if he had to, but he'd never been the greatest liar.

He ignored Kathryn's quip about whether he was convincing or not, but allowed her to take him by the wrist and lead him on, following the enthusiastic action of their peers. Where it seemed everyone was interested in catching whoever rummaged around in the apothecary, Avery was only interested in getting the hell out of there.

Hitting people with spells was of no use to him. Maevie Golding and Matilda Nordstrom seemed to find some glee in it, but he was certain they were nearly as nuts as Ruth Elliot anyway. Still, he made no move to help the older boy who was frozen by Maevie. His own eyes widened, his gaze casting sideways to the Hufflepuff and he gave a little grimace. Jeez. Remind him not to get on the girl's bad side. His memories of being forced towards a flying horse against his will were horrifying enough.

Another girl came rushing out, panicked and looking stricken by the chaos, but then she was flipendo-ed, keeping her from barreling right through Fiona who apparently thought herself a hero.

Avery sighed with exasperation at all the idiots that surrounded him. Dropping his hand to Kathryn's, favoring her glove for the feeling of her fingers around his wrist, he tugged, eager to escape during all the commotion. "Come on," he whispered, and hurried towards the door before Ruth could corner him. "Let's get out of here while they're all....doing this."

He wanted no part of any of it.