Darkness

Day Nineteen

         When we reached our rooms we found notes on the doors. It was sealed so that only teachers could open them.

Dear Teachers,
There will be a meeting tonight to discuss the defenses of Hogwarts after dinner at 9pm sharp in the library. Teachers on night duty are asked to be at the meeting no later than 10.30pm at the library. Thank you.

Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall.

         "My room or yours?" Kurama asked as soon as we were both done reading the letter, which took about half a second.
         "Your room has all the literature. Let's go," I said.

         He opened the door and I stepped in. It was late afternoon and until next week, neither of us had classes to teach in the evening. Some people would call me a fool for trusting him but then again, I'm only human. There were several chairs in the room and I took one, almost sinking into it as I realized that it was a plush armchair.
         "Careful, that one's a little soft," he warned me. I glared at him.
         He pulled up a chair and sat across me. It was time to compare notes. "The blood of some of the Royal Families run deep in the students," eh began.
         "That's only to be expected. Many of them were bred for magic, if nothing else," I said.
         "True. What worries me is that they don't have any of the natural protection of Asians against ghosts and such. No wonder they're considered weak," he said.
         "It's an acquired trait. Those who are of pure-blood westerners have the same immunity. I have a friend who grew up in Asia but she was born in England," I continued.
         "So, what does that tell us of Voldie?" I noticed that he had picked up my sister's nickname for him.
         "He probably would not be immune to a chi attack that came out of nowhere, and he would be like a helpless baby if we sent him nightmares," I suggested.
         "Yet that's beside the point, isn't it, Lady? He's a pawn of your enemy," Kurama pointed out. I shrunk even deeper into the cushions.
         "For a moment I hoped you'd forgotten," I mumbled.
         "What was that?" he said, even though he'd heard me quite well.
         "What do you think this coming meeting's about?" I asked him, trying to change the subject.
         "Probably about Voldie. Defenses? This place is quite well-defended against normal humans, but it's a disgrace against everything else," he said, the first time I noted contempt in his voice.
         "The attack yesterday?" I asked him.
         "Yes. There was not a single scratch on them, so I think that means they had no trouble whatsoever getting into the grounds. The school's another matter, of course," he said.
         "I agree. Okay, where shoud we..." the rest of the afternoon passed as Kurama and I pored over a map of Hogwarts and its grounds.