Without a word, Mrs Steadfast ushered Harry into the corridor and back the whole way to the Auror’s office while Snape followed on their heels. People stopped to look at them, but Mrs Steadfast waved their questions away. As they entered the office, a welcoming roar and an applause made Harry jump and look like he considered fleeing back the way he had come. Mrs Steadfast made a gesture to subdue the enthusiasm of the present Aurors.

“We got them back - yes, yes, it’s excellent indeed! There’re still things to sort out, though. Take it easy now. Soundy, a word, please!” As she withdrew with her colleague to give him new instructions, the Aurors approached Harry. In the front line stood Mr Burgess who stared at Harry with a strange glow in his eyes.

“You must have killed him then - your opponent... Tell us how you did it? Was this your first real killing - except Voldemort, I mean?” There was an excited quiver in Burgess’ voice. The words ’Potter killed his attacker’ echoed back and forth between the twenty or so young Aurors who stood close by.

“His second killing and he has not even started on the program yet,” someone called out.

“Well, this is Harry Potter we’re talking about!” someone else replied appreciatively.

“You must throw us a party tonight, Potter, when you’re done with the aftermaths of administration,” another Auror said to Harry. ”You defeated your enemy! We’ll celebrate your victory in due form! You’re one of us now! Why, most of us have never...”

“Was it an Avada Kedavra?” Mr Burgess stuck his face so close to Harry’s that Harry could feel the panting breaths on his chin. Harry recoiled.

“Potter! Potter rules!” the others started to scan at him. Harry took a sudden step forward, pushing Mr Burgess to the side with one hand, and opened his mouth. His voice was still hoarse and no more than a whisper.

“I killed another human being and you ask me to... celebrate?” There was incredulity and disgust written on his face. At that moment a strong hand was placed on Harry’s left shoulder from behind and with his arm around Harry’s back, Snape swiftly turned him around and ushered him inside Mrs Steadfast’s office.

Harry shrugged off Snape’s arm and turned to scowl at him, when Mrs Steadfast entered the office and closed the door behind her. Harry directed his attention to her instead with flashing fury in his eyes.

“What’s wrong with them?” Harry pointed at the door. “They’re your Aurors, aren’t they?”

“They’re first-year trainees, most of them. Because of heavy losses during the war, we accepted twice as many new applicants this fall. They’re here to learn.” Harry took no notice of Mrs Steadfast’s answer.

“Do you celebrate when you kill people? Is that a habit of yours?” he asked accusingly.

“Of course not...” Mrs Steadfast looked embarrassed. “It’s not sanctioned by the Office... although in their spare time...I cannot prevent them from doing whatever they want, can I?  I’m aware of the tradition to have a celebratory pub tour in honour of an Auror’s first killing. I’m afraid some - I say some - of the Aurors are keen to keep it up and...”

“That’s a rotten tradition!” roared Harry. “You should kick out every single person who proposes to celebrate a murder! And what’s wrong with Mr Burgess? He seemed absolutely excited by this. That’s sick! What’s the matter with people?!”

Suddenly a chuckle was heard, coming from the leather back of an old-fashioned swivel chair that started to turn around at one corner of Mrs Steadfast’s office. The sound made the blood in Harry’s veins freeze and he and Snape reacted equally fast when they drew their wands before the seated figure had time to rise. A skinny, but not small, very old witch with round glasses and a bun on top of her head, stood up and approached them, completely indifferent to the wands pointed at her. 

“This must be the son of Lily Evans,” she said. “The famous Harry Potter. I’m glad to meet you again. You were but a baby the last time I saw you. I recognise the same moral indignation that your mother once showed, in this very room.” She chuckled again.

“Granny! What are you doing in my office?” exclaimed Mrs Steadfast.

“Oh, I listened to the morning news and gathered that my grand-daughter would at last be put to the test at her new work and I set off to appease my curiosity and see how she coped with the challenge, and last but not least, I thought that I would offer the assistance from my lengthy experience. But you seem to have got him home alive... or he might have done that on his own, did he? A capable young man, the son of Lily Evans - you would expect no less. Impressive too, his fast reaction to my presence. Did you see him draw his wand?”

Mrs Steadfast opened her mouth, but the old witch interrupted her.

”Many an experienced Auror who had just been subjected to an attack on their person would have been so jumpy that they would have peppered me with stunning spells or worse, but this boy just had a protective shield sorting his wand. Now, that shows alertness, combined with a presence of mind. He has not lost his head despite what he has been through tonight. He’s good, Audrey. He’ll make an excellent Auror. He seems determined against those childish traditions of dealing with death, too. Excellent, I tell you.”

“You knew my mother?” Harry lowered his wand.

“Yes, I did. I’m Elisabeth Steadfast, Betty to my colleagues.” She shook hands with Harry and after a slight hesitation also with Snape. She turned back to Harry. “I wasn’t Lily’s boss. I retired a few years before she entered the program, and was succeeded by Rufus Scrimgeour. I stayed as a consultant at the office, for many years, however. I suspect that dear Rufus didn’t appreciate my continued presence in the office very much, although he made sure not to let it show over-explicitly. I had held the post as Head of the Aurors for forty years! I still had a lot to give even after I stepped aside! And those were troubled times! Voldemort was near his prime. The Death Eaters...”

Betty Steadfast cast a look at Snape, showing that she knew perfectly well who he was.

“... were building up. I taught the debutant Aurors combat techniques and magical strategy and so I got to know your mother. I was delighted with her, even if I was never convinced that Lily was suited for the job as an Auror...”

Harry raised his eyebrows.

“Don’t misunderstand me - she had the qualifications, she had the magic and the power, but I had a feeling that she had been talked into that particular choice of career by her young man and his friend - I mean James Potter and Sirius Black.”

Harry frowned.

“Because of Voldemort’s rising powers, the young ones in training were soon sent to real fights - too soon, in my opinion, but we needed all the Aurors we could use. And Rufus was no weakling. On the contrary, he pushed things to the other end of the line - to my disapprobation, I’d like to point out...” continued Mrs Betty Steadfast.

“Granny, I’m to interrogate Mr Potter. Would you...?”

The old witch took no notice of her grand-daughter, but continued her line of thought, addressing Harry.

“Have you heard about the decree that gave the Aurors the right to kill certain of their opponents?”

“Yes,” answered Harry. “It gave them the right even to hunt down and execute war criminals without prior judgement.”

“Correct, that was after Voldemort had disappeared - by yours and your mother’s doing...” she paused briefly and inclined her head solemnly in recognition of the feat and of the loss. “The period afterwards was terrible. Barty Crouch who was the head of the Magical Law Enforcement gave air to those feelings of revenge. We had lost James Potter and your mother, and we lost the Longbottoms soon thereafter, remember, but that was no excuse for the lawless savagery that developed... The first step toward this foolishness of retaliations, however, was taken a couple of years earlier, before your parents had gone into hiding, and it was to allow Aurors to use Avada Kedavras during battles. And that’s why I was reminded of Lily when I heard your protests right now.”

Harry inclined his head to the side inquiringly at her.

“The very same day the decree passed, there was a battle between Aurors and Death Eaters,” Mrs Betty Steadfast went on, ”and I remember being here as they all returned from the field. James Potter and Sirius Black had done their first killings by Avada Kedavras and were going on who had done his first. I did mine one minute past midday, said James. Well, I did mine one minute before midday, said Sirius. Then, yours was illegal, replied James and they laughed. And your mother was furious...”

“My father was joking about it?” asked Harry in a low, uncertain voice. Snape let out a snorting sound as if nothing else was to be expected of James Potter.

“Yeah... well, joking is a way of dealing with difficult matters, isn’t it? You should not judge them too harshly...” answered Betty Steadfast.

“But... but killing with an Avada goes against your whole system, your body revolts against that kind of magic. It’s impossible to be proud or happy about it!” exclaimed Harry. Betty Steadfast raised her eyebrows.

“Not everybody feels that way. To James and Sirius there was no difference between killing by Avada Kedavra or by having someone by multiple curses as they had already done in many battles before. They were Aurors, remember. You must be prepared to kill as an Auror, at least to defend yourself. An Avada Kedavra is simply more expedient that other curses.”

“But there’s a huge difference between killing with an Avada and by killing in other ways,” Harry objected, looking from Mrs Steadfast to her granny. “With an Avada you kill deliberately, cold-bloodedly. The magic is intentional in a completely different way, don’t you see?”

“The result is the same...” the younger Mrs Steadfast muttered and looked down. As a last resource for support, Harry turned to look at Snape.

“There’s a huge difference,” he conceded reluctantly.

“Interesting coming from a Death Eater. I didn’t think you made those subtle distinctions,” said Betty Steadfast coldly to Snape. “I thought you all killed easily, that it was a criterion for being accepted into the gang.” The old witch’s eyes were full of dislike and her grand-daughter frowned at her.

“Former Death Eater... It has been nearly twenty years since I truly counted myself as one... That criterion seems to have applied for a lot of your Aurors as well,” Snape retorted haughtily.

“Humph... Well, that’s why I said I’m not sure Lily made the right choice when she chose to become an Auror. She was adamantly against using the Avada Kedavra. I don’t think she could have killed a person, not even in battle. She was brave... oh yes, and she fought fiercely, but she did not kill...”

“But my father did...” Harry said dejectedly. He looked nauseous again.

“That day, after realising how lightly James and Sirius spoke of their Avadas, Lily exploded at them. She was in this very room, shouting, tears streaming down her cheeks. I had never seen her in such a state before. We tried to talk some sense to her, but in the end she just rushed out of the office. The gang was preparing to celebrate the victory of the battle - they would not abstain from it on her account... There was a war and the celebrations kept the spirit up… but there was no way she would take part in that... Just as revolted as I heard you a moment ago... I thought she would never forgive them... James and Sirius, I mean...James and her broke up for a while after this event... although she forgave him eventually, since she married him about ten months later. Not very lucky with her boyfriends, was she, Lily Evans - the one as bad as the other...?”

The last sentence was uttered in a pointed tone, accusingly, with an address at Snape, Harry thought. What was she alluding to? This was long after Snape and his mother had gone different ways, was it not? After Hogwarts. After Snape had taken that fatal step of becoming a Death Eater. What did Betty Steadfast refer to? Mrs Steadfast seemed to ask herself the same thing, because she stared with curiosity from her grandmother to Snape who, however, had allowed his long hair to fall forward and hide his face as he looked down on the floor. Mrs Steadfast shook her head.

“Now, Granny, you must let me do my job. Harry somehow manoeuvred himself away from the French authorities and I suspect they’ll want some answers, and I had better be able to deliver them. So, out you go, my dear lady.” She pointed decisively at the door.

“Oh, he did, did he?” Betty Steadfast said appreciatively. “I think I’ll stay and listen to the story,” she continued, unperturbed by Mrs Steadfast’s scowling face. “Don’t mind me, Audrey, I’ll be quiet as a mouse.”

All of a sudden the old witch looked tired and frail. She must be at least a hundred years old, Harry thought. Mrs Steadfast’s countenance softened and she led the old lady gently back to the armchair.

“Just as you stay quiet,” she muttered. “Harry, please tell us!” she said as she turned around, in a voice that would not bear contradiction. Harry took a deep breath.

“We were at this club, Le Trocadero. It’s located opposite the Eiffel Tower, on one of the avenues leading to the Champs Elysées,” he began. “But, first... I must ask you... The night before, I had spotted a wizard who spied on us... I wondered... whether it might be one of your Aurors? He... He tried to help out with the attacker when it all started, but I’m afraid he got hit first thing. I’m not sure he made it...” Harry’s voice faltered. Mrs Steadfast cleared her throat.

“You’re right, it was a French Auror, a friend of mine. He’s not dead, but severely hurt... I got the report just before coming in. I’m sorry Harry. I understand you didn’t want to be tailed during your holiday, but I couldn’t possibly let you be altogether unprotected. Not with what it said in that note...”

Harry shrugged as if it was no longer of importance.

“He reported to me on wednesday night,” continued Mrs Steadfast.” He had lost you and praised you for being so vigilant... despite being seemingly... er...  busy with... other things...”

“Of course I was vigilant,” Harry frowned, “...as long as we were out in the open... I had promised you, had I not?”

“Yes, and by spotting him that night at the Eiffel Tower you proved to us that you could keep that promise. I apologise, Harry. I had asked him to be discreet,” said Mrs Steadfast.

“And so he was. I didn’t see him at all during the second day, not until the attack...” Harry took a new deep breath. “Back to tonight then. I sensed all of a sudden a change in the room where we were dancing. Someone had filled the room with magma... heavy magma... several times that at Hogwarts... to make it impossible to escape by Apparition... And the doors had been shut so that we were trapped. I knew immediately that something was wrong and I launched for Ginny... I had just a second of advance... The attacker appeared and shot an Avada Kedavra at me... without forewarning... It hit a Muggle instead...”

“Describe the attacker, please.”

Harry did as he was asked. He went on describing the flashing green lights and the falling Muggles at the places where the attacker had aimed at him.

“So I mounted in the air. The attacker took no notice of the people he hit. He was completely ruthless. He would have killed hundreds of them to get at me, that’s how determined he was. So I rose to let him have clearer shots at me under the ceiling - like that no others were hit...”

At hearing this, Mrs Steadfast shut her eyes briefly, and Snape made a grimace that translated into exasperation and reluctant admiration. Concentrating on his narrative with glazed eyes and unaware of their reactions, Harry went on:

“I cut slits in the magma and Apparated short distances. I rolled about in the air, wriggling out of the way of his curses... In the meantime, Ginny managed to open one of the doors to get the Muggles out. We fought... I managed to hit him several times. An Expelliarmus... but his arm just lengthened itself and gripped the wand again... Stunnings... and he would freeze a second, but he melted away, assumed another form and reappeared on another spot... You see, I believe he was a Metamorphmagus... Because I... I tried a Sectumsempra as well...”

Harry looked quickly at Snape. This was the professor’s invention and dark speciality.

“But the attacker transformed instantly into a bee swarm and the curse was useless... It only cut the air... Likewise when I launched a trapping web at him. He just dissolved and escaped... I... I was beginning to get tired, rolling about under the ceiling... I understood that I wouldn’t hold much longer... Ginny had managed to get most of the people out and she wanted to help me, so she started to fire curses as well. It distracted him and annoyed him so he launched an Avada at her that missed by inches only... And I understood that we’d never get out of there alive if I didn’t... if I didn’t kill him... I had already tried everything... He positioned himself at the entrance of the opened door and forced Ginny back into the room... I managed to stun him once more and he dissolved... He could reappear anywhere and when he did, I was sure he would fire an Avada at me or at Ginny... but I guessed he would think that I was going to change my position to another corner of the room, as that was how we had played it until then... Instead, I Apparated under the ceiling to the middle of the room and he appeared just underneath me... He did not spot me immediately and it gave me the fraction of a second’s advance... so I fired the Avada Kedavra at him from above... It went all the way through him, from head to feet and he fell down dead on the spot...”

Harry’s breath quickened as he spoke, like he was panting under the ceiling once again, and when he reached the point where he fired his killing curse, pearls of sweat appeared on his forehead and his pupils dilated. He spun round so violently that he would have fallen headlong if Snape had not caught him. Harry fell to his knees and started to throw up convulsively in a bucket that Snape had conjured up.

“That was fast of you,” Mrs Steadfast gasped at Snape, taken by surprise by Harry’s sudden reaction. “You saw it coming, did you, Severus? By Merlin, Harry... you brave, brave boy... Oh, he can’t hear me, can he? Will he be okay?” She looked bewildered from Harry who looked like he would pass out, violently affected by vertigo and nausea, to Snape who was looking down on the young wizard with an impassive face.

“The reaction of the innocent and pure at heart...” Betty Steadfast had risen again and spoke softly to her granddaughter. “You can at least be sure that Mr Potter is no accustomed killer and that the Avada was his last resort. His reaction proves it, Audrey. Not that you had any doubts, of course... The attacker, on the other hand, was a professional... Good grief! This is an unusually strong reaction... And I’ve witnessed a few among my Aurors throughout the years… For how long will it go on?”

“Oh, maybe for half an hour...” Snape said evasively. “Were you sick right after, Harry? Is this a relapse or a delayed reaction?” Harry could barely answer between the vomits, and Mrs Steadfast and her granny recoiled a little from him, whereas Snape stayed where he was.

“I was sick right after, at the club. I couldn’t get out of the room without assistance...” stuttered Harry. “Ginny supported me out of there... with the help of one of the rescue men... We were taken to a Muggle hospital... No good, they did... but the nausea calmed down eventually... Then the Muggle Police took us in for questioning... I was sick once again at the station... They wanted to take my wand away all the time... I had to do Mind-modifyers in between to keep them from doing it and... Sorry...” A new wave of nausea made him double up over the bucket.

“Er... will you attend to him, Severus? I shall accompany my grandmother out of here and I’ll need to check with Soundy and Mrs Fleur, and speak to France and the head of International Cooperation again to sort out the diplomatic repercussions of this event. You can stay in my office, I’ll just go and...” Mrs Steadfast sneaked out, ushering her grandmother before her.

Half an hour later, Harry had crept away to the further end of the office so that he could lean against a wall in between the attacks of nausea. He was ghastly pale and kept his eyes shut, as the world would go round if he opened them. Snape moved a chair, sat down at some distance from Harry and leant forward.

“Harry,” he said cautiously, “would you allow me to teach you a spell to lessen the vertigo? You need to break off the vicious circle to stop the nausea from coming back on you.” Harry opened an eye and looked at him.

“Don’t point your wand at me,” he said and doubled up because of the vertigo that started as soon as he opened his eyes.

“I’m just trying to help you,” said Snape with ill-concealed irritation. He drew a deep breath and started anew. “Let me do it just once so that you can open your eyes and learn to do it yourself.” Harry finally nodded, eyes shut. “It’s a weak spell, I’m afraid. You need to repeat it several times for effect. Point your wand at your face like this.”

Snape showed Harry the spell and after three or four goes, Harry managed to relax. He kept his eyes opened, but his gaze was glazed and he mumbled things silently to himself. After a while he directed his eyes at Snape.

“Did you use to celebrate your killings with your Death Eater friends as well?” he asked aggressively. Snape was taken aback by the question and frowned.

“I don’t think I have ever actually celebrated a killing,” he said finally. “Don’t get a false idea of my morals, though...” he hastened to add, “I used to volunteer for executions when I was a young Death Eater.”

Harry stared at him and blinked. He forgot to do the spell, a new wave of nausea caught up with him and he retched again.

“Sorry, you didn’t need to hear that,” said Snape in a low voice. “You see, the first time I used an Avada Kedavra on another human being, I puked my guts out, just like you... The other Death Eaters laughed at me - it was considered a sign of weakness... Lucius was embarrassed on my account... So after that I volunteered for other executions... The people were condemned anyway, so I told myself, and I only obeyed orders... It was no excuse - I realised that long ago...and I have repented... but I did learn to master my bodily reactions and perform Avada Kedavras without showing any symptoms, at least not immediately, in the presence of others...”

Harry stared at him again, as if what Snape said was completely incomprehensible.

“Is that what you think I should do? Learn to master my bodily reactions better? So that I can kill more easily!” he finally said, aggressive again.

“Come on! I’ve never said I wanted you to kill easily!” Snape defended himself, incredulous.

“But you thought I was worthless who couldn’t learn Occlumency, didn’t you? You’re proud over your ability to control your reactions and to hide your emotions. And you despise me for being useless at it...” said Harry.

“I don’t...” Snape looked a bit confused. “You’re pure at heart, like Mrs Betty Steadfast said and that’s just fine with me...  You have that from... from your mother... I don’t despise it! It’s just that if you want to work as an Auror... For your own sake... It’ll be hard on you... That’s all I mean.”

Harry turned his head away and did not answer.

Mrs Steadfast returned with Soundy, and Snape stepped up to them to get an update of the situation. They talked in low voices at her desk. When Snape turned around after a long while to look at Harry, he gave away a curse.

“Potter, what are you doing?” he asked sharply. Harry, who was still sitting on the floor, looked up. He had taken his right shoe and sock off and rolled the leg of his trousers up over the knee. He had his wand in his hand and was examining his lower limb which looked bloodless and grey.

“I must see to my leg. It’s nearly six hours since I was hit and I must do the Reviving spell. I had no occasion to perform it while I was with the Muggle Police in France,” he retorted.

“It’s an Avada wound! You were hit by an Avada in your leg!” exclaimed Snape. Harry snorted.

“It’s not surprising, the amount of curses he launched at me – what’d you expect? But I’ve done many of these Revivings before, after the battle at Hogwarts - it’s not a problem.”

“You should not treat yourself for serious injuries, Potter! Don’t you know that? It’s not nearly as effective as to let someone else treat you. And you report your injuries immediately when you return home to base - that’s basic conduct!” Snape elevated his voice while approaching Harry who rose, balancing on his left leg.

“Don’t come near me!” he said, suddenly furious with Snape again. He pointed his wand to hold him off.

“Don’t be ridiculous, Potter!” roared Snape. “Let me do the Reviving spell!”

Mrs Steadfast looked up at them, but continued to speak to Soundy.

“Don’t you touch me with your magic!” spat Harry.

“Potter, I warn you...”

“Stop shouting at me!” Harry yelled back at Snape. As he did, he started to cough again. He wiped his mouth on his sleeve that was once again coloured with blood. The cough would not stop and he spat out some more blood in the bucket at his side. He still had his wand pointed at Snape and as Snape made an attempt to approach, Harry brandished it threateningly.

“Don’t be stupid, Potter. You need help.” Snape lowered his voice.

“Not from you, surely!” Harry managed to hiss back as his wand emitted sparkles toward Snape. He tried to rest on his right foot, but almost fell when it gave way. He coughed again and a surge of blood came out of his mouth and nostrils. He looked terrible: pale, nauseous and reeling, still refusing to let Snape near.

“Audrey, please help me talk some sense to him!” said Snape in a pleading, stifled voice, strain showing in his face. Mrs Steadfast dismissed Soundy and approached them.

“My advice, Severus, if you want someone to cooperate and trust you, is not to shout at them,” she said calmly. “Harry is neither a trained healer, nor a trained Auror and you cannot blame him for not mentioning his wound before. He has had enough on his mind. You’re just upset because you didn’t think of asking him about injuries yourself.”

“He refuses to let me treat him!” Snape cried indignantly. “He needs to go to St Mungo’s immediately. He needs Dewcup potion for his lungs and Myoviving potion for his leg. Look at it, the flesh is dying, the muscles are already weak. He might lose that limb if we wait another fifteen minutes.”

“Mr Burgess is a fraud,” Harry stated suddenly in a muffled voice. Mrs Steadfast and Snape stared at him in surprise and he went on. “I’ve heard him complain about the wound in his leg that has prevented him from moving on in the Auror’s program. I’ve heard him say how it hurts and plagues him and I’ve heard him tell Malfoy that it was an Avada curse. But this doesn’t hurt - it’s only numb and weak... He’s faking those symptoms... What if he’s the spy at Hogwarts?”

“Harry, Mr Burgess’ credentials were checked by my predecessor as he was admitted to the Auror’s program. And we know that the problem is not his leg. He was in a battle last year and accidentally killed one of his Auror colleagues. He disappeared for twenty-four hours after the event and when he came back he was confused and his leg had a minor injury. You’re right: It’s more of a mental problem. He hasn’t overcome the horror of killing one on his own team, so he puts the mental pain in his leg instead. We just don’t want to embarrass him by showing him we’ve penetrated his pretence.”

“Dense of him to think that you don’t recognise the symptoms of Avada wounds, or not to look it up himself if he wants to pretend to have one. Either he’s stupid or he wants you to think he’s thick and mentally frail, whereas, perhaps, he’s not,” said Harry. Mrs Steadfast looked disbelievingly at him.

Harry had started to breathe short, shallow breaths not to provoke the cough. Blood was continually filling his mouth and he swallowed it or wiped it away distractedly from the corners of his mouth.

“We need to leave for St Mungo’s now,” Snape said commandingly to Mrs Steadfast.

“One more thing.” Mrs Steadfast retained Harry despite the fact that Snape was fuming with impatience. “First you must tell me how you managed to get away from the French Security Office. They seem embarrassed and furious at the same time, which is never a good combination. They’re determined to scrutinise your motives for going to France, for being at that club, for being a target - you being the vainqueur of Voldemort only making them more suspicious… They want to make out that it was you who hunted this guy down to kill him, instead of the other way around. We’ll have to prove the opposite. Now, how did you trick them into letting you go?”

Harry, who was beginning to feel dizzy, had some problem focusing his eyes on her, but tried to reply truthfully.

“The secretary who guided us to their Security headquarters told us that the British Ministry had been in touch and that Apparition was possible from the French Security Office to Mr Weasley’s office. When I heard that, I thought that it was our only chance and that we must grab it. So I pretended to be sick again. I didn’t really have to pretend... The secretary let Ginny help me to the toilets and I told Ginny to make a joint Memory-modifying spell on the head of the department. So when we entered the room and the head of the French Security greeted us, we were prepared. At the same time as we replied Godmorning Sir, we did the wordless spell that made him say the next moment You may return to your country for further interrogation. We answered Thank you, Sir, whereupon we turned around and Disapparated. Unfortunately we forgot the intermediary…”

“Impressive,” said Mrs Steadfast. “I can see why they’re so embarrassed. A simple modifying... Strengthened by joining your magical foci. And the mistake of opening up the Apparition window before the interrogation had even started, and informing you of it too. Clumsy of them. Even if it’s understandable because of the circumstances, the way you acted was still not very wise. There will be consequences, Harry.” Mrs Steadfast spoke sternly and seemed impassive to Harry’s condition.

”I really messed up, didn’t I? Will they arrest me?” Harry’s voice was thick and gargling because of the blood that was now gushing out of his mouth, and he was forced to swallow between the sentences. He vacillated.

“Audrey, we have to go. Now! Don’t you see how ill he is? You’re worthless at assessing your co-workers’ health, woman! Flo-powder, quick! The nearest fire-place!” Snape roared at Mrs Steadfast. Harry nearly fell as he tried to take a step and his right leg gave way. He was caught by Snape but still struggled weakly to disengage from him.

“Harry, don’t fight Professor Snape. He wants to help you!” said Mrs Steadfast.

“He treats me like a feeble-minded good-for-nothing!”

“If you want him to treat you with respect, stop reacting childishly to his provocations! He’s only worried about you. Now go with him!”

His head was turning and he could barely keep his balance, so Harry let Snape support him out of the room. He only saw the other Aurors in a blur when they crossed the common room to the fire-place and Snape gave him his Flo-powder.

“St Mungo’s hospital” gurgled Harry.