Very Nearly Veela

Chapter 3

Hermione struggled to open her eyes, or to at least tell whoever was poking and prodding at her to leave her the hell alone. The pain shooting through her veins was agonizing, and the slightest touch was enough to make the blood inside those veins feel as though it was boiling and bubbling it’s way through her system. But her eyes would not open, her voice refused to be heard, and the cacophony of mingled voices, clatters, and rustle of clothing around her was unbearable.

She had no idea where she was, she did not care, all she cared about was that this agony end right now.

Severus Snape made his way along the corridor that led to the office of head healer, Cursadrus Hilwrite. As far as Severus was concerned the damned wizard should have been waiting to escort him directly to the patient he had been asked to attend. But no, instead Severus had been forced to almost hex the stupid witch at reception, along with several security personnel that tried to thwart his attempts to gain access to the spells department. He did not even have the patients name, hence he was treated with suspicion.

“Severus, thank Merlin you’re here!” Healer Hilwrite exclaimed when his door burst open and Severus barged inside.

“No thanks to your staff. I suggest you call off your security before you have a whole ward full of spell damaged patients,” Severus told the healer angrily. “Then perhaps I might gain access to the stupid witch who managed to put herself in the midst of a hoard of angry Veelas.”

Five minutes later, and healer Hilwrite was opening the door to the room where a young woman was writhing in pain on the narrow examination couch.

Severus did not immediately recognise the young woman, her features constantly morphing between Harpy form, and that of a beautiful young woman with curly, reddish-brown hair and fair, glowing skin.

She was still dressed in her official blue work robes, her finger clawing at the material in a feeble attempt to remove the offending fabric from her burning flesh.

Severus immediately waved his wand, removing her clothes and taking a moment to study the now naked, but still writhing form.

The sudden feel of cool air against her skin startled Hermione, and she momentarily ceased her movements as the pain abated slightly. Even the blood in her veins seemed to lose a little of its heat.

Severus and Healer Hilwrite watched as the young woman calmed, losing the Harpy-like appearance, leaving a blurry cross between Veela, and Hermione’s true form.

Stunned, Severus snatched the clipboard from his associate. His eyes widened when the name Hermione Granger stared back at him from the page.

“Miss Granger? What the hell was the Ministry thinking, putting a junior Arbitrator in with a group of angry Veelas?” he asked angrily.

“I don’t have any details Severus, all we were told was she was somehow caught in the middle of a dispute between two opposing groups. She has not gained consciousness while she has been here and we have never dealt with Veelas before.”

“Were any of the Veelas brought in with her?” Severus wanted to know.

“Not that I am aware of, I believe they were taken to the holding cells in the Ministry.”

“Have two of them brought here now. I do not want any delays.” Severus demanded.

The flustered healer left the room, and Severus used his wand to place cooling charms on Hermione’s body. After five minutes of doing this, Hermione finaly calmed enough to lie still and her eyelids fluttered slightly.

“Miss Granger? Miss Granger can you hear me?” Severus asked.

Hermione let out a small sigh of relief as the heat abated in her veins. Her muscles relaxed and she stopped fighting against the agony that had been tearing through her body. A vaguely familiar voice caught her attention. It was deep, clear, she could make sense of what it was saying to her.

“Mmm,” she mumbled.

“Miss Granger, do you know where you are?”

“No,” she whispered, slowly opening her eyes, then closing them again against the bright lights above her. “Ow.”

Severus dimmed the lighting.

“Try again. Open your eyes,” he told her.

Hermione did, and sighed with relief at the soft glow that now filled the room.

“What happened? Where am I?”

“You are in St. Mungo’s. It seems you have not changed since leaving Hogwarts Miss Granger, still rushing in where fools would fear to tread.”

Hermione turned her head sharply.

“Professor Snape, what are you doing here?”

"I was asked to come and attend you. It seems you have got yourself in something of a predicament, Miss Granger. One that is not as easily solved as say… using a cat hair in a Polyjuice potion.”

Hermione groaned.

“Well I feel fine now.”

She started to sit up, then gasped when she discovered she was lying naked on a bed in front of her ex Professor.

“Where are my clothes? Professor please, look the other way!” she cried desperately.

“You are not in pain at the moment, simply because of the strong cooling charms I have applied to you, and you are naked because your clothing was nothing more than torture against your skin. Here,” he said, pulling the sheet from the end of the couch and tossing it over her. “Now, if your modesty is appeased, perhaps you could bring yourself to explain exactly what occurred that has put you in this situation.”

“What situation? There was an argument between the Veelas, I got hit with something, and the next I knew I was in pain. How long have I been here? How long have I been… naked?” she asked, feeling she should be blushing, yet somehow unable to do so.

“The situation is this Miss Granger. It is my opinion that you were accidentally hit by a spell meant for the Veela you were holding onto, a spell that was possibly meant to kill, maim, or even remove all and any Veela magic from that particular individual. As a result of you being in contact with said victim, you have somehow taken those Veela properties into yourself. You are changing Miss Granger, you are becoming Veela.”

Hermione spluttered, coughed choked.

“No. I-I mean I can’t be. No,” she wailed. “Do something Professor. Make it stop. Please.”

“At the moment, there is nothing I can do miss Granger, other than to keep applying cooling charms to your person. I have sent for two of the Veela’s who were present at the time of the scuffle, hopefully they will be able to shed a little more light on the situation and we can proceed from there.”

Hermione looked at Severus and nodded.

“Thank you Professor, for trying to help me.”

“I am a man of science Miss Granger, your situation intrigues me. If it is possible to solve the situation, I stand to gain from it,” Severus told her stoically.

She frowned, but their attention was caught by voices just outside the door.

Several Aurors entered the room, along with two beautiful Veela women and Healer Hilwrite.

The Aurors and Healer Hilwrite all seemed rather glassy eyed in the presence of the Veela and Severus immediately demanded they leave the room.

They did, reluctantly, and the Veela’s instead turned their attention on the tall, dark haired wizard next to the bed.

“You are wasting your time.” Severus told them. “I am immune to Veela attraction thanks to a charm of my own devising, 'Econtra Esurio', or 'Against Desire.' Now, perhaps you could shed some light on the plight of our patient here. It appears she is somehow becoming Veela herself, as a result of a spell thrown by one of your kind at another Veela. I need to know exactly what spell was cast before I can attempt to reverse it.”

The two Veela women looked at him sulkily, then put their heads together, conversing softly in a language neither Severus nor Hermione could understand.

“This cannot be reversed,” one of the Veela said. "She is Veela now, and will always be so.”

“Keela, the one who was in contact with this witch when the ‘Eximo’ (remove) was cast is now recovered, but her powers, instead of being removed were doubled as a result of more than one of our kind casting simultaneously. Unfortunately, because your friend was in contact with Keela at the time of casting, she took within herself the overload of Veela magic. It has happened on occasion, and there is nothing to be done, other than for her to come with us and learn our ways. We can ease the crossing over, ease the transformation until it is complete.”

She turned to Hermione.

“I am Solaris, my companion is Lettina. You will come with us now, you will be renamed, and learn the way of Veela.”

“No. I don’t want to go with you. Professor do something!” Hermione cried desperately.

“What do you suggest Miss Granger? Perhaps once the change is complete I can re-examine the situation, but until that time I have as yet, no knowledge of this particular condition.”

“But it’s not fair, I didn’t even want to be put in that room as arbiter, the Ministry made me.”

“That is not my problem Miss Granger. I suggest you go with… them, and return to me once your transformation is complete. Meantime I promise I will do all I can to research, and come up with a possible solution to your predicament.”

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A/N: Okay, that’s my load of rubbish added. I’ve never done Veela before, so haven’t a clue what the Veelas will do, or how Snape will come up with an antidote. Next author please.

ccino