"I have to take him to Professor Slughorn," Harry said, sweat pouring down his face, "only he has the antidote!"
Hermione didn't stop him, watching as Harry dragged Ron out of the Portrait hole.
She followed, and Lia trailed behind like a shadow, unnoticed by Slughorn.
In Slughorn's office, the Potions Professor had just been woken up, still wearing his ridiculous velvet dressing gown.
After hearing Harry's explanation, he was quite happy to help.
"Ah, the romantic troubles of youth! I understand, I understand!"
He cheerfully took a bottle of clear liquid from the Potion cabinet and poured it down Ron's throat.
The effects of the Love Potion quickly faded; Ron's eyes cleared, and he immediately turned bright red.
"To celebrate Ron's return to normal, and to celebrate your birthday,"
Slughorn enthusiastically took down a dusty bottle of mead from the top of the cabinet.
"Come, try my Oak-matured mead, aged for many years! This was meant for Dumbledore, but... today is a special occasion!"
He conjured three glasses and poured wine for both Harry and Ron.
"Hermione, and this lovely young lady, would you like a glass as well?" he greeted them warmly.
"Thank you, Professor, but we don't drink," Hermione politely declined.
Lia's gaze, however, fell upon that bottle of mead.
Her [Danger Intuition] was buzzing; a faint scent of bitter almonds was emanating from the golden liquid.
This was the scent of poison.
It was exactly the same as what she had smelled on the train last time.
She looked up at Hermione, an inquiring look flashing in her sky-blue eyes.
Hermione understood her meaning immediately.
The wine was poisoned.
The target was Dumbledore.
Draco's plan was still ongoing.
"Come, Ron, a toast to your 'narrow escape' today!" Slughorn raised his glass.
Harry followed suit.
Ron felt a bit embarrassed; he picked up the glass and, to hide his awkwardness, downed the mead in one gulp.
The change happened in that very instant.
Ron's face suddenly turned a violent shade of purple.
The glass in his hand fell to the floor with a "smash," shattering into pieces.
He clutched his throat tightly with both hands, making a gurgling, choking sound.
Then, his knees buckled, and he fell straight backward, his body convulsing violently as white foam began to pour from the corners of his mouth.
"Ron!" Harry let out a terrified scream.
Slughorn was also stunned; he stood frozen on the spot, his walrus-like mustache trembling violently, completely at a loss.
"A bezoar! A bezoar!" Harry finally reacted, rushing toward Slughorn's Potion cabinet like a madman, his hands searching frantically inside. "Quick! Where's the bezoar!"
Jars and bottles were roughly swept to the ground by him, making a series of clattering and crashing sounds.
The entire office was in chaos.
Only Hermione, after the initial shock, instantly calmed down.
She glanced at Ron on the ground, whose eyes had begun to roll back, and then at the helpless Harry.
There wasn't enough time.
Her gaze turned toward Lia.
"Lia," she said softly, "Tom's list of spells, Volume Two, page seven—that Purification spell."
Lia nodded immediately.
She didn't even need to recall it.
That knowledge, those incantations, had long been etched into the depths of her soul like instinct.
She stepped forward and knelt beside Ron, ignoring his horrific symptoms.
Harry was still frantically rummaging through the cabinet.
Slughorn was still muttering to himself, "Oh, merlins beard... this... how is this possible..."
Lia reached out a slender finger.
A ring of eerie green light shimmered at her fingertip.
She gently tapped that finger onto Ron's forehead.
"Serenia Lustralis"
A syllable that belonged to no known magical system escaped her lips.
The pale green light, like liquid mercury, flowed from her fingertip and instantly vanished into Ron's body.
A second later, Ron's violent convulsions came to an abrupt halt.
The terrifying purple on his face receded rapidly, like a falling tide.
Starting from his neck, his skin regained its normal color inch by inch. The foam at the corners of his mouth stopped, and his breathing shifted from rapid gasps to steady, deep breaths.
The entire process took barely three seconds.
"Found it!"
Harry finally fished out the shriveled, stone-like bezoar from the heap of cluttered ingredients.
He turned around in ecstasy, preparing to rush over and shove the bezoar into Ron's mouth.
Then, he froze on the spot.
He saw that Ron had already sat up on his own.
Though his face was still somewhat pale, his eyes were open, looking around blankly.
He saw Hermione standing calmly to the side, wand in hand, seemingly having just cast a Scouring Charm to clean up the broken glass and wine stains on the floor.
He also saw Lia crouching in front of Ron, withdrawing her finger and tilting her head as she watched the newly "resurrected" Ron.
The air in the office was deathly silent.
Only Slughorn's heavy breathing remained.
Ron shook his head, feeling as though he had just had a nightmare.
He saw Harry holding the bezoar, staring at him blankly.
"Uh... Harry?" he spoke, his voice a bit raspy, but it was definitely his voice. "What happened? Why am I..."
He looked down, saw the large wet patch of drool on his chest, and scratched his head in embarrassment.
"Hermione... Lia..." His gaze turned to the other side. "Thank you both."
He didn't know exactly what had happened, but he could sense that they were the ones who had saved him.
Harry's gaze moved from the recovered Ron to the calm-faced Hermione.
Finally, it landed on Lia, who still wore that innocent expression.
A single question was screaming in his mind.
What was that?
What kind of magic was that?
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