"What's happening? Has someone been injured?" Seeing Dumbledore lead them directly to the infirmary without a word, Professor McGonagall had a bad feeling.
Snape, who was following behind McGonagall, also frowned. He shared the professor's opinion. He knew Dumbledore had summoned him because he wanted to make use of his talent in potions. If that was the case, it meant that the injured person was beyond magical healing.
The situation was delicate, and Snape furrowed his brow even more.
"Who is injured?" he asked indifferently, while looking at the silver-haired elder who appeared surprisingly tired and haggard.
It was clear that the wounded person had taken a toll on Dumbledore.
Faced with the question from his two subordinates, Dumbledore didn't respond directly but opened the door to the infirmary. Inside, they found Madam Pomfrey kneeling by a bed, holding an empty bowl.
The eyes of McGonagall and Snape landed beyond Madam Pomfrey, on the person lying in the bed. Both immediately recognized the patient: it was Hermione Granger from Ravenclaw.
At that moment, Hermione lay on the bed, pale as wax. The once lively and enthusiastic girl now appeared as still as a piece of porcelain, one that had been broken and then glued back together.
McGonagall brought her hand to her mouth. "How can this be? It's Miss Granger!"
Snape remained motionless on the side, showing no emotion on his face.
"Voldemort came a moment ago, and in the battle, Miss Granger shielded me from a curse... Severus, come have a look..." Dumbledore briefly explained the situation to the two of them as he led them to Hermione's bed for them to observe her condition.
"Professor Dumbledore." Seeing Dumbledore arrive with Snape, Madam Pomfrey didn't shoo them out of the infirmary as she usually did but showed a certain unease as she stood up.
Previously, she always had confidence in being able to heal patients, but today, that confidence had faded.
"I've just given her some nourishment and pain relievers. In no time, Miss Granger will regain consciousness, but..." Madam Pomfrey didn't continue with her explanation, but everyone understood what she meant.
"You've done an excellent job, Poppy," Dumbledore consoled. "You don't have to blame yourself. The one who should feel guilty here is me. Go on, give us some time."
Madam Pomfrey didn't say anything more; she simply made a slight bow and then left the infirmary.
Once she was gone, Snape voluntarily approached Hermione's bed and examined her condition.
"It's a powerful curse, it has reached this point." Dumbledore lifted Hermione's blankets and showed Snape the spot where she had been wounded.
Severus observed for a while and then drew his wand. He aimed it just above Hermione's collarbone, and with a flash, he made a small incision from which a few drops of blood emerged.
Before the blood drops could fall from her collarbone, Snape collected them.
First, he observed the color of the blood and then sniffed and tasted the blood drops, lost in his thoughts.
Professor McGonagall looked at him with concern.
If something happened to Hermione, she wouldn't know how to explain it to Miss Granger's family or how to face young Yodel in the days to come.
Snape didn't take long to ponder, and he already had a general idea of the state of toxins in Hermione's body.
"It's complicated," Snape judged.
"If you hadn't intervened in time to stop the curse from spreading, and if the curse hadn't been weakened before reaching her, we wouldn't be here now, thinking about how to cure Miss Granger."
"I'm very aware of that, so do you have a solution?" Dumbledore urged Snape. No one knew better than him the state of Hermione Granger, but what he needed at that moment was a way to heal her.
Some doctors can make people die conscious, while others can make them live unconscious. Dumbledore chose the latter; he felt it made no sense to understand the "cause of death" of Hermione.
"No," Snape responded coldly.
"Perhaps I can prepare a potion to alleviate the effects of the curse. If we combine it with your spells, it might keep Miss Granger alive as a healthy person for a while."
Upon hearing this from Snape, Dumbledore's eyes immediately dimmed, while Professor McGonagall clenched her lips tightly. Finally, she managed to say softly, "How long is a while?"
Snape didn't directly answer that question. Instead, he began to explain the characteristics of the curse that had affected Hermione.
"It's a curse that accelerates the loss of vitality. Every time magic is used, the curse deepens and strengthens. If we consider a person's body as a pond, vitality would be the water in the pond. A common person's vitality 'evaporates' over time, but this curse is like poking a hole in the bottom of the pond, causing the life water to continuously flow through that hole until it dries up."
Without waiting for Dumbledore or Professor McGonagall to speak, Snape continued, "To save her, there are two options: close the hole or accelerate the flow of water into the pond. However, my abilities are limited; I can't close that hole. As for the inflow of water, that's beyond my expertise."
Professor McGonagall remained silent.
"Perhaps the only option for this girl is reincarnation, to start anew with an intact pond," Snape said, looking compassionately at Hermione, who appeared like a flower that had not fully bloomed and was about to wither at its most beautiful moment.
Looking at Hermione's appearance, Snape sighed, something he rarely did. He glanced at Dumbledore with an extremely complex look, feeling that people who desired a peaceful life should stay away from Dumbledore; he only brought misfortune!
"Seventeen years, it's probably the limit I can reach," Snape pronounced regarding Hermione. In his opinion, even if he used all his skills, Hermione's death was imminent when she reached adulthood.
Professor McGonagall felt her eyes moisten; she couldn't bear to witness these things.
Dumbledore also felt helpless. Snape's words practically sentenced Hermione to death. Did he want her to survive? Maybe he would have to make her create a Horcrux? But how could a girl like her make a Horcrux? However, there was still an option... Snape's "filling the pond" method gave Dumbledore an idea.