A Difficult Potion Revealed

[Snick]

He slipped the vial into his pocket, being careful it wasn't easily seen by the casual eye. Jonathan had a feeling Glassman will notice the slight bulge and at least know he has something in the inside pocket of his jacket.

Since he talked to Professor Glassman the day before regarding the book of potions and rare ingredients he had tried to sneak back into the school, Jonathan had been thinking how much he should reveal. At this point he wasn't certain if he should tell the professor anything but he couldn't deny the fact Glassman would be a HUGE help in trying to find a way to counteract the potion his cousin drank.

Once the dinner hour was gone, Jonathan made his way to Glassman's office and knocked. A moment later he opened the door and entered the mysterious wizard's office.

"Good evening Professor," Jonathan greeted him politely. Unlike the last time he was in this office, Jonathan was completely relaxed. He wasn't here facing an unknown 'sentence' thus his confidence was in full swing. "I hope your dinner was enjoyable."

---

"Ah, Mr. Matthews. Come in." Glassman responded somewhat imperiously. "Dinner was, I'm sorry to say, not the most ideal meal I could have sat down to." He said, motioning the lad to have a seat in the chair across from his own. "Professors Saraswati and Starr chose to corner me and discuss the benefits of a vegetarian diet. I felt like I was going to be buried in terms like Anti-oxidants and free-radical scavengers. And then the two got caught up in a tangent about how ancient strains of Native American corn and amaranth might be put to use in ending famine worldwide, and how most of the food produced today ends up going to waste because of pickiness on the part of consumers."

"Have you ever played chess, Mr. Matthews?" He asked out of the blue. "The opening words in a conversation are much like the opening gambit on a chess board. You can tell a lot about an opponent by their opening moves. For instance -- pleasantries. Many people nowadays use "How are you?" as a greeting instead of a polite inquiry. Which takes away its value as a question, because you will usually answer with a simple, sanitized answer such as, "fine," and they don't expect a more in-depth answer from you, anyway. In fact, they would be taken aback if you told them exactly how you are, which makes the whole question a waste of everyone's time, when you could have jut offered a greeting instead... Now, you evaded and prevaricated your way through our last conversation. Do you intend to do so again tonight, and waste our time again? Or do you wish to proceed to something a little more meaningful?"

---

"I have played chess before Professor." Jonathan confirmed. He was a member of the chess club in fact and had a very good standing when it came to competitions. At this time he was quite certain Glassman didn't want to hear his list of accomplishments in the field of chess. He meant the topic more to prove his point.

"I do have a reason for wanting to read the book Professor besides idle curiosity," He paused, then sighed, giving the impression he was resigning himself to telling the Potion Master nothing but the full truth. Jonathan only intended to tell him just enough to get what he wanted from the Professor and the book. He pulled out a small potion vial, something which would hold maybe a cup of liquid. Right now only a tablespoon or so was left in the vial. Jonathan put the vial on the Professor's desk. "I have been trying to figure out what ingredients and method of brewing went into making this potion. There's no label on the bottle so I have no clue what type of potion it is. I just know it's none that I have ever encountered before. As you know Professor, I am far from an expert in potions."

---

Howard took possession of the potion, and peered at it alternatingly through and over the rims of his glasses before frowning and setting it down on his desk again. For all the world, he looked a little deflated, and a frown came to his face. "Now I'm a little disappointed." He admitted. "Well, come then, tell me, why is it so important for you to know the constituents and brewing methods used in the creation of this potion. Looking to reproduce it or perhaps formulate a counter to it? Is it dangerous, or some sort of recreational potion? Please don't disappoint me further, because, if it is dangerous, bringing it with you to school is a felony. If that is the case, then not only will you be leaving school, you will probably be going to jail, and I would hate to see a young man with your potential languishing away in prison.

---

Jonathan ran a hand through his hair. Being in possession of an experimental potion done without the appropriate license and permits isn't as bad as manufacturing and selling such things. Professor Glassman was correct in how serious this matter could escalate and Jonathan was on thin ice.

"Professor...I don't want to recreate this potion. I just want to find a way to counteract it's effects. I do know it's not lethal...no more dangerous than the potions we make in your class, especially so far this year." Jonathan kept his voice calm, wanting to show he was being honest. "In hindsight I should have come to you first day and ask for your help."

---

sliding his glasses back onto the bridge of his nose with one long index finger, Glassman pinned the boy down with his gaze. "Very well. I will help you with counteracting this potion's effects. In turn, you will start telling me what I need to know to do so in the most effective and expedient way, without deception or evasion. Am I making myself perfectly clear, Mister Matthews? Whan I ask you a question, you will answer me honestly, completely and without hesitation. Now... What effects does this potion have upon the one it is used on? Has it been tested on animals, or has it been used on a human?"

---

"Yes Sir," Jonathan replied and sighed. There was no choice now, he had to trust the Professor. All Jonathan could hope now is the man didn't turn him in to the authorities once he learned all he knew about the potion and it's effects. Jonathan hoped at the very least, a counter agent is created so he can revive Rachel.

"I don't know if it's been tested on animals," He began. "As to it's effect when taken, it causes a death like state very similar to that of a Draft of Living Death. Unfortunately, the counter for that particular potion has no effect. It has been taken by a human..accidentally."

---

This time, the look Glassman gave the boy was pained, troubled and held undertones of urgency. "Then I will need to take this person to a medical facility immediately, Mr. Matthews. Among other things, we do not know if the potion induces a state of hibernation, or metabolic stasis. If it is the former and not the latter, they could be starving and dehydrating with every passing moment, in which case the body could soon begin cannibalizing itself. Organ failure could occur not long afterward. If nothing else, they need muggle life support. Where is the victim now?"

---

Jonathan shakes his head, a cold panic hitting him but he fights it and pushes it down. Now wasn't the time to lose control. "The person isn't in danger of starving or dehydrating...that I do know."

He would have noticed her withering away before coming to school if she was in danger of dying. Jonathan was no healer or medical doctor, nor was Jacob...all Jonathan knew was what Jacob told him when he looked over Rachel. Jacob had said she was in a state of suspended animation and probably stay that way till the potion is countered, or runs it's course. Unfortunately Jacob had no idea if the potion will reverse it's own effects after a period of time or be permanent till countered.

"The victim is in a safe and secure place," Jonathan sighs. He was very worried, Rachel was one of the very few people he cared for and to save her he was willing to do just about anything. Hell he will sell out Jacob if it ensured she will be safe. Loosing Jacob's support now would make his future plans difficult but not impossible.

---

"I see." Glassman reclined his chair back a little, and idly rocked it with agitated little motions of his foot, picking up the boy's illicitly-obtained book and paging through it idly. "In addition to being a highly qualified potioneer, you are a talented healer, as well." He sighed. "Do you know why I don't care about you reading this book, Mr. Matthews? Because an apt pupil in the art of potion-making would be able to glean the same sort of information from the school's reference library without putting in half the effort you put into getting this book. Obtaining it covertly was a waste of time and effort. An arrogant waste."

Glassman shut the book with a loud clap. "Just out of curiosity, were your parents blithering cretins? Because I am having a hard time discerning the source of your arrogance. I'm beginning to wonder if it comes from having an intellectual edge over your parents... being able to steal money from your father's wallet without him knowing, sneaking out of the house under your mother's nose past curfew... Minor victories over opponents who don't know the game or even that they are unwitting players in it. Or maybe it is desperation... Maybe the one who fell victim to the potion was someone you cared about... Someone close." The expression on Glassman's face left little doubt that he probably already knew exactly who the victim was.

[Snick]

Jonathan recognized sarcasm when he heard it and shot the Professor a look saying quite clearly he didn't appreciate it. A part of him wanted to challenge the professor, imply he certainly had the brains to enlist the aid of a Healer to ensure the victim wasn't going to up and die before he had a chance to save her. Fortunately, Jonathan didn't get as far as he did by talking without thinking. He exhaled his irritation in a slow breath then focused on the Professor.

"If I was privy to a list of every book in your private collection I would not have gone to all the trouble I did go to obtain that book, Professor." Jonathan said in polite tones. It was possible the statement could be taken as outright arrogance but it was very much a true statement.

Hearing the loud clap of the book being closed, Jonathan stiffened in his chair. He decided to ignore the implied insults to his parent's intellect. Jonathan knew what he wanted in life at an early age and it wasn't running a clothing shop. No, he had far bigger plans. As the Professor continued his mocking speech, Jonathan ignored the bulk of it. It was simply a ploy to make him either angry, admit some more wrong doing or show far more arrogance by claiming it was his amazing skills of deception that allowed him to do amazing things. Jonathan knew his limitations..his only error was assuming he could solve this problem alone. He needed Glassman's expertise, now it was whether he can obtain it without being arrested.

Once the man finished talking, Jonathan regarded him impassively. No question or request was made, Jonathan saw no reason to speak when he didn't have anything specific to say. He assumed Glassman's question about his parents was rhetorical and didn't require an answer.

---

"Not my private collection, Mister Matthews. The library. Not even the restricted sections; the information on the ingredients presented in this book is available to any student with the proper diligence and no record of overdue book fees. Some of the potions aren't made publicly available, but it's not hard to find those recipes. Purchasing this book was a waste of your time. You should have purchased a book on analysis and reverse-engineering of potions, or forensic alchemy, or symptomatic antidoting. Where do you think the authors of this book got the information to write it? From legitimate sources. Check their bibliography."

He chuckled and set the book on top of the desk. "They just came to a very simple revelation -- Some people spend an enormous amount of time staring into the dark. It fascinates them, tempts them. It excites them because it's verboten. There isn't a student in this school who hasn't passed a bookshop full of dark tomes and paused, thinking of a hex they could use against a rival."

"You wish to keep your victim hidden away? That's fine. I will see what I can do to formulate an antidote to this potion. But understand this, Mr. Matthews, you are, by your own admission, guilty of falsely imprisoning someone, kidnapping, denying them necessary medical care, willful endangerment and a dozen other charges that will assure that you'll probably be tried as an adult. So consider then, how much you will be owing me for helping you in this matter."

---

"Please, Professor...half of those charges won't even stick. I certainly have not imprisoned anybody, nor did I kidnap anybody. Nor did I force feed the potion to the person.." Jonathan ran his hands through his hair...

"I know I haven't handled this situation in the wisest of ways. At this point I am far more interested in counteracting this potion and saving her than worrying about what I may owe you for not turning me over to the authorities or having me expelled." Jonathan looked directly at Glassman. It was only his silence he needed at this point...if the Professor refused to help then he would end up just as guilty. Jonathan wasn't going to use this small fact, he stood to lose far too much to become a smartass now.

---

"Your arrogance resurfaces." Glassman observed in a bored tone. "Have you paid no attention to recent events at all? LOok at what's going on in the muggle world. The O.J. Simpson murder trial. Tonya Harding and Nancy Kerrigan. Amy Fisher, Lorena Bobbit, William Kennedy Smith... Now, sit back and think about how it will look to a judge or a jury if there is even a suggestion of something improper in the way you handled this. You let slip that the one who fell victim to the potion is a girl. Think how the smutty-minded press will paint the fact that you have her hidden away from proper medical care and how they will perceive the fact that you have resisted my efforts to get you to remove her from whatever hidey-hole you keep her in and move her into proper medical care. Even if you emerge from it all without being found guilty in the eyes of the law, your life will still be haunted by the spectre of inpropriety. So, make no mistake, Mr. Matthews, I am trying to save you from a life of trials and tribulations, and in exchange for my help, you are going to work to redeem yourself. You owe that to me, Mr, Matthews."

---

"I grew up in New York City, Mr. Glassman, I am well aware of crime in the Muggle world," Jonathan knew he was being defensive. Glassman wasn't a judge determined to arrest him but a man who, by his own word is trying to help him. Yet his reference to impropriety hit on the mark. He ran his hand through his hair again and sighed.

"Your guess earlier about this being somebody I care for is correct," Jonathan begins, resigning himself to giving the Professor answers. "It is my cousin, Rachel. My parents think she ran off with her boyfriend, it fits her rebellious nature. I have her in a safe location, back in New York."

---

"Would you care to venture a guess at just what point in this conversation I had figured that little tidbit out, Mister Matthews?" Glassman asked rhetorically. "And I guessed without even resorting to trickery. You are quite fortunate that I caught you in Lachry Mall and not Professor Llewellyn. If he had been the one to catch you, you would already be in police custody, and he would be telling you what the prisoners in jail do to pretty boys like you while they prepared the dose of veritaserum they would be feeding you."

---

"I expected it was pretty much since the beginning," Jonathan closed his eyes a moment pushing back the emotions this entire encounter was causing in him. He wanted to remain calm, it would be the only way for him to ensure he was not digging himself in deeper. He rather not face jail time, even if he fully intended to run his own criminal empire. He has to learn from every mistake to avoid making new ones. Rachel's selfishness and idiotic actions threatens to ruin all his plans. She was always difficult to keep under control and this past summer was her worse. She just wouldn't listen anymore and she set him up. This sort of mess is just why caring for somebody was such a danger.

"I want to do the right thing Professor and I know so far I have not been doing so. I admit I panicked when I found Rachel unconscious, a half consumed bottle of potion at her side. I don't know what she was thinking...drinking an unlabeled potion like she did. I don't know if it was accidental or if she was hoping to commit suicide. All I know is I couldn't just tell our folks what happened. Stupid of me I know, and every thing I have done since certainly just dug the hole deeper. Are you going to tell my parents about this?"

---

"I think I would find cleaning the grout in my summer home to be a more enjoyable pastime, to be perfectly honest, Mr. Matthews. No, if all goes according to plan, we will have your cousin cured by the winter holidays; although when we do, you may well find yourself having to explain yourself to your parents anyway. Still, that is not my problem. My problem is ensuring that you don't kill the girl, and that she is released from the effects of this potion. Now, what have you deduced about the potion thus far?"

---

"Thank you," Jonathan relaxed in his chair now that it looked like he didn't have to worry about legal issues. Dealing with his parents, he wasn't too worried about. It was whether Jonathan can talk with Rachel before his parents or anybody else did, that was the real issue. "I haven't been able to figure out too much about the potion other than it is an experimental variation of the Draft of Living Death, designed to induce a similar effect but only in the body itself, leaving the mind active. Some of the ingredients in that book have been used in this potion, in addition to an infusion of wormwood and the blood from brain worms out of the desert of the Middle East. Unfortunately I haven't had much success in breaking down the other ingredients in the potion."

---

"If she is in a state of physical stasis, then from the sound of it, there is only one real use for such a potion, Mr. Matthews. to place someone in a state of profound sensory deprivation to heighten mental activity to the point where the victim's mind eventually enters a perpetual state where their fantasies and dreams bleed into their impaired perception of reality, not dissimilar from the protagonist's mind-state described in Johnny got His Gun. Or, like walking into the Throckwattle house and being trapped there for all eternity. This being the case, I will again request that you allow me to get Rachel to a medical facility immediately. Laboring under the effects of such a potion may have already damaged her mind beyond repair. Consider the fact that a dream can last from a few seconds to the better part of an hour, but they might seem to last an eternity... How many eternities will Rachel have been trapped in her own nightmares?"

[Snick]

It sounded like a form of torture to Jonathan and it made him feel rather sick to his stomach it was happening to his cousin. He clenched his jaw, deciding he may make his move sooner than he planned. He exhaled slowly.

"If I may, Professor," Jonathan reached over and took some parchment and a pen from the top of Glassman's desk. He wrote a brief message and signed it then handed the parchment to Professor Glassman.

"I have her in a secure vault at Oxbow and Wandslip, in New York. I didn't want to leave her in the care of the only man who knew she had taken the potion," Jonathan said, resigned. He knew he must seem incredibly cold hearted to box up his still alive cousin and stuff her in a vault. At the time it was the best place to keep her. "With this letter the goblins should let you take the box she's in out of my vault. If not, then I will have to go with you to get her."

---

"You locked her in a bank vault." Glassman said, his voice sounding by parts incredulous and resigned. "Very well. I will have to get a few of the senior professors to sign off on a portkey, as the principal is indisposed." He said, taking hold of the vial again and opening it. He then drew his wand and gave it a wave, causing his bookshelves to recede into the walls, and racks of laboratory equipment to emerge in their places.

"In the meantime, it looks as though I will have to start with basics." He said, opening Jonathan's potion vial and dipping a plastic pipette inside. He used the pipette to transfer a measure of the potion into a test tube, which he placed into a centrifuge. He then set several plastic test panels on his desk, and placed a single drop of potion into several small reagent holes in the panels. "I will most likely need to run a spectroscopic analysis, as well." He said, motioning with his wand to summon several pieces of equipment from his shelves. "It's unlikely that I will need your assistance, but if I do, I will send an elf to your dorm to retrieve you. You are dismissed."

---

It sounded so cold the way Professor Glassman summarized what Jonathan just revealed. Thinking it over himself, Jonathan realized he was very cold towards Rachel, but where else would he put her that was safe and secure? He couldn't leave it in the room he rented over the Blackhole Sons Apothecary, Jonathan didn't trust Jacob not to take advantage. Oh he was certain Jacob wouldn't molest her, even he wasn't that sick. However, Jonathan wouldn't be surprised if Jacob didn't just test his antidotes on her comatose body till either she did die or woke up.

As the Professor brought forth what he needed to analyse the potion, Jonathan watched with great interest. If he had access to all this state of the art potion analyzing equipment, he wouldn't have had such trouble breaking down the ingredients himself. When he was summarily dismissed, Jonathan rose to his feet and nodded.

"Thank you, Professor for everything. I won't forget your assistance," Jonathan said honestly. He turned and left the Potion Master's office and headed to his dorm. He had a great deal to think over and to plan.

<<exit Jonathan>>