Chapter 2
Hermione POV
Humming to herself and fairly bursting with excitement, Hermione went to Professor Slughorn's office on the awaited Friday. The office was done in shades of green and gold, with organized bookshelves and the Professor's table always had some sugar candy of some sort. If her parents could see old Sluggie, they'd definitely advise him to lay off the sugared stuff.
She saw that a chair had already been claimed by the dark-haired Tom. She quickly went and sat in the other chair, enthused to begin the work.
"Hi," she softly told Tom. Tom, flashed her a polite smile, "Hello Miss Granger. Have you been apprised of the task we'll be taking up today?"
"Yes, we're are working on the amalgamation of amortentia and felix felicis, so—."
"Not today, we are not. We'll only be sorting some ingredients today," Tom told her.
"Oh okay."
Professor Slughorn joined them after that, and Tom had been right, they were only sorting some ingredients today, while the Professor checked some essays on his desk.
Eager to talk to him, Hermione asked him when they started sorting the leaves and petals from various flowers that Slughorn had assigned to them, "Do you think that mixing the murtlap essence, occamy eggshells with pearl dust and rose thorns would make one find their love?" The research which Slughorn was interested in was creating a potion where the mixture of the love potion and the luck potion would lead one to their love partner. It was a bit of a stretch, but research had not really been done in this area.
"No."
Hermione was a bit dented, he hadn't said anything else, no explanations, no discussion, nothing, just a no.
She tried to engage him in polite banter a few more times but receiving only monosyllables she gave up after a while.
They had sorted almost everything. Slughorn had gone outside for just a few minutes, but that was when Tom addressed her. "Miss Granger, can you fetch the fig buttercup from the storeroom."
"Of course," Hermione told him, and went to find the plant in the adjacent room filled with ingredients.
She searched the boxes with the neatly written script and found the yellow flowers at the top left, and she lifted it and took out two flowers. Obviously this must be another flower their professor wanted to test in his potions, but the minute she touched the flower sharp spiking pain shot up her arm, and her vision became a narrow tunnel. Hastily she kept back the container she held, trying to remain conscious, but she felt herself fall and blessed numbness spread over her.
Tom POV
He had sent the girl to the storeroom. A minute later he heard the thud, and knew that his plan had worked. Slughorn had gone out for his nightcap, but he knew he did not have much time. He went to the storeroom and found the girl sprawled cold on the floor. Her hand held a yellow bloom.
He quickly removed the transfiguration on the plant and it took a dark violet hue, carefully levitating the plant he put it back in its container and removed the charm which showed the ingredient as fig buttercup to its original mark, 'aconite'.
He went back to the office just in time because a moment later Slughorn walked in holding his nightcap.
"Ah! Tom, it's getting late. You and Miss Granger can sort the rest next Friday."
"Yes Professor, we'll leave in sometime. Miss Granger is just getting the empty containers and the Salvias, we'll just put these sorted ingredients there and leave."
When a few minutes later Hermione did not emerge, Slughorn asked him to check on her.
Now began the acting. Hermione was still in the same position that she had been in, but her right hand fingers had swollen, and a red rash had broken out over her arm.
Breathing deep, he let out a distressed cry, "Professor! Miss Granger has fainted."
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Slughorn had come in but Tom knew he'd be incompetent, blubbering around, and Tom finally took charge. He lifted her, careful to keep her infected hand away and proceeded to the infirmary.
He explained to Madame Pomfrey that Granger had touched aconite. A quick compress was bandaged to her hand, and Moly induced antidote given to her.
He knew aconite was toxic to touch, but it was not deadly, at least not unless one ate it or was left exposed to it too long. Granger would be put out of commission for at least a week, even with the best antidotes, and that meant he could put seeds of the girl's incompetence in Slughorn's mind, after all she was young, and had done the mistake of confusing aconite with Salvias. Even if Slughorn did not throw her off the team, he would convince Slughorn to give him the meatier work, after all it wouldn't be right to stress Granger right after her poisoning.
Having deposited Granger in the infirmary and updated a concerned Slughorn about her, Tom went back to his room, a jaunty tune lightening his steps.