Day 1/2 -- Part I

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters. They belong to JK Rowling. I make no money from this piece of fiction.

A/N: Once again, a big thank you goes to x_weasley for all over help. Thank you to everyone who reviewed, too.

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Day 1 – 10:01pm – Ministry Lab.

It had been exactly one minute into the shift when the call came through. Severus had just arrived, striding through the dark door of his office with blue murder shining in his eyes, when the tinny ring of the phone cut through the air, demanding his attention.

Dumping his bag down on top of his desk, he yanked the phone from its resting hook, glaring at it as though the person on the other end could see. His fingers tightened in a death grip around the black plastic.

"What?" he snapped, foregoing the usual pleasantries. He'd had an exceptionally bad morning. Sleep had eluded him, once again, and for the majority of the day, he'd found himself sat on the floor brooding and drinking seemingly endless cups of coffee – black, of course; he found that milk didn't entirely agree with him.

Severus' scowl deepened as he listened to the faint tones of the Ministry Operator on the other end, most of the talk unheard due to the crackling interference on the line.

"What do you mean, 'bad news'?" he said icily.

There was more talking, half of which seemed unintelligible.

"Fine. I'll inform them now," he virtually shouted into the mouthpiece. And with that, he slammed the phone down, taking delight in the sickening crunch the plastic made as it came into contact with the holder.

Frustrated, Severus slammed the door to his office shut, not even bothering to unpack his bag, and marched off to find the others. Malfoy would probably be on his way in now, if he wasn't here already. As for Hermione, she usually arrived about a half-hour before shift change. With any luck they'd both be in, and he wouldn't have to repeat himself.

He checked the Computer Room and the Bullet Lab – no sign of them. Wandering the light-grey halls of the facility, a glass-and-metal world of cold institutional sterility, he passed a couple of labs and the door that led off to the Morgue before he finally tracked them down.

They were in the break room, sat on the navy-blue sofa, entirely too close together for Severus' comfort. Malfoy had his arm around Hermione, his hand resting gently upon her shoulder. They were talking in hushed voices, smiling secretively at each other. Hermione was laughing gently, blissfully unaware they had company. Malfoy, however, was well aware of Severus' presence.

With a sly glance in Severus' direction, Malfoy slipped his free hand over Hermione's knee, drawing lazy circles over her skin with the side of his thumb. Jealousy flared inside Severus, making him angry. The man was doing it on purpose simply to irk him. And the worst part of it was that Hermione simply smiled.

Feeling the sudden urge to make his presence known, Severus coughed loudly. Hermione jumped, backing away from Malfoy and flushing guiltily when she caught sight of the 'intruder'. Malfoy simply smirked.

"If you two have quite finished, then I believe we have some work to do," he snapped, glaring at Malfoy, not quite trusting himself to look Hermione in the face. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see her blushing furiously, her red cheeks burning under the flickering fluorescent lighting.

"Someone got out on the wrong side of the bed, didn't they?" drawled Malfoy, throwing Hermione a look of amusement. Severus ignored the jibe, far more interested in the information Malfoy had obtained.

Malfoy reached for the clipboard that lay, hitherto unnoticed, on the coffee table, flicking through the cream-coloured parchment until he found what he was looking for. "I got the results back on that red fibre you found. It's from a pair of spell-tailored robes – the residual magic erosion count was sixty, so the robes were made back in 2003. We also managed to obtain the point of origin. The fibre's spell signature was specific to Quigley's Quidditch Supplies in Reading. And there are only two teams that wear the specific shade we found and buy from that supplier: the Winchester Arrows and the Leigh Leopards."

"We only need to search the one team. I just got a call. The Ministry has managed to track down Ms. Bones' next of kin." Severus took a deep breath, gauging their reactions. "One Ronald Bilius Weasley, current Keeper for the Leigh Leopards."

---

Day 1 – 11:32pm – Leigh Athletics Stadium, Home of the Leigh Leopards.

"Finally. It's taken you lot bloody well long enough to get here. I called station earlier this morning, and some bloke on t'other end told me you'd be along shortly. Shortly? Bunch o' liars. Thirteen hours I've been waiting. You're damn well lucky there's a practice tonight, or I would 'av been long gone, mate."

Severus stared in distaste at the man in front of him.

Balding and slightly larger round the middle than he ought to be, Tom Middleton was the kind of man you'd expect to find sat behind a desk somewhere, pushing paper, not in the middle of a Quidditch Pitch wearing coach colours. Muscle, obviously gone to pot, stretched his slightly too small robes, and his heavily set features creased as he regarded the Unspeakable. With a large hand, he rubbed the underside of his square set jaw.

"Mind you, you don't much look like one o' Pigs. But they take all sorts these days, don't they?" he said with a thick northern accent. "I'm just glad someone finally took time to come and help us find Milly."

"Pardon?"

"That's why you're here, innit? To investigate Milly's disappearance." At Severus' bewildered look, the coach elaborated. "Milly's our mascot. You know, Milly the Leigh Leopard. The lads are so disheartened without her."

"We're investigating a murder, Mr. Middleton. A lost cat is not our priority. A dispatch team will be sent when one is available," said Hermione, watching as Severus picked an invisible piece of lint from the front of his robes.

"A murder? Well, I can't say I know anything 'bout that, love." The coach removed his wand from his pocket. " How's 'bout we go inside an' discuss this over a brew like civilised people?" he said, motioning to one of the many doors in the stadium wall.

"I think not, Mr. Middleton," said Severus. "We don't have time for tea. We would like to talk to the team."

"You think one o' them's involved?" The coach bristled slightly. "They're good lads, them. True, some o' them ain't sharpest tool in box, but none of 'em are murderers."

"Good or not, we'd still like to talk to them. All information is useful information," said Hermione, giving the coach a forced smile.

"Fine. Though I don't want you harassing any o' my players. There's a big match on Friday. They need t' be at their best."

Severus watched with a detached sort of interest as Middleton blew on his whistle, calling the flyers down to ground level. Whilst none of the players possessed any particular finesse for the sport, they weren't half bad – for an amateur team.

There was a flurry of red and black as they descended, coming to rest gently on the ground. He watched for one player in particular, his expression grim. He really hated this part of his job.

"I'm Severus Snape." He gestured briefly in Hermione's direction. "And this is Hermione Granger. We're from the Ministry Crime Lab. We're investigating the murder of a young woman, and I'd be grateful for your assistance. If you could please make a line over by the black van at the entrance, my partner, Mr. Malfoy, will take both fingerprints and a DNA swab. We also require you to make a footprint.

"This is a warrant from the Ministry for both DNA and generalised documentation." Severus held up a piece of purple card, Ministry issue, with small black words scrolling across its surface. It fluttered slightly in the night wind. "Any failure to comply with the wishes of Mr. Malfoy will result in disciplinary action."

Several of the players winced. Most of them were old enough to remember when Severus taught at Hogwarts, long before his undue sacking, and thus remembered his wrath. They obediently filed off, making an orderly queue at the back of the van.

Severus held out a slim hand, grabbing Weasley by the shoulder as he passed.

"This way please, Mr. Weasley. We'd like you to come with us."

---

Day 2 – 12:05pm – The Locker Room, Leigh Athletics Stadium.

"Where were you between the hours of four pm and five pm on Friday the 28th June?" Severus' business-like tone cut through the silence of the locker room.

Weasley frowned, glancing at Hermione for reassurance. Hermione kept her expression dutifully blank, looking only at Severus.

"I was at home. Asleep."

"Can anyone confirm that?"

"No. I sleep alone." He crossed his arms, left hand still griping his broom. "What's this all about?"

"Last night we found Ms. Eleanor Bones' body on the driveway of number 48, Moor Road. We know you're heavily involved with the woman," said Hermione, her tone carefully indifferent.

"Are you accusing me of murdering my own fiancée?" he asked, staring at Hermione with wide eyes.

"We are accusing you of nothing, Mr. Weasley," said Severus. "We are only trying to establish facts. And, at the moment, these facts point to your involvement in the crime."

"Why would I murder the woman I love? She was everything to me."

"Revenge, Mr. Weasley. The consequence of a lover's tiff? Records," he lowered his voice a little, "and personal experience show you have a temper. Perhaps you came home to find her with another man and got angry?"

Weasley flushed, his face becoming almost as red as his hair. "She was not that kind of woman," he hissed. "Are you implying that Eleanor was a whore?"

Severus' nostrils flared. "I am doing nothing of the sort. I am merely giving thought to the evidence we collected. And since you don't have an alibi..."

"Evidence?" He sat back on the bench, leaning on the locker, gazing at the pair of investigators with incredulity. "And what so-called evidence would this be?"

Severus flipped open the notebook he held, thumbing through the pages until he found the one he required.

"Your father owns a Muggle Land Rover, does he not?"

"Yes, but I don't see what this has to do with..."

"Tyre tracks, recently discovered to be from a Muggle four by four, were found at the scene of the dump. Did you take your father's car to dispose of the body?"

"No. My father is away on business in America, as the Ministry will confirm, and has taken the car with him. It's impossible to steal a car from the other side of the world. I hope the rest of your evidence is better than this."

"We found a red fibre on the bed at the scene of the crime."

"So?"

"Spell diagnostics and microscopic processing show the fibre to be a positive match to your Quidditch Team's robes."

"I visit her place all the time... doesn't prove anything 'cept me being at her house some time over the last week or so and the fact that perhaps she didn't vacuum as often as she should."

"We also found a bloody footprint, size twelve. We pulled up your medical records. You are a size twelve, are you not?"

"Yes," he said, tight lipped, "but so are about half of the team. Face it, Snape. You have nothing to tie the crime to me. You're just after an easy scapegoat to hide your inadequacies. Can't let go of old rivalries?"

"I simply follow evidence. And the evidence points to you. My own feelings do not factor into the equation." He closed his notebook with a snap and placed it back into the inner pocket of his robes. "It is only a matter of time before the sperm sample recovered can be identified. And with your DNA now on record." He held up the cheek swab Hermione had taken earlier. "Your subsequent elimination or incrimination will be swift. Better to confess now than later, Mr. Weasley. That is, if you have anything to hide."

"Look, if you had anything at all on me other than some poxy fibre and a vague match with tyre treads, we wouldn't be here. I didn't kill her. And, if you're not going to charge me, then I'd like to get back to practice." He turned to Hermione, his eyes pleading. "You believe me, Hermione. You know I didn't do it."

Hermione shrugged. "The evidence never lies," she said, watching with thinly veiled despair as her one-time best friend rose from the bench, spun on his heel and marched off.

---

Day 2 – 2:16am – Conference Room, Ministry Lab.

The news had spread like wildfire: the Leigh Leopards were under suspicion of murder, the main suspect being their keeper. It seemed even minor celebrities could generate a large enough crowd where their misfortune was concerned. There wasn't a man, woman or child at the lab unaware of the case now, and the media had to be put on lock-down to prevent vital details of the case becoming public knowledge.

The conference room in the Main Lab was packed. About fifty Aurors in civilian robes had come to reinforce the ranks of the Unspeakables, making a grand total of one hundred people of varying positions and job descriptions crammed into a room no bigger than Severus' office. And that was before you even began to include the lab's own technicians and investigators. They'd all been called in and received a verbal thrashing from Head Command. The case, apparently, hadn't been handled with enough care, and as if the lab hadn't got enough problems, three of the players were suing for harassment. The blame, as per usual, was placed entirely on the shoulders of the lab. The Ministry couldn't afford a new cock-up.

Severus was trying to spot Hermione in the throng of reservists that were beginning to file out. She'd seemed a little out of it on the ride back to the lab and had subsequently disappeared before Severus could have a word about it. He tried to tell himself he wanted to see her for the good of the lab – a lab is only as good as its investigators, after all, and it wouldn't do for one of them to go AWOL – but it was a losing battle, even in his own head. He wanted to see her for the sake of it. He cared about her.

He spotted the curl-covered head he was looking for about five minutes later over by the water dispenser. Making a beeline for her, he strode through the crowd, his head held high.

Still in her dark green robes from earlier, she leant gently against the wall, her eyes firmly fixed on the plastic cup in her hand. Her face was a little red and puffy, haphazardly covered with makeup to disguise the fact she'd been crying. Severus felt a little tug deep in his chest as he watched her stare dejectedly into nothing. He placed a hand on his breastbone, rubbing it gently to ease the slight discomfort.

"How'd you get on with the evidence cataloguing?" he said, shifting nervously from foot to foot. It wasn't what he wanted to say, but it'd do. For now.

"Erm, fine," said Hermione, taking a long draught from her cup before speaking again. "I found four others that could fit the killer's profile. The stuff is over in the Evidence Lab, if you'd like to take a look."

"Perhaps later." He dismissed her suggestion with a wave of his hand. "I... er... Are you alright?" He coughed a little, feeling constricted by the collar of his robes as he managed to force out the words.

Hermione looked up, giving him a piercing stare. "I'm fine," she stated coldly. Severus cursed internally. He seemed to have a knack for saying exactly the wrong thing at the wrong time.

Perhaps it was luck, or (more likely) a coincidence, but just as he was about to press the issue a little further, his mobile rang. With a grimace, he removed it from its place on his belt and flipped the tiny, vibrating machine open.

"Snape," he stated, identifying himself to the caller. There was a slight whirring noise as the Ministry connected his phone to the ancient copper wires of their own landlines. The voice on the other end was as muffled as ever, and he had to strain to catch the words. He didn't reply to whatever was said, simply flipping the phone shut and placing it back on his belt.

"I don't believe this," he muttered, fisting his hands in his hair in a display of frustration. Hermione looked at him quizzically, balancing her empty cup on top of the dispenser. Severus wasn't prone to displays of emotion. This had to be bad. "The knife's been sent back from DNA."

"And?" prompted Hermione, when she realised further explanation was not forthcoming.

"DNA isn't a match to Eleanor. We've just lost our murder weapon."

Hermione's eyes went wide. "Christ," she exclaimed. "You mean we've got a serial killer."

"Of a sort."

"What do you mean, 'of a sort'?"

"Blood isn't even human," he said with a sigh. The case was rapidly turning into a dead one, the trail becoming colder every second. With one piece of evidence out of the equation, and minimal evidence to start with, they were out on limb.

"Do they know what animal it's from yet?"

"No. They had to send it to an outside specialist. We're just not well enough equipped here to deal with it. Bloody ill-equipped Ministry. Reducing expenditure, my arse."

Hermione groaned, shoving her hands deep into her pockets. "It just gets worse and worse, doesn't it?" She flicked him a look. "Well, what do we do now?"

"Not much we can do until those other samples get back from processing. It'll mean overtime; they'll only get back at four, and I want as much done as possible before we leave."

"Overtime? I'm still maxed out from the Wilson Case."

"I'll pull a few strings up at the High Office. Auror Shacklebolt owes me a few favours." Hermione gave him a sceptical look, folding her arms in a gesture reminiscent of Molly Weasley. Severus smirked and, in a flash of inspiration, said, "I'll even throw in breakfast. On me."

Ever the schemer, he'd just managed to ask her out on a date. Well, sort of. In a roundabout kind of way. Besides, doing it this way meant he didn't have to gather the courage to ask her straight out. Slytherin he may be, but seduction was not his forte. That particular house trait seemed to have passed him by, leaving him more of a stuttering wreck around women than a suave sex god.

"You don't have to do that. I'll work anyway, you know. Breakfast or not," she said, letting her hands fall to her sides.

"Think of it as an extra from your kind and generous boss."

Hermione couldn't quite suppress the snort of laughter at his last statement. Severus scowled at her, but his heart wasn't in it. He knew she could see the amusement lurking in his eyes.

"Go on then," she said, giving him his first proper smile of the evening.

Severus felt his heart leap in his chest. He released a breath he hadn't even realised he was holding, trying his best not to grin like a madman. The case may be taking a dive, but the competition seemed to be looking up.

"Did someone mention breakfast and the possibility of paying for it?"

Severus' heart sank. He'd forgotten about Malfoy.

He watched as Malfoy swanned into the conference room, clipboard in hand. He smiled tightly at the blond-haired menace, his mind running though every hex he could think of and some of the nasty ones twice. But the man just grinned, inordinately pleased with himself.

"Severus' invited us all out for breakfast," said Hermione.

Malfoy's grin grew even wider at the thought of breaking up what had clearly been meant as a date.

"That's very generous, Snape. And you know I'm never one to turn down free food. I trust it'll be somewhere nice."

Severus inclined his head, glaring. "Naturally."

"Excellent." Malfoy held his clipboard up. "I've got the victim's blood work back from Tox. There was a large amount of Hirduin in her system, and her blood-alcohol level was high."

"Hirduin?" asked Hermione, curious.

"Hirduin is the main ingredient in most anti-coagulant potions, so we know the killer is definitely from the magical community or has access to it. Muggles can't get hold of Hirduin potions; they typically prefer Warfarin," said Severus. "Hirduin is extracted from the saliva of the blood-sucking leech Hirudo Medicinalis, unlike Warfarin, which is synthetic. It inhibits thrombin, the central enzyme responsible for controlling the coagulation process. Very potent and fast acting." He turned to Malfoy. "I take it you found traces of Varinan Root in the screen as well."

Malfoy nodded. "How'd you know that?"

"It must be added to the potion and mixed counter-clockwise with a birch rod, among other things, to make it suitable for oral ingestion. Pure Hirduin has to be injected straight into the bloodstream since it's a peptide – it'd be broken down by the stomach acid before it'd even reach the blood system. And we found no needle marks on the body."

"We got the remnants of the wine at the bottom of the broken glass tested too. Also positive for Hirduin." He looked at his notes. "Her heart and blood was healthy, so the ingestion of Hirduin was not for medical use. I don't think she knew she was taking it. The wine would mask the taste."

"Shows premeditation," said Hermione, taking the clipboard from Draco's hands and flicking through the parchment attached. "The anti-coagulant would cause her to bleed-out more effectively. Though why anyone would need a death that messy, I have no idea."

"Well, we can be certain of one thing." Everyone looked at Severus. "We know the potion was store-bought. Hirduin is only released to St Mungo's and generalised apothecaries. And can only be bought on prescription." He turned to Malfoy. "Go and check the local apothecaries. Get me a list of all anti-coagulant potions sold within the last four months."

"Got it." Malfoy shoved his hands in his pockets and walked to the door. "Meeting at seven for breakfast?"

Severus nodded, watching as he disappeared down the corridor. He turned to Hermione.

"I want to go back to the body. See if we can learn anything new since the knife's gone."

With a swish of his robes, he strode out of the conference room and down towards the stainless-steel doors of the Morgue. He was about halfway there when he realised Hermione wasn't behind him. Under the flickering fluorescent lights, he stopped, spinning on his heel until he faced the way he came. He saw her lurking over by the lab door.

"Aren't you coming?"

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*Pigs – British slang for Policemen.

*Brew – Slang (commonly northern) for a cup of tea.

* Swanned – swaggered. I'm not sure if this is a common term or not. All I know is that my mother used to use it all the time when I was growing up.

*Hirduin – an anti-coagulant found in leech saliva. The leeches are commonly used in reconstructive microsurgery. Commonly harvested from yeast, as it is far too expensive to harvest from leeches. It is one of the most potent natural anti-coagulants, but it less effective and more toxic than Heparin when used to treat coronary heart problems. It must given parenterally (injected).

*Warfarin – an anti-coagulant that is synthetically derived from Coumarin. Originally developed for rat poison, but is now used to treat people with blood clots (thrombosis). It is taken orally. It is found in very small amounts in both liquorice and lavender.