Late night (open)

[Narcissa Malfoy]

It was a cold night, the wind whistled through the trees and tugged at Cissa’s long blonde hair. She pushed her hair back impatiently and pulled her cloak tighter around her protecting her from the vicious wind. It was common knowledge that Narcissa was in with the death eaters and most probably Lord Voldmorts inner circle, most witches steered well clear of her. Narcissa was finding this particularly difficult, okay she didn’t want to have to mix with all of them but being as her son was always away and her husband in jail she had started to find that she was isolated from the rest of the world.

She turned up past Hogwarts lake and head back into the castle, She had left the castle earlier that evening, she wanted the space and time to think and hadn’t realised the time until the dark had descended upon her.

Shivering she quickened her pace, as she neared Hogwarts, the castle loomed above her like a giant. It seemed Hogwarts had become her prison and she hated it. She missed the large halls and cosy sitting rooms at Malfoy Manor, she missed the beautiful peathingys that strutted along the giant hedges surrounding the manor. She sighed bowing her head to the floor tiredly as she made her way up the steps to the castle.

[Garrett Carnahan]

Garrett strode across the grand entryway of Hogwarts, his arms full with odds and ends. In his right hand he clutched a vial full of neon yellow liquid. Clutched under his arm was a smallish cauldron. Some sort of dried leaves were hanging over the lip of the bowl, and a chopping knife was clearly visible resting against the back wall. In his right arm he held a old, worn book, a set of scales, and a measuring beaker. To complete the maniacal scientist look he was giving off, a wide, crooked grin had plastered itself onto his face.

He had been walking purposefully from the dungeons to the extravagant staircase in the middle of room, as he knew that none of the students would be up at this hour and the teacher patrolling tonight wouldn't be passing by, so there was no one who could possibly know he had been raiding Bellatrix's stores; not only would he get screamed at, but she'd probably insult his blood and hex him to the wall. Anyway, he had been confident that he wouldn't be caught. Until he spotted Narcissa coming up the steps from outside.

He froze at once, his crooked grin replaced by the look a child usually makes when it is caught getting into something it shouldn't be touching. "Oh, er, hey Cissa," he greeted, trying in vain to hide his spoils behind his back. "I'd bow, but... I can't." He flashed a weak smile as he dumped the objects occupying his right arm into the cauldron (taking care not to crush the leaves in the process), so that the only thing he was holding was the vial, which was quickly hidden in his cloak, and the cauldron.

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Narcissa entered the school, the cold had made her face a deathly white colour and her lips had turned a pale blue but she didn’t seem to notice as she walked up the steps as If in a trance. Scuffled footsteps echoed around the hall and made her look up towards the entrance of the dungeons.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked at the Care of magical creatures teacher, she didn’t trust him at all he was only employed here because Severus couldn’t get anyone else. Her eyes caught the vial, which he hid and she became immediately suspicious. “Hello Professor Carnahan” she said lowering her hood her hair falling in showers over her shoulders.

“That’s a shame you cant bow, is there any particular reason?” she asked innocently, “You haven’t hurt your back have you?” Narcissa placed her right hand on her hip and surveyed him questionably a small smile playing across her lips. She decided she was going to have a little fun with this, god only knows she needed some entertainment in this place.

[Garrett Carnahan]

"Yep!" Garrett grinned. "You've got it spot on. You know, helping my baby brother with his classes and all. Hexed me good, he did." He frowned, as if remembering something painful. The cauldron shifted slightly, an attempt to conceal it better. "I know what you're thinking, I should probably see Madam Pomfrey about it, and I was just headed there."

Without waiting for an answer, he turned on the spot and set off to wards the staircase at a leisurely pace, making sure not to look as if he were in a hurry. Sure, he already had a lie handy in case she asked why he was coming from the dungeons, but he wasn't sure what he would say if he was asked why he was carrying a cauldron full of instruments.

Now, if he could just make it back to his office, he could put his plan in motion. Would she object to him stealing ingredients from Bella's closet if it were for a good cause? Certainly not, it wasn't like he was plotting against her. If he was to use the potion before his victim woke up, he would have to start making it soon; it took two hours for the potion to be made and then it had to boil for another hour before it became gooey.

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Narcissa nodded smugly as she watched him walk away, “Professor Carnahan” she called after him folding her arms and waiting for him to stop. “Do you know what my sister would do if she knew you’d been in her stores” she said pouting her lips and giving her long blonde hair a flick.

She could quite easily see several potions ingredients, and going on a whim she guessed he had taken them from Bella’s storage room. Narcissa walked towards the professor lowering her voice to a slight whisper “Are you going to tell me what your doing stealing potion ingredients at night from my sister?”

“Its not wise to cross Bella” she added pursing her lips, Narcissa didn’t exactly like the professor and really didn’t trust him but at the same time she didn’t want him to anger Bella as the consequences would be disastrous.

[Garrett Carnahan]

Garrett froze and squeezed his eyes shut, acting like a child who wasn't getting his way. Sighing loudly, he turned around to face Narcissa. "Yeah, yeah, I know. She'll kill me and all that. But I never said I wasn't going to replace the stuff I took." He took a swift glance out the window and then cringed; if he wanted to carry out his evil plan, he was going to have to start soon.

"If you must know," he sighed, exasperated, "I'm going to glue Dane to his bed. Found a nice recipe for an all-purpose sticking brew in a book from the library. You're welcome to help if you want." Garrett flashed what he clearly thought was a winning smile and shook the cauldron in what he hoped was an enticing way. Surely Cissa knew a thing or two about potions, her sister being the teacher of the subject after all.

"Cissa, please don't tell on me!" Garrett adopted the kicked puppy look, knowing full well that she wouldn't want a thing to do with helping glue the younger Carnahan to his sheets. "You know full well that I wouldn't last very long in a duel with Bella, and, knowing her, she'd attack me in my sleep anyway." He frowned, running through a list of curses that Bellatrix would be likely to use on him. "Please?"

[Narcissa Malfoy]

Narcissa raised an eyebrow at him, in a way he reminded her of a young child trying to get his own way. “Too right she would kill you” she replied…”Or worse” she muttered folding her arms. “Ohh an honest thief” she said in a mocking way, “that’s something I’ve never heard of before, why did you just not buy the equipment yourself in stead of stealing it?” she asked.

Narcissa looked at him completely gob smacked, was he for real? Or was he just pulling her leg, “right...” she said unimpressed, “are you telling me the truth because I assure you I don’t take kindly to liars. I may not be my sister but I can still cast a good spell which I’m telling you, you wont forget.”

“Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t tell, Garrett?” Narcissa said threateningly pulling out her wand from under her cloak and spinning it in her hand with a coy smile. “Of course you would not last long, so give me back the ingredients and we will not speak of it again” she said “I don’t like this kind of childish behaviour from my staff.”

[Garrett Carnahan]

"Because some of the ingrediants from from places like Russia and Africa... Scandinavia.... Czech Republic..." So he was just naming off places now, but he hoped she got the point. "I ordered replacements, but they would get here for a few days. Travelling by owl." He shrugged, knowing it couldn't be helped, and shifted the couldron from hand to hand. If Cissa were someone like the police, he would just cast a shield spell and make a run for it. But, as they were occupying the same castle, it would be impossible to hide from her for long.

"Lying?" Garrett's exprission changed to a frown, and he thingyed his head to one side. "In the, what, three days we've known each other, have I ever lied to you? I only lie when I need to, and as glueing my brother to his bed is a perfectly reasonable explanation, I don't think I need to." He held out a book to her, the same one that had been previously carried under his arm. There was a bit of parchment poking out between the pages, a sort of crude bookmark marking the spot where the recipe for the potion he had been hoping to make was.

Childish behavior? Stealing wasn't childish; he knew a few people who did it for a living, and he was about to tell her that, but thought better of it. She might think of a way to turn it against him. Accuse him of being a professional thief or something (which wouldn't be true, because if he was a professional, he wouldn't have been caught). "... Because no one wants to be a tattle-tell?" Garrett tried weakly, completely at a loss for reasons. He really hoped a student would come by now, preferably a Slytherin, so that he could run off and punish them and leave Narcissa behind.