Even though they had Juniebee's report in hand, I reiterated the whole swamp trip to the Minister of Magic, Severus Snape and his two Auror's, Marcus and Abdelaziz. As I finished up, Snape's inky-black gaze bore into me as if he was performing legilimency. "Why didn't Fowley apparate?"

"He's an odd bloke, maybe apperating isn't something he particularly enjoys." I fiddled with the leather pleat on my seat cushion and grumbled, "I don't." You would think I would be in a good mood after last night's activity and delicious breakfast this morning but losing Fowley's trail and keeping things from Draco had me more pissed off than a hungry toll whose dinner escaped the caldron.

"That isn't helpful, Potter." Severus scowled.

"Maybe he does it to avoid tracking spells?" Ellison Marcus said from his seat on the leather couch, steam rose from his cup of coffee. I looked at my empty hands and wished I'd brought mine with me. When I return to my desk it was going to be ice cold and let's face it, microwaved coffee was never as satisfying.

"Perhaps, he needed to take something that doesn't apparate well, like Muggle technology," Yasmine Abdelaziz added as she tapped the report resting on the table she was sitting at.

Snape waved at the Aurors. "You see, helpful."

I frowned and didn't care who saw it.

"What more can you tell us that wasn't in your report?" Shacklebolt asked.

"I can only guess that it was something like science beakers and what-have-you because he cleared out his underground space before I came to—hanging upside-down," I said the last bit with some heat, but the Potions Master shrugged off my hardship with a twitch of his shoulders.

"Did you manage to find anything useful after you woke up?" Snape asked.

"No, not really."

He quirked his black brow like Draco does when I say something sassy to him. "No buildings or shacks nearby?"

"The Wild Rose was five-minutes away on foot and there didn't appear to be anything besides the woods and the wild black rose patch we were transported to."

"Did you go inside and see if Fowley was lurking about?"

I shook my head. "No, there was no sign that he headed that way, so we didn't think it was important to check it out."

"You didn't think it was important?" Snape hissed, living up to his last name.

"It's alright," Shacklebolt said as he moved to sit on the front of his desk instead of pace behind it and wearing out the floor. "You did good, Harry. Does anyone know who owns the Wild Rose?"

"I checked the land titles after reading Jenkin's report, and the Wild Rose is owned by a Muggle family, or so the ledger said," Abdelaziz offered.

"It's one of the top wizarding eateries in the northern hemisphere, it can't be owned by muggles," Marcus stated.

The minister nodded. "Agreed. Abdelaziz, I need you—"

"Let me in there!" a high-pitched voice demanded from the far side of the Minister's door.

"It's a private meeting, Miss Jenkins. You'll need to wait until it's over before the Minister can speak with you." The muffled voice of Patty Semore, the Minister's Secretary, stated.

"No, I need in there, right now!"

"I'm sorry, but—"

Crashing noises like an elephant in a China shop sounded. The door banged open and in walked Juniebee Jenkins looking like a pissed-off elf. Her gaze darted accusingly at everyone in the room. "I was lead down in Louisiana, and I came in this morning to find out that, Potter, is up here being debriefed. What is really going on, and why am I being lied to?"

"I'm sorry, Minister," the pink cheeked Semore stated. Her glasses were skewed, and her gray hair stuck out at odd angles—she must have put up a good fight.

"It's alright, Patty," Shacklebolt ushered her out of the room. "I'll handle this."

Patty nodded as he closed the door behind her retreating form.

Juniebee tapped her foot in a rapid beat and continued to glare at us.

"You're a vital part of this team," Shacklebolt said. "However, this is a private meeting."

She lifted her chin. "I am no fool. This has something to do with the werewolf attacks and their particular victims."

Severus cleared his throat. "Auror Jenkins, I'm not sure where you get your—"

"And the Granger's."

The room went silent for the second time today as Snape and Shacklebolt seemed to have an unspoken conversation.

Draco's words about Hermione and Snape came rushing back. Watching the Potions Master fuss over all the details concerning this case made me wonder if he was driven to help Hermione find her parents because she saved his life or if there was more going on than I realized?

The Potions Master waved his hand as if he was giving up, and Shacklebolt spoke, "Auror Jenkins, why don't you tell us exactly what you think is happening."

Juniebee shifted back and forth on her feet like she was pumping herself up to play rugby. "When Potter told me about the Eleutherodactylus Iberia, I figured there was more than just an ecological problem we were dealing with. Once I realized that the Minister of Magic was holding secret meetings with Auror Snape and that Potter was here too, I put everything together. Now, tell me I'm wrong." Juniebee adjusted her glasses with a flick of her fingers.

"Frogs?" Severus' sharp look of disapproval bore into me, making me feel like I was a simpleton. "You didn't mention any frogs."

Shrugging, I said, "Well, I..."

"What if their genetics were mixed with the Grangers and that is what's making it possible for them to perform magic?" My skin chilled as the pesky thought that had been hopping through my head was spoken by Abdelaziz.

Severus seemed to pale further than his usual sallow coloring.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Shacklebolt said. "We need to assess their condition before cluttering our minds with useless speculation."

"Maybe not but having a few ideas about possible outcomes won't hurt us either," Juniebee advised. "Frogs are fascinating, the genetic..."

I heard enough about animal physiology and plant life from Juniebee yesterday and stopped listening to her go on about the beauty of frog genes. This whole thing reminded me of that movie, Jurassic Park, where they made dinosaurs from the amber encased mosquitos that supposedly drank dino-DNA and combined it with frogs. Not that the Grangers were being made from scratch, but what if here was something to this? A chill worked its way down my spine.

"It's settled then." Shacklebolt's declaration jolted me from my thoughts. "You and Harry need to get back and check it out in daylight."

"Wait, what?" I heard myself say.

"Right away, Minister," Juniebee said in a singsong voice. A crazed smile lit her face and brightened her otherwise dull eyes. "Come on, Potter, we have a crazy scientist to catch."