Carlton stopped right behind Nat. The headmistress had told everyone to follow the Head Girl to the Hospital Wing immediately so there he was. It was actually a nice distraction from everything, there was a lot to look at. Carlton hadn't ended up in the hospital wing yet, which was an achievement. It took some self-control to stay quiet and not ask ALL THE QUESTIONS ABOUT EVERYTHING, but he didn't say anything.

He looked over at Tenacius curiously. A form! Right. He could do that. Carlton waddled over to stand next to Tenacius. Hai.

When he was done, he moved aside so the other students could fill out their forms. Carlton dropped his finished form into the niche and sat down waiting for the others and the healer to arrive. He was confused, tired and scared. Had he really tried to feed a monster?

Oopsie.

River was in the kitchen wolfing down his meal when three emergency forms attacked him in the face. "Nooononono," the Healer muttered under his breath as one of the forms got soaked in his bowl of soup, and quickly dried it with a spell. Speaking of spells, he ought to improve the delivery charm he invented for his emergency niche. Getting smacked in the face thrice wasn't really nice. But before he could even make out the first letter of the form, Regina's patronus reached him and addressed that there will be an emergency meeting now. As River watched it disappear, he shrugged the message off for the time being as he decided that his patients, and potential patients were more important than a staff meeting. Surely, Regina would understand.

Anyway...what is this all about? The Healer took one of the forms in his hand and skimmed over it. Portal...what? Monster...what? And...bones? What bones? Whose bones?! River swallowed hard, and almost jumped out of his skin when he heard someone...or something bang against the door to the kitchens. Loud barking ensued after, and River did not take another second to linger around the kitchen. A pair of Newfoundlands, each weighing 150 pounds each, were ready to smash the door if he didn't come out sooner. "I'm coming! What in the name of Merlin is going on?"

...

Four flights of stairs later, an alarmed River approached the Hospital Wing with the forms in his hand, and a dog parade escorting him from behind. Two badged students...a senior student, and a first year? "Before I ask what this means, is anyone severely hurt?" The absence of blood was noted, and River already felt a thousand times lighter. Without waiting for them to answer him, the Healer went on to examine Carlton first, since he's the youngest...and then moved to Tenacius, Natalia, and finally Leon. River took a step back, his eyes moving from the most senior student, to the youngest. They were all fine, physically at least...but the Portal must've done something to them mentally just by looking at them.

River pursed his lips, and sent his patronus to Regina saying that he will be late for the emergency meeting, considering that he got a fresh case in his hands. The man reviewed the forms once more, and then looked at Natalia. "Everyone take a seat...and take deep breaths." the man then summoned Bumi, and fished a number of vials from his dog pack, and passed it to the students. "Calming draughts...now, please." he said, encouraging them to drink the contents with his hand. "Whenever you're ready, I'd like you to describe for me how this portal looks like...especially its environmental condition."

Carlton looked up at the Head Girl and nodded his head. "Yup-yup-yupppp!" He assured her, giving her two thumbs up. "Peachy keen.". He didn't know what that meant, he hoped he used it in the right context.

He was fine really. Just a little... Shaken. He thought about the snarling sounds he'd heard earlier and shuddered slightly. Maybe the others had been right. Maybe it hadn't been a fluffy animal who needed his love and support? But maybe it DID need his love.

Just then, fluffy creatures appeared in his line of vision. Healer Reed's newfoundland dogs! Well, maybe the healer was fluffy as well, Carlton didn't really know and maybe it was rude to ask. He felt very happy they were joined by an adult again though, especially one that had healing powers and was the owner of two dogs about the same size as Carlton.

Carlton left his seat and sank down on the floor so he could get closer to the dog. It waddled over to him and the young boy nuzzled his face in its neck and buried his fingers in the dog's warm fur. Ah, the comfort. He took a few sips of the calming draught the healer had brought and then snuggled closer to the dog. It just sat there next to him and didn't seem to mind this sudden case of the cuddles. Good.

Nat explained why there were in the hospital wing but she hadn't gone through the portal. Carlton had, but he didn't know how to explain the 'environmental conditions' that the healer wanted to know about. He didn't know any big words at all. Even though it was probably better if Tenacius or Leon had a go at explaining things, Carlton spoke.

"It was icky and dark and had gross things everywhere, professor." Professor? "Healer. Professor healer." That would do. His voice slightly muffled from talking directly into the dog's fur. "And I touched a bone-thing." He shoved his right hand up in the air, flexing it a few times to demonstrate. Did... Did that mean he was full of portal-bone-bacteria thingies?

Yuck.

everyone ^_^
 

River furrowed his brows as he listened to the Head Girl and nodded his head in understanding, and was relieved that one of their most senior student leader knew what to do in the heat of the moment. "Now would be the best time to round up the other prefects and help patrol that corridor. I trust you with that task, Head Girl." River knew that he didn't have to tell Natalia what to do, but he thought it was best to say that out loud in front of the other students. It was to give them the idea that the Head Girl, and Head Boy will be the one in-charge when there are no adults around to supervise. He, however, will make it a point to help in the patrols thinking that that would be Regina's wish as well.

River brought a clenched fist against his lips, and wondered more about the situation. "Who else went inside this portal? Where...are they now?" he asked briefly glancing at the Third Floor Corridor.

River's glance then shifted to Carlton who was now on the floor, hugging a very calm Bumi. The dog in return licked the first year student, and slathered him in drool. Oops? He did know that Newfoundlands were drool offenders, right? The Healer quickly got his wand in his hand and vanished the substance off of Carlton's face even before he could protest. That was the last thing he needed when the Calming Draught was in effect. Stick to cuddling, Bumi. Thank you.

The Healer took note of Carlton's description, and sat on the floor with him so he could understand him better. He didn't want to intefere in his cuddle session with his dog, considering that the child was in mild shock. Why else would he be giving Bumi a death grip now, yes?

"Bone thing?" River thought it was a bad idea to expound on his observation more, fearing that the bone might belong to a human being.

Once a dramatic Gryffindor, always a dramatic Gryffindor. Some things never change, apparently. River watched Tenacius do his reenactment, and had to stop himself from checking his elbows and knees for scrapes. But based on what he saw, Ace definitely wasn't in a severe situation...physically at least. He can still talk and demonstrate things to him, but he could tell that he's exhausted from their trip to the Portal. And as much as River wanted to point out how important it was to build their stamina, he decided against it considering that it was not the best time to tell them that. Hopefully, they would realize its importance on their own based on this experience.

River straightened his back, and committed the information to his memory bank as he tried to make something out of this environment. "Hmm." the Healer paused as he considered Ace's description, and wondered about the portal's nature. "Other Hogwarts. You mean to say that there is another realm within this school?" And...why was it not filled with sunshine and butterflies for a change? The real school was drafty enough to chill everyone, and the Portal had to be worse?

Okay...what?

River stared at the seventh year Ravenclaw, and blinked several times as he processed the things the young man told him. Surely, he can safeguard these students from respiratory infection since it was his specialisation, but the mention of human bones inside the Portal made the emergency bells in his head go off at an alarming rate. "Are you sure that what you found are human bones? Was it long and thick?" Like a man's?

And what about their magic not working well in there? River let out a sigh and looked at each and every student in front of him. "If you can't seem to use magic in there, then it would be best to stay away from that tear in the wall, and don't forget about this particular information." Maybe...just maybe, that will be enough warning so that the others won't venture inside that thing.

he didnt really hit the floor lol! #OnlySlightlyLessDramatic xD
 

Portal People! *declones* :3
 

Merlin's holy underpants. Leon didn't have to be a licensed healer to know if those were real human bones or not. Being one of the oldest students to see it up close, River thought it was wise to believe the young man. He instantly dismissed the idea of them hallucinating, because Carlton mentioned that he touched a bone-thing. Before the Head Girl turned to go, River called out to the she-snake. "Thank you for bringing them to me, Head Girl. Do take the extra precaution when you do your patrols."

The man then turned to the rest, and handed out extra calming draughts for them to take. "Not everyone who ventured into that portal didn't come to see me, so please...give these out to them if they need one." he then got more vials of calming draught from Bumi's dogpack and distributed it to the remaining students. "There's nothing else I can do for you now, but make sure to get some rest. Leon and Prefect Salander, off you go to your common rooms...Master Lewis, I will walk you to your dormitory. You can have Roscoe for the night if you wish." No, he will not deprive the first year from slobbery kisses and extra warmth of a fluffy dog.

River just finished his patrolling duty when a brand new emergency form decided to hit the back of his head, and clutched it in a hasty manner. The Healer man quickened his pace as he placed the form inside his pocket, wondering what was in store for him this time. He did enjoy being on-call and such, but not when it's one of his students. Said student was the least he expected today, considering that she's in tip-top shape and her mood was always on the upbeat side.

River slowed down as he approached the threshold, and quietly sat down beside the blonde Gryffindor. "Miss Kettleburn?" Was she...asleep?

Or...did someone cursed her face?

Charlotte sat up a little too fast, kind of like she'd been jolted awake, and the room tipped around her. She blinked a few times and smiled woozily at the healer. This was fine. She was fine, see? See this smile? This frozen in place, automatic smile? Totally fine!

Uh... why was she here again? Charlotte's brow furrowed. Oh that's right. Right.

"Hi Healer Reed, I just wondered..... if you had a potion I could take... that would um... make m.....me a little more... awake. Please." People she cared about were missing, but she was brave, and holding up fine, and needed to be ready to... to... do whatever she might be needed to do. Anything. More searching. Something.

River jolted back juuuuust a tiny bit when a head full of blonde hair flipped upwards and back, and a pair of tired eyes looking at him. Even with the sudden rush of blood to Charlotte's face, she was still very pale making the dark circles under her eyes even more prominent.

And why was she asking for an awakening potion when she clearly needed sleep? Was her lack of snooze time because of her OWLs coming up, or was it because of something else? Most of the fifth years he knew brewed their own awakening potion to get more of their revisions done, and River had faith in Charlotte that she can very well brew the potion herself, considering that it was simple and basic for a fifth year.

Huh. For some odd reason, River could picture her Healer uncle, Kieran Toussaint standing behind Charlotte, shaking his head at him. Yep. Things didn't feel right around here.

"Awake for what, Miss Kettleburn?" Though River knew of the portal, and the three boys missing for days, the Healer wasn't aware of Charlotte's friendship with them.

It was possible for about six seconds there, Charlotte completely zoned out, fell asleep even. Micro sleep if that was even possible. Not that she noticed. But the healer was asking a question no and didn't he understand? Didn't he? She couldn't sleep. Literally couldn't but also figuratively couldn't.

"For when they come back. They're my friends...sir.. All of them, and I was there when Henry d-dis-disappeared. Couldn't find him any--"



--Charlotte stopped short at the sudden interruption. A patronus. She gasped. They were okay?!?!! But what did bad shape mean? After so long being gone... She stood up in a rush, and then promptly toppled over.

Fainting. How inconvenient.

For when they come back. They...Henry. The boys. Oh.

River remained silent as he composed his next words carefully, considering that he was about to negotiate with a Gryffindor. They just don't listen most of the time, do they?

Charlotte had been talking, only to be interrupted by a patronus. River had to memorize so many names in school that it proved hard for him to know their patronuses too. The voice belonged to a colleague however, and his attention immediately zeroed-in on the message. As soon as the lynx was gone, his hand immediately clasped on Charlotte's arm in the hopes of stopping her from going to the sixth floor corridor. She was not going anywhere because she needed rest.

However, it seemed that Charlotte wasn't going anywhere because her sudden dead weight pulled River to his feet, and caught her before her face could kiss the ground. "For Merlin's sake, Charlotte!" Yes, her uncle will skin him alive if any more trouble came to her.

In one swift movement, River scooped her up in his arms and immediately booked her a bed.

OOC: Post away in Bed 3!

we got dem bois
 

Merlins soggy socks.

Merlin's *INSERT COLORFUL WORDS ABOUT THE MINISTRY HERE* because Paul Myers was NOT HAPPY right now. He was irritated, and he had FINALLY gotten the boys here. AWAAAAAY from that chaos. He should have just grabbed them and ran-----but yeah, that wasn't allowed.

"Healer-----we're here. Finally. After the zoo that is Ministry arrival at Hogwarts--" he said, panting slightly because Paul had practically jogged here.

No business being here, even if Regina had asked them. Hmph. Feathers = ruffled.

*gives everyone a chance to post here first before we move on!*
 

River leaned on the wall as he waited patiently for Paul and the boys to arrive. Charlotte Kettleburn has been admitted and taken care of already-- sound asleep for the past 15 minutes, and still...no sign of the party that was promised to arrive. The Healer man looked like an overgrown bat in his black robes, plastered on the wall with his eyes closed taking in deep breaths to calm himself down.

If Paul lost it back at the sixth-floor corridor, River too was on the edge of snapping. The boys had been missing for the past five days, and apparently, they took their own sweet time to get to him. With his jaw clenched, and right hand balled into a fist, River was a step away from storming the portal to take in the boys himself.

The moment the Healer man heard Paul's voice, he immediately sprang into action, leaving his annoyance behind as he peeled away from the wall. He could see that the boys were a mess...especially Rooney and Carlton.

Oh, Master Lewis. You were so wrong about that monster being friendly.

And wait what? Ministry was here. River looked at Paul with the most disapproving look as he realized that it prevented them to reach him in a timely manner. Without a word he got back to examining each of the boys. "Deputy Headmaster, thank you for bringing them to me." River said as soon as he found his calm once more. "However, I will not have any Ministry personnel...or anyone except you and the Headmistress to come near these boys. For now." River's voice was stern and full of command.

His turf, his rules.

<3
 

Carlton still hadn't said a word, he just limped after the others. He constantly heard the dark growling from the monster which was why he still had his hands covering his ears in an attempt to shut out the noise. He expected to see the monster everywhere and froze before every corner only to be guided around it by one of the others.

He felt better without the crowd and all the strangers reaching for him but his breathing was still quick and uneven, eyes still wide and flickering around him. Walking down the three floors to the hospital wing took forever. He was stopping every few seconds, as if he'd forgotten where they were going or where they were.

And then they were at the hospital wing, met by the healer. Carlton pressed his hands harder against his ears. If he could squeeze his eyes shut without seeing the monster in front of him, he would have.

Panic rose in his chest as Henry went to sit down and Rooney stumbled to lean against a wall. For a second Carlton thought they'd leave him. He opened his mouth to say something, but instead began to draw in sharp breaths in hyperventilation. It felt like a knife went through his chest as his heart sped up and a heavy pressure over his chest prevented him from breathing normally. He couldn't move, he couldn't close his eyes, couldn't remove his hands from his ears and now he couldn't breathe either as the panic refused to leave him.

Words of logic and sound reason were welcome to the Herbologist. River Reed, bless him. Paul Myers pursed his lips and watched each of the boys out of the corner of his eye. "Thank you, Healer Reed."

Paul knelt down in front of Carlton. He put his hands on top of Carlton's that were atop his ears. The heavy breathing came as a concert to Paul, though, because he knew...this was a panic attack. "Carlton, look at me," he said in a clear, but soft voice. "Point of focus--" he held up one finger in front of Carlton's face. "Look at me. We're right here, in the Hospital Wing." He hadn't handled a panic attack in a long time. He hoped he wasn't doing more harm than good. "I will not let any monster...or whatever it was....take you all again. I promise." He put his hand on his heart. "It probably much rather consume me, anyways. I'm kind of fat," he smiled a little. Maybe it was an ill timed joke. But Paul Myers had many of those.

How were Rooney and Henry doing? Paul grabbed his wand and shot another patronus, his second one today, to find Henry's mother, wherever she may be. Her son was back, and she deserved to know.