Mr. Weasley was standing by the refreshment table,
grabbing his hand and screaming. Juniper noticed something that looked like a
thick, black slug sitting in among the hors d’oeuvres.

A
Bubotuber? What is THAT doing here!?

“Water! Get him some water!” exclaimed Juniper. “We
need to bathe the wound.”

His wife cast Aguamenti directly at the wound,
sending a jet of clean, cold water towards his hand.

“It still hurts!” cried Mr. Weasley.

“Dittany! I’m going to need Dittany. And would
anyone happen to have a potion for the pain?”

“Junie! Catch!” called Delia, pulling something out
of her purse. A crystal phial flew through the air, and Juniper caught it in
one hand. If she hadn’t been such a fabulous Beater, she could have been a
Seeker to rival Delia in their school days.

She gave the potion to Mr. Weasley, and suddenly, a
tall wizard with a very nice hat and a single earring towered over the
gathering crowd. A deep, reassuring voice said, “I’ve brought some Dittany! I
hope it’s enough.”

Juniper felt her heart leap to her throat. It was
the Minister of Magic himself! Kingsley Shacklebolt was handing her Dittany!

After five minutes had gone by, she told Mrs.
Weasley to stop the water, and applied Dittany to Mr. Weasley’s wounds.

“Wow, that was brilliant!” said the man from where
he lay on the grass. “How did you know how to take care of it?”

“I’m an Herbologist,” she said proudly.

Before she anyone else could praise Juniper’s quick
thinking, however, a wizard ran toward the crowd. “Someone! Anyone, come quick!
It’s a Devil’s Snare, down by the gazebo! It’s got Cornfoot!”

Terror gripped Juniper’s heart. Devil’s Snare? At a party? AND right after someone got injured by
Bubotuber pus?

She grabbed her wand from her wand pocket and rand
towards the gazebo, where she saw exactly what she was expecting to see. From
under the dark recesses of the nice little wooden structure, she saw thick,
green tendrils grabbing a screaming wizard, threatening to pull him underneath.

“Just relax, Mr. Cornfoot!” called Juniper. “It
might let you go if you do! Just stop struggling!”

The man went limp, and the tendrils seemed to relax
with him. Still, Juniper pointed her wand straight at the plant, and made two
sharp, curved flicks, calling “Incendio!” Flames shot from her wand, and the
plant’s tendril shriveled and died.

“Devil’s Snare at a Ministry Party,” said the
Minister, shaking his head in disbelief. “Is this an assassination attempt?”

“I don’t know, Minister,” said Juniper, a little
giddy at the sudden confidence she felt as she spoke to the important wizard.
“For now, we need to take care of Mr. Cornfoot. Has he choked on his own
tongue?”

“No,” said the wizard who had reported the attack,
“But he certainly doesn’t look to good!”

“Cast Rennervate, then. Meanwhile, I need to deal
with the—”

Suddenly, Delia ran towards Juniper. “Bouncing
Bulbs. They’re wrecking everything, Junie! You have to stop them! I know you
know how!”

“Someone finish off that Devil’s Snare. Use fire,
and Lumos Maxima. I have to deal with these Bouncing Bulbs.”

Three plant-related disasters at one party? This was
starting to look highly suspicious in Juniper’s opinion. Still, she ran as fast
as her legs could carry her, and found several purple plants of varying sizes
rampaging near the refreshment table, smashing everything in sight.

“Flipendo!” she shouted, “Flipendo!” She cast several
successful Knockback Jinxes at the smaller Bouncing Bulbs, knocking them
backwards. “Someone grab the little ones! I need to deal with this one!”

The final Bulb was the size of a doorway, and it
wouldn’t be stopped by something as simple as the Knockback Jinx. It bounced
resolutely towards Juniper, looking as though it was intent on flattening her
into the ground.

“Incendio!”

The immense Bouncing Bulb burst into flames and
died, and Juniper stopped to catch her breath.

“What are we supposed to do with these?” asked one
witch, looking at the small, dazed Bouncing Bulb in her arms as though it were
some type of rabid rodent.

“Just restrain it. I’ll take care of it later.”

Juniper wiped the sweat from her brow. There were
about six Bouncing Bulbs that they had caught. She had the perfect spot in her
greenhouse for them, and she had been considering growing them anyway. They
would need about a bathtub’s worth of neutral soil each, but she knew she would
have enough room. With a little bit of Centaur’s tears, she knew they’d make
lovely additions to her plant family.

Just as Juniper finally began to relax, making plans
for her beautiful new Bouncing Bulbs, a witch ran up to her.

“You have to see this. We were clearing out that
Devil’s Snare when we found something… I don’t know what it is; I didn’t see
it. But Miss Patil said she’d seen it before and that it was bad news, and
since you’ve been so helpful, Miss… err…”

“Trimble,” said Delia quickly. “Her name is Juniper
Trimble.”

“Yes, Miss Trimble. Would you mind having a look? We
would all feel better if you did.”

Juniper headed back down to the gazebo, wondering
what could be the matter. First a
Bubotuber, then Devil’s Snare, and now this?

The witch pointed to a crawl-space under the gazebo,
which was slightly singed from the efforts of various Ministry witches and
wizards working to destroy the Devil’s Snare. Among the charred, dead remains
of the vicious plant, she saw another witch with dark hair holding a pot
containing what looked, for a moment, like a tobacco plant.

“No… No, it can’t be…” Juniper just shook her head. What is THAT doing here!?

“It’s a Mandrake, isn’t it?” asked the witch with
the pot. “We learned about them in second year Herbology, but…”

“Yes. Thank you. Please hand it over. I’ll take care
of this.” Juniper took the pot from the other witch, and walked out from under
the gazebo.

“What is it?” asked a young wizard curiously.

“It’s a Mandrake.”

Whispers spread throughout the partygoers. Kingsley
Shacklebolt looked even more dismayed, surely assuming this entire fiasco to be
some sort of underhanded political shenanigans.

“I know this is a long shot, but would anyone happen
to have some aquatandisu potion? It should stop the Mandrake from hurting
anyone.”

Suddenly, Delia was at Juniper’s side, with a large
container full of liquid.

“I had made a batch for some important Potions
Association business, but I think we need it more right now.”

“That was fast.”

Delia just shrugged. “I guess we’re lucky.”

“Alright,” said Juniper, licking her lips nervously.
“I need everyone to stay away from the gazebo. I’m going to do this underneath,
but no one can even be within earshot. This thing is going to scream very
loudly, and I can’t risk anyone hearing it.”

All of the partygoers walked far away, conversing loudly
amongst themselves for fear of hearing the screams of the Mandrake.

Juniper, meanwhile, went underneath the gazebo. She
pulled her earmuffs out of her apron pocket, feeling fortunate that Delia
suggested she bring them. Securing them tightly to her head, she pulled the
Mandrake out of its pot, immediately submerging it in the potion that Delia had
prepared.

The hideous, humanoid root fell silent almost as
soon as it had begun to scream and, after a few seconds of intense flailing, it
lay permanently immobile. It was harmless, now, and Juniper was proud of her
speed and skill.

She grabbed the Mandrake and returned to the party,
holding the Mandrake triumphantly by its leaves. She tossed it to Delia, with a
laugh. “Here! Use this for something good. Maybe a sleeping potion? I think we
might not need it, though, after all this excitement!”

“I’m really sorry about how much of a disaster this
party was, Junie. I was actually thinking about heading out. It’s just been bad
luck after bad luck today!”

“Tell me about it! Yeah, there’s no sense in
staying.”

Juniper stood awkwardly as Delia said goodbye to her
colleagues, and then the two women disapparated, ready for a long rest after
such a dangerous adventure.