Chapter 4: The Ministry of Magic?
Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.
It sounded like a clock. As the pendulum of the metronome swayed, back and forth, it felt as if the whole world was turning before Harry's eyes. He had a headache. He was seeing double. He couldn't stand anymore. The ticking was growing louder, invading his mind. As Harry knelt on the floor, screwing his eyes closed and clamping his hands over his ears, so did the others. He felt a swooshing sensation, almost like wind.
The ticking stopped.
He checked on the others. Ginny, Ron, and Hermione were all on the floor with him.
"Merlin. What was that?" Ron asked.
Ginny rubbed her temples. "Did anyone else hear a really loud ticking?" They all nodded.
"It was that thing, the metronome." Harry pointed to it. It was on the floor between them, its pendulum still and resolute. "It's the only thing in here that makes that noise."
"How cool," Ron gasped in awe, "A metro-thingy that cleans your room."
Hermione rolled her eyes. "Ronald, it's called a metronome, firstly. Secondly- what are you talking about?"
"Look!"
It was the first time that Harry had really looked at his surroundings since Hermione had dropped the metronome. All of the clutter had disappeared: there were no longer Japanese tea sets and boxes of Quidditch gear and gobstone kits. The room was almost completely empty, aside from two brooms, some cleaning supplies, and four boxes stacked neatly in the corner labeled 'Property of the Department of Magical Transportation'. Every surface of the room looked neat, dusted, and orderly.
Ginny's eyes grew wide. "All of the boxes- where did they go?"
"I told you," Ron insisted, "That thing cleans rooms. Probably something from Magical Maintenance."
"It's not from Magical Maintenance," Hermione murmured. She was holding the metronome upside down, "There's an engraving here- 'Department of Mysteries'." She bit her lip. "This is serious. The Department of Mysteries only deals with top secret and dangerous projects."
"We don't know if it's dangerous," Ron said.
"But we don't know that it's harmless either," Ginny argued, "Just because something looks nice doesn't mean it is. And this is coming from someone who's been possessed by a book talking to someone who's been attacked by a brain."
"Then what should we do?"
"We need to give this to Kingsley," said Hermione, "The Minister for Magic should know that something from the Department of Mysteries has been misplaced. They might even have been looking for it. It might be important."
At these words, they all headed for the door.
"Wait!" Harry shouted. "How do we know we're still in the same room? For all we know, we could be somewhere else."
"There's only one way to find out," Ron answered softly. He pulled open the door and looked down the hall, then turned back and nodded. "We're still in the storeroom."
"Let's go," said Harry.
"Where's Kingsley's office?" Ginny asked.
"Level one," the trio chorused. They headed down the corridor, straight for the lift.
"Wait a minute." Hermione looked behind her. "Ron, what are you doing?"
Ron had straggled behind, standing in front of an enchanted window. Sun was streaming through the window, lighting up a patch of the carpet. "Wasn't it raining when we first got in?"
"Ron, it's enchanted. Maintenance can change it whenever they want. Now, come on!"
The four of them entered the lift and pressed level one, but it descended to level five. "Department of International Magical Cooperation," said the cool female voice, "Including the International Magical Trading Standards Body, the International Magic Office of Law, and the International Confederation of Wizards, British seats." Two witches entered the lift in animated conversation.
"Can't we protest or something? Merlin, he is such a pig, making us work today."
"Want to grab a Muggle coffee, Agnes? Nobody will notice. It is Sunday, after all."
"Um, isn't Sunday tomorrow?" Ron interjected, "Today's April third, so it would be Saturday."
The two women turned to him. The one named Agnes smiled sympathetically, "The boss working you hard too, eh? I understand: it happens to me all the time, mixing up the days. Today's Sunday, the third of April."
"Level three," the cool voice finally said, "Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes, home of the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad, Obliviator Headquarters, and Muggle-Worthy Excuse Committee." A couple of memos flew into the lift.
"Dennis is on level three," Agnes tittered to her friend, "Should we ask him to join us?"
Her friend blushed, "Let's go." The two women scurried out of the lift, and the doors closed again.
"Did I get mixed up?" Ron asked, "Is it Sunday today?"
"No," said Hermione, "Easter Sunday is tomorrow. Today's Saturday."
"Then why did they say-"
"Level Two: Department of Magical Law Enforcement, including the Improper Use of Magic Office, Wizengamot Administration Services, Auror Headquarters, and Muggle Protection Office."
"I've never heard of the Muggle Protection Office," Harry said.
Hermione frowned. "That's because there isn't one."
This time several people entered the lift, including a dark-haired man in a trench coat, two wizards holding biting jewelry boxes, and a witch holding a set of glowing green handcuffs.
One of the men with the jewelry boxes addressed Hermione, "Good afternoon, Madam Mi-" The man suddenly looked surprised. "Sorry, young lady, I thought you were someone else." He turned back to his colleague, clearly embarrassed.
"Level one: Minister for Magic and Support Staff, including Senior Undersecretary and Junior Assistant to the Minister for Magic."
"This is us," Harry said. The four of them strode out swiftly, heading down the corridor.
Hermione led the group down a thick purple carpet. "Kingsley's office should be this way." Enchanted windows cast their cheerful sunrays, making the purple fibers of the carpet sparkle. The level looked almost deserted. Harry looked around. There was nobody behind them, but he had the chilling feeling that they were being watched.
"Hey, look at this," Ginny said. The three of them turned around. She was looking at a silver plaque posted on a large mahogany door. The same door, Harry realized, that was once the entrance to Umbridge's office. "Kingsley must have hired a new Senior Undersecretary."
"What do you mean?" Hermione inquired, "The Ministry currently doesn't have a Senior Undersecretary or a Junior Assistant. Kingsley's been so busy after the War that he hasn't named them yet."
"Looks like he has now," Ron said, pointing to the plaque, "Dina Knox, whoever she is."
Harry saw a flash of something out of the corner of his eye, but when he turned to look at it, it was gone. It still seemed like they were the only ones in the corridor.
"We shouldn't go to Kingsley," Harry decided.
The three of them looked at him confusedly. "Why not?" Ginny asked.
"There's something wrong, didn't you notice? Everything's been off since we got out of that storeroom: the departments, the days of the week, even the goddamn windows are different."
"Maybe Kingsley can help," Ron reasoned.
"But what if Kingsley isn't there? What if whatever we did with the metronome changed something, and he isn't there anymore?"
"This might not even be the real Ministry," Ginny thought aloud, "It could be- I don't know- a dream, or something."
"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Hermione said, "It is very possible that Maintenance changed the windows, the overworked ladies in the lift were confused, and Kingsley put in departmental changes while we were in the storeroom. All of those things have completely logical explanations."
"I think we should wait, Hermione," Harry insisted, "We should try to figure out exactly what the metronome does before we show it to other people. We might be walking into some kind of trap."
Hermione looked frustrated. "Harry, there is no-" In a flash of red light, she sank to the floor, unconscious. Before they could respond, they were struck in the back. As Harry's eyes closed and consciousness left him, all he could see was the blurred outline of a man, standing over them all.
A dark-haired man in a long trench coat.
End of Chapter 4! This chapter is, admittedly, shorter than the others. I had an idea of where I wanted this chapter to go, but didn't realize that it would end so quickly. I promise the next one will be longer! And I would love to hear what you think is going to happen next!