Chapter Seven
What Lies Within
Hermione reached out a trembling hand ... and the wall moved.
Harry stared at Hermione who was now feverishly flipping through pages and pages of the numerous books she had brought back with her, now strewn across Ron's bed in a heap.
"You know where it is?" he repeated disbelievingly.
Hermione looked up. "There is so much history to this place! But it's all sort of … spread about, in different books and records, so that if you only looked at it once, you wouldn't think that the village was special at all …"
"I went to look up Gryffindor first, but I didn't get very far – there was nothing really about him that we didn't already know, you know, having founded the school, one of the four greatest wizards of the age, it said something about his quarrel with Slytherin, you know, blah, blah."
Ron and Harry glanced at each other with raised eyebrows; they had seriously reached a point of drastic prioritising if it caused Hermione to say 'blah' when referring to revered facts about one of the founders. She ignored their expressions.
"The only thing written that we didn't know was that some believed Gryffindor to be some kind of Prophet who sensed things to happen in the future – he didn't make any specific or radical predictions, so I don't know how much of it is true … but it's worth noting."
She picked up one book entitled The History of Wizarding Dwellings.
"This book … here," she said, indicating to a specific page and pointing to a line. "It clearly states that there was a week of search parties surrounding Godric's Hollow about seventy years ago … but they don't seem to know what for – it just details recently a great interest in something unknown that some select villagers were searching for."
She threw the book aside and picked up another, a much older and battered book than the previous one with a peeling, crusty cover.
"This one actually gives a specific date where there was a rush of interest in some sort of treasure hunt …conducted by some old expert in those times …"
"Sounds like the same sort of search party," said Harry thinking hard, trying to digest Hermione's words.
"That's exactly what I thought – but neither book reports that anything was found …"
"Does it say where they were searching?" asked Ron.
Hermione delved again into the pile of records looking extremely knowledgeable. "Well … because it gave a date, I went into the archives section of the library and pulled out some old newspaper reports … there was one, here –"and she pulled out one single sheet of yellowing parchment, "comments on an excavation in Godric's Woods, on the edge of the village, next to that church, remember?"
"Yeah," said Harry slowly, still not getting it.
"Now," Hermione continued, "just because I had an idea about why Gryffindor would chose this place I looked up 'magical occurrences and disturbances'in the directory and the index in the library and there were only three major events in the year of 923 A.D, which was when that excavation was –"
"What major events?"
Hermione found the correct record and pulled it out, handing it to Harry. His eyes travelled down the paper.
"It documents events as magical disturbances – that is to say, not done by wizards. The first was a day of shooting stars hitting earth somewhere in Putteridgebury, and later on somewhere a village spontaneously turned green … but they're not important. I found that there were reports of what could only be described as a vortex, somewhere where people would come to be healed …some said they were cured of serious ailments and afflictions here … they couldn't explain it, but almost that this phenomenon was almost shamanistic."
She paused at the look on their faces.
"That means it was a naturally good place – good as in the absence of evil. It was perfect – if it's true, of course."
"Where was this event documented?" Harry asked.
"Well, I didn't know at first, because before Gryffindor came here, the village went under a different name – in fact there was a record of the name being changed in 923 A.D when Gryffindor founded the village –"
"– He founded the village?" Ron said incredulously.
"Yes, I was just getting to that – so that's why they called it Godric's Hollow … of course, if the legend is true, then Gryffindor was leaving a clue about why he founded it, but of course people wouldn't make that connection, would they? They would have just accepted the name he chose because he founded it."
"So how do we know that this place was the vortex if the village went under a different name?"
Hermione smiled smugly. "Because," she said with pride, "I can translate Ancient Runes.
Harry and Ron waited patiently whilst Hermione basked in the advantages of taking Ancient Runes as a subject.
"The vortex was supposedly in a place called Norte Dominez Vibestian –"
"That sounds ominous," Ron muttered.
"But if translated it reads as North Tower Village … which is what Godric's Hollow was called before the name changed."
With a satisfied smile, Hermione looked from Harry to Ron who were beaming at her.
"You are amazing …" Harry said aloud, before he went on. "So … going back to this excavation in Godric's Wood – you reckon that's where the Hollow will be?"
Hermione nodded. "If we put it all together – it makes sense. If Gryffindor left something that supposedly helped to rid the world of evil, then it would make sense to leave it in a place with healing spiritual qualities. And having a hollow in a wood is fairly plausible."
Harry nodded, momentarily too astounded at Hermione's brilliance to say anything else.
"So, we're going –?"
"– to the woods."
- - - - - -
The day had worn on to a later time than any of them had realised, and by the time they were setting out through the village, it was past 6pm.
"Do you think perhaps we should wait until tomorrow?" asked Ron who was eying the pinkish tinge in the sky.
Hermione answered before Harry did. "No! We have to try now."
Harry agreed. Now they were so close he wanted to get as much of a move on as he could. Every now and again, sheer curiosity often hid the main objective of his journey – he was so caught up in the history of Godric Gryffindor that once or twice he had to remind himself that this would all enable him to kill the most evil wizard of all time.
They rounded the final corner on the main street and past the church. There was a fairly steep in-climb up a hill behind the church and it was here that the trees began.
It was hard work moving up the hill as every now and again there was a really steep bit where Ron often gave the others a leg up before clambering up himself with his long limbs. However before long they were truly inside the wood with most of the late afternoon light blocked out.
It was unlike the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts in the sense that the trees were much taller, yet no less thick, and the floor was pleasantly springy here and there with pine needles. As they trod a deeper path however the track disappeared and the ground became increasingly muddy.
Harry turned to Hermione, who was currently negotiating a particularly stubborn bramble bush.
"Was there anywhere specific the books mentioned?"
Hermione considered. "Something about the deepest thicket – I would guess that that means in the middle, but it's not a very big wood so we should keep our eyes open for anything –"
"What exactly are we looking for?" said Ron ducking a low branch.
"A kind of dip in the ground I suppose, like a cavity," Harry answered, hoping his idea of a hollow was similar to Gryffindor's.
"But there are loads of those under foot."
Harry looked down – true, the ground was uneven and potholed in places, but none were big enough that warranted investigation. "A big one; or just anything that catches your eye."
They moved onwards cautiously. The light had faded fast and visibility was becoming progressively more difficult. Harry took out his wand and muttered "Lumos," before pocketing it again.
Ten minutes slowly turned into twenty as the wood became steadily darker. They gradually moved towards what they thought must be the heart of the wood, surely, as they had been walking now for at least half an hour straight in the same direction. Even though the trees were tall, the brambles and bushes were less easy to pass and before long, all three of them had scratches on their arms and sweaty faces, mud filling up their shoes.
"I could try a Locator Spell," Hermione suggested. "It would reveal anything that shouldn't naturally be here."
Harry and Ron nodded, their knees beginning to hurt as they had been gradually walking down a deceptive hill for the last five minutes.
"Revellious!" Hermione said clearly, pointing her wand into the darkness of the thicket. There was a small pop, like a bottle being opened, and then a flash of electric blue light that stung their eyelids before it faded.
After a few seconds, Hermione shook her head. "Nothing – but that doesn't mean it's not here," she added looking at their crestfallen faces. "That spell only focuses on the surface – the hollow might be hidden from the naked eye."
"That's good then," said Ron sarcastically.
"Well there's nothing I can do about it Ron, it's not my fault the spell can't search to the entire core of the earth –"
"– I never said it was!"
"It's not like you've had any other bright ideas –"
"- Guys," Harry said suddenly, not only because he was tired of their bickering but because he was just realising what they were standing in. He indicated with a shaky arm all around them.
It took a few seconds for both Ron and Hermione to see it, but when they did, Hermione gasped, "Oh my!" and Ron exclaimed "Bloody hell!"
The slope that they had been walking down before coming to a halt had finally flattened out. Harry pointed all around them and, though it was dark, they could see that all around them the earthy banks rose upwards. Without even realising it, they had just walked into a massive bowl.
Ron let out a nervous laugh. Harry couldn't understand why it had taken him so long to note that something was different as there was, now he looked, a significantly reduced number of trees and springy turf underneath.
"Well, this is certainly a large hollow," Hermione noted, suddenly looking down at her feet as though hoping to see something directly underneath them.
Ron glanced around him looking ghostly under his wand light. "How can anything be built here? There's nothing."
Harry privately agreed with Ron that there couldn't be anything here, but this was the biggest hollow he had ever seen, and it couldn't be coincidence that there was one like it within Godric's Wood.
"Let's split up and have a look around," he said.
The others moved away and began walking around the edge of the surface area of the basin-like landmark, scrutinising every odd clump of earth, every nearby tree, anything unusual.
Harry peered around where he stood and having no trees nearby to examine, he dropped to his knees and felt the earth beneath his feet. It was damp, just as the other earth outside the hollow had been. He scooped up a clump and felt beneath, to see if there was anything solid, but there wasn't. All he had now was blackened fingernails.
He moved away from his original spot and walked over to where Ron was looking very closely at a tree.
"There's something sticky on this tree, it's not natural," he said.
"It's called resin, Ronald," retorted Hermione from over the other side without even looking over. She was also examining the earth.
Harry moved towards the middle of the hollow and the floor beneath him suddenly felt quite different.
"It's quite springy here," he shouted over to them, walking over the earth. "It's not like the other ground, it's almost like there's something –"
But he never finished his sentence because the ground suddenly disappeared beneath him.
Scrambling uselessly against the abrupt lack of ground, Harry received a face full of earth and knew a moment of terror before he sank into a large pit. It took him a minute before he realised that he was actually sliding down a smooth surface before he came to a bumpy stop at the bottom of what had acted as his slide.
He could hear Ron and Hermione's anguished cries from somewhere above him as he struggled gingerly to his feet and checked to see that everything still worked. He turned to see that his slide was actually a large and very long trapdoor, which had been concealed within the earth nearby roots, and had opened the second he had stepped on it.
"Harry! Oh, Harry, are you all right?" came Hermione's desperate voice from above.
Harry peered upwards and could see daylight coming from where the door was hanging open. Ron and Hermione were both peering cautiously into the hole.
"I'm OK," he called up to them. "Really, I'm fine."
He examined the ancient door again.
"If you're very careful and sit down first you can probably slide down this door to the bottom."
As Ron and Hermione deliberated about how to get down, Harry looked around for the first time at where he had landed.
He seemed to be in some kind of underground chamber. It was like a circular room with stone walls, only beneath the earth. Harry looked above him once more and saw that roots were trailing from the ceiling too. The musty and decaying smell told Harry that this was a very old chamber, possibly not entered for hundreds of years.
Ron slid down the trap door first, followed closely by Hermione who uttered a slight squeal before she lit her wand.
"What is this place?" she said fearfully, getting to her feet and brushing down her skirt.
Harry took in a musty breath. "I think it's Godric's Hollow, Hermione."
"But I don't get it," said Ron confusedly. "I walked over that spot! Twice!"
Hermione nodded. "Yes, so did I."
"So how come you fell through it?" Ron said.
Harry shrugged. "You both weakened the ground I guess," Harry said moving around the chamber, excitement mounting in his chest … they had found it … but where was the Horcrux?
But Ron and Hermione continued to look doubtful.
Ron touched the walls, withdrawing his hand immediately. "They're slimy!" he said disgusted, looking to the green tinged walls.
Hermione reached out a trembling hand to touch the wall nearest her … and the wall moved.
With a terrible crunching sound, like the sound of heavy metal grinding against hard stone, the wall moved slowly backwards.
Hermione had jumped back into Ron's arms, startled, but Harry moved instantly forwards to what the wall had revealed: a small, dark opening into which Harry squeezed through.
"Be careful, Harry!" Hermione warned, and both she and Ron followed him cautiously.
As they moved into what was a second chamber, smaller than the first, they noticed that it was filled with a faint silvery light. Harry's heart was pounding in his chest and his breath hung as fog in front of him by the light of his wand … could this be it? He could hear Ron and Hermione's shaky breathing behind him. It was only when Harry turned in a full circle and looked on the back of the recently moving wall that he saw it.
Written in a very old hand so that it was only just discernable was a message written in a silvery ink that had not faded in the slightest:
To He Who Hath Found This Place,
Know Your Truth …
… And Use It Well.
Ron's face was screwed up. "What on earth's that mean?" he said.
Harry read and re-read the message that had been emitting the silvery glow through and through, a sinking feeling beginning to settle within the pit of his stomach. As soon as he had entered this room, he had known that there was no Horcrux to be found. Save this glowing message, the room was as empty as the first.
Hermione's expression was similar to Ron's. "Know your truth … what does that mean? Is it some kind of a clue?"
"What truth though?" said Harry dully. "This message doesn't tell us anything …"
"Except that seeing as this place is over hundreds of years old the message is surprisingly bright … that must mean that Gryffindor knew it needed to be long lasting, so someone in the future could find it …"
"Maybe someone beat us to it?" suggested Ron.
Hermione muttered the message quickly under her breath, as though trying different ways of saying it. After a few minutes with all of them staring at the message, she spoke.
"I just don't know, Harry, I don't understand it."
"Why did Gryffindor go to all of this trouble," Ron said, indicating to the chamber around him, "and just leave that? I mean, what use is that if you don't know the truth?"
"It says specifically, your truth," Hermione continued, "So it must relate to one specific person. It also addresses it to He."
"That doesn't necessarily mean anything though," said Harry in a flat voice. "Back in those days … it will have been a patriarchal society anyway."
They continued to stare at the wall in a stony silence that stretched for an uncomfortable amount of time. Harry felt that to speak would be to admit that there truly was nothing here to be found; that they had made the exciting trip for nothing. Soon, he could bear it no longer.
"There's nothing here. Let's go."
There was an angry bite to his voice as he turned on his heel and walked out of the hidden chamber. He had been so sure that he would find Voldemort's Horcrux here … something of Gryffindor's … well wasn't this the most obvious place to hide it?He knew, even as he walked away, that it wasn't going to be that easy … but all the same, he had felt so close …
Ron and Hermione exchanged a glance and followed in his wake, all three of them with a somewhat defeated sound echoing in their steps.