Chapter VII: The Second Hunt

Last time:

Ron tossed and turned, hardly noticing how his dreams were affecting him. In them he and Hermione were rowing (again) but then the scene turned passionate. He woke with a start when Hermione hit him with her pillow, then asking if he'd had a nightmare. He was grateful for the darkness, as he was sure his ears and cheeks were burning red.

He fell asleep again easily enough, and this time had a much more romantic dream about the girl he loved. They were kissing, and it was just after the battle. Everyone around them was in the midst of high celebration. Suddenly they were in a room, alone, confessing their undying love for one another. Little did he know, but Hermione was having the same dream. Ron woke to find her still sleeping, a smile on her face. He watched as her eyes fluttered open, and her cheeks instantly turned pink at finding him staring at her.

"Morning." He said.

"Good morning, Ron. Is Harry up yet?" She paused, then heard the light snored made by their best friend. "Oh, well, I guess I'll just get up. We should get an early start before going to the University."

"What about the locket? Shouldn't we try and figure out how to destroy it?"

Hermione thought for a moment. They had already discussed this. None of them really knew how to destroy the Horcrux pieces, just that they needed to do so. Hermione wondered if Ernand could help out with this, and hoped he would contact her soon so that she could ask. The only thing they knew for certain was that they were going to have to be even more careful with the item until doing so. But then, wasn't what they were doing dangerous enough? And what would be the next Horcrux to search for?

It was during their tour at the Universidad that Hermione felt her necklace again. This time the signal was much stronger and, thankfully, the trio were at the end of their last tour. Hermione had wanted to save the library for last, and they were just about to exit the library doors when she felt it.

"Er, guys, I forgot that I wanted to check something out at the gardens before we go back down the hill."

She knew what their response would be. In fact, she was counting on it.

"But Mione, I'm hungry!" Ron started. "It's already past noon."

"I know, I'll meet the two of you down at the pizza café, all right?" She replied.

Harry looked at her, and she wasn't sure if he was curious or suspicious. "You think it's safe?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "It's Saturday. There are dozens of people around. Of course it is. I'll just linger behind another group." She lied.

The boys seemed to believe her. "But you'll be down soon, right Mione? We have to check out by one."

"Then you two go do that and I'll meet you at the café entrance."

The two boys nodded then headed down the hill. Hermione waited for a group to head toward the gardens, and seemingly followed them. She slowed her pace as the group entered through the gate, leaving it open for her. Hermione smiled at the last to pass through, an elderly gentleman.

Once inside, she glanced around, pass a glance at the direction the boys went. They were no longer in sight. When she turned she found Ernand right in front of her. He took hold of her chin and kissed her passionately. Time stopped as she melted into the kiss, feeling her knees go weak again, as they had during the first.

Knowing that this wasn't the time to speak pleasantries Ernand cut to the chase. "Did you find it?" He asked. He led her by the hand over to a nearby bench. The two sat, as if lovers enjoying the gardens (AN: I was there…plenty of smooching couples).

She nodded as he leaned into her ear in order to whisper.

"I cannot stay long, I have actually projected myself here. My human form is in limbo where I left it."

"Which is where?"

Ernand frowned. "Somewhere I cannot disclose to you yet. There is still work to be done, but I have a lead on the next two Horcrux. We're going after one. The other, I thought I should tell you about. But you will need to move quickly. The next bus leaves Coimbra at three. You will need to start traveling to Budapest. There is a castle near the Piatra Craiului forest region, quite abandoned by appearances."

He stopped so that he could kiss her again. Hermione wasn't sure if it was because of need, or because more tourists walked by. Perhaps both, she thought.

Once they were gone, he continued. "You cannot enter the castle by the gates, Voldemort may have guards posted there. We believe it is where he has hidden the cup once belonging to Helga Hufflepuff. However, back in the 15th Century there were rumors of a tunnel built for escape reasons some 500 years before that. It is said that it leads to a pass between two mountains, the names were not given by my source. Find the entrance, and you will find a safer route into the castle."

"But what if Voldemort knows of this tunnel?"

Ernand smirked. "He does not. I only know through another wraith. He swears that no one has used the tunnel in at least 300 years. If the Dark Lord knew of it, he would have used it by now. Once you arrive in Budapest, contact me through your necklace."

"How do I do that? You never told me how I can."

"Think of me. Picture me in your mind, but make sure your physical self is in a safe place. You will then project a part of yourself to wherever I am." He paused for a moment, Hermione wondered if perhaps he knew she would likely see who he was working with. "I plan to contact you nightly once you enter the forest. It will be several days journey. Now, you remember your trip to the Americas?"

Hermione nodded.

"Good. I recall you went camping with your parents, and it wasn't your first time." Hermione nodded again. "Make use of what you know about surviving in the woods. You will need it. Now, I must go." He leaned in and kissed her one more time. He couldn't tell her what being in a physical body was doing to him. He missed her. He'd never missed anyone before.

Hermione smiled at him then bid him goodbye. There was no one around, and he simply vanished before her.

That evening, when the three arrived in Lisbon and new decision had been made. Harry had already known about a Horcrux possibly located in Eastern Europe, and wanted to question why Hermione was set on Budapest but she simply told him that she had found enough information while doing her research.

"But why didn't you tell us this before, Hermione?" Harry had asked.

"Because we were coming here." Hermione simply stated. Harry frowned, but left it alone for the time being. He and Ron were used to Hermione knowing everything before they did, so why bother now?

The new plans came into play at the terminal when they saw the exhaustive schedule to Budapest, which would take a week. Unless they took the train. That's when Hermione had the idea.

"We'll borrow a car."

"But Mione, we don't have papers or credit to rent one. And wouldn't our names appear on the papers?"

"They would if we were to rent one. And as far as our names, we have to show documents in most countries anyway." She didn't remind Harry that they had charmed their passports to give false names. "Besides, I said borrow, not rent."

The two boys looked at her in question. She rolled her eyes. "I have family in France. My cousin will loan us his. He hardly uses it, anyway. I'll call him now and tell him when to meet us at the station near his house. This way you two can organize our gear while I'm driving."

Ron stared at her as if finally paying attention to her and Harry. "You drive?"

"Of course I do! Why else would we borrow a car?"

Ron shrugged.

"Now, you two need to apparate back to England for the rest of our gear. I suggest we do it at my cousin's. Likely we'll need to rest, so I'll cover for you while you're gone."

The three then settled into their seats while waiting for the next bus. They had arrived in Lisbon at 7pm, and the next and last bus to France left at 10pm. It was going to be another long night.

Hermione was right (again). Her cousin was more than willing to lend her his car. She promised to have it tuned and full of gas when she returned it, and kindly let him know that she wasn't sure how long that would be.

Jean had shrugged. "It's not like I'll be using it until returning to University in September, so as long as I have it by then, I'm good." He said in a thick, French accent.

Jean knew nothing of his cousin being a witch, and so it had been more difficult "hiding" the missing presence of the boys while they went back to the Burrow for their "survival" gear. Jean kept wanting to bring the boys food or a drink while they were resting, being the good host and all, but Hermione kept distracting him until she heard a crack, knowing they'd finally returned.

"What was that?" Jean asked.

"What was what?" Hermione said, batting her eyes as it hearing nothing.

Jean shook his head. "I must have had too much to drink last night."

Hermione laughed. "Or enough right now!" She then excused herself to take her own rest, and by dusk the three were finally on their way.

Ron and Harry kept wanting to help Hermione drive, but she wouldn't hear of it. "No, the only driving you two have done is in a flying car, and besides, the car was entrusted in my care, not yours."

By midnight the girl was too tired to drive anymore, and so they stopped off for a few hours rest before starting again. Harry had sat up in watch, Ron taking over once they needed to stop again. This continued until they finally made it to Budapest, where they stopped for a hearty meal and to buy a map that contained information about the forest regions. Hermione went over it while they ate, and found a good spot to park the car. "Luckily it's one of the few areas in Europe where people can enjoy good camping and backpacking, so we won't be alone and the car won't stick out." She explained.

The boys simply nodded, neither really knowing what muggle camping was like. But they had all stayed in a tent before, and worn a framed backpack, except for Hermione who had gone backpacking and owned an internal frame. They also stopped to buy extra food supplies and filled up their water containers. They bought a large one, and shrunk it as they'd already done with the other large and heavier items.

After camping at the trailhead the first night, the trio set off after an early breakfast. Each lifted their packs onto their backs, struggling as they tried to adjust the weight. They weren't heavy for Hermione, who was rather used to lugging around heavy tombs and muggle books, but still weighed a good thirty to forty pounds each (Don't ask me to change metric system – and usually packs can start off much heavier so they have it easy).

Ron had helped Hermione read the map the night before, and he was able to point out that only two mountains seemed to form a pass that was likely the best mark for a hidden tunnel. Hermione and Harry agreed, and so the trio had determined their first course. It was over ten miles away (that I know is 16 kilometers – hah!). The two mountains peaks were visible from their starting point, and snow capped each peak. Not knowing how much snow they would have to trek through, they figured the pass could take one or two days to reach.

As luck was on their side, they found the pass the first day scattered with a only a few snow patches. The rest was free and clear and they could set to work. Hermione took out her wand and cast a shield so that no one could see them from a distance. It was a weak shield, but no sense setting off any alarms. Even though Ernand had promised her that Voldemort knew nothing of the tunnel.

By the time the sun was starting to set they had found nothing. Hermione was frustrated and looked at the map again. Then a thought struck her. Ernand had told her the tunnel led to a pass between two mountains. He never said that the entrance would be in the pass. Looking up at the two peaks around them, she saw that one seemed rather flat while the other had large boulders scattered about. Was the entrance hidden higher in the second mountain?

She quickly shared her thoughts with the boys, who agreed that they needed to search higher. If they still found nothing, then they would find route to a lesser seeming pass. As darkness settled, they decided to have supper and start again early in the morning.

They had set up their tent lower in the trees, and made their way down the hill to begin cooking. Just then Hermione felt her necklace. Ernand was calling her.

"You boys start, I need to, er,…"

"No problem, Mione. We'll take care of things here." Ron told her as Harry fetched their food.

Hermione nodded and took some toilet paper wrapped inside a plastic bag with her. She wound her way through some trees and found Ernand waiting for her. He smirked.

"Going to the loo, 'Mione'?"

Hermione frowned. "That's Ron's name for me."

"You're not his, yet." He growled as he took her into another mind-blowing kiss. "Just remember that. We still have one night together."

Hermione felt shaken. Was Ernand jealous? Wasn't that not of his nature as a Wraith? She remembered him telling her that taking a human form meant he had to endure certain physical changes. Had his emotions started to evolve as well? She shook her head from the thought. There was nothing to be done for it now, but the sooner they found all the Horcrux and destroyed them, then she could go on with her life.

Hermione quickly updated Ernand on where things stood. He nodded, then agreed that going higher was a good move. "Look for anything unusual, perhaps something that would keep people from sight when immediately entering or exiting the tunnel."

They talked for a few more brief minutes, and then he was gone. Hermione took the time to actually go to the bathroom, and then returned where the boys had supper already cooking.