And again, fredfred deserves huge thanks for betaing. His help has improved the story a lot.

Chapter 21: The Break

'That the Magical World has trouble with crimes that cross national borders should not come as a surprise to anyone. Unlike the muggle world, there are a great deal fewer international treaties. The first and most important treaty is the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. And to this day, it remains the only treaty that every wizarding nation enforces. The Accords of Versailles, which govern trade, were only signed by a majority of the wizarding nations, and their enforcement cannot be described as anything other than 'spotty'. And with many wizarding countries practising slavery, just the varying interpretations of what exactly is covered by the Accords' 'stolen property' clauses are enough to occupy dozens of diplomats in perpetuity - and theft is a crime which was supposed to be regulated by that treaty.

When it comes to other crimes, though, the differences are even more pronounced than those concerning theft. Even between neighbouring nations, the definitions of crimes, even capital crimes, rarely overlap overly much. Many British wizards and witches would be surprised - and horrified - that the Unforgivables aren't actually deemed unforgivable in large parts of the New World. Killing someone in a duel is considered murder in some countries, manslaughter in others and perfectly legal in a third group of countries. Add to that the fact that many countries, de jure or de facto, treat the same crime very differently depending on the criminal's power and influence, and even the worst dark wizards often only need to travel abroad in order to be safe from pursuit by a country's law enforcement authorities - provided, of course, that their new abode's laws and borders are respected by the authorities of their country of origin. The Intervention in 1955 proved that beyond any doubt when Albus Dumbledore went to great lengths to demonstrate his views on the legality of slavery in the Ottoman Empire and his respect for the Empire's laws. Or, as was the case, his utter lack thereof.

But even countries not blessed with the support of the likes of Albus Dumbledore have the means to see their laws enforced in foreign, even hostile, countries. When a foreign country refuses to prosecute or extradite a wanted suspect and the law enforcement of your country cannot intervene without risking an international conflict, bounty hunters present an, often expensive, but politically and diplomatically acceptable, alternative. As they are unaffiliated private citizens, a bounty hunter's actions cannot be laid at another country's feet. However, as a result of that separation, even though it's merely a convenient fiction in some cases, bounty hunters are generally treated as common criminals when they get into trouble with the law - which happens to almost every one of them in their line of work. It's not unheard of for a bounty hunter to have a bounty placed on their own head after a particularly spectacular or violent capture of a wanted suspect - one of the reasons that the profession has a bigger churn rate than Curse-Breaking.'

- Excerpt from 'International Law in the Wizarding World' by Anna Wellford, London, 2000

Turkey, Istanbul, October 28th, 2001

Mallory jumped up when they entered the hotel suite, but hesitated a moment before asking: "What happened?"

Ron Weasley would have shrugged, but his broken arm was still stuck to his chest. "We were betrayed," he said instead.

"But you escaped," Mallory replied.

"Kavya didn't," Harry spat with a deep scowl. Ron saw Hermione put her hand on Harry's arm.

"Oh." Mallory cleared his throat. "So...?"

"The collection was moved," Ron told him before Harry blew up at the wizard. "And they prepared a trap for us in its former location. We barely managed to escape."

"Thanks to Kavya," Harry added. "Whom we left in the harem."

"We had no choice," Ari said. "And she told us to leave." The witch seemed unimpressed by Harry's glare. "It's true."

Ron's friend clenched his teeth and stomped off into his and Hermione's bedroom. Hermione glared at Ari, then followed him.

"It's not my fault," Ari muttered.

"I know," Ron told her. "He'll calm down after a while. It's just… he feels responsible for this since he got into contact with Kavya."

Ari huffed. "He's wrong. It was her decision."

Ron shrugged. "Doesn't mean he won't feel guilty."

Harry returned. "Leaving my emotional state aside, we need to move."

"What? Why?" Mallory asked. "Were you followed?"

"If we were, the Janissaries would already be storming the place," Harry retorted. "But we were betrayed, and we can't assume we're safe here."

Mallory frowned at him. "Are you accusing me?"

"No." Harry shook his head. "You'd have done a better job."

Or a much worse one, Ron thought. "It had to be the Storm Wizards," he said out loud. "They knew we were planning to steal the collection."

"But we didn't tell them where we lived, nor when we were going to head back to the palace to steal the collection," Ari pointed out.

"We can discuss this in a new location," Harry said. "We need to leave now."

Ron didn't think so, but arguing wouldn't solve anything. And they could easily camp somewhere.

"I have a campsite picked out," Hermione said. She probably had had it picked out since they'd arrived in Turkey. "I can take two of us there with Side-Along Apparition, and then you can go back to pick up the others while I clean up here."

"Clean up?"

"Remove every trace of ourselves." She scowled. "The palace has access to a blood mage. I recognised some of the curses cast on Kavya. I don't want to risk them calling in a houngan as well."

Mallory shuddered upon hearing that. "Let's go, then!"

A minute later, they were in a small cove by the sea… no, at a lake. Ron could see the other coast, and that wasn't salt water. "Let's put the wards up," he said, "while Harry and Hermione finish at the hotel." The tents could wait until they were safe and hidden.

Turkey, Lake Eğirdir, October 29th, 2001

"That's a really awful picture," Ron Weasley said, staring at the newspaper Harry had brought back from his trip back to Constantinople. "I sneer worse than Malfoy."

"I wouldn't worry about the picture, Ron," Hermione said as she glared at him. "I would worry about the fact that we're wanted for murder, arson, attempted regicide, attempted kidnapping, dark magic and armed robbery - under our real names." She tapped the newspaper with her finger, causing the pictures on the front page to flinch. They looked even worse like that, in Ron's opinion.

"How did they find out? We were disguised," Ari said without looking up from where she had apparently entered a staring contest with her own picture.

"Whoever betrayed us must have told them," Harry said.

"If the Storm Wizards had known about us, they would have prepared a better trap," Ron replied. "No…" He shook his head. "I don't think they saw through our disguises during the fighting, either. And Ari and Hermione were using Polyjuice Potion. That leaves Mallory..." He looked at Mallory's tent, where the older wizard was still asleep. "...or Kavya."

"She heard us talking to each other. We didn't use code names," Hermione said, biting her lower lip. "That was a stupid mistake. They must have caught and interrogated her."

Ron wasn't certain that they should exclude Mallory - but then, if he had betrayed them, why would he have done such a sloppy job? "Well, we aren't exactly professional thieves." That earned him another glare.

"Kavya is still alive?" Harry perked up.

"We can't go back and break into the palace again," Hermione said. "They won't let anyone in without a much more thorough check."

"But…" Harry pressed his lips together.

"Also, we have a worse problem," Ron pointed out. "They blame us for using the Dark Arts - Fiendfyre - and for robbery. Not attempted robbery."

"The Storm Wizards must have stolen the collection and used Fiendfyre on the palace. And framed us for all of it!" Hermione bared her teeth. "Those bloody bastards!" she hissed. "This is all their fault!"

Ron didn't think it would be a good idea to mention that they did commit at least attempted robbery and arson. "Mum's gonna go spare," he said instead.

Everyone winced. Even Ari.

Molly wouldn't be happy at all about this. The Caribbean affair had been bad enough, but this? They actually had broken into the New Palace and had fought the guards. For a good cause, of course, but still…

Hermione Granger sighed. "I think we need to leave the country. There's nothing we can do here."

"They could be lying about the stolen collection," Harry said. "And Kavya is still a prisoner."

And trying to get either would see them captured or killed. Or captured and killed. Or eaten by the Nundu, if Ari managed to free it. "The loss of his prized collection is a huge loss of face for the Sultan. He wouldn't lie about that," she said. "And we can't break into the palace again. They will be on the alert, they'll be patrolling around the clock and they'll be improving their wards and procedures."

"That means they won't be used to and familiar with the new procedures yet," Harry said.

"By the time we knew enough to think about breaking in, they would be settled in," Ron pointed out. "Mate, I hate to leave her there, but there's nothing we can do. Not now."

"Them," Ari said. "The Nundu needs to be rescued as well."

Hermione swallowed her retort. Ari just didn't understand how dangerous the beast was. Like Harry and snakes. At least Ron was on the ball and ran interference. "And we don't have the time to do anything, anyway," she pointed out. "We have to assume that the Storm Wizards managed to steal the collection and that that will allow them to find Atlantis. We need to find it before they do."

"We need to find it and secure it against them," Ron added. "And that will be a mite difficult if we're wanted for all the crimes of which the Ottomans accuse us."

"Dumbledore will solve both those problems," Harry said.

"People will claim he's protecting murderers," Hermione retorted.

He shook his head. "We tried to free a slave. Magical Europe won't care about the accusations - especially not France, Greece and Bulgaria."

"Most of them won't really care too much about a Naga," Hermione replied. "They're classified as magical beasts."

"Which is a damn injustice!" Harry spat. Ari nodded emphatically. "Too many wizards outside India are so prejudiced against snakes."

Not entirely without cause, Hermione thought but, of course, didn't say. "But even if that didn't matter, Dumbledore wouldn't be able to sort things out for us. The Ottoman Empire won't listen to him."

"They did in 1955, didn't they?" Ari asked.

"That was the Intervention. Dumbledore led half of Magical Europe's forces against the Ottomans to end their slave raiding. He won't be able to do that for us," Hermione explained.

"Yeah," Ron added, "I don't think the Sultan will retract the bounty on us."

There wasn't a bounty on their heads, not yet, Hermione knew, but it was only a matter of time. She nodded. "And it'll be a very high bounty, given that we supposedly set fire to half his palace and emptied one of his vaults."

"Which means almost every bounty hunter in the world will be after us," Ron said. "Unless we hide under Dumbledore's robes."

"That wouldn't be practical," Hermione said.

"Well, we could enchant a pocket with Extension Charms…" Ron trailed off and her glare.

She shook her head. "We need to find a safe place and crack the spells on the skull." And hope that the Atlantean ghost bound to it would know the way to Atlantis. He should, of course - unless he was obliviated of the knowledge. Which wasn't very likely.

"Stay here?" Ari asked. "No one would suspect that, right?"

"That might be a little too clever for our own good," Hermione replied, with a frown at Harry, who seemed to be considering this.

"Egypt, then," Harry said. "Help Auntie and the others."

Hermione bit her lower lip. That was an obvious plan, of course. Reunited with the others, they would be safer. But… Focusing on the skull while others were breaking into tombs would be hard. "We need to warn them, too. They might not have access to newspapers."

"Right!" Harry went towards their tent. "I'll write a letter for Hedwig."

"Where is the… bird?" Ari asked.

"She'll appear when he's done. She always does," Hermione said.

"Of course! She's the best post owl!" Harry yelled from the tent.

"And we'll need to explain things to Mum and Dumbledore," Ron said. "Before she goes spare."

"She knows us better than that," Hermione told him.

"I'll still have to write her," Ron said, entering the tent as well.

Ari looked at her.

"My parents are already aware of the danger posed by the Storm Wizards, and are taken care of." Bounty hunters coming after them wouldn't change much. "I'll add a letter to Ron's, for Molly or Arthur to pass on."

"If they go to my tribe, they'll regret it," Ari said, grinning.

Hermione chuckled, even though she knew Ari missed her tribe and family. But if the witch was making jokes about this, then the least she could do was to laugh at them.

Even or especially if she didn't feel like laughing at all, given their situation.

"I take it that we should vacate the premises, so to speak."

Hermione Granger wanted to roll her eyes at Mr Mallory's utterance, but that would have been rude. She wanted to examine the skull, which was resting on the table in front of her. She didn't want to repeat what was written in the newspaper. But you didn't always get to do what you wanted. "It would be advisable, in our opinion. We're currently the most wanted wizards and witches in the country. Except you, of course. They didn't identify you."

"That shouldn't take them too long," he replied. "After all, your visit to my house made the news."

Hermione was forced to agree. While it was possible that the Ottoman authorities had missed that - Key West wasn't exactly a location of interest to the Empire - at least some of the American bounty hunters would have caught the news. So Mr Mallory wouldn't be safer if he split from them. Which was too bad, in her opinion - even though she felt a little guilty about such thoughts. She nodded. "Yes."

"And the Storm Wizards stole the collection. How did they manage that?"

"They must have had a contact inside. Possibly under the Imperius Curse. Perhaps a few of them," Hermione said. "With that kind of help, they would have had the collection moved under a pretext, and then used us as a distraction to steal it."

"But why did they hire us, then?" Mr Mallory asked.

"They might not have been certain that it would work. Or they wanted an alternative. Or," Hermione said with a grimace, "they had planned to use us from the start as scapegoats." Perhaps kill them in a way that made it look as if the collection had been destroyed.

"That means they saw through your disguises."

"I doubt that," she retorted. "If they had, they would have ambushed us and tried to capture us to get our relics."

He nodded, although it looked a little reluctant to her. "So, where does that leave us? We failed. Crucially." She could almost hear the 'you' in 'we' and pressed her lips together. "What are you planning now?" he asked.

"Everyone fails some of the time," Mr Sayadi's ghost cut in before she could answer. "It's how you deal with it that decides if it was a crucial failure or merely a setback or lesson to be learned."

She narrowed her eyes at the skull even though the ghost couldn't see her. "That sounds very… wise," she said.

"Indeed. What better way to deal with my newfound circumstances than to use the opportunity to let others share the wisdom I accrued in life?"

She rolled her eyes at his tone - she could almost see him smirking. Well, when he had been alive. She hadn't seen his ghost yet. "We're ever so grateful."

"You should be."

Yes, definitely smirking. But then, the poor ghost was trapped in a dark skull. He deserved to have his fun. "And what would you advise us to do?"

"Oh, I do think that as long as you avoid all contact with muggles or wizards and witches, you're as safe here as anywhere else. Safer, perhaps, in the Empire, since many bounty hunters will search for you elsewhere," the ghost replied.

"But if we should be found in the Empire, we will have to deal with an army of Janissaries," Mr Mallory said with a frown, "not just with a few bounty hunters. And bounty hunters generally don't work well together."

"The good ones do," Mr Sayadi's ghost retorted. "And the bad ones are unlikely to find us."

"We'll stay put here while we sort things out with our families and friends," Hermione said.

Mr Mallory pointed at the newspaper. "But you risked being discovered when you bought this."

"What did they buy?"

"Just a newspaper," Hermione said. Mr Sayadi would recognise the newspaper - unlike its muggle counterpart, it was still being published daily.

"The Günlük Haber Gazetesi?"

"No. Magical Falastin," she told him.

"Ah. You would be more fluent in Arabic than Turkish, correct?"

"Yes." Very much so. "But we need the information."

"We don't need it. We know that the Sultan will have his Janissaries hunt us, and will put a bounty on us. One large enough to attract the best bounty hunters," Mr Mallory said. "Entering a magical village is an unnecessary risk. We should move."

"Perhaps," Hermione said. "But who would assume we'd be in this area?"

"It's not as if the Janissaries have other leads. If someone reported you, they will start searching the area."

"The newspaper is from Palestine. We're hundreds of miles from that area," Hermione told him as she rolled her eyes. Did he think they were amateurs?

Mr Mallory glared at her while the ghost chuckled. "Age might bring experience, Mr Mallory, but it does not do to underestimate the youth."

"You're a veritable font of wisdom," Mr Mallory said with a sneer.

"That's very kind of you to say. But shouldn't we work on breaking the seals here? I do think this has become a most pressing task, with the setback suffered in Constantinople," Mr Sayadi's ghost said. Hermione was certain that he knew how annoyed Mr Mallory was even without seeing the man's clenched teeth.

She, though, nodded. "Yes. Let's get to work."

"I still think we should move," Mr Mallory said.

But he picked up one of the fragments they hadn't translated yet and started working.

And Hermione started on unravelling the bindings on the ghosts a little more.

"And be careful!" Harry Potter told Hedwig as he tied the small tube containing their letters to her leg.

She barked at him in reply.

He frowned. She was the best and smartest post owl, but they were dealing with Storm Wizards and bounty hunters. "Don't be cocky."

Another bark, and she launched herself into the air.

"Mum's not going to like this," Ron said.

"Do you think someone will go after your family?" Harry asked.

"They're already aware of the threat from the Storm Wizards, so they'll have taken measures. They should be safe."

Should be. They wouldn't know for certain. Harry clenched his teeth. Auntie and Sirius were being chased by Storm Wizards - racing to find the Atlantean relics - but they knew how to handle that. Had to know. Arthur and Molly would be fine... Percy too - the Ministry was safe. But the twins and Ginny? "I wish Dumbledore would settle the issue in New York," he said.

Ron shrugged. "It's the usual problem: Everyone agrees that something has to be done, but no one agrees on just what it should be. And even if they agree on something, they'll try to hitch other proposals to it. It's the same in the Wizengamot. And the Americans' many enclaves won't help, either."

"He should just threaten to curse them until they agree," Ari said. "That way, it'd at least be done."

Harry took a deep breath. "That's not how Dumbledore works."

Ari snorted. "Didn't you just say what he's doing isn't working?"

Ron chuckled. "You have a point. But Dumbledore is Dumbledore. He won't force others until lives are at stake. Which isn't the case so far."

"Our lives are at stake," Ari retorted.

And Kavya's freedom, Harry added silently. He still felt like cursing someone or blowing something up whenever he thought of the poor Naga they'd had to leave behind. It had been her choice, but still… He shook his head. He couldn't dwell on that. Not now. "That's not what the ICW's decision is about. It's about wards on muggle buildings," he explained. "Buildings that contain both muggle and wizard flats."

"And which haven't been a problem until the muggle attacks," Ron added. "Dumbledore is probably just stalling until the people pushing to ban the practice give up. To be fair, mixing muggle and wizard flats does pose a risk for the Statute of Secrecy, but it's minimal. We've been living in a muggle village for generations without a problem."

"The Burrow's not exactly in the village," Harry corrected him.

"Close enough. In any case, I don't see the proposal gaining enough support to be accepted," Ron said.

"If it were so clear, Dumbledore would be done with it already," Harry pointed out.

"Stupid politics," Ari said.

Well, that was pretty much a universal truth. Harry chuckled. "I'll be joining Hermione and Mallory. The sooner we crack the skull's secrets, the better." And he didn't like to leave her alone with Mallory.

"We'll be standing guard," Ron replied.

"I could help," Ari said once Harry had disappeared into their tent. Ron Weasley saw she was frowning at him.

"So could I," he told her. "But someone needs to keep an eye out. We are wanted wizards and witches, after all."

"Ah." She nodded. "That makes sense. Though I thought we were safe here?"

"Relatively safe," he said. "Someone could get lucky and stumble on us."

She huffed. "We've had a lot of bad luck already. We should get lucky sometime."

He had to laugh at that. She had a great talent for linguistics and spoke English very well, but some figures of speeches and terms still escaped her. Seeing her frown, he explained: "'Getting lucky' can mean 'having sex'."

"Oh. We had sex. So that doesn't count as luck."

"Well, I was lucky to have met you," he told her. "Perhaps so lucky, it caused our string of bad luck."

"Are you telling me that it's my fault?" She frowned at him.

He was about to protest when he noticed her smirking and shook his head, huffing.

Grinning, she hugged him, followed by a kiss. Which was followed by a few more kisses.

"We should check the wards we put up," he said once they pulled away, breathing heavily.

She nodded, grinning again.

The wards were fine. Well, as fine as temporary ones could be - they wouldn't stop a good Curse-Breaker for long. Barely long enough to get a warning and be ready for a fight, with a really skilled Curse-Breaker. If someone found them, they'd be in trouble.

But, as he checked, disillusioned on his spare broom - he really needed to get a Firebolt - the campsite was invisible from above and on the ground, nestled against the cliff forming a cove here.

About as safe as it could get, given their circumstances.

Which were not as good as they should be. If a bounty hunter had a way to track them that they didn't know, they wouldn't be able to block it. And if the hunter stayed out of range of their Human-presence-revealing Spells, they wouldn't even know they were found.

Yeah, he thought, as he returned to the ground, where Ari was waiting, their situation wasn't ideal. Not at all.

Turkey, Lake Eğirdir, October 30th, 2001

Hermione Granger could almost see the last pattern now. The spells that kept the ghost tied - no, tethered - to the skull were arranged in a complicated arithmantic sequence which she had finally cracked. But she still didn't know all of the spells, or even most of them. She could tell - well, guess - what most of them did, but the finer details remained elusive. The Atlanteans' spellcrafting was very advanced for its time, but no match for modern Arithmancy.

But modern Arithmancy was based on Ancient Greek Arithmancy, and their magical tradition was different from the Atlanteans'. They hadn't taken the same paths to reach the same results, which meant Hermione couldn't take any shortcuts. And had to take greater risks that she liked. In addition, half the spells she had to deal with were blood magic. This was, without a doubt, the greatest challenge she had faced in her - admittedly short - career as a Curse-Breaker so far. The most frustrating as well. Everyone, everything, depended on her cracking the enchantments. Harry and Ron had helped, but the last part was up to her - she had the most insight into the whole enchantment. And if she didn't make a breakthrough soon, the Storm Wizards might beat them to Atlantis.

This wasn't a time to wait overly long. Taking a deep breath, she twitched her wand and cut one tie between two spells, unravelling their pattern.

Nothing happened.

"Oh, I think I saw a flash."

No, apparently, something had happened. Mr Sayadi's ghost had noticed. "A flash?" she asked.

"Yes."

Hm. She hadn't seen the spells react in any way. Were there more spells hidden in the skull? She hadn't found any, but it was - theoretically - possible they were hidden in ways she didn't know. Yet, why would she have been able to find the spells she had? "Did you feel anything?"

"Like a pull to the afterlife? No, I'm afraid you'll have to bear my presence for a little longer."

"I'm not trying to send you to your eternal rest," she corrected him. Quite the contrary, actually. "And it's not certain if you would go away, or merely be set free, if the enchantments were broken completely."

"I know, dear. I appreciate your efforts. While I like to talk, as anyone who knew me will confirm, and you certainly have a nice voice, I would very much like to be able to see again. Well, if I ever saw before - I am merely an imprint of a wizard's mind, not the wizard himself."

Mr Sayadi's ghost was going on about existential questions. He had been doing that for a while now. She didn't think it was a good sign. "We're doing what we can," she told him.

"Yes," Harry cut in. "Everyone's working hard."

"It's not as if we have anything else to do anyway." Mr Mallory's comment wasn't quite as empathic or helpful, even if it was honest.

"I see. Well, not literally." The ghost laughed.

Hermione pressed her lips together and focused on the next spell. Or tried to. The spells were so tightly entwined, she couldn't separate them. And tackling two of them at once, when she had no idea what exactly either did…

She sighed and withdrew her wand, then closed her eyes and leaned back in her seat.

"Break time?" Harry asked.

She made an agreeing noise.

"Already?" Mr Mallory asked.

"Curse-Breaking isn't something you want to do while feeling tired," the ghost said before Hermione could. He said it more nicely than she would have as well.

"Feel free to take over," Harry said.

"You took over for her yesterday."

"That was different," Harry replied.

"How so?"

"I've made a lot of progress today," Hermione explained, "By the time Harry or Ron were up to date, they would need a break themselves."

"I see," Mr Mallory said.

"I actually don't think you do," Mr Sayadi's ghost told him, "and I'm sort of an expert on not-seeing. As much as a mental imprint can be an expert."

Yes, Hermione definitely needed a break.

They stepped outside the tent, letting the cooler air of the evening - was it so late already? - wash over them and started walking towards the shore. "I don't like him," Harry said in a low voice, glancing over his shoulder.

Hermione Granger didn't have to ask who he was talking about. She cast a privacy charm before answering - it wouldn't do to stir up trouble with Mr Mallory now. "He must be frustrated and afraid. Since we met him, his house has been attacked, he has been dragged into two break-ins into harems, he was hunted and attacked by Storm Wizards several times and is now wanted by association for attempted regicide of one of the richest rulers in the magical world. That's bound to make anyone…"

"...act like an arse?"

"...have a temper," she finished with a slight frown.

Harry chuckled. "Even Mr Sayadi thinks he's a jerk. Why else would he needle him so otherwise?"

"Mr Sayadi's ghost is under a lot of stress as well," she pointed out.

"He never needles you or me, nor Ron or Ari. Just Mallory."

"He teases me often enough," she replied as they reached the small beach in their cove.

"That's friendly teasing," Harry said, taking a deep breath and looking out towards the lake. "He's never as sardonic as with Mallory. Not quite as bad as Snape, of course, but you can't tell me you don't see the difference."

She pressed her lips together instead of admitting it. "I'm sorry."

"For Mallory?"

As if! She scoffed. "For taking so long," she corrected him.

"You're doing well."

"Not well enough. The Storm Wizards might be on their way to Atlantis already." She resisted the urge to kick a stone on the beach into the water.

She felt his arm wrap around her shoulder and the warmth of his body as he pulled her into his side. "For that, they would have to have found a clue to the location in the Sultan's collection. And even if the collection contained such a clue in the first place, they would still have to find the right clue and then translate it. And they would have to have enough other clues to find the location - the Sultans haven't managed to find anything in centuries, after all. How good do you think the Storm Wizards are at translating Atlantean?" He shook his head. "We have time. The real problems are the Janissaries and the bounty hunters."

"And the Storm Wizards hunting us and the others," she replied. "But…" She bit her lower lip. "We haven't seen or heard anything of Kraft since the Caribbean."

"Do you think she's working with the Storm Wizards?" Harry shook his head. "She's a pureblood princess. Grindelwald was all about equality among wizards - the purebloods were his worst enemies."

"He was using muggleborns as cannon fodder," she pointed out, "and his idea of equality was him ruling everyone."

"And the old pureblood families like the Krafts couldn't have that." Harry shook his head again. "And if she were working with Kohlmeier, her reputation would be completely ruined."

"She could have been kidnapped or forced to help them," Hermione said. "And our reputation isn't exactly good at the moment."

"They wouldn't have tried to hire us if they had her," Harry replied.

"Unless they only wanted to use us as scapegoats."

Harry was silent for a moment. Thinking, she knew. "Even if Kraft is working with them, she would have to be very lucky to have enough clues to find Atlantis. And even luckier to find it before we do. We have an Atlantean ghost to ask. The best she has are some tablets from the collection."

"And whatever else she dug up herself."

He scoffed. "She's been following us like a vulture. And she failed to get at our finds." He turned and hugged her, resting his chin on her shoulder. "It'll be fine. You'll crack the skull, and we'll find Atlantis."

"We're still wanted wizards and witches." And they hadn't heard back from Petunia and the others, yet. But she knew better than to mention that - Harry was worried enough about it already.

"It'll work out, you'll see."

She hoped he was right. And she knew he was feeling the same. "Let's not talk about work any more, alright? Not for the rest of the night, at least," she whispered into his ear, then nipped at his earlobe.

She felt him tense and take a deep breath, and then his hands slid down her back.

And as she conjured a blanket beneath them, she knew they wouldn't be doing much talking any more. Not tonight.

Turkey, Lake Eğirdir, October 31st, 2001

Hermione Granger shook her head as she stared at the skull. She was stupid. Stupid stupid stupid. She should have thought of this long ago! It was so obvious, in hindsight. She had known that the skull was tied to the death-mask and the urn, but she hadn't realised how to use that knowledge - she had been too fixated on the skull, since the ghosts were bound to it, and on breaking the specific enchantments that bound them.

But they were all tied together. The spells on the skull were the result of a ritual involving all three items and a sacrificial ritual. The fact that Mr Sayadi's ghost wasn't as bound as the unknown Atlantean's wasn't just because there hadn't been a proper ritual, but because while Mr Sayadi's blood and death had been enough to trigger the skull to trap his ghost, it hadn't been enough to trigger the other two items.

The urn and the mask were the key to unravelling the skull's spells without destroying it - or the ghosts! They could tell her which spells she could safely break. But… She bit her lower lip as she looked from the skull to the urn and mask. There were no spells linking them together now, of course. And she didn't think trying to analyse the spells on either would be faster or more successful than focusing on the skull's spells. Though there was a way to activate the spells and gauge their effects.

A highly illegal and dark one. Well, not really dark - it wasn't as if she'd sacrifice anyone. Not even an animal. But… She took a deep breath. This wasn't something she wanted anyone to know. Especially not Mr Mallory. He wasn't a bad sort. But he wasn't a friend like the others. And once they had found Atlantis and dealt with their current problems, they would part ways.

No. It was better to do this alone. Without distracting witnesses. Which was why it was very convenient that Mr Mallory had chosen today to brew his potions. Well, convenient, but not surprisingly so - today was a good day to brew special potions. Halloween had been a magically significant date for millennia, in almost every culture. It was said that on this day of the year, the borders between life and death were thinnest.

Which might make her own experiment slightly easier as well. She took a deep breath. Harry was checking and improving the wards with Ron. Ari was napping after having stood guard in the early morning. It was now or never.

She raised her left hand and held it over the mask, then pointed her wand at it. "Diffindo."

She flinched when the spell cut her skin, and even more when she saw the blood appear in her palm as she turned her hand, then flexed her fingers until a drop of blood fell on the mask.

And gasped when, for a moment, the spells seemed to light up, and her detection spell allowed her to see the faintly glowing spells appearing between the mask and the two other items. And the spells that reacted on the skull.

"Oh… that was a rather surprising experience," she heard Mr Sayadi's ghost say.

"Yes? What did you feel?"

"I felt a pull for a moment. And I felt as if I were fainting. Which, for a ghost, shouldn't be possible."

"That would fit my expectations," she told him.

"You spread blood over the relics."

"A single drop," she admitted. "My own."

"I see. Well, not literally, you understand."

She did - the ghost had been making the same or a very similar joke very often. But then, he was a ghost, not a real human. Their creativity was limited. Not as limited as a portrait's, of course. "It's not a sacrifice. No one, nothing, died."

"I hadn't planned to die either, I think."

"We're safe here," she retorted.

"Unless some bounty hunters find us, I believe."

"That is very unlikely," she told him. "Although we shouldn't remain too long in this place."

"Indeed. I would prefer not to find out what a jealous Curse-Breaker could do, should your ghost end up bound to mine."

"Do not worry about that, Mr Sayadi," she said. "That won't happen." Because Hermione would destroy the spells that made trapping a ghost possible.

Once she knew them, of course. It took her half a dozen repetitions until she had mapped out the spells she needed. And the same number with the urn to exclude a handful of others. Not enough to require a Blood-Replenishing Potion, of course - though she felt dirty anyway.

But also elated. She now had the pattern of the whole arrangement. The skull was the repository for the ghost. The urn would receive the sacrifice. But the mask was the catalyst. The link between them. The key to the whole.

She had been so foolish to focus solely on the skull instead of the whole! A beginner's mistake.

Harry Potter wasn't worried. He trusted Hermione. She was smart, brave and an expert Curse-Breaker. Tough, too, of course. She wouldn't take stupid risks unless there were no other choice, and despite the bounty on their head - and the threat of the Storm Wizards - they weren't overly pressed for time.

But Hermione also had a slight tendency to overdo things. To become... 'obsessed' was the wrong word. 'Overly focused' would fit better. Pushing herself too far. After her breakthrough - which she hadn't detailed, though Harry thought he knew what she had done - she hadn't stopped working, even taking notes during dinner, and had waved away his offer of taking a break - she had gone straight back to working on the skull.

Alright, he was worried. Slightly. "Hermione?"

"Almost…" he heard her mumble - for the sixth time or so.

He wanted to pull her away from the relics, but that would be too dangerous - they still didn't know what the spells did, and a backlash could easily kill a Curse-Breaker.

"It's getting late," he tried again. Even Mallory, who had been lurking in the tent since dinner, had gone to bed.

"Almost…"

He sighed and closed his eyes. "Hermione."

"There!"

"Oh, my! You did it!"

Harry's eyes shot open. There was a translucent figure floating in the room. Mr Sayadi's ghost! And there was another ghost floating near - no, partway through the table - wearing a short tunic and sandals.

A confused-looking ghost.

"Kima? Tamasa?" The ghost looked down and froze.

"Preta! Preta!" he screamed, flailing at the table, his limbs passing through the wood. "Mrita! Mrita!"

"Oh. I am not entirely certain, but I think my fellow ghost hadn't realised his fate until he was unbound," Mr Sayadi said. "Svasti! Sam! Santih!" he added, addressed at the ghost.

The ghost didn't seem to be listening, though.

Ron and Ari rushed in. "What happened?" Ron asked, his wand out. "Oh!"

"Preta! Preta! Mrita!"

"Greetings, Mr Weasley, Miss Ari."

"You tortured the ghost for information?" Ari asked.

"No!" Hermione snapped.

"Mrita!"

"It seems he wasn't aware that he was a ghost," Harry explained.

"For thousands of years?" The witch frowned.

"I think the enchantments that controlled him also kept him from realising his fate," Hermione said.

"It might have kept him sane, too," Mr Sayadi added. "If he had been forced to endure thousands of years without any conversation or intellectual stimulation… I fear he would have lost his mind. If that's possible for ghosts."

In Harry's opinion, the ghost was making a decent attempt at losing his mind right now.

"Mrita! Mrita!"

And he took off, rushing away from them - and stopped at the tent's border as if he had slammed into a wall. No - as if…

"I didn't remove all bindings," Hermione said. "He cannot leave the skull's vicinity yet."

"Oh, I see," Mr Sayadi said while the Atlantean ghost was screaming incoherently again.

"I wasn't certain if removing all bindings would, well… remove your ties to this world," she went on. "I wasn't willing to take that risk without asking you and him."

"Or risk losing his information - and my help?"

Hermione didn't answer that.

And the ghost turned towards them. "Vimoca! Vimoca!"

"I think he desires his freedom. Although I cannot tell if he desires oblivion, or merely the freedom to travel," Mr Sayadi translated. Or guessed.

"Can you tell him that we require his help to do that?" Harry said.

"As payment or as requirement?" Mr Sayadi asked.

"Quid pro quo," Harry said. "We need his help to find Atlantis."

The Atlantean ghost froze for a moment, then stared at him. "Abrar! Abrar!"

That meant 'danger', Harry remembered that. "It's been thousands of years," he said. "No one has heard of Atlantis in all that time." And a Curse-Breaker braved danger every time they entered a tomb.

"Atlantis erin abrar hesh tutala!"

Well, that was very familiar.

"I think he claims Atlantis would endanger our souls. I am not entirely sure, though." Mr Sayadi frowned, then smiled. "This will require some time to sort out. Fortunately, as ghosts, we won't require much rest."

But Harry and his friends needed to rest sometime - and this seemed as if it would take a while. Could they trust Mr Sayadi's ghost to sort this out? Well, they already had to trust him to translate correctly anyway.

Though having their big break-through happen while they were asleep would feel a little anticlimactic. And it wouldn't make for a good story to tell, either.

Harry blinked. He really needed rest - he was starting to think like Lockhart.