Denizen
A/N: Thank you for the reviews, favorites, and follows. It is much appreciated!
Down the Well
1
"You think something's wrong with him?" Harry asked her after she cast the Human-Presence-Revealing Spell again. They stood just outside the Three Broomsticks.
"Mr Lovegood?" When Harry nodded, she said, "Definitely." She remembered him believing that the Crumple-Horned Snorkack was biding its time near Hogwarts, and then giggling like a little schoolgirl afterwards.
"What d'you think happened to him?"
"It's hard to tell considering the fact that no one apart from Mr Lovegood knows what's going on."
"You really think that's true?" He looked over at Mr Lovegood and Sean, both of who began wandering down the cobblestoned lane that cut a pathway through the shops of Hogsmeade. "He doesn't seem right in the head. For all we know, he could be having us on."
"Maybe, but right now, he's all we have to go by. Hogwarts was empty, and now we know that Hogsmeade is empty too." And it was: Hermione hoped that they would run into others that had woken up like she did, wondering where everyone else was. Perhaps they would know what happened and they'd have a solution in bringing those that had disappeared back. But it was just wishful thinking on her part. Right when they Apparated into Hogsmeade, her gut told her that is was bare like water in a desert. The small bubble of hope she birthed in her stomach was instantly doused.
"What difference does it make for him to tell us now compared to telling us later?" Hermione could tell that Harry was frustrated and she could hardly blame him. If what he said was true, in that he did use the Resurrection Stone to bring back his parents, Sirius, and Remus, then he was robbed of the short time that was available to spend with them.
"I'd like to believe there's a reason," Hermione said to him, watching Mr Lovegood point out Honeydukes to Sean. "And that if we're patient, we'll start to figure things out."
"And how long are we going to have to be patient for? A day? A couple of weeks? Several months? Years?"
"I don't think it'll be too long," she replied, though mentally hoped that things would be resolved in the next hour or so. If they were lucky, maybe Mr Lovegood will tell them everything he knew sooner than that even.
"It just feels so strange," Harry said, sighing. "Like we're the last people on Earth."
"We can't be sure of that yet," Hermione told him. "When we go to Diagon Alley, I'll see what Muggle London is like."
"You think everyone will be there?"
"Possibly," she nodded slowly. "Mr Lovegood did talk about the Ever-Locked Room in the Department of Mysteries. I don't really see how that relates to Muggles."
"But how would he know what's in the Ever-Locked Room?" Harry asked. "It's not like there's much on it. Besides, it doesn't seem like Mr Lovegood runs in the same social circles as those who would know a lot about the Department of Mysteries anyway."
Hermione looked at him. "On any other occasion, I'd agree with you, but Mr Lovegood gave off the impression that he knew what he was talking about."
"Didn't we just both agree that something's wrong with him? I mean, he kept going off about that Crumple-Horned Snorkack of his."
"It's not his," Hermione huffed, "because the Crumple-Horned Snorkack doesn't exist!"
"Try telling him that."
Scoffing, she replied, "You saw how that went before." She gazed back down High Street and saw Mr Lovegood and Sean were still outside Honeydukes. Now, however, Sean had his face pressed against the glass, looking at what was inside. She figured that if everything did return to how it was before, Sean and his friends would happen upon Hogsmeade, and Honeydukes no doubt, in their third year at Hogwarts. And if they were anything like Harry and Ron, they'd fill their robes with Acid Pops, Jelly Slugs, and Treacle Fudge, before heading back to their dormitory to partake in a marathon sweet session. She almost smiled at this. Instead, she asked, "What do you think about Sean?"
She saw Harry frown. "I don't think he's dangerous, if that's what you mean."
"Do you think he's telling the truth about not remembering his parents?"
"You don't?"
"Well, our memories came back eventually, and Mr Lovegood doesn't seem to have ever lost his. Sean's the only one left to haven't got his back yet."
"He seems familiar to me," Harry said.
"In what way?"
"I dunno for sure, but it's something."
"You haven't seen him before, have you?"
"Not that I can remember," and he shook his head. "He was just in the forest when you woke up?"
"By the cauldron," she said. "Thinking about it, it's pretty strange that that was there too."
"Right now, everything's strange." He wet his lips. "Most people are gone, but Hogsmeade hasn't changed at all. Diagon Alley will probably be the same." He then took a step closer to her and asked quietly, "You don't think we're dreaming, do you?"
Trying to ignore the pleasant sensation that flared inside her when she felt his breath tickle her cheek, she said, "I don't think it's logical that we're all having the same dream. I've never heard of such a thing before."
"Something's going on, though."
"Of course, but I don't think it has anything to do with dreams."
Even though Harry's eyes weren't on her (they were on Mr Lovegood and Sean who were still at Honeydukes), his close proximity was stirring a bellyful of desire that she usually kept a lid on, tight and secure. She supposed she was the only one who knew about her own feelings regarding Harry because she kept such feelings hidden, locked in the bottommost chamber of her heart. She did away with the key to open the chamber (Or had the Crumple-Horned Snorkack swallowed it whole?) as she fully believed there would never be a need to open it.
Ron had been closest in outing her when he left them when they were searching for Horcruxes. I get it. You choose him, he had said to her. And Hermione had chosen Harry. Not only because they both agreed to go wherever he went, but because, in her own case, she simply wanted to be with him, not out of an obligation but instead, a longing. She wouldn't go as far to say she was obsessed with Harry, but she did find him fanciful ever since fourth year. She held back because of Cho, and then held back again because of Ginny. But fourth year was where it all started for her, and now her feelings were beginning to flood the shores of friendship she had with him. And if he asked her about that kiss she had shared with Ron after he made the comment about the house-elves, well, she'd simply tell him the truth: she imagined she was kissing Harry instead.
2
Although initially frightened by Mr Lovegood due to his erratic behavior back at Hogwarts, Sean thought him quite irritating at the moment. Because though he truly believed the purple monster with a gold horn on its head was definitely a curse of some kind, it was all Mr Lovegood could talk about. And really, it was so annoying. Even more so, Sean had tried his best to keep away from Mr Lovegood when they Apparated into Hogsmeade by taking down the street, yet Candy Floss had followed him immediately. (The boy shouldn't go off on his own, Candy Floss had said to Harry and Hermione. The Crumple-Horned Snorkack could've followed us here!) And yes, Sean had decided that from now on, Mr Lovegood was to be known as Candy Floss. After all, his hair closely resembled a wiry batch of it.
The window of a sweet shop had Sean stop to look in it. He had quite a big sweet tooth, something his mum didn't approve of (What would your Nanny and Granddad say?), and liked most stuff that was clearly bad for his long-term health. But, he was just a ten-year-old boy, and thinking about his long-term health was like thinking about his own marriage ceremony and the kids that would surely come after. In other words, he didn't put much stock into it at all, and how could he? Health, marriage, and children were years away. Quite simply, it was something he just couldn't be bothered by…at least, he couldn't be bothered by them at the moment. When the right time came, it was probable that he would want to be bothered by them.
"Honeydukes," Candy Floss said from behind him, and Sean nearly jumped. He wanted to groan due to the fact that Candy Floss had followed him but he managed to hold it in. "I'd imagine you'd have a good time in there. Most kids do."
"Not adults?" Sean asked.
"Perhaps some adults do too," Candy Floss said, and seesawed his head side to side. "But me, most definitely not!"
"Why's that?"
"See that there?" and Candy Floss pointed a finger at a nearby shelf lined with rectangular bags. "Those are Fudge Flies." The bags themselves were bronze with gold stripes than ran down them like Muggle prison bars. Near the top, Sean could barely make out five flies, all colored in sunshine yellow, and they surrounded a-,
"Purple dot," Candy Floss continued, "that matches the fur of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack, wouldn't you agree?"
Sean rolled his eyes at this, severely regretting carrying on any type of conversation with Candy Floss in the hopes that he'd forget all about the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Seriously, Sean hadn't even seen the thing, but only felt it. And now that he was far away from the forest itself, he considered the possibility that he might've imagined ever feeling the presence of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack at all.
"I don't know about-," Sean began but Candy Floss cut him off.
"But we shouldn't dawdle," he said. "Although the Crumple-Horned Snorkack can be quite shy at times, it does away with such niceties when it's hungry."
(You can't run from me! I am hungry, and need to eat!)
"Are you sure the Crumple-Horned Snorkack is real?" Sean asked. At his question, Candy Floss gasped loudly. "I mean, Hermione doesn't seem to think so." Though Sean still considered Hermione to be the girl (woman), he did remember the man saying her name back in the Forest of Dean right after he woke up.
"Well, leave it to the young Miss Granger to advertise my supposed insanity!" Candy Floss exclaimed, throwing Hermione a cold glare over his shoulder for good measure. "Believe me when I tell you that she's very narrow-minded. Goodness me, she even believed that the Deathly Hallows was nothing more than a children's fairytale! What silliness!"
"What's the Deathly Hallows?"
"Another time, lad," Candy Floss said, patting the top of Sean's head like he was a puppy dog. "Another time."
"What about the man? Did he believe in the Deathly Hallows?"
"Harry, you mean?" and Sean nodded, adding Harry's name to his memory bank. He stored it besides Hermione and Candy Floss. "He was a bit skeptical at first though he came around eventually."
Looking over at them, Sean saw that they were standing close together and whispering to each other. Every now and then, Harry and Hermione would look his way though he wasn't sure if it was for his own sake or that of Candy Floss. He didn't really notice it before but Sean supposed that they liked each other to a certain degree. After all, of the hazy memories he had of his own mum and dad, they acted very much like Harry and Hermione: always standing near the other, and whispering.
However, it was quite painful thinking about his parents because he missed them dearly. He then mentally wondered if it was okay to miss people he couldn't really remember. Try as he might, there wasn't much about his mum and dad that came back to him. But, he still didn't lose a bit of hope in that his memories would come back to him sooner or later. It was just that that bit of hope inside him was getting smaller and smaller with every passing minute. He didn't know what was going to come of him if they couldn't locate his parents. Maybe he'd be a wanderer, and wander from place to place. He didn't want to do that but what other choice did he have?
"Let's go back, shall we?" Candy Floss suggested, and he led Sean back towards Harry and Hermione, looking to his left and right. Sean supposed Candy Floss was still a bit high on the Crumple-Horned Snorkack and its quest to have a feast of its own. Now however, with the addition of Candy Floss, the Crumple-Horned Snorkack would have breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. But, if the Crumple-Horned Snorkack did find their whereabouts (not that they were trying to hide from it), perhaps Harry and Hermione would take Sean between them, and they'd Apparate away from the Crumple-Horned Snorkack. Of course, Candy Floss would be left on his own but Sean didn't really count that as much of a loss.
3
Much like Hogsmeade, Diagon Alley was empty.
Though Harry expected this, it was still a blow nonetheless. Yet, Hermione gave them a bit of good news when she said that Muggle London was the same as always: crowded and congested. Thus, whatever happened only affected witches and wizards. He supposed the fact that Muggle London was teeming with people was good news because he was beginning to think that they were the last survivors on Earth, mere debris of an apocalyptic event. Now he had the confirmation that this wasn't true. Well, not true for Muggles in any case.
Yet, it was maddening to think that Mr Lovegood knew what was going on to an extent, and still decided that taking brief holidays to Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley would help matters any. He never said what these expeditions were for and what purpose they served. All he did was follow Sean around like a puppy and its tail. And Harry was certain that Sean was getting sick of it. He could read him quite easily.
"It's just like Hogsmeade, isn't it?" Hermione asked quietly. In both of their trips, Harry noticed that Hermione had never left his side, something he was quite pleased about. Of course, he would've been happier if the circumstances weren't plagued by the mystery disappearance of the majority of witches and wizards and Hermione was still by his side then too. In a way that he never realized until now, Hermione was really always by his side, especially considering the fact that she went with him to search for Voldemort's Horcruxes. She became a wanted woman, and he a wanted man.
"Like nothing's been touched," Harry agreed. "Everything's the same."
"You know, I've been thinking about the riddle Mr Lovegood told us about," Hermione said.
"Figured out what it means?"
"Not at all," she shook her head. "I've been trying to understand it, but-,"
"Haven't had any luck," Harry finished. He sighed and asked, "You think there's something to it?"
"Definitely," she answered. "It probably has something to do with what happened."
"You think whatever happened can be reversed?"
"Oh, I hope so," and she gripped his arm tightly. A tingle snaked down his spine. He did his best to try and hide his smile, thinking it really wasn't appropriate to do so. "But we won't know much until we see whatever's in the Ever-Locked Room."
"Have you done any reading on the Department of Mysteries?"
"I did during sixth year," she said.
What hung in the air between them but was left unsaid was Harry's foolish escapade to lead his friends into the trap of Voldemort and his Death Eaters after having a vision of Sirius being tortured at the end of fifth year. An adventure that led to Sirius' death, a memory Harry didn't like to relive. Thus, he was grateful Hermione had decided to leave that part out.
"Did you come across anything about the Ever-Locked Room?"
"Only that it remained locked at all times," she replied uneasily. "That's all there was."
"Mr Lovegood said that it was believed the Unspeakables were studying Love down there," Harry recalled. He also recalled the way Mr Lovegood had smiled like a bat. "That wasn't covered in anything you read?"
"No," she told him.
At that moment, Harry thought that Hermione looked lost, and he couldn't really blame her being that she relied on books to have every answer to the questions she had. It was rare that she came up empty, but in the case of the Ever-Locked Room, while she was searching for gold, she instead found a handful of soot. Because of this, Harry stepped closer to Hermione, just as he had in Hogsmeade. He took her hand in his and pulled her against him.
It was the type of contact that Harry believed Hermione needed, and that he needed himself at that point. The reality of their situation was beginning to take its toll, and that was on top of months and months of being on the run together. They really didn't have time to reflect on all that had happened and everyone who had died. It was a type of healing that didn't come in a night, but one that would take many nights. Yet, before such a process could even begin, they were stuck in some sort of limbo that neither knew how to get out of. So, they clung to each other for support.
With Hermione's body against his, a sense of calmness blanketed him. He felt good because of it, the first time he had had in a long time. Not only that, but his hormones were easily affected as well, especially since her breasts were pressed against his chest. He had actually seen them before though didn't mean to. It was just before they went to Godric's Hollow and Hermione had finished in the shower. Harry was sitting on his bed across the tent from her, practicing what he'd say to Bathilda Bagshot about the Sword of Gryffindor. He looked over at her to ask for a suggestion over a line he was having trouble with when her robe fluttered. Her breasts became visible when it did. It was the first time Harry had seen the female anatomy and he didn't really know what to do. He was stunned, quite frankly, and just froze. For her part, Hermione didn't seem to notice and for that, he was eternally grateful. However, he repeatedly saw her breasts in his dreams, and under his bed covers at night when he was sure Hermione was fast asleep, he relieved himself.
Mr Lovegood and Sean were making their way back towards them (after Sean had wandered off and Mr Lovegood followed him). Sean was looking at Harry and Hermione strangely, probably wondering why they were hugging each other since the situation they were in didn't really call for anyone to hug anyone else. Mr Lovegood, on the other hand, seemed to have stars in his eyes.
"You two are getting awfully close," he said.
Harry only shrugged while Hermione continued to lean against him.
"Maybe it's affecting you more than I thought it would."
"What's affecting us?" Harry asked curiously.
"The Ever-Locked Room, of course!"
"What do you mean?" said Hermione. "Is it about what's inside it?"
Mr Lovegood looked at her as if she had turned in the Crumple-Horned Snorkack that had been vouching for him ever since waking up in the Great Hall. "It has everything to do with what's inside that room, you silly girl!"
"Take it easy," Harry said to him coldly. "She isn't silly at all."
"Well, she's being awfully silly right now!" and Mr Lovegood jabbed one of his fingers in the air like a Muggle politician would when making an important point.
"Never mind," Hermione told Harry when he began to step forward. To put it simply, he didn't really care for how Mr Lovegood was talking to Hermione. Yes, they didn't really get off on the right foot with their debate on if the horn in Mr Lovegood's home was that of a Crumple-Horned Snorkack or was from an Erumpent, but still. "Will you tell us what's finally going on?" she asked him.
"I suppose," he said. "But it would be better if I showed you."
"Down in the Department of Mysteries?" Hermione said.
"Oh, yes," and he did that bat-like smile of his again. "Deep down in the Department of Mysteries."
4
Sean assumed he would never get used to the sensation of Apparition and simply preferred flying on a broomstick instead. And if he was to be frank, he was quite good on a broom, his dad even said so. His mum, however, didn't really approve of it. (He'll be lucky if he doesn't fall off that thing and break his neck! was her usual argument. His dad would counter with, You think I can't cast a simple Levitation Charm to stop him from hurting himself?)
Still feeling a little nauseous, Sean barely registered that the four of them landed in a shallow puddle. Harry cursed and Hermione smacked his arm. Meanwhile, Candy Floss proclaimed, "The Crumple-Horned Snorkack's piss! We are standing in it! Yes we are! Yes we are! The piss of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack! Praise Merlin above all other witches and wizards!"
"Mr Lovegood, can you please keep it down?" Hermione said, looking around nervously.
"But this is the piss of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack! Do you not realize how valuable such piss is, girl?"
"Come on, let's go," Harry cut in as Sean saw Hermione open her mouth, most likely to protest the existence of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack again, he thought. Or maybe she was protesting that the puddle was the Crumple-Horned Snorkack's piss. It was most likely leftover rain.
Submerging themselves in the orange glare of the street lights, they hurried past an overflowed dumpster and headed for a red telephone box, it standing in front of a heavily graffitied wall. Harry held open the door and after he shut it behind them, he said, "Whoever's closest to the phone, dial six two four four two."
Hermione did this and afterwards, a cool female voice said, "Welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please state your name and business."
"Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Xenophilius Lovegood, and Sean," Harry answered. "We're here to find out where everyone's gone off to."
"Thank you," came the female voice pleasantly. "Please take the badges and attach them to the front of your robes." Four badges slid down the metal chute easily. "Visitors to the Ministry, you are required to submit to a search and present your wand for registration at the security desk located at the far end of the Atrium."
Hermione passed around the badges. When Sean got his, he looked down at it. It said: Sean – Search and Recovery Operation of Missing Witches and Wizards.
The floor of the booth then quaked as the pavement slowly walled up its glass windows. The glow of the streetlights thinned into skeletal brooks before dehydrating. Darkness soon swallowed them as Candy Floss muttered, "We should've taken a vial of the Crumple-Horned Snorkack's piss." Soon after, a gap of yellow light pooled their ankles before stretching over them. Sean was fascinated by all this as he had never been to the Ministry before. Sure, his parents talked about it all time, and his dad was even employed there. Though what he did he couldn't quite remember.
After landing, the door to the telephone box folded open as the woman's voice said, "The Ministry of Magic wishes you a pleasant evening."
Sean stepped onto a dark wood floor, it looking as if it had just been polished. His breathing was loud, and the noises his shoes made against the floor were even louder. All around him were dozens of fireplaces, barricaded by metallic fencing. Sean guessed that this was done to bar anyone entry to the Ministry after it was closed. Overhead, the ceiling was coal black.
"It's usually blue during the day," Harry said from beside him, his eyes upturned.
"Is it bad that it changed colors?" Sean asked him.
"No," and he shook his head. "It's bewitched to look like the sky outside, just like the one in the Great Hall back at Hogwarts. The ceiling there was black too. Remember?"
Sean did.
"There's no one at the security desk," Hermione said, pointing to one end of the Atrium.
Sean followed her finger and saw that she was right: a table was really all it was, and a sign that hung over it read Security. Just behind it was a device Sean had never seen before.
"What is that?" he asked Harry.
"A Wand Weigher," was his answer. "It's able to recognize everything about your wand."
After passing a large fountain of black stone of a witch and wizard sitting upon hundreds of naked bodies of men, women, and children (Muggles, Hermione told him bitterly), they entered a smaller hall beyond a pair of gold gates and faced an overpopulation of lifts behind wrought golden grilles. Sean watched as Harry jabbed the nearest button and a second later, a lift jangled loudly into existence, the golden grilles in front of it curtaining apart like one of those Muggle operas his mum was so fond of. He actually remembered going to the Royal Opera House plenty of times with his parents, though he usually fell asleep halfway through. His dad did, too.
When they climbed inside, Harry turned to Hermione and asked, "Level Nine, is it?" She nodded and he pressed the button. The golden grilles banged closed, and the lift plummeted.
It was a bumpy ride down to the Department of Mysteries, and loud too. Sean was jostled back in forth between Harry and Hermione, bumping into Harry's side and then bumping into Hermione's side. For their part, neither of them seemed to notice. However, both wore looks of concern. In a way, he felt a little strange standing between them since he was sure they liked each other. He didn't want to separate them in any way, but he also didn't want to stand next to Candy Floss either. He kept muttering under his breath, and Sean thought that Candy Floss might be a bit mad. Well, maybe more than a bit, but mad nonetheless. If things ever returned to normal and Candy Floss was still around, he thought it likely someone would recommend him to a long holiday at St Mungo's.
The lift then came to a screeching halt, and Sean covered his ears. The grilles opened as another female voice said, "Department of Mysteries."
They crept forward with Harry taking the lead. Sean looked around and saw that the walls and floor were made of black rectangular tiles while blue-white flames from nearby torches on the walls were like phantoms behind them. There was a plain black door at the end of the corridor, and Sean guessed that behind it was where they were headed.
When they reached it, Harry thumbed the knob but paused. He turned around and asked Candy Floss, "Want to tell us what you know?"
"Not here, not here," he shook his head, and waved his hands frantically as if he was trying to draw someone's attention.
Sean saw Harry and Hermione look at each other before Harry said, "Fine, but make sure you keep this door open if you can. The room behind the door rotates around and-,"
"I know that!" Candy Floss interrupted impatiently. "Just open the door!"
As soon as he did, Candy Floss strode inside, roughing past Harry, Hermione, and Sean along the way. "Nutter," Sean heard Harry say. They filed in after him though Hermione manned the door, making sure it wouldn't close after them. She had her wand out.
Sean saw that the room they had entered was circular. Unmarked, handle-less doors stood around them while blue flames burned in candles between each one. The black floor beneath them was a pool of shadows.
"How're we going to get in?" Harry asked.
"Sean has that part covered," Candy Floss said.
"What?" Sean said, unsure if he heard Candy Floss correctly. "I don't know how to get in there!"
"Your blood, boy, we need your blood to get in."
"My blood?" Sean asked. "Why?"
"I'll tell you soon enough," Candy Floss told him. "Now hold out your hand."
"Mr Lovegood," Hermione called out. "Are you sure this is really necessary?"
"Quite," he nodded.
"But taking his blood? Really?" said Harry.
"Just a drop will do," Candy Floss said, taking out his wand. Sean didn't know when he had found it. "All he'll feel is a little pinch." And that was all Sean really did feel: a pinch and nothing more. However, a drop of blood hovered in the air just above his hand. It stood there for a full minute, and Sean stared at it, waiting for something to happen. Then, unbelievingly, the drop of blood began to quiver. Sean was transfixed, and thought that he might be hallucinating. "It'll find its way," Candy Floss muttered so quietly that Sean was sure Harry and Hermione hadn't heard him. And it turned out that they didn't really need to as the drop of blood rocketed towards one of the doors around them, splattering red across it. A series of locks clicked, sounding like small gongs, and the door opened with a harsh whine.
Candy Floss rushed inside without any hesitation, while Harry said to Sean, "Come here." When he did, Harry waved his wand and conjured a piece of cloth out of thin air. He took hold of it and tightly wrapped it around Sean's hand as Hermione joined him. "You're not hurt, are you?"
"No," Sean said.
"Okay, good," and Harry gave him a small smile to which Sean returned. "Ready to go on?"
"Definitely," Sean replied.
"Let's get to it, then."
5
Harry led Hermione and Sean into the Ever-Locked Room. Never having been inside before, he looked around and only saw blackness. Even after he lit his wand, there wasn't much he could see. He didn't really know what to expect but he definitely expected something at the very least. However, he did feel cold and wondered if the Ever-Locked Room was a black hole for heat. In fact, he could even see his own breaths in small clouds in front of him. He turned around and saw Sean shivering, his arms wrapped around his body, while red bloomed in small strawberry patches across Hermione's cheeks. Since she also seemed to be shaking, Harry cast the Hot-Air Charm over them and then himself. He didn't really think to care about Mr Lovegood, being that he was growing aggravated with him for keeping secrets. He didn't quite understand why Mr Lovegood couldn't tell them what he knew now instead of waiting for later.
They walked over a rough stone floor while the temperature inside the room continued to drop (even with the Hot-Air Charm, Harry could feel it). He held his wand higher in the air, trying to see ahead of him, and saw Mr Lovegood standing in front of-
"Is that well?" Sean asked from behind him.
Before he could answer, Mr Lovegood said, "Oh, yes, my dear boy. A well, indeed," and a cloud of breath escaped him.
"What's it for?" Hermione asked nervously.
"For us to go into," Mr Lovegood replied simply.
"Isn't there water inside it?"
"Down at the bottom," Mr Lovegood answered.
Harry saw that the well's base was made of grey bricks, a tribe of cockroaches scrambling up one of its sides. Sean jumped away when he saw them. Also, thin wooden beams supported a gable roof overhead. He leaned over the edge of looked down. There did seem to be running water but he couldn't be sure.
Beside him, Hermione waved Bellatrix's wand a jar of bright blue fire appeared. "Bluebell Flames," she explained, but didn't have to as Harry remembered huddling around them after Apparating to the Forest of Dean. It was winter then, cold and windy. They sat closer together and Harry remembered itching to reach out and touch her. He recalled looking at her lips and wanting to kiss her, no questions asked. It was one of the strongest feelings he felt towards her and wished he had done so. "They're not as dangerous as real fire," she continued, "and you can even touch them without burning yourself."
"And what, in the name of Merlin, are you going to do with those?" Mr Lovegood asked.
In answer, Hermione bent over the edge of the well and dropped the jar of Bluebell Flames inside it. They all watched its progression as it fell deeper and deeper down the well, a blinding blue slicing down its sides, leaving a railroad of sapphires behind it. It seemed to take a passing moon before the jar reached the bottom, but when it did, it didn't land in the water. Instead, it landed on a skinny shore that rimmed the water. The jar shattered and the blue flames bubbled atop the broken glass.
"So how're we going to get down there?" Sean asked.
Looking around, Harry saw the gable roof hanging over the well and an idea sprang up inside of him. He waved his wand and the roof detached itself from its two supports. He discarded it to the side. He then broke off one of the supports and ran his wand down it, transfiguring it into a broomstick. "We'll have to fly down there."
"But there's only one broom," Sean said, pointing his finger.
"I don't really think Mr Lovegood is in any condition to fly by himself, Hermione's afraid to, and you-,"
"I can fly!" Sean stated.
Harry paused, thrown off-guard by this.
"You've flown before?" he asked.
"All the time! My dad let's me have a go on his broomstick in the backyard of our home after dinner every night!" Sean looked a bit surprised when he realized what he said as Harry guessed his memories were trickling back to him. At least, he hoped they were.
"You sure?"
"Yes!" Sean exclaimed, and Harry could tell he was excited. "Here, let me show you!" And before Harry could protest, Sean hopped on the broom Harry transfigured and flew around them, maneuvering it with complete ease. Harry was actually quite impressed as he watched Sean, thinking that he was a natural. He then came to a gentle stop right where he started, a smile on his face. "See?" he said.
"Can you manage with another person on the broom with you?" Harry asked.
"Positive," and he nodded his head once.
"Okay," Harry said, taking charge of the situation, "take Mr Lovegood with you, then, and follow me." He broke off the second support and transfigured it into a second broomstick. Turning to Hermione, he said, "Climb on."
Mr Lovegood clamored behind Sean, and Harry could tell he wasn't too thrilled to be carrying Mr Lovegood with him. However, he was distracted when Hermione got on and instantly wrapped her hands around his middle. She was shaking already. "It's going to be a steep dive," he told her quietly, though his voice carried over to Sean and Mr Lovegood. "Just hang on, alright?"
She nodded wordlessly.
"We'll figure out what to do when we get down there," Harry said.
"You must follow the tunnel," Mr Lovegood suddenly told them. "That'll lead us to where we have to go."
"What tunnel?" Hermione asked, her voice quivering.
"You'll see," Mr Lovegood said. "You'll see."
Harry flew his broom over the well and said to Sean, "Be careful."
"I will be," and he turned serious, concentration etched across his face. Again, there was a pull of familiarity he associated Sean with, and it almost came to Harry. He thought it was the eyes…his hazel eyes, but before the answer revealed itself, the familiarly suddenly pulled back and hid far away from him.
"Well, let's go, then." Harry angled his broom vertically, Sean right behind him, and without waiting another second, dived.
A/N: I hope you enjoyed Chapter 2. Thanks for reading.