.

So far... The reborn Hermione launched the Cathesis League to fight Dark corruption, and Crest defensive training at Hogwarts where she and her friends are now in their third year. The name of the craft works where Skeeter's handbag was likely made by Black Arc members is a match for the scrawl on the message Ron retrieved from Wigget Adney in Interiartcraft (Knockturn Alley.) Hermione considers the place worth investigating. Now read on...

.

Chapter 81

Bestiamare


.

Fake Date

Excitement grew during the next few days as students began looking forward to the Hogsmeade visit on the coming weekend. But Hermione's anxiety increased with that general enthusiasm. Neville and Ginny had agreed without hesitation to accompany Luna and herself to inspect the tannery on Hearnsay Island, and it was difficult to dissuade them. By Friday lunchtime they were still discussing a plan of action.

"But why can't we all go?" grumbled Harry.

"Seven of us?" laughed Ron, with a gentle elbow nudging Olive's arm. "Bound to be noticed, and who'll cover for us? For a whole morning?"

"Or longer," added Hermione. "We don't know what we'll find when we get there."

Harry fidgeted in his chair. "Fine!" he huffed, folding his arms.

"Harry you've done plenty in the last few months alone!" hissed Hermione, then, more loudly, "Oh, that's a good idea, and then we can buy some multi-coloured quills in Scrivenshaft's too – that'll be fun, won't it!"

Ron winced with puzzlement. Further along, Andrew Kirke was getting hesitantly to his feet and glancing furtively their way; he looked decidedly pale. Justin Finch-Fletchley was already heading towards them. Ginny was the nearest to his approach, so he veered her way.

"Quills? We've got loads of quills," muttered Ron.

Justin whispered, "Ginny, there's no Crest meeting tomorrow, is there? Only we were–"

"–No, it'll probably be Sunday evening. We'll send a Galleon message when it's certain."

Anxious to continue the discussion about Hearnsay, Hermione was glad to see Justin turning away and Andrew sitting down again. She opened her mouth to speak...

"Thanks, Ginny," murmured Justin. "It was only that Hannah said to ask if you could teach her that jolting hex you'd–"

"–Oh, I'd love to, Justin!" cried Ginny, nodding her head vigorously.

Andrew Kirke had been half up on his feet once more. Hermione shut her mouth. Andrew sat down again. Hermione sighed. Would there be any more interruptions?

"Why'd you want more quills, Hermione?" said Ron.

"To write with, Ron," said Hermione resigning herself as she saw Andrew sheepishly inching along towards Ginny...

"Uumm..."

"Aah!" cried Ginny, startled by Andrew's voice in her ear.

"Sorry, uumm... sorry, Ginny. I was just thinking if you... are you... will you be going to Hogsmeade already? This weekend, I mean?"

"Uuh... oh, yeah, I'm going with... I mean, I've erm... just made plans," said Ginny.

"Oh, right, erm... good. Might see you around then..." He walked away with a defeated look on his face.

"Ginny," breathed Hermione, "Andrew thinks Justin just asked you on a date!"

"What!"

"He could cover for you!" Harry said brightly, glad to be able to contribute something at least.

"How?" said Hermione. "He's a Crest member but we can't tell him anything about tomorrow."

Harry eyed Ginny meaningfully. "He'll do anything for you, Gin. Ask him to... erm... suggest Luna wants to show you some weird creature in the Forest – which is true – and tell him to say he was with you all the time."

"Why would he?" said Ginny.

"T'uh, thick or what?" said Ron. "The git fancies you, Ginny. I swear I saw his tongue hanging out once."

"You'll have to promise him something though," said Hermione.

Ginny's eyes popped. "I am not going to kiss him if that's what you mean!"

Hermione groaned. "Do what Harry says – tell him you've secretly arranged with Luna and Neville to feed the Thestrals – but you'd be free on Sunday if he still wants to go to Hogsmeade."

"You mean a date?"

"Call it what you want. Just go as friends. Think of it as a Crest Mission. The way he's drooling I think he'd be grateful for any crumbs that fall from your table."

"No, this is not enough," said Luna, who had kept silent until now.

"Why?" said Harry.

"Nobody would believe an excuse afterwards. Andrew and Ginny need to be shown properly kissing in the Entrance Hall on Saturday, not Sunday – it's their honourable Crest duty. They should walk to Hogsmeade holding hands, and be seen visiting places in Hogsmeade before slipping out of sight together. Andrew must then stay hidden while Ginny travels to Hearnsay with us and returns to him later so they can come back through Hogsmeade together. And they must smile a lot too. Meanwhile, Harry, Ron, and Olive should stay very visible and drop hints they've seen us where we're supposed to be."

Harry whistled. "Wow, Luna, you've really given this some thought, haven't you? And what about you and Neville? And Hermione?"

A puzzled frown settled on Luna's brow, and she shook her head. "No, why would anyone need to think about it? Hermione can appear to remain at Hogwarts, and Neville and I won't need any hints after we're seen climbing over the stile into the meadow; it'll be obvious what we're doing when we–"

"–Luna! You are shameless!" gulped Olive, cheeks flushing.

"There's no shame in gathering armfuls of Tiger Lily and Dandy Lion!" cried Luna. "Everyone needs a backscratcher."

Hermione shook her head in bewilderment, but said, "We can trust Luna to bring back plenty of flowers so nobody will suspect."

Luna frowned. "flowers...?"

.

A Private Meeting

Rain cast its gloomy shadow over their plan the next morning. Hermione visited the hospital wing before breakfast complaining of a headache after eating two Figmentals on the trot. Madam Pomfrey gave her a potion and made her promise to return to her dormitory and rest and on no account was she to got to Hogsmeade – "Especially in this foul weather!" added the Matron, sternly.

"I promise I won't. But if the pain eases, may I read?" asked Hermione, holding her head. "–Not to study," she added hastily, "but for relaxation. "Some of the reading rooms have humorous accounts of earlier years at Hogwarts. Maybe that will relax me and lift my spirits."

"Very well, but don't strain your eyes." Madam Pomfrey never even felt the touch of Hermione's delicate compulsion charm. The alibi was sound if anyone enquired where she'd been.

Fingers entwined, Ginny and Andrew left breakfast to dally conspicuously in the Entrance Hall for almost fifteen minutes to allow plenty of students to notice them whispering and giggling together. They put on quite an act, though Andrews seemed to forget they were pretending.

"What's your favourite pastry? Do you like spicy or–"

–Ginny sighed. "I keep telling you, I won't be back till later."

"Uuh... oh, yeah." He deflated a little, and for a while they listened to the hiss of rain through the open doorway. "But suppose you're back early? We could–"

"–Here's Neville and Luna. Come on."

"I thought we were to be on our own?" said Andrew.

"We are walking down together, then they are heading out the far side of Hogsmeade to gather herbs and stuff... or something." She greeted her friends and they all pulled on their travel cloaks as the four headed outside into the downpour.

"Ah, right," said Andrew.

"And then we...?"

Andrew recited what he'd been told, "We cut through the Three Broomsticks and I stay in the private meeting room that Hermione's hired while you go out the window."

"And...?"

"I buy two drinks at the public bar once every hour or so and take them back to the room."

Ginny nodded. "And everyone knows one of my more unusual mixes is...?"

"Gooseberry and Almond juice."

She shook her head. "Almond and–"

"–Almond and Gooseberry juice – got it."

.

Whispers on the Wind

Seen from the air, the island of Hearnsay was smaller than Hermione had expected, being only a curving strip of mostly dark foliage a couple of miles in length. Low, swirling rainclouds obscured much of the land but a ferryboat could be seen veering past its south coast towards one of the other islands.

"Muggles never see it even when the odd dragon roosts here," cried Luna swooping her Thestral through the lashing rain closer to Hermione's flying steed. "Repelling charms, you see. They believe they might run aground in the shallows so avoid it without question."

"Dragon?" muttered Hermione to herself. "What other creatures live on Hearnsay?"

"Diricawls, Cockatrices, and Clabberts mostly – and Thestrals of course. Nothing to worry about."

"Ah, right..."

Neville remained silent, his entire focus was on gripping onto his Thestral as tightly as he could and not looking down.

"There's the craft works," said Luna, pointing forward to their left. "The Thestral herds are not too far away. They used to gather for the discarded offal but now they scavenge dead sheep and other remains."

"Woodland sheep? They're wild?"

"Feral. Daddy thinks they swam from the other islands in bygone centuries. That's what I'd do if I were a sheep, wouldn't you?"

Hermione nodded her head absently, but her attention was on the sole building down towards which they were spiralling. Perched on a foam-swept rocky cliff on the northwest corner of the isle, it was clearly of magical construction, for its roof was of living trees whose roots reached down and around the outer stone walls into the granite scarp.

Ginny, face glistening wet, laughed through the rain spray. "Is that oddity supposed to blend into the landscape?"

"Sea dragons abhor all that is unnatural," explained Luna. "They are ancient, simple creatures. The craftswitchen of Bestiamare would entice water sprites to sing the beasts into the cave below and so up into the flaying room. It was a horrid end to a noble creature and I'm glad it was outlawed and this place closed down."

All four Thestrals veered away from the slaughterhouse and flew inland where they descended midst giant ferns that roofed over them almost completely such that the rain was reduced to trickles and drips from above, and the wind became a cool, dank breeze whispering through the stalks and stems. So gloomy was the contrast of this new space, that the as soon as they slid off their mounts, the children cast lights by which to see. Many were the Thestrals that turned then in the visitors' direction, their eyes white, sinister, and blind-looking in the wandglow.

"Aren't they beautiful?" Luna murmured dreamily.

Ginny shuddered in the cold, damp air. "Which way? Anyone remember? I lost sight of the tannery on the way down."

Neville, still white-faced from the frightful journey, silently pointed his wand. "I was so r–relieved to s–see our d–destination," he gasped, teeth chattering, "that's about all I d–do remember!"

Hermione gave everyone a piece of Hestia's Pepper-up chocolate and cast drying and warming charms. Soon they were loosening their hoods and cloaks while marching more cheerily on their way.

"Can you feel the magic?" said Hermione. "It has a strong pull on this island."

"Strange..." murmured Neville, "... these ferns are so large, and... primeval-looking. Can you draw one of the leaves for me, Luna? I want to look them up when we get back."

Luna pulled out her sketchbook and walked back to the nearest, while Ginny and Hermione paused, strung out further along their trail. The breeze gusted slightly, and Neville thought one of the girls had called back to him... Aren't they beautiful?

He frowned. That wasn't Ginny's voice... nor Hermione's...

"What did you say, Neville?" called Hermione.

"I didn't. I thought one of you spoke?"

"Wasn't us..."

so r–relieved to s–see our d–destination...

Neville's mouth fell open. That had been his own voice! Was it in his head?

Aren't they beautiful?

"Luna? Was that you?"

Luna finished her drawing with a quick flourish of her signature then walked back to Neville. "Oh, no, that's the air. Mummy says its magical and swirls sounds round and round the island like echos. Daddy says they're mischievous wind sprites that whisper in your mind. I'm not sure, but they're fun, aren't they?"

They all listened silently for a while until the sounds slowly faded away...

What did you say, Neville? ... Aren't they beautiful? ...Strange... ... Luna? Was that you? ... Aren't they beautiful? ... Strange... ... they're fun, aren't they? ... they're fun, aren't they? ... they're fun, aren't they?

.

The Deathly Pool

The journey inland that had taken the Thestral two minutes took the travellers nearly twenty through the fern jungle before they emerged from its shelter into tall, coarse grass, and were being drenched once more by the heavy rain. As they proceeded, the grass soon thinned out as the sandy soil sloped down to the beach.

"There's Bestiamare; we're slightly east," said Neville.

They gazed along the coastline.

"It's uphill!" groaned Ginny, who was the youngest of them. "Why didn't we bring broomsticks! Why didn't the Thestrals leave us up there? Why didn't–"

"–They never liked approaching the tannery from the air," said Luna, "and anyway, their herding instinct drew them much more strongly."

"Let's go back into the long grass," cautioned Hermione. "It's slightly further to walk but not so steep if we curve away from the cliff and round to the landward side of the building. Safer anyway – look at that drop over there! Must be a hundred and fifty feet! Can't see any cave though."

"It's below the surface," said Luna. "See where the water foams amongst those rocks?"

"Come on, Ginny, it's only ten minutes," smiled Neville, leading the way.

Why didn't we...? ...Why didn't we...? ...Why didn't we...? faintly taunted the forest breeze.

"Oh shut up!" cried Ginny, and stomped after the others.

The entrance, when they came upon it, was overgrown with woody stems.

"Don't use force," said Hermione. "We don't want to leave any signs we were here, and we're not certain if anyone's inside or what traps might be set."

A rotted window gave them access without disturbance. The four scrambled through into a dusty tool store choked with grey corrupted shelving from beams to boards. Sand, dirt, and water had blustered in over the years so the place was filthy, but once the inner door was eased, they found a more-sheltered passageway where they dried and warmed themselves before moving on.

Her wand came first, but Luna led the way, convinced the main flaying chamber must be on the seaward side of the building. She was correct. The doorway at the corridor's end led into a large hall where greenish gloom filtered down from high windows and multitudes of skylights. Through them all could be seen dense leafery, with roots and branches clutching around the building like giant woody spiders. The floor of the chamber was stone, and its long side against the far wall had a deep rectangular pool where seawater heaved slowly back and forth against a gentle slope. At the top of the incline was a chain capstan. The children moved slowly, skirting the black iron grates and gutters set in the floor while navigating around several long rusted cages and frames.

"Wonder what they used those for?" muttered Neville.

"The capstan was used to wind the poor creatures up the slope into cages using those giant hooks you see hanging on the wall beside the flaying blades," Luna said softly. "Some were kept alive till the workers were ready to skin them because it's easier if they're fresh. Those long v-shaped frames are the skinning cradles."

Ginny shuddered and exchanged glances with Neville who looked slightly sick.

At the edge of the pool they stopped. The water was dark and menacing, its weighty to-and-fro movement a reminder of the ocean that pressed upon it from below.

"How does it remain so far above sea level?" asked Hermione, leaning over to stare down into the depths. "Is it not open to the Atlantic through a tunnel down there? Must be, surely? How else could the sea dragons swim up?"

Luna nodded. "We're on a significant ley line – can't you sense the magic? It supports a powerful lifting charm that might last as long as the world. It also attracts the sea dragons from afar; sea sprites do the rest."

"What happened to them? The sea sprites, I mean." Hermione crouched down to squint through the surface, her head cocked on one side as if she'd glimpsed something under the water...

"Oh, they're still hereabouts in the sea, basking in the magic. The craftswitchen allowed them to remain if they promised to lure in the sea dragons."

"Sounds like it was more of a threat to drive them away if they didn't." Hermione reached down into the water. "There's another cage down here. I can feel the top where the chain attaches."

"Wind it up!" cried Neville, walking towards the capstan.

"I'd rather we don't leave any obvious signs anyone's been here," said Hermione. "We still can't be sure we're alone..."

Hermione advised them to remain while she investigated upstairs. There wasn't much to discover: a galley, living accommodation, an office – all long since emptied of anything worthwhile and many invaded by roots from above. There was no indication anyone had been here for decades. She pushed open one last door: it led onto a wooden balcony overlooking the great flaying chamber. A cry from below drew her to the handrail. Luna, half-naked, was being pulled from the water by the other two.

Hermione sprinted back downstairs. "What happened?"

Luna was sat on the floor, shaking with cold. Neville and Ginny were warming and drying her body with charms.

"She dived in to..." began Ginny.

"...to look at the cage," finished Neville.

"N–not a c–cage. Not a n–normal..."

Luna's teeth were chattering. Hermione gave the girl a piece of the pepper-up chocolate. "Are you alright? You're not injured?"

"It's a... a..."

"What, Luna?"

"A cage-cradle." Luna's tone was forlorn. She held up a tiny piece of sodden hide. "It must have been used in recent years."

"For what, Luna?" cried Neville.

"Flaying alive." And tears smeared down Luna's still-wet face.

Neville put a hand on Luna's shoulder. "Don't cry, Luna. It's over now. They don't do that anymore."

She looked up at him, eyes shining with deep sorrow. "You shouldn't have pulled me out."

"You were drowning, Luna!" cried Neville, falling to his knees beside his girlfriend. "I couldn't just–"

"–You don't understand. The water faeries promised me... everything! I could even be one of them! Their life is so... so beautiful."

Without warning, Luna sprang up and leapt to the pool's edge, but Hermione was too fast for her. A stunning spell hit the blonde girl in the back and she fell unconscious, her fingertips almost touching the surface of the dangerously seductive water.

"Hermione!" cried Neville.

"The call of those sprites is irresistible if you're underwater." Hermione sighed. "She'll be fine when she wakes up. Turn your back while Ginny finishes drying and dresses her. I want to examine that cradle more closely."

Immaterial and untouchable by magic once more, she floated out and sank down into the great trough while Neville watched anxiously as she disappeared below the surface. A minute or two passed before Hermione reappeared, still completely dry but weakened as she came to rest, sitting on the stone floor. "Phuh..." she puffed. "I could feel their attraction even though they couldn't bewitch me." She shook her head to clear it. "No wonder Luna couldn't resist."

She examined another small piece of skin she'd retrieved. "Luna was right. The cage is bright metal, not blackened or even rusted like these others. I think it must have been protected with a charm – and not decades ago. Likely it was the one used to skin the creature that made Skeeter's handbag."

After another minute, Neville helped her to stand. "You okay now, Hermione?"

She nodded. "Bit faint, but I can walk."

After further searching around, Hermione dropped her shoulders in resignation. "Doesn't help us really. I'm convinced that members of the Black Arc came here to test Gamp's spell to bind living to living but all that's in the past. Without any trace of evidence, we don't know who they were. I was hoping to identify a few more of the enemy. I'd love to know who they were."

Hermione turned back to look at the other girls. Luna was floating horizontally just above the ground with Ginny holding her hand.

"Shall I wake her yet?" said Ginny.

"Wait till we get back to the Thestrals. The further away from this water the better. Can you manage her like that?"

"We're going back then?" said Neville glumly.

Hermione nodded. "Sorry. This was all a waste of your time."

"Not necessarily," smiled Ginny with a distant look in her eyes. "You just never know..."

And Hermione could not help but wonder whether she was thinking of the rest of the day that was now free to spend in Hogsmeade and... Andrew Kirke still waiting in the private room at The Three Broomsticks.

.

—oOo—

.


Author's Notes

LolBookWorm asked for a reminder about the context of that letter about Bestiamare - where it came from and its link to Rita Skeeter. Good question that many might like to know because this story is now so long I had to refresh my own memory! The answer is as follows:

The message about Bestiamare was in the first scene of Chapter 63, Incident at Interiartcraft, where poor Ron has to search the Arcanist, Wigget Adney's blouse after stunning her. Search down for smudged

Luna and Hermione spoke about Skeeter's handbag in the first scene of Chapter 56. Search down for handbag. Luna referred to the tannery then but not by name. Hermione got the handbag off Rita in Devil's Deep when she was with her daughter Imogene (naked angel, right?)

Many thanks for all comments and reviews. These are most welcome and very encouraging. Let me know of any weaknesses or faults – I'm always trying to improve my writing so feedback is really useful. :)

– Hippothestrowl

.