Disclaimer: I am not Timothy Zahn or J.K. Rowling.
Enter Aberforth and Goldstein, on the Isle of Drear.
Aberforth and Goldstein watch as Grindelwald's men approach.
Goldstein. The Ministry's parade. Ground expertise hasn't eroded, anyway.
Aberforth. Quiet.
Enter Grindelwald and Sanguini, flanked by Hit Wizards.
Grand Admiral Grindelwald. Welcome to our little corner of the Isle of Drear. I'm Aberforth Dumbledore.
Grindelwald. Pleased to meet you, Captain.
Aberforth. I apologize for our somewhat less than formal greeting. We don't often entertain people of your status here.
Grindelwald. [raises an eyebrow] Really. I'd have thought a man in your position would be used to dealing with the elite. Particularly high regional officials whose cooperation, shall we say, you find you require?
Aberforth. [smiles] We deal with the elite from time to time. But not here. This is . . . was, I should say [glances at the Hit Wizards] . . . our private operations base.
Grindelwald. Of course. Interesting drama a few minutes ago out there to the west. Tell me about it.
Aberforth. [grimaces] Merely a small internal problem. A former and somewhat disgruntled employee broke into one of our storage sheds, stole some merchandise, and made off with one of our brooms. Another of our people is in pursuit.
Grindelwald. Was in pursuit, Captain. Or didn't you know they both went down?
Aberforth. I didn't know that, no. Our sensors . . . The metallic content of the trees fouls them up badly.
Grindelwald. We had a higher observation angle. It looked as if the first broom hit the trees, with the pursuer getting caught in the slipstream. I take it the pursuer was someone special?
Aberforth. All my associates are special.
Aberforth reaches for a transceiver.
Please excuse me a moment. I have to get a rescue team organized.
Grindelwald pushes Aberforth's transceiver aside.
Grindelwald. Permit me. Troop commander?
Hit Wizard. Sir?
Grindelwald. Take a detail out to the crash site. Examine the wreckage and bring back any survivors . . . and anything that looks like it wouldn't normally belong in a Cleansweep Eleven.
Hit Wizard. Yes, sir.
Exit a few Hit Wizards.
Aberforth. I appreciate your assistance, Admiral. But it really isn't necessary.
Grindelwald. On the contrary, Captain. Your assistance with the hinkypunks has left us in your debt. How better for us to repay you?
Aberforth. How better, indeed? [aside] The cards have been dealt, and there is nothing I can do now to alter them. Let us hope that Ginny somehow has things under control. With anyone else, I wouldn't bet on it. But Ginny . . . she's not anyone else. There might be a chance.
Grindelwald. And now I believe you were going to show me around?
Aberforth. Yes. If you'll come this way, please?
As Aberforth leads Grindelwald and Sanguini through his base, they are viewed by Ron and Dean, who stand far off with Nigel, watching through Omnioculars.
Ron. Looks like the Hit Wizards are leaving. Some of them, anyway. Filing back into one of the brooms.
Dean takes the Omnioculars.
Dean. Let me see.
Dean studies the departing Hit Wizards.
Yes, it seems to be just the one broom that's going.
Ron. [to Nigel] You get Ministry visitors here often?
Nigel. Not here. They've been to the forest once or twice to pick up some hinkypunks, but they've never come to the base. At least, not while I was here.
Dean. [frowns] Hinkypunks? What are those?
Nigel. Little furry snakes with legs. I don't know what they're good for. Look, couldn't we get back to the Hog's Head now? Aberforth told me I was supposed to keep you there, where you'd be safe.
Ron ignores Nigel.
Ron. [to Dean] What do you think?
Dean. [shrugs] Got to have something to do with that Cleansweep that went burning out of here just as Aberforth was herding us out.
Nigel. There was some kind of prisoner. Aberforth and Weasley had him stashed away. Maybe he got out. Now, can we please get back to . . . ?
Dean. A prisoner? When did Aberforth start dealing with prisoners?
In the distance, Ron spots Sanguini, recognizing him as belonging to the same species which attacked Hermione.
Ron. Maybe when he started dealing with kidnappers.
Nigel. We don't deal with kidnappers.
Ron. Well, you're dealing with one now. [indicates Sanguini] That little gray guy in there? That's one of the magical creatures who tried to kidnap Hermione and me.
Dean. What? Are you sure?
Ron. It's one of the species, anyway. We didn't stop at the time to get names. [to Nigel] This prisoner . . . Who was he?
Nigel. I don't know. [shakes his head] They brought him back on the Hog's Head a few days ago and put him in the short-term barracks. I think they'd just moved him over to one of the storage sheds when we got the word that the Ministry was coming down for a visit.
Ron. What did he look like?
Nigel. I don't know. None of us was supposed to go near him or ask any questions about him.
Ron and Dean exchange looks.
Dean. Could be someone they don't want the Ministry to get hold of. A defector, maybe, trying to get to the Wizards' Council?
Ron. I'm more worried right now about their having moved him out of the barracks. That could mean the Hit Wizards are planning to move in for a while.
Nigel. Aberforth didn't say anything about that.
Dean. Aberforth may not know it yet. Trust me, I was on the short end of a Hit Wizard bargain once.
Dean peers through the Omnioculars.
Looks like they're going inside.
As they watch, Ron sets his sights on Grindelwald.
Ron. Any idea who that guy with the blond hair is?
Nigel. I think he's a Grand Admiral or something. Took over Ministry operations a while back. I don't know his name.
Ron and Dean exchange looks.
Dean. A Grand Admiral?
Nigel. Yeah. Look, they're going. There's nothing else to see. Can we please . . . ?
Ron pockets the Omnioculars.
Ron. Let's get back to the Anglia. [aside] A Grand Admiral. No wonder we've been getting the sky cut out from under us lately.
Dean. I don't suppose you have any records on Ministry Grand Admirals back on the Anglia.
Ron. No. But they've got them in London.
Dean. Great. Let's hope we live long enough to get this tidbit back there.
Ron. We will. We'll stick around long enough to find out what kind of game Aberforth's playing. But then we're gone. Even if we have to blow out of here with that camo net still hanging off the car.
Exit all.
