6
He walked between the old gravestones. His face bore the same mask of gloomy indifference as always, only in the depth of his eyes one could see his bottled up emotions. This place, the Hogsmeade cemetery, was his curse and his salvation at the same time. It was the strongest reminder of his horrible sins and her death, but it was also the only place where she was still…still present…in a way.
He often visited her grave. Early in the morning, when everyone was still asleep, when the nature was still in between the darkness and the light, when no-one could see the occasional tear that would very rarely make it's sad way down his pale cheek.
He could find her grave with his eyes closed. His legs automatically moved in the right direction and automatically stopped when they reached their goal. That's when he finally looked down…and held his breath. The grave wasn't there. He looked around. The place was right. The other graves were there. He switched his alert gaze back to the place, where her grave was supposed to be. It was empty. There was no gravestone; the earth was flat and carried no traces of protuberance. He looked around once again and quickly walked away.
In no more than two minutes he stood near the house of the cemetery keeper. He unceremoniously banged at the door, which was opened almost immediately by a sleepy old man. The menacing looks of the visitor scared the keeper.
"How… How can I help you, sir?"
The frightened man was stammering.
"Follow me."
The menacing wizard barked his order and quickly walked away, his black cloak billowing behind him. The keeper nervously regarded his retreating figure before following.
They walked in silence. The skinny short keeper almost had to run to keep in pace with the tall man. When the younger wizard abruptly stopped the older one crushed into him from behind.
"Where is it?"
The menacing wizard was pointing to the ground.
"Where is what, sir?"
"The grave, old man! Where-is-it?!"
The keeper, who was slightly disoriented and confused, looked around. It took him a few moments to compose himself and realize where they were standing.
"Oh… Oh, Merlin! But… But, sir, how?.."
"You're asking me, old man?!"
The younger wizard was quickly loosing what was left of his patience.
"YOU are the keeper, not me. Correct me if I am wrong, but it's your job to look after this cemetery and to be aware of everything that happens on these grounds."
His voice was low, his face distorted with anger.
The old man was shaking now. His voice quivering as he talked.
"Yes, sir. You are right of course, sir. But the last time I checked this place everything was just fine. And it was just five days ago. The diggericks were causing trouble in the opposite part of the cemetery and I spent almost a week there trying to get rid of those little nasty creatures."
The keeper ran his fearful eyes over the place where the grave was supposed to be.
"I've never seen anything like this, sir… I truly do not know what to think of it…"
The tall wizard was fuming. His narrowed eyes were gleaming dangerously. The keeper took a step back from the malicious looking man. But the younger wizard threw a last glance at the now empty ground and strode away.
"No, nothing like this has ever happened before…"
Mumbled the old keeper and shook his head.