A/N: This chapter was supposed to span until Hermione was in school one full week. However, she and Sirius had a sort of rapport going on and I didn't want to stop it and hadn't the heart to erase when I re-read! I left you at another cliffhanger, and this chapter is a really mean fill-in, and I apologize heartily for that. But hey, who really argues with fiction featuring Sirius? *grin* I swear that I've begun work on the next chapter and will *try* to get it up soon. (If it makes up for this rather odd chapter, I'm almost done with "Serendipity"... maybe two more weeks at most.) Again, I'm sorry and wish it didn't leave off here, but I can't make my .txt file any bigger! Forgive me? *puppy dog eyes*
A very sincere thanks as always to my reviewers: Ayla Pascal, DJ, Julia, Lavander Ice, Le Chat Qui Garde La Lune, Lily Evans, Sorensen, and Tess. I still think I don't deserve the good things you say and need a *lot* more criticism, but thank you very much as always. :-)
Chapter 14: A Sirius Errand
29 December
So much for a nice, normal, magic-and-worry free holiday.
Let's see… I left off right when Sirius knocked at the door, Mum put her novel down to open it, and Sirius stepped in. In moments like this, it's scary how the side door opens straight into the living room. I was in shock for a moment.
Sirius gave me what I can only describe as a warning glance… and Warning Glance probably warrants capitals. "Well, well, happy holidays to you all," he said, and immediately I could tell he wasn't talking normally. His words were more measured. In fact, I was reminded of Snape… which was shortly explained: "Mrs. Granger, I take it? I'm Professor Snape, Po - " he eyed Thomas and Amanda - "Chemistry, a teacher of Hermione's from school."
I bit my tongue to contradict him. I saw an unholy glint in Sirius's bright blue eyes and could practically hear a little kid's voice: "I'm impersonating Sna-ape… I'm impersonating Sna-ape… and he would kill me if he kne-ew it…"
"O-Oh…" Mum managed weakly, blinking at Sirius. I'm sure that she doesn't hear the same things on Snape that Mrs. Weasley does, but still… she's heard enough to be a little wary, especially since Sirius wasn't doing too well at hiding a grin. Dad looked on in very decided interest, probably ready to "get" him for Snape's crimes.
"Erm, happy holidays to you, too…" Mum said. "Er - I take it -"
"Problems with Hermione's behaviour, I'm sure," Dad chipped in with a wink. If this had been Snape, I would have died of embarrassment. As it was, it was pretty bad.
"A given, sir," Sirius replied dourly, eying me with distaste. "However, that is not the point of my errand today. The school is conducting some interesting experiments and Headmaster Dumbledore wanted me to fetch Miss Granger to help with some of the finer points…" His lip curled just slightly, the words coming as painfully as Snape would have said them. I almost could have laughed. Sirius is an awfully good actor.
It was also the right thing to say. You could just see Mum start to beam. Dad grinned, slightly pleased. Honestly - parents are so easy to hook wind.
"When's the experiment, sir?" I asked promptly, having wild suspicions as to what Sirius was up to.
"If you can be spared, we'd like to borrow you today."
"As in - right now?" Dad asked, surprised.
Sirius, eyes half open, as if in mocking thought, nodded hilariously in very short movements. "Yes, that sounds about right," feigning slight, Snape-like exasperation.
"Oh." This was Mum and Dad together, and then Mum: "Hermione? Would you - like - to accompany Professor Snape?"
"Yes," I said instantly. "It'll be thrilling."
Dad blinked. "What is?"
"Er - the, the experiment. I heard about it before I went home for holiday and have been hoping all week I'd be chosen for it," I said earnestly.
"Well, you have been, Miss Granger," Sirius said dryly. I risked glancing at him. He had purposefully greased up his hair - leaving no stones unturned, I supposed. I was incredulous in regard to him - as if my parents and the Roberts haven't seen a million wanted pictures of him! Faking Prof. Snape!
Yet it sounded so very Sirius.
"If your parents consent, it's about time to move along," Sirius continued, tapping his wrist, (he wasn't wearing a watch) and giving Mum and Dad an impatient glare.
They exchanged a look.
"See here, Mr. and Mrs. Granger, I have a note from the headmaster right here -"
"No, no, that won't be necessary," Mum said quickly. "Hermione? Positive you want to go?"
I nodded quickly. "Yes. Please, Mum."
They granted permission, and I gave each a hug in turn. Sirius - who seemed to be having entirely too much fun with this - acted out a very Snapeish leaving, with cool stares and short replies to the farewells. "Miss Granger, are we planning to leave any time, oh, today?"
I waited until we were out of earshot of the house. Sirius led me to the woods. "Sirius, what are we doing?"
"Playing Aurors, actually. Nice to see you too, Hermione," he grinned teasingly.
I returned it dubiously. "Come on, Sirius, I lied my head off to my parents and now I want to be reassured I did the right thing. Why did you come as Professor Snape?"
His grin widened even while his eyes were intent and serious. "I like to masquerade as him on my travels…"
I stared at him in slight horror, but somehow I wasn't very surprised. "You do? Say, very often?"
"Nearly all the time," he said with a casual wink. "And it was a lot more fun to lower your parents opinion of Snape than anyone else up there. Speaking of which -" he withdrew a wand; I decided against asking whose it was or where he got it " - I've got to get this stuff out of my hair. Wasn't sure if you had mentioned that, our scholar, but I wasn't taking any chances." He used a charm I hadn't heard of before. "Okay, we're going to need to Double Apparate."
"Sirius, that's ille…" I trailed off. Like Sirius would care.
True to my suspicions, he shrugged. "I do a lot of that."
"Can you do it?" I asked doubtfully.
Sirius assured me on that point that he was utterly competent on that. "There were too many uses for it to not learn to do it properly." I hesitated. "Okay, maybe I'm rushing this. Shall I explain it all quite carefully?"
"Yes, that would help. Especially if I find out why you so desperately needed me."
"And, by the way, I congratulate you on your expert acting skills, Miss Granger, they were excellent. All right, we're going to pay a visit to a place I expect you'll faint with bliss from - Carquel's stronghold."
I stood dumbstruck.
"Yes, the very same. You know of it, do you not?"
"Carquel's stronghold, built in 1879, suspected to be in the midst of Gilonean Wood, is surrounded by many wild and fanatical rumours, stemming from the mystery surround Q. Carquel himself. Born in 1768, Carquel's life is largely unknown. He attended Hogwarts and graduated a Ravenclaw and a prefect. He spent the years post-graduation disappearing from British wizarding society and retreating to his own devices, which largely concerned learning and knowledge -"
Sirius nodded. "That's about right. No need to go further, I just wanted to know if you knew."
I realized I had been blabbing a bit and blushed.
"Well, lucky lucky us, we happen to know how to get to Carquel's."
"Where? How? Is he really going to like us coming in? And what do you need me for? Why not Harry?"
"It's in Gilonean Wood, as you said; Remus spent a year there and unbeknownst to Carquel mapped the area, something which will not amuse him - Carquel, I mean; no, he probably won't, but that's beside the point and I'll get to it in a minute; I need someone with a high amount of brains for backup and likely to distract the Nowhere Man -"
"The Nowhere Man?" I snickered.
"I would have liked to take Harry but he's at Hogwarts, much to my chagrin, and I'm not supposed to try and break into Gryffindor Tower for a while."
"I'm sure the Fat Lady would appreciate that," I muttered, and regretted it, for a flash of hurt went through Sirius's eyes. "So what are we going to do?"
"We're going to check for signs of any Death Eater attacks, if we can't get Carquel to tell us straight out… which I doubt."
"Isn't Carquel a bit - a bit - dangerous?" I asked hesitantly. "Mad, like? And what are you playing at, you're wanting and everyone in England knows it…"
"Hermione, you insult me," Sirius said, feigning offence. "Do you mean I really look like the pictures on those posters and such?"
I eyed Sirius critically. It has always been a bit of a shock to see Sirius's pictures on the television and posters lately, because Sirius doesn't look a thing like them. In the pictures his face is sunken badly, he's in dire need of a barbershop, and you couldn't even tell his eye colour. His face is usually serious, but looking at him as he is now, he looks a lot healthier, his hair is trimmed neatly, his blue eyes sparkle when he sees Harry or right now, as he was still grinning over his Snape Masquerade, and truthfully, he looks quite handsome. I barely recognize him from the pictures still circulating in both the magic and Muggle worlds… except when his eyes go dull and flat, thinking of Azkaban. In fact, it's amazing that anyone could have spent twelve years there and retained his spirit so well.
"No, definitely not," I replied. "Still, this isn't my parents; this is Carquel - he doesn't seem to be any dummy, and he can probably recognize you if no one else can."
Sirius smiled knowingly. "Hermione."
I waited. "Yes?"
"So he'll take me for the infamous Sirius Black, escaped convict from Azkaban. This is the ultimate Ravenclaw gone wrong we're talking about, the one who never informed the outside world his home was attacked by Death Eaters. When he first sees me, what's the first thing he does?" I hesitated. "He wants information, and trusts his own mind more than the Aurors' or dementors' or Hit Squad's. The first thing he'll want to know is how I managed to stay sane and functional after twelve years in Azkaban." He sighed, looking a bit more sober. "See? There are advantages to being an Azkaban escapee, believe it or not. He won't dare hurt us until his knowledge is satisfied; hopefully by then we'll know what we want to know. Do you trust me well enough to Apparate to Gilonean Wood now?"
I sighed and nodded. "Isn't is dangerous for someone so young?"
Sirius drew his wand. "Remus's mother taught him to when he was seven."
I jerked my head, forgetting that I shouldn't be making any sudden moves while Sirius was concentrating. "No!"
"Yes. I wish my parents had taken that viewpoint. It was some sort of Refrudian trick." I discovered another thing Sirius didn't seem to want to talk about - his parents. Remembering the tales I had read on Arisuis Black, I almost couldn't blame him. "Set?"
I braced myself.
"Relax if you don't want to be splinched." Sirius waited until he was certain I was "relaxed" and gave his wand an expert spin, saying "Apperio". It only took a blink before I found myself in another, darker forest.
"Welcome… to Gilonean Wood," Sirius hissed dramatically. "A few other things I need to warn you about while we walk - can't Apparate, I would bet my life Carquel has a way to prevent that… we have three goals: determine if there's been any Death Eaters around lately."
"Determine if there's been any presence of Death Eaters lately," I repeated to show I was paying attention. "There will probably damage?"
Sirius sighed. "Yes, and that's the difficult part. According to Remus, this place is gigantic. He said he never even saw all of it -"
"So why didn't Professor Lupin come with us?"
Sirius shook his head, hiding a smirk that I didn't think had anything to do with his answer: "Because when he left Carquel, it was on pretty nasty terms. It's a long story and not mine to tell, but there was a fair bit of shouting on both sides. Furthermore, overprotective canine that I am, I was worried about him getting too banged up right now. There's a full moon day tomorrow night. But he did happen to leave us a map." Sirius produced a piece of parchment, which was marked meticulously with complicated passages and corridors.
"Looks worse than Hogwarts, even," I commented.
"Just about. We had to decided where the Death Eaters would go if they had come here - and it wasn't easy." Sirius rubbed the back of his neck in thoughtful exasperation. "We figured they'd go after artifacts with interesting powers, though, since they can develop the rest of it themselves if they really, really applied themselves." He traced the way to the Artifacts Wing. It was difficult to follow. "That's where I want you to sneak off to if at all possible. Tell Carquel you're studying them for an O.W.L. project or whatnot. See if there's anything that looks missing." I nodded. "I'm also going to diplomatically ask Carquel about it flat-out."
I grinned. "Sirius, no offence, but you and 'diplomatically' were two concepts I never connected."
"All right, know-it-all, you ask, then," he smirked. "The second goal is to see if in the Artifacts Wing if there's any Eselilnac Eye charms or if there ever was at any time."
"Whatever for?"
Sirius sighed. "Another long story, and, frankly, I'm not supposed to tell you. I get to it later, though. We also want to confirm any rumours that a nice happy group of Death Eaters -" he made an indistinct scoffing noise " - really sent a werewolf over here last week."
I blinked. "Er - in wolf form?"
"Yeah. Nice neighbourly thing to do, I reckon."
"Sirius, you just said the full moon is tomorrow."
Sirius looked incredulous. "They're still not teaching you anything about the Lycoas Charm?"
I shook my head, wincing. I didn't like the sound of this already.
Sirius shook his head in exasperation. "Hermione, I hate to say it, but our education system is terrible. Harry didn't know a thing about Bendall's Curse; you don't know anything about the Lycoas Charm; even Percy Weasley couldn't tell precisely what having an Eselilnac Eye meant. A Lycoas Charm can be used to make a werewolf transform at any moment, willing or not. Works in reverse, too, can stop the transformation."
"D-Did Professor Lupin ever try that?" I asked hesitantly.
"Once," Sirius said, a little shortly, "and that's another story that I don't have the right to tell. In any case, we'll probably just have to check the entrances for that - any claw-like damage is a bit of a giveaway. Keep the map; I've got it memorized."
"Sirius?" I asked presently as the forest began to thin. I had noticed him adopting a look of satisfaction and concluded that we were getting closer to the stronghold.
"Yes?"
"Is this terribly dangerous? Like, might I die?"
Sirius sighed. "I'll confess this to you - there's a chance, a slight chance, that, well, yes, you might. Frankly, that's why I waited until after Christmas." I felt myself blanch. "But listen, the risk is surprisingly small, and I've also got this for you." From his pocket he pulled a ring. "This is a Portkey, in case of emergency, that'll take you straight to Patty Millry's. You know of her?"
"Auror Millry attended Refrudula and graduated 1945; was an Auror from 1957 to 1960, helped Alastor Moody and Katrina Mead with the defeat of the Dark Witch Darmintry; was a writer under the nom de plume Miranda Goshawk; wrote Footsteps, the officially standardized Charms textbook set, the first standardized Defence Against the Dark Arts set, later replaced by Elisabeth Powell's; co-wrote the Monster Book of Monsters with Charles Rossington; headed the CC in the early 70s, taught -" I caught Sirius looking slightly incredulous at my recital. "Yes, I do," I corrected, thankful that he at least hadn't interrupted him. Sirius is nice that way.
"Well, she and Moody, who's over there at the moment, know that if anything goes wrong you might show up in their living room." He smirked. "Might be an incentive for them to behave, too."
"You're worse than Dad," I murmured.
"And, like I said, if anything was to seriously go wrong, we feign pathetic scholars until Remus arrives. I swear, Carquel is too interested in what I know to attack immediately…"
"Oh - my - goodness!" I burst out at that moment, rather loudly, as we entered a huge clearing with this white… building… that was… was… gigantic. This was… big. You really could get lost it here. From where I stood, it stretched out forever and ever. This was no castle or mansion - this was a big white structure. "Stronghold" is the closest word for it.
Sirius looked impressed, too. "Wow. This would make a good Quidditch field if it was cleared out."
I shot him an equally incredulous sideways glance. Sports - is that all males think about?
He took a deep breath as any dreams of starting his own team and stadium slowly faded; now looking ever so slightly tense. "Well. Ready?"
"I suppose," I said doubtfully, trying very hard not to think of death. Instead, I thought of the wonder of it all. I, Hermione Elizabeth Granger, was going to be in Carquel's Stronghold.
I have to use Ron's vocabulary - that was pretty cool.
Sirius smiled encouragingly. "You'll do fine. I picked you specifically for this." Well, that was a heartening remark. Sirius was "one of the most brilliant students in the school", had helped to write the Marauder's Map, had become an Animagus at fifteen, had learned to Double Apparate, and, well, you get the picture.
"What entrance?" I asked.
"Good question." He examined the sketchy map. "Not this one," he nodded to the entrance at the short side we were facing with a greenhouse near it. "The one of the south… not chilly, are you?"
I raised an eyebrow. "Fine time to ask, now that we're going inside."
"Carquel doesn't believe in 'climate altering devices' such as, say, fireplaces, except in specific wings."
I gaped. "He's crazy; this is the coldest part of England!"
Sirius chuckled. "I never said he wasn't crazy, did I? Oh, one more thing to test out before we enter." He handed me a peppermint humbug. I took it, glanced at it rolling in the palm of my hand, and looked up into his grinning face. "MS Peppermint, Marauder Specialty Mind-Speak. Look, put one in your mouth." Sirius did the same, and next thing I knew his voice rang in my head. One of our better little fiddling inventions, really.
"I can hear you!" I burst out.
Yeah, and if you directly talk with me in your mind, I can hear you, too.
Come on, you must be putting me on…
You still doubt me?
If you can really hear and understand me, raise your right hand.
Sirius raised his right arm. I hate this specific instruction stuff, he communicated to me, even his mind-voice conveying amusement. These last fifteen minutes. The second you feel the connection fading, eat another. He handed me a handful. We'll try not to stay too long, though, it took Remus and me, oh, about two weeks to remember how to re-do these. Thank goodness he saved the sample.
This is pretty incredible, I told him as he led me to the south side.
Sirius played modest: Oh, there are a few things we still have to work on. It's a real annoyance that only two people can use them at once; we still have to correct that, and fifteen minutes isn't all that impressive a space of time…
The doors looked old-fashioned but completely normal, not even incredibly imposing. But there was no handle.
"I solemnly swear that I am hear for a purpose Q. Carquel shall dislike," Sirius said to the door. I gaped at him in amazement. He shrugged. "It won't admit me if I lie," he explained, "so I tell the truth."
A chime rang with a very low sound. It took moments before Carquel arrived. The door shimmered and looked silvery and transparent for a moment and I saw the form of a short person.
"Who's there?" a short, raspy voice asked sharply.
"Oh, sir," Sirius replied in bright jovialness, "you needn't ask; you know nearly everything. I'm utterly convinced you know our identity already."
"I do not." The voice didn't sound quite as harsh, however.
"We're admirers of yours."
"Go away; I don't accept visitors!"
"But, sir, we're not visitors. I have a genius of a girl by my side. Even Albus Dumbledore agrees on that score."
He does? I asked.
In his words, you are a "brilliant young witch". Close enough.
There was a tempted pause. "How'd you get here?"
"From reliable information; who but those you trust could lead us here, sir?"
The door opened on normal hinges just enough to admit us. I tried not to stare. Carquel was little like how I had imagined him. He was short (although his presence was so strong that he seemed taller), with wild brown hair with solid white streaks through them. (I mean, we're talking inspiration for cartoons here…) His face was flat, ruddy, and otherwise completely nondescript; he wore fine grey working robes, his feet were incredibly small. His hands were broad, flat, and skillful; his muddy-blue coloured eyes looked dull but flickered warily over both of us, although for the moment he didn't give Sirius a second glance.
"The girl?" he asked him, turning his eyes to examine me. I felt like I was a species under a microscope.
"She doesn't resemble any wizards I know," he said sharply. "Except the Granger cheekbones. You're a Granger, aren't you? Cecelia Granger. I examined the autopsy photographs."
I stared for a moment before finding my voice. "Yes. Sir."
I thought you were Muggle-born; least that's what Remus said, Sirius thought through the MS Peppermint.
I had this aunt…
"Granger was clever enough, so I've heard," he said disdainfully, although I don't know if the superiority was for Aunt Cecelia's cleverness or the people he had heard it from. I think it's the latter. "What's so special about you?"
Artifact Wing… Sirius reminded me.
I know. "I am extremely interested in artifacts. Headmaster Dumbledore reported you have a large study of them and that you'd be more than helpful." Where I found the courage to say that I'll never know.
Clever touch, Hermione.
Thanks. It's also a lie.
We'll deal with that later.
Carquel sniffed and turned to Sirius. "Black, Sirius Black. Wouldn't have expected you would have been here. You look different from the posters Dumbledore sent me. How'd you stay sane in Azkaban and later escape?"
Trelawney would be so proud of me! Sirius communicated happily. "That's an interesting story I think will be helpful to you, sir. Wouldn't you want to know why I'm even here, with an underage witch, no less?"
"No. Tell me how you escaped." It was a downright order, and I can't help but think that Carquel had a serious want of manners.
"All in due time, sir. Miss Hermione Granger wants to see the Artifact Wing, and I have a question or two myself to exchange."
"You set me up," Carquel told him coolly.
No kidding! Sirius scoffed. Aloud: "No, it's a barter. You have information we need; we have information you need. We believe it shall be mutually helpful to both parties."
"Did Dumbledore send you?"
"He's advocating this, yes."
There was a silence as Carquel explained this and I mentally asked Sirius why Dumbledore kept being dragged into it. Because even though he's in serious denial, Dumbledore is the only person he respects at all. Who doesn't? Sirius answered.
"I'm giving more information than I'm receiving," Carquel concluded.
Sirius was still smiling winningly. "You are giving out more items, I admit, but isn't the lure of cross-examining Sirius Black enough?"
You have quite the ego, Sirius, I told him dryly.
Well, it works, in times like these.
Carquel's eyes narrowed and he turned on his heel. "Follow," he ordered sharply. I couldn't help but wonder at him. His robes were thick, but not so thick as my wrappings, and I was shivering.
That place was even bigger on the inside, it seemed. The corridors twisted and turned everywhere, and, I thought, twisted around and back abouts. We walked for a good ten minutes (and I could practically see Carquel calculating how much time he was losing) and I tried to keep him in good humour by asking what he was currently working on.
You know what he said? He was perfecting his cure for Gigimagnia. Too bad Madam Pomfrey couldn't have heard that!
And this here is where my hand hurts far too much to continue. So much more has happened… but I really can't write anymore at the moment, especially since Mum wants me to turn off my light. I wanted to get down all the details before I forgot… but that's, in Sirius's words, a "long story" that'll have to wait until tomorrow.
Well, for you guys, you have to wait about a week, maybe more... in the meantime, if anyone wants to place a vote for which character they want to see featured in "Receiving the Hogwarts Owl"... I've one vote for Remus. Anyone else want to voice their choice? By the way, while this chatper seemed pointless, it also holds a lot of information for all you plot maniacs... *wink, wink, hint, hint* and the next chapter involves alot of foreshadowing for the end of this fic.
And is that dose of Sirius a bit better? You get some more of him in the next chapter, too... -- Rheanna
