Chapter 14
An Unexpected Turn of Events
Ginny and Harry spent all of Sunday sitting about Number Twelve Grimmauld place. Harry ordered Kreacher to keep well away from them, and he made lunch and dinner while trying to teach Ginny a few of the charms she'd seen him use. Between meals they played a few games of chess and a few more games of Exploding Snap.
Both of them felt a little awkward around each other. They hadn't been together for over a year, and while Harry had been watching Ginny, there was quite a difference between watching Ginny and sitting on the couch with her in an empty house which he now owned.
By some sort of mutual agreement, they kept themselves busy by doing everything but sitting together on the couch. The thought of too much time spent like that still felt a little uncomfortable to Ginny. Harry seemed to have come to the same conclusion, without either of them saying a single word in discussion. For now, it was enough that they were together, talking, laughing and keeping each other company. Slowly, the comfort returned, and by Sunday night, they were together on the couch again, doing little more than watching a pair of candles burn silently.
"What are we going to do now, Harry?"
Harry sighed and laid back. They could only ignore the world for so long. "You're going to go to work, and I'm going to send a message off to the goblins."
"I was asking on a more general level," she clarified. "Am I supposed to pretend that you're still gone? If I see Hermione, am I supposed to pretend that I'm still a wreck? It's hard enough to keep secrets. How long am I going to have to lie to everyone? How long do I have to keep you hidden?"
"As long as we can," Harry replied in a tired voice. "I― There are things that I still don't understand. Until I have a better idea of exactly what we're facing, I think it's better if everyone thinks I'm still gone." Ginny opened her mouth to speak, but he cut her off. "That doesn't mean that I won't tell Ron and Hermione. I think Ron believed me. Hermione will, too, once I'm able to speak with her. After that, we'll find a way to tell Lupin and your parents ―just not yet."
"What about Hermione?" Ginny asked. "If Ron knows, won't he tell Hermione?"
"I hope not. I told him not to, and I'd hope you'd do the same. Hermione is in a lot of danger right now. I think she knows too much already, and the new Dark Lord may not like the idea of her talking with me. If he gets any hint of what I plan to do, she― she might not be as lucky as you were."
"What about Tarus?" she asked. "Couldn't he help us? He's been able to manipulate the Ministry twice now. Maybe he could help us tell Hermione, or others."
"No―" Harry said suddenly, "―no, it's not safe. Remember, he's surrounded by the Brotherhood at all times. Treat any message you send to him as if you expect them to read it. I'd prefer you not send any message at all. There are too many things you still don't understand about the Brotherhood. Your new title will be more useful, eventually. For now, use it just the way Tarus intended: as a shield to keep you safe from prying questions. A Liaison was never meant to be a spy, and he should not be expecting you to share secrets with him."
Ginny nodded and tried to push the thoughts from her head. It was just the way she expected. She wanted to push him for a better reason why it had to be that way, but she didn't want to ruin the little bit of peace they'd found that night. So, she took a deep breath, and told herself to trust Harry. She'd done alright with that strategy so far.
Monday was much more boring than Ginny had expected. She sat in her new office and read through stacks of books and rolls of parchment that Harrington had delivered to her. He'd made it clear that she would still have normal duties in the department, but that she'd be allowed some freedom in how she spent her time in order to see that any work Tarus gave her was done as well.
For now, neither Harrington nor Tarus had given her anything at all to do, so she was left to her reading, which was far from interesting. She'd combed through it looking for any mention of the Brotherhood of the Sacred Balance, but found nothing. Perhaps if she could read Romanian she might have had better luck.
It had taken her hours to realize that 'Oras-maijos' was the true name of the castle Tarus had taken her to. That meant that 'Oras-maisus' was the surrounding city. Those names had come up often enough, but there was little more about their history than Tarus had told her himself. Certainly there was no mention of any secret cults living within either of them.
When the end of the day finally came, she piled all of the books onto a single shelf of one of her empty bookcases, and stacked the parchment neatly on her desk. After closing and locking her door, she walked down the corridor and past Evelyn's office, being certain to ignore her as completely as possible. The first lift to arrive was already packed with wizards leaving for the day, so she waited and took the second.
The doors of the lift opened and Ginny joined the other occupants as they poured out into the small lobby. There was a slight fluttering in her stomach. In just a few moments, she'd be returning to Harry. Somehow that thought was very encouraging, and she fought the urge to smile as she walked through the same golden gates which used to haunt her dreams.
However, the moment the crowd began to disperse, Ginny saw something that drained all the happiness from her. Standing not far from her was the same Brotherhood wizard who'd met her when she had shown up on Friday morning. He didn't make any moves toward her or signal her in any way, but his expression held a passive challenge. Before she knew what she was doing, she was striding toward him.
"Why are you following me?" she asked in a quiet voice.
The wizard's expression broke into one of confusion. "Following you?" he said. "I was simply waiting here. You were the one to approach me."
"Right, and you just happened to be waiting here Friday morning, and again Friday evening?" Ginny pressed. "What about when I arrived this morning? Where were you then?"
"I don't think I know," the wizard replied, behind a faint smile. "Am I to assume that you arrived at the same time as the rest of these wizards? Even if that were the case, I could not say where I was. I do not know their habits any more than I know yours. I don't even know who you are."
"You know very well who I am," Ginny hissed.
"Do I?"
"Yes, you do," she argued with growing annoyance.
"Are you someone important, then?" the wizard asked with grating cheerfulness. "Have we met at some official function? Or do we perhaps share some... common acquaintance who might be better known?"
Ginny scowled at him. She was right. He was a Brotherhood wizard. He was toying with her. They were watching her and waiting for her to do something that would give away the information they wanted. She decided that she wasn't going to help them do that. She couldn't stop them, but she could make them work a little harder than simply standing outside the gates and waiting for her to leave every day.
Ginny turned and marched toward the security wizard at the desk. She had to tap on the desk to get his attention, but once she had, she quickly informed him that the wizard she'd been talking to was not a Ministry employee or guest and that he'd been following her for some time. Looking more harassed than worried, the guard wizard stood up and followed her back to the other wizard.
"I'm sorry, sir, but this hall is for Ministry employees and their guests," he said in a tired voice. "There's no loitering. If you don't have any business here today, you'll have to move along."
"But I do have business," the Brotherhood wizard said.
"He's lying," Ginny snapped.
He glared at her. "I beg your pardon. I don't believe I've even told you my name, much less my business here."
"I don't know who he is, but he's following me," Ginny announced.
The guard rolled his eyes in boredom, and continued in the same monotone, "If you have business here, sir, I would ask you to tell me what it is, and I shall leave you to it."
"I am here as a guest of the Department of Mysteries."
"Prove it!"
"I can no more prove my business here than you can prove I have none," he replied. "The nature of my business is private, and I have been instructed to tell no one of it, least of all nosy witches who accost me without reason."
"And is there a wizard who might vouch for this story?" the guard asked.
"I do not know a name," the other wizard said with a smile. "That is the nature of the Department of Mysteries. Perhaps you could ask the Head of the Department. Reynard is his name, if I remember."
"Reynard, eh?" the guard commented. "I haven't heard of any guests for the Department of Mysteries scheduled this evening."
"Oh, you wouldn't," the wizard said with a smile. "I came in early this morning. I was sent out while they spoke privately. Since it is the Department of Mysteries, I can only assume whatever they reasons might be, they are rather mysterious."
"And can you prove that you've been to the Department of Mysteries today?" the guard asked lazily.
"No," the wizard replied, smiling again, "but she can." He raised an arm to point at the gate leading to the lifts. Ginny turned and felt her stomach drop as Hermione stared back at them.
The guard motioned for Hermione to join them, and she did, though somewhat reluctantly. "Excuse me, Miss, but would you be willing to swear that this wizard has business with the Department of Mysteries?"
Hermione frowned. "Yes," she said in a hollow voice.
"And you can verify that he was admitted to the Department earlier this day?"
"Yes."
"Very well," the guard said with a deep sigh. He turned to the other wizard and bowed slightly, saying, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience, sir. I am simply doing my job."
"And doing it very well, I should think," the wizard replied cheerily. "It was no bother at all."
The guard then turned to face Ginny. "Are you satisfied, now? He's got more business being here than you do, I'd guess. If I were you, I'd be home by now. You should be happy you can leave. I'll be here for the next six hours."
Ginny stared at Hermione, then the other two wizards. She felt her chest tightening. Not only had he won, he'd made a fool of her. She turned and walked away. Only seconds after she left, she heard Hermione running after her and calling for her to stop. Ginny ignored her. She couldn't talk to her even if she had wanted to. At the moment, she just wanted to leave. She knew it had been stupid, and she didn't need Hermione to explain it to her for the next ten minutes. Without looking behind her, she Disapparated.
After Apparating to the dark alley across from Number Twelve, Ginny took a moment to catch her breath and scold herself for being so foolish. When she was done, she composed herself and stepped out onto the street.
"Ginny!" a voice called from behind her. "I have to talk with you!"
Ginny looked over her shoulder and found Hermione jogging to catch up with her. Ginny shouted back, "I said I can't talk to you."
"I said the same thing to you, but things changed and I told you what you needed to know."
"That's great, but things haven't changed enough for me to talk to you."
"Haven't they?" Hermione asked. "How do you know?"
Ginny stopped in the middle of the street and turned on Hermione. "I know, alright?"
"Won't you even listen to what I have to say?" Hermione begged.
Ginny stared at her friend. Harry had said she had to wait until Tuesday, but maybe this would work just as good as whatever he had planned for tomorrow. "Alright," she agreed. "I'll listen to what you've got to say, but you'll have to say it to me in there," she added with a nod toward the house. Hermione said nothing and started walking toward Number Twelve.
Once they were inside the house, Ginny quickly slipped past Hermione and led the way to the kitchen. If Harry was there, she wanted to be able to give him some warning. Hermione followed her, sending the echoes of a second set of shoes ahead of her. When Ginny opened the door to the kitchen, she found the torches lit, and a single cup of tea sitting on the table. Harry had been there recently, but there was no sign of him now. Had he left?
When Hermione walked into the room, her eyes found the cup immediately. She froze and began looking about the room suspiciously. "Who else is here?" she asked.
For a moment, Ginny considered telling her, but she stopped herself. Harry knows what he's doing, she reminded herself. Instead, she stared back innocently, and replied, "You think there's someone here?"
Hermione walked over to the cup of tea and picked it up. "This cup of tea is warm, Ginny."
Ginny's mind raced. She feigned embarrassment and walked toward Hermione. "I've been trying out some new charms," she offered.
Hermione looked at the cup for a second before putting it to her mouth and taking a sip. She recoiled after the first sip and quickly put the cup back on the table. "Keep trying," she said with a sour look. "I'm sure you'll get it eventually."
Ginny ignored the comment. "So what is it that you want me to hear?" she asked.
"Why were you trying to get that wizard in trouble?" Hermione responded.
"That's a question. You said you wanted to tell me something, not ask me something."
"Yes," Hermione said coolly, "and I'll tell you something when you answer that question." She crossed her arms over her chest, adding, "And don't try to refuse based on your Liaison status. This happened in London, not Romania and that wizard is no more Romanian than I am."
Ginny crossed her arm as well, and answered, "He's one of them, Hermione. He works for the Brotherhood."
"Yes, I already know that. Why did you confront him?"
"I'm tired of being watched," Ginny replied with a touch of anger. "I'm tired of seeing them following me everywhere I go, and I'm tired of waiting for them to make the first move. If he was there to meet a Ministry official, then I'm a garden gnome."
"He was there to meet with me, Ginny," Hermione said. Ginny stared at her in stunned silence as Hermione continued. "He had a tip about the Death Eaters. He came to tell my boss, Randolf, about something he'd overheard at a Quidditch match. Randolf called me in to hear it as well. He spoke to us for quite a while, then Randolf sent him out of the Department while we talked together. He told him to wait because Reynard heard about it and he wants to speak with him as well. When you showed up, he was still waiting for Reynard to call for him."
"No, it's more than that," Ginny insisted. "He's following me. He's one of them."
"We know that, Ginny. That's why we were willing to listen to him. Their tips have always been correct."
"Fine, listen to them if you want, but that still doesn't explain why you're here now."
Hermione sat down and took a deep breath. "We haven't gotten a tip from them in months, not since the attack on the Ministry. A few weeks ago, Henri D'Anneau was murdered, and everyone thought his wife had been as well. Days later, her brother was found dead. When she suddenly reappeared, she attacked a pair of guards before being dragged off to prison where she was murdered in the night. One of her sisters was found dead, and the other hasn't been found at all.
"By all accounts, you were the last person she spoke to, and she was trying to stop you from doing something. Whatever it was, it didn't stop you from running off to Romania, where you disappeared for half a day, only to mysteriously slip out of the country during the middle of a Brotherhood attack on a Romanian Ministry building. You're the only one who seems to know what's going on, but you can't talk about it because you're the first official Liaison Britain has seen in eighty years."
Ginny looked down at her hands. "Just because we're here doesn't mean I can tell you about any of―"
"Most people would be happy to be alive, and would take a well deserved holiday, but not you. The very next day you go to a Quidditch match and after talking to your brother for only a few seconds, he sends me a message saying he's in danger. Two minutes later, he tells me that he's just fine, but that there are Death Eaters on the path. As soon as the Unspeakables leave, you run for the gate yourself, with another pair of wizards on your heels. If that wasn't enough, on your way, a witch who had just been tossed about by a pair of Death Eaters trips up the wizards chasing you, and then disappears just as quickly."
Ginny paused for a moment to wonder just how Harry had known about the Death Eaters. He couldn't have. Even if the Unspeakables had run the entire way, they would have taken off before Ginny had reached the pair of Death Eaters. It must have just been a guess, or a lucky coincidence.
"I can't explain any of that, Hermione," she said. "I'm just as confused about this as you are."
"I don't believe you," she replied. "How did you know the Death Eaters were there? Who was that witch who saved you?"
"I don't know!" Ginny said firmly.
Hermione glared back at her in confusion. "You don't know? You― How couldn't you?" she asked in frustration. "Something is going on, Ginny. All of these things are happening too quickly. It's not normal. It's not a coincidence. It's not safe. Ron knows something, but he won't tell me. I don't know why he won't, but you have to. I must know what's happening, Ginny. It doesn't matter how dangerous it is anymore."
"I'm telling you, Hermione, I don't know," Ginny insisted. "After all that's happened to me, what could make you think that I would be the one who knows what's going on, or that Ron would tell me when he won't tell you?"
"Ginny! I don't―" Her voice cut out as she stood and shook with restrained rage. She closed her eyes and took a few deep breaths. When she spoke again, it was forced and uneven, failing to hide a panic in her voice.
"Ginny... I don't have time for this right now," she said as she stepped closer. "I― I have to know. You have to tell me."
The desperation in her voice was unnerving, and Ginny began straining to hear the faintest sound that might tell her if Harry was in the house. Why couldn't he be here? she asked herself, If he were here, this could all be over. Hermione stepped closer, and Ginny realized that she didn't have a choice.
Trust Harry.
"I wish I could tell you," she said, "but I just don't know."
Hermione lunged forward and grabbed Ginny's shoulders. "I watched you tell him, Ginny!" she shouted. "Don't try and tell me that you don't know what he won't tell me. You were the one who told him not to tell me about it."
Ginny felt her throat tightening. How was she supposed to explain that? She didn't even know that Hermione had seen Harry and Ron talking. She looked into Hermione's eyes, and tried to find some way to explain.
"I don't know, Hermione. There are things I can't tell you, but I don't know the answers you want right now. You'll get your answers, I promise, but not today. Maybe I'll have them tomorrow. Don't worry about them. Go home. Relax. Get a good night's rest and go to work tomorrow. I'm sure everything will work out."
"If only it were that easy," Hermione said as she wiped her eyes. "I wish I could do just that, but it's not going to happen."
"What are you talking about?"
"I won't be going home tonight," Hermione explained. "I'm supposed to be packing right now."
"Packing? For what?"
"I'm going to Albania to investigate a recent Death Eater sighting," she said. "The wizard you were so interested in told us that they have a castle there where they've been meeting. Randolph and I will be going there to see what we can learn."
Ginny panicked. "No!" she shouted. "You can't go! It's a trap! The Brotherhood is―" Suddenly, she felt a strong hand clamp around her upper arm. Her head jerked down to look, but there was nothing there.
Nothing visible at least.
Harry was in the room. He must have slipped under his Invisibility Cloak when they came in. What was he trying to tell her? Slowly his grip loosened.
"Yes?" Hermione prompted. "The Brotherhood is... what?"
"They are―" Ginny paused again as Harry's hand squeezed again. He didn't want her to say anything. Ginny stared at Hermione, wishing she could apologize, but unable to ignore Harry's demands. "They can't be trusted," she said in a defeated tone.
The grip on Ginny's arm disappeared, and Hermione's face fell. "I know," she said slowly. She walked toward the door and opened it, but paused before leaving. "Something is happening, Ginny," she said in a sad voice. "I think you know what it is, but I don't think you know just how far it's gotten."
"It's starting," she said, as if she were pleading for Ginny to change her mind. "It's starting right now. I don't know how or why, but everything revolves around you. All paths lead to you, and if you don't know what it is or how to stop it, then we're all doomed."
"Hermione, please," Ginny begged, "there has to be some way for you to stay. Even for just one more day."
"It's too late," Hermione replied in an empty monotone. "Reynard gave the order. If I refuse, he'll get the Minister to step in. Is it so bad that I'm better off spending the rest of my life in Azkaban?"
"I― I don't know."
Hermione frowned and began walking away. Before letting the door close, she looked back over her shoulder. "I hope you figure it out soon. I don't know how much more time we've got. Goodbye, Ginny. You've always been a good friend."
The door closed and Ginny felt her legs getting weak. She stumbled over to an empty chair and sat down heavily. She heard Hermione's shoes walking down the corridor, and the sound of the front door opening, and then closing.
Hermione was gone.
Another sound cut through the air, a sharp rustling of cloth. An instant later, Harry was striding across the kitchen toward the table. With a shout he swept the cup of tea off the table and threw it into the fire. It struck the hot brick with an explosion of porcelain shards and acrid steam. Harry crouched down on the floor and buried his face in his hands.
"It's not possible!" he shouted. "Not again! Not her! I was so close. I couldn't have done it any faster."
Ginny stared worriedly at him. "They know, don't they?" she asked. "They knew what you were going to do."
"Do they know?" Harry asked himself. "No, I don't think so. They didn't need to know what I had planned. They only needed to know that I had to be planning something. They knew the Ministry was watching Hermione. They were giving me a choice: show myself to the Ministry or let them get to Hermione first. I thought I could make a third option, but they were prepared for that."
"What's going to happen? They're not going to― I mean, she's no different than me now, right? If they kill her, it would start the war."
Harry stood up and ran his fingers through his hair. "Yes. That's right, but she's not like you. I think they've always meant to keep you alive. I'm not sure why. They've never shown any such plans for Hermione. I think they'd kill her just to start the war."
Ginny felt the blood draining from her face. Hermione knew. She knew what the Brotherhood had planned. "We have to save her, Harry, even if you have to walk right into the Minister's office. I haven't forgotten what you told me, but if we don't they'll kill her."
"So what do you propose?" he challenged. "If I walk into the Ministry and demand twenty of their best Aurors, you know what will happen? They'll give them to me. And while I'm leading Potter's Army, they'll kill Lupin, or Bill, or your parents. Is that what Hermione would want? What if it was Ron? Would she trade her life for his?"
"Lupin and the rest can hide at Hogwarts, and we'll take Ron with us."
"Then that's how the war will start," Harry said as he stared into the fire, "with us hiding in caves and huddling together while they walk about freely, killing those who are still running for shelter. No, there has to be another way."
"What other way, Harry?" Ginny shouted. "You said it yourself: They're going to kill Hermione."
"No," he said firmly, "they're not."
"What?"
"I'm not going to let it happen, Ginny. I'm going to stop it."
"How are we going to do that?"
"No, we aren't doing anything," he told her. "You need to stay here. You need to act as if nothing is happening. You'll be in enough danger without me here to keep an eye on you. I need you to keep as quiet as you can. Do nothing that will attract any attention."
"So you're going to leave me again?" she snapped. "You'll run off to fight your little war, and I'm supposed to sit here and wait for you to return, if you do return?"
Harry walked back over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. "That's not how it is. This has grown too big for just me. I need help. I need your help. They are going to watch you to figure out what I'm doing. If you appear to be doing nothing, they won't be able to tell what I'm doing."
"That still leaves me doing nothing."
"I have other things for you to do. As quietly as you can, I need you to start looking for information. I need to know who the Brotherhood of the Sacred Balance is. I can't do that. Only someone inside the Ministry can. It was supposed to be Hermione, but there won't be any time. I know they have some link to Egypt, and another to London, but I don't know what it is. See what you can find out, but don't tell anyone. Not Harrington. Not Tarus. Not even Ron or Lupin. No one. Make it look like you are researching Romania."
"That's it? You want me to read books?"
"There's one more thing," Harry said, looking a little troubled. "I'm short on a number of... supplies. I just put in an order with the goblins, but I can't wait until tomorrow. I need them tonight."
"You want me to go shopping for you?" Ginny asked sourly.
"No, I need you to help me nick some things from a shop." Ginny's jaw dropped in shock, and Harry stepped toward her and spoke in a voice he meant to be reassuring. "I'm sure if they knew it was me they wouldn't mind. I mean, I'd pay them if I could, but it wouldn't really look like theft, then would it?"
"No, then it would look like you were actually honest," Ginny scolded him.
"I've already paid for them. It's not really even theft. It's more like... an unannounced delivery." When the expression on Ginny's face didn't change, he tried something different. "If I don't do it, I won't have any chance to save Hermione."
Ginny closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Fine. Just which shop are we supposed to be breaking into?"
"Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes."
"What? You want to break into Fred and George's shop?" Ginny exclaimed.
"What else am I supposed to do?" Harry countered. "Walk in and ask for it? Maybe I could send you and you could try to explain why they should give you the things that the goblins paid them an extra forty Galleons to make by tomorrow morning?"
Ginny began to see the problem. She suggested that he at least find some way to tell Fred and George not to worry about the stolen merchandise, but Harry reminded her that it was rather uncommon for thieves to do such things.
After a little more explaining, Ginny accepted that a little bit of theft really was the best solution in their current situation. Despite Harry's earlier urgency, they remained in the house, eating dinner and waiting for all the shops in Diagon Alley to close for the night.
Once Harry had decided that it was late enough, he got up and unlocked his cabinet to pull out a long cloak and long piece of black cloth like a scarf. Ginny watched in fascination as he put on the cloak and began wrapping the cloth around his neck and the lower part of his face, mostly obscuring his face.
"So it was you at Giza?" Ginny asked, as he reached into the cabinet she used and fished out a black cloak for her, too.
"Yes," Harry answered in a muffled voice. "I had a bruise on my stomach for days after that."
She took the cloak and wrapped it around herself. "I was so certain you were the Dark Lord," she told him. "If I'd gotten the chance, I would have done more than bruise your stomach. All I could think was that you were the one who'd killed Charlie. I― I'm glad I didn't, now."
"Me, too," Harry said quietly. He pulled his hood up, and all Ginny was able to see was the faint twinkle from a pair of eyes in the shadow.
Once she'd finished tying the cloak and pulling up her own hood, Harry turned and led her out of the house. He seemed to exhibit all of the urgency which he'd shown earlier that night. Ginny wanted to ask why he needed to leave that night, instead of waiting twelve more hours and getting everything in a much safer manner. However, Harry didn't seem to be in a very talkative mood anymore, so she simply followed him as they walked across the street to the Disapparation point.
"We're Disapparating?" she asked. "You know they still have the wards around Diagon Alley? The closest we can get is The Leaky Cauldron. It's not an easy place to sneak away from, and there's usually an Auror watching it. They won't like you dressed like that. You're going to need your Invisibility Cloak."
"We're not going to the Leaky Cauldron," Harry told her. "We're going to your brothers' shop."
"That's not going to work either, Harry. They've put up their own wards. They're a little less friendly than most."
"Yes, but they didn't get theirs checked by Aurors," Harry said. "I'll need you to focus on their flat above the shop," he told her, "―not the shop itself, it has to be the flat."
"I've already tried that, Harry," she said. "It won't work. It just―"
"―tosses you into the middle of Diagon Alley, far from any Aurors," Harry finished for her.
Ginny stopped and thought for a moment. He could be right. How could they miss something so important? Their plan to pull a prank on wizards who tried to sneak into their shop had created a dangerous hole in Diagon Alley's security.
"I'll go first," Harry said. "Count to ten and then Disapparate. Oh, and you might want to cover your head with your arms." An instant later her was gone. Ginny counted silently. She finished, covered her head, and Disapparated.
Much like the last time she tried, she felt the unnerving sensation of falling, followed by something striking her back. This time, however, it wasn't nearly so hard. She found herself bouncing slightly, then coming to a rest on the ground with Harry standing over her, his wand drawn. She rolled over and as she pushed herself onto her feet, she found that the ground actually felt soft and spongy.
"Thanks," said Ginny. "You're alright?"
"Yeah, I've done it so often it doesn't really hurt anymore," he replied. He led her over to the front of the shop. Through the windows they could see Fred sitting at the counter, looking through a stack of parchment. Harry didn't appear fooled, but he wasn't really making any other move. Ginny gave him an expectant look.
"Don't look at me," he said defensively. "I brought you here because I thought you'd know how to get in. I can break in easily enough, but I've always needed at least one Shield Cloak. I used my last one smuggling Sophie to Canada. Can you get us in without one?"
Ginny tried to remember her last visit. If they hadn't changed anything, it should be easy enough. Harry followed her to the narrow alleyway, then along it to the back door to the shop. Ginny climbed the stairs carefully, leaving Harry to watch from behind her. She pulled out her wand and tapped the hinges of the door.
The door quickly swung open silently and Harry quickly stepped forward. Ginny's arm shot out, stopping him. She waited a few more seconds until there was a faint red flash from the door, then she released Harry. He gave her a thankful look and walked through the door a little more carefully. Once they were in the room, Ginny quickly but cautiously made her way to a corner and sat down on the floor. Harry gave her a quizzical look.
"Traps," she whispered. "I'll be safe, even if you aren't."
Harry nodded and began quietly rifling through the shelves and cabinets in the room. It became obvious fairly quickly that he was going to take a little more than he'd paid for. When Ginny asked him about it, he stopped her and explained that the things he'd asked for were supposed to be for sneaking about London, not chasing Hermione across Albania.
Ginny sat in the corner with her wand ready and watch as Harry stuffed a bag with a bizarre collection of things. He grabbed a few small pouches of Instant Darkness Powder as well as a small box labeled 'Miniature Tangleweed'. He opened another cabinet and grabbed a number of small jars containing brightly colored potions. He grabbed a Shield cloak and wrapped each of them into the fabric before slipping them into the bag.
He paused as he turned away, and reached for something on one of the nearby shelves. In the dim light, Ginny could faintly make out the shape of a wand in Harry's hand. He stared at it for a moment, then pocketed it and another one from the same shelf.
Seemingly satisfied, he turned away and walked toward the wall holding the Shield Cloaks and Shied Hats. On the end was a pack of cloaks under a sign which read 'Gringott's Orders Only'. Harry grabbed a number of them, and folded them into the bag. Then he started rifling through the other stack. He grabbed three of the smaller cloaks and tossed them to Ginny.
"Those are for you. I'll get you more later."
"What are you doing?" Ginny hissed. "The cloaks at the end are the ones you wanted!"
"I know," Harry replied in a whisper, "but it'd look pretty suspicious if those were the only one's that disappeared, wouldn't it? Plus, Fred and George would be pretty upset when Grimbok comes by and asks for all the cloaks I had stolen."
Ginny perked up at the mention of the name, and asked Harry about it. "Yes, Grimbok does quite a few favors for me, and Gringott's is paid well for it. I've found an... alternate source of wealth recently and they are happy to do all sorts of things in order to get a piece of it." He tossed another cloak into his bag, then walked away from the rack. "And yes, I did ask that you be sent to him if you came in. However, he was ordered not to reveal any information about me unless you specifically asked."
"That's why he was acting strange," Ginny said. "I guess I figured goblins were just strange."
"They are," Harry said in agreement, "but they are also very businesslike, and they are completely trustworthy, if that's what you're paying them to be."
"So, if you have all that money, why are you still sneaking about, nicking things from my brothers' shop?"
"I buy what I need whenever possible," he said as he grabbed a handful of sweets from a box. "If I had the goblin's do it all, there's a chance that Fred and George would start guessing about what was going on. So I have the goblin's pay them extremely well, and I sneak in to take whatever else I need. I assure you, I've more than paid for the things I've taken and if they knew it was me, they'd have given them to me without a single Galleon in return."
"Still, there has to be a more honest way than this?" she argued.
"Maybe," he replied with a smile. "I think I've actually started to enjoy it. Almost as if it were a game. I first got the idea by watching the local boys breaking in to make off with the pranks their parents would never let them buy. After the first few times, it became more interesting. After facing the Brotherhood and knowing what they'd do if they caught me, the idea of stealing from Fred and George became, well... fun. If they ever caught me, I knew they wouldn't turn me in. Doing this became almost relaxing."
He walked over to a table and scanned the contents. "I've had a few close calls, and at times I've wondered if they still think it's the local children, but they've never called the Aurors. That's why I take more than I need. I'm just trying to keep up the appearance that I'm here for pranks, not equipment. Though―" he paused to stare at the table, "―another robe wouldn't be a bad idea. It should've been the first I grabbed."
Ginny craned her neck to look at the table. She could see a long cloak hanging off the table. The cloth nearly reached the ground. It was much easier to see than the others because of a thin strip of gold trim running along the edge.
"NO!" Ginny shouted as she leaped out of the corner. With Harry's hand only inches from the cloak, she slammed into him, knocking him off his feet and sending them both tumbling to the ground. Harry landed on top of Ginny, knocking her breath from her lungs, then rolled off, hitting the base of a large set of shelves.
Ginny watched in horror as dozens of things tumbled from the shelves, falling down around Harry. He covered his face, but that wouldn't solve their new problem. Among the objects which had fallen were a number of things that had broken and were now emitting a harsh orchestra of whining, wailing and screeching noises.
Harry and Ginny sprung to their feet, understanding the danger immediately. They had only seconds until Fred and George would come running down the stairs. Ginny scrambled to her feet and stepped through the fallen items on her way to the back door. She tapped the hinges of the door and stepped out of the way as the door swung inward. As they both waited for the red flash which would signal that it was safe to leave, she heard the unmistakable sound of two wizards running down the stairs.
The footsteps reached the bottom of the stairs. There was no more time. Harry jumped across the room, and snatched a pouch from one of the shelves. Just as the door opened, he tossed it to the ground. Almost instantly, it exploded, filling the room with a thick black smoke which was impossible to see through.
It must have been the Instant Darkness Powder. Ginny saw a faint flash of red light in front of her, and heard a pair of footsteps approaching her slowly. Fred and George were shouting, and Ginny felt hot sparks fly over her shoulder. She took a step away from the door and reached into the inky darkness. A second later, she felt a soft cloak: Harry. She held on, and tugged him toward the door. They stumbled down the steps and turned the corner into the narrow alley, which, by comparison was almost bright.
Harry didn't stop. He pulled Ginny's hood over her hair and pulled her into the street. They turned and ran as quickly as they could, not toward the Leaky Cauldron, but in the direction of Knockturn Alley. Harry ducked into another alley and crouched down in the shadows. Ginny kneeled beside him. She opened her mouth to speak, but he stopped her. A moment later, she knew why.
Fred was walking down the street, his wand out and a angry scowl on his face. A minute later, he passed by again, walking back to the shop. Once the sound of his footsteps had died off, Harry relaxed and stood up.
"We could have told them, you know," Ginny said, panting.
"Yes."
"That was fun, though," Ginny admitted with a smile.
"It really is, isn't it?"
Slowly, Harry looked out into the street. It was mostly empty and he motioned for Ginny to come out as well. "I want you to go back to Grimmauld Place," he told her. "Disapparate from the Leaky Cauldron. Don't go in. Don't stop at your brothers' place. Don't talk to anyone, and try not to let anyone recognize you. I'll be taking the Floo from Knockturn Alley."
"How long are you going to be gone?" she asked.
"Not long, I hope. No later than Saturday, I think, and I might return as quickly as Wednesday, but don't worry about me. Just do what you do. See if you can find out about the Brotherhood. When I return, I'll wait for you at home, alright?"
Ginny nodded. Harry stared at her for a moment, then quickly reached up to his face, and pulled his scarf down to his chin. He quickly leaned forward and gave Ginny one last kiss. With a nod, he pulled the cloth back over his face and walked away.
Ginny did as he had told her, and the next day she returned to the Ministry and tried to act as if nothing had happened the night before. The same Brotherhood wizard was waiting outside the gate to the lifts, but this time Ginny simply ignored him. She wondered if that in itself was more suspicious than confronting him, but she had decided to stop trying to guess what the best course of action was. It wasn't possible when she barely knew half of what was going on.
When she returned some of the books she'd been given on Romania, she took the opportunity to search around for other books or notes which might talk about dark wizard societies or any links Romania might have with Egypt and London.
There truly wasn't much to find, and after a few hours of searching she was forced to give up. She'd looked through so many books that the Ministry librarian was beginning to glare at the pile they had formed. She'd found no hint of the Brotherhood. She found eight different versions of the story Tarus had told her of the origin of the city she'd visited, but none of them ever spoke about some club of wizards that lived there.
She'd found quite a few links between Romania, London and Egypt, but none of them were terribly interesting either. They had all been ancient centers of wizardry, but there were hundreds of such places in the world. They had all been quarter-finalists in the 1872 Quidditch World Cup (though Italy won in the Final). There was even a German wizard who had been married three times, to three witches from each location (each had died in tragic gardening accidents). Ginny had been hopeful when she ran across a description of an ancient society of historians who had members in all three locations, but gave up after realizing that they must have been the most worthless historians in the world. They hadn't even been able to record their own history, much less anything about the world around them.
As she returned home that night, she began to think that there truly wasn't anything to be found about the Brotherhood, and that Harry had only told her to look as a way to distract her from the fact that he'd left her again.
The next day, she returned and continued her search, but with much less urgency. It simply didn't seem worth the effort. If there had been any record of the Brotherhood, they would have destroyed it. A secret society wouldn't stay a secret for very long if they were described in loads of books.
Ginny had quickly slipped into extreme boredom as she paged through tome after tome of dry, uninteresting script talking endlessly about the political scandals of the nineteenth century and how new advances in magic were undermining the integrity and honor of a classical training in wizardry. She had nearly fallen asleep when she heard a sharp knock at her door. When she opened it, she nearly choked.
"Good afternoon, Miss Weasley," the Minister said. "I'm glad I caught you before you left for the day. Do you have a moment to talk?"
Ginny nodded and motioned for him to enter and closed the door behind him. There was something daunting about the idea that she was someone the Minister would ask to speak to. Scrimgeour walked in and slowly sat down across from Ginny's desk. Feeling slightly unsure of just what was expected of her, Ginny took her seat behind the desk, and waited for the Minister to speak.
"As you might have guessed, I'm here about this Auror business," he said rather casually. "I've met this Tarus, and he seems like a pretty clever man, so he must know that thirty is simply too many Aurors for us to pull together in a short period of time. In a year, we might be able to do something like that, but there's no way I could ever guarantee it in just eight months or so."
Ginny nodded, unsure of what she was supposed to say.
"I mean, the number itself is almost absurd. What threat could he be worried about that would require that many wizards?" he asked, then paused as if expecting Ginny to offer an explanation. When she didn't, he continued as if it hadn't happened. "If there truly is such a threat, then I'd like to know what it is now." He stopped talking and stared at Ginny much more intently.
"I could... ask him for you?" she finally offered. She didn't need reminders from Tarus or Harry to be cautious with Scrimgeour.
"What an excellent idea," the Minister said with a smile. "While you're there, you can speak to him about this impractical number of Aurors he's asking for. I trust―"
"Hold on," Ginny interrupted. "While I'm there? Where am I going to be?"
"Well, Romania, of course," Scrimgeour replied. "I spoke with the former delegates, and they said you were actually rather imposing in person. Which I was happy to hear, since Tarus is rather difficult to work with through the post." He paused to notice the look on Ginny's face, then said, "You didn't honestly expect me to go speak with him? Romania's not the safest place at the moment."
"I know that," Ginny replied carefully. "I'd rather stay in London, if it's all the same. I don't mind sending messages with owls at all."
"If you didn't want to travel, I'd say you made a pretty poor choice of department and position in the Ministry," he said with a little condescension. "You didn't think that a Liaison just sat around reading books, did you?"
"Fine," she said, "I'll see what I can arrange for next Monday."
"I've already set it up for tomorrow," Scrimgeour said nonchalantly. "He said he was busy, but that he wouldn't turn you away. He'll be sending a Portkey tomorrow. You'll arrive there, spend the night, and speak with him early the next morning. You should return back here with plenty of time to tell me how it went."
"Tomorrow?" Ginny exclaimed. "No. I can't. It has to be next week."
"Oh no, that won't do at all," he said almost flippantly. "Don't worry, Miss Weasley. You had much less time to prepare for your trip to Giza, and I heard you did splendidly." He flashed a bright smile at her, then leaned forward and continued in a lower voice, "However, as I was about to say earlier, I trust that you will remember just where you're from. You are a British witch first, and a Romanian Liaison second. I'm not sending you there so I can hear you spout Tarus's words when you return. You need to make him understand that we simply will not be able to do what he's asking."
Ginny nodded numbly. There was no time to prepare. In a day, she'd be back in Romania. She had no way of contacting Harry. What if he returned and couldn't find her? What would he do? What would she do if the Brotherhood attacked her again? Though she hadn't known it at the time, she'd always had help from Harry, and now he was a thousand miles away, trying to save Hermione.
She barely remembered saying goodbye to the Minister. For almost an hour after he left, she did nothing more than sit at her desk, trying to find some way to prevent this from becoming a disaster. If she left a note at Grimmauld Place, there would be a chance that someone else might see it. If she sent an owl, it might put him in even more danger. Maybe Tarus himself could help her. Could she trust him enough to find a way to return to London and make sure that Harry wasn't doing anything foolish? He might be her only chance.
She left the Ministry with her mind clouded by a hundred different ways things could go horribly wrong. She needed to think, but it was impossible. What she really needed was some way to relax and clear her mind. Harry had told her that she should always go straight home, but he hadn't planned for this. Ginny walked right past the Brotherhood wizard sitting on the rim of the fountain, focused, then Disapparated.
She walked into the Leaky Cauldron and returned a distracted greeting to Tom the bartender, completely ignoring the copy of the Daily Prophet he'd set on the bar for her. She walked straight for the other end of the bar, the end where Albert sat on his stool, slowly pouring liquid into his glass and watching the rings of ripples echo across the surface.
Ginny sat down next to him and collapsed forward, covering her face with her hands. For all she could tell, Albert hadn't even noticed. His glass must have been full, because he was now tapping it lightly, making it ring almost musically.
"Haven't seen you around for a while," he commented. "Must've had quite a day to bring you back."
"Not today," Ginny said. "Tomorrow I'm going to meet with the Romanian Minister."
"Ah," Albert said, still tapping at his glass. "You'll be needing one of these, then." Ginny heard the distinctive sound of a heavy liquid being poured into a new glass, followed by the soft groan of glass sliding across old wood. She looked up and found Albert's spare glass waiting for her.
"Yes, I think I do need one of those," she agreed. She winced at the memory of what the first glass always felt like, closed her eyes and emptied the glass. Once the searing pain was gone, she wiped at her eyes and thanked Albert. It had worked. Either it had sharpened her mind, or dulled it to the point where she couldn't remember all the things she was worried about. Either way, she could focus on something, now.
"I'd give you the whole bottle if I could," he said with a smile, "but it's the only one I have." He pulled out his wand and tapped the side of the bottle. Slowly, the level of liquid began rising again, filling the bottle right up to the neck. "And only a fool would try talking to Grigore Tarus after drinking the common Firewhiskey this lot likes so much."
Ginny sat up and stared at Albert. "You know Grigore Tarus?"
"Of course I do," he said, drinking his own glass. "If a wizard's worth knowing, I make sure I know them. That's why I know you," he added with a smile. "Have you met him before?"
Ginny nodded and told him briefly about meeting Tarus at Giza and then again in Romania. She left out the part about being tied to a table by a wizard who the entire world thought was dead. Albert listened politely, nodding appropriately between drinks from his glass.
"So that's why you looked so bad," he said. "You already know what you're in for. Don't you worry, though. You've got good sense for a witch your age. So long as you keep your wits about you, I suspect you'll do just fine. No one convinces Tarus he's wrong, but if you don't anger him, you just may get him to think that you might be right as well."
"How do you know so much about him?"
"Met him when we were both young," Albert said soberly. "He wasn't all that different then. He still had his principles and fought for them, no matter what the cost or who he might anger. He was frightfully clever even then."
"Is he trustworthy?" Ginny asked.
"Trustworthy?" Albert echoed. "Maybe, but that's not the right word for it. You can trust Grigore Tarus to be exactly what he is. In a hundred years, he's barely changed and I doubt he's ever lied. He's never been pushed about by anyone, because no one has ever found anything he values more than his own objectives." Albert paused to look at Ginny. "It's hard to deal with someone who values their life less than their sense of purpose."
"I think that sounds rather noble," Ginny commented.
"Noble... yes, I suppose so," Albert replied. "Though it's not without its complications. The first time Tarus and I met, I was only seventeen years old. He was already thirty-one years old, but wizards three times his age already respected him. I was living with my uncle at the time. He had a small cottage in the Ukraine. He raised a few magical beasts and whatever plants he could grow in the soil.
"One day, Tarus simply appeared at our door. He told us a story about a group of wizards he'd been chasing across Europe. They'd done all manner of things: torture, destruction, even murder. He said they had been working their way into the local Ministries. You know, slowly working their way into positions of influence, as if they were planning to do something really horrible.
"He told us they had taken an old mill down the river and turned it into something of a fort or castle. He just wanted some ingredients for potions and a spare broom, and he offered to pay ten times the normal price ―twenty if we'd all keep quiet about it. My uncle accepted immediately. He needed the gold, and couldn't have cared less where it came from. My father, though... he was a good wizard."
Ginny remained quiet during the story. She was fascinated about the sudden change in Albert's mood, though it was troubling at the same time. His normally cheerful nature was gone, and she was afraid of where the story might be headed.
"My father said that Tarus shouldn't have to face them alone. He vowed to help him, and in an hour he found twenty other wizards who he'd convinced to do the same. Tarus didn't try to stop them. He welcomed them, and promised them riches when they returned. I still remember the determined look on my father's face as he flew off with the rest of them. He wanted me to be proud of him for once."
Albert stopped to fill his glass, then immediately drank it. He held the empty glass in his hand, and stared down into the bottom of it. "I never saw him again. I don't think Tarus knew what he had asked of them. They were all good wizards, but they were just wizards. They weren't trained for what they were facing. When they got to the mill, the wizards there ambushed them, took Tarus captive and killed the rest of them. Then they let him go, without even a scratch."
"It was the Brotherhood, wasn't it?" Ginny asked gently. Albert nodded.
"That's right. No one really knew who they were then, and having a name wouldn't have helped. They were the wizards who'd murdered twenty of our mothers and father and sons and daughters. Then, a month later, the Russian Ministry was attacked by dark wizards. Before they'd gotten very far at all, the Brotherhood appeared, almost out of the shadows. They stopped the attack, killing every last one of the dark wizards. For an instant, they were heroes, and then they were gone, before anyone could spend a minute trying to decide whether to hunt them down, or give them all medals. The same thing happened in a dozen other countries. No one had any idea it was happening. They couldn't even tell the difference between the dark wizards and the Brotherhood.
"What happened to Tarus would change most wizards, but not him. He only saw the need to stop them at that moment, and he did whatever he could to do that. I don't think he has ever regretted his decision to attack them, or to let my father help him, but he stopped chasing them. I guess he decided that they were both right."
"Tarus isn't stupid," Ginny said. "He must have known what he was up against."
"Maybe," Albert agreed. "And maybe my father knew and went anyway. Tarus was true to his word, though. He returned a year later ―to the day― with cartloads of gold for the families of the wizards who'd left with him."
"Gold can't fix that," Ginny argued. "He used those wizards. He was no better than the Brotherhood―"
"―No, he wasn't," Albert interrupted, "and I think he'd agree with that. Grigore Tarus is no dark wizard. He has never sought power or dominion over others. He simply is what he is. If that day has changed him at all, it has made him even more wary of situations like that. I think he fears what it might make him."
"That's why he wants to fight alone," Ginny mumbled. It made much more sense now. He wasn't telling anyone because he didn't want history to repeat itself. He was trying to be as cautious as he should have been so long ago. Maybe she could trust him to help her get a message to Harry.
"Are you still angry with him?" Ginny asked.
"No," Albert said seriously, "I understand him now. It's like I said: he is what he is. He was only doing what he thought was best. He didn't know the Brotherhood was trying to fight a band of dark wizards. He's an honest wizard," Albert told her.
"I hope so," she replied.
She heard the door behind her open and close. Instinctively, she twisted to see the new arrivals. It was a pair of goblins chatting quickly in some unintelligible language. Ginny had already started turning back when she was struck with an ingenious thought. It was even better than trying to find some way to get Tarus to help her.
She tapped her glass, asking for another drink. Albert obliged, and she downed it quickly. She'd need courage and a sharp mind to pull it off. "I've got to go, Albert," she said apologetically. "There's something I've just remembered. I've got to do it tonight. I'm sorry."
"It's alright," he said with a smile. "I'm an old man and it's an old story. If you find any wisdom in it, then I think it's worth the telling."
"I think it was," Ginny replied.
"Good. I hope your meeting goes well. Pay close attention to him and I think you'll do just fine."
Ginny stood up and tried to shake the mist from her head. "I hope so," she said. She waved goodbye to him and Tom and quickly walked out of the small pub. Once back on Diagon Alley, she walked straight towards Gringott's Bank. They never closed and a warm golden light spilled out of the doors as she opened them.
Once inside, she looked for the first unoccupied goblin. There were a few other wizards in the large hall, but there were many goblins. Like before, Ginny was intercepted shortly after she began walking.
"Good evening, Miss Weasley," the small goblin croaked. "Is there something I might help you with?"
"Yes," she said evenly. "I have a deposit to make."
"A deposit?" the goblin replied with narrowed eyes. "If you like, Grimbok can help you in one of the private lobbies."
"Yes, I think that would be perfect."
Ginny let herself be led to a slightly different lobby than her first visit, though it looked identical, right down to the goblin sitting behind the desk.
"I hear you have something to deposit," Grimbok said in a clear voice.
"I do," she answered. She pulled a piece of parchment from her pocket and spread it out on the desk. "I have a message I need sent," she explained as she scratched out a quick note.
"We are a bank, Miss Weasley," Grimbok replied firmly. "If you wish to send something via the post, I suggest you wait until tomorrow morning."
Ginny finished the message and quickly rolled the parchment. "I'm afraid I need it sent tonight. It's very urgent and I'd like you to use the fastest owl you can."
"Who exactly is this message being sent to?" he asked.
Ginny handed him the parchment, and with a stern look, said, "Harry Potter." Grimbok took the parchment without even twitching at the name. Ginny felt the tension leaving her stomach. "That will be acceptable, won't it?"
"For Harry Potter, yes," he said. "We try to accommodate Mister Potter in any way that we can. I will send this off to him immediately. I have just the owl for the job, too: a fine bird, a snowy owl named 'Hedwig'. She's very good at delivering messages without attracting attention."
The next day was a very hectic one. Ginny spent the day trying to make sure that everything was set. She had even taken an hour to tidy her office. Her mind kept switching back and forth, sometimes thinking about the Brotherhood and what they might try if they knew she was going to be in Romania and sometimes wondering how long it would be before Harry would get the message.
When noon rolled around, she got the knock on her door that she'd been expecting all morning. Harrington came in carrying a small, ornamental wooden box. He didn't say much to her other than wishing her good luck and telling her to check in with him when she returned.
Once he left, Ginny opened the small box to find a simple golden teacup nestled in soft purple velvet. Ginny checked her bag one last time. There were extra clothes in it, as well as two of the Shield Cloaks Harry had nicked for her. Everything was set. She took a deep breath, then reached for the teacup. The instant she touched it, she felt her navel being tugged into it, and the world around her suddenly distorted and swirled away.
Harry knew it would be completely impractical to try and track Hermione and Randolph. They were both Department of Mysteries employees. They would probably be moving carefully and searching for other signs of the Death Eaters. With a little luck, Harry could travel faster, and intercept them before they walked into an ambush.
He needed luck because Hermione already had quite a lead on him. While he might be able to travel faster in Albania, she almost certainly had less problems leaving Britain. From Knockturn Alley, he took the Floo to a pub in Ireland where he'd be able to Apparate. The closest he'd really gotten to Albania had been Rome, so he Apparated there, and began searching for some way to cross the Adriatic.
After a little searching, he found a quiet ferry service that would take him to a small coastal town named Bar, just north of the Albanian border. The local wizards refused to take him directly to Albania, claiming that it had become far too dangerous in the past weeks. Harry paid them a little extra to take him as quickly as they could.
Harry crossed the Albanian border just as the sun rose above the trees. It would be easier to find them during the day. They wouldn't just go right to the castle. They were here to look for Death Eaters, and that meant talking to the wizards who lived there. Harry was confident that he had enough gold to encourage the Albanian wizards to speak.
He stopped in the first pub he found, and inquired about the local Floo network. Much like Britain, all of the popular pubs and inns were connected, but there weren't that many wizards in Albania, and Harry was able to take note of a small number of places where he expected he'd be able to find out about Hermione and Randolph.
By noon, he'd found a number of people who were willing to admit they had seen two British wizards asking about any trouble in the area. He even found a young witch who told him the name of the castle they were searching for: Drinaj. It overlooked a river near the town of Brezhdan. He knew they wouldn't go there during the day, so he took the opportunity to go to the nearest inn and get something to eat.
Well before the sun went down, he left on a small raft and floated north along the river that wound past the castle. Just as the sun set, he saw the imposing silhouette of a tower against the orange sky. He paddled to the shore, stepped off the raft and let it continue drifting down the river.
The castle was dark and quiet. In many places, it appeared to be cracked and crumbling, but the single path leading to the gate was paved and conspicuously clean of any of the debris one might expect after years of disuse. After an hour of searching, he couldn't find any other way in, and a quick attempt at Apparation revealed exactly what he expected: there were protective wards around the castle. He was at the right place.
He found a tall hill which allowed him to keep watch over both the castle and the river. Just for extra caution, he pulled his Invisibility Cloak over him, then sat back against a large tree at waited.
Other than a pack of wolves, he didn't see anything through the entire night. When morning came, he felt a little more uncertain of himself and decided he needed to ask a few more questions. He felt fairly confident that he'd be able to Apparate back to his hill when he was done.
Over breakfast, he spoke with a pair of old wizards who were pleased that one of the many strangers walking about the area was willing to talk to them. They asked him if he was there to try and stop the recent attacks, and once he'd convinced them that he was, they were quite eager to share everything they knew.
They weren't able to describe any of the wizards from the attacks, since they had all happened at night. The Muggle peasants around the castle had noticed them as well, and were spreading superstitions about the shadows springing to life and burning their cottages. The local wizards knew better, but said only that their attackers wore dark cloaks and only attacked wizards who approached Drinaj Castle.
Just as Harry was finishing his meal, the old wizards asked him if the other two would be joining him. Harry asked them to explain and found out that Hermione and Randolph were staying in that very inn. They had arrived the night before and had spent most of the evening looking over large rolls of parchment.
Though it made him feel horribly guilty, Harry was forced to Obliviate both of the wizards. He slipped out of the inn immediately and successfully Apparated back to his hill near the castle. If either of them had heard there was a wizard asking about them, they would be much harder to follow. He took a slight chance, and allowed himself to sleep through the morning and most of the afternoon. When he woke up, there was still no sign that anyone had entered or left the castle.
As dusk came, Harry became more alert. He knew Hermione was nearby. They wouldn't be at the inn unless they were planning on coming to the castle. The parchment they'd been looking at last night was probably some old map they had found somewhere.
The hours slipped by, but there was no sign of either Hermione or Death Eaters. As dawn came, he wondered if he had scared them off after they heard news that another strange wizard had been talking about them. He tried to reassure himself that such things wouldn't scare them off forever, it would just make them more cautious. He spent the next morning setting up a few charms of his own. He allowed himself to sleep through the day, confident that the alarms he'd created would wake him if anyone walked down the path.
That night, he felt tense and on edge. Nothing had set off his alarms all day. Whatever the Death Eaters were doing, they must have been trying to be very secretive about it. He tried not to think of the possibility that there was some other entrance they were using. He'd searched the immediate area, and there was no way he'd find it if it wasn't nearby.
As the night wore on, the tension became anxiety. The whole area was quiet and dead, as if someone had emptied it of all animals. Something was wrong, but he couldn't quite understand what it was. It felt as though something important was happening. If Hermione would show up, he wasn't sure how much time he'd have to react.
He took off the Invisibility Cloak and began readying his bag and putting anything he might need into the pockets of his robes. He'd worked out two different paths down to the castle gate, and he kept checking them to see that they were both clear. As the first glow of sunlight crept over the horizon, Harry began feeling very nervous. He was certain that something was wrong now. He felt it, tugging at him, telling him that he wasn't where he needed to be.
To confirm that feeling, Harry saw a faint glint of white sparking at him through the trees of the valley. It was coming toward him, and moving quickly. He slung his bag over his shoulder and began quietly moving down the slope. He'd lost track of whatever was following him, but he didn't want to try and find it again. He kept moving down the hill. He needed to get to the castle. Something was happening. Hermione must have found some other way inside.
Suddenly, something white dropped out of the trees. Harry pulled his wand instantly, but paused as the object slowed with a fluttering of wings and made a soft landing on a nearby branch.
"Hedwig?" Harry asked with amazement. "What are you doing here?"
Unable to give a more detailed answer, Hedwig hooted sharply and held out a leg. Attached to it was a rough piece of parchment sealed with a golden ribbon and the Gringott's crest. Harry stepped forward, took the parchment and quickly read it. When he finished, he swore loudly, startling the owl.
"Stay here," he ordered, "but be quick if I call for you." Hedwig hooted in response, and Harry hoped it meant she'd understood.
He stuffed the note into his pocket and began running down the slope to the path. It was smooth and even and he was able to cover the distance to the gate quickly.
He reached the large door, aimed his wand, and shattered the steel lock keeping it shut. He gave one of the doors a shove, and slipped into a large cavernous hall. A large staircase used to rise from the center of the hall and wind up toward the single tower, but at the first corner, a huge section had fallen away and lay in a tumbled heap upon the floor.
Harry stopped and took a closer look at the floor. Everywhere he looked, it was covered in what had to be a century of dust. The path to the door looked as if it had been kept purposefully clean, but there was no way that any number of people had been in that hall within the last decade. The only disturbances in the thick covering were his own footsteps. He tried a number of spells, trying to find any Illusion or Concealment Charms. There was nothing. He walked farther into the hall, and carefully walked up the damaged stairs, hoping for a better view. Once he was halfway up the first flight, he noticed something he hadn't seen before: another set of footprints.
Harry leaped down the stairs and found them. He'd been walking right on top of them, for quite some time, but after that, they turned aside and led through the shadows on one side of the staircase. Judging by the number of prints, it had been more than one person, and they had walked in and left by the same route.
Harry followed them along the side of the staircase. The wall ended in a tall arch supporting the stairs above him, but the footprints turned under the arch and descended down a second set of narrower, darker stairs.
Harry lit his wand and carefully walked down the dusty steps into what appeared to be a dark cellar under the castle. Was there another entrance? He moved slowly, trying to keep an eye on the footprints in case any of them ever turned aside or disappeared under the wall.
Eventually he followed them into a large room which was filled with rows of wooden crates and huge barrels, most of which were rotted and broken. Rows of unlit torches lined a long walkway between them. He came to a bend in the room, and turned to follow the walkway, but stopped abruptly when he realized that there was a light ahead of him. He extinguished his wand and crept forward.
It appeared there was a smaller room through a doorway at the end of the walkway. The light was flickering as if coming from a torch ―or as if a pair of wizards were working under the light of a wand.
Carefully and quietly, Harry set his bag on the ground behind a large crate. He continued forward, his wand drawn and ready. He stepped right up to the doorway, and slowly looked into the room. The back wall was closer than Harry had realized, and the light was definitely coming from some sort of flame. He pulled a small mirror from his pocket and used it to peer around the corner.
The room was empty.
Harry stepped into the room. It was long and narrow. Against the far end, perhaps thirty feet away, stood a small worn desk and a single lit candle. There was a small glint of light coming from the desk. Harry walked forward, wary of traps or other tricks. It wasn't until he reached the desk that he realized just what it was.
Stretched out across the desk was a silver chain made of links so small it looked like a fine silver cord. Laying in front of the candle, with the chain looped through it, was a talisman made of a large ring of gold passing through three silver spheres.
Harry felt his pulse pounding in his neck. His throat tightened and it felt as though every muscle in his body was pulled tight. His arm shot forward, snatching the ring off the table. With an enraged shout he spun around and threw the necklace across the room. It struck the far wall, sending a pair of sparks to the ground and filling the room with a ringing echo.
Harry ran out of the room. He yanked his bag off the floor and slashed his wand at the torches, making them burst into flame. He ran down the walkway, heedless of the footsteps or any other paths or doors. They didn't matter. None of it mattered. Hermione wasn't there. She had never been there, and he doubted she ever would be there.
He leaped up the stairs to the main hall. He felt the soft dust under his feet and quickly ran out from under the grand staircase. As the front doors slid into his view, he stopped and leveled his wand. He shouted a single word, and both doors shattered, showering the stone path outside the castle with splinters.
He kept running, out the open doorway and across the path. He paused for a moment, put his fingers to his lips and whistled as loudly as he could. He ran forward searching the slopes around him for Hedwig. A moment later, he saw her soar out from behind a stand of trees and turn toward him.
Harry dropped to the ground and frantically rummaged through his bag, searching for a quill to write with. He didn't have any parchment, so he retrieved the parchment Ginny had sent, blanked it, and began scrawling a response as quickly as he could. When he was finished, he rolled it up and tapped it with his wand, making the ribbon wrap itself around the parchment again.
"Get this to Ginny as quickly as you can, no matter where she is," he commanded. "Go now! There's no time." Hedwig took the letter and leaped into the air, flying straight and fast across the treetops.
