Chapter 18

"Wow!" Ginny exclaimed, looking around in awe. "France is even more amazing in person!"

Hermione whacked her on the arm.

"Focus Ginny, we're here for the jewel, not sightseeing," Hermione scolded.

Ginny nodded.

"Right, right, the jewel," she said. "We should check out the major places, like the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre Dame, etc."

"What did I just say?!" Hermione exclaimed, throwing her hands into the air out of exasperation.

"She has a point," Alex said. "The jewel is rather famous. I doubt it would be in the Eiffel Tower or the church, but it could be in the Louvre."

"What kind of jewel is it anyways?" Ginny asked.

"In the books, it's called red pyrope garnet," Hermione said. "It's a dark blood red color, which is probably to compliment the silver and onyx gems of the circlet. It's not a very big gem, but I'm sure we'll know it when we see it."

"I'm going to go search elsewhere. You two stay in Paris. Here, take these," Alex said, holding two small objects.

Ginny and Hermione each grabbed the objects; they were small hand mirrors.

"It's a two-way mirror," Alex said, holding a third identical hand mirror. "Contact me if you find anything."

"Where are you going? Don't you want to come with us to the Louvre or something?" Ginny asked.

"No," Alex said. "I'll probably search the smaller cities. Besides, I don't like the loud crowds."

"All right, well, we'll see you later then, Alex," Hermione said, putting her hand mirror into her pocket.

Alex nodded once before disappearing. Hermione and Ginny stepped out of the alleyway they had landed in.

"Where should we search first?" Ginny asked as she tucked the two-way into a pocket like Hermione did.

"I think I'm going to check out the libraries out. They may have more information on the circlet," Hermione said. "You check out the Notre Dame. Sometimes a famous church has jewels on display or they're part of the stained-glass windows."

"I thought they were just made of stained glass," Ginny said.

"You never know; we can't skip anything at this point, Ginny," Hermione said.

Ginny nodded.

"Where should we meet?" she asked.

"I'll probably be longer than you, so just contact me through the mirror when you're done," Hermione said.

"Right. See you in a few hours?"

Hermione nodded.

Harry set Hedwig on the bed.

"You stay here, girl; I'll be back soon," Harry said.

Hedwig meowed and nudged his hand. She shifted and hissed in pain, quickly licking at her front right paw. Two days ago, it had given out underneath her, the brittle bone shattering like it was nothing.

"Be careful," Harry said.

Harry gently laid a finger on the fragile paw and poured magic into it. He managed about five seconds before he crumbled to the ground, his magic abruptly fluctuating. He squeezed his eyes shut as his magic seemed to boil underneath his skin before flaring out without warning. Harry restrained his magic and reeled it in before anyone could feel the powerful burst of magic.

Once his magic settled, Harry got to his feet.

"I'll be back soon, Hedwig," he muttered.

Hedwig meowed in concern, making Harry huff in dry amusement.

"More worried about me when you're literally breaking into particles," he said.

Harry sighed and shook his head to clear it. Then he put up wards around the room before leaving, pulling his hood up to conceal his identity. He had to conserve his magic right now; the fluctuations were increasing by each day and soon, he probably wouldn't have any control left.

He entered Diagon Alley, eyes flitting left and right paranoidly. Going right into the heart of the wizarding community without a disguise was dangerous, especially since said community was on a manhunt for him.

People looked at him strangely before moving on. No surprise since he was hiding his face; that seemed suspicious all by itself. Sadly, Harry's magic wasn't cooperating at the moment. He could only hope that when he did need it, his magic would actually cooperate.

Harry sighed, gazing up at the large building that was Gringotts. It looked almost identical to the one in America. He stepped in and walked to the nearest goblin teller.

"Excuse me, I am here to inquire about some artifacts," Harry said quietly.

The goblin looked up and blinked, taking in his cloaked figure.

"Who's asking?" the goblin asked. "Please show your identity or I won't be able to help you, sir."

Harry moved his magic up to disguise his face, hoping it worked as he pulled his hood down. The goblin's expression didn't change, so apparently, it did work.

"My name is Aaron Evans," Harry said.

"Wand, please," the goblin said.

Harry pulled out his wand, changing the identity of the owner of the wand as he did so. The goblin checked it and nodded in satisfaction.

"What kind of artifacts are you looking for?" the goblin asked.

"Two bracelets," Harry said.

"Their appearance?"

Thankfully, the scroll had described the bracelets, but it had taken a lot of time to decipher it.

"They're identical. Two silver bands with small blue-violet tanzanite gems lining the middle," Harry said.

The goblin hummed.

"One moment, I will check," he said.

The goblin disappeared into another room. Harry looked around.

"Excuse me, mister?" a familiar voice asked.

Harry blinked and looked down to see Hugo Granger-Weasley.

"You don't look so good, mister." Hugo said, tugging on his cloak. "You look as if you haven't eaten or slept in days."

"Hugo!"

Lily, Rose, and Mark ran up to Hugo. Lily tugged him away from Harry.

"Hugo, it isn't nice to say those kinds of things to others," she scolded.

"Don't run off like that," Rose said, glaring at her younger brother.

Lily looked at Harry.

"I'm sorry, sir," she said.

"It's fine," Harry said.

The goblin came back.

"I'm sorry to say we don't have the items you are looking for, Mr. Evans," the goblin said.

"I see...thank you for helping," Harry said.

The goblin nodded. Harry turned to leave, but his wrist was caught by Lily.

"You really do look like you are quite ill," she said. "Are you sure you're all right?"

"I'm fine, thank you very much," Harry said.

"But mister, I think you could use some food," Hugo said.

Harry winced slightly as he felt his magic start to flicker again.

"I'm in a hurry," he said. "I apologize, but I really must be going now."

Harry pushed past them and walked out of the bank quickly. He ducked into a small alleyway just as his magic gave out, his disguise dropping immediately. He panted as a slash of pain flared through his body.

"Damn it, damn it, damn it," he hissed. "I really don't have time for this! I just need to hold on for a little more."

Gradually, his magic settled again and Harry took the chance to pull his hood over his face again. He stepped out of the small dark corner he had hidden himself in. He walked through the crowds quickly before making a sharp turn, entering Knockturn Alley. He found the potions shop quickly enough and went in.

The old man running the shop looked up.

"Ah, a customer," he greeted. "Welcome! How can I help you?"

Harry grabbed a potion from the shelf, knowing what it was just from the look.

"That'll be thirty Galleons," the old man said.

"I don't have that much," Harry said. "You'll have to settle for eleven Sickles."

The old man frowned.

"Now listen here-"

Harry's patience broke. He grabbed the old man by the collar and pulled him forward. His grip tightened, making the old man choke slightly. His sickly green eyes glowed angrily through his long black bangs.

"Take it or leave it," he hissed. "I don't have much patience left, old man."

"W-who are you?" the old man choked out.

An insane cackle broke free from Harry's mouth.

"That's none of your business," he said.

Harry looked at the potion in his hand and huffed before tucking it in his pocket.

"On second thought, I think I'll just take the potion and leave," he said.

"Y-you can't do that! That's a Polyjuice Potion!" the old man exclaimed.

"I know full well what it is. I don't need an old man to tell me which potions are which," Harry hissed. "In return for this one potion, I'll spare your life."

The old man paled.

"M-my life...?" he whispered fearfully.

"Yes," Harry said. "I'm not in a very good mood right now, so don't provoke me...but on the other hand, if you blabbed about me after I left, that would be troublesome."

Harry looked into the old man's eyes and entered immediately. Thankfully, his skills in Legilimency had not been too affected by the magic fluctuations. He made sure to be gentle; being too destructive was a dead giveaway. He destroyed the memories of him coming into this shop before exiting. He released the old man; he slumped over the counter, dazed from the intrusion.

"Thank you for your service," Harry said, turning around and leaving. "Have a nice day~"

"Finally," Ginny muttered.

The line to enter the famous Notre Dame church was a long one. The tickets were expensive too. Ginny looked around, awed by the ancient beauty of the church.

"Wow..." she gasped.

Ginny snapped herself out of it.

"I'm here to look for a jewel," she scolded herself, but quietly so nobody would think she was crazy for talking to herself.

Ginny looked around the church and looked at the enormous stained-glass window. It was beautiful, but it looked like it was all just stained glass; no jewel of any kind in sight. Ginny searched the other windows; no jewel.

Ginny sighed and walked around.

"Are you okay, ma'am?" a French accented voice asked behind her.

Ginny turned around to see a Reverend.

"Yes, I am," she said. "Thank you for asking."

Ginny looked at the window she had been looking at before. The Reverend walked up to stand next to her.

"The stained-glass windows are beautiful, aren't they?" he stated.

"Yes, they are," Ginny said.

"You are British. What brings you here to France?"

"Just a vacation," Ginny lied.

"I see," the Reverend said. "Well then, enjoy your visit to the church. Let me know if you have any questions."

The Reverend walked away.

"Wait, I do have one question," Ginny almost blurted out.

The Reverend turned back to her expectantly.

"Do you know of a circlet?" Ginny asked. "It was a circlet created in Belgium and then it came here to France.

"Ah, do you mean the 'Diademe de Calamite'?" the Reverend asked.

"Yeah, that one," Ginny said.

"Not many people are interested in the small things like that circlet," the Reverend said. "I myself don't know much about it, only that it was destroyed."

"Destroyed?" Ginny blinked in surprise.

"Yes," the Reverend said, nodding once to emphasize his words. "The circlet was destroyed in the massacre to get it back from Egypt. It was originally created in Belgium before being stolen by a French general, who later presented it to a Duchess. It was passed down in the Duchess's family for many generations before it was stolen by a pharaoh in Egypt, who wanted to use it in some kind of strange ritual. Later on, the French traveled down to retrieve the circlet, but they were met in the middle by the British and Americans. There was a huge massacre and the circlet was won back. It was being transported back to France when the transport was ambushed. The circlet was lost amidst the chaos and was never found again. However, the jewel survived."

"The jewel? What kind was it?" Ginny asked.

"A red pyrope garnet jewel, said to be the color of blood," the Reverend said. "It is the only thing left of the circlet."

The Reverend looked at Ginny.

"May I ask why you are so interested in this circlet?" he asked. "It did not get its name from nothing; if anything, that circlet is cursed."

"I have a passion for history," Ginny said. "This circlet caught my attention. I'm surprised people aren't more interested in it, seeing how there was an entire massacre over it."

"I see," the Reverend said, nodding. "The jewel was once displayed in this church, but it was moved to the Louvre."

"Really?"

"Yes," the Reverend said. "It is a very valuable artifact after all."

"Thank you for this information, Reverend," Ginny said, bowing her head politely.

"Anytime," the Reverend said. "I shall take my leave now. Enjoy the rest of your stay."

Ginny grinned excitedly as she rushed towards the exit of the Notre Dame. After looking around to make sure nobody was paying attention, she pulled out her mirror.

"Show me Hermione Granger-Weasley," she said quietly.

The mirror shimmered for a few seconds before Hermione's face appeared.

"Ginny?"

"Guess what?" Ginny exclaimed in a low voice.

"Did you find it?" Hermione asked, perking up.

"Not exactly, but I know where it is," Ginny said. "Where are you right now?"

"At the Historical Library of the City of Paris," Hermione said.

"Well, that's a mouthful of a name," Ginny commented.

"Meet me in front of the Eiffel Tower," Hermione said, ignoring Ginny's comment. "We'll talk more in person."

The mirror shimmered before going back to normal. Ginny tucked the mirror into her pocket. She looked around and smiled; today was a good day. She walked with the crowd. She could see the Eiffel Tower in the distance and made her way towards it. Soon, she stood on the large field. It was crowded and it was a warm clear day. Ginny shielded her eyes as she looked up at the sky. It was somewhere in the afternoon.

"Ginny! Over here!" she finally heard Hermione call to her.

Ginny jogged over to her friend.

"Hey!" Ginny greeted enthusiastically.

"So, what'd you find out?" Hermione asked.

"So apparently, the circlet itself is rumored to be destroyed in a huge massacre that happened a long time ago down in Egypt between the Egyptians, Americans, British, and French. But the jewel was recovered and now it's on display inside the Louvre!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Wow, that's a lot more information than I expected. I couldn't find anything on it in the libraries," Hermione said. "We need to tell Alex about this now."

Ginny pulled out her hand mirror. She put it up to her mouth.

"Show me Alexander Riddle," she whispered, making sure nobody could hear her say the name.

The mirror shimmered again. It took longer before Alex's face finally appeared. He was disguised, his skin slightly dirtied.

"What is it?" he asked, sounding slightly annoyed.

"Don't be like that, Alex," Ginny said. "You said to call you if we found anything, and we did!"

Alex gave a single nod for them to continue.

"The jewel is on display in the Louvre," Hermione said.

"We'll go there tomorrow then," Alex said.

"What have you been doing all day?" Ginny asked, frowning. "You have dirt on your face."

"I've...been searching for the jewel," Alex said hesitantly.

"Please tell me you aren't digging up tombs illegally," Hermione said, sighing.

"I'm not digging up tombs illegally," Alex replied emotionlessly.

Hermione groaned.

"I will see you tonight," Alex said. "Something tells me that this display of the jewel isn't as it seems; it's a little too obvious. We'll still go to the Louvre to see it; there is a chance I am wrong and that it is the real jewel."

"We'll tell you everything else in person," Ginny said.

Alex nodded curtly before the mirror shimmered.

"What now?" Hermione asked.

Ginny grinned slyly.

"It's only noon; Alex is coming back tonight. I say we go shopping!" she exclaimed.

"Ginny, we don't have time!" Hermione exclaimed.

"We should at least get a gift for Lily for going through all this trouble for us," Ginny said. "I mean, she is watching the kids while we travel the world with Alex to look for a dangerous criminal. And if Mark and Ron find out where we are, we'll need an alibi."

Hermione sighed.

"Fine, but only one gift," she said.

"Yes, yes, I know; let's go already!" Ginny exclaimed excitedly, dragging Hermione to the shopping area.

"Ginny, I said one gift! One! Not four!" Hermione exclaimed.

"I got a gift for Lily and the kids," Ginny said. "Is that so wrong? I mean, we did leave them behind; this is the least we can do."

Hermione groaned. They heard a cough. They looked over to see Alex standing in the doorway, staring at them with disguised light brown eyes.

"Am I interrupting something?" Alex asked.

"No, come in, Alex," Hermione said, sinking onto the bed.

Alex saw the shopping bags and raised an eyebrow.

"It's Ginny's fault!" Hermione accused, pointing at her redheaded friend.

"It was for a good reason, Besides, you agreed," Ginny retorted.

"Yeah, to get ONE gift," Hermione said.

Alex sighed.

"Can you two just tell me what you found out?" he asked.

"Ginny, you talk," Hermione said. "You found the information."

Ginny nodded.

"So, I went to the Notre Dame church and talked to a Reverend," she said. "He told me that the circlet was destroyed in a huge massacre that happened in Egypt. The circlet was on its way back to France when the transport was ambushed and in the chaos, the circlet disappeared, so it was assumed to have been destroyed, but the jewel was found and it was displayed in the church before being transferred to the Louvre."

"I see," Alex said. "Did the Reverend say anything else?"

"He said the circlet is cursed," Ginny said. "Because it was the reason of a huge massacre, it's thought to be cursed. Also, he said something about an Egyptian pharaoh using the circlet in some kind of ritual."

"Interesting," Alex said. "We should go to the Louvre tomorrow then. I'll be able to sense if the jewel is the one we are looking for or not."

"We just need to get tickets now," Hermione said.

"Already done," Ginny said, pulling three tickets out of nowhere.

Hermione blinked in surprise.

"When did you get those?" she asked.

"During our shopping spree; didn't you notice me buying them?" Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow at her friend.

Hermione groaned.

"No...Ginny, you work in mysterious ways sometimes," she said.

Ginny grinned.

"Why thank you!"

"We should get some sleep," Alex said. "The Louvre is the largest art museum in the world and it'll be very, very busy."

"I see, you need to recharge before going out to deal with large crowds of people," Ginny said.

"Not that," Alex said, scowling at her. "I've been searching for the jewel all day."

"By digging into tombs illegally?" Hermione asked, looking at Alex pointedly.

"That's not the point," Alex said.

"You're not denying it," Ginny pointed out.

Alex rolled his eyes.

"In my defense, tombs are a perfect place to hide treasure such as jewels." he said. "Anyways, it took all day and it was very exhausting. I couldn't use magic without drawing attention to myself."

"I bet," Hermione said. "You look like you need a shower and then sleep."

"Maybe food first?" Ginny asked.

"I'll eat later," Alex said, standing up. "I need to get this dirt off me first."

Alex disappeared into the bathroom.

"Why would he be digging through tombs when we told him the location of the jewel?" Ginny asked.

"Alex isn't the type to trust information obtained so easily," Hermione said. "We're still going to check the jewel out, but there is the risk of it being the wrong one or even a fake."

"I suppose that's reasonable," Ginny said.

"So, are you going to tell me what you got Lily and the kids?" Hermione asked, changing the topic easily.

Ginny lit up and nodded excitedly. They didn't notice Alex coming out of the bathroom a short while later and collapsing on the other bed, immediately falling asleep.