The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts
A Harry Potter Fanfic
Author's Note: Hula guys, the third chapter!
Not much to say in this Author's Note either…
Fleur and Monica
Harry was engulfed in the darkness, and he felt as if, two giant hands were squashing him on all sides! He should've got used to it by now: he had had, after all, twenty years of Apparating: he had been apparating since he was seventeen! Yet, he felt oddly uncomfortable as Hermione's and Ginny's hand brushed his.
Suddenly he felt relieved. He felt as though he had just been through the car wash system or rather the lemon squeezer, women use to make lemonades!
On his left side Ginny, Luna, Ron and Neville were getting to their feet and on his other side Hermione was casting the usual spells around themselves, which she had cast the seventeen years ago!
"I think we better have breakfast before we move on, shouldn't we?" Hermione suggested. This suggestion was met with approved response.
"We're approximately near the point where Meercus told us we're supposed to be" said Harry.
In the Auror office, Meercus had told them that the Portkey would only take them towards a specified region, they didn't want it to go further as Dragomir would sense the magical heat given off by the Portkey. They would have to Apparate to the spot where Jazz and the others were last seen.
Hermione was still casting the spells around as Harry Summoned the tent from the purse.
"Erecto" he said pointing at the tent. At once everyone rushed in, tired of the long journey.
"Thanks, Kreacher" said Hermione to Kreacher who was serving her a pot of tea and croissants.
Meercus had advised them to take Kreacher along on the journey, so that due to lack of food, they might not turn on each other like the last time they had been undercover, nineteen years back.
"Some people are destined to be living undercover forever" Ron muttered before going into the room, he was sharing with Hermione.
"Get up, sleepy heads" Harry said, as he bustled into the bathroom, his hair ruffled and yawning widely.
The pleasant smell of breakfast soon wafted its way into the washroom and overwhelmed Harry.
"Here I come, now who's gonna save you from me, huh?" he asked, as the smell drafted tantalizingly through his nose, he picked his fork and attacked his breakfast.
"Master Harry, you is going to choke" gasped Kreacher.
"Aah, 'Eacher 'et mi a glaz o' mil' 'ill 'ya?" Harry asked though a mouth full of bread.
"Here sir" Kreacher squeaked handing Harry a glass full of milk!
"What do we do now?" Hermione asked. The six were sitting at the little dining table at the kitchen where Kreacher was serving them all breakfast.
"The best thing to do, would be to spread out and search for any sign or clue of whether this Krandert Sandwood passed through this area" suggested Luna.
"Good idea! We can each take a direction and get going" replied Hermione immediately.
"Okay, then I'm taking north" said Ron.
"I'll take east" said Harry.
"I prefer the west" said Neville.
"I'm happy to take south" said Ginny.
'I can search the mountain caves' said Luna.
"Then, that leaves the forest which I'll take" said Hermione.
Harry trumped on through the rocks blocking his way, stopping only to clutch his side.
"Damn it" he swore as for the umpteenth time he stepped over a few prickly branches, more gashes and cuts appearing at his legs.
Suddenly from up ahead he heard voices and immediately slowed down. He pointed his own wand at his heart and muttered "Quietus" making any sound coming from him to fall silent.
"Garn, how do Muggles live? Without magic?" a irritated voice gnarled.
"Dunno, do I?" another reedy voice answered.
"Reckon the people we just saw were Muggles?" asked a third voice.
"Give it a rest, Binguk, no doubt, they were Muggles" said the second voice.
"I'm not as sure" said the first voice.
"Yeah, you were the one who told Auror Head you saw bill Weasley around here, some time back, didn't ya?" the second voice sneered.
"C'mon Hikhoop, aren't you being too critical?" Binguk asked.
With a sudden bolt, Harry realized that the first person speaking was Griphook, meaning the three were goblins.
Then a fourth new voice spoke out, small and weary.
"Why have you kept me here? Where's Master Krandert?"
"Shut it you" said Hikhoop and there was a small blast and squeal.
But through Harry another bolt was passing: the voice belonged to Fleur!
"Confoundus" Harry bellowed as he blasted his way through the trees: immediately Binguk started humming happily, oblivious to the mingled expressions of terror, fear and shock on Griphook's and Hikhoop's face.
"Stupefy" Harry bellowed pointing his wand at Hiphook, immediately the little rough goblin toppled over leaving Harry, Griphook and Fleur alone.
"You?" Griphook whispered, shock flitting across his face and at that moment Harry knew that Griphook, too, was recalling the incidence at Gringotts, seventeen years back.
"I swear, I didn't mean what I did…" started Griphook, though Harry just walked across and pointed his wand into the goblin's face.
"You double crossing little swab" Harry muttered, before shouting "Petrificus Totalus" Griphook to thudded to the moss strewn rocks.
"Fleur are you all right?" Harry asked hurriedly, crossing over to where she was tied to a rock.
"Who are you?" she asked blankly.
Harry realized that she had been Confounded.
"Fleur, come on I can take you to Master Krandert, good Harry will take Fleur to master" said Harry as he helped Fleur to her feet.
Fleur, after Harry said that, came obediently.
Harry walked in through the tent flaps and found Neville, Luna and Hermione already sitting at the small table reading.
Hermione looked up as he entered.
"So you found that sign?" Hermione smiled.
Hermione had created a sign and instructed Kreacher to keep it exactly two feet from the tent, to the right saying: "Slopes are dangerous. Don't believe magic" to be put up so that they would be able to find the tent without being prevented by the protective spells.
Harry nodded and said "I've got a surprise"
"Come in" he said outside the flaps.
In walked Fleur and down dropped the three's jaws.
"Where did you get her?" Hermione whispered while Fleur sat down at the couch and turned on the TV.
Harry narrated to her the whole incident and his meeting with Griphook.
Hermione gasped "Harry you should have taken them hostage, they could tell us where Krandert took the others"
Harry slapped his forehead: he hadn't thought of that.
He sat down and immediately Kreacher served him lamb chops and chips.
"Thanks Kreacher" he said.
"So how come you're back here so early?" Harry asked through a mouth full of chips.
"Well, it turned out that the caves were quite few" replied Luna.
"And the forest ended in a deep pit, quite deep" said Hermione.
"At the west, the mountains suddenly stopped" said Neville, eating lamb chops too.
"Ron and Ginny haven't returned?" Harry asked sharply, fear gripping the insides of his stomach.
"They took the directions biggest and hardest to search through Harry" Luna comforted him. Harry nodded though he couldn't help glancing at the flaps every minute or so.
"Where is Master Krandert?" Fleur suddenly piped up. Harry then turned to Hermione and told her that Fleur had been confounded and whether Hermione could do anything about it. Hermione nodded and walked over to Fleur. Pointing her wand at Fleur she said "Mermorius" and immediately the blank look vanished from Fleur's face and a savage one replaced it.
"Wher iz dat scoundrel?" she snarled.
"Fleur calm down" said Hermione handing her a glass of water.
"Oh 'Arry, where am I, and where iz Bill?" she asked.
Harry explained everything to her and she said she would of course help them on their mission and got up quite cheerfully to go have some rest.
Suddenly, when they were all resting, a silver vapor came, apparently, through the flaps, and once inside it transformed into a big terrier and opened its mouth and spoke in the terrified voice of Ron. "Harry, come at once, follow the Patronus" it said and turned to leave and the others hurried behind it.
"Ron" Hermione gasped and ran to him, flinging her arms around his neck. However, he turned an ashen face to Harry.
"Harry, Ginny's gone: they've taken her hostage" said Ron.
Fleur and Hermione gasped.
"What are you doing here?" Ron asked to Fleur. "You too were taken hostage, right?"
Fleur scowled at him.
But Harry was too dumbstruck to explain: Luna gently sat him down on the grass and conjured a glass and water, while Hermione explained it to Ron.
"We've got to find her" were the first words Harry was fully aware of he was speaking.
Ron nodded and got up at once. "I tried to Stun him, Krandert, but he just laughed, held up a hand, which blocked my curse and ran off with the others trailing behind" said Ron and pointing in the direction they had ran off to.
They all set off, Harry in the lead. Soon they came upon a clearing where a bright fire was burning. They could see Bill and Wendell, Mr. Granger and Luna's sister blankly try to tie up some grass, and Ginny struggling, tied to a rock, like Fleur had been. He was relieved to see that she hadn't been confounded, but Jazz, Clarisse and Krandert were nowhere to be seen! Monica, Mrs. Granger, was just sitting staring at the fire.
In whispers they made out a plan. Hermione and Luna, disguised would try to distract Krandert, who was, apparently, in the tent, pitched beside the fire.
Soon, Hermione and Luna, various features Transfigured bent through the flaps and were gone. As soon as they went in Harry, Ron and Neville rushed to Ginny and set her free.
"Relashio" Harry whispered and at once the cords binding Ginny were broken free. "C'mon" Ron whispered.
At once, a blood curling scream was let out from the tent and Neville and Ron hurried to it.
Hermione rushed out dragging a blank looking Luna with her, their features back to normal. Neville grabbed her at once and the five set out towards the tent side, but Hermione ran towards the fire.
"Hermione come on, we can get them later" Ron shouted: Hermione had already caught up, dragging her mother along with her.
"What happened?" Harry asked, applying essence to his many wounds. It was now finally dark and they were all resting: they had just got back.
"He recognized us as we went through the flaps; we didn't even get to have a proper look at his face! He screamed the Confoundus curse and I dodged but Luna was hit, I dragged her out and then dragged my Mum along too" said Hermione shortly: she was very exhausted.
They had already retrieved Luna's and Mrs. Grangers' memories.
"Harry, I think we had better retire for the night" said a pale Neville. Harry nodded and once more silence fell on the patch of grass, where, apparently, nothing stood!
There. That's the chapter. An extra long chapter, for an extra ling time of absence and an extra long apology! : )
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