Late one night, while sitting in her bed, Honey took out the book of magical tales and read it some more. As she read the notes scratched on the old parchment, she felt her bed began to shake. She dropped the book on her lap as she became lightheaded; her right hand was tingling. She was seeing everything in twos. Looking down at the book, she thought that the Deathly Hallows' symbol had turned into eyes. They were rotating and staring at her. She reached out to pick up the book, but stopped.
"Grandpa, do you know about the Deathly Hallows?" Honey asked, without looking at him. She was busy having a staring contest with the triangular eyes.
"Who doesn't? According to legend, 'he who possesses the three artifacts will become the Master of Death'. It's a silly tale, only fools believe it. I once heard a rumor about Grindelwald having the Elder wand in his possession." He laughed.
Honey moved her right hand in circles over the book and watched in fascination as the triangular eyes follow it.
"The Elder wand is invincible. If he truly had it, he would not have been defeated by Dumbledore."
"Honey, you are young and have not known the matters of love. Trust me when I say that when you meet that special someone, your heart, your mind, and your body will weaken even by the sight of that person."
"You mean Dumbledore's victory was inedible because Grindelwald cared for him. Loved him? It had nothing to do with his dueling skills and the Elder wand?"
"That duel had nothing to do with the Elder wand. Many men have lost their lives chasing the legend, but that's all it is a legend."
"Grindelwald believes they are real and I am convinced of their existence." She said, looking at the dark birthmark on the back of her hand. She turned her hand around, making her birthmark face downward toward the book. All of the printed and written words began to move. They fused together to create a large form of the Deathy Hallows symbol. The circular portion was glowing.
"Honey," he stressed her name, ready to lecture her on the difference between dreams and reality.
Honey moved her hand away from the book and it returned to normal. "None of the books I have read have the brother's real name in them like this one does – only naming them first, second, and third brother. I have seen these names before. These men exist. If they exist that means that the Deathly Hallows exist as well. Grindelwald even wrote that the third brother, Ignotus Peverell, was buried in Godric's Hollow."
"Grindelwald spent a summer in Godric's Hollow with his great-aunt, Bathilda Bagshot. It was where he met Dumbledore."
"Dumbledore's family lived in Godric's Hollow." She had researched enough about him to know that.
Honey's grandfather looked at her thoughtfully as he considered something. "You're planning on chasing the legend."
She picked up the book and cradled it in her arm. "It's not a legend. It's history."
When morning arrived, Honey went straight to the Library to search for any type of information that could be related to the Deathly Hallows. She was distracted by voices from the other side of the large shelves. She put everything away and followed the sounds. It was Saturday, when students normally slept in. Today might be an exception since it was the first Hogsmeade weekend. Honey found Fred and George huddling in a corner with their backs to her. She remembered the card with the twin jokers. Energetic group...they're good for you.
"Hello," said Honey.
Fred and George turned their heads to look at her.
"Hello," they said and fully turned around. They were behaving suspiciously, both with their hands behind their backs. It prompted Honey to wonder what they were doing in the potions section.
"You're up early. Studying for your O.W.L.s?" said George.
"Doing homework?" asked Fred.
Although they were identical, Honey could tell which brother was which. George had a mole on the side of his neck but Fred didn't. She'd seen it when she grabbed George's collar, preventing him from stepping on William. She saw that Fred didn't have one when he was carrying her to the Hospital Wing.
"No, I'm finished with my homework for the rest of the year," she replied.
"What?" said Fred.
"You're finished already?" George asked in astonishment.
"I rarely sleep. I spend most of those hours doing my homework and double-checking it." She told them.
"Should we introduce her to Hermione? Something tells me they'd get along great," Fred whispered to George.
George shook his head in disagreement. "We'll have two of them on our backs, nagging at us."
"True," Fred agreed, and he turned back to Honey. "That only leaves studying for the exams, then," he said in a normal tone of voice.
"Half our year had minor breakdowns coming up to O.W.L.s," said George.
"Don't exhaust yourself," they warned.
For a split second they looked at her with sympathy. It was the same look she'd seen so many times from her Healers. She knew she should not be upset at them for giving her that look, but it brought back the painful memory of when she was an invalid. That was going to change. She was not going to allow herself to become like that again. Never.
"Fifth year is a nightmare of a year," George said happily. "If you care about exam results, anyway."
"George and I managed to keep our spirits up through ours," Fred said reminiscently.
Honey stared at the brothers. It was as if they shared a single brain. They were always in tune with each other, finishing each other's thoughts and sentences.
"How so?"
Fred and George grinned, gesturing for her to come to them. Honey closed the distance between them. The boys guided her to stand against the wall, their tall figures blocking anyone from seeing her.
George gave her a parchment with the words Weasley's Wizard Wheezes written on it along with some other writing.
"We are inventors," he said.
"Creators of all things necessary," said Fred, and they began taking curious-looking items out of their pockets.
"We're going to use your last years here to do a bit of market research," said George, "find out exactly what the average Hogwarts student requires from a joke shop, carefully evaluate the results of our research, then produce products to fit the demand."
"See here, these are Extendable Ears," said Fred, holding a flesh-coloured pieces of string. "You put this end in your ear—"
"—and put the other end, say, under a door, and you can hear the conversation as clearly as if you're a foot away," finished George.
Honey touched the string to inspect it. This might be exactly what she needed to gather information on her Headmaster. Dumbledore was far more powerful than she. There was no way she could murder him as her grandpa wished, but what she could do was ruin his life.
"How much?"
Fred and George were all too happy to sell her their Extendable Ears. They showed her more of their inventions and explained their uses.
"They're amazing, your inventions and your dreams. I have never seen anything like it," said Honey, eyes filled with admiration.
"If only we could make them work properly," said Fred.
"The Nosebleed Nougat will make you bleed till you shrivel up, but we haven't got an antidote yet," confessed George, which explained why they were there. "And thes Fainting Fancies. We can't seem to get the dosage right."
"We also can't see how you could eat the antidote when you're unconscious. Unless you've got a friend with you," laughed Fred.
"You can use cayenne to stop the bleeding," Honey told them. Her Healers had often suggested she eat cayenne pepper to stop her internal bleeding. "Cayenne pepper reacts with the body to equalize blood pressure. For the Fainting Fancies, you can put a label on the wrapper to tell buyers to eat it at the middle, where the two colors meet. When they eat at the middle there is a better chance of them waking up since they're eating the antidote, too."
"As for the dosage," she continued, "you have to be very careful since your products are aimed at students. Everyone reacts differently, especially young children. They have a lesser ability to metabolize potions than healthy adults and are likely to overdose and develop bad side effects. Healers calculate dosage by weight for infants and children. You should consider that factor."
"That's brilliant!" Fred and George exclaimed.
"How do you know all this?" asked George.
"I-I was very sickly when I was younger and always had healers around." She didn't tell them the truth about her hospitalization because she didn't want them to treat her differently.
Fred and George told her about other complications they were having with their inventions and asked for her advice. They moved to sit at a table, and Fred took out some parchments and a quill to write their problems and her suggestions. While they were busy with their discussion, Lee Jordon, a black boy with dreadlocks, arrived and joined them. He was as open and friendly as the twins and also had a hand in helping them create their products. Honey found that they were doing great with their inventions so far; only a few minor details needed to be addressed. She was happy she was able to help them using her experience and knowledge.
Sometime later, a student came in to announce that it was time to line up for Hogsmeade. Honey said goodbye to the twins, who were had other things to do, and went to the Entrance Hall to meet her other friends. Meredith and Becky stood side by side while Honey and Evie stood behind them. They were waiting in line for a teacher to inspect their permission slips.
"Hermione Granger came up to me," Becky whispered to Meredith.
"Me too," said Meredith.
Honey's ears perked, having heard Fred and George mention the name earlier. Although, she reasoned, it might not be the same Hermione. She kept her eyes on something else and her ears on the two girls in front of her.
"Are you going?" asked Becky.
"Of course. They might finally us tell what happened to Cedric."
"Do you really want to know?"
"Yes, I do."
Becky glanced at Honey and Evie, then back at Meredith. "Should we invite Honey and Evie?"
"No," Meredith said harshly. "If Umbridge catches us I don't want them to get in trouble, too."
Hogsmeade was a colorful little Wizarding village of thatched cottages and shops. Honey had passed through it before but hadn't had the time to fully enjoy it. She thought it was very lovely. The first shop Honey was taken to was Spintwitches. It was a shop that sold sporting goods. Her friends wanted her to look at new Quidditch equipment because they knew the things she was using were a little too big for her. Meredith, who was very knowledgeable about Quidditch, led them through the shop, explaining what Honey needed and why. The standard equipment and uniform consisted of a cape, fingerless gloves, shin and arm guards, and goggles. Players in different positions may have different equipment; for example, Beaters carried bats, and Keepers wore protective headgear.
After making her purchase, Honey stepped out of the shop and into the road. Her gaze found a small boy who was leaning against a tree, his hands over his mouth. A slight turn of his head revealed to her that he was blowing on a mouth organ. Honey stared at the boy as his body suddenly became smaller, thinner, and paler. The end of his long brown scarf billowed in the cold wind. As she closed the distance between them, the world around her became still, the sky darkening and becoming cloudy.
"OH, DEAR GOD!" Mrs. Cole screamed when she saw the boy hanging from the tree.
John's eyes were bulging out as was his tongue. His face was blue from the black scarf that was twisted tightly around his neck. His lifeless body swung back and forth from a thick branch, tangled with the other end of the scarf.
Mrs. Cole looked around and spotted the other children playing nearby. "What happened?" she demanded. The children stopped playing and looked at her. "Well?" she shouted. "Tell me what happened!" The children blinked and glanced at each other, confused as to what she meant. Mrs. Cole huffed and pointed at John. "What happened?" she repeated.
The children looked where she was pointing and spotted John.
"John!" one shouted. "What are you doing up there?"
"Is he playing some sort of new game?" asked another.
"Looks fun. Can I play, too?"
"NO, YOU CAN NOT!" screamed Mrs. Cole. She was angry yet frightened. She tried to look away from the awful sight of the boy hanging there, but her eyes kept wandering back to him of their own accord. The children were too young to understand the concept of death and had not been taught about the subject. She knew this would surely traumatize them and cause them to misbehave when the inspector came that month to check on them. Selfishly, for her own benefit, she was glad they did not understand what they were seeing—like with that dead rabbit the other day.
Taking deep breaths, she asked, "What was John doing up there?"
"He wanted that snake."
All heads turned to the new voice and they saw Tom emerge from behind the bushes, holding something in one hand and pointing to the tree with the other. Mrs. Cole peered up into the leaves and after a short while she saw the scaly back of a snake. She gasped and took a step back.
"He wanted to see if it could really speak," Tom said matter-of-factly.
"What nonsense," mumbled Mrs. Cole, and she ordered the children to go back inside.
"Mrs. Cole?"
The elder woman looked down to find Tom staring up at her while the other children did as they were told and marched toward the stone building.
"What do you want?"
"He looks rather ill," Tom said innocently. "Are you going to call the doctor?"
"Yes...yes, I will," Mrs. Cole answered in a tight voice.
Tom looked down for a moment and was moving off to join the others when Mrs. Cole suddenly stopped him.
"Tom!" Hearing their name, a number of boys turned their head to Mrs. Cole. "Riddle!" she clarified, "Come here!"
Mrs. Cole leaned close to Tom's ear to make sure no one could eavesdrop on them. "I-I...need to fetch the...the doctor. Stay here and make sure no one disturbs John." She needed to find someone to help get John down and dispose of his body. She had no desire to touch a corpse, even if it was recent, and she had to destroy all records of his ever being under her care, as well. Having a child die would attract attention from the authorities, and she did not want that.
Tom nodded and held up John's mouth organ.
"It's yours," Mrs. Cole said immediately when she saw it, using the item as a bribe.
Tom put the mouth organ in his pocket and asked, "Is he going to stay with Red at the hospital?"
Mrs. Cole blinked and then remembered she had told the children the rabbit hanging from the rafters was ill. She'd told them she had to take it to the hospital for recovery and had thrown it into the first trash bin she came across after leaving the dining hall.
"Yes," she said. She looked left and right; seeing no one, she quickly strode away, leaving Tom alone with John.
Tom turned to John. "You'll keep Red company for me, won't you?" he asked as he stepped closer to him.
"Of course you will," he answered for him, pretending to take his silence as a yes. "Remember, Red likes it when you break the carrots into little pieces for him—and lettuce, you must feed him lettuce." The wind blew John back and forth. "And don't feed him any porridge. He'll get a stomachache," he said as he recalled Red staying in the corner of the wardrobe and refusing to eat anything, no matter how hard he shoved the lettuce in his face. He'd later found that the porridge he had given him had caused him to become ill. He never fed it to him again. "I hope you can remember all that. I know how forgetful you are."
"Honey, what are you looking at?"
Honey blinked a few times and turned to Evie, tearing her eyes away from the boy hanging from the tree. The dark clouds had cleared and the sun was shining bright once again. There was still wind, but it wasn't as cold as before.
"That boy," Honey replied, nodding to the boy playing the mouth organ. She went to the boy and knelt in front of him. "Hi there, little one. Do you want to know how to sound better?"
The boy looked at her with wide eyes and nodded. Honey unwrap the scarf from around the boy's neck and told him to blow. The boy smiled, causing his round cheeks to grow even rosier as he was satisfied by the improved sound.
"Don't wrap it so tight," she said, handing the scarf back to him. "It makes it hard for you to breath." She patted the boy's head and returned to Evie.
"Meredith and Becky had to go somewhere. Said they'll be back soon," said Evie.
Honey nodded, her gaze wandering back to the boy.
After the trip to Hogsmeade was over, Evie excused herself to run an errand. Honey was on her way to her dormitory to put her bags away when something caught her eye in the common room. There was an outline of an unknown object floating through. Her eyes followed the unknown object as it disappeared near a boy who was leaning against the wall. She turned away from the boy and her gaze met that of another girl, who was sitting on the couch. The girl appeared to be in her fourth year. She had straggly, waist-length, dirty blonde hair, very pale eyebrows, and protuberant eyes. Honey had seen the girl around the school before but had never spoken to her. She broke eye contact with the girl and was about to walk up the stairs when the girl spoke.
"You can see them?"
Now that Honey was a little closer, she saw that the girl's wand was behind her left ear and that she wore a necklace with Butterbeer corks. "What was that?"
"A Wrackspurt. They float in through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy," the girl said in a dreamy voice.
Honey had never heard of such a creature but she supposed it was listed in a book she had yet to read. She glanced at the boy. He was blinking and shaking his head.
"You can see them." The girl was smiling at Honey with excitement.
"A little," admitted Honey.
The girl nodded. "They're invisible. I can't see them but I can feel them. You can see them. You have special eyes."
"Honey!"
Honey turned from the girl to see Meredith and Becky. She'd been engrossed with her conversation with the fourth year and hadn't noticed that her friends had arrived.
"Would you come here for a moment?" said Meredith.
Honey excused herself and went to her friends. Meredith led her away from the other Ravenclaws, with Becky following close behind them.
"Honey, do you know who that girl is?" whispered Meredith.
Now that Meredith mentioned it, Honey remembered that she hadn't properly introduced herself to the girl. "No. I forgot to ask her name."
"That's Loony Lovegood," supplied Becky.
"Loony?" repeated Honey.
Becky opened and closed her mouth. "Well—her name is Luna—but everyone calls her Loony because she's mental."
"What do you mean?" asked Honey.
"She's bizarre," said Meredith.
"Invents odd creatures to get attention," added Becky. "Claims Nar-something or whatever are stealing her things."
"She invents creatures?" Honey looked at Luna and then at the boy who had caught her attention earlier. "Have you two ever heard of a Wrackspurt?"
Becky and Meredith looked at each other and then at Honey. "No," they said in unison.
"They float in through your ears and make your brain go fuzzy," said Honey.
"That sounds like something Luna would say," stated Meredith. "She told you, didn't she? Don't listen to her she's not right in the head."
"I think she's nice," said Honey. "Does she know that everyone calls her Loony?"
Becoming uncomfortable, Meredith and Becky offered to help Honey carry her bags to her room. Before following them, Honey went to Luna to tell her she wanted to talk to her some more and they agreed to meet later. After they were finished with putting her things away Honey and her friends headed to the Great Hall to sit. Honey sensed something coming their way and pulled her friends' arms back. Meredith and Becky yelped at the sudden pull and saw ink pellets hit the spot where they'd just been standing. The two looked up and saw that Peeves, the poltergeist, was floating above them with a peashooter. They turned back to Honey to thank her but she moved in front of them to confront Peeves.
"Leave them alone!"
Peeves, who was floating on his stomach, gave an arrogant snort and looked down at who was speaking to him. He stared at Honey in shock with his mouth agape.
"You!" he shouted, pointing at her in alarm, and he vanished, dropping his peashooter on the ground.
"What's with him?" wondered Meredith.
"He seemed afraid of you," Becky said to Honey.
"Why would he be?" said Honey.
Meredith and Becky exchanged looks but didn't say anything to Honey. It didn't matter as long as Peeves left them alone. Reaching the Great Hall, they found that it was crowded and decided to find another place. They went to the Library and pushed three desks together to face each other. Since everyone had different schedules they had to have their tutoring sessions whenever they could. Honey had to tutor Evie separate most of the time because her schedule was the least flexible.
Umbridge had recently passed Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four disbanding organizations, societies, teams, groups, and clubs. Organizations were defined as a regular meeting of three or more students. Even if Evie were here Honey didn't think Umbridge would mind, seeing as the elder witch had assured Honey that this rule did not apply to her. The woman was constantly asking Honey if she was enjoying Hogwarts. Honey's answer would be mixed between finding it pleasant or saying she was annoyed by certain restrictions. This would be followed by a written access pass from Umbridge to anything Honey wanted. Just one complaint from Honey to her parents and they would pull her out of school, and the Ministry could say farewell to all of her family's donations.
Meredith and Becky need help with their History of Magic essay. They took out their essays about the Giant Wars that was due soon and gave them to Honey to look over. Both were half written and the girls wanted to get Honey's opinion before continuing. Honey took the essays and read them.
The Giant Wars began in the eighteen hundreds. Long ago there were least a hundred different tribes spread around the world. They generally inhabit remote mountain areas in tribes, with a leader called a Gurg. Gurgs are usually the largest of the giants in each particular tribe. One becomes a Gurg by violently overthrowing, killing, the previous Gurg. They are savages, constantly fighting to prove which tribe is superior. Their rivalries came to a climax when one particular giant, Morholt, thought he was the strongest and killed three Gurgs, taking over their tribes. He traveled to other neighboring tribes to challenge their leaders.
"You're doing well so far," said Honey, "but you forgot to mention that the reason Morholt attacked the other three tribes because his was dying out. Their food supplies were dwindling and their birth rate was low. It's very important that you state the true reasons that motivated his campaign. You can't write that his motivation was his arrogance."
"If their supplies were low, couldn't he just ask for the other tribes' help?" asked Becky.
"He couldn't have," said Meredith. "Giants are savages. They are incapable of understanding reason or the pleas of another. They only care for themselves."
"Morholt united the three tribes as one. The area he inhabited was peaceful for five years before word spread to the other tribes about his victories and flourishing tribe. They feared his prowess and journeyed to his territory to challenge him." While Honey was speaking she took out the necessary books to show her friends how she'd come by this knowledge. She flipped the books open to certain pages and placed them side by side in front of her friends. She took out articles that contained written statements from wizards and a very few Muggles who had accidentally stumbled upon the giants in their travels. Then she took out a large map of the world and spread it on the table.
"Morholt's tribe was here. During the years of his leadership there were no reports or complaints. One can assume that it was peaceful." Honey pointed the tip of her wand over the map and a red line appeared as she navigated it. "A wizard reported that he spotted giant footprints headed toward this direction. Look at the time and date." She pointed at the map, to where the first battle had occurred. "The first war broke out here. The date is close to the time that the wizard saw the footprints. The second battle was here. A Muggle reported seeing giants here. His memories were erased, but his statement was recorded." She pointed to more articles, books, and the map, explaining the connection. "These battles were concentrated in this particular area." When she was done, the red lines connected to form the shape of a spiral. In the center of the spiral was Morholt's tribe.
Meredith and Becky blinked as they absorbed the information.
"So the book was wrong." said Becky.
"He never went to the other tribes. They went to him," said Meredith. "How did you figure this out?"
"I read...a lot."
The weather had not improved. The sky was a deep, thundery grey. Holding an umbrella, Honey followed Zacharias as he led her though the stands on the Quidditch pitch. Zacharias told her that they were not going to practice that day but were there to observe the Gryffindor Quidditch team practicing. He had charmed their cloaks to keep them warm and dry while they watched. He handed her a pair of goggles which he had also charmed to prevent the rain from fogging them.
"The Snitch is right there." Honey pointed at it after watching the team for an hour.
"You can see it?" Zacharias asked in astonishment. "I can barely see anything in this weather." He stood up with his umbrella and squinting his eyes to see.
"I can see it."
"Come here," said Zacharias, leading her toward the Hufflepuff changing rooms. He opened the door with his key and motioned her inside. He shook off his cloak and sighed in content at the warmth and light of the changing rooms. Digging in the spot where Honey's Quidditch uniform was hidden, he handed it to her.
"You said we weren't practicing today."
"I changed my mind," said Zacharias. He went into one of the private stalls and changed his clothes.
Honey shrugged. She went to one of the stalls and changed as well.
On their way out they passed the Gryffindors' changing room. Honey heard a male's voice shouting, "Ouch!" Dismissing it, she continued back to the pitch with Zacharias.
Honey and Zacharias mounted their booms and rose into the air, rain beating on their bodies. He had unleashed the Snitch and told her to find it. She managed to spot it within seconds.
"Try and catch it."
Honey pointed her broomstick in the direction of the Snitch. As her speed increased, her vision began to blur. Suddenly she was outdoors standing in front of a manor with a well-manicured lawn. She turned around and saw a village at the bottom of the hill she was standing on. She turned back and looked at the manor. It was large compared to the buildings below, with lights beaming through the windows. Her heart raced as she clenched the wand in her hand, and she walked toward the back entrance.
She took out her wand and charmed the door to open. Her heart raced as she entered the building. It was dark. The only light available was from the tip of her wand. She made her way through the rooms until she reached the upper levels. While in the hall she heard movements. She quickly turned her wand toward the source and an elderly man's face appeared. He was holding a rifle, pointing it at her.
"Who are you?" the man demanded.
The lights in the hall came on, allowing Honey to see the man. He gasped and slowly lowered his rifle, then pulled it back up. He continued to point it at Honey with trembling hands.
"What's happening?" came another male voice from behind her.
"Honey! Look out!"
Honey shook her head. She was back on her broomstick above the Quidditch pitch and was heading toward the stands. She pulled her broomstick handle up and circled the pitch before zooming back up to where Zacharias was.
"Are you all right?" asked Zacharias.
Honey didn't answer him; her eyes were dazed and her face was pale.
"Honey," Zacharias said louder, pulling her from her trance.
Honey blinked a few times and looked at him. "Yes?"
"Are you all right?" Zacharias repeated.
Honey shook her head. "I don't think so."
"Sorry I made you fly in this weather. I just wanted to see if you could do it, catch the Snitch," Zacharias explained.
"I want to go back to the castle," she said.
"All right, come on."
After Honey changed back to her regular robes Zacharias escorted her back to the castle. Honey remained quiet through the journey. When they reached the corridors, Zacharias apologized again for making her fly in such weather. She told him it was fine, that she was just a little shaken from the cold. Zacharias excused himself, leaving Honey alone in the corridors. Fifth years were allowed to be out in the corridors until nine o'clock. The hour wasn't close to nine and Honey believed she had plenty of time to herself before curfew. She took a detour and made a visit to Marvolo.
"Wha...what..di...did you give me?" he demanded to know, drowsy with unfocused eyes.
Honey took a small case from her pocket. She opened it and brought out a syringe with a needle.
"Something that'll keep you from misbehaving." she told him. She stabbed the needle in his arm and administered his weekly dosage.
"I hate yoooou." he told her as his vision became blurred.
His hatred for her grew every day. Sooner or later he would escape. When he does, he swore he'd make her pay and this time it'd be quick.