Artemis Fowl Sr. had been studying a little bit of magic, and a whole lot of wizarding law. He even had a fake wand that had copy's of all the spells his son had managed to program so far. So when the plan to impersonate wizards was finally put into place, he was more than ready to rub elbows with high society. He had scheduled a meeting with the Irish Minister of Magic, who was more than happy to meet with a potential mover and shaker, and now Artemis Sr. was on his way there.
Artemis Sr. made his way down to the heart of Dublin, to a tired looking, ancient part of town. He notices that the buildings are faded and the stonework is worn down as he makes his way to a certain broken light post standing in front of a closed down bakery. There is a old twisted tree in front of the building and as the light post briefly flares to life, Artemis Sr. steps into the tree, holding his breath and expecting to get a sharp knock on the noggin. He is pleasantly surprised to realize that he is now inside, standing on a metal platform. A few seconds after he enters, a pleasant soft male voice emanates from the walls, "Good evening and welcome to the Ministry of Magic. Please keep all limbs inside as you descend to the entrance. We hope you have a fine day, and thank-you for visiting."
Artemis Sr. feels a slight sensation of movement for a few seconds, then it seems to stop. A section of the wall slides back revealing what almost seems to be a forest glade, lit by golden sunlight coming down through gaps in the tree branches. There is a small pool of water in the center which seems to contain some native species of fish, and an odd human like creature sitting on the banks. She is small and blue skinned with webbed hands, slanted eyes, no hair at all and yet strangely beautiful.
Oddly enough, there is a small desk beside her, and she seems to be writing on some papers with a quill. A small golden sign is suspended from a tree branch and hangs over her desk. It reads: INFORMATION.
Artemis Sr. is understandably quite confused, since this doesn't resemble any building he has ever been inside, especially not a underground building. Where is the sunlight coming from?
But as he makes his way to the information desk, he feels relieved as he notices that the trees are really support pillars, and the branches an illusion that covers up most of an actual ceiling. The floor is actually a very thick, plush moss green carpet, and inexplicably there are fireplaces hidden on the sides of the room. Hmmm, probably for the Floo travel I read about, but I still don't know how they got the sunlight down here though…
"Hello, before I can allow you to proceed any further, I need to see your wand." She says in a warbled voice and holding out a webbed hand.
Feeling self conscious, Artemis Sr. pulls out his new wand and hands it over. "Vat is this about?"
She waves the wand about, and it produces blue sparks, so with a satisfied look she hands it back and explains, "Sorry but since this is Ireland, we occasionally have some muggles with enough latent magic fool the lift, and this way we can tell when one of them stumbles down here. They obviously don't have wands. Do you need any help?"
"Yes, I'm Artemis Fowl and I'm here to see Sean Cauldsville, how do I get there?"
"Go through the door behind me and the lift will be straight in front of you, his office is on the last floor, down the left-hand corridor, and is the door right at the end.
I see here that he is expecting you, so you should be able to go right on in. I'll let him know you are here." With that said, she scribbles a note on a piece of parchment, folds it up into a paper airplane and sends it flying to a corner of the room where it flies down into a small hole and disappears.
Artemis Sr. successfully manages not to react to the disturbing sight of a flapping paper airplane, and walks past the pool of water to the door. I guess it's a good thing our family has lived in Ireland long enough to soak up enough magic throughout the generations. Although I bet it would be annoying for the wizards living here to have some muggles who are immune to their keep-away spells.
Artemis Sr. enters the lift, and presses the button '18'. As he slowly descends, a few people get on and off the lift, the only notable person being a red haired man with golden spectacles and a rich red robe who seems to be going to the same floor as Artemis. He asks in a curious tone, "Those are some odd looking clothes, you must not be from around here are you?"
"No, I am from Russia. This is vat ve usually vear. It is not nearly as odd as vat I hear the Egyptians vear, I've been told that all of the men and even many of the vomen don't vear anything to cover their top halves, vith robes only to cover their legs. I intend to visit there one day, but I think my vife vould object."
"Ah yes, that's always the problem isn't it? They always object to the most fun things. I'm Chris Fairnsworth, head of the Non-Human Relations Department. That fancy title just means that I try to convince stubborn headed wizards that it would improve things if we let non-humans have more rights."
"That's not a bad goal, after all, they are magical like us, and some of them should certainly be allowed proper jobs. I know this centaur back in Russia vho is an odd one, but very smart. He vould do much better in a position such as a viter or a teacher, but is only allowed to roam a forest and hunt to survive."
He reaches out a hand to Fairnsworth, and as they shake Artemis Sr. introduces himself, "It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Artemis Fowl Sr."
"Nice to meet you too, I have heard that Russians were a bit more accepting of certain things than most, especially more accepting that our ignorant neighbors, the British. But I'm slowly winning the Irish public over. Gliral the receptionist at the information desk is a prime example of how far I've managed to get. Not many other countries would allow a water nymph to get any job at all, let alone a government job. She does a fine job of it too."
"It is certainly not something I expected to see, but she seems pleasant. Unfortunately vhile most of us Russians are okay with the idea of a vater nymph as a receptionist, sadly too many of us are focused on bloodlines and purity. Even my own son has too much concern for the purity of his own, and others bloodlines."
"Ah," Chris nod his head in understanding as they finally get off the slow moving lift and walk down the hall together. "I have a daughter myself and she delights in doing the exact opposite of what I try to get her to do, she seems to date boys chosen to specifically get on my nerves."
Chris stops halfway down the hall and says, "Well this is my office, stop by after you are done and I'll introduce you around."
He pauses and seem to remember something, turns around halfway through the door and says, "Hmmm, you know what, there is going to be a very fancy party thrown by the Thomases, and there will be many important people there. I certainly wouldn't mind if you shared your views about non-humans with some others, it could only help the cause. Would you like an invitation? I could probably wrangle him into inviting you."
After a brief consideration of the advantages of getting a direct entry into the political landscape and the potential disadvantage of being seen to support Fairnsworth, Artemis Sr. nods his head, "I vould be delighted to go, my vife Angeline vould especially love the opportunity, she had been a bit lonely since she cannot meet vith her old friends any longer."
"Glad to hear that, I'll be sure to introduce you to my family, my Elena will be glad to introduce your wife to all the other women, I'm sure she will make new friends in no time. Where shall I have Frank Thomas owl the invitation to?"
"Fowl Manor, near Dublin. It really vas a pleasure meeting you Chris, and I vill certainly stop by your office after my business here is done."
With that, they shake hands, and Artemis Fowl Sr. makes his way down the rest of the hallway, noticing that the carpet is a lighter moss green than the first floor.
Artemis Sr. knocks on the door at the end and a sour female voice calls out "Come in."
The room inside is much larger than should be possible, and even has a small chandelier hanging from the center of the roof. But it all still matches the overall theme of nature, with wooden floors, and what appears to be beautiful hand painted walls, with intricate designs all over. There is a stout oak desk behind which sits an unpleasant looking old lady, with pale purple robes and a heavily wrinkled face. "Well, what do you want?" She glares, looking at him as if he was a disreputable young hooligan, instead of the well dressed businessman he is.
In a cautious neutral tone Artemis Sr. says, "I'm Artemis Fowl Sr, here to see Sean Cauldsville."
She looks unhappy that she doesn't get to shoo him away and snaps, "You're late. Go right on in, he's been waiting for you."
"Thank you" he says, not meaning it in the slightest.
Sean Cauldsville is a blond man starting to go grey. He sits behind a oak desk similar to the unpleasant old lady's, and his office is much the same as the outer room. Sean looks up as the door opens and rises, managing to gesture to the chair in front of him, shake Artemis's hand and somehow convey the fact that the secretary should be ignored, all within a few seconds of hand movement.
He's good, no wonder he is the Minister of Magic. I'll have to be more cautious with him, no risky tricks like I pulled with Fairnsworth. He's not one to make fast friends with just anyone.
Artemis Sr opens with a friendly nod. "A pleasure to meet you. I've heard many good things about you."
"I haven't heard much about you, but what I have heard was interesting. What may I do for you?" Sean replies with a questioning look.
"As you may know, in Russia, the law is that minors are allowed to perform magic only if they are in school, or have already passed all of their vizarding tests. Over here, the usual law is that you can only perform unsupervised magic if you are over 17. I have a son who is 16 years old, but has already passed all of his Owls and Newts, and I vas hoping to get your permission for him to be able to perform magic one year earlier than vould be usual here. The law, Fullers Amendment B-13, states that the Minister of Magic can make exceptions in the case of underage use of magic. My son is very mature and is hoping to perhaps get a job or do research of his own, and it vould be difficult for him to continue his regular activities vithout the use of magic."
Cauldsville nods his head repeatedly as Artemis Sr. makes his case, and after most of the spiel, his posture shifts to lean back more on his chair and Cauldsville relaxes slightly. Artemis Sr. knows that he has made a decision and wraps up the rest of his speech, wishing that Cauldsville gave off more clues as to what was going on in his head.
"It is a very unusual thing for someone to have already taken his Newts and Owls so early, so I'm inclined to believe that your son is very smart and will respect the laws. So if you would be so kind as to sent me a copy of his results on his Newts, and a brief note explaining what they are for as I do sometimes lose track of what document is for what purpose. Then if everything is in order I believe I will grant permission and owl you the certificate. After all, he has been doing unsupervised magic in Russia for a few years with no mishaps, and he is only one year away from adulthood right now, so there should be no harm in it.
Was there anything else you wished to speak to me about?"
Artemis Sr. spends the next few min exchanging pleasantries and getting to know Cauldsville better, getting a feel for what sort of man he is. Eventually he has to take his leave, since taking up too much of Cauldsville's time on their first meeting would give a bad first impression.
He then makes his way to Fairnsworth's office and gets introduced to more people, and he does his best to get acquainted with all of them.
As he is leaving Artemis thinks, Well that has set a good foundation if I do say so. Now all the rumors that Arty has been creating will gain a focus and we will be in business. Everything is going according to the plan…
Excerpt from Harry Potter and the Goblet of fire;
Chapter thirty-five:
Harry felt himself slam into the ground; his face was pressed into grass; the smell of it filled his nostrils. He had closed his eyes while the portkey transported him, and he kept them closed now. He did not move. All the breath seemed to have been knocked out of him; his head was swimming so badly he felt as though the ground beneath him was swaying like the deck of a ship. To hold himself steady, he tightened his hold on the two things he was still clutching – the smooth, cold handle of the Triwizard Cup, and Cedric's body. He felt as though he would slide away into the blackness gathering at the edges of his brain if he let go of either of them. Shock and exhaustion kept him on the ground, breathing in the smell of the grass, waiting … waiting for someone to do something … something to happen … and all the while, his scar burnt dully on his forehead …
A torrent of sound deafened and confused him, there were voices everywhere, footsteps, screams … he remained where he was, his face screwed up against the noise, as though it was a nightmare that would pass …
Then a pair of hands seized him roughly and turned him over.
'Harry! Harry!'
He opened his eyes.
He was looking up at the starry sky, and Albus Dumbledore was crouched over him. The dark shadows of a crowd of people pressed in around them, pushing nearer; Harry felt the ground beneath his head reverberating with their footsteps.
He had come back to the edge of the maze. He could see the stands rising above him, the shapes of people moving in them, the stars above.
Harry let go of the Cup, but he clutched Cedric to him even more tightly. He raised his free hand and seized Dumbledore's wrist, while Dumbledore's face swam in and out of focus.
'He's back,' Harry whispered. 'He's back. Voldermort.'
'What's going on? What's happened?'
The face of Cornelius Fudge appeared upside-down over Harry; it looked white, appalled.
'My God – Diggory!' it whispered. 'Dumbledore – he's dead!'
The words were repeated, the shadowy figures pressing in on them gasped it to those around them … and then others shouted it – screeched it – into the night – 'He's dead!' 'He's dead!' 'Cedric Diggory! Dead!'
'Harry, let go of him,' he heard Fudge's voice say, and he felt fingers trying to prise him from Cedric's limp body, but Harry wouldn't let him go.
Then Dumbledore's face, which was still blurred and misted, came closer. 'Harry, you can't help him now. It's over. Let go.'
'He wanted me to bring him back,' Harry muttered – it seemed important to explain this. 'He wanted me to bring him back to his parents …'
'That's right, Harry … just let go, now …'
Dumbledore bent down and, with extraordinary strength for a man so old and thin, raised Harry from the ground, and set him on his feet. Harry swayed. His head was pounding. His injured leg would no longer support his weight. The crowd around them jostled, fighting to get closed, pressing darkly in on him – 'What's happened?' 'What's wrong with him?' 'Diggory's dead!'
'He'll need to go to the hospital wing!' Fudge was saying loudly. 'He's ill, he's injured – Dumbledore, Diggory's parents, they're here, they're in the stands …'
'I'll take Harry, Dumbledore, I'll take him –'
'No, I would prefer –'
'Dumbledore, Amos Diggory's running … he's coming over … don't you think you should tell him – before he sees -?'
'Harry, stay here –'
Girls were screaming, sobbing hysterically … the scene flickered oddly before Harry's eyes …
End Excerpt.
A few minutes earlier…
Flitwick was worried, his intuition was telling him that something was wrong, horribly wrong.
He had been watching the third task of the Triwizarding tournament and the last person had gone into the maze. That was when the feeling had hit him. He couldn't figure it out, but since a very dangerous event was happening not 500 yards from where he was sitting, he had an inkling that it had to do with the tournament. Now Flitwick might have been placed there to observe only, but he had grown to like many of the students, and while humans they might be, most of the people in the stands were still children.
So just in case whatever was to happen could potentially harm his students, he made an excuse to Madame hooch sitting next to him, and left.
After he had gone a fair distance, he made sure no-one was near, and shielded. Invisible, he now snuck back to the former Quiddich pitch, and took up station at the bottom of the stands, hoping that he was wrong, knowing that he was right.
Flitwick waits patiently, wondering what is taking so long, and eventually begins the feel the dread increase. They should have finished by now, and his instincts tell him that evil is at work. He hasn't felt this way since Voldemort was in power.
Suddenly a whirling form begins to take shape on the grass nearby, and Flitwick instantly identifies it as Harry Potter, just before it slumps to the ground. What in the name of Frond? How did he portkey out? And why is he clutching the other boy Cedric?
Oh Gods! He's not moving or breathing. Something has killed Diggory! This is bad, Potter looks nearly dead himself.
The Cup! It has to be the portkey. But how? Who? Crap, Crap, Crap… I had better go see if Potter is even conscious…
Flitwick rushes to Harry's fallen form, debating what to do. He has a few suspicions about what might have happened…
Swear-toads and Trolls, I need to gather as much information as I can out of the boy. This could be critical! We need more time! Oh if only we had started the Fowls spying sooner, then they might have been able to help, oh this is useless! I can't re-appear now, not with Dumbledore coming down as fast as he can. And if I don't become visible, I can't mesmerize Potter into telling me everything. Sigh I'll just have to do my best. I'll just have to stay away from Moody and his eye…
As Flitwick looks on helplessly, people rush forward, Albus Dumbledore in the lead. Screams can be heard, confused people asking questions, and the thud of hundreds of people running.
Albus crouches over Harry, and Flitwick manages to stay right next to him, just beside, but far enough that he wouldn't be brushed against and discovered.
Harry is turned over and looks horrible, a deathly white face covered in bruises looks upwards, eyes not quite focusing on anything. Harry finally lets go of the Cup, but holds on even tighter to Cedric's body.
As Harry reaches up and grabs Dumbledore's wrist, Flitwick briefly dares to move his head in to examine Harry's eyes, his pupils are not jagged so Flitwick leans back, with one possibility crossed off his list. Dumbledore doesn't seem to have noticed the blurring of the air in front of him, likely distracted by many things including Cornelius Fudge who had just shoved his way through the crowd.
"He's back," Harry whispers. "He's back. Voldemort."
The only ones who hear are Dumbledore and Flitwick. Even the nearby Cornelius Fudge cannot hear Harry's words with the din that is being caused by the crowd of students.
Flitwick is stunned by the news, barely paying attention to what happens when Diggory's death is noticed, and their attempts to get the body. He can only wonder what the hell they will do now. Wait, what am I doing, am I to forget all of my training? So what if that horror is alive again? We have not one, but two geniuses who will be working on the problem this time! All I have to do is collect as much info as I can about what has happened, and let them do the hard work of coming up with a plan.
With renewed hope, Flitwick resolves to do his best to be there when Dumbledore questions Harry. Unfortunately Dumbledore seems to have left to confront Diggory's parents, and the questioning might not happen for a while yet.
Mad-Eye-Moody suddenly materializes out of the crowd and Flitwick does his best to appear nonchalant, as if he wasn't invisible. Moody starts to half-drag, half-lead Potter away. Alarm bells go off in Filtwick's head since the Moody he knew from way back would have never moved Potter away from a well lit area and into the dark, not with one student already dead.
I can't follow, he'll see me! Damn that eye of his. I'll have to risk appearing in the middle of the crowd, then get Albus. That simply can't be Alastor, he would never be so reckless…
Dumbledore looks alarmed at the news Flitwick brings, and orders him to find Snape. When Flitwick returns with Snape in tow, he finds Minerva has been found and is being informed. Flitwick is thanked, and told to go comfort his students. Yeah right, you just want me out of the way Albus. Nice try, but I'm coming whether you know or not. He thinks to himself as he heads off to lose himself in the crowd. He quickly doubles back and catches up, but in his haste to do so, make a bit too much noise. Enough that Severus who is in the rear looks back once. But otherwise things are uneventful until they reach Moody's office. Then the trio burst in, wands blazing, and proceed to 'Stupefy' Alastor very thoroughly. Dumbledore radiates cold fury in every line of his face, seeming to heat up the room with his anger, and Flitwick is glad he is shielded and thus invisible, he would not want to get in Dumbledore's way right now.
Both Minerva and Severus are sent on various confusing tasks and Flitwick creeps into the room before the door closes, keeping well away from anything which might betray his presence.
Dumbledore proceeds to open a trunk which is eerily similar to the one bought for Artemis, but since it was the Auror model, its presence makes sense. After the first few keys, Flitwick has a sinking feeling that the real Alastor Moody will be in the dungeon-like last compartment. Sadly he is right and a pitiful looking man is revealed, extremely thin and with chunks of hair missing.
Then they settle down to wait. Barty is revealed as the polyjuice potion wears off, Snape and McGonagall arrive, and the truth comes out. Eventually Dumbledore and Potter slowly leave, and Flitwick hurries to follow. As the trio head up the passageway, the two weary souls and one silent watcher, Dumbledore quietly says, "I want you to come up to my office first Harry. Sirius is waiting for us there." Flitwick thinks; Darn. He has too many protections in his office, I'll never be able to listen in, in fact that is probably why he is taking Potter there instead of questioning him in the hospital wing…
Wait, did he say Sirius? The Wanted Criminal who tried to kill Potter then escaped?! What is going on!? Double Damn! I wish I could be a fly on the wall of Dumbledore's office, there are too many things I'm in the dark about… He's on good terms with Potter? Curse you Albus, always with your secrets, never telling people what they need to know. Ugh, I suppose I'll have to find information elsewhere for now…
Disclaimer: I have no rights to any of the fictional characters from the Harry Potter series and I used the excerpt from the book only with the intent to show my appreciation of the book which I enjoy a lot. It is not an attempt of plagiarism and any other lines used which are from the book are also a homage to J.K.R.'s fantastic books. So please don't hunt me down in my sleep and force me to drink hemlock…
Anyways, enough silliness. Please review and I would love to get input of any kind. Give good advice, point out mistakes, praise of my magnificence, or even just guess what will come next. Even just posting that you found the story not utterly horrible will help me out.
Anyways, I hope you did enjoy this chapter, and I will try to get the next one out before summer is over. Thanks for reading to the end!