Finding the Professor
Dominique and Chris were up early the next morning, shoveling down a bit of breakfast at Louis' flat before setting off for the university. They weren't sure how much walking around and footwork they would have to put in that day, so figured it was best to fill up before they even started.
The campus was large and beautiful, though they got turned around a few times. After wandering around for 30 or 45 minutes among the students and faculty, they managed to find the history building and from there, the ancient civilizations department.
While part of Dominique was feeling discouraged, she was determined not to feel defeated before they even found out if anything was there.
"Well… here's hoping we find something rather than nothing," Dominique said as they walked into the main department office, looking around.
"We know that he's not here anymore, but hopefully we'll at least find out something that will show us where to go next," Chris said. Dominique nodded.
"Hopefully," she murmured.
"May I help you?" a young woman asked, stepping from around a desk.
"Yes, we're here to see the head of the department," Dominique said smoothly.
"Do you have an appointment?" the woman asked.
"Ehm, no. We were hoping to speak with him about a professor who used to work here," she said. The woman looked down at something on her desk and then back up at the two.
"Professor Wilson is currently in a meeting, but if you have a seat, I will let you know as soon as he is available," she said, motioning towards two chairs. The two walked over and sat, with Dominique beginning to nervously tap her foot as she looked around the room, taking in the various paintings decorating the wall.
"Must you do that?" Chris asked softly, glaring at her foot.
"Sorry. Nervous tick," Dominique quietly shot back.
"We don't know how long this will take so I'd prefer not to have a headache from your tapping," he said. Dominique sighed and crossed her legs.
"Very well," she said with a slight roll of her eyes before opening her purse and pulling out a book.
After about 30 minutes, Chris shifted in his chair again, accidentally bumping into Dominique's arm. She silently frowned at him.
"Sorry," he said quietly. Dominique sighed and put her book away, conceding defeat. She was starting to get more nervous the longer they had to wait for the professor and had gotten stuck reading the same paragraph over and over again.
"Think we'll find anything?" she asked softly, looking over at Chris.
"Certainly hope so," he replied, watching the door to the office for the professor to walk in. "Otherwise we did all this waiting for nothing."
"Just hope it doesn't lead us to yet another country," she said, rolling her eyes. "Not that I don't love traveling, just would be nice to finally find him."
"No kidding," Chris said. At that moment a tall thin man in slacks and a plaid button-up walked into the room, his light brown hair speckled with gray. He glanced over at the couple curiously and then stepped through a door into another room. The woman stood and walked over, popping her head in a moment before turning and facing Dominique and Chris.
"He will see you now," the woman said. She then stepped aside and allowed the two to enter.
"Hello," Dominique said brightly as she stepped over to the desk. "My name is… Alice. Alice Baker. And this is… my brother, Chris. We're hoping you might be able to help us. We're trying to track down an old friend of the family. He taught here not long ago – Nikos Aliefantis."
The professor studied them for a bit, then motioned for them to sit in the chairs across from him.
"Nikos? Yes, he taught here for a few years. But he retired. Left teaching to settle somewhere in the country as I recall," he said, his brow furrowed. "Great professor, though very private. I admit, he was a bit of a mystery."
"So we've heard," Chris muttered, earning him a stomp on the foot from Dominique.
"Yes, he's also very knowledgeable about Greek history," Dominique said.
"One of the foremost experts," Wilson said.
"You wouldn't by chance have an address or contact number for him, would you? We've been trying to get in touch with him since moving back over here from America and just can't seem to pin him down," Chris asked, leaning forward in his chair.
"Oh, I do have an email address," the professor said, sitting up and reaching for a pad of paper and a pen. "We keep in touch regularly, though for the life of me I've forgotten where it was he settled." He scribbled something down on the paper and then handed it over to Dominique. "I'm afraid that's all I can give you, but he does usually answer very quickly in my experience."
She looked up at him and smiled.
"Thank you, we appreciate it," she said, standing. She then led Chris out of the office and down the hallway, looking down at the piece of paper.
"I suppose this is good news," she said, looking up at him. "Do you have an email account?"
"What? Why would I have one of those?" he asked, looking down at the paper. "What does it do?" Dominique rolled her eyes and started looking around.
"We need to find a library or something… We need a computer," she said. She walked over to a directory of the building, looking closely for a few moments. "Ah ha! Follow me!"
She led him through the building, finally stepping into a large room with tons of bookshelves and computers. They walked in and Dominique looked around before finding a terminal that was off by itself and open. She quietly cast a few charms around them to ward off any curious muggles and made herself comfortable in front of the screen.
"What are you doing?" Chris asked.
"Need to make an email account so we can contact Professor Aliefantis," she said, clicking on the internet icon.
"I knew that," Chris said, frowning at her. Dominique rolled her eyes and quickly set to work making an account. She had one that she made years ago for her muggle studies class at Hogwarts, but had forgotten the password, so decided to just start up a completely new one.
It didn't take long and soon she was pulling up a new message box and staring at it, wondering what to write to the professor.
"What are you waiting on?" Chris asked. Dominique looked at him and then back at the screen.
"Dunno, just… well, how exactly do you explain everything without him thinking we're crazy?" she asked. Chris sighed.
"Look, just tell him that we're with the British Ministry of Magic and doing research into myths surrounding Athena – ehm… we're updating our archives or something. As he's the foremost wizard and muggle expert on Athena and Greek culture, we'd like to meet and speak with him in person as soon as he can – it's of the upmost importance. Leave your address and mention that owl is possible as well," he said. Dominique glanced at him and then went to work, typing everything out quickly. Once she was done, she sat and looked over it, making small changes here and there, before pressing send and sitting back in her chair.
"So… what do we do next?" Chris asked, looking at the computer screen.
"We could sit here and wait for a response, but really, he could be anywhere in the world and it could take days. We might as well go back to Britain and wait there," Dominique said with a sigh. "I think I still have an old laptop around the flat somewhere that we can use to check it." She wanted to get excited about the email address, but she knew all too well that there was the chance it wouldn't pan out. To be honest, she was starting to get more than a bit frustrated. It had been months since she had discovered the professor. Why hadn't they managed to find him yet?
"Well, let's go, Dom," Chris said, pulling her from her reverie. She stood and followed him to a quiet corner of the library where they apparated back to Louis' apartment.
Louis popped in while they were both packing, surprised to see them leaving so soon.
"Did you find something?" he asked as he walked into Dominique's room.
"Maybe," she said, folding a blouse. "All we got was an email address and Merlin knows there's no guarantee that he'll respond." She threw the article of clothing into her open suitcase and sighed, looking over to her brother.
"Sometimes I feel like we're just running in circles with this," she admitted. Louis smiled and walked over.
"You'll find him," he said encouragingly.
"What makes you so sure?" Dominique asked.
"Because I know how driven you are. You won't stop until you've tracked him down and gotten all the information you can from him," Louis said.
"You always did seem good at cheering me up," Dominique said with a smile.
"Someone's gotta do it," Louis said with a shrug. "Now, is there any way I can convince you two to have dinner with me before you leave? There is this really great new place that opened up down the street that I've been meaning to try, but haven't gotten the chance yet."
"We really should be going if we want to get through the floos in a decent amount of time," Chris said from the door. "They get pretty busy around this time." Dominique nodded and turned back to her suitcase to finish packing while Chris walked off to the living room, his already packed bag over his shoulder.
"So… you sure nothing's going on with Chris? Not even a tiny, small little crush?" Louis asked once the man in question was out of earshot. Dominique paused momentarily in her packing to frown at her younger brother.
"Not again, Louis," she said, rolling her eyes and returning to her packing.
"What? I'm just asking. You two are working together a lot and you don't seem to be at each other's throats like you used to," he said, smiling.
"That's because we're adults who know how to be mature and work with each other rather than bicker all the time like we did in school," she said. Louis nodded slowly.
"Well, he seems like a nice bloke if you ever were to… develop something more than a work relationship," he said with a cheeky grin. Dominique sighed heavily.
"Stop meddling. It's unbecoming," she said.
"I am a Weasley after all – it's what we do best," he said with a shrug. Dominique stopped packing again and looked over at him, an eyebrow raised. "Fine, so maybe Victoire mentioned that I should try and convince you to get out more in her last owl."
Dominique laughed softly and shook her head, returning to her suitcase.
"Why I am not surprised," she muttered.
"Look, we all know you took the break up with Paul hard-"
"Still. Still taking it hard," she said, not looking up.
"Okay - still taking it hard - but really, you can't let whatever is going on with the family stop you from enjoying life a bit, Dom. Vic says you're pulling more overtime than necessary, even taking documents home from the archives. Molly claims the kitchen table hasn't seen sunlight in weeks-"
"Look, Louis, I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine," she said looking over at him. "Am I still upset about Paul, yes. But really, even you have to admit that this investigation is what's important right now. I can date or whatever after this is done. Besides, I don't want to put another poor bloke in harm's way."
Louis studied her a moment before speaking.
"You're hoping to get back with Paul once this is all said and done, aren't you?" he asked suddenly. Dominique glanced over at him.
"Maybe. If he doesn't hate me, that is," she said with a sigh. "Though the first party we ran into each other, he asked me to get back together." She frowned slightly, remembered how difficult it had been to say no and walk away.
"So, you do love him," he replied. Dominique looked over at him, turning her body to face him.
"Why do you seem so surprised?" she asked. Louis smiled slightly.
"Just didn't think the oh-so-serious Dominique Weasley would finally fall for someone, is all," he said. Dominique laughed shortly and shook her head.
"Still the annoying little brother, I see," she said. Louie laughed and held his arms open, motioning to her. Dominique stepped over and hugged him.
"Just promise me you will try to go out and have some fun – whatever that is to you." Dominique chuckled.
"I will," she said. She then turned and shrank her suitcase, then tossed it into her purse and walked out into the living room where Chris was waiting. "Let's go home."
Dominique sighed as she stepped out of the floo at the Ministry of Magic and looked around at the various people rushing off home. While she always enjoyed going to Paris, she had to admit she would be more than happy to finally get home to the flat
"Don't look so melancholy. The email might work," Chris said, glancing down at her.
"I'm not melancholy," Dominique said, frowning at him. "Just hungry and tired is all."
"Then let's go eat," Chris replied, smiling slightly. "Then at least you won't be hungry and it'll cheer you up."
"To be honest, I am pretty tired. I should probably get home to Molly. She'll want to be filled in," Dominique said, still walking towards the domestic floos. "And my feet hurt."
"Ah, right. She'll want to know. I guess I'll see you later then," Chris said, sounding a bit disappointed. Dominique stopped and turned around, facing him. He paused, curious as to what she was doing.
"I suppose you can come with me and we can tell Molly together. And pick up something to eat on the way there," she said, mustering up a smile. Chris beamed.
"Sounds like a good plan. Lead the way," he said.
The closer they got to home, the happier and more relaxed Dominique felt. Even though they hadn't gotten much more in the way of answers, she felt a bit more hopeful. They had picked up a couple pizzas on the way, which Chris insisted on paying for. As they walked down the street towards Molly and Dominique's flat, the two fell into an easy conversation guessing about the Arrows and Falcon match that had gone on that day, wondering who had ended up winning. Both knew there was sure to be a party going on at the Woods' regardless. Either to celebrate the win or to attempt to cheer up the team in case of a loss.
"I suppose we would have heard by now if Daisy had set Hardwick's broom on fire or something," Chris said as Dominique pushed the door open. She laughed softly.
"Probably would have been all over the ministry," Dominique said. "I'm sure Molly can fill us in. She doesn't really like going to games, but she normally keeps the wireless going in the background whenever Daisy is playing."
"Oh! You're back!" Molly exclaimed as she walked out from the kitchen. "And you brought food and company."
"Figured we could both fill you in on our adventures," Dominique said as she walked over and plopped down on the sofa while Chris walked over and set the pizzas on the table.
"Good to see you, Molly. You lot hold down the fort while we were gone?" Chris asked as he walked over and sat in an armchair.
"Well, other than drowning in scrolls on Athens, I suppose we did," she said, walking back into the kitchen and then return with three beers. She passed them around the room.
"How was the match?" Dominique asked, watching Molly grab a slice of pizza and then sit on the sofa next to her. Her face lit up.
"Oh, you missed it!" she exclaimed. "It was a brilliant game." She took a bite of pizza, seeming to relish the greasy food.
"Did Daisy end up blowing up the stadium or Hardwick?" Dominique asked, smiling.
"We'll go over to the party later and she can tell you all about it, but first, tell me what did you find in Paris?" Molly asked after she had chewed and swallowed. "I'll admit, you're back much sooner than I was expecting."
"Well… we managed to track down the last place he worked and got an email address. But, apparently he's not in Paris anymore," Dominique said with a sigh. "We don't know where he is, but, we managed to email him before we left, so hopefully he'll respond and we'll hear something soon."
"Ah, that reminds me. You got an owl," Molly said, standing and walking over to a table. "Came in a few minutes ago. Didn't check who it was from, though." She grabbed an envelope and tossed it to Dominique.
Dominique flipped the envelope over and looked at the front. She suddenly sat up and froze.
"What is it?" Chris asked, sitting up as well. She looked over at him and grinned.
"He responded," she said, breathlessly. Her heart was pounding as she looked down at the small scribbled writing on the parchment.
"The professor?" Chris asked. Dominique nodded, still staring at it in awe.
"Blimey, open it!" Molly shouted, running over and sitting next to Dominique on the sofa, putting her pizza slice back down and wiping her hand on her trousers. Dominique took a deep breath and then ripped it open, pulling the parchment out. She read silently, her eyes widening.
"What does it say?" Chris nearly shouted, now sitting on the edge of the chair. Dominique shrieked with laughter and jumped up. She started dancing around the living room, shocking both Molly and Chris.
"He's here! In the U.K.! And he's agreed to meet us!" she shouted. Molly jumped up and started dancing around with her cousin as Chris watched with an amused look.
"We have to tell Daisy and everyone!" Molly said. "Right now!" Dominique stopped dancing and looked at her cousin.
"Brilliant idea. And I know where they'll all be."
Finally we get somewhere with the professor. I apologize for drawing it out. I won't lie, it was driving me crazy as well. But things will progress rather quickly from here out. Only 9 more chapters after this... I spent today doing more rewrites - I was having trouble with a couple chapters that I just didn't like. But now I think they are finally up to par and where they should be. All that's left writing-wise is one last section of the final chapter.
AleenaBean: John and Daisy needed a sweet moment to remind folks why they fell in love in the first place. I feel bad with stuff that's happened and is about to happen...
As always, thanks for reading, following and reviewing!