(HBP) CHAPTER SIX: Paris, Part One

Despite Ellie's repeated pleas that they get a little sightseeing done prior to their meeting with Matis Dupont, Sirius and Fred both insisted that she see him first.

"Remember the part where sweet Merida basically told us you could die at any moment if you don't go and see this bloke?" Fred asked her as they headed for the fireplace at St. Mungo's. "Because it sort of stuck with me."

"Dupont is expecting us, anyway," said Sirius. "Seems pretty eager to meet you, Ellie."

Ellie wasn't sure that was a good thing, but she smiled grimly as she grabbed a fistful of the Floo powder next to the fireplace and stepped into the flames.

"Hang on, hang on," said Fred as he grabbed his own fistful and stepped into the fire next to her. "Not taking any chances here."

She rolled her eyes, but, of course, it was only for show; she was touched by the gesture. She accepted his free hand with hers as they both announced, "French Ministry of Magic, Paris, France!" and cast their powder into the flames.

The atrium of the French Ministry was much airier and lighter than the British one, with big, domed, floor-to-ceiling windows. As soon as they arrived, an official bustled over to greet them and ask their purpose.

"Parlez-vous anglais?" Sirius asked the woman in surprisingly decent French.

She blinked at him for several seconds, then turned from him to Ellie, then to Fred, as if slowly piecing together who they were.

"Full pardon," Sirius said impatiently as he pulled the Ministry pardon out of his coat pocket and handed it to the woman. "Pardon complet. Now, Matis Dupont is expecting us. Can you help us locate him?"

The woman scanned the document for several seconds, then said in a thick, French accent, "Can you wait here for just a moment, s'il vous plait?"

Ellie glanced nervously at Fred and Sirius as the woman bounded off toward one of the back rooms off the atrium—still holding Sirius' pardon.

"It'll be fine," Sirius assured her. "The story broke in the papers this morning. It's common knowledge by now."

Ellie had seen the papers, and knew he was right. But she still had an uneasy feeling about this.

The woman didn't return for almost fifteen minutes. When she did, she wasn't alone.

"Pardonne-moi, lady and gentlemen," the new man said with a sweeping bow as he handed Sirius' pardon back to him. "Might I inquire about the nature of your visit today?"

"We're here to see Matis Dupont," Sirius said for the second time. "He's expecting us."

"Forgive me, monsieur, but we have no record of such a meeting on our books. In accordance with Chapter 77 of the International Magical Bylaws, European Edition, it clearly states that you must file ahead of time for—"

"Sir," Fred interrupted. "Couldn't you just… check with Matis Dupont?"

The man glanced at the woman next to him, looking hesitant. "We certainly can, monsieur, but first, if you could just elaborate a bit on the nature of your business with Monsieur Dupont—"

"She's dying!" Sirius shouted—so suddenly and emphatically that everyone within a twenty-foot radius spun whirled around to look at him. "The Perelli charm that I cast on her as a baby, intended to protect her, is killing her, and Monsieur Dupont appears to be the only person in all of the seven continents who can help her. So unless you would like to join me in being responsible for this child's death, you will please escort us to Monsieur Dupont as soon as possible and forget all about the fact that I spent twelve years in Azkaban for crimes that I did not—I assure you—commit."

For several seconds, no one uttered a single word. It seemed that everyone in the entire atrium had frozen in their tracks.

Then a voice from behind them, cool and calm, said, "Detendez-vous, my friends. Relax! These are indeed my guests, and I vouch for them."

Ellie turned toward the source of the voice—who, of course, could only be Matis Dupont. He was unmistakably cool, handsome, and French—well over six feet tall, well-dressed, with long, wavy hair that he kept tied back. He reminded her a little of Bill, Fred's cool older brother.

Easy, tiger, grumbled Fred in her head. I think you're starting to drool.

The man who had been giving them a hard time sidled up to Matis at that, murmuring something to him in hushed French that Ellie couldn't make out. After several seconds of arguing, the first man stormed off, and Matis bounded cheerfully back over to them.

"Matis Dupont, at your service," he said in much better English than either of the other two had displayed. He gestured for them to follow him, then continued, "Sorry about my overzealous associates. Some people take their jobs way too seriously."

Ellie chuckled amiably at that, but Fred and Sirius looked less amused. "Hopefully you take your job at least a little seriously," Sirius said darkly, "seeing as my daughter's life depends on it."

They had nearly reached the lift by then, but Matis stopped dead in his tracks, turning to give Sirius his full attention.

"The Perelli charm," he told Sirius slowly, "is different."

Sirius glanced at Ellie, who, in turn, glanced at Fred. None of them seemed sure whether this man was their saviour or completely mental.

"I wrote my thesis on it," Matis continued cheerfully as he resumed walking, leading them into the elevator and pressing the button for the negative-fifth floor. "Spent most of my life studying it. When I found out two years ago that there was a young witch out there who had a successful case…" He clucked his tongue. "I knew I had to meet you."

"But… you never reached out," Ellie said, frowning. "Surely it wouldn't have been that hard to find me, would it? You knew I went to Hogwarts?"

"Indeed. I also knew that you were admitted to St. Mungo's following overuse of your shield. Reckoned it would only be a matter of time before it got bad enough that you'd seek me out—and that, when you did, you'd be desperate."

Fred stiffened as the doors to their floor opened. Matis and the others stepped out right away, but Fred waited so long, the doors nearly closed on him.

"What do you want from her?" he asked as Matis lead them through the main lobby of the negative-fifth floor and toward a back hallway. "Why wait until she was 'desperate'?"

"Don't sound so alarmed, mon ami," Matis said jovially. "I fully intend to heal the lovely mademoiselle until she is as good as new. In fact, I want nothing from her at all. It is her father I have questions for."

Suddenly, it made sense why Matis had needed them to be desperate before coming to him. He wanted to speak with Sirius—who, at the time, had been an escaped convict.

He wanted to learn how to cast a Perelli charm.

"Do you have a child, Mr. Dupont?" Sirius asked him, seeming to draw the same conclusions as Ellie.

Matis chuckled. "Certainly not, and I have no intentions of having one. The rule about the charm being cast by a parent onto an infant is… outdated."

Ellie's heart started to pound. He wanted to cast the charm on himself?

"Those vambraces," Matis said, nodding to Ellie's wrists. "Mademoiselle Fowler created them?"

Ellie nodded wordlessly.

"They work as batteries, no? Charge up magical energy to deploy when your shield is activated?"

This time, she didn't nod—was afraid to nod. Was afraid of what this man might be capable of.

"How about you heal her first, and we answer your questions later?" Fred asked Matis hotly.

Matis shrugged a shoulder. "Certainly—the order of events is of no consequence to me. I will require Monsieur Black to shake on it, though. An Unbreakable Vow ought to do the trick."

Sirius didn't hesitate. "Ready when you are, mate."

"Hold on a second," Ellie said, biting her lip. "Mr. Dupont… assuming the information my father gives you is enough for you to cast the Perelli charm on yourself... what, exactly, do you plan to do with that kind of power?"

"Ah—but it isn't really power, is it?" Matis asked her. "Protection, certainly, but not the power to cause harm. So why concern yourself with my intentions?"

"Because you could sell yourself as a shield to the highest bidder," said Fred. "And that bidder could be someone intending to cause a lot of harm."

"Or," added Ellie, "you could sell the instructions to the highest bidder."

"Indeed—I could." Matis looked unbothered by both suggestions. "I suppose that is a chance you must be willing to take."

"Like I said," said Sirius stiffly. "Ready when you are."

"Dad," Ellie said, shaking her head. "I'm really not sure about this."

"When you heal her," Fred said to Matis. "Is it a permanent cure?"

"A cure requires there to be an ailment. Mademoiselle Black has no ailment. Her body has simply been drained of too much magic—a vacuum which Mademoiselle Fowler has already unplugged, so to speak. All that remains for me to do is to spark regeneration around the cells that have been wounded. Think of it as a magical version of stem cell therapy."

"So… it is permanent, then?" asked Fred impatiently.

"It will put an end to her existing pain and symptoms. As long as she wears the vambraces, I see no reason for her to experience further pain or symptoms. Think of it as... a reset button. A do-over."

Fred nodded, seeming satisfied. "Then I'm in, too."

"Fred!" Ellie shrieked. "Are you insane? What if he's in league with Aleks? What if he's in league with Voldemort?"

Matis chuckled. "I assure you, I am not. I prefer not to bore myself with the sordid affairs of Britain's ever-regenerating villains."

But it wasn't enough for Ellie. Could she really be expected to stomach allowing someone to heal her who could easily turn around and commit atrocities using the information they had given him?

"We still have the upper hand," she told Sirius. "He's been studying the Perelli charm for most of his life, and he still hasn't figured out what you did when you cast it on me. We can demand whatever we want."

"I wouldn't go quite that far," said Matis easily. "But there is always room for further negotiation."

"If he shakes on your Unbreakable Vow," Ellie told him, "then you shake on his."

"I'm listening."

Ellie glanced at Fred, racking her brain for exactly what conditions might make this a remotely safe deal for the rest of the world.

"You'll only use it for yourself," said Fred. "You won't share or sell the formula you come up with to anyone."

"Fine, fine," Matis said with a casual wave of his hand. "I care little for money, and less for the thought of others sharing my abilities."

That was good, right?

"And you won't get involved with Lord Voldemort or his Death Eater followers," added Sirius.

Another wave of his hand. "As I said before, such villains bore me. I am willing to shake on these demands, but no more."

Ellie still wasn't remotely convinced this was a good idea. Sure, their shaking on these terms meant Matis would die before getting involved with Voldemort, but what about other Dark wizards down the line? Did France have their own Dark Lord? Were they putting the entire nation in peril?

She was starting to think the French Ministry official who had tried to stop them had the right idea.

"You have a deal," Sirius said, extending a hand and nodding to Fred. "Fred—the honors, if you please."

And with that, two Unbreakable Vows were made—and Ellie was finally freed from her pain.

Well, she didn't exactly have many other options... but will this come back to bite them in the ass somehow, or did they play it safe enough? We still have a "Paris, Part Two" in our future, so tune back in for that and don't forget to review and follow to show your support!