Harry Potter and the Dreamer Awakened (Part 2)

Harry Potter and the Dreamer Awakened (Part 2)

As summer arrived, Frisk was looking forward to getting out of school. Not that they didn't like it, Toriel really was a good teacher, but they had enjoyed the few weeks on the surface where they could spend time with all their friends, and missed that. Also they hoped exposing Asriel to that would help shake up his timidity that still seemed to linger. They hadn't broached the holiday in Britain idea initially because the dream had distracted them, and by the time they thought to mention it, Toriel and Asgore's "summits" about issues surrounding the monsters had brought up what Mettaton had been discovering: Humanity's seeming indifference to the monsters. This, combined with their questions about where human magic had gone, left both of them reluctant to leave the town. So it was going to be a summer holiday at home. Toriel suggested making their own contacts with other countries, but Asgore hadn't wanted to jeopardise their relationship with the Governor by going around him.

Asriel seemed none the worse for his dream, just a little tired the next day. He was reluctant to bring it up when Frisk asked and the conversation was terse, so Frisk dropped the matter. He must have been still thinking about a holiday somewhere, because for the last few weeks of school he seemed to work really hard at geography whenever Toriel brought it up. He was also paying attention whenever Asgore and Toriel had a summit. Initially he had been hopelessly lost as he had little frame of reference that wasn't devoid of emotional context, but as he had met his fellow monsters and got to understand them, as opposed to merely knowing them, that context allowed him to feel his way through what everyone was talking about. When Asgore reported that the Snowbunny's shop had been broken into and the till raided, Asriel had been the one to note that a couple of rougher kids from school liked hanging out nearby. A short investigation had unveiled airtight alibis for both of them and Asriel apologised profusely to everyone for two days, but his parents assured him it's fine to rule people out.

School finally broke up for summer, and it was just as Frisk pictured it. Helping Toriel bake whenever she wasn't tallying up supplies for September. More hikes around the countryside with Asgore. Playing games with their schoolmates. Spending the hotter days with their adult friends, who despite ten months on the surface still liked to stop and take a sunlit day in. Quite a few more movie nights, though the selection appeared to be somewhat tamer than before. Toriel had clearly had a word. Every now and then however Asriel would say he was going to have some time to himself. When Frisk pressed, he admitted that after so long alone, he was used to it, and the onrush of affection could be overwhelming. Frisk understood, and was actually a little surprised when Toriel would let him go about on his own when he wasn't just in their bedroom. However they later overheard a conversation with Asgore that she had asked Sans to keep an eye on him. Frisk wondered how Asriel would feel if he knew, but it wasn't their place to butt in. Sans trusted them, and they returned the favour.

It wasn't all smooth sailing. One day they had been taking turns climbing a tree in the park. It was Asriel's turn, and he had just reached one of the higher branches, when Jane jumped the queue and started climbing. This wouldn't have been a problem if she wasn't a lot faster than Asriel, and as she caught up with him her shaking the branch caused him to lose his balance. Frisk had reacted quickly and managed to catch him thanks to how light he was, but he had fallen through a previously unclimbable part and gotten quite a few cuts and scratches. That and the shock broke up the day's activities, and Asriel cried to go home immediately, leaving Monsterkid and Snowy to guide Jane down safely. Toriel hugged him tightly and healed his scrapes without bother. But since then he hadn't bothered to talk to Jane when they all met up. They'd still play with each other as part of the group, but Frisk watched him strive to never be in a one-on-one situation with her. They didn't know if it was anger or fear, but it didn't seem to abate over time.

And this seemed to have a knock on effect. Asriel had no trouble talking to humans when he was with friends or family, although he would normally need to be prompted, but according to Sans' reports that Frisk had overheard, Asriel had begun avoiding humans on his lone wanderings, even crossing the street to avoid confrontation. Not that he had been seeking them out before, his wanderings were to quiet parts of town to sit and think, but now they would never speak to them unless spoken to. Frisk shared Toriel's concern. Had the accident with Jane maybe made him think about that night with Chara? They fretted about what may happen if Asriel withdrew into himself.

And there were still the dreams.

None had been as visceral as the first, but every few days since school broke up Frisk woke to find Asriel muttering and twisting in bed, clutching his locket, though not flailing so fiercely that Frisk couldn't shake him awake. The contents of the dreams seemed to explain why he hadn't had another screaming fit. He was nearly always in a dark room, with a group of humans paying rapt attention as he said things he could never remember. The humans didn't look very friendly, and they put him on edge. Frisk ventured that maybe they were the villagers who had attacked him a hundred years ago, but he shook his head. They looked totally different. This was puzzling. Was Asriel imagining some sort of scenario to work through what had happened without directly thinking it? Frisk didn't know who to ask, and because Asriel seemed fine if a little tired in the mornings after this happened, it was hard to talk to Asgore or Toriel about it, like the two children were jumping at shadows.

And then, towards the end of July, Asriel did have another screaming fit. Frisk watched helplessly as he remained on his bed flailing wildly once again. Before too long the door crashed open as Asgore hurried in and, with surprising precision, scooped Asriel up without being struck once and held him tight. The screaming stopped. A couple of shuddering breaths, and then sobbing. Asgore moved at once, beckoning Frisk along to the kitchen so he could prepare some hot chocolate. Asriel clutched tight as his father supported him in one hand and a kettle in the other, heating it with his bare hand.

"It's alright, son." He whispered as he gently set Asriel on a chair next to Frisk, who promptly found their hand being squeezed very tight. "Do...do you wish to talk about it?"

Asriel's eyes darted as he twisted his ear.

"I." A swallow and a breath. "I was in the room again. And there was an old human l-lying on the floor."

Frisk perked up. "Was it the same one you saw at the castle?"

"No. He was smaller. And h-he was alive. I knew because he was sc-screaming. He was screaming and I was shouting at him and I just felt so angry and I think I...I was...hurting him..."

With their father busy with the hot chocolate, though all sound from the worktop had ceased for a moment, Frisk took the responsibility of hug-giver. Asriel duly rested his head on their shoulder. Before long, three soft taps means Asgore had delivered. He looked unusually stoic.

"I want to say," He began. ", that it was just a dream. That it was not real. That you never did that. That you never would. But I won't."

Asriel looked puzzled, and maybe even a little put out. So far his Mother or Frisk had been the first responder to his dreams, and their reaction was always one of unconditional support, so this was a new experience for both children. Frisk watched him scratch his ear. "Why won't you say that?"

"Because it doesn't change the fact that you dreamed it. You remember doing it. And therefore it doesn't matter if it is real or not. You are affected as though it was real."

"But Dad," said Frisk. ", isn't it better to realise it didn't happen? I mean, I remember you meeting the President of France in your pyjamas, but I don't get embarrassed by it." This solicited a watery chuckle.

"True." Replied Asgore with a smile. "But the reason I bring this up now is in case you dream of things that actually happened."

The air grew heavy for a moment. Asriel was halfway through sipping his chocolate, but put it down sharply on the table, spilling a little.

"Son, what you told me and your Mother when you returned to us was heartbreaking. When you weren't...well, thinking straight, you lost your way, and did things I know you would never do now. I have been preparing for you to dwell on them in one form or another, and dreams would be a likely candidate. It just so happens that this anticipation may serve us well tonight, even if it is not for the intended purposes."

Frisk was astonished. They hadn't thought Asgore to be one to think so deeply on this. Although, come to think of it, it had been Asgore who had tried to coax their own nightmares out of them before Toriel had. Asgore had picked up on signs that didn't require midnight screaming, which Frisk had never done.

"But D-dad." Squeaked Asriel, scratching a little. "How do you know about these type of dreams and whether they're real or-?"

"Because...because you don't have to be unable to feel to do terrible things."

The great shoulders slumped. The life seemed to slip from his eyes. Both children looked on. He blinked rapidly and shook his head.

"I dreamed of them frequently. Daily at first, every time, but as the years passed it lessened. At the time I had my duty to uphold, so I coped through sheer resolve. However that duty is now discharged." He looked at Asriel with warm pride.

"Do you still-?"

"Yes."

"When was the last-?"

"Please don't ask, I shan't have you worry on my behalf."

"But then, how do you deal with them?"

"Ultimately, with time. There are no quick or easy solutions. You must cultivate an understanding of yourself. I know the part of me that did what I did. I understand why. I regret it deeply, and have tried to make amends when I can. But I understand that this part of me still exists. And only with that understanding have I begun to build acceptance over what has happened. Accept every part of you, Asriel. The parts that have done bad things, or merely seen bad things. This robs them of their sting. Pretending they don't exist means they will insist on making themselves known. Only with understanding and acceptance can you recover."

Asriel looked confused. "So I have to accept that I had a dream where I hurt someone even though I didn't hurt them? I don't get it."

"Well," Mused Asgore. ", if that fails, you could remember that it wasn't real and didn't happen."

Asriel looked just as confused, but now he laughed. Frisk didn't join in.

"Why talk about all that stuff if you were just going to say what Mom would?"

"Well, I had been hoping to raise it with you regardless. I still think it could help in this case, but if you ever dwell on things you know happened, remember my words. And talk to someone about it if you can. Running away from it won't solve anything."

The conversation became more light hearted as Asriel showed off the beard and moustache he could bestow on himself with the chocolate. Surprisingly quickly Frisk was guiding him to bed. And sure enough in the morning he was fine, if a little more tired than usual. While they waited on Papyrus to come round so they could go to his house and look at his latest puzzles, Asgore gave them tea, looking pleased at his son's improved spirits.

"Remember, " He said, shortly before the door would be banged on loudly. ", the worst lies we tell are to ourselves. When it comes to yourself, you must not tell lies."

****

I must not tell lies.

The words blazed at Scrimgeour for a second time, and his face hardened. He promptly left the living room, causing quite the commotion on his way out of the house.

"What did he want?" Mr Weasley asked, looking around at Harry, Ron and Hermione, as Mrs Weasley came hurrying back to them.

"To give us what Dumbledore left us," said Harry. "They've only just released the contents of his will."

At the birthday party, everyone was suitably impressed and intrigued by what Dumbledore had chosen to bequeath to the three of them, though none of them could understand why he had done so. Fred suggested maybe the Tales of Beedle the Bard had a top secret spell in a code. Harry would have liked that to be the case, but a glance at Hermione's reaction to this suggestion betrayed her skepticism about this, and frankly he was inclined to agree. If a specific spell was crucial for defeating Voldemort, surely Dumbledore would have taught it, or at least made Harry aware of it. Why would he have been so cryptic about it? Then again, he was cryptic about a lot of things. Still, Ron was enjoying himself talking with his brothers about it, so Harry offered no opinion one way or the other. Out of concern for how unprepared he felt for what he was planning to do shortly, a thought had occurred to him that he raised with Mr Weasley.

"I know Rufus Scrimgeour has been more concerned with Dumbledore than the Death Eaters..."

"Now, Harry, I don't think-"

"...but what about wizards in other countries? Could the Ministry be contacting them for help?"

A world weary sigh as he rubbed his glasses. "Well of course. It was one of his first port of calls after his appointment. It's been the Department for International Magical Cooperation's top priority for a year now."

Harry felt like he was pushing his luck at asking Arthur to recount how badly the Ministry seemed to be failing these days, but he wanted to know.

"And?"

"Well, you have to understand. Fudge's refusal to acknowledge the problem for a year has not only been terrible for this country. The connections and gold of the likes of Lucius Malfoy don't stop at the coast. It's not only giants that You-Know-Who has been reaching out to. It's complicated, as different Ministries have different structures and priorities, but the upshot is those who hold stock in Blood Purity have a lot more sway these days than they might have a few years ago. Perhaps not enough for a takeover, but enough to stay their hand beyond platitudes or promises to send us a note if they sight him."

"The French Ministry wasn't too bad, Dad." Added Bill. "Fleur told me about it. Turns out Madame Maxine has quite a bit of influence."

"Yes, you're right." He nodded. "But still, the sort of uniting that is the best weapon against You-Know-Who is really hard to pull off while everybody is concerned about the rise of his influence and are busy looking out for themselves. Divide and conquer." He pursed his lips. "There was something else too."

Harry, Ron and Hermione leaned in. "What?"

"Well, that's the thing, we don't know. With everybody stuck between containing You-Know-Who's influence and maybe trying to do something about him, a few ministries have hinted at another crisis. It started a couple of months after Scrimgeour took office. We've had to write them off entirely with regards to seeking aid. Last I heard they said it was a threat to Wizarding Secrecy itself, but I'll be blighted if anybody here knows what it is. We're drowning in our own problems."

"That's all we need." Moaned Ron. "Imagine the Muggles getting involved."

"Well maybe they should, Ron." Said Hermione. "It's not like they'll be safe if Voldemort takes over." She studiously ignored the flinching.

"Yes, well," Replied Mr Weasley ", I'm not saying that's the worst idea. But if seeking help from our fellow Wizards for a direct magical threat has been hard enough, imagine trying to renegotiate the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy. That is settled law, and it would be a nightmare to bring it up again."

"Arthur dear, do you really need to bring all this up now? This is a party for Harry's Birthday." Molly Weasley looked at the group of moodkillers with a flash of steel.

The conversation broke up sharply under such an assault, even though it had been the guest of honour who wanted to pursue it. After a hasty chorus of 'Happy Birthday' and much gulping of cake, the party broke up. Harry packed his Moleskin pouch with his prized possessions, and soon found himself alone with Ron and Hermione. The conversation was naturally about their gifts from Dumbledore and how they might use them, and a moment of excitement as Harry had manipulated his snitch into revealing another mystery, but even under this slight bit of progress, the implications of Mr Weasley's view of international diplomacy made him feel really alone.

Even as they finally went to bed, Harry felt like nobody should be alone when facing such things. Even though he had already done this quite a lot.

****

As summer continued, Frisk began looking forward to school starting again. Not because they missed homework or anything like that. But their summer had been even more action packed than they intended, and even their determination had to yield to how tired they were. A bit of monotony might actually be a nice change. And for Asriel as well.

The problem was that the dreams seemed to pick up after their hot chocolate conference with Asgore. It was still every few days, but many of them seemed a lot more, well, active. There was never quite the full blown screaming of the earlier dreams, but interrupted sleep was a regular occurrence. And their contents weren't happy. Some was Asriel walking along paths in desperate search of something, while there were more dreams where he was full of anger and hurting various humans. True to Asgore's advice, Frisk always encouraged him to tell what the dreams had been about, but once discussed it was hard to bring a previous dream up again. This seemed to be Asriel's attempt to accept he had a bad dream, by putting it behind him. But Frisk wondered if it was just his rationalising for running away from it.

They had confided in Asgore about how regularly this was happening. They also suggested their idea that maybe they were Asriel's ways of thinking about Flowey without actually thinking about him. Asgore took the idea seriously, and had taken Asriel aside one evening where it was just the two of them. Asgore had reported to Frisk and Toriel later that he had tried to coax talk of Flowey out of Asriel, but he had become so agitated and clearly pained that Asgore couldn't bare it, and let it slide. He apologised for his cowardice, though Toriel felt he had nothing to apologise for, since she could not have even broached the subject. His understanding, so powerful that night, was deceived by the unsuspecting goodness of his heart.

And eventually, the dreams took their toll. Asriel was still a pretty engaged participant in whatever he was doing, but he started to be more easily distracted. His initial timidity, what they thought was a sign of him not really knowing anyone, still lingered, especially with humans. He still hadn't gotten over what Jane did. This wasn't an absolute state of affairs however. One time it was her turn to fall out of a tree, and with her heavier weight came off worse than Asriel had. To Frisk's surprise and delight, Asriel didn't hesitate to help her up and find his mother, who fixed her up in a jiffy. In spite of everything, it was still him. After the emergency however, he seemed to remember himself and didn't try to renew the connection any further.

He still had his lone wanderings, but Frisk wondered if they were good for him. If there was a time where they were together and doing nothing, Asriel seemed to get deeply lost in thought, and Frisk hadn't liked how he reacted when coaxed out of his thoughts. He was probably finally truly thinking about Flowey, and Frisk wanted to help him, but their own gentle prodding had been rebuffed as firmly as Asgore's. So Frisk, not liking these funks Asriel found himself in, fell into the same trap and resolved to keep Asriel busy. This is why their activities had picked up and were starting to wear Frisk out. Keeping Asriel busy and happy and reminding him of those who were there to support him was something of a fulltime job. A fun fulltime job, at least on most days, but maybe focusing on schoolwork for a while would be a more productive way to do this.

When Frisk talked to Toriel about these funks and the wanderings, she surprised him by revealing Sans' surveillance. No doubt she had guessed they had figured it out. She then surprised them further by revealing she had ended them. In the months, his reports had been nothing but quiet walks, sitting in soothing parts of town, and even talking to humans in spite of himself. There were enough monsters in town now who knew him that having an appointed bodyguard/chaperone was excessive. Frisk had reservations, but Toriel insisted that you had to give people room to figure some things out. This was something she admitted she wasn't good at herself.

And it wasn't like Asriel was miserable. The dreams and difficulty sleeping were no fun for anyone, but when you coaxed him just right he was still the kind and surprisingly excitable boy his parents knew. He just had more baggage. More than most realised. Frisk wondered if maybe in their previous attempts to save him, they had projected just a little. They had long ago learned that none of their friends were perfect, and surely the same applied to Asriel, even if his misdeeds technically never happened. Now that they were facing evidence of this for the first time, they immediately think something's wrong? They kinda felt bad for fretting about it.

This timidity was still a problem no matter what you thought however. Another shop had been broken into and stolen from, and this time Asriel remained fastidiously silent as his Father discussed it with the owner. He didn't want to accuse anyone again unless he was completely sure who it was. A good day playing could suppress this, but a night's sleep, interrupted or not, would reset it.

Asriel's silence hadn't seemed to help. A couple of days later in the park, their group of friends were playing tag, when someone shouted.

"Hey, you!"

It was the two kids Asriel had inadvertently accused of breaking into Snowbunny's shop, a human and a bear monster. Asgore had taken his thoughts in strictest confidence, but it seems word got around.

"We heard about that other shop, and we wanna set things straight. We never did this one either! You can ask our parents."

"Nobody's accusing you, Lance." Called back Jane.

"Shut up! We were talking to the wannabe prince."

Frisk saw Asriel freeze at these words, but to everyone's surprise, Lance walked right past him and instead rested an accusatory finger on Frisk's shoulder.

"You think just because your Dad's the King you can accuse whoever you like? There are rules in Ebott you know, you can't just take somebody's say so!"

Frisk wasn't feeling particularly threatened. Sparring with Undyne will do that for you. "I never said you or Ursk broke into that shop, and I dunno who-"

"Liar!" Yelled Ursk, now joining his friend. "I saw you twitch there. You must have done it. You were mad we teased you about your dumb sweater!"

They had actually been annoyed about that. Papyrus worked hard on the COOL HUMAN sweater as a present. Still, probably best to take the heat for this than risk them turning on Asriel. "Well even if I did say it back then, I'm sorry you went through that trouble. I know you didn't do it, and I haven't said anything today."

"And it's gonna stay that way if you-"

"Come on guys." Monsterkid stepped up, equally unintimidated. "Frisk said they haven't said anything."

"Butt out of this!" Lance gave him a shove. This normally would topple someone over, but Monsterkid was now adept at using his tail as a third leg or counterweight to prevent this. Tripping without someone else being involved had gotten boring. Ursk decided to solve the problem directly and, with a sweeping kick, cleared his tail from the ground. Now he fell. They laughed.

"That's just a taste if you go round spreading stories! Come on." They ran off.

As soon as they were clear, Frisk noticed a white blur, Asriel was now by Monsterkid's side helping him up. He was trembling, and Frisk knew he was on the verge of apologising.

"Thanks, As. Just a little dirty. My mom's gonna have to wash these."

Bob Junior offered to buy everyone spider donuts, and that did cheer everyone up, though Asriel still looked withdrawn. Frisk opted to cut the day short after making sure Monsterkid got home safely.

****

"I am still surprised a monster would bully another monster." Said Toriel. "It sounds like you were very brave, my child."

"On the bright side Mom, if monsters and humans can be bullies together, it's a sign we can definitely live together."

She smiled. "I suppose there is something in that. And Asriel, I am pleased you did not hesitate to help someone in need. That has always been you at your best. Why, I remember when...Chara..."

The praise ran out of steam. Mother and Son looked at each other, full of understanding. Frisk understood too, possibly better than either.

"But Mom." Said Asriel. "He only got picked on because I made a mistake and accused them of stealing!"

"Do not think that way. You noticed something, and we ruled it out. That is normal when investigating anything. Perhaps if Lance and Ursk were not so unpleasant to their fellow children they would not feel so uncomfortable when subjected to scrutiny."

Dinner was a subdued meal that night. Asriel was still withdrawn, though he mercifully responded to Frisk talking about their plans tomorrow. Plans that had to be modified by Toriel reminding them she hoped to prepare their school supplies tomorrow, so there was plenty of time to get replacements. Despite the quiet conclusion to the day, it had been eventful enough to get Frisk to sleep pretty quickly.

Now it was their turn for an odd dream.

It was a black void. Frisk looked around. There was no wall, no ceiling, they weren't even standing on anything. They brought their hand up to their face, but saw nothing. This blackness was absolute. They weren't even sure they had hands, it was so dark. The only evidence of anything existing was the sound of a howling wind. That and a voice which felt like their own thoughts, but was also distinct. And familiar.

You know...

"I know what?"

There is a shadow over him.

"...Asriel?"

...Yes.

"I can't help him deal with Flowey until he-"

It isn't Flowey.

"What?"

He hasn't even begun. It won't let him.

"Begun to what? What won't?"

It gives him a dream. But the price will be too high.

"...What can I do?"

Help him wake up. For me.

"Wait, is that y-"

Frisk felt themselves being shaken. Their eyes jerked open and stared at green ones.

"Wow, it's not often I get to wake you!" Said Asriel, smiling. He mistook Frisk's vague unease for still waking up. "Mom says breakfast is ready!"

The vague unease was all that lingered by the time Frisk entered the kitchen. And Asriel's enthusiasm erased even this.

The morning was pretty pleasant. Toriel took the children to the shops to get new schoolbags, especially one for Asriel, who had used a spare one of Frisk's since he had returned. Then they went round to Grillby's for lunch, where Sans happened to be. Frisk was pleased that while Toriel and Sans got the most out of lunch, at least in laughter, Asriel wasn't nearly as nervous as when they had first taken him to meet Sans. It was a relief he could get over something at least.

On their way home, they saw Lance and Ursk. Toriel had half a mind to confront them for the previous day's encounter, before she noticed Lance was limping. And they were both covered in scrapes and cuts.

"Children, what has happened?"

Ursk knew what tone to take with the Queen. "We were riding our bikes, and Lance's front wheel fell off and he crashed. And then I crashed into him too.

"Oh dear!" Said Toriel with genuine concern. Without hesitation she rested her hands on them and healed their injuries.

"Th-thank you."

"Are your bicycles alright?"

"I don't think so. Crashing into them seemed to twist the frames."

"That is unfortunate." Frisk sensed she might still have wanted to bring up yesterday, but ultimately decided they had been punished enough. Asriel looked on and unmistakably felt sorry for them too. That's what Frisk liked about him.

****

"Perhaps just one more, Master Harry, for luck?"

Ron laughed.

"We need him conscious, Kreacher, but if he needs persuading you can do the honours." said Harry.

"Thank you very much, Master."

The four returned to looking down at the man in the chair, the stink of tobacco irritating their noses.

"When you stripped this house of all the valuables you could find, you took a bunch of stuff from the kitchen cupboard. There was a locket there. What did you do with it?"

"Why?" Asked Mundungus. "Is it valuable?"

"You've still got it!" Cried Hermione.

"No, he hasn't." Said Ron shrewdly. "He's wondering whether he could have gotten more for it."

"More? That wouldn't 've been effin' difficult. Bloody lost the effin' thing, didn't I?"

The anticipation Harry had felt towards getting a solid answer was swirling away into horror.

"You, you lost it? How? Where?"

"Bloody Ebott."

Nobody had expected this answer.

"Ebott? The country?" Ron prodded. "What the hell were you doing there?"

"Let me get me pipe an' I'll tell you."

Harry glanced over at Kreacher, who clearly did not think much of this proposal. To prevent an unjustified assault, he raised a halting hand at Kreacher, and nodded at Mundungus Fletcher. In spite of being before the most wanted wizard in the country, he actually relaxed his posture a little as he extracted his pipe and begun to puff, without needing a light.

"Right. First thing is, when I got back from 'ere, I 'ad to take stock of what I 'ad, em, 'acquired'. Check for curses 'n' stuff like that. 'course, you Order lot had already cleared out the worst of it, so it didn't take long. Anyway, there was a few old books in the private study, wasn't there? Thought a collector might give a few Galleons for 'em. Fat chance, the books were preserved letters and junk of the Black family goin' back a few centuries. Buncha poncy gits would think that was worth keepin', wouldn't they?"

"But you found something interesting there, didn't you?" Guessed Harry.

"Hah! You was always a sharp one, Potter. Anyway, there was a letter addressed to one Mister Commodus Black a few 'undred years ago. I didn't give a monkey's about what it said, but there was an address. An 'ouse in Ebott."

"And why would that interest someone like you?" Asked Ron.

"Come on, lad! You know about the mystery of Ebott? Where'd all the wizards go and stuff?" They nodded. "Well, I gots to thinkin', there was a wizarding house that maybe nobody's been to in living mem'ry. Maybe it 'ad answers."

"Answers that someone might pay a pretty penny for. Or just trinkets that someone might pay an even prettier penny for." Barbed Hermione. "It would probably make what you got for cleaning out Grimmauld Place look like a pittance."

"That's a good girl, you get it!" Agreed Mundungus. "So I got to figurin', it's a nice time of year. Maybe time for a little holiday."

"Why would you take the locket with you?"

"Well..." He actually looked a little unsure. "...I 'ad a good feelin' about that one. Figured the right buyer would hand me an effin' huge sack of galleons for it. So I didn't wanna risk it bein' nicked."

Harry pondered this. From what he recalled of the diary and Ginny, he wasn't completely sure this rationalisation was entirely of Mundungus Fletcher's doing.

"So off I go. Got a portkey to France an' enjoyed the seaside air as I travelled along the coast. Ebott's a tiny place, up on a plateau in the Alps, sandwiched between France 'n' Italy 'n' Switzerland. More of a principality than anythin'. A weird thing is they all speak English. Buggered if I know 'ow that happened."

"Why didn't you go directly to Ebott?"

"What, an' give the game away? 'Excuse me mistress Ministry Witch, may I please have a portkey to somewhere Wizards 'ave 'ad no reason to travel to for three 'undred years?' An' then there's the other mystery about it."

"What mystery?"

"It's...it's like your school, innit? You can't apparate to Ebott. You just fall on your effin' arse if you try. Gotta go as a muggle for the final step."

Mundungus was actually enjoying telling this story. His audience was certainly paying rapt attention.

"Right. So I finally make it. Head over to the remains of an' old town. The muggle buildings were all stumps by the road. But there was one building not by muggles, and it looked much better. I got my cursebreakin' kit-"

"-Your crowbar-"

"-an' my magical artifact transportation equipment-"

"-a large sack-"

"-an' that's when an effin' car turns up with flashin' lights. One of them bloody auror-types."

"A policeman?"

"Yeah, them ones. An' they was suspicious because I looked like I was goin' to break into somewhere, even though they couldn't see anything worth breakin' into. Well I smoothed things over an' they left, but I was feelin' more cautious now. I figured it's best to scout the place before I go and get locked up by muggles. It was pretty late in the day though, and I didn't wanna spring for an 'otel, so I thought I'd look for a cave to have a kip in an' try the next day. An' so I walk round the big Mountain. Mount Ebott, they call it. There was some caves higher up, but I'm not athletic enough for that." He took a long draught of his pipe. "Luckily for my delicate lungs, there was a cave round the opposite side of the mountain only a little ways off the path. As caves go, it was pretty comfy. It also 'ad a mystery of its own."

"What do you mean?"

"There was an' ole at the back. Seemed to lead down to a whole system of caves an' junk. But there was something shimmering just beyond the rim. It was definitely magical. I tried castin' a few spells on it, but it didn't budge. I thought it might be worth a finder's fee at least. First thing's first however. I needed me shut eye. So I take off me coat and the locket and conjure a few pillows an' I doze off. An' that's when the earthquake hit."

"An earthquake?"

"That's what I said. There was fallin' rocks an' a lot of shakin' an' it woke me up, and I look over at the hole an all sorts of light is comin' out of it and then there was a loud CRACK sound, an' all the light was gone. The place was still shakin', an' I didn't wanna get buried when I couldn't apparate, so I ran outside. But I forgot the bleedin' locket! I was able to look back in and see it glitter just as it shook over the edge! Bah, probably the best find I 'ad in years and I lose it!"

Harry felt somewhat dejected. "Why didn't you try and get it back with a summoning charm or something?"

"After that light show? Nah, it's above me pay grade to mess with anythin' like that."

"When do you reckon you were there?" Asked Ron. "How long ago was it?"

"Oh, it were about September last."

Almost a year. The locket could still be down there, beyond magic they had no understanding of. Or anyone could have taken it. The mere effort of attempting to find it incurred terrible risks. But still. It was a solid fact in a quest that was languishing for the lack of them.

"We have to go there. We have to find it."

To his mild surprise. Ron and Hermione nodded without objection.

"'ere, if you wanna sell it, can I get a finder's fee?"

A tiny patter of feet and a metallic clang, and Mundungus was clutching his shin in pain.