Chapter 30: Homecoming
Starfox5
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Chapter 30: Homecoming
'Even though the wizarding nations originally covered the same territory as the muggle nations from which they separated in 1692, the three centuries since that date have seen a great deal of change - and not merely because of the incessant wars waged by the muggles on a scale almost incomprehensible to the average wizard. No, conflicts in the magical world also resulted in changed borders. The nations of the New World seceding from their mother countries, the countless wizarding enclaves founded in North America, of which many perished just as quickly as they appeared, and the wars of independence waged against the Ottoman Empire by many of its client states and tribes within its former borders are just a few of the more famous examples.
However, not all borders changed because of violent conflicts. The Magical Kingdom of Mysore doubled its territory thanks to marriages with the heirs of lesser states in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, although its borders were also expanded by military conquest. And the shamans of North America have formed such a close defensive alliance that they might very well be one nation, despite the continuing raiding between individual tribes.
But, even with magic's continuous advancement, as well as every magical countries having been freed from the shackles of muggle involvement, natural borders continue to be a factor. Despite improvements in magical travel, long distances, especially over an ocean, still limit a country's ability to take and maintain control of an area - which is, in the age of the Statue of Secrecy, a crucial requirement for every magical government, lest the ICW step in and force a change of administration or borders to rectify the situation. Often, the mere threat of such action is enough to push the different sides in a conflict into mediation, such as Albus Dumbledore's skilful handling of the crisis between Magical Aden and the Naga Nation over the latter's outpost in the Red Sea.'
- Excerpt from 'Politics and Portkeys - A Look at International Relations in the Wizarding World' by Lily Maven, London, 2000
Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico Trench, December 18th, 2001
Ron Weasley had wanted to close his eyes when he saw Mallory's ghost slowly being dragged into the skull but had watched until the end despite the pitifulness of the sight. The man had been a traitor, a blood mage and a blackmailer, Ron reminded himself. Mallory had brought this upon himself, as far as Ron was concerned, by forcing their hand with his threats and sly hints.
Still, to be bound for eternity in a skull which would be dropped into a mud volcano under the sea? Although he was just a ghost, not a soul. Just an imprint, a weak copy, of a real human. Even though he sounded and acted like the real Mallory.
"Good riddance!" Ari said. He glanced at her and saw that she was baring her teeth in a wide grin. It made her look fierce, hinting at her other form, and he smiled despite the circumstances - he knew she was still affected by the obscene amount of blood magic that had been done in the room.
So he pulled her into a hug. "It's over now," he told her. "Kraft, Kohlmeier and Mallory are all gone. Let's leave this place."
"The temple? Or the cavern?"
"First one, then the other." There was no reason to linger much longer. They had recovered Kohlmeier's remains, torn robes and wand, as well as those of Mallory and Kraft, but had yet to check them for curses and other traps so they could search them for the relics stolen from the Sultan's Palace.
"There are still the Inferi left," she pointed out as he mounted his broom. "We need to destroy them."
That was another reason to leave the cavern. "Fire doesn't hurt them, and most curses are barely more effective," he replied. "We would probably need a week to to destroy them all and might damage a lot of the cavern in the process."
"Leaving them will make exploring the place very dangerous," she retorted.
"Which isn't an entirely bad thing, I think," he said. "It'll keep the numbers of claim jumpers and grave robbers down."
He was joking - mostly - but she nodded. "That's right. And Dumbledore might have an easy solution for dealing with them."
"Perhaps." Ari was quite in awe of the Headmaster, but Dumbledore had cowed the houngans of Jamaica practically by himself, so it wasn't improbable that he'd be prepared for such a threat. "Come on, let's get back to the Range Rover," he said, waving at her.
She nodded and joined him on the broom.
"We're going back to the Rover!" he yelled to Harry and Hermione so he'd be heard over the growling from the zombies below.
"Good idea," Harry yelled back. "We'll be there in a minute."
Ron nodded and guided the broom to the gates, keeping an eye out for climbing Inferi. You couldn't underestimate the buggers - they were far smarter than the usual zombies.
Fortunately, they weren't smart enough to use tools, though - or to throw things. And the outer walls of the temple were too smooth for them to climb. Ron still checked with a quick detection spell if any Inferi were on the roof before passing through the temple gates - to die now, in their moment of triumph…
He shook his head as he pulled up next to the Land Rover floating high above the streets. Harry and his movies. A flick of his wand unlocked the enchanted door, and he flew into the room behind it, which served as an entrance hall. The door closing behind them cut off the racket from the Inferi, which was a relief.
Ari jumped off the broom, stretching. "How much longer will we stay?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.
"That depends on Harry and Hermione. They'll need to rest after the ritual," he replied, shrinking and storing the broom. They might want to add a broom locker next to the door, in case they had to bail out in a hurry and had no brooms on them. He made a mental note. "And even though we've got a zombie horde on the streets wanting to devour us, I think we're actually safer here than on the surface, where bounty hunters might find us." It wasn't very likely, but the yacht they had rented would have been found by now, and someone might put two and two together. "And we need to recover the sphere before we leave." It wouldn't do to let whoever the ICW sent with Dumbledore to verify their claims stumble upon proof of their slightly questionable acquisition of a muggle artefact.
"Ah." Ari grinned and stepped closer to him. "So we have a little more time to celebrate."
He returned her smile as he wrapped his arms around her. "Yes, we do," he whispered into her ear as she purred and rested her chin on his shoulder, even though she had to stand on her tiptoes to do so.
She wasn't bothered by what they had done. She wasn't putting up a front. She was honest in what she wanted - which was him.
And he wanted her.
"I love you," he whispered, then bit her ear - lightly.
She growled in response and started to drag him towards their room.
And then there was no more time to fret about the future or ponder the past.
Hermione Granger was tired. Not quite exhausted, but if she had to work any more magic, she'd need a Pepper-Up Potion first, or she'd risk making mistakes. But to rest inside the cavern, with a horde of Inferi so close… She remembered how Kraft and Kohlmeier had died, both having been devoured, and shuddered. They still had to permanently disable the Wings of Justice. The spells used to freeze them wouldn't last forever, even though they had recast them a few times already.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked. "You had to bind him - you know what he would have done otherwise. What he wanted us to do for him."
She smiled at him. "I know. It's not that." Though that she had had to work more blood magic bothered her more than she wanted to admit. Or rather, that it had been so easy bothered her. She sighed, and he stepped closer, his arms wrapping her in an embrace. She put one hand on his, leaning her cheek against his arm. "It has just been a rather stressful day." So much blood, death and betrayal.
"But it's over now," he said. "We won."
"We won, but it's not over. There's the Ottoman bounty to deal with. The ICW to inform. Our families to contact…"
"Shhh." He kissed her neck. "We'll be fine. We are fine now."
She didn't think they were fine - she knew she wasn't fine. Not yet.
But she would be, she knew. Sighing once more, but contentedly this time, she leaned into Harry, enjoying his closeness, the warmth of his body, for a long moment.
They had survived. They were alright. They had discovered Atlantis.
Yes, she - they - would be fine.
She still needed to rest, though. And so did Harry. Fortunately, their room in the Range Rover had a very comfortable bed.
Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico Trench, December 19th, 2001
Hermione Granger was torn when she sat down for breakfast at the kitchen table in their Range Rover. On the one hand, they had planned for a short rest yesterday before resuming work - not to spend the entire night. She didn't like it when things didn't go as planned for completely avoidable reasons. On the other hand, the reason they had spent the night in the bedroom had most certainly been very enjoyable, and she couldn't help smiling as she flicked her wand and started to prepare breakfast.
By the time Harry arrived, tea and toast were ready. "The eggs, bacon and sausages will take another minute or two," she told him as she was buttering her toast.
Harry bent down to kiss her, then sat down next to her. "Thanks."
Ari was next, nostrils flaring as she eyed the frying meat. "Good morning," she said, as though it were an afterthought, without taking her eyes off the meat.
"Morning, everyone." Ron entered, yawning, and sat down to fill his cup. "Thanks for making breakfast, Hermione."
"Wait!" Hermione snapped when Ari made to grab the pans. A quick Doubling Charm later, there was enough food for the witch and the rest of their group. Hermione still hadn't determined how exactly Ari's body handled food when she changed, but the other witch certainly ate more, and more meat, than herself.
Ari growled a little, then grabbed her portion of the meal while Hermione floated the other pans over to Harry and Ron. She wanted to talk about the tasks they had to accomplish but refrained from doing so while everyone was eating.
They weren't pressed for time, after all. Not any more. Even though she really wanted to start planning right away.
Half an hour later, they were floating above the port area, preparing to recover the sphere. "It doesn't look like there are any Inferi in the water," Harry reported. "We can see the bottom."
"They might jump in, though, once we approach the sphere," Ron commented, pointing at the vessel floating in the water.
Indeed, the Inferi were already gathering at the pier. "Inferi usually cannot swim," Hermione replied. "But Kohlmeier might have granted that ability to his creations as well." He had been a very competent wizard, after all. A dark wizard, a blood mage and a war criminal - but a very skilled wizard.
"Let's test it. Blow some into the water," Ari said.
"Alright," Harry replied. He swished his wand, and a Blasting Curse hit the middle of the closest pack of zombies.
Two of them landed in the water and sank to the bottom. They were still moving, but sluggishly. And they looked disoriented - though that might be her own bias speaking, Hermione reminded herself.
"So, they can't swim," Ari said, "but they can walk on the seabed."
"Recovering the sphere should be safe enough, then," Ron chimed in. "Apart from all the traps and curses Kohlmeier will have left inside." If there were just half as many as the number of the curses on the man's robes and pockets, it would take them a while.
"Which might include Inferi," Hermione pointed out. "We don't know if he brought some with him when he arrived, or if he managed to lure some of them into the sphere when he prepared his trap." She didn't think the man had done so, nor had he had much time for elaborate traps after he had hid from them, but as a Curse-Breaker, you had to expect the worst every time you worked.
So they approached - on brooms - very slowly and carefully. There were no curses, traps or ambushes in the water - at least none that Harry's conjured sea snakes or their detection spells could discover. But the sphere itself had a few curses on it - curses that she hadn't seen before, but which she recognised as blood curses.
"Dealing with them will take a while," she told the others.
"We can start on the jinxes on the cavern, then," Harry replied. "Ari can keep an eye out for Inferi."
Ari nodded, though she didn't seem too happy about it, Hermione noted. But this wasn't the time to ask if anything was bothering the other witch. She took a deep breath, shifted on the floating platform she had conjured, and started dismantling the curses Kohlmeier had left.
Harry Potter was the first to enter the sphere, followed by Ron and Ari. Hermione had done an admirable job on the curses, but there might be Inferi lying in ambush inside, and Harry and Ron were quicker on the draw than she was, and Ari's nose was hard to fool. Not to mention that she could literally jump out of the sphere in a second as a jaguar.
But there were no Inferi inside. Not much else, either - Kohlmeier's wands must have looted the sphere upon arrival. Or vanished everything. Fortunately, Harry and his friends hadn't left anything irreplaceable there. Still… "That was rather petty," he commented, looking at where the seats on the bridge had been.
"Or greedy - souvenirs from this expedition will fetch a nice price," Ron joked. "But at least it means checking for curses will be easier. Less clutter to go through."
He had a point - although Harry had yet to detect any curses within the sphere. Nor poison gas or other traps. Of course, Kohlmeier wouldn't have had much time to spend on spell-casting. Still, they would have to search the entire vessel very carefully. Which would take more time.
But as long as the jinxes remained, no one else could enter the cavern - just in case Kohlmeier had sent a Storm Wizard back to where he had come from before sealing the cavern. And should someone enter after they had left… well, there were still hundreds of Inferi around.
An hour later, they hadn't found any traps or curses inside the sphere. "It looks like Kohlmeier planned, originally, to use the vessel himself," Harry Potter said, looking around.
"Removing the seats doesn't help with that," Ari pointed out.
"Well, he might have thought that we'd set traps and curses ourselves," Ron replied. "And he probably didn't trust Kraft to find them all, so removing the furniture would've appeared to make more sense."
"Probably," Harry said. "It doesn't matter any more. Let's go back."
"Are you done?" Hermione, who was keeping watch outside, sitting on the Range Rover, asked as soon as Harry climbed out of the sphere.
"Yes. It's safe," he told her, joining her on the car with a short jump. "We can pack it up."
"Good. We've been underwater for a long time," she said. "And the Inferi's growling is getting annoying."
As soon as Ari and Ron left the sphere, Hermione shrank it and levitated it into the car's trunk.
Harry took a last look at the Inferi lining the pier, then climbed down into the car through the hatch on top.
"To the top of the temple?" Ron asked from behind the wheel.
"Yes," Harry replied. It was the safest spot in the cavern - the best place to travel to and from by Portkey or Apparition. Not that the latter would work for anyone - they left the Anti-Apparition Jinxes in place in case Kohlmeier hadn't taken the time to create a Portkey. If he had sent Storm Wizards back at all, of course. They should have asked Mallory's ghost about it before sealing him up, but he had been under the Imperius Curse. And he couldn't be trusted anyway.
"I'm going to tell Cenkora that we're going away, but will return," Hermione said, straddling her broom. "I don't want him to think we're abandoning him."
"What about Ophas?" Ron asked.
"He's still staring at the mindless ghosts," Hermione replied. "He didn't respond when I tried talking to him."
"I'll come with you to the temple," Ari said. "Keep an eye out for zombies."
"Thank you."
They two witches flew towards the temple. Harry sighed as soon as they disappeared from sight.
"They'll be fine," Ron said. "Let's check on the Wings of Justice, then shrink the Range Rover. I think the cube will last, but the things might be able to dig their way out."
"Yes." Harry had thought he had managed to keep his worrying about Hermione - and Ari - from showing, but he must have been wrong. "Let's."
A quick flight to the conjured cube of now solid cement and back later, Harry stuffed the shrunken car into his pocket.
Ron was staring at the buildings below them. "I still can't really believe we did it, you know? Discovered Atlantis. Every Curse-Breaker's dream."
"Well, not everyone," Harry replied. "There's not enough treasure for some."
Ron snorted. "Oh, yes! Though there might be more treasure in the rest of the cavern. But the fame and the knowledge…" He shook his head. "Although… have you thought about what we'll do after this?"
"Exploring the cavern for a while?" Harry replied. It wasn't as if Hermione would miss out on the find of the century.
"Well, yes, but after that?" Ron looked at him. "Back to Egypt?"
Well, it was a living, of course. But compared to discovering Atlantis, it felt a little underwhelming. Harry shrugged. "Perhaps. We don't have to decide today."
"So you don't know either," Ron said, smirking.
Harry scoffed at his friend. "I'll start worrying once we have secured our claims and the cavern."
Which would take a while.
Virgin Islands, Tortola, December 19th, 2001
The Portkey dropped them in the small clearing that they had picked out before setting off in their rented yacht. They arrived with Shield Charms up and wands in hand, and Harry Potter jumped up as soon as he had stopped rolling along the ground, looking for threats.
There weren't any. No curses shooting towards them, nothing within range of his Human-presence-revealing Spell. No snakes to ask either, alas.
"I don't smell anyone near us," Ari announced a moment later.
"We're in the clear, then," Ron said.
"For now," Hermione pointed out. "We've been out of contact with the magical and muggle worlds for an entire week."
"Yes. We need to be cautious," Harry agreed. Who knew what Mallory had gotten up to while they had been on the Virgin Islands? Or what Kraft had done with the information Mallory had given her before she'd arrived in Atlantis? "We'll…"
Something flew above them. Towards them. "Watch out!" he yelled, wand raising to meet the… "Hedwig!" It was his owl! He beamed at her as she landed on his left arm, claws gently closing around his wrist. "You've been waiting for us, haven't you?" She was the best owl a wizard could have!
He ignored Ari's muttered comment about birds and eating and checked her leg. "She's got a letter for us!"
"But she might have been tracked," Hermione pointed out. "We need to move."
"Apparate to the alternate site?" Ron asked.
"Yes." Harry nodded. Flying would take too long. "Hold on tight, Hedwig!" he told her, then focused on the clearing on Beef Island. The usual sensation of being forced through a rubber pipe later, he appeared in another, smaller clearing - and checked for enemies again. It was the ambush you didn't expect that killed you, after all.
"Clear," he announced a moment later.
"Let's take the Range Rover and fly out over the sea," Ron said. "We'll be safer that way."
"As long as we stay away from the airport, and don't hover too high," Hermione added.
"Of course," Ron agreed. "I wasn't planning to park above the runway."
"Let's go," Harry cut in, pulling the car out of his pocket. "I want to read our mail. And Hedwig needs her reward!"
His clever owl barked her agreement.
Virgin Islands, East of Beef Island, December 19th, 2001
...so it seems someone found out that you rented a yacht on the Virgin Islands, Harry. When the yacht was found, it made the news. I've sent you a few of the newspapers covering the story.
That would also explain why we haven't seen any sign of the Storm Wizards for a few days - they must have realised - or been told - where you are. Though given the usual trustworthiness of wizarding newspapers, it seems suspicious that they would stop their pursuit of us after reading the Daily Prophet. There might be a leak - or a traitor.
Auntie was correct - there had indeed been a traitor. But her letter hadn't reached them in time. Harry clenched his teeth. If they had surfaced, even if only for an hour, every day during their search of the Puerto Rico Trench, perhaps Mallory wouldn't have been able to fool them till the end… He shook his head. There was no point in fretting about what might have been.
I know leaving the yacht drifting was part of your plan, but I cannot help but worry...
He pressed his lips together as guilt welled up inside him. Auntie, Sirius and the others were worried about them. They must have feared the worst after the newspaper articles appeared and pointed towards a leak or a traitor. Harry needed to write back to them as soon as possible, to reassure them that everything was well. Well, mostly well.
"'Have the Boy-Who-Lived and his intrepid friends fallen victim to the infamous curse of the Bermuda Triangle? The yacht they allegedly rented has been found drifting in the Caribbean Sea, with no sign of the occupants.'" Ron scoffed and put the Daily Prophet he had been reading down on the dinner table. "Since when is a muggle legend an 'infamous curse'?"
"It's the Prophet, what did you expect?" Hermione sniffed. "For all their bigotry and ignorance, they won't hesitate to cite muggle sources, no matter how untrustworthy, if it means a more sensational story. I'm more concerned about the reports of bounty hunters in the Caribbean. If a large number of them correctly suspect our location, we'll have trouble getting off the islands in a plane."
"We can use the car," Ari said. "Head to another island." She shrugged "I don't see the problem."
"Smart bounty hunters might have placed or paid people to watch out for us on the neighbouring islands - both in the muggle and the magical world," Hermione replied.
"So we travel further." Ari shrugged.
Harry saw Hermione frown at that. "That'll take a long time," she said. "And where do we go from here? We need an island with an international airport. And of those, the ones controlled by Americans will still be on alert."
"We could disguise ourselves," Ron said. "A bit more than usual, I mean. Pick a family of four who are on a day trip on the island and use Polyjuice Potion to impersonate them while we take an aeroplane."
"They'll charge us with muggle-baiting and endangering the Statute of Secrecy," Hermione retorted.
"They won't have proof," Ron pointed out.
"They'll suspect, though." Harry cut in. "Which will be enough to cause us trouble. Especially with both Mallory and Kraft dead."
"They were thieves and traitors. And a blood mage," Ari said.
"And we only have our word for that," Harry replied. "Captain Ryan, Captain Neva, Mr Sayadi and Mallory - a lot of people we hired or worked with have died in the last few months. That won't look good to someone who doesn't know the whole story."
"Blimey. At least Mum knows the truth," Ron muttered.
"Skeeter will love it. I can just see the headline: Kraft Killed?" Hermione shook her head. "We really need to contact Dumbledore quickly, before the rumours grow even worse. What if Kraft left a note with someone, claiming she was following us?"
That would fit the despicable witch's character. But it sounded a little too smart for Kraft, in Harry's opinion. "I don't think she ever expected to fail."
"Stupid." Ari scoffed.
"Yes. But we still need a safe and fast way to get to Dumbledore," Harry said. Just flying across the Caribbean in their Range Rover would be safe, but not very fast. "And we have to assume that Mallory told Kraft all the tricks he saw us use, and that she passed them on to the bounty hunters." Which excluded sending themselves by owl post or as muggle cargo.
"Bloody hell!" Ron cursed. "I didn't think of that."
"It's not certain," Harry admitted, "but we cannot count on our old tricks working again." He looked at the others. "So, any ideas?"
Atlantic Ocean, December 20th, 2001
Ron Weasley stifled a yawn. The third time in as many minutes. Flying across the Atlantic might have been the safest course of action for them, but it was also terribly boring. And staring at the empty sea and the empty sky wasn't conducive to keeping alert, rough weather or not. Especially in the middle of the night. Of course, he knew better than to assume that they actually were safe - that kind of thinking got Curse-Breakers killed - but it was a little harder to stay alert in the middle of the ocean, high enough in the air to pass over any ship, but low enough not to be in danger of crashing into a plane. At the speed they were travelling, they would take about three days to reach London.
"Do you want to take a break?" Harry asked as he slid into the passenger's seat. The shotgun, as Dad had explained it was called in America.
"I'm fine," Ron replied. "No need to cut my shift short." He eyed Harry. "It's you who should be resting." Especially after dealing with the curses on Kohlmeier's pockets. To think the man had carried all the relics stolen in Constantinople on him… Kraft and Mallory's robes had been a bust, though. And they didn't even know if all the hairs they had found belonged to them - Kohlmeier had labelled his vials in code.
His friend frowned. "I couldn't sleep."
Ron raised his eyebrows at him. "You're waiting for Hedwig to return. Even though she has to visit both our families and Dumbledore."
Harry's frown grew more pronounced. "She's clever. If there's an urgent message for us, she'll bring it to us, first."
"And she might lead others to us," he said.
"She'll only make the trip if it's worth the risk," Harry retorted.
Ron didn't quite share Harry's rather gushing opinion of Hedwig. The owl was smart - for a post owl. And she had an uncanny knack for appearing out of the blue. But she was still an owl. On the other hand, she was damn fast - anyone tracking her would have a hard time keeping up. "I'll call you if she shows up," he said. "Go back to bed." Harry didn't show any sign of doing so, so Ron added: "Hermione won't be happy if she wakes up and finds you here."
That did the job. Groaning, Harry got up. After a glare at Ron, he disappeared into the back of the Range Rover.
Ron shook his head. There wouldn't be a bounty hunter attack in the middle of the ocean. Not with the kind of weather they were having. Any pursuit would need an enchanted vehicle like theirs to make such a trip - and those were not common, and generally not quick enough to catch up to them or Hedwig. And even if they somehow managed to catch them on brooms, they'd be too beaten and tired to be a threat.
Probably. Of course, there were tales about flying ships, and, theoretically, a wizard could enchant an aeroplane. But Ron hadn't heard anything about a bounty hunter using such vehicles, and such news would spread quickly.
Which, of course, meant that staying awake was a little harder than usual. Well, it wouldn't be too long until he would be relieved, and they wouldn't take too long to reach England anyway. Far longer than taking a muggle plane, but faster than a muggle ship.
Provided the storm didn't blow them off-course, he added to himself when he saw the first flashes of lightning on the horizon. He sat straighter in his seat. This could be a little tricky, indeed.
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 23rd, 2001
"Hello?" Ron Weasley yelled as soon as they entered the kitchen of Grimmauld Place through the back door. "Anyone home?"
"Ron!"
That was Mum.
"Ron!"
His mum burst into the kitchen, pulling him into a hug.
"Ron! I was so worried! We didn't hear from you for days! And the news…"
She was crying, and he winced. "We sent you a letter as soon as we could," he defended himself.
"Yes," Ari supported him.
"Ari!" Mum released Ron - no, she just wrapped one arm around Ari and pulled her into her embrace as well.
He could see Hermione take a step back. Harry was still outside - 'looking for snakes', even though all his snakes would either be in hibernation or inside the house in the cellar he had prepared for them. "We're all fine," Hermione said.
"Your letter mentioned fighting! Storm Wizards! Inferi! A dragon!"
"Yes," Ari cut in. "And we killed them all!" she added with a fierce grin.
That, of course, made Mum hug them even harder and cry more.
"Ron?"
He blinked. "Ginny?" He managed not to blurt out 'you're here?'
"We returned for the holidays," she told him.
"And because we kept having trouble with bounty hunters," Luna, half a step behind Ginny, added. "Though, to be fair, they kept having trouble with the Skinwalkers we were studying, so in a way, it sort of evened out."
"You found Skinwalkers, then, as you hoped?" Hermione asked.
"We did," Luna replied. "Didn't I just say that?"
"If everyone's here…" Ron trailed off. Hadn't his family been looking for a place of their own when Ron and his friends had left for Atlantis?
"With all the attention from the newspapers and bounty hunters, this was the safest place," Ginny explained.
"I didn't want to come," Mum said, releasing him and Ari, "but it is the safest house we know." She promptly turned to hug Hermione.
"Hogwarts would be safer, but it's a school, not a home," Luna said.
"So we're celebrating Christmas here?" Ron asked.
"Yes," Mum answered. "Everyone's coming. Well, everyone but Bill, Fleur, Petunia and Sirius."
"They're not coming?" Ron was surprised.
"Last we knew, they were still being chased by Storm Wizards."
Harry entered and got hugged before he could say more than 'Hello', and by the time he had been filled in, everyone was in the living room.
"...and we wanted to take a Skinwalker with us, but the most recent bounty hunter spooked them." Luna pouted. "They thought the bounty hunters were after them, you know?"
Given what Ron knew about Skinwalkers and their hunting habits, that was to be expected, in his opinion. "Ah," he said, nodding. If only his little sister wouldn't take so many risks! But trying to tell her to play it safe would only make her take more risks. Not that he had much of a right to complain as a Curse-Breaker, of course.
"So, you found Atlantis?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"Well, part of it - we found a cavern with the island's main temple which had been protected during the sinking of Atlantis," Hermione elaborated. "Although the population didn't survive."
"Oh… so, they weren't living under the sea, having adapted to breathing water?" Luna asked with a pout.
"That theory has been disproved," Hermione replied.
"Are you sure?" Luna wrinkled her forehead. "You found one cavern, but there could be more, and in one, Atlanteans could have survived!"
Ron winced, knowing what was coming.
"Yes, I'm sure," Hermione said. "The Atlanteans weren't killed when their island sunk, but before, when the souls and spirits of their victims used the power of their last 'Grand Sacrifice' to kill them all."
"Blood magic?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Harry cut in. "We found the bodies left by the ritual."
"Merlin's beard!" Mum exclaimed. "That must have been horrible."
"Not until the Storm Wizards did another blood ritual and turned all of them into Inferi," Ari said. "Including a dead dragon Kohlmeier had brought with him."
"Just how many Inferi were there?" Mum asked, narrowing her eyes.
Ron winced again. Perhaps they should have been a little less vague in their letters.
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 24th, 2001
For a Christmas Eve at Grimmauld Place, it was a very Weasley event. Not that Hermione Granger minded that, of course - the Weasleys were very good friends. Practically family. Still, it felt a little weird to celebrate Christmas here with them without Petunia and Sirius being present. While it was her home, as she had been repeatedly told by everyone else living here since she had moved in after Hogwarts, the two older tomb raiders were part of what made it home.
Although, she added to herself as she watched Ginny, currently covered in fluffy red fur with matching tail and ears, chase the twins, her wand spitting hexes and jinxes, the Weasleys certainly could provide an equally lively celebration.
"It was our gift to Luna, Gin-gin! We know how much she likes anim-OW!"
"I'll show you an animal!"
"No! Flobby needs his sleep or he gets cranky!"
"George! Fred! Ginny! Stop that at once!"
Perhaps even more lively, she amended her thoughts - Sirius knew better than to go so far, after all. And Petunia certainly was a better influence on him than Alicia and Angelina were on the twins.
But it was safe. Endearing. Home. Sitting on her favourite couch, she leaned into Harry's side and sighed contentedly. No one was trying to kill them. No horde of Inferi was gathering outside the wardline.
"Look, Charlie, I didn't exactly stop and count the ridges on the horns, alright? Not before it got its head blown off. So I can't tell you the exact kind of breed, just that it looked like a Horntail. A rotting, dead Horntail." And the visiting dragon handler wasn't bothering her or Harry with questions that made her remember that awful fight. That had to have been Molly's doing - she had taken Charlie aside as soon as he had arrived earlier today. Apparently, Ron wasn't covered, though. And Ari liked telling the tale.
Well, to each their own. She tried not to think of the fact that her parents were still away from England, in hiding because of the bounty hunters after her. They would have spent the next day at the Grangers', otherwise.
A soft chime alerted them to a new arrival in the entrance hall. "I'll be right back!" Harry said, standing up so quickly, she was jolted aside. Crookshanks, who had been napping on her lap, made his displeasure known with a loud yowl.
"Sorry!" Harry yelled.
She smiled. "It's OK." He knew that it would be Arthur and Percy - they would have finished working by now - but Petunia and the others might be coming back as well, now that they knew about Kohlmeier's death.
He nodded and left the living room. A minute later, he returned, Arthur and Percy in tow. Which meant Molly would finish dinner soon, now that everyone who had been expected had arrived.
And, Hermione knew from long experience, Ron's mum was certainly a much better cook than anyone else in the house. Which included Kreacher.
"...and the Aurors still haven't ascertained who supplied the information to the bounty hunters who attacked The Burrow." Percy shook his head as he picked up his glass. "Of course, Humphrey Kettlebrook's surprising decision to quit his position at the Floo Network Authority and emigrate to the New World makes him the main suspect. Though without him or his financial records to prove it..."
Hermione Granger nodded. And without the wizard, any proof would be useless anyway - for legal purposes.
"Let's put a price on his head! See how he likes having bounty hunters chase him!" Ari said with a pronounced growl while she had thirds of Molly's excellent roast.
"That would make us more than a little hypocritical," Hermione pointed out, "after everything we tried to stop the bounty hunters coming after us."
"I can live with that," Ron said, with a shrug and a wide grin.
She pursed her lips and glanced at Harry. It would be his money, or Sirius's, after all.
Harry spread his hands. "Let's put that on the back burner for now. We've got more urgent things to do."
"Such as securing our claim to the Atlantis site, of course," Hermione added.
"The ICW won't be in session over the holidays," Percy said. "Granted, your discovery is so important, they probably would hold a special session - but it would take time to convince enough members, even for Dumbledore."
And probably some political capital or favours as well, Hermione knew. Both of which would be better spent on the actual issue: Who would control Atlantis's remains? Of course, it had been a British expedition which discovered the site, but there were geographical and historical claims to the island as well, which would be made no matter how flimsy. "I think we can wait a few more days," she said, even though she didn't want to. "It's Christmas, after all."
"Yes," Molly agreed. "There's no need to talk about such things when we should be celebrating!"
"When we should be eating pudding!" Luna added with a wide smile. "Flobby hasn't tasted treacle tart before, and I'm sure he'll love it!"
"'Flobby'?" Percy asked.
"The Feathered Manta Ray we found in California!" Luna announced. "He's still a baby - his wingspan's barely three yards."
"Indeed," her father said with a proud smile, "Adult Feathered Manta Rays have an average wingspan of ten yards. It'll all be in the holiday issue of The Quibbler!"
Three yards, as everyone found out as soon as Luna opened her enchanted bag, was quite large already. Especially inside the house.
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 25th, 2001
"Auntie! Sirius!" Harry Potter rushed to hug them both, heedless of their soot-covered robes. "You made it!"
"Of course we did!" Sirius beamed. "Wouldn't miss Christmas with you, would we?"
Of course they would, Harry knew - if they thought it would keep him and his friends safe. But they were here.
"We got your letter, which explained the absence of Storm Wizards," Auntie said, patting his back. "So we packed up and returned to Britain."
"Via France," Sirius explained. "Bill and Fleur are staying with the Delacours, but they'll visit tomorrow."
"Remus is at Hogwarts," Harry told him after he had let them go.
His godfather frowned. "I'll fetch him later. He should know better."
"He said he had to supervise the students staying at school over the holidays," Harry said. Both of them knew, though, that that was just an excuse - Remus still felt like a guest at Grimmauld Place.
"I'll sort him out." Sirius snorted. "Now, tell me all about your discovery!"
Harry didn't wince. He might have been a little economical with the details in his letter, but they would expect that. And understand. He hoped. "That'll take a while. Let's sit down!"
"...and then we decided to fly back to England," Harry Potter said before taking a sip from his drink.
Auntie and Sirius looked, well, serious now.
"It was the safest course of action," Hermione added.
"For a change," Auntie remarked dryly. Very dryly.
She wouldn't appreciate quotes from Bill about danger being part of the job, as Harry knew very well. He shrugged. "We didn't exactly have many alternatives to fighting."
"And we won!" Ari added with a smile.
"And we wouldn't have had to fight at all if Mr Mallory hadn't been a traitor," Hermione pointed out.
"I think Albus needs a reminder that people change as they grow older," Auntie said with an angry twist to her lips. "He can't keep judging them according to how they acted as kids."
"We should have been a little more suspicious," Harry admitted. "But Mallory was smart about it."
"And he was betrayed as well," Ron said. "It worked out in the end."
"This time," Auntie said.
Harry nodded, suppressing a wince. "Anyway," he said, "now all we need is Dumbledore to sort out the official stuff about our discovery."
"And to deal with the Inferi," Hermione added. "We've got a few ideas, but they'll take quite some time to implement, and we hope he has a better solution for that problem."
"He better have." Judging by Auntie 's expression, that would be the least the Headmaster could do to make up for referring them to Mallory.
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 26th, 2001
"...and then we flew back to England in our Range Rover."
Ron Weasley nodded as Harry finished. That had been the third time in three days he had heard Harry tell their story, but that couldn't be helped - and they would have to tell the story a lot more often once they went public with their discovery. Perhaps he wouldn't remember the battles so intensely by then. He hoped so, at least.
"My apologies, Harry. Miss Granger. Mr Weasley. Miss Ari." Dumbledore sighed. "Once more, it seems, my own mistakes have endangered you and yours."
"Yes," Petunia said, glaring at the Headmaster. "I told you before that people change as they grow older!"
"Yes, you did." Dumbledore sighed again. "To think Matthias would stoop to using blood magic… Fighting fire with fire usually leaves you burned. I thought he would be smarter than that."
Ron managed not to grimace - they hadn't gone into details about their own use of blood magic, but the Headmaster would have guessed anyway.
"There are different…" Hermione started, but a nudge from Harry shut her up. This wasn't the time to discuss the finer points of sacrificial magic and self-sacrificial magic.
"So, how do you think the ICW will handle our discovery?" Harry said.
Dumbledore took a deep breath, one hand brushing his beard. "It's quite the conundrum. The bottom of the Puerto Rico Trench is effectively terra nullius - unclaimed land. Puerto Rico will probably contest this, claiming it's part of their territorial waters - Don Carlos is remarkably flexible when it comes to using muggle concepts as long as it benefits his country - even though they have no realistic means of actually taking control of the area unless you help them. Still, he might get support from other Caribbean nations in exchange for concessions. Then there's the British claim - your group could be seen as a British expedition; therefore, our country could lay claim to the ruins of Atlantis, at least the habitable parts of it. However, Miss Ari and Matthias's involvement might lead to others contesting this. Magical Brazil might put forth that Ari is a citizen."
Ari scoffed. "My tribe does not belong to any country!" With a sneer, she added: "And I was disowned anyway when we made the discovery."
"And Mallory betrayed us," Ron pointed out.
"That will be contested as well," Dumbledore replied. "With only your testimony for his crimes, Florida might argue that it wasn't proven and therefore they have a claim as well. Even Prussia might follow that example using Miss Kraft."
"What?" Ron blurted out. "That's…"
"Stupid!" Ari snarled.
"Politics often is stupid, my dear," Dumbledore replied.
"We could use your Pensieve, sir," Harry pointed out.
"Leaving aside the logistics of providing others access to it, I fear that they will claim that Miss Kraft and Matthias were under the Imperius Curse." He sighed. "I foresee a lively session once your discovery is announced." He cleared his throat. "However, I think we should deal with the Inferi before that. Their presence might mean, at least technically, that the cavern could be judged as a danger to the neighbouring nations requiring an international intervention - with the subsequent control of the area by the forces involved." He smiled. "Of course, I'm also looking forward to visiting the ruins before they become the subject of international politics."
A sentiment, Ron realised as he looked around and saw the expression of everyone present, shared by the others. Even Mum seemed interested. The twins looked ready to go right now, and Luna and Ginny…
Well, no better time for a family trip than the holidays, right?
'Even though the wizarding nations originally covered the same territory as the muggle nations from which they separated in 1692, the three centuries since that date have seen a great deal of change - and not merely because of the incessant wars waged by the muggles on a scale almost incomprehensible to the average wizard. No, conflicts in the magical world also resulted in changed borders. The nations of the New World seceding from their mother countries, the countless wizarding enclaves founded in North America, of which many perished just as quickly as they appeared, and the wars of independence waged against the Ottoman Empire by many of its client states and tribes within its former borders are just a few of the more famous examples.
However, not all borders changed because of violent conflicts. The Magical Kingdom of Mysore doubled its territory thanks to marriages with the heirs of lesser states in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, although its borders were also expanded by military conquest. And the shamans of North America have formed such a close defensive alliance that they might very well be one nation, despite the continuing raiding between individual tribes.
But, even with magic's continuous advancement, as well as every magical countries having been freed from the shackles of muggle involvement, natural borders continue to be a factor. Despite improvements in magical travel, long distances, especially over an ocean, still limit a country's ability to take and maintain control of an area - which is, in the age of the Statue of Secrecy, a crucial requirement for every magical government, lest the ICW step in and force a change of administration or borders to rectify the situation. Often, the mere threat of such action is enough to push the different sides in a conflict into mediation, such as Albus Dumbledore's skilful handling of the crisis between Magical Aden and the Naga Nation over the latter's outpost in the Red Sea.'
- Excerpt from 'Politics and Portkeys - A Look at International Relations in the Wizarding World' by Lily Maven, London, 2000
*****
Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico Trench, December 18th, 2001
Ron Weasley had wanted to close his eyes when he saw Mallory's ghost slowly being dragged into the skull but had watched until the end despite the pitifulness of the sight. The man had been a traitor, a blood mage and a blackmailer, Ron reminded himself. Mallory had brought this upon himself, as far as Ron was concerned, by forcing their hand with his threats and sly hints.
Still, to be bound for eternity in a skull which would be dropped into a mud volcano under the sea? Although he was just a ghost, not a soul. Just an imprint, a weak copy, of a real human. Even though he sounded and acted like the real Mallory.
"Good riddance!" Ari said. He glanced at her and saw that she was baring her teeth in a wide grin. It made her look fierce, hinting at her other form, and he smiled despite the circumstances - he knew she was still affected by the obscene amount of blood magic that had been done in the room.
So he pulled her into a hug. "It's over now," he told her. "Kraft, Kohlmeier and Mallory are all gone. Let's leave this place."
"The temple? Or the cavern?"
"First one, then the other." There was no reason to linger much longer. They had recovered Kohlmeier's remains, torn robes and wand, as well as those of Mallory and Kraft, but had yet to check them for curses and other traps so they could search them for the relics stolen from the Sultan's Palace.
"There are still the Inferi left," she pointed out as he mounted his broom. "We need to destroy them."
That was another reason to leave the cavern. "Fire doesn't hurt them, and most curses are barely more effective," he replied. "We would probably need a week to to destroy them all and might damage a lot of the cavern in the process."
"Leaving them will make exploring the place very dangerous," she retorted.
"Which isn't an entirely bad thing, I think," he said. "It'll keep the numbers of claim jumpers and grave robbers down."
He was joking - mostly - but she nodded. "That's right. And Dumbledore might have an easy solution for dealing with them."
"Perhaps." Ari was quite in awe of the Headmaster, but Dumbledore had cowed the houngans of Jamaica practically by himself, so it wasn't improbable that he'd be prepared for such a threat. "Come on, let's get back to the Range Rover," he said, waving at her.
She nodded and joined him on the broom.
"We're going back to the Rover!" he yelled to Harry and Hermione so he'd be heard over the growling from the zombies below.
"Good idea," Harry yelled back. "We'll be there in a minute."
Ron nodded and guided the broom to the gates, keeping an eye out for climbing Inferi. You couldn't underestimate the buggers - they were far smarter than the usual zombies.
Fortunately, they weren't smart enough to use tools, though - or to throw things. And the outer walls of the temple were too smooth for them to climb. Ron still checked with a quick detection spell if any Inferi were on the roof before passing through the temple gates - to die now, in their moment of triumph…
He shook his head as he pulled up next to the Land Rover floating high above the streets. Harry and his movies. A flick of his wand unlocked the enchanted door, and he flew into the room behind it, which served as an entrance hall. The door closing behind them cut off the racket from the Inferi, which was a relief.
Ari jumped off the broom, stretching. "How much longer will we stay?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.
"That depends on Harry and Hermione. They'll need to rest after the ritual," he replied, shrinking and storing the broom. They might want to add a broom locker next to the door, in case they had to bail out in a hurry and had no brooms on them. He made a mental note. "And even though we've got a zombie horde on the streets wanting to devour us, I think we're actually safer here than on the surface, where bounty hunters might find us." It wasn't very likely, but the yacht they had rented would have been found by now, and someone might put two and two together. "And we need to recover the sphere before we leave." It wouldn't do to let whoever the ICW sent with Dumbledore to verify their claims stumble upon proof of their slightly questionable acquisition of a muggle artefact.
"Ah." Ari grinned and stepped closer to him. "So we have a little more time to celebrate."
He returned her smile as he wrapped his arms around her. "Yes, we do," he whispered into her ear as she purred and rested her chin on his shoulder, even though she had to stand on her tiptoes to do so.
She wasn't bothered by what they had done. She wasn't putting up a front. She was honest in what she wanted - which was him.
And he wanted her.
"I love you," he whispered, then bit her ear - lightly.
She growled in response and started to drag him towards their room.
And then there was no more time to fret about the future or ponder the past.
*****
Hermione Granger was tired. Not quite exhausted, but if she had to work any more magic, she'd need a Pepper-Up Potion first, or she'd risk making mistakes. But to rest inside the cavern, with a horde of Inferi so close… She remembered how Kraft and Kohlmeier had died, both having been devoured, and shuddered. They still had to permanently disable the Wings of Justice. The spells used to freeze them wouldn't last forever, even though they had recast them a few times already.
"Are you alright?" Harry asked. "You had to bind him - you know what he would have done otherwise. What he wanted us to do for him."
She smiled at him. "I know. It's not that." Though that she had had to work more blood magic bothered her more than she wanted to admit. Or rather, that it had been so easy bothered her. She sighed, and he stepped closer, his arms wrapping her in an embrace. She put one hand on his, leaning her cheek against his arm. "It has just been a rather stressful day." So much blood, death and betrayal.
"But it's over now," he said. "We won."
"We won, but it's not over. There's the Ottoman bounty to deal with. The ICW to inform. Our families to contact…"
"Shhh." He kissed her neck. "We'll be fine. We are fine now."
She didn't think they were fine - she knew she wasn't fine. Not yet.
But she would be, she knew. Sighing once more, but contentedly this time, she leaned into Harry, enjoying his closeness, the warmth of his body, for a long moment.
They had survived. They were alright. They had discovered Atlantis.
Yes, she - they - would be fine.
She still needed to rest, though. And so did Harry. Fortunately, their room in the Range Rover had a very comfortable bed.
*****
Caribbean Sea, Puerto Rico Trench, December 19th, 2001
Hermione Granger was torn when she sat down for breakfast at the kitchen table in their Range Rover. On the one hand, they had planned for a short rest yesterday before resuming work - not to spend the entire night. She didn't like it when things didn't go as planned for completely avoidable reasons. On the other hand, the reason they had spent the night in the bedroom had most certainly been very enjoyable, and she couldn't help smiling as she flicked her wand and started to prepare breakfast.
By the time Harry arrived, tea and toast were ready. "The eggs, bacon and sausages will take another minute or two," she told him as she was buttering her toast.
Harry bent down to kiss her, then sat down next to her. "Thanks."
Ari was next, nostrils flaring as she eyed the frying meat. "Good morning," she said, as though it were an afterthought, without taking her eyes off the meat.
"Morning, everyone." Ron entered, yawning, and sat down to fill his cup. "Thanks for making breakfast, Hermione."
"Wait!" Hermione snapped when Ari made to grab the pans. A quick Doubling Charm later, there was enough food for the witch and the rest of their group. Hermione still hadn't determined how exactly Ari's body handled food when she changed, but the other witch certainly ate more, and more meat, than herself.
Ari growled a little, then grabbed her portion of the meal while Hermione floated the other pans over to Harry and Ron. She wanted to talk about the tasks they had to accomplish but refrained from doing so while everyone was eating.
They weren't pressed for time, after all. Not any more. Even though she really wanted to start planning right away.
Half an hour later, they were floating above the port area, preparing to recover the sphere. "It doesn't look like there are any Inferi in the water," Harry reported. "We can see the bottom."
"They might jump in, though, once we approach the sphere," Ron commented, pointing at the vessel floating in the water.
Indeed, the Inferi were already gathering at the pier. "Inferi usually cannot swim," Hermione replied. "But Kohlmeier might have granted that ability to his creations as well." He had been a very competent wizard, after all. A dark wizard, a blood mage and a war criminal - but a very skilled wizard.
"Let's test it. Blow some into the water," Ari said.
"Alright," Harry replied. He swished his wand, and a Blasting Curse hit the middle of the closest pack of zombies.
Two of them landed in the water and sank to the bottom. They were still moving, but sluggishly. And they looked disoriented - though that might be her own bias speaking, Hermione reminded herself.
"So, they can't swim," Ari said, "but they can walk on the seabed."
"Recovering the sphere should be safe enough, then," Ron chimed in. "Apart from all the traps and curses Kohlmeier will have left inside." If there were just half as many as the number of the curses on the man's robes and pockets, it would take them a while.
"Which might include Inferi," Hermione pointed out. "We don't know if he brought some with him when he arrived, or if he managed to lure some of them into the sphere when he prepared his trap." She didn't think the man had done so, nor had he had much time for elaborate traps after he had hid from them, but as a Curse-Breaker, you had to expect the worst every time you worked.
So they approached - on brooms - very slowly and carefully. There were no curses, traps or ambushes in the water - at least none that Harry's conjured sea snakes or their detection spells could discover. But the sphere itself had a few curses on it - curses that she hadn't seen before, but which she recognised as blood curses.
"Dealing with them will take a while," she told the others.
"We can start on the jinxes on the cavern, then," Harry replied. "Ari can keep an eye out for Inferi."
Ari nodded, though she didn't seem too happy about it, Hermione noted. But this wasn't the time to ask if anything was bothering the other witch. She took a deep breath, shifted on the floating platform she had conjured, and started dismantling the curses Kohlmeier had left.
*****
Harry Potter was the first to enter the sphere, followed by Ron and Ari. Hermione had done an admirable job on the curses, but there might be Inferi lying in ambush inside, and Harry and Ron were quicker on the draw than she was, and Ari's nose was hard to fool. Not to mention that she could literally jump out of the sphere in a second as a jaguar.
But there were no Inferi inside. Not much else, either - Kohlmeier's wands must have looted the sphere upon arrival. Or vanished everything. Fortunately, Harry and his friends hadn't left anything irreplaceable there. Still… "That was rather petty," he commented, looking at where the seats on the bridge had been.
"Or greedy - souvenirs from this expedition will fetch a nice price," Ron joked. "But at least it means checking for curses will be easier. Less clutter to go through."
He had a point - although Harry had yet to detect any curses within the sphere. Nor poison gas or other traps. Of course, Kohlmeier wouldn't have had much time to spend on spell-casting. Still, they would have to search the entire vessel very carefully. Which would take more time.
But as long as the jinxes remained, no one else could enter the cavern - just in case Kohlmeier had sent a Storm Wizard back to where he had come from before sealing the cavern. And should someone enter after they had left… well, there were still hundreds of Inferi around.
*****
An hour later, they hadn't found any traps or curses inside the sphere. "It looks like Kohlmeier planned, originally, to use the vessel himself," Harry Potter said, looking around.
"Removing the seats doesn't help with that," Ari pointed out.
"Well, he might have thought that we'd set traps and curses ourselves," Ron replied. "And he probably didn't trust Kraft to find them all, so removing the furniture would've appeared to make more sense."
"Probably," Harry said. "It doesn't matter any more. Let's go back."
"Are you done?" Hermione, who was keeping watch outside, sitting on the Range Rover, asked as soon as Harry climbed out of the sphere.
"Yes. It's safe," he told her, joining her on the car with a short jump. "We can pack it up."
"Good. We've been underwater for a long time," she said. "And the Inferi's growling is getting annoying."
As soon as Ari and Ron left the sphere, Hermione shrank it and levitated it into the car's trunk.
Harry took a last look at the Inferi lining the pier, then climbed down into the car through the hatch on top.
"To the top of the temple?" Ron asked from behind the wheel.
"Yes," Harry replied. It was the safest spot in the cavern - the best place to travel to and from by Portkey or Apparition. Not that the latter would work for anyone - they left the Anti-Apparition Jinxes in place in case Kohlmeier hadn't taken the time to create a Portkey. If he had sent Storm Wizards back at all, of course. They should have asked Mallory's ghost about it before sealing him up, but he had been under the Imperius Curse. And he couldn't be trusted anyway.
"I'm going to tell Cenkora that we're going away, but will return," Hermione said, straddling her broom. "I don't want him to think we're abandoning him."
"What about Ophas?" Ron asked.
"He's still staring at the mindless ghosts," Hermione replied. "He didn't respond when I tried talking to him."
"I'll come with you to the temple," Ari said. "Keep an eye out for zombies."
"Thank you."
They two witches flew towards the temple. Harry sighed as soon as they disappeared from sight.
"They'll be fine," Ron said. "Let's check on the Wings of Justice, then shrink the Range Rover. I think the cube will last, but the things might be able to dig their way out."
"Yes." Harry had thought he had managed to keep his worrying about Hermione - and Ari - from showing, but he must have been wrong. "Let's."
A quick flight to the conjured cube of now solid cement and back later, Harry stuffed the shrunken car into his pocket.
Ron was staring at the buildings below them. "I still can't really believe we did it, you know? Discovered Atlantis. Every Curse-Breaker's dream."
"Well, not everyone," Harry replied. "There's not enough treasure for some."
Ron snorted. "Oh, yes! Though there might be more treasure in the rest of the cavern. But the fame and the knowledge…" He shook his head. "Although… have you thought about what we'll do after this?"
"Exploring the cavern for a while?" Harry replied. It wasn't as if Hermione would miss out on the find of the century.
"Well, yes, but after that?" Ron looked at him. "Back to Egypt?"
Well, it was a living, of course. But compared to discovering Atlantis, it felt a little underwhelming. Harry shrugged. "Perhaps. We don't have to decide today."
"So you don't know either," Ron said, smirking.
Harry scoffed at his friend. "I'll start worrying once we have secured our claims and the cavern."
Which would take a while.
*****
Virgin Islands, Tortola, December 19th, 2001
The Portkey dropped them in the small clearing that they had picked out before setting off in their rented yacht. They arrived with Shield Charms up and wands in hand, and Harry Potter jumped up as soon as he had stopped rolling along the ground, looking for threats.
There weren't any. No curses shooting towards them, nothing within range of his Human-presence-revealing Spell. No snakes to ask either, alas.
"I don't smell anyone near us," Ari announced a moment later.
"We're in the clear, then," Ron said.
"For now," Hermione pointed out. "We've been out of contact with the magical and muggle worlds for an entire week."
"Yes. We need to be cautious," Harry agreed. Who knew what Mallory had gotten up to while they had been on the Virgin Islands? Or what Kraft had done with the information Mallory had given her before she'd arrived in Atlantis? "We'll…"
Something flew above them. Towards them. "Watch out!" he yelled, wand raising to meet the… "Hedwig!" It was his owl! He beamed at her as she landed on his left arm, claws gently closing around his wrist. "You've been waiting for us, haven't you?" She was the best owl a wizard could have!
He ignored Ari's muttered comment about birds and eating and checked her leg. "She's got a letter for us!"
"But she might have been tracked," Hermione pointed out. "We need to move."
"Apparate to the alternate site?" Ron asked.
"Yes." Harry nodded. Flying would take too long. "Hold on tight, Hedwig!" he told her, then focused on the clearing on Beef Island. The usual sensation of being forced through a rubber pipe later, he appeared in another, smaller clearing - and checked for enemies again. It was the ambush you didn't expect that killed you, after all.
"Clear," he announced a moment later.
"Let's take the Range Rover and fly out over the sea," Ron said. "We'll be safer that way."
"As long as we stay away from the airport, and don't hover too high," Hermione added.
"Of course," Ron agreed. "I wasn't planning to park above the runway."
"Let's go," Harry cut in, pulling the car out of his pocket. "I want to read our mail. And Hedwig needs her reward!"
His clever owl barked her agreement.
*****
Virgin Islands, East of Beef Island, December 19th, 2001
...so it seems someone found out that you rented a yacht on the Virgin Islands, Harry. When the yacht was found, it made the news. I've sent you a few of the newspapers covering the story.
That would also explain why we haven't seen any sign of the Storm Wizards for a few days - they must have realised - or been told - where you are. Though given the usual trustworthiness of wizarding newspapers, it seems suspicious that they would stop their pursuit of us after reading the Daily Prophet. There might be a leak - or a traitor.
Auntie was correct - there had indeed been a traitor. But her letter hadn't reached them in time. Harry clenched his teeth. If they had surfaced, even if only for an hour, every day during their search of the Puerto Rico Trench, perhaps Mallory wouldn't have been able to fool them till the end… He shook his head. There was no point in fretting about what might have been.
I know leaving the yacht drifting was part of your plan, but I cannot help but worry...
He pressed his lips together as guilt welled up inside him. Auntie, Sirius and the others were worried about them. They must have feared the worst after the newspaper articles appeared and pointed towards a leak or a traitor. Harry needed to write back to them as soon as possible, to reassure them that everything was well. Well, mostly well.
"'Have the Boy-Who-Lived and his intrepid friends fallen victim to the infamous curse of the Bermuda Triangle? The yacht they allegedly rented has been found drifting in the Caribbean Sea, with no sign of the occupants.'" Ron scoffed and put the Daily Prophet he had been reading down on the dinner table. "Since when is a muggle legend an 'infamous curse'?"
"It's the Prophet, what did you expect?" Hermione sniffed. "For all their bigotry and ignorance, they won't hesitate to cite muggle sources, no matter how untrustworthy, if it means a more sensational story. I'm more concerned about the reports of bounty hunters in the Caribbean. If a large number of them correctly suspect our location, we'll have trouble getting off the islands in a plane."
"We can use the car," Ari said. "Head to another island." She shrugged "I don't see the problem."
"Smart bounty hunters might have placed or paid people to watch out for us on the neighbouring islands - both in the muggle and the magical world," Hermione replied.
"So we travel further." Ari shrugged.
Harry saw Hermione frown at that. "That'll take a long time," she said. "And where do we go from here? We need an island with an international airport. And of those, the ones controlled by Americans will still be on alert."
"We could disguise ourselves," Ron said. "A bit more than usual, I mean. Pick a family of four who are on a day trip on the island and use Polyjuice Potion to impersonate them while we take an aeroplane."
"They'll charge us with muggle-baiting and endangering the Statute of Secrecy," Hermione retorted.
"They won't have proof," Ron pointed out.
"They'll suspect, though." Harry cut in. "Which will be enough to cause us trouble. Especially with both Mallory and Kraft dead."
"They were thieves and traitors. And a blood mage," Ari said.
"And we only have our word for that," Harry replied. "Captain Ryan, Captain Neva, Mr Sayadi and Mallory - a lot of people we hired or worked with have died in the last few months. That won't look good to someone who doesn't know the whole story."
"Blimey. At least Mum knows the truth," Ron muttered.
"Skeeter will love it. I can just see the headline: Kraft Killed?" Hermione shook her head. "We really need to contact Dumbledore quickly, before the rumours grow even worse. What if Kraft left a note with someone, claiming she was following us?"
That would fit the despicable witch's character. But it sounded a little too smart for Kraft, in Harry's opinion. "I don't think she ever expected to fail."
"Stupid." Ari scoffed.
"Yes. But we still need a safe and fast way to get to Dumbledore," Harry said. Just flying across the Caribbean in their Range Rover would be safe, but not very fast. "And we have to assume that Mallory told Kraft all the tricks he saw us use, and that she passed them on to the bounty hunters." Which excluded sending themselves by owl post or as muggle cargo.
"Bloody hell!" Ron cursed. "I didn't think of that."
"It's not certain," Harry admitted, "but we cannot count on our old tricks working again." He looked at the others. "So, any ideas?"
*****
Atlantic Ocean, December 20th, 2001
Ron Weasley stifled a yawn. The third time in as many minutes. Flying across the Atlantic might have been the safest course of action for them, but it was also terribly boring. And staring at the empty sea and the empty sky wasn't conducive to keeping alert, rough weather or not. Especially in the middle of the night. Of course, he knew better than to assume that they actually were safe - that kind of thinking got Curse-Breakers killed - but it was a little harder to stay alert in the middle of the ocean, high enough in the air to pass over any ship, but low enough not to be in danger of crashing into a plane. At the speed they were travelling, they would take about three days to reach London.
"Do you want to take a break?" Harry asked as he slid into the passenger's seat. The shotgun, as Dad had explained it was called in America.
"I'm fine," Ron replied. "No need to cut my shift short." He eyed Harry. "It's you who should be resting." Especially after dealing with the curses on Kohlmeier's pockets. To think the man had carried all the relics stolen in Constantinople on him… Kraft and Mallory's robes had been a bust, though. And they didn't even know if all the hairs they had found belonged to them - Kohlmeier had labelled his vials in code.
His friend frowned. "I couldn't sleep."
Ron raised his eyebrows at him. "You're waiting for Hedwig to return. Even though she has to visit both our families and Dumbledore."
Harry's frown grew more pronounced. "She's clever. If there's an urgent message for us, she'll bring it to us, first."
"And she might lead others to us," he said.
"She'll only make the trip if it's worth the risk," Harry retorted.
Ron didn't quite share Harry's rather gushing opinion of Hedwig. The owl was smart - for a post owl. And she had an uncanny knack for appearing out of the blue. But she was still an owl. On the other hand, she was damn fast - anyone tracking her would have a hard time keeping up. "I'll call you if she shows up," he said. "Go back to bed." Harry didn't show any sign of doing so, so Ron added: "Hermione won't be happy if she wakes up and finds you here."
That did the job. Groaning, Harry got up. After a glare at Ron, he disappeared into the back of the Range Rover.
Ron shook his head. There wouldn't be a bounty hunter attack in the middle of the ocean. Not with the kind of weather they were having. Any pursuit would need an enchanted vehicle like theirs to make such a trip - and those were not common, and generally not quick enough to catch up to them or Hedwig. And even if they somehow managed to catch them on brooms, they'd be too beaten and tired to be a threat.
Probably. Of course, there were tales about flying ships, and, theoretically, a wizard could enchant an aeroplane. But Ron hadn't heard anything about a bounty hunter using such vehicles, and such news would spread quickly.
Which, of course, meant that staying awake was a little harder than usual. Well, it wouldn't be too long until he would be relieved, and they wouldn't take too long to reach England anyway. Far longer than taking a muggle plane, but faster than a muggle ship.
Provided the storm didn't blow them off-course, he added to himself when he saw the first flashes of lightning on the horizon. He sat straighter in his seat. This could be a little tricky, indeed.
*****
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 23rd, 2001
"Hello?" Ron Weasley yelled as soon as they entered the kitchen of Grimmauld Place through the back door. "Anyone home?"
"Ron!"
That was Mum.
"Ron!"
His mum burst into the kitchen, pulling him into a hug.
"Ron! I was so worried! We didn't hear from you for days! And the news…"
She was crying, and he winced. "We sent you a letter as soon as we could," he defended himself.
"Yes," Ari supported him.
"Ari!" Mum released Ron - no, she just wrapped one arm around Ari and pulled her into her embrace as well.
He could see Hermione take a step back. Harry was still outside - 'looking for snakes', even though all his snakes would either be in hibernation or inside the house in the cellar he had prepared for them. "We're all fine," Hermione said.
"Your letter mentioned fighting! Storm Wizards! Inferi! A dragon!"
"Yes," Ari cut in. "And we killed them all!" she added with a fierce grin.
That, of course, made Mum hug them even harder and cry more.
"Ron?"
He blinked. "Ginny?" He managed not to blurt out 'you're here?'
"We returned for the holidays," she told him.
"And because we kept having trouble with bounty hunters," Luna, half a step behind Ginny, added. "Though, to be fair, they kept having trouble with the Skinwalkers we were studying, so in a way, it sort of evened out."
"You found Skinwalkers, then, as you hoped?" Hermione asked.
"We did," Luna replied. "Didn't I just say that?"
"If everyone's here…" Ron trailed off. Hadn't his family been looking for a place of their own when Ron and his friends had left for Atlantis?
"With all the attention from the newspapers and bounty hunters, this was the safest place," Ginny explained.
"I didn't want to come," Mum said, releasing him and Ari, "but it is the safest house we know." She promptly turned to hug Hermione.
"Hogwarts would be safer, but it's a school, not a home," Luna said.
"So we're celebrating Christmas here?" Ron asked.
"Yes," Mum answered. "Everyone's coming. Well, everyone but Bill, Fleur, Petunia and Sirius."
"They're not coming?" Ron was surprised.
"Last we knew, they were still being chased by Storm Wizards."
Harry entered and got hugged before he could say more than 'Hello', and by the time he had been filled in, everyone was in the living room.
"...and we wanted to take a Skinwalker with us, but the most recent bounty hunter spooked them." Luna pouted. "They thought the bounty hunters were after them, you know?"
Given what Ron knew about Skinwalkers and their hunting habits, that was to be expected, in his opinion. "Ah," he said, nodding. If only his little sister wouldn't take so many risks! But trying to tell her to play it safe would only make her take more risks. Not that he had much of a right to complain as a Curse-Breaker, of course.
"So, you found Atlantis?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Harry replied.
"Well, part of it - we found a cavern with the island's main temple which had been protected during the sinking of Atlantis," Hermione elaborated. "Although the population didn't survive."
"Oh… so, they weren't living under the sea, having adapted to breathing water?" Luna asked with a pout.
"That theory has been disproved," Hermione replied.
"Are you sure?" Luna wrinkled her forehead. "You found one cavern, but there could be more, and in one, Atlanteans could have survived!"
Ron winced, knowing what was coming.
"Yes, I'm sure," Hermione said. "The Atlanteans weren't killed when their island sunk, but before, when the souls and spirits of their victims used the power of their last 'Grand Sacrifice' to kill them all."
"Blood magic?" Ginny asked.
"Yes," Harry cut in. "We found the bodies left by the ritual."
"Merlin's beard!" Mum exclaimed. "That must have been horrible."
"Not until the Storm Wizards did another blood ritual and turned all of them into Inferi," Ari said. "Including a dead dragon Kohlmeier had brought with him."
"Just how many Inferi were there?" Mum asked, narrowing her eyes.
Ron winced again. Perhaps they should have been a little less vague in their letters.
*****
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 24th, 2001
For a Christmas Eve at Grimmauld Place, it was a very Weasley event. Not that Hermione Granger minded that, of course - the Weasleys were very good friends. Practically family. Still, it felt a little weird to celebrate Christmas here with them without Petunia and Sirius being present. While it was her home, as she had been repeatedly told by everyone else living here since she had moved in after Hogwarts, the two older tomb raiders were part of what made it home.
Although, she added to herself as she watched Ginny, currently covered in fluffy red fur with matching tail and ears, chase the twins, her wand spitting hexes and jinxes, the Weasleys certainly could provide an equally lively celebration.
"It was our gift to Luna, Gin-gin! We know how much she likes anim-OW!"
"I'll show you an animal!"
"No! Flobby needs his sleep or he gets cranky!"
"George! Fred! Ginny! Stop that at once!"
Perhaps even more lively, she amended her thoughts - Sirius knew better than to go so far, after all. And Petunia certainly was a better influence on him than Alicia and Angelina were on the twins.
But it was safe. Endearing. Home. Sitting on her favourite couch, she leaned into Harry's side and sighed contentedly. No one was trying to kill them. No horde of Inferi was gathering outside the wardline.
"Look, Charlie, I didn't exactly stop and count the ridges on the horns, alright? Not before it got its head blown off. So I can't tell you the exact kind of breed, just that it looked like a Horntail. A rotting, dead Horntail." And the visiting dragon handler wasn't bothering her or Harry with questions that made her remember that awful fight. That had to have been Molly's doing - she had taken Charlie aside as soon as he had arrived earlier today. Apparently, Ron wasn't covered, though. And Ari liked telling the tale.
Well, to each their own. She tried not to think of the fact that her parents were still away from England, in hiding because of the bounty hunters after her. They would have spent the next day at the Grangers', otherwise.
A soft chime alerted them to a new arrival in the entrance hall. "I'll be right back!" Harry said, standing up so quickly, she was jolted aside. Crookshanks, who had been napping on her lap, made his displeasure known with a loud yowl.
"Sorry!" Harry yelled.
She smiled. "It's OK." He knew that it would be Arthur and Percy - they would have finished working by now - but Petunia and the others might be coming back as well, now that they knew about Kohlmeier's death.
He nodded and left the living room. A minute later, he returned, Arthur and Percy in tow. Which meant Molly would finish dinner soon, now that everyone who had been expected had arrived.
And, Hermione knew from long experience, Ron's mum was certainly a much better cook than anyone else in the house. Which included Kreacher.
*****
"...and the Aurors still haven't ascertained who supplied the information to the bounty hunters who attacked The Burrow." Percy shook his head as he picked up his glass. "Of course, Humphrey Kettlebrook's surprising decision to quit his position at the Floo Network Authority and emigrate to the New World makes him the main suspect. Though without him or his financial records to prove it..."
Hermione Granger nodded. And without the wizard, any proof would be useless anyway - for legal purposes.
"Let's put a price on his head! See how he likes having bounty hunters chase him!" Ari said with a pronounced growl while she had thirds of Molly's excellent roast.
"That would make us more than a little hypocritical," Hermione pointed out, "after everything we tried to stop the bounty hunters coming after us."
"I can live with that," Ron said, with a shrug and a wide grin.
She pursed her lips and glanced at Harry. It would be his money, or Sirius's, after all.
Harry spread his hands. "Let's put that on the back burner for now. We've got more urgent things to do."
"Such as securing our claim to the Atlantis site, of course," Hermione added.
"The ICW won't be in session over the holidays," Percy said. "Granted, your discovery is so important, they probably would hold a special session - but it would take time to convince enough members, even for Dumbledore."
And probably some political capital or favours as well, Hermione knew. Both of which would be better spent on the actual issue: Who would control Atlantis's remains? Of course, it had been a British expedition which discovered the site, but there were geographical and historical claims to the island as well, which would be made no matter how flimsy. "I think we can wait a few more days," she said, even though she didn't want to. "It's Christmas, after all."
"Yes," Molly agreed. "There's no need to talk about such things when we should be celebrating!"
"When we should be eating pudding!" Luna added with a wide smile. "Flobby hasn't tasted treacle tart before, and I'm sure he'll love it!"
"'Flobby'?" Percy asked.
"The Feathered Manta Ray we found in California!" Luna announced. "He's still a baby - his wingspan's barely three yards."
"Indeed," her father said with a proud smile, "Adult Feathered Manta Rays have an average wingspan of ten yards. It'll all be in the holiday issue of The Quibbler!"
Three yards, as everyone found out as soon as Luna opened her enchanted bag, was quite large already. Especially inside the house.
*****
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 25th, 2001
"Auntie! Sirius!" Harry Potter rushed to hug them both, heedless of their soot-covered robes. "You made it!"
"Of course we did!" Sirius beamed. "Wouldn't miss Christmas with you, would we?"
Of course they would, Harry knew - if they thought it would keep him and his friends safe. But they were here.
"We got your letter, which explained the absence of Storm Wizards," Auntie said, patting his back. "So we packed up and returned to Britain."
"Via France," Sirius explained. "Bill and Fleur are staying with the Delacours, but they'll visit tomorrow."
"Remus is at Hogwarts," Harry told him after he had let them go.
His godfather frowned. "I'll fetch him later. He should know better."
"He said he had to supervise the students staying at school over the holidays," Harry said. Both of them knew, though, that that was just an excuse - Remus still felt like a guest at Grimmauld Place.
"I'll sort him out." Sirius snorted. "Now, tell me all about your discovery!"
Harry didn't wince. He might have been a little economical with the details in his letter, but they would expect that. And understand. He hoped. "That'll take a while. Let's sit down!"
*****
"...and then we decided to fly back to England," Harry Potter said before taking a sip from his drink.
Auntie and Sirius looked, well, serious now.
"It was the safest course of action," Hermione added.
"For a change," Auntie remarked dryly. Very dryly.
She wouldn't appreciate quotes from Bill about danger being part of the job, as Harry knew very well. He shrugged. "We didn't exactly have many alternatives to fighting."
"And we won!" Ari added with a smile.
"And we wouldn't have had to fight at all if Mr Mallory hadn't been a traitor," Hermione pointed out.
"I think Albus needs a reminder that people change as they grow older," Auntie said with an angry twist to her lips. "He can't keep judging them according to how they acted as kids."
"We should have been a little more suspicious," Harry admitted. "But Mallory was smart about it."
"And he was betrayed as well," Ron said. "It worked out in the end."
"This time," Auntie said.
Harry nodded, suppressing a wince. "Anyway," he said, "now all we need is Dumbledore to sort out the official stuff about our discovery."
"And to deal with the Inferi," Hermione added. "We've got a few ideas, but they'll take quite some time to implement, and we hope he has a better solution for that problem."
"He better have." Judging by Auntie 's expression, that would be the least the Headmaster could do to make up for referring them to Mallory.
*****
London, No 12 Grimmauld Place, December 26th, 2001
"...and then we flew back to England in our Range Rover."
Ron Weasley nodded as Harry finished. That had been the third time in three days he had heard Harry tell their story, but that couldn't be helped - and they would have to tell the story a lot more often once they went public with their discovery. Perhaps he wouldn't remember the battles so intensely by then. He hoped so, at least.
"My apologies, Harry. Miss Granger. Mr Weasley. Miss Ari." Dumbledore sighed. "Once more, it seems, my own mistakes have endangered you and yours."
"Yes," Petunia said, glaring at the Headmaster. "I told you before that people change as they grow older!"
"Yes, you did." Dumbledore sighed again. "To think Matthias would stoop to using blood magic… Fighting fire with fire usually leaves you burned. I thought he would be smarter than that."
Ron managed not to grimace - they hadn't gone into details about their own use of blood magic, but the Headmaster would have guessed anyway.
"There are different…" Hermione started, but a nudge from Harry shut her up. This wasn't the time to discuss the finer points of sacrificial magic and self-sacrificial magic.
"So, how do you think the ICW will handle our discovery?" Harry said.
Dumbledore took a deep breath, one hand brushing his beard. "It's quite the conundrum. The bottom of the Puerto Rico Trench is effectively terra nullius - unclaimed land. Puerto Rico will probably contest this, claiming it's part of their territorial waters - Don Carlos is remarkably flexible when it comes to using muggle concepts as long as it benefits his country - even though they have no realistic means of actually taking control of the area unless you help them. Still, he might get support from other Caribbean nations in exchange for concessions. Then there's the British claim - your group could be seen as a British expedition; therefore, our country could lay claim to the ruins of Atlantis, at least the habitable parts of it. However, Miss Ari and Matthias's involvement might lead to others contesting this. Magical Brazil might put forth that Ari is a citizen."
Ari scoffed. "My tribe does not belong to any country!" With a sneer, she added: "And I was disowned anyway when we made the discovery."
"And Mallory betrayed us," Ron pointed out.
"That will be contested as well," Dumbledore replied. "With only your testimony for his crimes, Florida might argue that it wasn't proven and therefore they have a claim as well. Even Prussia might follow that example using Miss Kraft."
"What?" Ron blurted out. "That's…"
"Stupid!" Ari snarled.
"Politics often is stupid, my dear," Dumbledore replied.
"We could use your Pensieve, sir," Harry pointed out.
"Leaving aside the logistics of providing others access to it, I fear that they will claim that Miss Kraft and Matthias were under the Imperius Curse." He sighed. "I foresee a lively session once your discovery is announced." He cleared his throat. "However, I think we should deal with the Inferi before that. Their presence might mean, at least technically, that the cavern could be judged as a danger to the neighbouring nations requiring an international intervention - with the subsequent control of the area by the forces involved." He smiled. "Of course, I'm also looking forward to visiting the ruins before they become the subject of international politics."
A sentiment, Ron realised as he looked around and saw the expression of everyone present, shared by the others. Even Mum seemed interested. The twins looked ready to go right now, and Luna and Ginny…
Well, no better time for a family trip than the holidays, right?
*****
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