Grindelwald was not in the house when we woke up; he had probably already headed out to the spots he mentioned before. Was I curious about it? Yes. But he was right; secrets are something that can save lives, so I was going to wait patiently and without questions.
"Want me to make some breakfast?" I asked, gently stroking Quincy's hair, who looked a bit tired, opening her eyes, but at least she smiled without me feeling that it was forced.
"That does sound good... but let's make it together!"
"Even better~!" I nodded while climbing off the couch, stretching, and cracking some of my joints before heading for the kitchen. We didn't go for anything fancy, so with a little scrambling in our holding bags, we pulled out some eggs and bacon, ready to fry.
"I do miss Hogwarts... The kitchen, there was... something else!" Quincy sighed as we sat down to eat.
"Agreed! Helga Hufflepuff and her recipe are something that nobody can stand up to, and honestly speaking, it would be an irresponsible thing to ask for.
"Why?" Asked a voice, and when we turned to the door, it was Grindelwald walking in, patting down his coat while looking at us. "Don't let that mindset fester and take root within you, young ones. It is bad."
"What do you mean?" Quincy asked while I was munching on a slice of bacon, curiously watching him.
"Thinking that you can't live up to someone is the downfall of every mage. The thought that you can never be like some old, dead, but famous wizard is nothing but setting limits for yourself. The more you think, 'Oh, I can't do that because I am not XYZ,' the more you drift away from a successful life. It is nothing more than boxing yourself in. You are putting up limits and barriers that you will never break through and, in the end, fail as a wizard."
"Barriers..." I murmured, feeling I was resonating with his words the more I was hearing him speak.
"Ancestors and powerful wizards of the old time are to be respected, yes, but to give their achievements a rank that is not to be reached by us? That is the idea of a weak mind, finding excuses for their lack of abilities and motivation. Never fall into that quagmire, or you will sink to the bottom, never to rise to the top."
"Yes." We answered, taking his teachings to heart.
He was right... we can look up to the founders of Hogwarts, but why shouldn't we think more of ourselves? Why couldn't we become someone like them? Or even better? I bet Lord Voldemort was also thinking of the same, that he was stronger than his ancestor, Salazar Slytherin.
"He is thinking that." Herpo answered me within my mind, surprising me for a moment. Usually, he gives me the silent treatment. Is he jealous of our new mentor? Heh, maybe that is why he speaks more nowadays. Well, I think Grindelwald caught the brief change in my eyes but, like before, didn't ask about it. "And by achievements," Herpo continued, "I think we can say Voldemort is stronger than Grindelwald or Salazar in different regards. In the dark arts, HE beats even my old self! What Grindelwald is saying is something all ambitious people should heed. Do better. Be better. Overcome your predecessors. That's how we evolve."
"After you finish, we must go through some things." Grindelwald resumed, leaning forward. "Durmstrang only accepts pure-blood wizards and witches."
"We both qualify." I answered, but he raised a hand, continuing.
"I know, and I am saying it to ensure you both carry yourself with ample pride. Show a crooked back or a lack of will, and you will be exposed. Here, you must be strong, or you will be broken."
"Are we... moving in?" Quincy asked, feeling a bit weird, but her question made Grindelwald smile.
"Yes. While you slept, I went ahead and checked the town of Valdemar. Luckily, the old tricks are remained the same, and we can apparate without being noticed. They still did not fix the holes I left behind... Other than that, I have news that they lost multiple teachers after the incident with the Tournament."
"Lost?" We asked, looking at each other with confusion. What happened?
"They quit and are actively boycotting Karkaroff. Not everyone within the school agrees with the Headmaster's ideas, so a divide is forming. It is not big, but it is a crack that we can expand to a breaking point. We will take on the identity of Miroslav Smirnov; well, I will take on that, and you two will be my children, Alexander and Alexandra."
"Who is that? Or is it made up?" Quincy asked, making him shake his head with a smile.
"No. Miroslav was my Uncle's name on my mother's side. I will stand in as his descendant, and if they test my blood, it won't show that I lie because the family tie is truly there. Only I need to pass the test, as after that, my rank of a pureblood and having a family name that counted as noble in my region would make it so that examining you two would be a significant offense."
"What if they go and check up with others?"
"The Smirnov line is already broken. So they can search but won't find it past my Uncle. That can be easily explained with a little bit of forgery on my part. We can still go on the offensive route if they don't buy it, but I'd like to do it the subtle way. Then we will have more time to collect everything... Karkaroff is not in a position to be picky. If they do the usual background checking and only look up the family name and see the Smirnovs' connection to me, he would most likely assume I would align with his views and support him. In a time of need, you don't chase away an ally."
"Which we will play along with..." I chuckled, making him smile.
"Yes. There is only a slight problem..."
"Which is?" Quincy asked, leaning forward, looking curious about the rest of the plan.
"The age. I look and feel way too old. They would be suspicious that I am a descendant even if my blood shows the connection and validates my words. I am still thinking about what type of potion would make it possible to fool their magic devices."
"A polyjuice potion is not enough, I assume?" Quincy shrugged, making Grindelwald shake his head, but that made me think of something else.
"No. The age of the blood and the bones within needs to be rejuvenated to fool them."
"What about this?" I rummaged in my bag, pulling out Flamel's famous elixir.
"That is...?" Grindelwald asked as he took it from me, stopping his hand mid-air after seeing the liquid flash in the morning sun's rays, coming in from behind. "..."
"You know what it is?" I asked with surprise, but he shook his head.
"No. Never seen it, but I read about it. How do you have it?"
"It was part of the final task." I explained, telling him all that we knew. "Drink it; I don't mind losing that stupid competition."
"Yeah!" Quincy agreed, and after a bit of thinking, he pulled the cork out.
Strawberry. That was what I thought about after we tasted the smell coming from the small vial, quickly filling the room.
"Most poisons are masked behind a sweet scent." He joked, but before I could say anything, he downed it.
The effect was immediate. We watched as his hair regained its golden-brown color and many of the wrinkles on his face smoothened out at once. He didn't become a kid or young man, but instead of looking like an ancient old man, he appeared more like someone in his forties. Or fifties.
"How... refreshing..." He murmured, raising his hand, looking at it, letting out a long sigh, and turning towards us with a smile, "My debt is getting higher and higher, young ones. Thank you."
...
....
.....
"Dumbledore..." Came a knock, and after an acknowledging grunt, Lupin walked into his room, nervously playing with his fingers.
"What happened this time for you to be this nervous?" The old wizard asked calmly, but Lupin could feel the tiredness and annoyance in that voice. Usually, it was masked and hidden away, even from his werewolf instincts, but this time, he could sense it.
"The cup, the TriWizard cup... it announced a winner... Conrad Anguine."
"I see. No matter; the other living contestant was Krum, and he wouldn't go and follow his instincts to find the kids. No matter. This was within expectations."
"Where could they have used it..." Lupin murmured, but it was just a weak attempt to draw some information out of Dumbledore without any success.
"I have a strong guess, but it is not important. Is Sirius back?"
"Yes, he is." Lupin nodded, not knowing why he and Sirius were both called back at the same time.
"Call him in. I need to tell him some important news, and it is best if you stay to hear it."
"Is Regulus... dead?" Lupin asked, going whiter than usual, feeling his throat dry up, and the way Dumbledore looked at him confirmed his gut feeling.
"You are just as sharp as Charlie was..."
"Was...? What happened...?" He faltered as this was the type of news he didn't expect. They were with McGonagall and Mad-Eye Moody! What could have led to their deaths?
...
....
.....
Multiple hundreds of miles away, someone else was also reading some news that shocked her. Hermione was sitting alone in the library, way beyond bedtime, reading the collection of hundreds of newspapers Colin gave her the previous morning. The privilege of being one of the top students, with special access and rules, allowed her to stay as long as needed, especially now when she wouldn't want anyone to interrupt her.
"I can't believe it..." She whispered, reading the old news of the fact that the Anguine family was accused of being blood traitors of the highest order.
There were multiple headlines about it, snippets of the gruesome details, and finally, the confession of Angus Anguine himself and the subsequent judgments. She felt sick... sick to the stomach after reading what he had to do and how the Daily Prophet celebrated it as justice and saving an old noble family from degradation.
"It had to be a lie..." She whispered as she thought about what was being said about the Anguines. She vividly remembered, and those smuggled out of England confirmed her memories that it was the same man, Angus Anguine, who helped them escape... To survive. The same man who made sure her and many others' parents were out of harm's way. "There is more to this!"
She didn't know what it was, but she was sure that it had to be connected to the Order. Even the latest issues of the Daily Prophet said that the betrayal of the Anguine family was Dumbledore's work.
"Conrad... Quincy..." She repeated softly, watching their pictures in the newspaper, remembering their words.
Both sides marked them as traitors and listed them as dangerous fugitives. Why? Why was that? Didn't his father dueled and almost killed the Dark Lord? Didn't he sacrifice himself? Then... why is his son being hunted? And why is the Black brothers' daughter also on the same list? This wasn't adding up, and when she felt her head hurt, Hermione couldn't help but begin doubting.
"Something is not right with the Order..."
Grindelwald was not in the house when we woke up; he had probably already headed out to the spots he mentioned before. Was I curious about it? Yes. But he was right; secrets are something that can save lives, so I was going to wait patiently and without questions.
"Want me to make some breakfast?" I asked, gently stroking Quincy's hair, who looked a bit tired, opening her eyes, but at least she smiled without me feeling that it was forced.
"That does sound good... but let's make it together!"
"Even better~!" I nodded while climbing off the couch, stretching, and cracking some of my joints before heading for the kitchen. We didn't go for anything fancy, so with a little scrambling in our holding bags, we pulled out some eggs and bacon, ready to fry.
"I do miss Hogwarts... The kitchen, there was... something else!" Quincy sighed as we sat down to eat.
"Agreed! Helga Hufflepuff and her recipe are something that nobody can stand up to, and honestly speaking, it would be an irresponsible thing to ask for.
"Why?" Asked a voice, and when we turned to the door, it was Grindelwald walking in, patting down his coat while looking at us. "Don't let that mindset fester and take root within you, young ones. It is bad."
"What do you mean?" Quincy asked while I was munching on a slice of bacon, curiously watching him.
"Thinking that you can't live up to someone is the downfall of every mage. The thought that you can never be like some old, dead, but famous wizard is nothing but setting limits for yourself. The more you think, 'Oh, I can't do that because I am not XYZ,' the more you drift away from a successful life. It is nothing more than boxing yourself in. You are putting up limits and barriers that you will never break through and, in the end, fail as a wizard."
"Barriers..." I murmured, feeling I was resonating with his words the more I was hearing him speak.
"Ancestors and powerful wizards of the old time are to be respected, yes, but to give their achievements a rank that is not to be reached by us? That is the idea of a weak mind, finding excuses for their lack of abilities and motivation. Never fall into that quagmire, or you will sink to the bottom, never to rise to the top."
"Yes." We answered, taking his teachings to heart.
He was right... we can look up to the founders of Hogwarts, but why shouldn't we think more of ourselves? Why couldn't we become someone like them? Or even better? I bet Lord Voldemort was also thinking of the same, that he was stronger than his ancestor, Salazar Slytherin.
"He is thinking that." Herpo answered me within my mind, surprising me for a moment. Usually, he gives me the silent treatment. Is he jealous of our new mentor? Heh, maybe that is why he speaks more nowadays. Well, I think Grindelwald caught the brief change in my eyes but, like before, didn't ask about it. "And by achievements," Herpo continued, "I think we can say Voldemort is stronger than Grindelwald or Salazar in different regards. In the dark arts, HE beats even my old self! What Grindelwald is saying is something all ambitious people should heed. Do better. Be better. Overcome your predecessors. That's how we evolve."
"After you finish, we must go through some things." Grindelwald resumed, leaning forward. "Durmstrang only accepts pure-blood wizards and witches."
"We both qualify." I answered, but he raised a hand, continuing.
"I know, and I am saying it to ensure you both carry yourself with ample pride. Show a crooked back or a lack of will, and you will be exposed. Here, you must be strong, or you will be broken."
"Are we... moving in?" Quincy asked, feeling a bit weird, but her question made Grindelwald smile.
"Yes. While you slept, I went ahead and checked the town of Valdemar. Luckily, the old tricks are remained the same, and we can apparate without being noticed. They still did not fix the holes I left behind... Other than that, I have news that they lost multiple teachers after the incident with the Tournament."
"Lost?" We asked, looking at each other with confusion. What happened?
"They quit and are actively boycotting Karkaroff. Not everyone within the school agrees with the Headmaster's ideas, so a divide is forming. It is not big, but it is a crack that we can expand to a breaking point. We will take on the identity of Miroslav Smirnov; well, I will take on that, and you two will be my children, Alexander and Alexandra."
"Who is that? Or is it made up?" Quincy asked, making him shake his head with a smile.
"No. Miroslav was my Uncle's name on my mother's side. I will stand in as his descendant, and if they test my blood, it won't show that I lie because the family tie is truly there. Only I need to pass the test, as after that, my rank of a pureblood and having a family name that counted as noble in my region would make it so that examining you two would be a significant offense."
"What if they go and check up with others?"
"The Smirnov line is already broken. So they can search but won't find it past my Uncle. That can be easily explained with a little bit of forgery on my part. We can still go on the offensive route if they don't buy it, but I'd like to do it the subtle way. Then we will have more time to collect everything... Karkaroff is not in a position to be picky. If they do the usual background checking and only look up the family name and see the Smirnovs' connection to me, he would most likely assume I would align with his views and support him. In a time of need, you don't chase away an ally."
"Which we will play along with..." I chuckled, making him smile.
"Yes. There is only a slight problem..."
"Which is?" Quincy asked, leaning forward, looking curious about the rest of the plan.
"The age. I look and feel way too old. They would be suspicious that I am a descendant even if my blood shows the connection and validates my words. I am still thinking about what type of potion would make it possible to fool their magic devices."
"A polyjuice potion is not enough, I assume?" Quincy shrugged, making Grindelwald shake his head, but that made me think of something else.
"No. The age of the blood and the bones within needs to be rejuvenated to fool them."
"What about this?" I rummaged in my bag, pulling out Flamel's famous elixir.
"That is...?" Grindelwald asked as he took it from me, stopping his hand mid-air after seeing the liquid flash in the morning sun's rays, coming in from behind. "..."
"You know what it is?" I asked with surprise, but he shook his head.
"No. Never seen it, but I read about it. How do you have it?"
"It was part of the final task." I explained, telling him all that we knew. "Drink it; I don't mind losing that stupid competition."
"Yeah!" Quincy agreed, and after a bit of thinking, he pulled the cork out.
Strawberry. That was what I thought about after we tasted the smell coming from the small vial, quickly filling the room.
"Most poisons are masked behind a sweet scent." He joked, but before I could say anything, he downed it.
The effect was immediate. We watched as his hair regained its golden-brown color and many of the wrinkles on his face smoothened out at once. He didn't become a kid or young man, but instead of looking like an ancient old man, he appeared more like someone in his forties. Or fifties.
"How... refreshing..." He murmured, raising his hand, looking at it, letting out a long sigh, and turning towards us with a smile, "My debt is getting higher and higher, young ones. Thank you."
...
....
.....
"Dumbledore..." Came a knock, and after an acknowledging grunt, Lupin walked into his room, nervously playing with his fingers.
"What happened this time for you to be this nervous?" The old wizard asked calmly, but Lupin could feel the tiredness and annoyance in that voice. Usually, it was masked and hidden away, even from his werewolf instincts, but this time, he could sense it.
"The cup, the TriWizard cup... it announced a winner... Conrad Anguine."
"I see. No matter; the other living contestant was Krum, and he wouldn't go and follow his instincts to find the kids. No matter. This was within expectations."
"Where could they have used it..." Lupin murmured, but it was just a weak attempt to draw some information out of Dumbledore without any success.
"I have a strong guess, but it is not important. Is Sirius back?"
"Yes, he is." Lupin nodded, not knowing why he and Sirius were both called back at the same time.
"Call him in. I need to tell him some important news, and it is best if you stay to hear it."
"Is Regulus... dead?" Lupin asked, going whiter than usual, feeling his throat dry up, and the way Dumbledore looked at him confirmed his gut feeling.
"You are just as sharp as Charlie was..."
"Was...? What happened...?" He faltered as this was the type of news he didn't expect. They were with McGonagall and Mad-Eye Moody! What could have led to their deaths?
...
....
.....
Multiple hundreds of miles away, someone else was also reading some news that shocked her. Hermione was sitting alone in the library, way beyond bedtime, reading the collection of hundreds of newspapers Colin gave her the previous morning. The privilege of being one of the top students, with special access and rules, allowed her to stay as long as needed, especially now when she wouldn't want anyone to interrupt her.
"I can't believe it..." She whispered, reading the old news of the fact that the Anguine family was accused of being blood traitors of the highest order.
There were multiple headlines about it, snippets of the gruesome details, and finally, the confession of Angus Anguine himself and the subsequent judgments. She felt sick... sick to the stomach after reading what he had to do and how the Daily Prophet celebrated it as justice and saving an old noble family from degradation.
"It had to be a lie..." She whispered as she thought about what was being said about the Anguines. She vividly remembered, and those smuggled out of England confirmed her memories that it was the same man, Angus Anguine, who helped them escape... To survive. The same man who made sure her and many others' parents were out of harm's way. "There is more to this!"
She didn't know what it was, but she was sure that it had to be connected to the Order. Even the latest issues of the Daily Prophet said that the betrayal of the Anguine family was Dumbledore's work.
"Conrad... Quincy..." She repeated softly, watching their pictures in the newspaper, remembering their words.
Both sides marked them as traitors and listed them as dangerous fugitives. Why? Why was that? Didn't his father dueled and almost killed the Dark Lord? Didn't he sacrifice himself? Then... why is his son being hunted? And why is the Black brothers' daughter also on the same list? This wasn't adding up, and when she felt her head hurt, Hermione couldn't help but begin doubting.
"Something is not right with the Order..."
