A walk through London — particularly under Muggle-Repelling Charms — was a rather singular experience. Beyond that, the I-phoenix frequently transported our modest party from one end of the city to the other, since interesting or simply pleasing sights were, unfortunately, not all concentrated in the same neighbourhood.
It was quite amusing to watch what Daphne and Pansy took to and what they didn't. The things they disliked they walked past with an air of perfect self-sufficiency and dignity, while a moment later they would pretend to have absolutely no interest in whatever that statue was over there, or that building, or that large shop whose windows displayed an ocean of women's shoes in every conceivable style. Or certain landmarks. Or the view of Big Ben and the Palace of Westminster as a whole.
Westminster Abbey was not to be missed either — especially as we happened to be right by it, examining the Palace from various angles while trying not to be entirely swept away by the crowds milling around.
— Too many people, — Pansy observed, fairly. — From horizon to horizon — people, and all those cars.
— I quite agree, — Daphne nodded, as we came out onto Victoria Street for a look at the Abbey from the west entrance. That side is the one that comes to mind when the building is mentioned.
Reaching the west doors, we naturally encountered a gift shop — one can't escape those. But we spent most of the time looking at the façade.
— Hm... — Daphne studied the details thoughtfully, her hand in mine. — Doesn't this remind you of something?
— You know, it does, — Pansy was also examining the exterior of the old building. — It's rather like Hogwarts.
— In the interest of historical accuracy, — I decided to contribute to the discussion. — Hogwarts was built in the manner of a monastery. There weren't many architectural options at the time, and common features will inevitably show through. Though Westminster Abbey was built somewhat later than our school...
— All those stained-glass windows, the niches, — Daphne gestured toward them, — the arches... Almost identical.
— Yes, — I agreed. — And if we went inside, we'd see familiar vaulted ceilings, columns, walls. A similar inner courtyard, arcades, corridors. There's a display board with photographs over there...
We approached a board by the railings, covered with photographs and invitations to services held there.
— There really is something in that, — Pansy voiced the thought they were all sharing.
— Hogwarts, essentially, — I was drawing on the occasional explanations Tamsin, a history enthusiast, had offered on the subject — is not a castle in the conventional sense, nor a fortress. It's several monasteries joined to a keep, the whole thing lightly fortified. Beauxbatons, by contrast, is designed as several palaces behind a crenellated wall with towers — palaces in the sense of grand houses, not castles. Durmstrang, from what I could gather from the sparse descriptions of its students, is a typical fortified castle, simply a very large one. Shall we go in?
— Absolutely not, — the girls objected in their separate ways, both smiling.
— There are those who say, — Daphne continued the thought, — that the Church and wizardkind have had no quarrel with one another for over a hundred years now. But I'm not quite ready for such a radical change of habit.
— Hm, — I sighed, with a smile. — And yet we celebrate Christmas, Easter, various other Christian holidays, alongside a couple of pagan ones...
— Yes, yes, we're odd and we know it, — Daphne steered me away from the Abbey.
A couple of blocks on, we entered the grounds of a vast park and simply walked along the paths, over a little bridge across a small lake, talking about this and that. Not a leaf yet on the trees, though the grass was making tentative efforts to grow through. The end of February — the last days of winter technically — but no frost to speak of. This sort of weather would last practically the whole of March. An eternal autumn, that was how it always felt to me, whatever the calendar said.
From the girls' expressions I could tell they had walked their fill and taken in enough to be going on with, and were now quietly trying to process it all. Pansy mentioned, briefly, that she'd been to ordinary cities before as a young child with her parents, but remembered only a general impression. Daphne lived, as she'd put it, somewhat off the beaten track — near a small suburb or whatever one called it — and had a general sense of the ordinary world; at least she hadn't needed instruction on crossing at traffic lights.
It was well past lunchtime, and something to eat was in order — but that was better done somewhere familiar. So I concealed us with a charm, the I-phoenix transported us to the back yard of the Leaky Cauldron, and we quickly tapped open the passage to Diagon Alley, making our way along the magical street toward Fortescue's.
There weren't many wizards on Diagon Alley, and the atmosphere had something flat and cheerless about it. Even those who had made the effort to come out weren't wearing anything bright or flamboyant. More wanted notices had gone up on the walls of the shops. Everything seemed to be draining of colour, slowly — not entirely yet — and the grey weather only deepened the effect.
We entered the café, which was about a third full, and found a free table by the window. The girls settled into their chairs with evident pleasure, and it was clear that only now did they realise how much their feet ached after half a day of walking. Our order — which contained not a gram of ice cream — was taken promptly and promised in a couple of minutes.
— It's rather amusing, — I said, glancing out the window. — Because this café is so famous for its ice cream, many people assume that's all they serve.
Daphne smiled faintly and unwound her thin scarf — nobody was inclined to remove their outer coats, and this was no less true of the other patrons than it was of us.
— There is also, — she added, — the fact that the establishment is called Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.
— Which probably compounds the confusion somewhat.
— Probably, — both girls agreed.
The order arrived shortly, and we ate at a leisurely pace, talking as we went, the girls sharing their impressions of the outing. Mixed at first, then settling into something more positive.
— It was the fumes, — Pansy noted, with some authority. — They hit you rather hard at first when you're not used to them, didn't they, Daph?
— I can't say I noticed much difference, to be honest, — Daphne shrugged. — We do live, more or less, in a town.
— And too many people, — Pansy added.
— As if Diagon Alley has fewer, — I smiled, turning toward them. — In August, particularly.
— It's one thing when people descend on the shops in droves a couple of times a year, and quite another when it's every single day. How many people live in London?
— Well... — I couldn't recall having read any population statistics. — Around seven million, I think. Maybe eight.
Pansy made a sound somewhere between a grunt and a sigh at that figure. Daphne simply went on eating, relaxed.
— On the whole, it was a very pleasant outing, — Pansy concluded her thought. — I even got a few ideas for enchantments, or calculations for new charms.
Looking out the window again, I exhaled quietly. The wizards outside were tense and drawn, trying not to look at anything and moving as fast as possible toward wherever they were going.
Some noise from outside — outside my field of vision — put me on edge, and a moment later several wizards came sprinting along the street, quite clearly running from something.
— I think it's time we left, — I said immediately, standing up and leaving payment on the table.
— What's happened? — Daphne asked at once, worried, and Pansy tensed too.
— Looks like something has.
Wand out, I stepped out of the café and looked around. A brawl of some kind in Knockturn Alley — flashes of light at irregular intervals, the distinct crack of spells, explosions, shouting. The other wizards on the street were already making themselves scarce, scattering in every direction. Right in front of the entrance to Knockturn, five wizards in red robes Apparated in.
Daphne and Pansy stepped up beside me, and I held out my hand.
— Take hold— but the words weren't necessary. The girls had already understood.
A powerful explosive curse came flying into the group of Aurors as they were preparing to enter Knockturn. They managed to throw up some form of shield — which was the only reason they weren't obliterated — but they were scattered across the street like skittles. The dust and stone fragments from the blast very nearly reached us, but I covered us with a Protego Totalum dome.
The I-phoenix materialised beside us, invisible and hidden from everyone, and immediately began transporting us away. Before we left I caught a glimpse of some rough-looking figures with wands spilling out of Knockturn, with expressions that made their intentions quite clear — but that was no longer my concern.
A moment, and we were standing in a narrow gap between two houses in Hogsmeade. The normal noise of voices surrounded us; students were still out in force, wandering into shops, doing what they ought to be doing. The abrupt change of scene prompted a slight smile from me. The girls exhaled, with tension.
— Lovely afternoon in a café, that was, — Pansy brushed non-existent dust from her coat.
— We could carry on at the Three Broomsticks, — Daphne offered.
— No, no — the two of you go wherever you like. I should probably spend what's left of the afternoon the way a prefect is supposed to... Hmm... Though, what could possibly happen here? See you back at Hogwarts.
Pansy slipped away promptly, merging into a passing stream of students.
— She's most likely, — Daphne said with a quiet smirk, making no move to release my hand, — going off to write another letter to her parents with the usual report, and a mention of the incident on Diagon Alley.
We stepped out from between the houses and walked toward Hogwarts — there was nothing left to do in Hogsmeade, and nothing anyone wanted to buy; we had everything in abundance as it was.
— What do you think happened back there?
Daphne looked troubled by what we'd seen on Diagon Alley, which was understandable. For my part, I couldn't recall having heard of any clash or combat operation taking place on that street before. Knockturn Alley, occasionally — but even there, extremely rarely, if the newspaper clippings and articles over the years were anything to go by. Of course, not every skirmish would be made public, but still.
— Perhaps the Aurors cornered someone, — I answered. — Or possibly the DMLE and the Auror Office have tightened the screws a bit too hard, as the saying goes.
— That's quite possible. My parents used to discuss the Dark Lord's methods during the last war...
Daphne fell quiet, seemingly searching for the right words. Or perhaps it was because a group of third-years went laughing past us — still nowhere near tired of their Hogsmeade visits.
— ...According to them, he often made use of large numbers of wizards and creatures from the lowest levels of society.
— That follows. Revolutions and power seizures of various kinds tend to attract the disaffected, the dispossessed, criminals, and those who simply see it as the only way out of whatever hole they're in.
— Doesn't it worry you that all these less-than-reputable wizards might throw their support behind the Dark Lord?
— No, Daphne. Does it worry you?
— Honestly, I don't even know what I ought to be worrying about any more. Everything around us is becoming too... unsettling. Too uncertain.
We reached Hogwarts and entered the entrance hall, where we found a furious Hermione pacing back and forth and ignoring entirely the few students making their way back into the castle or simply passing through.
— Hector! — my sister spotted us and made straight for us.
Whatever was bothering her, it didn't appear to be me or anything I'd done.
— Hello, Mione. What's happened? — I shifted to a more serious register.
— Oh, hello... Could I have a word?
Daphne gave Hermione a restrained smile.
— Talk, — and to me she gave a slightly warmer one, which did something small but real for my ego. — I'm quite exhausted anyway, and I'd like to freshen up after the outing.
Daphne headed off toward the main staircase, and Hermione drew me a little aside, glanced around, and cast a privacy charm.
— You won't believe it!
— What is it?
— That idiot told Harry everything!
— Which idiot specifically?
— Ron!
— Told him what? — though I could already guess.
— Everything! About Dumbledore, what happened in the Hospital Wing...
— Right... Why? Though don't answer that. He was hurt about not spending enough time together?
— Any time at all, — Hermione said dismissively. — He decided that if Harry knew the truth, Harry would stop studying all the time and go back to doing nothing with him.
— And how is that working out?
— I don't know, but Harry was planning to spend the whole day in the library today. Guess where he is right now and with whom.
— Look, no offence, but I really have no interest whatsoever in what Potter gets up to. If he requires a compelling reason to improve himself — good luck to him. That's not the actual problem here. The Dark Lord might find out that Dumbledore's death was a fake.
— Why didn't I think of that?
— Because it's not easy for you to simply turn your back on old friends, even unsatisfactory ones. Go and tell McGonagall. She'll know how to reach the Headmaster — they'll need to factor Potter's knowledge into their plans now, along with the possibility that the Dark Lord might come to share it.
— Is... Has Harry made so little progress with Occlumency?
That Snape had been teaching Daphne and me alongside Potter was something Hermione apparently knew, which wasn't surprising — Potter had probably mentioned the lessons more than once, with complaints attached.
— I don't know. Professor Snape finished the foundational work with Daphne and me and sent us off to continue on our own. The rest, as he put it, is up to us. So I genuinely don't know where Potter stands.
— Then I really had better hurry.
Hermione set off at a brisk pace toward the main staircase, and all that remained for me was to head back to the common room, change, and find that dinner wasn't far off.
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