Disclaimer:
Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 62: Triangular Formation
Harry walked through the Weasley house gardens until he found what he was looking for: a large boulder with a smooth surface.
Once he did, Harry took out one of his carving tools and began writing on the face of the stone.
"It's getting late. Can't you do this tomorrow?" V asked.
It was around eleven P.M., and most members of the family had gone to sleep.
When Harry left the bedroom, Ron was already lying on his back and snoring.
"I don't want them to see me doing this," Harry said as he carved some runes on the stone.
"That seems like a dangerous surprise to give them. I can imagine Mister Weasley bringing a friend home only to see them getting roasted by the wards they didn't know were in place," V commented.
"That is not going to happen. I'm adding some intent-detection charms to prevent innocent people from getting 'roasted.' And I'm going to tell them, but… well, it would be better if they thought the wards were placed by someone they have more trust in."
"Dumbledore?" V guessed.
"Dumbledore," Harry responded.
"So you finally decided to involve the old man. It would be good to give him something to do."
"You really don't like him, huh?" Harry found it amusing that, despite all the time that had passed, this fragment of Voldemort still managed to hold onto that old enmity.
Although by now it was nothing more than a strong dislike. It wasn't like his hat was plotting the downfall of Albus Dumbledore or anything like that.
Probably…
"Hmmm?" Harry stopped suddenly when he noticed some movement in the grassy field.
"Calm your magic, Harry," V told him when he noticed that Harry was ready to deal with whoever dared to approach him.
"Ah… what is she doing here?" Harry was able to identify the source of the sound when she was almost sixty feet away.
"Well, I don't think she came to see my handsome leathery face," V responded. "So she is probably looking for you."
Harry stood up and placed his tools on the ground. "Ginny, what are you doing out of bed at this time? It's very late."
"Shouldn't I be asking that? This is my garden, and my family's guest is sneaking around at night…" She glanced at the boulder and noticed the marks. "Runes?"
0:06 0:00 / 0:06
"Yes. I was carving a cluster of runes."
"Doesn't look like homework." Ginny pointed out. "What are they for?"
"Protection," Harry said. "Their purpose is to create protective wards that will keep away intruders. No offense, but your family's household was completely unprotected."
"None taken. I mean, why are you doing this at night? Do my parents know about it?" Ginny asked.
"No, they don't know." Harry sighed. "Your parents… I don't think they would react well if I even suggested setting up some magical protection around their house."
"Ah… right. You would need to explain to them the same thing that you said to me…" Ginny realized that they wouldn't take Harry seriously if he were to suggest doing something like that.
As far as they were aware, Harry was just a fifteen-year-old boy who had just finished his O.W.L. exams.
Wardmaking is an extremely advanced branch of magic that requires many years of study and practice.
"It's okay. I'll talk to Dumbledore tomorrow. He can inform your parents that he did this. That would solve the issue." Harry glanced at Ginny. She was only wearing her pajamas, and her shoulders were visibly shaking.
Harry extended his hand toward her and cast a warming charm.
Ginny immediately felt the effects and stopped shaking. "Whoa, that feels so warm. Thank you."
"How did you know I was here?" Harry asked.
Ginny shrugged. "I couldn't sleep… I saw you leaving the house from my window, so… I got curious. You are always sneaking around. My brother keeps complaining about it."
"Look who is talking…" Harry muttered.
Ginny glanced at the boulder for a moment. "Do you mind if I stay and watch? I won't bother you."
"No, I don't mind, but it's going to take a while. The ward I'm preparing requires three points. The one I'm doing right now is the first one. I will then need to find two rocks, boulders, trees, or something to write on," Harry explained.
"I can help you with that. No one knows these fields better than me," Ginny said confidently.
"Then… I'd better get back to it." Harry picked up the tools and resumed his work, carving more runes on the boulder.
Once he was done, he took out a small blue crystal from his bag.
"What is that?" Ginny looked at it with curiosity.
"This is an arkstone. It absorbs ambient magic and stores it inside, like a battery. This one is very small and can't hold much. But that's fine, these are just temporary wards until I can get the materials for something much better."
He buried the stone right beneath the boulder. From now on, it would act as an energy source for the runic array.
"Harry, you don't have to spend so much on us. My family can take care of themselves," Ginny said.
Harry shook his head. 'She still doesn't understand the danger they are in… the danger that I have put them in,' he thought.
'Don't beat yourself about it,' V sent him a mental message. 'The Weasleys have always been enemies of the Dark Lord. You are not the only reason they are in danger.'
"Don't worry about it. I haven't spent all that much." Harry told Ginny as he stood up. "Come on, I'm done with this part. Now we need to find two more good spots."
"There are a lot of large rocks in that area over there." Ginny pointed into the distance.
"That would be great," said Harry. "To close the triangular formation, we are going to need something situated around that place." He pointed with his finger.
"There?" Ginny asked. "Why not use my tree? You know, the one with the swing."
"Perfect, then!" Harry exclaimed. "We have the three places. Let's get to work."
A.N: - Remember to comment, vote, and/or leave a review if you have the time. Those things help me a lot and I would really appreciate it.
You can Support me on P@treon if you like and get 20 advanced chapters. You can also find characters images to view for free in Collections/Time Images
-patreon.com/Kriogenix
For donations and commissions, go to ko-fi.com/kriogenix