"A whole life blown away in the blink of an eye. Nothing left but all the time in the world to think about it." (Quoted from Shawshank Redemption)
…
Charlus POV
I had once again grouped with Emma.
We did not enter the market immediately. While the others went ahead, we hung back, keeping ourselves within the perimeter but observing from a distance. We checked the outskirts and found that some poor old blokes had set up stalls to sell junk and illegal objects outside the main gates. None caught my interest—just rusted daggers and cursed lockets that looked like they would kill the wearer faster than the enemy.
Emma, on the other hand, was scanning the stalls for rare herbs. I followed her, keeping an eye on our surroundings.
While she did her shopping, I talked with the wizards and witches loitering nearby to gain information. Who is the big shot here? Where does the material come from? How do things work?
The art of gathering information was taught in school. At first, it was awkward to put those theories into practice—asking strangers probing questions without getting hexed is an art form. But once I got the hang of it, it worked wonders.
One shopkeeper was practically singing his story to me.
"I have been pooooorr all my lifeee, Got a witch that made it joyyyy…"
Yes, he was literally singing about his life in a drunk slur. I wanted to cast several hexes at his terrible singing, but some parts were useful—like how he came here and what his crimes were back in Britain.
Sure enough, Regulus was right. Patience is rewarding.
From the information I gathered, most of the wizards here still have a connection to their home countries by some means. It's a network of exiles.
After confirming this, I hurried Emma to enter the main market and look for people from the British Wizarding Community specifically. Emma, who had been urged to move all of a sudden, looked at me ready to start bickering as usual. But she restrained herself, given the place and time.
I tossed two silver Sickles to the singing shopkeeper and headed for the market entrance without looking back.
On the way, I saw a mean-looking bastard eyeing Emma up and down. I glared back until he looked away. We transfigured our robes to be nondescript and pulled up our hoods to cover our faces. We both looked like adults thanks to the Aging Potion, but anonymity was safer.
We reached the marketplace entrance. There was a toll.
"Three silver Sickles," the collector grunted.
We paid without complaint.
As we walked through, the man behind me in the queue tossed two Sickles on the table and walked in.
I paused. I turned to look at the collector.
The collector caught my stare. He sneered, giving me a provoking look as if to say, 'What are you going to do about it?'
Scammer arsehole.
My hand twitched towards my wand. I nearly took it out right there until Emma grabbed my hand and pulled me back hard.
"Not now, Charlus," she hissed in a low voice.
My voice of reason started to sound better than my impulse in this unknown environment. I controlled myself, took a deep breath, and started moving towards the market area.
Then a voice sounded behind me.
"Yeah, walk away. That is what I thought, coward!"
That's it.
I stopped. I turned around calmly, drew my wand, and pointed it at the toll collector's chest.
"Crucio."
The Unforgivable Curse left my wand before I even registered the decision.
The collector's hand loosened its grip on his own wand. It clattered to the ground as he collapsed, letting out a blood-curdling scream that silenced the immediate area.
Emma, who was keen on not starting a fight in a market full of Dark Wizards, didn't waste time scolding me. She readied her wand instantly.
"Protego!"
Her shield shimmered into existence just as incoming spells bombarded us.
The toll was a Gringotts-affiliated post. There were usually five wizards stationed there. Today, there were only three. The two others had reacted instantly to my attack.
They fired curse after curse. The shield held, but barely.
Then, one of them shouted the words I dreaded most.
"Avada Kedavra!"
The green light rushed towards me.
"Charlus! Move!" Emma screamed.
Before I could react, a stone flew through the air, intercepting the green jet of light. The stone shattered into dust, absorbing the Killing Curse.
I didn't turn to see who it was. I ended my Crucio, slashed my wand, and sent a volley of cutting spells at the attackers. The spells connected, and the two wizards dropped, silenced permanently.
We turned to see who had helped deflect the curse.
It was Regulus and Hestia. They stood there, wands drawn, looking calm amidst the chaos.
"You alright?" Regulus asked, as casually as if he were asking about the weather.
I nodded, adrenaline pumping through my veins.
I noticed that more people were surrounding us—curious onlookers, potential opportunists. This wasn't the right place to hold a conversation.
"Let's move," Regulus commanded.
We headed for the exit.
As we reached the perimeter, we heard running footsteps behind us. Thinking it was pursuers, we spun around, wands raised, ready to fight.
Four figures in hoods were sprinting towards us.
We were four. They were four. It was a match.
The light from our wands illuminated their faces as they skidded to a halt and threw back their hoods.
It was the other group—Sulaiman, Anders, Akiko, and Ximena.
Damn! This place is messy, and nothing here ever goes right.
"Guys, why were you charging at us?" I asked, my voice cracking slightly.
"The talisman started alerting us and led us to you guys," Sulaiman panted. "We thought you were in danger."
"It is nothing, buddy. Just a small commotion," Regulus said smoothly.
He didn't ask me what the commotion was about. Everyone knew trouble was unavoidable in a place like this. Right now, we all wanted to distance ourselves from the settlement.
We moved towards the rendezvous point without looking back.
…
On the way to the camp, I divulged the information I had gathered regarding the connections to the countries back home. Unfortunately, we couldn't follow up on it now. It would be time-consuming and dangerous to return to the market after the incident.
Sulaiman's and Ximena's team had interesting bits of information regarding Patricia Rakepick's history.
Patricia had been an alumna of Hogwarts. She wasn't considered a "Dark Wizard" here in the traditional sense, but she had connections to several of them.
"She recruits from the market," Sulaiman explained. "She needs manpower to explore the ruins. She hires mercenaries at a reasonable price. Sometimes, she returns alone. Sometimes, a few return with her. But never does the fully recruited group return. One thing is constant: She always comes back."
This information showed just how cunning and capable she was. She used people as fodder for traps.
Finally, Regulus shared his encounter with the old man and the Gringotts negotiation. This was the crucial piece of the puzzle. Without the map from the antique dealer, we would be searching the entirety of Albania for a ghost.
Regulus checked the time. It was nearing 6:00 PM.
Our Aging Potions had worn off an hour ago, returning us to our teenage forms.
Sulaiman and Akiko set up a small tent they had bought. It was altered with an Undetectable Extension Charm. They had paid 200 Galleons for it—negotiated down from 1000 by Akiko's terrifying stare and Sulaiman's polite persistence.
It was a palace compared to sleeping on the ground.
The tent was set up, and everyone went inside to claim a bed.
I sat outside on a nearby rock, looking at the stars. They were unusually bright tonight, untainted by city lights.
But I had other thoughts in my mind.
The Unforgivable Curse. Avada Kedavra.
It had nearly hit me.
I have faced lots of dangerous situations in the forest—Tebos, Dementors. But that green light made a chill run down my spine that I couldn't shake.
I wasn't afraid of death. Dying in a foreign land fighting Dark Wizards was a noble end for a Yaxley; my family would accept it. But in that moment, the face of my younger sister flashed in my mind. She was still crawling when I left for school. Then the faces of my friends—Regulus, Hestia, Emma…
Well, no use dwelling on it.
While I was lost in my monologue, Emma came outside.
She sat on the rock next to me. I looked at her. She had noticed my thousand-yard stare earlier.
Suddenly, she turned towards me and looked directly into my eyes. I had never seen her look so calm and mature.
She raised her hand and placed it gently on my cheek.
Then, she raised her other hand and slapped me so hard my vision went white.
SLAP.
"What the fuck, Emma?!" I shouted, holding my cheek, which I was pretty sure was already swelling.
"You would have been dead if Regulus wasn't nearby!" she screamed, her voice breaking. "Do you want to throw your life away just like that? Over two Sickles? Idiot! What have you been think—"
I pulled her into a hug.
She struggled for a second, then stopped ranting, reducing to a mumble against my chest.
I felt my shirt getting wet.
Am I crying? Am I scared?
No. It was Emma crying.
I gently patted her back and whispered, "I am sorry," into her ear.
She held me tightly for a second, then pushed me away. She wiped her eyes furiously.
"If you ever die, I will kill you," she threatened.
It was childish, but it made me smile.
"What are you smiling about? I am serious!" Emma snapped.
"Yes, yes. I will be careful."
She nodded, sniffed once, and went back inside the tent.
I stayed for a moment. Then I noticed Regulus arriving from the tent entrance. He had seen everything.
"I didn't take you for such a creep, Charlus," Regulus teased, leaning against the tent pole. "Staring at girls in the moonlight?"
"Oh, shut up, Regulus. It's not like that," I said, embarrassed.
Seriously, Regulus and his timing.
Speaking of timing... he was there at the exact right moment today.
"Nice handprint on your face. Emma?" asked Regulus, smirking.
"Emma," I nodded.
He understood. We chatted for some time about nothing important, just decompressing. We both decided it was time for bed.
I got up from the rock and looked at Regulus.
"Thanks for today, Regulus. I owe you one," I said, my tone serious.
"You owe me a lot for saving your sorry ass all the time, Charlus."
"That might be true... but today is different."
Regulus's smirk faded into a genuine look of camaraderie.
"Yeah. Today is different." He paused. "I know you'd do the same for me."
I agreed with him. No more words were needed.
We went inside the tent. I knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that I had made a lifelong friend and found a girl who truly cared for me in this school.
…