"Finally home," said Christian as he left the fireplace. "There really is no place like home."
"You guys are home!" said a voice from the distance.
"Aunt Eleanor, you're home?" asked Christian as he walked toward the living room where she was almost buried in documents.
"Busy, aren't you?"
"The dissolution of Yugoslavia has already shown signs, and we already have a few interesting investments in Slovenia, Croatia, and Macedonia."
"Please don't tell me how you're making a profit from war. Even if I know it's happening, I don't want to hear about it," said Christian.
"Remember, it's for a greater cause," reminded Eleanor, and Christian groaned before fetching a soda to drink as he was craving one.
"What happened to Harry?" he asked upon returning to the living room.
"Everything is settled. They should treat him better if they don't want any legal repercussions," she replied before shaking her head. "The situation was so bad that my friend asked me why I did not want to move him from these people's clutches, and I had to use a flimsy excuse."
"As long as he's fine."
Christian soon felt the effects of the constant travel and decided to take a nap. He slept for more than two hours, and when he woke up, he found the house empty. His mother left him a note that she would return in a while and mentioned Aunt Eleanor was called for an emergency meeting.
So, he decided to write to his pen pal before continuing his work on his book. Midway through writing, Christian stopped and muttered, "This is not good enough. I need more information on the evolution of fashion." He frowned, as his mother was not there to drive him to the library.
"It's not far, so I could walk there."
Christian immediately sprang into action. He took out his wand and library card, left a letter in case someone returned home, and put on his coat. Although it was early April, it was still a little windy.
"Let me see: the car drove in that direction," Christian muttered as he used his Mind Palace to remember the route his mother usually took him. He walked until he arrived at Origin Ave.
"Does the car usually continue straight or turn around?" he muttered before checking his memory. "Turning left, it is." He repeated this trick at every intersection, making his trip way longer than it needed to be. Eventually, he arrived at Landmark Street, where the library was.
"Finally," sighed Christian before complaining. "I can't wait for Aunt Eleanor's company to invent the state-of-the-art GPS of Jim's future. Better yet, someone must invent a potion that cures a bad sense of direction."
This long and tedious trip made him realize many things. Firstly, he needs to learn the Apparition Charm as soon as possible to reach his destination faster and more easily. Secondly, he must add Map Memorization to his schedule, or he will get lost too easily. Previously, such a task would have been nightmarish, but now, this was no longer a problem with his Mind Palace.
Lastly, he must train his Disillusionment Charm to a high level that is inseparable from being Invisible to use his broom to fly to places in the Muggle World.
'Better, develop unsupported flight like Voldemort,' thought Christian as he walked into the library. The librarian knew him, so he immediately asked her for help. For the next thirty minutes, she helped him find five books regarding the history of fashion and three books on the Occult.
William's gift was an exciting read during his trip. Most of it was nonsense based on his magical knowledge; a small part could not be corroborated by his knowledge or his mother's experience; according to her, they could be correct or pure nonsense. Finally, the last part inspired him with ideas for spells for eventual events or magical theories to be tested.
He believes that only old and rare books in the Occult or Spirituality have actual value, so he will ask his aunt to spend money to track them from private collections.
Christian thanked her for her help and showed further appreciation when she offered him a bag for all the books. With a joyous smile, he left the library and headed home. Sadly, his smile faded when he saw someone waiting for him.
"Mr. Fernbys," he said calmly.
"Christian, I told you–"
"Do you know how inappropriate your actions are?" asked Christian, looking directly into his eyes. William's body suddenly trembled, and he took a small step back.
"Whatever is going on with you and my aunt should not involve me, a child," said Christian. "And your act of involving me is very manipulative. So, for your last remaining dignity and SAFETY, I recommend you walk to your car and drive away."
"Y-y-you're right, and I apologize," stuttered William before returning to his car. Sitting before the steering wheel, he discovered his body and hands were still shaking.
"What kind of child is this?" When the latter looked at him with his glowing purple eyes, he felt a fear from the depths of his soul. 'Maybe it's a good thing I no longer have anything to do with that weird family.'
From that day on, Eleanor has not heard from him for an extended period.
Christian returned home, and the journey was the same; he took way longer than necessary as he had to check every street before proceeding. His lack of direction made him doubt every decision, so he had to double, triple, and quadruple-check before proceeding in a direction. Luckily, his Mind Palace made this process bearable compared to the past when his memories were very unreliable, and he could only remember directions after using them a hundred times.
"You're here? Just the right time." Those were the first things he heard from his mother as soon as he entered the room.
"What's going on?"
"Drink this."
"And this is?" asked Christian, holding a potion.
"Polyjuice Potion."
"I need to turn into someone else?"
"Not just you but me as well."
"Why?"
Tiara finally paused. "There is a prophecy about you; we need to retrieve it."
"So, we're infiltrating the Hall of Prophecies?"
"Correct, but why don't you seem surprised about the prophecy?"
"I had my suspicions, given how obsessed you were with finding that Seer."
"That makes sense."
"So, what is the plan?"
"I have bribed two people who worked in the Department of Mysteries, and they've agreed to let us use their identity. We need to sneak in, and you take out your prophecy."
"Corruption in the British Ministry of Magic: why am I not surprised?"
"Money is a powerful tool, even in the magical world. Come on, we don't have much time. Their clothes are on the table. Drink the potion and change."
"Alright."
Christian changed his clothes first before drinking the potion. Then, he watched as his body morphed into a tall man with a stuffy beard, thick face, and brown eyes.
"How fascinating," he commented.
"Here is the basic information you must remember about who we are pretending to be," said Tiara, who was now a middle-aged man with thick glasses and a briefcase. Even her voice had changed. Christian took the piece of paper, and with a short glance, he remembered everything.
"Remember?"
"Yes."
"Then, let's go. The people who work in the Department of Mysteries are usually weird and asocial, so it's normal if they don't talk much with others and do their jobs. So, we won't have much of a problem until we reach the second lowest level."
Christian nodded before following her with the Floo Powder to reach the Ministry of Magic. He followed behind his mother, trying to keep his cool, but his heart thumped loudly to the point he thought everyone else could hear.
"Stop fidgeting," said Tiara under her breath so only the two could hear.
"I can't help it. I'm nervous."
"Pretend you're an actor playing a role."
"Acting, okay." Although he had not tried acting, it was worth trying. Christian imagined he was an Unspeakable doing secretive research about magic named Abbot Johnson. He loves magic and research, but his job is demanding, especially with all the secrecy.
Christian's demeanor changed as he walked straight with more confidence. From his expression, people would believe he was indeed a person who had dedicated his life to the research of magic and the Department of Mysteries.
"That's my boy," muttered Tiara as she saw his sudden change. They walked as if they belonged there, showed their identification when necessary, and took the lifts in the Ministry Atrium to the lowest level. Their destination was level 9, and there were no issues up to this point.
They soon reached a dark hallway lit by torches, with one door at the end of the corridor. Behind the door was the Entrance Chamber, which had twelve handleless doors arranged in a circular shape.
"If I remember correctly, wasn't the entrance designed to disorient any unauthorized personnel?" asked Christian.
"We are technically authorized."
"True," he nodded before looking at these rooms. "Do you realize these rooms contained magic's deepest essence and secrets?"
"So what? No one has ever discovered their secrets after hundreds of years."
"That's because the right person has not tried. Imagine if all the most talented wizards came together to study them. The research results would bring years of development to the wizarding world."
"It can also bring catastrophe."
"Why are you suddenly such a cynic?" asked Christian.
"I know more than anyone the consequences of studying powerful and unknown artifacts."
"Where did this come from?"
"Never mind. I know how to choose the correct door." She closed her eyes and muttered something for a few seconds. "Here," she pointed at the fourth one on the right. "You only need to open it and ask for the Hall of Prophecy."
"You're not coming with me?"
"No, I'll be on the lookout if we have an unexpected visitor. Act fast, as the Polyjuice Potion won't last long."
"Alright."
Christian opened the door and soon found himself in a long, large corridor illuminated by blue flames. He saw numerous glass orbs neatly arranged on towering shelves.
"Now, for my prophecy." Christian could immediately sense a connection to one of the orbs, so he followed. As he approached his destination, he almost bumped into an elderly lady with glasses and holding a notepad.
"Abbot? This is not your department. What are you doing here?" asked the Keeper of the Hall of Prophecy. Christian reacted swiftly: "I decided to take a break and look around. I might be changing the research project soon."
"Is that so? Wait, the other day you told me–"
"Stupefy."
Christian used a wandless Stunning Charm, knocking her out.
"I'm sorry, Madam." He rushed in the direction he sensed and picked up the glass orb that seemed to be calling to him. He took it and retraced his steps until he saw the lady on the floor. He hesitated momentarily before taking his wand and casting a Memory Charm.
He modified her memories to prevent her from remembering meeting Abbot. Instead, she fainted because she skipped breakfast and lunch.
"Once again, my apology."
Christian walked out.
"Did you get it?"
"Here."
Tiara swiftly placed the orb in her briefcase. "Any trouble?"
"Minor one."
"You can tell me on our way out. However, let's keep a distance between us when we're leaving to prevent trouble."
"Alright."
Then, they successfully left the Ministry of Magic.