Chapter 32: Fade to Black
“Equestria!!” Aurora shouted, dashed forward, dropped down to all fours, transformed, spread her wings, and shot heavenward. Oh, and I should probably mention that both Aurora and Aerie still had their horn rings on, meaning that should any of the locals see them they would only see two pegasi mares with a unicorn colt.
“Aurora!” Aerie shouted.
“It’s Summer-
“Sunshine-
“Mustang!” Aurora shouted as she swooped back and forth.
“We still need to get the front cleaned up, and start the fires!” Aerie shouted.
Justin just stood there as his mind attempted to play catch up. They also had those odd designs on their flanks that the passing ponies had as well.
“Aww, you’re no fun at all,” Aurora protested as she landed in the middle of the yard. Spotting a snow-covered sign near the gate she trotted over and knocked the snow off. On the sign was stenciled in raised letters, Noble Fletchley, Fletcher.
“Noble Fletchley the Fletcher is the founder of the Fletchley family,” Justin announced.
“Which means you are a pony,” Aerie offered, went to the garden shed, opened it, and pulled out a couple of shovels with her mouth. These she flung on her back holding them in place with her wings and returned to the house. “Come on, the sun’s going down, we can figure it out in the morning.”
“Fine, fine, come on Justin.”
“What the fuck?!”
The sun had just gone down. Like really fast gone down.
“It’s an artificial environment created by the people who built Atlantis,” Aerie offered as an explanation. She didn't really want to go into the full explanation right at that moment and didn't even know which Equestria it was at that. “Also, best not to say anything to anyone. Mom, Dad, and Mr Black might be alright to tell, but definitely no one else. That and you probably don’t want to think about it too hard.”
A moment later the three were back inside, and human again. Relatively speaking of course. Aerie looked at the dial next to the door. It was fairly high up where it couldn't be accidentally turned. In fact, in her eleven-year-old size, she’d need a chair to reach it. They were in the kitchen so she pulled a chair over from the small table that was in there. A moment later she had climbed up and was looking out the window on the wall to her left which was directly over the sink and turned the dial while she watched to see what would happen. The yard didn’t change, but the area beyond the garden wall did. Aurora and Justin climbed up on chairs for a better view and as Aerie switched back and forth they delighted at the curious change in scenery.
“And now we know what that does,” Aerie offered as she got down from her chair.
“I wonder if Lavender had switched it?” Aurora suggested.
“And the only time we were in here was when we were on the train, and the bedroom window was showing the passing landscape.”
“Maybe it’s a Discord thing?” Aurora suggested. “There’s a new color on the wheel. Get the mirror and unlock another selection for the door.”
“I guess that’s one possibility. Maybe it’s just because the mirror is here?”
“You talk like this Discord is a person?” Justin asked as Aerie picked up a shovel.
“More of a what,” Aurora offered as she picked up the other shovel and started for the front.
“Discord is sort of a semi-omnipotent being. Think meddlesome old-school deity. Looks a bit like a cross between a chimera and a Chinese dragon, and was apparently the Greek Titan Prometheus at one point in time. He can be literally anyone or thing. D&D alignment category would be chaotic good with a healthy dose of narcissism.”
“Mmmm kay… hang on where’s my shovel?”
“We can take turns,” Aerie offered. “We’ll probably need buckets too.”
“Ya, alright. Not really enough room out there for all three of us. Any idea what we are going to do with the snow?”
“Take it up the steps and dump it on the street, I guess,” Aurora suggested. A moment later they were out in front. Aerie climbed the steps, cleared the walk, and started working her way back down. Justin retrieved a couple of buckets and they decided to form a bucket brigade with one person filling the buckets. Justin would go up to Aerie who would pile the snow on the streets like she was making some kind of snow golem.
“Would you like a little help?” Offered Basil as he and Sirius approached.
“Basil!” Aerie shouted, set her bucket down, and gave the man a hug.
“Hi, dad. Is that the surprise guest?”
“You made it through the police line,” Aurora called.
“Kind of sort of, we’ve got a couple of detectives with us who want to ask questions.”
“Can they wait, or do they just want me?” Aerie asked as she eyeballed the two men who were right behind Basil and Sirius.
“You aren’t going to ask about me?”
“Mr Black, the only reason you aren’t in the Atlantic or some other fun spot is that Nova Silverwood OKed you.”
“She portal-led a couple of wizards who looked like they were trying to find the place,” Aurora offered not realizing she might be overheard. “Served them up to Professor Dumbledore.”
Sirius Black raised an eyebrow and retrieved a phone that looked a great deal like the one Aerie had. Identical even. He typed in a number. “Hey Grandmother, yes, I’m at the house now. Did Aerie? … she did. Through the wards. Your special talent is portals, and hers is too I gather...mmm, okay. Do we know who they are? … I see. But they were being investigated so… Ya, I’ll do that.” He disconnected the call and turned his attention back to Aerie.
“Grandmother says don’t ever do that again. Turns out your snoops were Aurors, but…” He paused for a bit. “They were also under investigation for taking kickbacks. Right now it’s impossible to know if they were legitimately investigating what happened over at number one-oh-six, or if they were part of the plot.
“So, care to explain to me why you delivered them to Professor Dumbledore?” He didn’t seem too worried about the two of them overhearing.
“Mundungus Fletcher. Two-bit thug…”
Sirius held up a hand.
“The mashers at the railway station were apparently doing him a favor,” Aurora offered from the stairs. “Do you know him?”
“I do, unfortunately.”
“Professor Dumbledore’s go-to for things that need doing that he wants to keep under the table. He worked with the Order of the Phoenix,” Aerie explained. “And…”
“How do you know all that? And tell me the truth.”
“Saying it was Hagrid isn’t going to work on you I gather?”
“I will admit that Hagrid has a hard time keeping his mouth shut, but a person needs to know what to say to get him talking. You'd need to already know the right prompts to get the information you wanted.”
“Individual known as Discord. Both Aurora and myself have spent time in Equestria.” This time Aerie had kept her volume to a whisper not wanting the detectives to hear.
“The back door opens into another world,” Justin offered in a like tone. “I even turned into a pony.”
“What say we have a look,” Sirius offered.
“I’d kind of like to see this for myself,” Basil prompted.
“Alright, how about I show you, Justin can show our guests to the dining room, and Aurora can finish up here.”
“What were you trying to do, anyway?” Basil asked.
“We wanted to get at the wood in the vault to use in the fireplaces,” Justin offered.
“Preferably without tracking snow into the house,” Aurora added.
“Ah, yes. A fire or two wouldn’t be a bad idea with the storm going through,” Basil admitted and then followed Aerie and Sirius back to the back of the house.
Aerie explained the dial, Basil turned it, and nothing happened.
“Mr Black, perhaps if you have a try?” Aerie offered.
Still nothing.
Confused and alarmed Aerie pulled a chair back over, climbed up, and tried it herself. A relieved smile fell onto her face on seeing the English buildings vanish.
“For a bit there I was worried it was a one-time-only deal.”
“Well, I’ll be…” Sirius said softly as he looked out the window. “Does it only respond to you?”
“No idea. I’m the only one who’s tried it aside from the two of you. That I’m aware of. Lavender or one of the other Gryffindor first-year girls may have fiddled with it on the train ride up. We didn’t use it on the trip back. I wasn’t keen on the boys from Justin’s class knowing about it.”
“Understandable,” Sirius offered sagely.
“I get the feeling someone knows. No idea who though.”
“How’s that?”
“The dial had been turned when we came back here to look for shovels. When I went out the door I stepped into Equestria. The theory was that bringing a certain mirror home may have triggered it. Granted that there may be more to it.”
“That big mirror in the front room, I gather?” Basil asked.
“One of my quests was to retrieve it. Fortunately, my little Moonie took care of it and left a duplicate in its place that would be less problematic.”
“Quests?” Sirius asked.
“Find Tom Riddle Junior’s Horcruxes and destroy them. Which is something I needed to talk to you about.”
“Tom… Oh, hang on, Riddle?”
“Also known as ‘You Know Who’. Yes, him. He whose self-appointed title can not be said because it’s a snitch spell.”
Sirius just looked at her in utter dismay.
“Um, dad, I kind of need to have a private chat with Mr Black.”
“Serious stuff?”
“The sort of stuff that might help explain the attack on the building next door.”
“Shouldn't I know?”
“There are some things you are better off not knowing. Sorry. I’ll be up in a moment.”
“Up, oh right, I have a couple of detectives waiting on me. Right then, I’ll be waiting on you upstairs in the kitchen.” Basil gave her what he hoped was a reassuring smile and then headed for the stairs.
“And you know this about Riddle?” Sirius prompted.
Aerie gestured to the window, sat down in a chair by the table, and said, “Multiverse.” She waited for Sirius to sit down. “And you are likely one of the few people who would know that I’m not exactly who I’ve been presented as.”
“I had wondered about that.”
“So how is my twin brother?”
“He’s good.”
“Just as well Dumbledore never finds out.”
“I must confess that Hagrid showing up to collect Harry, or Aerie in this case, moments following the attack was a bit suspicious. So what can you tell me?”
“Let’s just start with Tom Riddle. He was brought to Hogwarts by Professor Dumbledore. Dumbledore knew what sort of person Riddle was. Granted that some of what I’m going to say is speculation on my part. Dumbledore will say that he thought he could redeem Tom, but I don’t really believe that. Not based on the plan Dumbledore had, and a good deal of my knowledge is based on a series of books from another world. Tom killed Myrtle Warren and then pinned it on Hagrid. That much I’d imagine you are aware of?”
“I knew Hagrid was innocent.”
“People were being told it was Hagrid’s spider no doubt, and Dumbledore told Hagrid they were going to take his pet and gave him time to set it free. Thus assuring that the investigation never shifted to Riddle.”
“Grandmother made short work of that spider when it was spotted in the forest but I don’t think she knew about the death at the time.”
“Dumbledore must have known that it was only a matter of time till Riddle killed again, but chose to protect Riddle. After all, Hagrid was going to get expelled anyway. Incidentally, that’s when Tom made his first Horcrux. I’ve already found and dealt with two. One was at Gringotts. The other was in Hogwarts.”
“And Discord is the one helping you? That just doesn’t sound like the creature I’ve been told about.”
“Sounds rather counterintuitive, doesn’t it? Granted that the Discord I know is a bit more reasonable. The reason he’s helping me, or I should say setting me to my task, is because he fears what will happen if Riddle achieves his goals. The worst-case scenario is Riddle finding access to Equestria. The thing is, Discord can’t do anything about Riddle in that he can’t act directly.”
“So he got you to do it.”
“In a manner of speaking yes. I get to be his agent. Come to think of it, anyone who helps me ends up being his agent in this endeavor as well. Listen, there’s a good possibility that there is a Horcrux at Grimmauld Place.”
“You’re thinking my brother Regulus hid it there right under our noses I gather.”
“If what I know played out the way it was reported, Regulus learned the truth about Riddle and chose to betray him. Kreacher is likely rattling about in that old house slowly going mad because he’d been sworn to destroy the Horcrux they obtained only he doesn’t know how.”
“Kreacher?”
“House elves aren’t evil. They are inherently good. Unfortunately, they must do what their masters tell them to do. And being forced to do things that go against their nature drives them mad. You need to put aside whatever animosity you have aimed at him and aim it right back where it belongs. The person giving the orders.”
“My mother… and Riddle it would seem.”
“Help me, help me help him destroy that Horcrux.”
“So what is it?”
“Slytherin’s locket. Aurora helped me with the one at Hogwarts, but I’m afraid our method might not work on the locket since the thing can shut itself up. I destroyed the cup with my fox fire alone but it takes far too much time to replenish. In the books, the main character uses snake speech, Parseltongue, to get it to open, and then stab it with a basilisk fang. I can at least get it open. OK, I don't actually know Parseltongue. On the other hand, Miss Fluttershy taught me how to use snek speak which should be close enough. A friend of mine wanted me to be able to speak to snakes.”
“I imagine that’d do it. The fang that is.”
“That or dump it in the fires at a foundry. I was rather hoping I could at least save the shell so I can give it to the Goblins. I kind of made a deal with them.”
“You’d have been better off making a deal with the Devil.”
“Some think Discord the Devil.”
“And you’ve made a deal with him.”
“Kind of forced me into it. My only alternative was to run.”
Sirius got out his phone and called Mrs Silverwood again. “Hi, me again. Any idea where we might get a basilisk fang?” Sirius waited for the inevitable ‘why would you want a basilisk fang’.
“To poke the eye of darkness,” Aerie offered.
“Apparently it’s going to be the best way to destroy a specific item of interest. Alright, we’ll see you later.”
“Alright, switch that back, and let's go talk to the detectives.”
“Will do,” Aerie offered, got up from where she was, climbed up onto the chair by the doors, switched the dial back to England, and then followed Sirius upstairs turning off the kitchen light as they went.
There were now three detectives waiting for them in the dining room, one of whom Aerie recognized.
“Detective Nissim, what brings you out on a night such as this?” Aerie asked as she approached the man.
“Someone thought you’d be more willing to talk to me.”
“I think you already know the answer. Aside from that, your guess is as good as mine.”
“I see.” He paused a moment. “Allow me to introduce to you detectives David Keel and John Steed.” Mr Keel wore a dark brown suit while Mr Steed wore dark blue. Both sported bowler hats to match and black umbrellas.
“The assailants' weapons of choice were wands,” Mr Keel offered. “I was wondering if you might be able to tell us anything useful?”
“Afraid not. That is to say that unless you work for a couple of agencies already in the know I can neither confirm nor deny anything save perhaps to suggest contacting the Special Operations Division over at New Scotland Yard?”
“Mr Keel, I’m afraid to say she may be better informed than we,” Mr Steed offered with a big smile.
“We are with the S-O-D at New Scotland Yard” Keel offered.
“If you’ll allow me to speculate, the incident at the train station, and the two individuals who I’m to understand got themselves shot for their troubles were likely set to their task, not to do me any lasting harm, but to justify moving me,” Aerie offered. “Against my will.”
“You are thinking Dumbledore was behind it, aren’t you?” Basil asked.
“I do. I can’t prove anything, but yes, I do. Dumbledore wants to be the one who gets the credit for bringing Tom Riddle to justice and doesn't care who gets hurt along the way.”
“Care to elaborate?” Mr Steel asked.
“Unfortunately, the very fact that you know anything could potentially be a breach of the Official Secrecy Act,” Sirius offered. Sirius knew enough about how the government worked to be able to stymie muggle law enforcement. He even had his very own SIS Identification card and sometimes moonlighted for British Intelligence. Granted the fact that muggle law enforcement knew about wands meant someone was leaking information. Likely his own Grandmother. Granted that given the existence of Meta Humans it was only fair. “And the individual she suspects has some connections that are fairly high up. Short of catching him in the act he can’t be touched. I can’t even tell you who he is.”
“Well, I’d say that should clear things up quite nicely,” Flora stated as Aurora and Justin entered the dining room with everything they’d need to get a fire going in the fireplace. “Now, if everyone is done telling each other that you can’t actually tell each other anything. We were just about to sit down for dinner.”
For a brief moment, everyone was totally in the dark, followed by emergency lighting coming on.
“Looks like it’s a good thing we decided to get a fire going,” Aurora offered as she and Justin headed for the fireplace.
“And it’s going to be one of them nights,” Nissim said softly. His next words were for everyone. “I’m sorry I couldn't have been of more help. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have got a family of my own.” He gave everyone a nod and showed himself out.
“I guess we should get going too,” Keel offered as he got out a card. He handed it to Basil. “If you come up with anything you can tell us, give us a call.”
“Try asking the Prime Minister about Dumbledore,” Aerie offered. “Oh, and be mindful of paintings. Consider every last one of them bugged.”
“Might explain why there are no paintings in any of our offices.”
“Undetectable technology does tend to make people a little paranoid,” Steed offered. Basil then followed the man to the door.
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I been waitng for week THANKS YOU
and more fuel is pored on to the burn Dumbledore down fire...
i have a match and it is just a matter of the right time to strike.
11446102
No, needs moar gas.
At this point why don’t you have the non magical government in the UK just preform a coup de grace and take over the ministry of magic? Just give Ireland their part and call it a day.
11446204
Try Plasma, or better ..
"Snow Golem"
Uhh...Aerie...I think you are misremembering how the locket was destroyed, that or you are misleading Sirius for some reason. The locket was smashed by the Sword of Gryffindor.
11818655
I'm likely misremembering, that or Aerie has a different version.