บท 13: Chapter 13 - Knockturn Alley
"Our boy has talent. Can you imagine how much he will stand out at Hogwarts? I'm so proud of him, my little Ron..."
Arthur started talking proudly, looking at Ron through the window.
Ron seemed to be doing a little celebration for himself, making a fist.
"Hang on! That doesn't mean you should keep teaching him spells outside his level. Do you understand, dear?"
Arthur returned to scold Molly without being able to hide that he was happy with the situation. Molly just ignored him.
The next day, Ron, Fred and George wake up early to go to Diagon Alley to set up the tent again.
Molly accompanies them to the location and helps the boys get everything ready.
The day starts with a few random customers and all goes well.
After a few hours, Ron notices a kindly old woman approaching the shop.
She was short, with very white hair and had a stooped back. She wore a lilac dress under her dark purple cloak, matching a dark purple hat that had a few lilac flowers attached to the brim.
"Good morning, boys."
The lady said kindly with a welcoming smile on her face.
"I've heard great things about your repair tent. Can you help me?"
The lady asked.
"Of course. What seems to be the problem?"
Fred asked politely.
"Well, I ended up breaking my cauldron. Can you help me? You know, I don't even use it to make great recipes anymore. I don't even remember the recipes exactly, but the cauldron is still great for making smoked cheese potato soup."
The old lady began to talk nonstop to Fred. She looked a little needy, like any other little lady who makes small talk with strangers on the street. Luckily, Fred was affectionate and liked to talk, so it didn't bother him.
"Let's fix it real quick. Can you pass me the cauldron?"
Fred asked, holding out his hand.
The lady handed him a black bag, with all the pieces of what used to be a cauldron.
Fred handed it to Ron, who then placed the pieces carefully on the table, almost fitting them together before performing the spell.
"Reparo!"
Ron said firmly, flicking his wand lightly.
Within seconds, the cauldron began to collect the pieces together, leaving all the little pieces whole again.
Then, Ron placed his hands in the cauldron, but before he could get up, he felt something strange touching his fingers.
When he turned the cauldron over, he noticed that there was a piece missing. It was like he was missing some piece to fit that little hole Ron had found. It had a specific shape, like a crystal, so it was clear it wasn't Ron's repair fault.
Ron took the cauldron in his hands, a little confused, and carried it over to Fred.
"Fred, there's some kind of crystal missing from this part. Ask the lady if she brought it, or if it's supposed to stay that way."
Ron indicated, handing the cauldron to Fred.
"Excuse me lady. My brother noticed that some kind of crystal is missing from this part. Did you by any chance bring it with you?"
Fred asked.
"Oh, how silly of me. There was a crystal right there, but I lost it a long time ago. The cauldron was so beautiful when I first got it from my husband. He was such a sweet man, but he was also very hard-headed. He always said 'Lora, you can't make soup in the alchemy cauldron, Lora!', but in the end he always ate it happily."
The old lady started talking slowly about her life, while Fred looked confused at Ron.
"Do you want us to leave it like that then?"
Fred asked, showing her the hole again.
"Young man, would you be able to find another stone like that for me? I would love to have another memory of my dear Peter with me again."
The old lady said with a hopeful look.
Fred looked at Ron, but Ron just shook his head quickly, turning to go back to the back of the tent.
"I can give you a good reward."
Before Ron could completely walk away, the old lady said the 'magic words', causing Ron to stop mid-stride and turn towards the old lady.
"How much?"
Ron asked the lady directly.
"Really, Ron?"
Fred scolded him.
"I can pay you 150 Galleons if you find me another one like it, but I need it to be the same crystal my dear Peter gave me."
The lady said, looking up, as if revisiting his memories.
"Deal! Come back here tomorrow morning and we'll have your crystal."
Ron answered without thinking it through.
"What?"
Fred was confused by that.
"Thank you darling. I'll leave my cauldron with you. Oh, and don't forget. The stone is the 'Mesmits'."
The old lady thanked him, and then left.
[AU notes:
The 'Mesmits' stone is a rare and magical gem, known for its unique beauty and intense brilliance.
Its power is to allow the user to relive specific memories with all of their senses, including sight, sound, and emotion.
The Memists stone doesn't have to be the exact same stone that was touched by the warlock who held the memory, it just needs to be touched by the same warlock to access the memories he has. (Something like a 'login' to a website. It doesn't need the same computer.) ]
"THE 'MESMITS'? DO YOU KNOW HOW DIFFICULT IT IS TO FIND THAT STONE?"
Fred asked Ron indignantly.
"No, but have you seen how much that old woman wants to pay us? Do you know how long it would take us to get all that money together?"
Ron said excitedly, ignoring Fred.
"Ron, I don't think you're listening to me. Do you think it's that easy to find a Mesmits stone?"
Fred started gesturing with his hands, trying to emphasize what he was saying.
"Then we better start looking soon."
Ron replied, organizing things in the shop.
"Good morning, could you help me with this?"
A tall wizard approached, holding a broomstick broken in half.
"We are closed!"
Ron said quickly, leaving the shop and following George.
"Sorry!"
Fred told the wizard wryly, noticing the man's look of disappointment.
"George!"
Ron shouted, trying to get George's attention.
"Did something happen?"
George approached Ron.
"Let's close for today. We have a special job to do."
Ron answered.
"George, do you know where we can find a Mesmits stone?"
Fred asked hopelessly.
"Mesmits? What do you want it for?"
George asked curiously as he popped a lollipop in his mouth.
"A lady said she would pay 150 Galleons if we got it for her."
Ron answered.
"150 GALLEONS?"
George's eyes widened with interest.
"I think we can find it in Knockturn Alley."
He said.
"Knockturn Alley? No, no way. I'm never going there."
Fred said, crossing his arms. He looked nervous.
Even though Fred seemed to be the smartest of the twins, he was also the most fearful. George liked adventures, even if they were dangerous or frightening, which made him the most reckless of the family.
"No problem. You can stay. George and I are going there."
Ron responded quickly.
"But what about Mum? What if she shows up? She'll kill us if she finds out we went there."
George has put a dent in Ron's plan.
"Fred, you stay here. Try to come up with a good enough excuse to fool Molly."
Ron asked.
"No. This is not going to work. She's going to find out and we'll be getting an earful from her."
Fred backed away.
"Come on, Fred. You can do it, it's very easy for you. And besides, you are the smartest among us. George and I are not going to be able to do as well as you."
Ron said convincingly, trying to lower himself to please Fred.
"Well, if you put it that way, I guess you're right. I'm the only one here who has the ability to convince Mom."
Fred said, puffing out his chest.
George looked sideways at Fred, mocking his brother.
"Alright! So stay there and I'll go with George. Bye!"
Ron said, pulling George with him and leaving Fred alone, confident from the conversation they had just had.
Ron and George started walking down Diagon Alley towards Knockturn Alley. The passage leading to the site was narrow and inconspicuous, branching off from Diagon Alley and being less visible to ordinary visitors.
"Do you know where we're going exactly?"
George asked, casually.
"No. Not exactly, but I can manage."
Ron replied in a calm voice.
He was used to living with bad people in his past life. It was like another Wednesday in Ron's life, so he managed to get by on a street full of wizards with dubious tendencies.
They saw an inconspicuous sign pointing to where Knockturn Alley would be.
Before they entered, Ron asked George to put the hood of his shirt over his head, making it more difficult for other wizards to identify who they were.
When crossing the passage, it was possible to see a muddy street, full of decaying and dark shops, with enigmatic signs and illuminated in a gloomy way. Some wizards and magical creatures were scattered around the place, wearing clothes made of rags and with a terrible smell.
George, who appeared to be the bravest, grabbed Ron's arm, a little scared, as the two walked by the place ignoring what the merchants said.
Suddenly, a nasty-looking witch grabbed Ron's arm tightly.
"You're not lost, are you, dear?"
The witch asked slyly.
"Get out of my way."
Ron replied in a serious tone, staring at the woman.
Quickly, she lowered her head in frustration and let go of Ron, letting the two of them continue on their way.
In the middle of the street, something caught Ron's eye.
A small being with torn clothes and a hoarse voice approached the two. It looked like a goblin, but in Ron's memory, goblins were always well dressed and usually worked in important places.
"What are you looking for, boys?"
The goblin opened the cloak he was wearing, revealing some magical items he had with him.
Ron stopped in front of the goblin, taking in all the items he was carrying.
"We need a Mesmits Stone. Do you know where I can find it?"
Ron asked shortly.
"Oh, you want a Mesmits? Hm, let me see here…"
The goblin started digging through one of the briefcases he was carrying.
"Oh yeah. Mesmits. I have one."
The goblin asked, revealing the glowing purple crystal.
Ron looked at George, asking if that really was the stone, and George nodded.
"How much?"
Ron asked.
"It's for 10 Galleons, but since you are two cute little boys, I can sell them to you for 10 Galleons."
The goblin laughed at the joke he made himself, saying he would not lower the price.
"Can I have a look first?"
Ron asked, reaching out to take the crystal.
"Okay, but just a look."
The goblin handed the crystal to Ron, while George counted the coins they had to hand over to the goblin, who had his hands stretched out to George, awaiting payment.
Ron briefly turned the crystal in his fingers, taking in the details of the crystal.
Before George could hand the money over to the goblin, Ron put his hand in front of his brother and gripped the goblin's collar angrily.
"Do you think I'm silly? That shit is fake. Are you really trying to sell me a fake fucking crystal?"
Ron asked angrily.
"False? No, no sir. This is not fake. You don't know how to identify crystals well."
The goblin started to want to argue with Ron.
Ron pulled his wand from his pocket and, without anyone being able to see what he was doing, touched the wand to the goblin's neck, causing him to swallow hard.
"Do you honestly believe I'm joking? I need you to tell me where I can find that crystal, and I mean it. If not, I'll have to find another solution."
Ron said in a calm but menacing voice.
"Y-yes. You can go to that store. They sell it."
The goblin replied, shaking with fear, pointing to a shop next door called 'D-ArkCurious'.
Ron released the goblin and quickly pocketed his wand. He turned his back on the goblin and left with George, not looking back.
The startled goblin started to stare at Ron. He could feel his heart racing, almost out of his mouth. Ron looked like a child. The goblin wondered what was wrong with that child.
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[ Toru's notes ]
I will put 'AU Notes' in the middle of the story whenever some new item/magic is invented. Do you think that's good? Or do you prefer that I put it at the end of the chapter?
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[Chapter edited by: Roku]
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