I can't believe how late I am in posting this chapter :-/ First the site's Document Manager was down, then the email alerts weren't working, then I got distracted by other things and kept putting it off... I owe an apology to all my regular readers. Sorry, guys. I promise I have no plans of abandoning this story. It's too dear to me for that. Thanks a lot for your patience.

Disclaimer: Same as in the previous chapters.

Thankies: As usual, to Fauzia, José, my Livejournal friends and all my readers and reviewers. :) Oh, and a special shout-out to KeyKeeper12, for catching a detail in the previous chapter. It's been fixed. ;)

Please read and review. All comments are very welcome and appreciated. I accept both signed and anonymous reviews.

-----

-Chapter 15: Forward steps-

"Makes perfect sense," Hermione enthused, when Harry explained his theory to Ron and her. "I mean, Hogwarts is the safest place in the world. And nobody would ever imagine that Voldemort would hide something so important for him right under Dumbledore's nose."

Ron nodded slowly. "Right. I bet Dumbledore himself didn't believe Voldemort would have the guts to hide a Horcrux in Hogwarts. But the question is, would he really have the guts to do it?"

"We know he's had an attachment to Hogwarts," Hermione reasoned. "And several of his Horcruxes were connected to it; even the diary. It fits his way of thinking."

"But would he have had a chance to do it?"

"I thought about that, too," Harry said. "It wouldn't be easy, but he could've found a way. If he already knew of a safe place, and had all his spells and curses planned out, he could have stolen a few minutes to do it – for example, the day he went to see Dumbledore to request the Defence teacher position. He wasn't considered such a threat back then, and let's not forget that he had already managed to trick the Hogwarts staff once with the Chamber of Secrets."

"Or, he could have had an accomplice," Hermione added. "Like when he possessed Quirrell in order to get to the Philosopher's Stone."

Ron was looking very thoughtful now. "Harry, you don't think the Horcrux could be in the Chamber of Secrets?"

Harry shook his head. "I don't think so. He wouldn't have a Horcrux lead to another one. It would be risky. Besides, the Chamber of Secrets was pretty much an empty room when I went there."

Hermione and Ron nodded.

"I think we should consider searching at Hogwarts," Harry insisted. "If not the cup, maybe the Horcrux we don't know about will be there."

"Actually," Hermione interjected, "I have an idea about the Horcrux we don't know about."

The boys turned to her.

"I just finished Rowena Ravenclaw's biography. There don't seem to exist any known relics of hers, but the book says she was buried wearing her blue and bronze Hogwarts robes and her tiara."

"So what are you suggesting, that Voldemort unearthed her and turned her tiara to a Horcrux?" Ron asked.

"Wouldn't put it past him," Harry spat.

"She's buried in Drumnadrochit, her hometown," Hermione said. "We could go take a look there."

"And what will we tell the guards? 'Excuse us, could we please unearth Miss Ravenclaw for a little bit?'" Ron mocked.

"OK, OK," Harry interrupted, "first things first. We still haven't found the locket. And after that, we're going for Hufflepuff's cup, which we are sure is a Horcrux."

"Hogwarts is huge, though," Hermione said thoughtfully. "And there's the Forbidden Forest, too. There must be a million hiding places in the whole lot."

"There are two people who can help us with that," Harry said confidently.

"Who?"

"Hagrid, and Lupin."

-----

The fireplace in the house of Bill and Fleur Weasley was open for Remus Lupin. That evening, he decided he would stop by for a visit. He found Fleur in the living room, dusting a vase.

"Remus!" she called, upon seeing him. After the wedding, she had dropped 'Monsieur' when addressing him. "Good to see you!" She walked over to him and kissed him on both cheeks. "Bill left yesterday, and 'e will not be back until next week."

"Yeah, I know," Remus said, slightly overwhelmed. Fleur's quick and cheerful manner of talking did that to him. "I came to see you. Is this a bad time?"

"No, not at all!" she chirped, carelessly waving the dust feather. "I was just dusting. These bibelots are lovely, but they gather so much dust! Do you want some tea?"

"Sure."

"Sit 'ere, if you want." She gestured to the lime green sofa. The room – or rather, the entire house – was very bright and colourful. Fleur had wanted to follow the latest trends with the decoration. Surprisingly enough, the lime green sofa, the bright yellow wall and the fuchsia vases on the shelves, combined with the rest of furniture, paintings and curios in various, brighter or more neutral colours, not only didn't clash, but actually looked good all together – although Remus wasn't sure how Bill felt about living in there. Then again, with a woman like Fleur in the house, he probably wasn't paying much attention to the rest of his surroundings anyway.

Remus sat down, his eyes wandering around the room as Fleur went to the kitchen, which was separated from the living room with an island.

"So," she called, taking the teapot and teabags out of the cupboard, "what did you want to see me for?"

"I wanted to ask you something," he started with uncertainty.

She filled the teapot with water, then warmed it up with a spell. "Yes?" she said, throwing him a look over the island.

"I was wondering how you feel about Bill spending all this time with the werewolves."

She frowned. "Why? Has 'e complained to you about me?" She dipped a teabag in the teapot.

"No, no, quite the opposite. He says you're very understanding and supportive, and you're fine with him staying away from home sometimes."

She smiled and brushed a strand of silvery-blond hair away from her face. "Zat ees exactly what I do." She reached for a tray and two teacups.

"But things are very dangerous over there! Bill doesn't fit in with them as well as a full werewolf would, and many of the werewolves hate normal people. Besides, he comes from a family famous for fighting against Voldemort."

"I know." She smiled, understanding where he was getting to.

"And you're not worried about him?"

Fleur's smile remained. Instead of replying, however, she waited for the tea to be ready, then served some in each teacup and walked over to Remus. She sat beside him in the sofa and gave him his cup.

"Remus," she said kindly, taking her own cup, "you are making the same mistake you made with Tonks."

"That's not the mistake I made with Tonks," Remus mumbled.

"One of them," Fleur rectified.

Remus sighed and sipped some tea.

"You theenk we love our men because we ignore ze problems they face. But this is not ze case, Remus. We know all about ze problems. But we don't let zat stop us."

"In other words, you don't care."

"Exactly."

"I'm sick of hearing that."

"Which is why I did not put it like zat," Fleur said with a grin. "My point ees, Remus, yes, I am worried. I am as worried as Tonks was when it was you staying with the werewolves. But I can see zat this is a risk zat must be taken. And I will not stop loving Bill because 'e has to take it. You know, Remus, I was zere when 'Arry announced to ze world that Lord Voldemort was back. I believed 'im ze moment I saw Cedric's dead body. But I decided to go on with the plans I had made and come to Britain anyway, because life does not end when an obstacle appears in your way. And there 'ave been many obstacles in my way since then, but you see? After everytheeng zat 'as 'appened, I am 'ere, and I am 'appy."

"How can you be happy knowing that the one you love is in danger?"

"I am 'appy because I know my husband is brave, he is fighting for a good cause, and ze world will be a better place when everytheeng is over. Besides, Remus, we can never be too safe from danger, and it does not take a war for something bad to happen to someone. But this does not mean we cannot live our lives!"

Remus sighed. "That's why I keep telling Bill it should be me in his place -"

"Now, now," Fleur interrupted him. "You are reaching ze ozer end. When I say we must take risks, I mean ones we can 'andle. I can 'andle Bill. Tonks can 'andle you. Bill can 'andle ze werewolves. You could 'andle ze werewolves in ze past, but now you cannot, which is why this risk was taken away from you."

Remus shook his head in defeat and took another sip of his tea.

"Bill and I are doing fine, I assure you. And although I worry zat sometheeng bad might 'appen to him, I know zat 'e has been dealing fine with the other werewolves. No offence, but Molly told me ze ozer day zat Bill 'as made more progress with the werewolves in one month than you made in one year."

"He's very charismatic," Remus admitted.

"Oh, indeed 'e is," Fleur said proudly. "He is winning zem over quickly. Maybe it was for ze best that 'e ended up zere, after all."

"If you look at it that way," Remus said with a shrug.

Fleur nodded. "So, instead of worrying about my relationship with Bill, how about you worry about your relationship with Tonks instead?"

Remus stared at the young woman in disbelief. "Will there always be a Mrs Weasley bugging me about my relationship with Tonks?"

Fleur smiled mischievously. "Eef eet ees necessary."

-----

Things were going very well at the werewolf community for Bill. Not only had he managed to get closer to the three leaders, but he was also approaching the rest of the werewolves as well. His natural talent at socialising, combined with his confident attitude, easy personality, the advice from Remus and a little bit of acting, were earning him the respect of the others and, although they always used to look at new arrivals with distrust, they were gradually accepting him into their small groups.

He trod carefully, dropping hints about fighting against Voldemort or getting in touch with humans whenever he thought it wise, and by now, a slight change at the neutral party's mentality could be observed. Several of the werewolves were having positive thoughts about the prospect of mingling with humans – although it was very early yet, and Bill was careful not to show that he was pressuring them towards that direction.

Preferring to affect the group mentality as a whole, rather than convert individuals, he measured carefully exactly how much time he needed to spend with everyone – too little wouldn't make a difference, but too much would derail him from his track. By now, he had learned to understand the werewolves' closed minds and planned his tactics according to the vibes he was gathering from them.

Right now, he was sitting by a fire in the back of the farthest cave. Near him was a young girl, Sophie. She was a lonely woman, always sitting alone or silently watching other people conversing. By the way she had been behaving towards him, however, he was strongly suspecting she fancied him – which was all the more convenient for him, of course.

He stared intently at the fire, faking grimness. He knew that, if she saw him like this, she'd approach him sooner or later. Which indeed, she did.

"Hey," she said, scooting closer.

"Hey."

"What's wrong?"

He shrugged.

"Missing your wife?"

"Yeah..." he said, not taking his eyes off the fire. "I just saw her yesterday, but, you know... she's my wife."

Sophie nodded. "She must be a great woman."

"She is," Bill said and turned to her. "You'd make great friends with her. In fact, I know many people you'd make great friends with."

"It's been such a long time, I don't remember what it's like to have a friend anymore," she said bitterly. "Or to be a friend, at that."

"But after all this time, you haven't made a single friend here?"

She shook her head sadly. "Oh, Bill, you must have noticed by now that werewolves don't just welcome you into their group. It's up to you to approach them. And when you're shy and introverted like me, you never find it in yourself to. So..." She shrugged.

"And what about your other friends? You surely had some!"

"Yeah," she said, staring at the fire. Her brown hair seemed almost auburn as the light of the fire reflected on it. "I had my two best friends from Hogwarts. And my mum..." She sniffed. "I haven't seen them in six years... who knows if they even remember me."

"Of course they do, Sophie. Why wouldn't they? What happened when you got bitten?"

"You know... People just... started avoiding me."

"Them too?"

"No, of course not." She wiped a tear from her eye. "But the others... neighbours, acquaintances... I couldn't find a job anywhere. And in the end I just couldn't take it anymore."

"And what did they do when you decided to leave?"

"They tried to keep me there, but... I couldn't handle it, you know? I was just out of Hogwarts, about to start my life, and... that man bit me, and everything was suddenly falling apart! It's not fair..."

Tears started to roll from her eyes. Bill scooted closer and let her cry on his shoulder, gently stroking her hair, his heartbeat quickening with anger. That was what discrimination did to people, keeping them at the margin, away from their loved ones. It had to stop.

"You have people out there who care about you," he said softly. "If there's nothing to keep you here, why don't you go back?"

She wiped her eyes, pulled away from his embrace and looked at him intensely. "You have people out there who care about you. Why did you come here?"

Bill shifted awkwardly. "I just... wanted to get in touch with the other side of myself," he lied. "I feel I need the werewolves' company just as much as I need the company of the others. But you, can you say the same about yourself?"

"I may not have friends here, but at least everyone accepts me for who I am. Nobody's commenting behind my back."

"But you're not happy, Sophie. Listen, out there you have your mum and your friends. And there are so many other people who would love to get close to you and help you get back in track."

"That can't be done."

"Of course it can! Don't you remember Remus Lupin?"

Sophie looked at Bill sceptically. "You were not here yet when he left."

"No, but I know him. We've become friends. He's got a life outside now. An occupation, people who care for him, and even a girlfriend. You can find your way just like he did."

The brown-haired girl was still doubtful. Bill could tell she wanted to believe him, but was afraid of getting hurt again.

"Look, I'm going back home next week, and you'll come with me, OK? I promise you I'll help you get back the life that was taken away from you." He took her hand. "Trust me."

Sophie took a moment to contemplate it, then eventually let go of her doubts and gave Bill a small smile.

-----

The next morning, Harry, Ron and Hermione said goodbye to Mrs Fairweather. The old lady refused to accept any kind of payment from the three teenagers; she only asked them that, if their way brought them back to Godric's Hollow someday, they would stop by for a game of Black Nicholas with her.

They agreed and mounted their broomsticks heading to the Hole of the Unwanted, which was located in Sunderland. The trip wasn't long, although the cloudy and windy weather didn't make it any pleasant.

The three teenagers had already got directions on how to find it; the morning after they had decided they would need to visit it, Harry had waken up early enough to wait for the Collector and ask for directions. It was exactly in the middle of the city, a square lot that looked like an empty construction yard with a small building in the middle.

They found it easily, landed in the yard, walked to the building and knocked on the door. A young, blond man dressed in a dark grey uniform opened the door. Harry thought he looked familiar, and, with a little effort, he recognised him as an older Hogwarts student, perhaps from five or six years ago.

"Yes?" he said snidely, after taking a momentary look at Harry's scar. Harry was intensely reminded of Draco Malfoy.

"We are looking for something," Harry said. "May we?"

The blonde sneered and opened the door. The three teenagers walked in the room. There was another guard inside, an older, dark-haired man. In the middle of the room was a big, round hole.

"You say you're looking for something?" the blonde asked.

"Yes. A hexagon-shaped gold locket. Did you happen to see it?"

The blonde sneered again. "Do you expect me to remember every piece of garbage that gets in here?"

Harry rolled his eyes. "Can we look for it in there, then?"

The blonde gave a mocking laugh. "If you manage to find it, it's yours."

Harry threw him an annoyed look and walked over to the edge of the Hole with Ron and Hermione by his sides. He looked down inside it; there were piles of garbage in it. As Ron had explained to him, this Hole was an endless pit. Everything stayed in there, albeit getting deeper and deeper with every piece of garbage that was thrown in. Technically, you could find anything that had ever been thrown inside, if your magic was strong enough.

Harry stretched out his hand, holding his wand right above the hole, closed his eyes and concentrated hard for a minute, then said loudly and clearly "Accio Slytherin's locket."

Nothing happened. No movement at all was visible in the hole.

"What if we tried to say it all together?" Hermione suggested.

Deciding that it couldn't hurt their chances, the three teenagers joined the tips of their wands, and, counting to three, repeated the spell.

Again, nothing. Disappointed, Harry turned away from the hole. His eyes fell to the blonde... who seemed to have paled, and was looking at the three of them with an expression of mild shock.

Harry watched the blonde, wondering why he was looking at them like that, until it dawned on him. "You," he told the blonde. "You've got it."

"Me? What are you talking -"

"You've got it!" he yelled, pointing his wand towards the blonde. "Where is it?"

"Man, are you -"

"WHERE IS IT?" Harry repeated, pressing the blonde against the wall, the tip of Harry's wand on the blonde's throat.

"I swear, I didn't know it was Slytherin's locket!" the blonde said, trembling in fear.

"WHAT DID YOU DO WITH IT?"

"I sold it..."

"TO WHOM?"

"Stop yelling!"

Harry stepped back from the blonde and threw him a disdainful look. The blonde dusted himself. A few feet away from the two boys, Ron, Hermione and the other guard were watching the scene without making any attempts to interfere. The guard had wanted to help his colleague at first, but after the two teenagers had held him back, he hadn't insisted. Apparently, something big was going on here – especially if Harry Potter himself was involved in it.

"I sold it at an antique shop at Hogsmeade," the blonde said eventually. "Alton's Antiquities."

"Good," Harry spat. "Come on," he gestured to Ron and Hermione, "let's get away from here."

The three teenagers exited the building, closing the door behind them.

"You sure scared that bloke," Ron said with a snicker.

"I couldn't stand to lose that locket again," Harry said. "It cost Dumbledore his life."

Oblivious to the other two's sympathetic looks on him, Harry turned to study the sky, examining his options. It was still windy, but it didn't look like it was going to rain. They could make it to Hogsmeade, and maybe they could spend the rest of the day there...

"Are we going there now?" Hermione asked, forcing him to voice his thoughts.

Harry pulled out of his jacket's pocket Charlie's map and consulted it. "If we fly on a straight route, it's about three hours' distance," he calculated, keeping in mind that they'd fly a bit slower than usual because of the wind. "We'll have to fly over the sea, though."

Hermione shuddered at the thought, but managed to shove it away. "I guess it's no different than flying over land."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, yeah."

"You'll tell us if you get nauseous, all right?"

"Yeah." She sighed. "I can't wait until you two get your Apparition licences."

"Why don't you Apparate to Hogsmeade, and we'll meet you there?" Ron suggested. "Harry and I can fly much more quickly if you're not with us... I mean, because your broomstick is slow," he added, realising he had probably sounded a little offensive.

Hermione was torn between sticking with her friends and following Ron's, admittedly easier for her, suggestion. It would save them time, after all...

"No, never mind," she eventually decided. "I'm coming with you. We're in this together, aren't we?"

Harry smiled at her. "Let's go, then."

They mounted their broomsticks and left, heading northwards.

-End of chapter 15-