Chapter 1: Act I - Chapter I

Disclaimer: I own nothing except Maria Cooper.

Chapter One: Curiosity

Curiosity is not a sin... But we should exercise caution with our curiosity... yes, indeed.

J.K. Rowling, "The Pensieve," Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

August 13th, 2004

This story began on a warm summer afternoon.

When Maria Cooper heard the front door at Flourish and Blotts open for the millionth time, she assumed that another parent would be asking - no, demanding - to purchase their children's book supplies as fast as possible. The ringing of a bell echoed loudly – and several times - over the hubbub in the store. This was a vexing contraption that seemed to get on her nerves more often than she would've liked. To top it, a slow but persistent migraine had insisted on buggering her for the day and, after running around to sort books, she had half a mind to send the next customer on their merry way.

At least books didn't talk. On certain occasions they did switch places on their own accord, and while there was a high risk of maiming a finger or two, it was a much better prospect and less of an inconvenience.

She eyed a heavy Astronomy book critically. Of course, it was supposed to go on one of the higher shelves.

'Miss?'

Maria turned around. It surprised her that a familiar wizard of inflated width loomed over her head, bearing a frown able to rival the most cantankerous man. She stared at him, eyebrows raised in polite puzzlement, pausing in mid-motion with her arm outstretched. Slowly her gaze lowered: first squinting at the ridiculous purple robes and then at the tall pile the man carried.

'Excuse me, Miss?' the gruff voice, combined with the racket was making her head throb. 'I need your manager's signature as soon as possible; the lads are waiting for orders outside,' the man pointed at the papers with one fat finger.

'What's this about?' she asked, trying to glance at the papers on her tip toes. The word "payment" stood out, but there was little else she could make sense of.

'The new Defense books, Miss. Should've arrived the day before yesterday but the publisher had a problem with the printing.'

'That's not our concern, someone should've warned us beforehand,' she grumbled, pinching the bridge of her nose. The dusty tomes she had been sorting lay forgotten on the floor. 'Now we have at least fifteen families planted on the store and one witch demanding the books for free.'

The man shrugged. 'And that ain't our problem Miss; take it out with the publisher.'

Maria sighed, closing her eyes tight. This was going to be a long day.

'Stay here, I'll call him,' she gave her wand a hasty flick and a dozen tomes obediently fell into place on the nearby shelves. 'Just don't leave, alright? Can't have you wandering around the store right now.'

She gave the man one last glance before swiftly fighting her way through the droves of witches and wizards who'd brought every living blood relative in search of school supplies. She spotted a considerable crowd before the counter, complaining and bellowing at an elderly witch dressed in midnight blue robes. Maria shot her a sympathetic look that went unseen, secretly pleased to be outside the range of angry customers.

In the back, the door leading to a small, restricted warehouse was home to some of the most ancient tomes and spell books. Often these were kept from the public eye. The place reminded Maria of a greenhouse, though there were some obvious deviations. She couldn't imagine having had Herbology in such a silent and dimly lit environment; the warehouse was more of a tomb for old tomes, with its numerous shelves stacked to the ceiling and delicate glass displayers.

There was magic here, trapped within the books. It gathered in the air and rested on the walls, but this was the sort of magic that came from the written word. Too much of it, and the place started to get crowded.

She shivered, feeling a tingle. It was always cold here, even in summer.

She squinted in the darkness, closing the door behind her with a soft hiss. There was a faint light at the far end, but something else caught her eye: a broken table not very far from the entrance, flipped over and leaning against the strong stone walls that had hoarded more dust since the last time Maria entered the warehouse. Upon closer inspection, she spotted the remnants of doxy droppings and quickly gave two steps back, grimacing at the glowing blue-ish muck.

Straightening her back, she then turned her attention to the only occupied table further down. The heels of her shoes clicked across the floor, disturbing the otherwise silent warehouse. A strong, mold scent lingered in the air.

'Miss Cooper, what brings you here?' a surprised voice came from behind her. Maria jumped. 'Shouldn't you be tending to our customers?'

'Well, yes,' after catching her breath, she managed to have the decency to look sheepish. 'But the usual bloke is waiting for you to sign for the new Defense books. He asked for you specifically,' she gave a shrug and leaned on the wall with her arms crossed. 'Seems quite impatient, for some reason.'

There was the thump of a book being slam shut and the manager of Flourish and Blotts, a tall, lanky man with a sullen expression, came out from behind the massive shelves. He was holding a tome that sported a rather worn-out leather cover that had seen better days. Sighing, he gave Maria an exasperated glance and frowned, the thin lips beneath his mustache twitching irritably.

'Bureaucracy, Miss Cooper, is the devil's invention. You seem an intelligent young lady; trust me when I say no job description holding the words "administration" or "procedures" is worth the hours of stress unless you are able to delegate the task to someone else entirely,' the manager shut his eyes tightly and rubbed his temple before giving Maria a contemplative look. 'I believe your job application mentioned you had been a member of Slytherin House?'

'Yes, that's correct,' she said slowly, watching the other wizard with caution.

'Good,' the manager exhaled in relief. 'Then I trust you are well acquainted with Horace Slughorn? He is an old friend of mine, and has agreed to donate a few singular books to Flourish and Blotts. Unfortunately my presence is required elsewhere tonight and there will be no one here to welcome him.'

Maria stared.

'When, exactly?' she asked, trying not to sound too disgruntled.

The manager seemed deep in thought. 'Shortly before dinner time? I would appreciate if you were to make yourself available to receive this most generous addition, and see to it that the books are kept safe. We should be announcing a very special edition release in a fortnight, and this must to be taken care of with some urgency.'

'Of course,' said Maria in a clipped voice. She wondered if her headache couldn't get any worse. 'Anything else?' she added as an afterthought, but was blissfully ignored.

The manager clasped his hands together. 'Now, off you go! I can already hear Mrs. Wimple's cries for assistance. There is much work to be done.'

'Yes, sir.'

Maria's gaze followed the manager as he quickened his pace, opening the door out of the warehouse. Alone, she groaned, shoulders slumped. She stood in the dark for a while, trying to discern what had happened exactly, and wished for the day to be over.

oooOOOooo

Slughorn was late.

It was long after closing hours when Maria glanced at the lively green fire, cracking and hissing in the fireplace. Her stomach was dangerously close to start growling; dinner time had come and passed excruciatingly slow, and she had waited inside the store, hoping that the next odd rustling in the fireplace would be her former Professor. She fought the urge to roll her eyes when a short statured man with a large belly and an enormous silvery walrus-like mustache (1) appeared from the flames, his usually shiny bald head covered in a layer of dirt. She stifled a laugh, snorting inaudibly at the contrast between this wizard's velvet robes, very proper and couth, and his disheveled appearance.

Half hidden in the shadows, she watched him fuss over a wooden box. It had fallen to the ground after a rather graceless attempt to swirl round in the fireplace, and turned out to be a nuisance to pick up again. Not that Maria was terribly interested in helping. The crate wasn't very large per say, and she had expected something grand, – or rather, worthy of this late night shift – though perhaps, after all, great things did come in small packages?

'Professor Slughorn?' she called, standing from her comfortable chair behind the counter. 'I expect you arrived without issue?' she flashed a cynical smile at her former Professor that went unnoticed.

Slughorn's gaze had wandered, searching between shelves and shadow, and he seemed lost in thought. Small lines and wrinkles appeared on his forehead, as his face contorted into a deeper frown. After a moment's hesitation, he briskly marched towards Maria. A large hand enveloped hers for a handshake too dainty for a man of Slughorn's considerable size.

Much to her chagrin, there was no sign of recognition, no hint of remembrance whatsoever, and she felt an upsurge of displeasure, trying hard not to scowl.

'Good evening, my dear,' said Slughorn, still slightly puzzled. He raised an eyebrow at Maria and glanced apprehensively around the dimly lit book store, so filled with life only hours ago and now eerily silent. 'I was expecting the manager of Flourish and Blotts to come and receive this,' he pointed at the wooden crate under his arm, and then back at Maria inquisitively. 'But it seems I was mistaken!'

She was taken aback, staring at the fat finger being waggled in front of her face with wide eyes. A new pounding on her forehead forced her to blink, the throbs of pain so strong that she felt her eyes were about to melt.

'I-I apologize on his behalf for the inconvenience, but the manager had some pressing issues to deal with and regrettably was unable to be present at this time,' Maria answered through clenched teeth, but Slughorn did not seem to realize the tension as he shrugged her words off with a laugh and a wave of his hand.

She relaxed visibly when he withdrew his hand from her face.

'Unexpected but not altogether appalling, my dear. What matters is that our, er, investment arrived and now stays safe,' said Slughorn. 'I trust you have been informed about the necessary procedures?' He winked at her, and Maria felt her jaw harden in rightful frustration.

There was that word again, procedures. No wonder the manager didn't want to be present at this hour, he simply wanted to delegate the task to someone else to fill in the paperwork –

Maria took a deep breath. She felt hungry now, and a little light-headed. The manager had burdened her with work during the rest of the day, assuming she would comply without complaining, and then left her to close the bookstore alone. The more she thought about it, the less pleased she was.

'Of course, rest assured that everything will be taken care of accordingly,' she said, and silently cursed Slughorn and the manager for involving her in their schemes.

'Excellent, excellent,' Slughorn squinted at her. 'Although old Cuthbert should be here…' he stopped, giving Maria an inquisitive stare. 'Well, of course, I assume he's been very busy.'

'I… think so?' she said, placing the wooden box carefully on the counter. It was heavier than it seemed, and she immediately regretted not using magic to lift it up. As expected, no help came from the Professor.

She glanced apprehensively at the roll of parchment Slughorn carried. Maybe her eyes were growing too tired, but it looked long and official, and she wanted nothing more to leave. Unfortunately, there wasn't a way to make the old wizard leave without sounding indelicate.

'And these are for you to sign,' said Slughorn, conjuring a pile of documents from beneath his cloak, and throwing them into Maria's numb arms. 'Preferably sooner rather than later; we wouldn't want to burden ourselves with unnecessary formalities.'

'Of course,' said Maria in a small voice, though Slughorn didn't seem to have heard her. He was straightening the velvet fabric of his robes on the prominent stomach, while admiring his reflection on a mirrored displayer.

'Well, my dear, it is getting rather late and there's a dinner party I must attend. Have a good evening and give my best to Cuthbert!' Slughorn checked his pocket watch, unaware that Maria was clutching her wand to prevent herself from lashing out at him, or throwing the pile.

'Good evening,' Maria bit her lip to hold back a very loaded retort.

She watched as Slughorn entered the fireplace and then disappeared in the green flames, leaving her alone in Flourish and Blotts for the night. Impatiently sweeping an escaped curl from her eyes, Maria sighed at the thought of having to deal with a mountain of paperwork before going home. Her headache was nearly blinding now, though she believed this was due more to the fact that she was furious rather than merely from exhaustion anymore.

As she sat on the comfortable chair behind the counter, Maria took one of the quills and started going through all the paperwork. She fervently hoped no one would tell Slughorn about his dirty bald head during the dinner party.

oooOOOooo

It was much later when Maria threw her head back, running her hand through her neatly combed hair. Eyes clenched shut, she pinched the bridge of her nose and let out a distressed moan that echoed through the store, rumbling in the awful silence.

Her nose was a red mess: hours of handling books, cleaning dust and keeping old tomes were finally taking their toll. She stared with a pair of bloodshot eyes at the pile on the counter, frowning at the amount of signatures required of her for four miserable books. This had never been part of her job description as a lowly employee, and by no means had she ever imagined the amount of paperwork required.

She exhaled heavily. Necessary formalities, indeed; it had truly been a harrowing day.

The pile was left on top of the counter for the manager, neatly stacked and easily recognizable. Maria narrowed her eyes at the box, wondering what kind of books could be contained inside the unassuming crate. After an intense staring match, she reasoned that this ridiculous situation had automatically entitled her to have a first look.

'Wingardium Leviosa,' she raised her wand at the box without looking at it, and marched to the warehouse with a lazy step.

The floorboards complained under the weight of her body, the clicking of heels creaking and grinding as she stalked up to the only candle lit table in the back. During the evenings, the warehouse was terrifying. Someone had left one of the smaller windows open, letting in a breeze keen on dancing with the candle flame. As a consequence, Maria was surrounded by flickering shadows. She clenched her jaw and stared straight ahead.

With a swish of her hand, the crate landed carefully on the table. It shook under the added weight, vibrating the floor under her feet. To top it, she felt someone else was in the warehouse with her, hidden in the shadows. She made a mental note to suggest a new Doxy purge in the nearby future.

Glancing around one last time, Maria touched the crate with the tip of her wand, puzzled at the lack of magical reaction. She then fumbled with the lock, marveling that the lid was not as hard to open as she had believed.

The lid opened with a squeaky creak; from the spines, Maria could tell there were at least four different books, each one with a different colour: red, green, blue and yellow. She was reminded of Hogwarts with its four houses and their respective colours and crests. These books, she inspected, had no inscription on the cover, no odd symbol. There was nothing to make them stand out. They were completely ordinary.

She wondered if Slughorn had stolen these books. Maybe they belonged to the library, and had been misplaced after the great Battle of Hogwarts. Or, perhaps, he obtained them from another source? Maria found it hard to believe that Slughorn would steal something so important. On the other hand, members of Slytherin were nothing if not pragmatic. Of course, pragmatism came in many shapes.

Hands shaking, she took the green book with extra care and opened it: it still smelled of mold and its pages were yellowish. This was certainly very old –

A single piece of parchment fell from the pages of the book. Maria's eyebrows shot up. She closed the book and placed it on the table, bending to pick up the piece of parchment from the cold floor.

It was as yellowish as the book, but while the latter was written in archaic English this had some sort of hidden message in a language she didn't recognize. The writing was very delicate, quite beautiful to look upon. It certainly wouldn't do to leave it without proper inspection.

Maria was mystified; she stared at it with wide eyes for a while, quite curious as to what the strange symbols meant. She felt a pull towards it, as if this was something important that she was meant to have, and quickly decided it would do no harm to take it home. No one would miss a small piece of parchment when inside the wooden box lay four rarities of the utmost kind.

Maria shoved the parchment inside her robes. Then, she placed the book back in the crate and closed the lid, exiting the warehouse. She was anxious to discover what that writing meant – after a good night's sleep, of course. Her thoughts were on secret codes and curious messages while she hurried home, amused to have at least found something worth her time, after a heinous day.

(1) Canon character description is book-wise, rather than from the movies. I find their depiction of the HP verse lacking and massively commercial. References come from the series themselves, the HP Lexicon and everything trustworthy I can find regarding HP. Maria is based on the unidentified bespectacled Slytherin girl in The Sorcerer's Stone, one of the few movie add-ons I actually considered for this story.

The story is split in three Acts: first HP verse, then Middle Earth, then… we'll see. It all depends on the characters.