Uric the Oddball and the Wild Hunt

Louis stayed very still as he leant against one of the shelves in the Trophy Room. Mena was pacing back and forth across the room, muttering angrily to herself. She was worried about Uric, but Louis was sure Uric was fine. No one went to so much trouble to kidnap someone, then killed them. Uric was a useful bargaining chip and was safe so long as Mr. Beaufolle wanted him back.

What Louis was worried about was his upcoming interview with Uric's father. He had sent them an urgent letter telling them he wanted to meet and find out the real story. Mr. Beaufolle was a strict and intelligent man, and if Louis' research was correct, a former Slytherin to boot. He would figure out their little plan as easily as Professor Thacher had. The question was - what would he do about it?

The oaken door opened and Louis moved to the centre of the room, pulling Mena with him, if only to stop her from pacing.

"Mr. Beaufolle," he said after the door closed. The older wizard nodded. His dark brown beard was neatly trimmed, but Louis suspected he had forgotten to fix his hair after his broom flight since it stood up in every direction giving him a wild look that complimented the look in his eyes. Louis did not want to be one of Uric's kidnappers once Mr. Beaufolle got a hold of them.

"Tell me what happened," Mr. Beaufolle demanded. "Havenward said you saw it."

"We were in the Oriental Room, Sir," said Louis. "Well, Uric and Varys were. I was in the secret passage that runs along the left side of the room. Mena was outside, further down the corridor."

"Standing watch," said Beaufolle flatly. Louis hesitated before answering. As opposed to his son, Uric's father didn't seem to miss much. Louis wanted to keep the rest of the plan secret, but he reluctantly decided that Mr. Beaufolle needed to know.

"Yes, Sir. But she didn't see anything until Thacher came, so they must have come down the left-hand corridor."

"Thacher," mused Mr. Beaufolle. Louis wondered if they knew each other but doubted that Mr. Beaufolle would answer if he asked.

"Yes, Sir," was all he said, and he didn't have to wait long for Mr. Beaufolle's next question.

"And why was Thacher coming?"

"We had a plan to get Varys caught out of bounds as revenge for his stealing Simon and getting us stuck in the forest during the Wild Hunt," explained Mena impatiently. Louis glared at her. He was shocked that she could be so blunt. He looked to Mr. Beaufolle and saw that he was nodding to himself.

"And it had only taken you a month," the older wizard said. Louis couldn't tell if Mr. Beaufolle approved or disapproved, but since he wasn't condemning them, he decided to continue.

"Uric was supposed to enter the secret passage once he entered the room, and we would have locked it behind him," he said.

"Trapping Varys until Thacher came since I put a locking spell on the main door once they were through," said Mena. Mr. Beaufolle didn't say anything.

"Uric didn't seem to remember the plan," said Louis. "He started talking to Varys about magically enhanced structures. Mena had to wait until Thacher passed before she came to see, so I was the only one in the passage. There was no way for me to get Uric out of there, and just when I was going to go get Mena and delay Professor Thacher, two wizards came in."

"Were they wearing masks?" asked Mr. Beaufolle. He sounded like he was holding his temper in check so he didn't scare them. Louis nodded.

"Yes, a red dragon and a golden griffin. One of them was a lot taller than the other too."

"What did Uric do?" Mr. Beaufolle asked. Louis shrugged.

"I think he was going to talk to them, but the golden griffin petrified Varys while the red dragon cast some sort of spell around Uric that caused him to be surrounded by a dark cloud." Louis actually knew the name of the spell, but since it was Dark Arts and not exactly common knowledge, he would feel better letting Uric's father think he hadn't heard the spell or understood it. Beaufolle definitely recognized which spell it was.

"Why do you think they used that particular spell on him instead of petrification?" he asked.

"Uric's unpredictable," said Louis, already having considered the question. "They learnt that the first time they tried for him." A thought occurred to him. "Varys' father is in support of the Council abolition isn't he?" Mr. Beaufolle ignored the question.

"Continue," he said impatiently.

"The man in the golden griffin mask floated Varys and Uric out of the room. The red dragon wizard stayed. He cast a complicated spell that conjured replicas of their masks. They hung spinning in the air and than he wrote the words 'Power comes in many guises' underneath them," explained Louis.

"Mr Beaufolle looked thoughtful. Louis was sure the phrase meant something to him. "Did anyone see them?" the older wizard asked.

"Headmistress Kurze checked for anyone after she found out, but of course they were gone by then." Professor Thacher had done his own search as well, but Louis had no idea what he had found. Mr. Beaufolle seemed to read his mind.

"Where is Thacher?" he asked.

"He was with Mrs. Kurze last time we saw him," said Mena, looking relieved that he had asked a question she could answer.

"But he could be in his office by now," added Louis.

"The Charms office?" Mr. Beaufolle seemed both distracted and excited. Louis nodded. Beaufolle turned to leave the room, but then the politician within him asserted itself and he turned back.

"Thank you both for your help. If there's anything else I need to know, tell Thacher." His eyes were boring into theirs and all Mena and Louis could manage were frantic nods of agreement. Beaufolle left the room, and they saw him pause, then turn right before he disappeared out of sight. Mena turned to Louis.

"Is he going to Thacher or Kurze?" she asked. Louis shook his head.

"You can get to both of them by going right from here." And there were no secret passages into any teacher's office. Well, except for Defence Against the Dark Arts, but he didn't think Stewart would be happy to see them right now.

"What do we do now, Louis?" asked Mena in a quiet voice. His first inclination was to say 'nothing'. After all, they were only just first-years and even the fully grown wizards were having trouble dealing with this. But Uric was involved and much as Louis hated to admit it in public, he was friend. Not to mention Mena would go off and do something foolish if he didn't think of something.

"Come on," he said, and led the way out of the room, turning left down the corridor.

*****

When Uric woke up it was dark. This was a usual occurrence so he wasn't too worried until he tried to move. His neck flopped up and he was able to blink a few times. Nothing but his head could move. He considered the possibility that perhaps his head was the only part of him here, but decided that couldn't be since his toes would never abandon him.

He listened for the snores of his roommates, and the gentle twittering of Simon sleeping, but all he heard was the quiet sound of one person other then himself drawing in breath. He had to see who it was. It never occurred to him to just call out. He struggled to break free of the petrification.

"Who is it?" a scared voice called, but Uric didn't have time to answer. He held himself very still, then carefully relaxed each part of his body. Then he did it again, and again. He lost track of the time in the darkness as he began to chant.

"Free me. Free me," he said over and over inside his head. Many seconds, minutes, hours, days later the spell dissolved. He lay there for a moment, suddenly aware of the sweat that was pouring off him. Relaxing was hard work. He slowly got up and crawled over to where he had heard the voice.

"Help," it yelped when he bumped into someone's body. Hadn't he heard that voice before?

"Hello. How are you?" he asked politely, settling himself comfortably next to the voice's body.

"Petrified. What do you think, Uric?" snarled the voice. Uric was delighted.

"You know my name!" he exclaimed. He heard the voice sigh.

"It's Varys, you idiot. We've been kidnapped. No wonder I have so much trouble explaining why you get better grades."

"Explaining to who?" asked Uric. Varys ignored him.

"Why aren't you petrified?" asked Varys.

"I got out."

"How?" demanded Varys. He sounded panicked. Uric tried to think of a way to explain.

"The petrificus spell freezes the outer layer of one's body in place until the counter spell is performed, so it is simply a matter of removing the outer layer of your body from the environs of the spell," he explained. Varys was silent for a moment.

"But how?" he finally asked. Uric shrugged in the darkness.

"I relaxed." There was a dull knocking sound as Varys hit the back of his head against the stone floor.

*****

Mena felt very exposed. There was something wrong with being able to walk right in front of someone and have them not see you. If this was what using an invisibility cloak was always like, then she never wanted one. She didn't care what type of advantage it would give her.

Louis didn't seem to mind though. She was annoyed that he hadn't told her about grabbing Varys invisibility cloak before now. With their own marker spell removed, they were now free to listen in on any adults they chose.

"Why Kurze?" she whispered, hoping Louis would answer her this time. He had been even quieter then normal since Uric was kidnapped. Louis stopped walking.

"It's impossible to eavesdrop on Thacher's office. A sixth-year Slytherin tried it before Christmas. She still sings Ring around the Posies at inopportune moments," he said. Mena gave him a sceptical look but he didn't seem to notice. "The Headmistress on the other hand, is still waiting in the Oriental Room for Mr. Beaufolle to arrive. Rather nervously waiting, I imagine."

"But she doesn't know anything," hissed Mena. Louis gestured for her to be silent as a Gryffindor prefect rushed through the corridor they occupied. Everyone knew about the disappearances by now and Louis and Mena should really be in the Great Hall with all the other students. But Mena refused to go back until she knew they had done everything possible to help Uric.

"Beaufolle and Thacher have to tell her something," said Louis once the corridor was empty again. "Which is more then they'll tell us."

They approached the Oriental Room from the left corridor, just like the kidnappers had done. The door was ajar thankfully, and they slipped in easily, despite nearly bumping into the black robes of Professor Stewart. They found a place in the corner and watched as Headmistress Kurze sent an angry spell at the two masks and words floating in the middle of the room.

"Beaufolle might want to see those," suggested Stewart nervously. Mrs. Kurze was pacing like a caged lioness. She turned a glare on Stewart that made him step back.

"I promised Mr. Beaufolle that his child would be safe. You assured me that he would be, and now he is missing and so is Varys Nachleen. We are only lucky that Mr. Nachleen is too embroiled in the Abolition crisis to pay attention to the whereabouts of his son." Stewart seemed to find strength from somewhere to stand up straighter and speak.

"Nevertheless, we will have to inform Mr. Nachleen of his son's disappearance soon." Mrs. Kurze gave him a shrewd look.

"And perhaps you'd like to explain why your student was wandering about at such a late hour. It's not his first time either, if I recall correctly," she said. Mena rejoiced at seeing Stewart in such a bad position, but before Stewart could defend himself, Mr. Beaufolle and Professor Thacher walked into the room. Uric's father looked calm on the outside, but Mena thought he was like her when she was really angry. Any moment now and he would hit someone.

"Mr. Beaufolle," began the Headmistress. "I'm sorry you had to come so far for..." she trailed off. Mr. Beaufolle was ignoring her and examining the masks in the centre of the room. He reached out and touched the mask of the red dragon. It stopped spinning and turned to face him.

"What do you want?" demanded Mr. Beaufolle. The room was very quiet. The dragon mask's mouth pulled itself into a toothy grimace. It took a moment for Mena to recognize it as a smile.

"A reversal of your position in the upcoming vote on the Council's abolition, and one thousand galleons for the extra trouble you and your son have caused us. We will contact you about further arrangements," said the mask.

"And Nachleen? What about him?" asked Beaufolle. The mask remained silent. Mr. Beaufolle stared hard at it, and Mena was sure he was fuming.

"How is Uric?" he finally asked. The dragon mask gave a throaty laugh.

"As well as anyone can be when they're locked in a dungeon labyrinth. Have I mentioned the guardian beasts?" The mask continued to laugh, louder and louder until Mena wanted to clamp her hands over her ears. The dragon mask slowly faded away, leaving the laughter to echo throughout the room.

"How did you know which one to touch?" asked Professor Thacher in a casual tone, as if he hadn't just witnessed a disturbing ransom demand. Mr. Beaufolle was still looking at the spot where the mask had been.

"Nachleen's a Gryffindor. It seemed appropriate," he responded distractedly.

"Mr. Beaufolle, we really should go to my office and discuss this," said Mrs. Kurze into the growing silence. Mr. Beaufolle appeared to notice her for the first time.

"No time, Headmistress," he said firmly. Mrs. Kurze looked taken aback. She had probably expected Mr. Beaufolle to yell at her.

"If there is anything we can do to help, Mr. Beaufolle," she said. "Please don't hesitate to-"

"There is something," he said. "You wouldn't happen to have been tracking him, would you? I was told your husband was doing so earlier this year." Something about the question seemed to annoy Mrs. Kurze.

"I saw no need to bespell your son," she said frostily. Mr. Beaufolle smiled disconcertingly.

"I wasn't accusing you of anything, Headmistress. Would your husband know anything?" he asked.

"I, yes - Olman would know." Mena smothered a giggle. Mr. Beaufolle had Mrs. Kurze as confused as Uric usually made the Headmistress.

"Could you summon him?" he asked. Mrs. Kurze nodded. She tapped a red stone that she was wearing on her wrist. Mr. Kurze came in only a few seconds later. So fast that Mena wondered if he had been listening at the door. He looked around the room, then addressed Mrs. Kurze.

"You called, Headmistress?"

"Yes, Olman. Mr. Beaufolle wants to know if you've been tracking Uric," Mrs. Kurze explained. Mr. Kurze shook his head. Mena thought he looked sad.

"I had a transport stone on him earlier this year, but he used it after their first attempt to kidnap him," he said. Mr. Beaufolle looked disappointed.

"Well, thank-"

"Wait," interrupted Mr. Kurze excitedly. He tapped his finger against the side of his head. "I've remembered something. There may be a way to track him. We have to go to your office, dear," he said to a surprised Mrs. Kurze.

"Let's go then," said Mr. Beaufolle, taking charge. He swept out, followed closely by Mr. Kurze and Thacher. Mrs. Kurze and Stewart had to hurry after them.

As soon as they left, Mena threw off the cloak in disgust, ignoring Louis' frantic attempts to make her leave it on. She went over to stare out the door. What had Mr. Kurze remembered?

*****

Uric wasn't sure what to do. His instincts told him to explore, but Varys had demanded that he stay with him. If he had his wand, he could levitate Varys with him, but he didn't have it and his parents had told him countless times not to use wandless magic.

He leant in really close to Varys and whispered where he thought the other boy's ear was. "I need to go. There's something wrong with this place. You don't have to worry. The badgers will always protect you, even in the dark, and I don't think there's any pudding around so you should be okay." Varys started calling his name, louder and louder as he moved away, but Uric's mind was on other things.

He paused for a moment as he heard a scratching noise in the darkness, then forced himself to continue onward. He really wasn't entirely sure about the lack of puddings in this place, but Varys had seemed much more scared then he was so he had to tell him something.

The darkness was complete in every direction, but the air wasn't still. A warm gush of air was coming from somewhere. Uric followed it back to its source. There was a door, he could feel it, and the warm air came from the crack at the bottom. He felt around it. The door had huge, iron hinges and was bared from the other side. Uric frowned at it. He had to get out.

A search in his pockets revealed many things. A long piece of yarn. A pretty stick he had found. A figure designed to look like a hippogriff bowing. A strange grey rock. Exactly thirteen buttons. Some milkweed.

Uric pulled out the yarn and threaded it though the side of the door, then pulled to lift up the bar. Nothing happened. Reluctantly he tried the stick instead. Yarn was easy to come by, but a pretty stick was priceless. He braced it against the bottom of the bar and pushed up. The stick snapped, but not before the bar was lifted high enough. Since Uric was leaning against the door, he fell forward into a stone-lined corridor. A magical torch flickered to life in a bracket on the wall.

Uric picked up the remains of the pretty stick and placed them back in his pocket. Perhaps he could salvage it later. The new light showed many things. The room he had been in was actually rather large and the torch only managed to illuminate the area around the door and the petrified body of Varys near the middle of the room. There were no puddings that Uric could see, but they could be hiding in the darkness. Uric considered for a moment, then closed and locked the door again. Now Varys would be safe. He did wonder what Varys was yelling at him before he shut the door though.

The corridor he was in curved away in both directions. Uric picked a direction at random and began to wander. There was something very odd about this place. There was no ceiling for one thing, except very high up hidden in the darkness. Uric was at a loss to explain why someone would want a large room full of passageways without ceilings. Strange noises, like the permanent hissing he heard down one corridor were all around him. There were no decorations like at Hogwarts. Every corridor looked the same as the other, and it was only by the various different sounds coming from the different parts of the big room that he was able to keep his bearings. He unconsciously avoided going near those noises though.

He was still wandering nearly an hour later when the sounds of harsh cursing drifted to him down one of the many corridors. He stopped a tilted his head towards the noise. The voices issuing those curses sounded human. He wondered if he should head towards them? But they were coming towards him at an alarming rate. Within a few minutes, two angry wizards strode into view. They weren't wearing masks like before, but Uric could recognize them from the two times they had attacked him and the nice woman.

"Beaufolle!" thundered the taller one when he spotted Uric. It occurred to Uric that he might not want to see these wizards again. A curse hit the corner as he ran around it. More curses, some of a more mundane nature came after it, followed by a bellow of pain. Uric didn't stop running, but all the noise they were making was confusing him as to where he was going. He turned down a corridor like all the others and ran into a dead end.

It was occupied. A creature Uric had never seen before was chained by a very rusty chain to the opposite wall. It had the legs of a goat, but the body of a boy, if a very hairy boy. On its hairy head were two very sharp and curved horns. The creature was crouched down watching him with glittering, black eyes. Uric stared at it, his eyes unfocused as he ran through his mental catalogue of magical creatures. He smiled suddenly.

"Hello, Mr. Satyr. I'm Uric Beaufolle." He bowed to the feral looking creature. The satyr seemed to have been waiting for him to do so since it leap towards him, its head down as if to skewer him with its horns. Uric heard the clatter of its hooves on the floor. He straightened up and took a step back, accidentally treading on the end of his robes. With a startled cry, he fell backwards and the satyr, unable to adjust in time, fell on top of him. Uric wrinkled up his nose.

"You need a bath, Mr. Satyr," he said. The satyr boy struggled on top of him, trying to find purchase with its hooves, but Uric was squirming too (since it tickled) and neither of them were able to get up. Finally, the satyr let out an inhuman roar in Uric's face. Uric froze for a moment, giving the satyr the time to roll off his prey and come up in a crouch, his rusty chains clanking with every move.

Uric got up as well, ignoring the creature while he brushed off his robes the best he could. They were horribly stained from the rust and the satyr's lack of hygiene. The house elves were going to be very upset. He looked up to find the satyr watching him warily. Its eyes were no longer glittering madly. In a moment of clarity, Uric got the impression that it was waiting for him to hit it.

It was a new thought for Uric. He had never considered the idea that someone might want to willingly hurt someone, not seriously anyway. But if Louis and Mena were right, Varys had wanted to do that to Simon, and those wizards had been trying to hurt him when they cursed him back there. He knew what spells like crucio and laceratus were meant to do. Perhaps they were just as mean to other people. Maybe it was those wizards who actually hit Mr. Satyr.

How horrible.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Satyr. They shouldn't be treating you that way." He took a step towards it and the satyr backed away, its eyes filled with fear.

"Get back!" it croaked in a voice hoarse with disuse. Uric beamed at it.

"You can speak!" He had come up with an idea, but it wouldn't work if he couldn't get the satyr to understand him. "I need to get closer, Mr. Satyr and then maybe I can get those chains off." He took another step forward, and the satyr took step back, pressing itself against the wall. "Please." The satyr regarded him for a long moment, then turned its head sideways to reveal the iron collar around its neck. Attached to a ring at the back were two heavy, rusty chains.

Uric frowned as he slowly approached the satyr. Both his mother and father had made sure he understood the consequences of wandless magic. Unfocused, it was the most dangerous force on earth and focused it still held that title. Wizards used wands to help them control that magic and to make sure that they didn't burn themselves out. Uric couldn't help it when he did things without his wand, but he wasn't supposed to do them purposely. Maybe when he was older his mother had told him one day, but definitely not now. If he did this he would be disobeying a direct order from both his parents. But didn't the satyr deserve to be as happy as he was? Didn't it deserve to be free to find the badgers? His parents would have to understand.

He reached out to touch the chain, not even noticing when the satyr boy flinched away from him. His hands closed over the rusty chains and he knew what to do. He willed the chains to grow even more rusty until the iron was gone. The chains crumbled, leaving a dark red powder all over his hands. A glance down the corridor revealed two lines of the red powder leading all the way to the now empty wall at the end of the corridor. Uric found himself sweating profusely for the second time in the day.

He stepped back and bowed once again to the satyr. He then turned to go back the way he had come, but the satyr boy's dirty hand closed on to his arm. It pulled him back and pointed in the other direction towards the dead end.

"That way!" it croaked. Uric shrugged and walked towards the wall. He didn't even blink when he walked right through it, but then he was used to such things as magical walls. The corridor he emerged into was wider then the one he had left, and colder. He shivered. The stone was darker here, and Uric was reminded of the darkest dungeons in Hogwarts.

He walked forwards and was surprised to find none of the side passages and strange turns that had characterized the other corridors. The corridor occasionally widened into much larger rooms and seemed to curve always to the right. Uric passed through everything without too much thought. A funny thing with a bull's body and two serpents growing out of its back, growled loudly at him in one room. Uric frowned back at it, and it backed into a corner. In another room, Uric instinctively stepped on the proper flagstones to get across, never even glancing up at the huge stone waiting to crush him if he took a wrong step.

Finally, Uric entered a room a bit larger then the others. At first he thought it was empty, but then he could hear a large scratching noise. A huge rooster stood up from a nest of hay in one corner. It was a bit strange looking for a rooster. It had black scales on its neck but it had the head of a rooster. Its tail was like a lizard's. Huge black wings sprouted from its back. Uric was strongly reminded of Simon.

It came charging towards him, but Uric didn't move. Stopping in front of him, it cocked its head to look at him with one beady eye that was larger then Uric's head. It opened its beak and let out a screeching crow that was meant to intimidate. Uric put his hands over his ears but stood his ground. This really was the biggest rooster he had ever seen. He wondered if it could fly?

Without warning, the rooster ducked its head, slamming its beak into the ground right next to Uric. The floor cracked under the pressure, and a cloud of grey mist issued from the rooster's beak. Uric inhaled it and started coughing. It felt like he was breathing fire. The rooster pulled back and regarded his coughing with some satisfaction. It pawed the floor with its sharp feet, then headed in for the kill.

Uric knew he had to move, no matter how much he wanted to know about the rooster. He dove forward and through the legs of the surprised creature. Coughing, he came up running and headed for the door. His eyes were beginning to water from the strange grey mist that the rooster had expelled. The ground shook behind him as the rooster came after him, its long legs eating up the distance. With a great cry, it launched itself into the air, its claws out to rip Uric to shreds.

Uric slammed into something warm and solid. An arm wrapped itself tightly around Uric, and Uric felt the surge of magic from whoever was holding him. "Contegonos!" bellowed a voice that Uric was sure he recognized. Uric could hear the crash as the big rooster slammed into an invisible shield. "Havenward!"

"Yes, Sir," said the nice woman's voice from off to Uric's left. "Clamocrista!" From somewhere all around them, there was the sound of a cock crowing. There was a great crash that shook the room, and then nothing. Uric looked up at who he had run into, trying to focus his watering eyes. He coughed a few times, then grinned happily.

"Father!" he exclaimed. His father's blurry face looked down at him, then looked away.

"Thacher! Get over here and stop playing with that compass!"

"Let's keep in mind that I'm not in your employ, Alastair," said the pleasant voice of Uric's Charms teacher. He didn't sound very annoyed though. Something was thrust in Uric's hand. "Drink up, Uric. Don't mind the taste." Uric didn't mind the taste at all. He liked socks, though he never thought he'd be drinking something that tasted like them.

"What's that?" asked Havenward.

"A general antidote. It should take care of the cockatrice's poison," said Thacher. Uric blinked his eyes and found them clearing. The burning sensation in his throat went away and he could breathe without coughing. He looked around and saw the cockatrice lying dead only a meter or so in front of them.

"Whatever possessed you to take on a cockatrice on your own?" demanded his father. He sounded very angry. "Don't ever do something like that again!" Uric looked down. He hated to disappoint his father.

"I'm sorry," he said. His father pulled him into a hug.

"It's alright," he said gruffly, holding Uric there for a long moment before pushing him away. "Now, was Varys with you?"

*****

Mena cautiously approached Mr. Kurze. He was putting a suit of armour together that had been dismembered by Peeves. Louis had said there was no way to find out what the adults were doing to get Uric back. Mena had believed him for awhile, but then it had occurred to her that sometimes Louis missed the most obvious things. She was sure it had never occurred to him to just ask what they were doing. The worst Mr. Kurze could do was tell her to go away, or give her a detention since she should be back in her Common Room like all the other students. A detention, or even losing points would be worth it if it got them some information, no matter what it would do to Hufflepuff's reputation.

"Mr. Kurze," she said. He looked up at her, his eyes narrowing in thought and she was sure he was trying to remember her name.

"Miss. Smith, isn't it?" She nodded her head. He looked her over and Mena was acutely aware that with her oversized cloak on she looked like she was planning on leaving. She hadn't taken the time to change since Uric had been kidnapped. Deliberately, Mr. Kurze set down the greave he had been attaching. "What can I do for you, Miss. Smith?" he asked kindly.

"I was wondering about Uric," she blurted out. "What are you doing to get him back? Is he going to be alright?" For some reason he was smiling at her. "Sir," she added belatedly.

"You're not supposed to be out, you know," he said, though he still sounded amused. "I suppose it's to be expected that Uric would rub off on you." Mena wasn't sure if she was being complimented or insulted.

"Please, Mr. Kurze." She bit her lip. She hated to beg.

"Do you remember that time in the Headmistress' office, when things went crazy for a moment?" he asked suddenly. Mena nodded.

"Uric messed something up, like usual," she said. Uric didn't always mess things up, she admitted to herself, but she wasn't about to take the statement back.

"Perhaps he did," Mr. Kurze mused. "But he did manage to do something correct. He touched a compass, I charmed many years ago for my wife so she could find our dog when it ran away, something that idiot dog did regularly. Jacko died, though and she left the compass there. It tunes itself to whoever touches it, allowing you to find them. Luckily, the charm hadn't faded."

"Then you've found Uric?" asked Mena excitedly. Mr. Kurze frowned apologetically at her.

"It's not that precise a charm. You have to just follow the arrow. Even with apparating, it could take them hours to narrow down where Uric is, and then they still have to rescue him and Varys."

"Why aren't you out there then?" demanded Mena angrily. He didn't seem to take offence at her accusation.

"Mr. Beaufolle, Professor Thacher and Miss. Havenward are all out searching for him. They don't need the help of an old, worn out wizard like myself," he said wearily. For some reason Mena wanted to comfort him.

"You thought of the compass. They couldn't have done that," she said. He stared at her for a moment, then started chuckling.

"And how would you know that, Miss. Smith?" he asked.

"Well, I-" He waved away her explanation.

"Don't tell me. I'm sure you didn't do any harm. Get back to your Common Room before I have to take away points." She turned to go. "Oh, and Miss. Smith?" She turned back to him.

"Yes?"

"Don't worry about Uric. Even if I didn't think that the boy's probably driving his kidnappers mad by now, I'd be assured that Mr. Beaufolle looked ready to walk into Hell to get him back. Those kidnappers are in for a surprise." He sounded very happy about it.

"I want to help," blurted out Mena. It was frustrating to know that the adults were out there doing exactly what she wanted to do. Mr. Kurze nodded sagely.

"So do I, girl. But sometimes we have to let others do things for us. Sometimes the waiting takes just as much courage."