Before the Dawn | George Weasley

51

Two days later I apparated to Little Hangleton, feeling rather out of place as I walked down the cobblestone streets. I still didn't know which house was the Gaunts', and I needed to find out if I had any chance of recovering the ring.

Was I going to have to go door-to-door? The idea filled me with unease. The more people that knew I was here, the more likely a Death Eater would catch wind of it, the more likely Voldemort found about my mission, and by extension, me.

I pulled my cloak tighter around me despite the heat of the day, my eyes scanning the rows of cottages stretching out to the end of the street, where a forest stretched from the street into the hills behind.

"Accio ring," I said, my wand in my hand, and immediately felt like an idiot when nothing happened. I had to try.

I walked up and down the main street a few times, trying not to act overly suspicious. None of the houses seemed particularly out of the ordinary; in fact, they all seemed exceedingly ordinary.

Closing my eyes, I tried to recall what the inside of the house had looked like in Morfin's memory. It had been dark, dusty, rather disgusting. The only sunlight had been weak, filtering through the murky window from behind—

I stopped, then, turning to look at the forest at the end of the road. From behind trees. There had been shadows of branches on the floor, branches scraping against the window glass. Of course.

I made my way back to the forest, peering into its depths. Sure enough, there was another house, obscured by the overgrown brush. I could just see its front door from underneath a swath of vines, the glass in its window pane shattered and dusty.

The front door was securely shut. I pushed on it with all my strength, but it would not open.

I drew my wand. "Alohamora."

Nothing.

I squinted, recalling another unlocking charm. "Aberto."

Still nothing.

"Cistem Aperio."

"Annihilare."

"Liberare."

"Dunamis."

"Emancipare."

I let out a huff. "Bombarda."

The door lay unchanged.

"What in Merlin's name—" I cast a look around to make sure nobody had heard me. There was no one around. I dug my flask from my cloak, taking a quick drink of brandy—lifted from the McDowells' cellar that morning—and eyed the door with frustration.

"Diffindo," I tried next, remembering Umbridge's cabinet. Nothing.

"Finestra." 

A large crack spread through the small glass panel and into the wood of the door.  I grinned. With the door damaged, it was safe to assume its protection spells were broken. 

"Bombarda."

The door flew off its hinges and disappeared into the dark house. With a glance over my shoulder I entered, the inside of the house even more revolting that it had been in the memory. I saw a pair of rats run along the back wall, disappearing into a crack in the wall, and everything was covered in a thick coat of dust.

I raised my wand once more. "Homenum Revelio." 

Nothing happened. I was alone.

I pulled on a pair of leather gloves and began my search without much optimism. How was I supposed to find something so small as a ring in all this mess? I started with the front room, going through the bookshelves, rifling through the fireplace. I turned the entire house upside down, and still, no ring.