Found | Dramione

2 1 - Knockturn Alley

Hermione tugged the hood lower over her face to cover her easily recognizable features as she hurried through Diagon Alley. The usually crowded area was now almost empty, with the occasional witch or wizard rushing by. Most sensible people were probably locked inside of their homes, praying that they wouldn't be the next person to fall victim to a poisoned quill.

She wasn't one of those people. Hermione knew where Goyle was, and at that moment all she could think of was capturing the vile snake of a man and putting him in Azkaban. Snow crunched under her boots, breath coming in clouds that were visible in the chilly night air. She glanced around to make sure that no one was nearby before slipping down a dark alleyway. The sign swung at the movement, creaking on its rusty hinges.

"Knockturn Alley," Hermione murmured. A veritable cesspool of all things shady and illegal. A place she had never deigned to visit, as it hadn't exactly been a top priority in the past years she had lived in the Wizarding world. But now, the dangerous hub of underground crime had become essential to finding Goyle. Hermione couldn't fault him for choosing the place to hide out in—anyone's silence could be bought, whether it be in Galleons or secrets, and the people that frequented Knockturn Alley were a hundred times more open to such bribery.

After taking a fortifying breath and making sure her hood was still pulled down adequately, Hermione stepped into Knockturn Alley. Surprisingly, the place was still full of witches and wizards conducting business as normal. Of course, the place was full of murderers and thieves; someone getting poisoned was hardly a novelty for them, she supposed. Although she knew that the alley was home to nothing but danger and all things illegal, there were sights that made her want to turn around and sprint back to the safety of the Ministry. She resolved to try and record as many faces as she could in hopes of finding them later and putting the people behind bars—there was no sense in letting common criminals slip away, even if she was here for a much more dangerous one.

Hermione knew that she couldn't just approach someone and ask for directions to where she suspected Goyle was staying so she had to continuously keep a lookout for the name of the shop. As she weaved her way through the bustling crowd, various vendors of definitely illegal magical items advertised their products.

"Get your cursed necklaces here! We have strangling necklaces, poisoned ones, and many more with your choice of precious gem!" A hag with an alarmingly large wart shouted, gesturing to her jewelry stand. A witch in a threadbare cloak was trying on a necklace with a glittering bloodred ruby hanging from the pendant, then promptly toppled over and turned blue in the face when it choked her into unconsciousness. The hag glanced down, shrugged, then returned to bartering with other customers.

"Ever wanted to crucio someone but didn't want to get caught with the spell on your wand? Buy a disposable wand pre-loaded with the spell!" Hermione whipped her head around and gaped in the direction of the wizard who was trying to sell torture, but quickly got jostled forward again as the crowd didn't stop for anyone.

After a few minutes of walking—she didn't realize just how large Knockturn Alley was—Hermione finally found herself amidst apothecaries and ingredients shops. Knowing that she was close, she quickened her pace and scanned the names of every store. With a hand on her wand, she surreptitiously pulled down her hood again when a wooden sign hanging from a doorway caught her eye. Shyverwretchy's Venoms and Poisons.

"Bingo," Hermione murmured. She quickly ducked into a nearby alleyway and pulled out her wand. With the utterance of a few words, the effects of the Disillusionment Charm spread through her body. It felt as if someone had cracked an egg over her head, trickling down from head to toe. This particular charm had been used by the Order of the Phoenix a few times to hide Harry from harm, and she had filed it away mentally for later use. The charm acted as a sort of camouflage, giving the user the abilities of a chameleon. She wasn't invisible; instead, her body had taken on the same colors and textures of the brick wall behind her. Although it would have been useful to own an invisibility cloak, the Disillusionment Charm had proved more than useful. After taking a few experimental steps to make sure that the spell would hold, Hermione took a fortifying breath. She slipped out of the alleyway and into the open door of Shyverwretchy's Venoms and Poisons.