Riddle And Grindelwald

39. Albania

After returning to London on the Hogwarts Express, at the end of the school year, Tom and Genevieve headed to the Portkey that had been set up for them.
They then headed to Genevieve's home in Bulgaria, where they planned to keep the majority of their things, while they were travelling.
Tom had left both of his Horcruxes in the Chamber of Secrets, where he felt sure they were safe. And he had told Professor Dippet to send his Hogwarts letter to Genevieve's home in Bulgaria, as he was staying with her family all summer, which was only a snippet of the truth.

The pair had packed a rucksack each, full of essentials, before taking another Portkey to Albania, the following morning, after getting a good night's sleep.
They'd researched Albania as much as they could while still at Hogwarts, but the books didn't cover the countries most recent history.
So they couldn't be prepared for what they would face in Albania, but Tom didn't want to put off going, now that he knew where the diadem was.

When Genevieve and Tom arrived in a small villiage in Albania, she shuddered as she looked at the oppressive Swastika's hanging from the buildings.
Even though the Muggle war didn't have as much of an impact on her life, the Nazi regime still frightened her.
Gellert and her had both had visions of world war 2, many years before it happened. But Gellert had still been unable to stop it from happening, despite his growing power and popularity in the wizarding world, for he hadn't been ready to take over, before the war started.

"How's your Albanian?" Whispered Tom, interrupting Genevieve's thoughts, and taking her mind off the large red flag.
"Bad. I only speak very basic Greek, but it wouldn't be wise to use that language right now, even though many people here do speak it, because the two countries are not seeing eye to eye right now, despite being neighbours" answered Genevieve.
"They've been invaded by Italy though, so can you speak Italian?" Asked Tom.
"A bit. But Germany is in charge of Albania right now. My German is good, but I don't know if these people around us, are supporters of the new regime or not. I think it would be best if we kept to ourselves, and didn't talk to anyone unless we have them under a spell"
"Very wise".

"They're bound to be suspicious of us, because it's a small town, where they probably all know each other, and we are outsiders" admitted Genevieve, as they stepped out of the alleyway, and into the street.
"Yes, they are bound to be wary of ue" agreed Tom, as he placed his hand inside his pocket, and gipped hold of his wand.
As they walked through the village towards the forest at the end of the street, people gave them strange glances.
But no one approached them, which Genevieve assumed was because they looked like teenagers and not adults, so they didn't appear to be as much of a threat.

"Why on earth did Helena Ravenclaw come here?" Questioned Tom.
"It looked very different to this when she was alive. Back then they had a monarchy, so would have had loads of castles everywhere" replied Genevieve.
"That still doesn't explain why Albania. I mean, there would have been lots of monarchy's around that time. So why did she come here, near all these Muggles?" Asked Tom.
"Because the castle belonged to the Ravenclaw's" answered Genevieve.

"Ravenclaw had a castle in Albania? Why does no one know this?" Frowned Tom.
"Because the building isn't called Ravenclaw castle. It belonged to someone with a different surname, who was related to the Ravenclaw's. The symbol on the Albanian flag is a two headed eagle, and the emblem of Ravenclaw house is an eagle, which is not a coincidence. The Ravenclaw's had relatives here, hence the shared use of the eagle. For all I know, Albania is the ancestral home of the family that eventually moved to Scotland and became the Ravenclaw's" answered Genevieve.

"You're very knowledgeable about all this" said Tom.
"What can I say, I'm good at researching topics. And the Hogwarts library has lots of information on its founders, if you know where to look" informed Genevieve.
"With brains like yours, you should have been in Ravenclaw" commented Tom.
"The Sorting Hat did have trouble placing me, as it felt I had enough brains for a Ravenclaw and enough courage for a Gryffindor"
"What made it decide on Slytherin then?"
"I think it was me. I wanted to be in Slytherin"
"Why did you want to be in Slytherin?".

Genevieve blushed and looked up at Tom.
"You wanted to be in same house as me?" Questioned Tom.
"Well, you were the first friend I had ever made, and I didn't want to be parted from you" admitted Genevieve.
"Even back then, we were meant to be together. You felt a deep connection to me, even though you barely knew me" replied Tom.
"It's true. I haven't wanted to be a part from you, since the day we met"
"And you never will have to leave my side".

****
Genevieve and Tom spent the rest of the day trecking through the woods, in search of the castle. And as the sun began to set, they found it.
It was the smallest castle Genevieve had ever seen, and it was in such a bad state, that she didn't think that it could even be repaired by magic.
Some of the ceilings in the castle had caved in, allowing the elements outside to attack the castle.
There were only a few rooms that were fit for human habitation, luckily one of the best rooms was a bedroom, so the pair would have somewhere to sleep, while in Albania.

After fixing up the best preserved bedroom, Genevieve unpacked her things into the wardrobes provided.
"So, I take it we are searching for this hollow tree, in the morning?" Asked Genevieve.
"Yes. It makes no sense to stumble around in the dark looking for it" answered Tom.
"Well, I saw a stream on the way here, so we should be able to get some clean water and maybe even some fish to eat for breakfast tomorrow. Since all we've had to eat today were the sandwiches we packed back in Bulgaria" replied Genevieve.

"We should have thought more about what we were going to eat once we got here" Tom said angrily.
"Don't worry, I'm sure there are plenty of fruits and berries in these trees, that we will be able to forage from in the light. And lots of animals probably use the stream as a water source, so I bet there's loads of creatures around these parts. Worst case scenario though, we have to go back to the villiage for food. But now that we know where the castle is, it shouldn't take as long to go between here and the village. So, we are going to be fine" reassured Genevieve.

"You always have an answer to everything" sighed Tom.
"I try to. And don't worry, in the morning, we will find Rowena Ravenclaw's lost diadem, I'm sure of it" replied Genevieve.
"I hope so. For I would hate it if we had to go back empty handed" Tom said quietly.
"That won't happen. If anyone can find the diadem, it's us... Now, try and get some rest, we have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow"
"Yes, we do".