The Search Is Over

Chapter 95

"We brought pillows," Blaise told Kreacher.

"Bramble picked them up yesterday while doing the weekly shopping. We have six so if we ruin a few in the attempt we still have plenty to get it right. I figure we'll decide how much to sell them for depending on how difficult they are to make."

As he spoke, Blaise gestured to an ornate ebony trunk on the floor beside the door of the library. Kreacher presumed it held the pillows in question.

Nodding,, he pointed to the large square mahogany reading table in the center of the room.

"Kreacher thinks we should sit there, then the pillow we are working on can be in the center of the table where we all have easy access. Kreacher also brought some pillows down from the attic, so if Blaise and Gellert like, we can begin with those, and save the new ones for when we have perfected the product."

Gellert smiled as Blaise nodded.
"Grand thinking," Gellert praised.

Flashing a quick pleased grin, Kreacher reached under the table and drew out a large burlap sack from which he removed three pillows. They were large and looked soft and comfortable.

Being told that he had good thinking by any other great wizard other than Regulus was still rather exciting, and he didn't bother straining himself to hide that fact.

They settled themselves into three of the four chairs that surrounded the table and Kreacher neatly stacked two of the three pillows in the fourth chair. The third, he placed in the center of the table.
"How does the enchantment process work for Blaise and Gellert," Kreacher asked.

He was curious to know their methods before beginning as it would likely be helpful when combining his own ideas.

"Somewhat differently for each item, depending on the sort of enchantment we're placing in it. The manner in which we layer or connect the various charms can differ depending on the function we're after," Blaise explained and Kreacher nodded.

"Just as Kreacher expected."
"Did you have ideas of how to start," Blaise asked the elf, gesturing at the pillow.
It was Kreacher's idea after all.

"Kreacher has a few, but he'd prefer to see what Blaise would do first, then he can add to it," Kreacher decided.

"He has never enchanted anything with a wizard, not even Master Regulus, so he feels he will do better if he has something to work off first. It will give him a feel for the direction of the magic."
Blaise nodded and thoughtfully drew the pillow toward him as Kreacher and Gellert watched on.

"I feel the charms should be placed or rather layered quite deeply into the fabric of the pillow so that it runs throughout the entire thing, stuffing and all. Being a time release sort of spell, that feels right to me if no one objects."

When Gellert and Kreacher nodded, he continued.
"I will layer the number of hours using a clock for reference. The hours themselves are one enchantment, but they are empty hours," he explained.
"They could be filled with anything. It just so happens we shall be filling them with sleep.

As he spoke, Blaise drew what looked to be a nearly black smoky quartz wand from a pocket in his dark slacks. Kreacher could tell that the wand was one of Mag's creations even though it looked quite different from the others he'd seen her make. Where Severus's, Regulus's and even her own had multiple stones set in silver that bonded them together, Blaise's was one solid cylindrical wand of black crystal with no metal or silver added.

Gellert and Kreacher watched as he used it to cause an image of a clock with eight hours to appear on the surface of the pillow.

"I think rather than the twelve hours, we should just leave the number of hours we're actually using," he explained.
"We could work with the entire twelve, and just enlarge and enhance the eight, but working with the eight alone just feels better to me."