chapter:5 dormitory

She'd told them afterwards that the alley was emptier than it usually was at this time of the year. They had the same impression when they realized that more than a few muggle-born students were missing at the sorting feast. It seemed that the Creeves were not the only family to leave the country because of the tightening regulations against them...

Lost in his thoughts, Harry stopped midway in the corridor, in front of a large oval door, and pushed a bulky button on the wall by rote. The door slid open, only for Harry to find himself facing large crates, piled up on top of each other and filling up the room. Looking left and right and confirming that he was indeed on the right level and in the right hallway, he brought his hand to the communication stone on his chest.

"Could someone tell me why we don't have a place to sleep anymore? The dormitory is a bit full right now, and I don't feel like going outside to sleep under the stars tonight." Harry asked in a perfectly deadpan voice.

The voice of Angelina Johnson came out of the stone, with such clarity that you'd think she was here with him. "What? The great captain is scared that he wouldn't find his way back?"

"Knowing his luck, he'd end up floating away before reappearing two months later, sporting a beard and riding a dragon." Ron's voice added.

"Would the dragon be able to fly in space? Wouldn't it need to breathe? Maybe we could make it a big spacesuit?" Luna mumbled, clearly half-asleep.

"Quiet you lot. It's too late to tell jokes on this channel." Terry Boot chastised.

"Wait, no one warned the captain about the rooms? I thought Ernie was taking care of it?" Anthony asked, paying no mind to his housemate's remark.

As if summoned by the mention of his name, an out-of-breath youth wearing a black suit with yellow light plating arrived in the hallway. His short blond hair was in disarray, and a few strands were stuck to his face by sweat as he struggled to breathe.

"Sorry, sorry ... Got lost in the lower levels ... It's been a while." Ernie said as he ran up to Harry.

"He just arrived. Thanks, everyone, and good night." Harry said and gave a tap on his stone to cut the communication, leaving his friends to their banter. He was too tired to take part in it, but he will have to remind himself to get back at Ron. "Breathe Ernie. You could have just given me a call. No need to run yourself ragged ... literally."

"Don't worry ... Just ... Just give me a second... I wanted to..." Ernie tried to say, before taking a moment to get his breath back. "Sorry. I wanted to bring you up to speed on the latest discoveries before the first meeting of the year. First thing: we found rooms better suited for lodging. This way, Captain." With that, Ernie started walking back the way he came, Harry hot on his heels.

"Angelina's team found out how to access a map of the ship yesterday. We've estimated that we currently occupy just shy of eight percent of the available space for our own needs. The rest of the rooms are used as storage for the conjurator's base materials." Ernie began to explain while fiddling with a small slate in his hands. After finding what he was searching for, he handed it to Harry. "Here, take a look. We also found these nifty little things. They're like portable consoles. They're dead useful."

On the slate was a screen with various markings in ancient runes that currently displayed what looked like a map. "That's what the ship looks like? It's even bigger than we thought. How do you use this thing again?" Harry gave the slate back to Ernie. He'd seen quite a few of the consoles around the ship, but you had to use the communication stones on a pedestal to interact with them."You touch the part you want to access. Terry is having a field day with it, trying all sorts of stuff to see what they can do. He'll show you what he found later and give you one." Ernie replied. "Now, when Hanna saw the plan, she decided to look for better rooms for everyone. To give us all some privacy you know. Everyone has been assigned to smaller rooms in groups of two or three, except you and the division chiefs. You got the VIP treatment and get to have a whole room for yourself."

"Yay. No more sleepless nights because of Ron's snoring." Harry said in a half-enthusiastic tone. Having some calm and privacy would be great, but after years in the Gryffindor dorm and the one on the ship, he'd grown used to sleeping amongst friends.

As they walked, they passed by a large window giving them a great view of Neptune. According to Marietta, the blue planet was relatively small compared to the others in the system. Still, it seemed downright gigantic at this distance and offered a breathtaking view that he hoped he would never get bored with. Orbiting around it was a structure that lit up from time to time as its final sections were being completed.

"How much time before the station is completed?" He asked Ernie who hadn't even noticed the window and continued to walk with his eyes fixed on the slate.

"A week. Two tops depending on our use of the conjurator now that everyone's back. Once it's finished, we'll transfer a lot of our material stock over to it so most conjuration will be done on board." Ernie explained as they walked down one of the spiralling slopes toward the third level. The aliens who built this ship did not appear to be quite fond of stairs. "That'll free up some of the rooms for other stuff. I know Tony and Neville plan on making a greenhouse or something close to it somewhere."