Written for The Houses Competition
House Hufflepuff
Category: Themed (Escape)
Prompt: House Elf
Word count: 1,309
Beta: Dark Angel of Sorrow Returns
Translation: Laodhan(Gaelic, Scottish v) = Heart of a tree (Thank you, Magi)
Words that are generally not capitalised are capitalised in this story due to the culture that uses them and the significance those words have in that culture.
Once they had been named the Custodians of the Land, the Guardians of the Gardens. Now they served Wizard-kind and fetched cups of tea. This is the history of the House Elf; the story of how and why they came into being.
The Elves were a proud race and dedicated to protecting the Earth. They lived in the forests they looked after and scared away those that threatened their homes. This was the pattern that had worked for hundreds of years. Then the humans came, most notably, the humans who knew no magic and paid no respect to the Custodians. This was the Laodhan War, and it would shape the future of Elf kind.
Arenwell was desperate for the war to end; the cries of the trees echoed around her, and she needed to escape it all. She was expecting a delegate of Wizards today, hoping that they could help keep her people from going insane due to hearing the trees scream day and night.
"Arie!" cried her right-hand, Winnifred, "They're here!"
The hum of activity that had filled the top branches went silent and then skyrocketed as every elf finished their tasks and hurried to the Receiving Tree. Arenwell gave herself a quick once-over, checked with Winnifred that she looked presentable and then proceeded as quickly and gracefully as she could to the Receiving Tree.
The Elf community lived in the trees they protected and in return for their protection, the trees grew in patterns that would aid their Guardians. The Receiving Tree was truly three trees that had grown great boughs in a lattice pattern to provide a place for visitors to be welcomed without showing all the secrets of the Elves. There were currently three Magicals waiting patiently in the Receiving Tree; two wizards and one witch. Arie smiled at them gratefully and gestured that they should sit.
"Thank you for coming to answer our request for help."
"It is the least we could do for our brethren in the forests. I am Demetri," the central wizard said, "To my left is Elizabeth and on my right is Alexander."
Arie nodded to them in turn, "I am Arenwell, known as Arie. To my left is Leiloln, known as Leily and to my right is Winnifred, known as Winni."
Calling for refreshments to brought out the six of them got down to business. "What can Wizard-kind aid you with, Lady Arie?"
"My people are suffering; this war is taking its toll, and I fear there is not much left for it to take. The humans are determined to kill as many trees as they can, and they will not pay heed to us. Every second of every day we hear the screams of the Gardens. Our magic is not suited for this type of war. We would request sanctuary and magic transformation."
The visiting Magicals all sucked in a breath in shock, magic transformation was old magic and not to be done lightly. It took hundreds of years and could never be reversed. It was common for those who had undergone the transformation to forget the reason they had wanted the transformation to occur.
"Are you sure this is what you want? We can provide aid in another form, so you do not have to transform your people."
"We thank you for your concern, Witch Elizabeth, but this is what we want. Although, if you could please keep an eye on our Gardens while we are away, it would be much appreciated."
Alexander spoke up then, "As a Battle Mage, I understand your wishes and we will abide by them. This is your war and you must be the ones to fight it. But right now, we three Magicals offer you a temporary respite from the toils of war you have gone through. An array will be created to serve your purposes and we will place our strongest wards on as many of your Gardens as we can with a landmark for your people to recognise when the transformation is complete."
Arie, Leily, and Winni bowed in thanks and acceptance to Alexander's words before Arie verbalised their thanks, and the two races split. The Elves to rejoice in their good fortune and say farewell to their home. The Wizards and Witch to create a Magic Transformation Array.
As she lay in the cocoon of branches her tree had grown for her, Arie smiled softly, a mix of relief and regret. Her people could finally escape the cries of the Gardens but to do that they had to escape the Gardens themselves. Yes, they would return when the transformation was complete; but she would never again know the peace of the Gardens. She would no longer be Arenwell of Hog Forest. Instead she would be just Arie and she would remain just Arie until the day she died.
Kreacher had always been a rather special House Elf; his name for one thing did not fit in with the rest of his kind. All other House Elves had silly sounding names that ended with an 'e' sound. But not Kreacher. Kreacher was completely devoted to his master Regulus Black and nearly went insane when he could not complete the last order given. Then Master Harry Potter had shown up and helped Kreacher destroy the locket Master Regulus had ordered him to destroy.
He regained his sanity after that and looked after Master Harry and his friends to the best of his ability. He was called to Hogwarts Castle to partake in the battle there. He almost refused to go, the last year when he had been trailing Draco Malfoy with the silly one, Dobby. He had felt an intense pull towards the Forbidden Forest as if it was calling him. Dobby had also seemed to feel it but had been determined to help the Great Harry Potter before escaping into the forest to seek out the pull.
After the Battle was won and Master Harry was sleeping in his bed in Gryffindor tower, Kreacher cautiously made his way into the forest. He did not know where he was headed, but his feet carried him to a place where three trees had become one. Unsure of how he knew what to do, Kreacher lifted his hands up high and let out a burst of House Elf magic.
It spread through the forest and each tree seemed to shift a little bit, accepting the new magic and settling it into themselves. Soft whispers began echoing through Kreacher's mind as he stood there letting the feel of the forest seep into him. All around him, elves started to appear as they heard the call of the forest, no, the Garden.
Dobby appeared next to Kreacher and grinned happily at the older elf, "I knews it! We was not meant to be serving wizards all time!"
It seemed that although Dobby had been freed and was only working as a volunteer, he had wished to escape serving the wizards altogether. Kreacher replied with a mere, "Perhaps."
He felt a sudden urge to place a hand on one of the trees that surrounded them; and as he did so, he saw that all the other elves were doing the same thing. As soon as his palm touched the bark, information started streaming into his brain. The trees had remembered them as they once were, before they had gone through the magic transformation and were now sharing their memories with the new elves.
They had escaped the servitude of Wizard-kind; and now they would return to the war. With their new magic, they could fight and they could win. The Laodhan War was far from over, and the elves were back with a vengeance. They would protect their Gardens, no matter what. Even if they had to transform their magic and themselves to do so.