Chapter 2

Forgot to put this in the last chapter.

English: English - English language/words, etc are in italic. I wish there was another way to show this. I just want Helen to speak fluently.

Ness did tell her that Indol was a religious country. Well, it is the second titan that she has been to as Argentum could barely count. But this… was a little too much.

The first surprise of the day was when their ship took off into the sky.

Helen was this close from jumping over the rail and flying along. Must not reveal big secrets - she repeated over and over.

Though, she must have been visibly very excited at the sight of flying. Ness had to pull her back away from the rails - cue her upset look.

"Alright giril, that enough."

"I just.. love wind. And air. And flying!"

"And you turn into a lightning bird and fly away?" The mercenary asked, voice sounding completely flat, almost as if making fun of her. Thinking about it again, he probably was making fun of her.

She was going to answer that yes, she could do exactly that. "Wait, you remember that?"

"Of course I do." He snorted, then paused. "Wait a second. You can do..." His eyes widened in realization, mouth slightly open as he attempted to process his most recent thought.

"Shh. Secret." UNO reverse card, she got him instead.

He placed his hand over his face, seemingly torn between laughing and being angry. "... you have interesting ways of keeping your secrets."

Back to Indol. Rather than swimming around, it flew around in the sky. The entire country was build in a giant flying bird - every once in a while, the giant wings moved, glittering in the sun, giving it this gold-white sheen similar to her animagus form. Not only that, before she could even see it, she could hear the bells going off. Even with the air whooshing around and through the flaps of wings of the giant titan.

When they finally did get close, Helen could finally see the sight, the giant bird-like creature.

On top of the titan were tall white buildings like churches and cathedrals, all in the same colors as the titans giving off a feeling of holiness and peace. She has never been to many churches, actually, the only church she has ever been to was the local close to Privet Drive and there was no comparison to this scene.

Once the ship docked, they all got to work.

"So, we stay for an extra day?"

"Noppon merchants are late so we wait." Ness looked pretty unhappy about that, but then shrugged his shoulders as if not caring too much about the details. "Indol nice place to be. Usually."

The streets looked as beautiful, paved with stones and clean of any filth, even cleaner than some of the top London streets she had seen. Guards standing around protectively, holding onto weird weapons - it had far from the feel that Argentum or Uraya gave of. Uraya was like a fresh breath of clean forest air mixed with the sea, Uraya was one giant forest. Argentum smelled of exotic spices, oil, and who knows what, so many foreign things in one place mixing into one organized chaos.

Indol was nice, neat and organized - every piece of rock knew where it was supposed to stand to fulfill its role, creating a piece of art that would probably rival countless other European cathedrals.

There was only one thing that was out of place. There were people, they were not like the other indolians. Their clothes were worn and while not dirty, not exactly nice and neat either. While the owners did not look like they were starving, they did not look happy either, milling around, whispering among each other in hushed voices whenever some indolian came close. Ness shook his head, quietly telling her not to ask.

"Anything that you like to do?" She asked the driver next to her. He looked a little surprised that she asked that.

"Not really."

She slept until noon when she was rudely woken up by the sound of bells going off. Those that she could hear from miles away the other day. Needless to say, they were very… loud. One moment she thought she was playing Quiddich, next she was sitting up and holding her head. This is probably the closest she would even feel to a hangover.

For a moment she expected to wake up in the Gryffindor dorm, after all, Gred and Forge had the most interesting kind of pranks - and she was ready to join them at all times when the two geniuses allowed that.

Looking around, she found something completely different. The tiniest of rooms inside the titan ship, barely big enough for her to stretch with a glorified sleeping bag on top of something that vaguely resembled a bed. Wooden walls surrounded her playing into her un-fondness of small spaces. In a corner sat a small bag with her belongings. In a way, she was actually lucky to get her own room, even if the room sucked.

She sighed, kicked away the cover, dressed, checked the wards, and moved outside where she was momentarily blinded by the sunlight.

Technically, they are higher than normal, how high she could hardly tell due to the cloud sea. Sunlight on mountains tended to be a tiny bit more dangerous when it came to sunburns and such.

"Good morning."

She was certain that she did not look like she had a good morning.

"Want to walk around a bit? Heard that the praetor will be giving prayers soon."

"Sure."

She had no clue what a praetor was, but it was better than sitting around.

"Do you like Indol?"

"I do not know. Do you?"

Ness shrugged. "Looks neat. I prefer Uraya. Too much light, no forest. But pretty."

"I can imagine." Everyone has their tastes.

Truth be told, Helen did not get along with religion, mostly because of her status as a witch, she never felt welcome in the local church on Privet Drive. Needless to say, she never stepped foot in a different church, even when sightseeing around London with her friends.

Mione planned for all of them to see various places in Paris as well. Neville and Luna also wanted to go with them when the dust settles, one of them was the famous Notter Dame, the name was still written on an extensive list, somewhere at the bottom in her bag, and also next to names like Eiffel Tower and Louvre. They never got a chance to travel.

Of course, this couldn't be compared to Notter Dame, as beautiful the place looked in the book that her friend brought her, it was one church. Though at the same time, Indol in its entirety could hardly compare to the entirety of London.

In the end, it was like comparing apples and oranges.

The two entered what Ness called the administrative areas - places where various religious events would take place and also the residence for various important figures and guests.

She wanted to go there the previous night, but after spending most of the day carrying around boxes and trying to be as organized as possible, she was too exhausted and fell asleep. One of the rare occasions when she did not have trouble with falling asleep. The area that appeared before them was not just a small corridor, but It was an entire square, possibly compared to the likes of Trafalgar when it came to size. Maybe.

"Indoline sanctum."

Space was surrounded by tall white towers, seemingly made from some white marble-like stone with brass and gold carefully crafted decorations. Blue and white flags hanging from the walls, unmoving. Almost as if they were also listening in on the one person delivering a speech, whilst the crowds of people remained quiet. Both old and young gathered here - rich and poor judging by their clothes and all looking towards a single person on the other side.

"Pretty amazing, huh." The driver next to her remarked. Even though Ness obviously preferred his home to this place, he still could admire it, just like she did.

Standing on top of a wide, snow-white stairway was whom she assumed to be the Praetor. Even though he was right there, she could barely see him in the distance. She could barely see the blue-toned skin or the fancy clothes, but she could hear his voice clearly, speaking in the foreign Alrestian language. The entire scene was reminiscent of the last time she was at a Church - the priest there also spoke Latin due to it being some special occasion.

Some annoying part of her brain couldn't help to not only compliment the acoustics of the place, but also the praetor's set of lungs. Those have to be some great lungs.

Come to think of it, Rome was also on her list of go-to places.

"Big." She remarked. Ness seemed like he found the answer amusing.

"Are you religious?" He asked all of sudden, sounding curious.

"No. Not really."

"Hm. Where you are from, this Britain. What kind of a place is it?"

That was a way simpler question to answer. So she started talking.

Night fell and Helen took out her cloak. The men were resting after spending most of the day carrying crates around. She still felt too awake to just sleep even though she did the same.

Even at night, there was something in the air.

With the cloak, she walked around the guards, unable to detect her presence. The architecture of the place looked as impressive up close as from a distance. No, in fact, these buildings looked more impressive than some of the photos she had seen, completely dwarfing her small form.

Well, as far as she can tell from some photos she had seen while planning the grand tour across Europe - guess that doesn't make her a good judge of that.

The original plan was to find a good place and sit down with a good book in hand, she did not get a good chance to do that in Argentum - knowing herself, she would spend the entire night reading and wake up late and would be unable to do her job.

Anyway, she did her best to find the best spot. Moving along, she found the great square from earlier, white stone glittering even in the bright moonlight, however this time almost completely empty, almost as if waiting to be filled with people again.

Helen couldn't help it - she had to walk across it, up the wide stairs, and look around while wondering what it felt like to talk to these people.

Stressful.

Her experience from the time when the little defense class was formed, telling her side of the story to the Hogwarts kids while being stuck in the smelly Hog's head couldn't compare to this. Or the time when she sat in the same room with all of the Wizentgamort while they tried to decide whether she is lying or not.

She is never becoming a priest or something similar, that what she knows for certain. Can women even become priests in their religion? Yet in a way, she could understand why such attention could be appealing to some people.

Resisting the urge to yell something along the lines of 'constant vigilance' off the top of her lungs into space and watch the place fill up with guards, she turned around and started searching again.

To be or not to... no. No Shakespeare monologues either.

What got her attention was a smaller space - still decent sized, comparable to one of the larger areas to chill at Hogwarts, just in case there were no rainy days and the weather was warm enough.

Short, clearly maintained grass grew around pathways, white walls and pillars, and the most striking feature - a mural on one of the walls. Getting closer, it was giant, big enough to cover a good portion of one of the Great Hall walls if somehow placed there. It took so much of her attention that she almost missed a person standing there in front of it.

As many plans tend to be changed, the plant to read books was changed as well.

Indolian, she saw them earlier that day during the mass. Detaching her eyes from the painting, she directed her attention at the man - looked young. One of the two things that betrayed that young appearance was somewhat of a goatee and sideburns. Pale blue skin, large pointy ears unlike those of house-elves, and white hair - the second thing that seemed to work against the young appearance, what however stood out the most were the eyes. Sharp yet… he looked somewhat sad.

The yellow eyes looked away from the mural and closed, almost as if trying to process some deep thought.

Helen stood just next to him - if she were to extend her hand, she could touch him. She would lie if she said that she was only worried about having one of her bad ideas because this definitely was a bad idea. His clothes were definitely very fancy looking which hinted at his possibly high status. But he also looked too young.

"Are you alright?" She asked.

The reaction was immediate, his eyes shot open as he looked around to find the source of the voice, she could see his hands twitch under the rather extravagant-looking white fabric. Eyes wide as he stared at her. "How did you..." Judging by that expression, it took all of his inner strength not to jump and start running.

Oops. Helen felt her face heat up just a little bit with embarrassment.

"Sorry."

At that moment, she had to admire that self-control. She could learn a thing or two.

"Are you alright?" She asked again. "You looked sad." Even with simple sentences like these, there was a heavy accent in her words. The man seemed to pause, clocked his head as if reconsidering what he should say. The indolian was looking her up and down, eyes lingering on the silver fabric on her shoulders - probably wondering about the strange water-like effect it had on light - before eventually stopping at her face and her eyes.

"I am quite fine. No need to worry." That excuse sounded absolutely horrible, something that Helen would let out of her mouth when she obviously was not okay. "It is quite late for evening walks. Especially in this area. What brings you here?"

"Insomniac." She replied while pointing at herself, only to frown. Does Alrest even have an equivalent for this word? The indolian also seemed confused. "Insomniac - a person who can't sleep at night. I usually read books."

"I see. But this rather… unusual place to be at. What brought you here?"

Great, he now probably had her for some stalker. Great job Helen.

"First time in Indol. I from far away. Wanted to see what best reading spot I can find." She wished she would be able to talk a little better at this point; she spent her nights at Garfont studying and making notes as much as she could. "My name is Helen."

Tension in the air loosened up just a little bit, the indolian fully turned around so he was no longer facing the painting and also introduced himself: "I am Amalthus. Nice to meet you, Helen." At that moment, Helen got this tiniest feeling that she is talking with someone really important. The way he moved, the restraint.

Oh, and the ridiculously fancy clothes.

Somewhere, Mione is probably screaming her head off. She just knows it.

"Nice to meet you Amathus." She paused, he still looked like he expected something. The teen witch really did hope that she is not stepping on any toes.

One of his white eyebrows rose up, and now he looked surprised. It had a bonus of him not looking sad anymore.

There is something else that she should realize but she ignored it and glanced up at the mural next to them. It was absolutely giant, depicting what Helen would expect to be some Biblical scene.

People were moving from one side, colored with darker red colors to a left with soft whites and blues - giants, what she now identified as titans floating about. Like people leaving hell for heavens or something.

"It has been painted 1500 years ago, yet it has never needed maintaining. Unfortunately, the technique was lost. It shows the creation of Alrest."

"That is impressive." Even Hogwarts needed some repairs here and there, some things were added over the passage of time, even if the core of the building remained the same. Though, how old the castle was, nobody was certain, but there were claims that something stood there already at the time of Viking invasions - which is roughly a millennium and a half. "I mean, I have been around many old things but it is still beautiful." In a way - scenes like this usually did not do a whole lot for her.

"You think so?"

"Little scary too." She glanced at the dark red part. Then looked back at the indolian again, Amalthus, wondering whether she should bring up his expression from earlier. He looked troubled but eventually decided not to press the issue. He did not seem like the person so open up - chances are it would blow up in her face. "But, I guess, old things always look a little scary."

"I guess you are right."

"I lived in an old drafty castle, middle of Scottish Highlands, surrounded by dark forests, with secret passages, statues, paintings. A lot of rain. It was my home, but also could be very scary." And also organized chaos more often than not with the professors doing their best so that things would remain under control with various levels of success. Not to mention the actual ghosts not all of which were friendly or even sane like Nick.

"That must have been quite an interesting experience."

"Yes. Especially when I and friends could not make it to class on time. Unfortunately, some shortcuts were no shortcuts and took us two floors away from the goal." In a corner of her eye, she could see a slightly confused look on his face. "The castle is also a school."

"I see." If he was no longer upset, he was good at hiding it. Also, there was the tiniest smile on his face. "In comparison, what would you say about Indol? Do you like it?"

"Very organized and clean." She paused. "Sorry, know very little about Indol. First time heard about it after leaving home four months ago."

"No need for apologies. All of us are always learning. Though, I could not mention the book you are holding. May I have a look?"

It took her a moment to register the question, she looked around only to spot him glancing at the book she was holding - could be seen through the opening in the cloak.

Helen felt her fingers twitch around the thick paper cover, surprised. That was a sudden change of topic.

"Sure." Chances that he is going to be able to read it are small, but there was still a chance. In the past, monasteries used to be the centers of art and knowledge. If there is someone around here who could read English, it could be one of…

"I have never seen a language like this." Or not. Helen did not bother hiding her disappointment. "What is the book about?"

Amalthus turned a few pages, perhaps hoping he could spot something in the faint night lights of the area.

"Some old legends. Yggdrasil."

"Ygg…?" She felt a faint amusement when he tried and failed to pronounce the word. Some names were like that.

"Yggdrasil. World tree. In past, my home invaded by many others. These people brought stories. Yggdrasil one of stories." Amalthus stopped at a page with a picture of the tree.

"Where is your home? If I might ask."

"Britain." When she first arrived here, she felt relief at the thought that nobody would be able to recognize her, now? She was not certain. She expected to still feel happy that there was no way that anyone could follow her and force her back, but there was something else as well, moving around inside her chest and not letting go. "It very far."

The man seemingly gave up on trying to read, closed the book, and slowly gave it back.

"What is it like to live here? In Indol."

Unlike before when she gave him that scare, his posture seemed way more relaxed than before, this gave her the courage to ask her own question.

"The best way to describe it would be, rather peaceful. Unlike in other parts of Alrest."

War, in general, is a topic she tries to stay away from, and if she could help it, she will not get involved with whatever conflict will occur here. Hopefully.

After all, it was not her duty to handle the mess-ups of the previous generations, back at that place. She had to stop herself from calling it home.

"Though my days are filled with various duties." Amalthus continued. "Quite boring sometimes."

"Are there many?"

"Countless."

"That sound really boring." The smile on his face just became a little more prominent. Now she really knows that she doesn't want to be a priest or anything along those lines. She also expressed that opinion out loud. "Never becoming a priest." She even forgot to use the Alrestian word and used English again. "Sorry, priest not Alrestian. Priest something like, people who spread god's word." Or something along the lines, the description is likely very inaccurate. "Not sure how to say that in the language of Alrest."

"It is quite a commendable path to choose. Leading people towards the Architect."

She has heard that before in passing conversation but never quite realized that that is their god. It sounded less scary than the Christian God - Architect as a builder, however... "Never felt welcome in those kinds of places. So I not really religious. This my first time in any religious place since six." Helen replied with a light tone, dismissing the option entirely. "Though the view from some spots here must be amazing."

Helen had that lightbulb moment. There is that really tall tower... no. Not without turning into that way too big form which would not be invisible. Plus, while people do often call her crazy, she is not breaking in through what is likely several levels of security, especially when it would mean putting Vandham's mercenaries at risk.

"That is quite correct. The view is beautiful. Especially from the tallest, center tower."

She is probably freely displaying her emotions, but she was too jealous to care. A view from the tower would have been worthy of a Christmas present.

The astronomy tower used to be her favorite late-night reading spot.

Maybe if she asked him nice eno... Helen straightened when something interrupted her thoughts.

Earlier that day, she placed wards in her room, nothing big but just in case, and just about then, somebody tripped them. '"Oh for the love of!" She uttered under her nose, not al all happy.

Amalthus gained his confused face again, then it shifted into a frown. "Is anything wrong?"

"Nothing serious. Need to get back. Sorry."

She had her bag on her, under the cloak so it was not like anything of importance could be stolen - the wards were mostly there to wake her up just in case she is in the room and is sleeping. Call it paranoid, it makes sleeping a little easier. "If that is so, thank you for our short conversation. It was refreshing."

Helen smiled. "Thank you too, good night." Even in that situation, she still decided to give him one last goodbye.

While still looking at him, she flipped the hood over her head - the indolian's eyes widened as she disappeared completely.

It took her just a few minutes to get back, but when she did the room was already empty. Nothing would have indicated that the room got broken into. Looking around, she found her friend, sleeping with some other men in his room. Helen shook him awake. "Ness. Hey." The man grumbled something, rolled around, and continued to snore.

One weak stinking charm later, he was wide awake and glaring. "What was that for?"

"Were you in my room a few minutes ago?"

His irritation left as fast as it came and his expression became serious in an instant. "Was somebody in your room?"

She nodded. Ness got to his feet right away, strapping the shark rings to his waits and they were off, leaving the rest of the crew asleep. The animal blade started sniffing around while Ness looked around, studying the door frame closely. "Have you seen anyone?"

"No. My protection tripped."

"Protection tripped?"

"Ether field - alerts me if anyone enters. Set it up when we first got on in Uraya."

"That is nifty." He answered and then grimaced, pointing at a few fresh-looking scratches on the wood. "Sorry about this."

I just keep getting ideas for this so I am just putting it here into this fic until I run out. Want to work on Divergence of Fate next but I still need to figure some stuff out.

So. Helen met Amalthus. I kind of feel bad for the guy but at the same time... I am not going to write that free essay here.

Am I the only one who finds his design so cool and hoped that he is not going to be the main villain the moment I spotted him? It was that obvious. Also, I love his English voice.

I had another idea in which Helen would meet him before he climbs the world tree and stops him from becoming what he becomes in the game. More or less a love story with dialogues about good vs evil, the nature of people and humans... but there is no deeper plot so It can only ever be a one-shot at most.

Thanks for reading.

Review, please!