Chapter 2: Encounter in the Library It was a fine, moist evening in early Spring, May 15th 1935. Darren Delacour was sitting alone in the family library, enjoying a novel, one of those American "pulp romance" titles. For some reason, he had taken quite a liking to them during his family's brief stint in the United States. Their one-dimensional characters and simple plotlines always brought a feeling of contentment to his heart. The light from the moon poured in, a solid white curtain through the domed-glass ceiling. T'was a nice night indeed to celebrate one's twenty-first birthday. Something was on his mind. Darren glanced briefly about the empty room, over it's never-ending rows of shelves, filled with books of all and sizes and colors. His brother Mathus had become quite reclusive as of late, darting out of the room whenever he entered, and since the library was technically his, Darren wondered what was up. Where was he anyway? This was their birthday, the one day of the year they always spent together. Ah well, save those thoughts for another day, his brother had always had these spells, where he went into sort of a self-induced cocoon if you will. Darren supposed it had something to do with Mathus being un-magic, but it never seemed to bother him before. Suddenly, a loud-metallic crash, was heard from just outside the main entrance of the library. Distracting him from whatever he was reading, Darren looked up quick enough to see his brother storm in, looking rather spooked and rather irked at the same time. In his right hand and he carried a rather-large, obviously-old book that was bound in jet-black leather. In his left hand he carried a single candle that was glowing with a blue flame. His clothes were in tatters. His face was unshaven and scraggly, a sad-looking growth of week-old razer stubble covering the hollows of his gaunt face. He looked like he hadn't eaten in months. Something was most definately wrong. Darren, speaking softly queried, "what is the problem Mathus, I was trying to enjoy my day-of-birth celebration thank you very much." "None of your business dear brother," he sneered, "I have finally found something worth doing in my pathetic little life, aside from being your's and father's pet muggle. I see how you try to hide me away in this wretched room, ashamed of my," he paused a moment and then spoke, drawing out the word like a hiss from a serpent, "disssssability." "Mathus, we've discussed this before, you are not a crutch to this family, and where you got this idea that we're ashamed of you I have no idea. Father and I care a great deal for you. This library isn't a prison, it's a haven, it's your haven." "NONSENSE," Mathus snapped angrily. "I heard you talking about to your little preppy English friend, Dumbledore. His proposed policy on squib- affirmative action is preposterous! I swear, the next time I hear the phrase un-magic, spoken with the word, Mathus in the same sentence, I am going to scream!" " I absolutely refused to be placed within a federally subsidized work program, like I'm some kind of BUM! No brother I have other plans." His voice trailed off with these last words, a sinister smile taking the place of the look of anger worn before. "What are you going on about", questioned Darren skeptically. "What plan?" "We both know that the only thing you're actually good at is number- crunching, HELL your skills in the field of mathematics rival those of ole' Gringott himself. Why don't you let me see that book, what is it anyway?" He spoke, standing up. Mathus, obviously perturbed at this idea, smacked his brother's hand away brutally, clutching the book to his chest protectively. "MINE," he exclaimed, voice rising a notch or two in pitch. It was as if he was possessed by some demon. His eyes glowed with fury. "What is your problem," Darren quipped, sounding annoyed? "Let me see the damn book!" "Stop playing around." Mathus, obviously in quite a state of shock of his twin having the audacity to touch his book began to sputter angrily. "HANDS OFF, DEAR SWEET BROTHER!!" "You know not what dark forces you are messing with." He struck Darren rather solidly In the jaw, drawing forth a muffled grunt and a bit of blood. Shaken, Darren cowered away from his twin, he'd never been hit before, at the very least, not by his brother. Mathus shot one final glare at his brother, a look of pure venomous hatred. Made some sort of weird gesturing motion with his left hand, the one holding the candle. A large glowing-green, spinning portal opened up in the center of the library. Darren recognized this, a dimensional door, but how could Mathus conjour up such a powerful spell. He was just a squib, a harmless squib, his brother. "Farewell brother," cried Mathus, hatred in his voice. He stepped through the portal, with the strange book and the candle which promptly closed up behind him, leaving Darren, in shock all alone inside of the library. He began to sob, clutching his arms around himself in a tight embrace, sobs racking his slight frame. He cried himself to sleep, curled up in a prone bundle on the floor that evening the moon shining down upon him. That was the last time Darren had seen his brother in the flesh. He had learned later that the book his brother had stolen, was a simple history book, more precisely a common recount of the Holy Cruasdes, that assaulted Europe years before. He could never figure out just why this book could cause such a change in his brother. Why this book? Why not some other? About a month later, the letters started arriving. Letters, documenting an unnamed soldier, rising quickly within the ranks of Hitler's Army. None of them gave an identity, or had a return address, but they were in Mathus's, madly-looping handwriting. He hadn't even given the letters a second thought, until the Council recruited him, specifically for this mission, a week earlier.