Chapter Twenty: When the Hourglass Fills
The first of May was warm and sunny. Blythe woke to the sunlight beaming through her bedroom window and smiled. She had a feeling this would be a wonderful day. She went about her business, spending a little extra time on her hair and clothing. She braided her long hair, then wrapped it about her head in a sort of crown. She then dressed in a flowing, flower patterned dress of thin material and left her room for the Great Hall.
She decided that since it was such a beautiful day she didn't feel like being cooped up in the castle. So, classes were spent outdoors. They spent class time reading and occasionally discussing their books. They had read Shakespearean plays, half of the DragonLance series and various other Muggle literature. The students all seemed to love the material.
Blythe also taught them about electricity, several modes of transportation and other Muggle ways of life, like the postal service, telephones for communication and televisions for entertainment.
As she was walking back up to the castle for lunch, Albus came out and stopped her. "I must say you're making excellent progress with the students, Blythe. They've all really taken to you."
"Thank you, Albus. I have to admit, they've grown on me too."
"I'm glad to hear it. Perhaps you'd consider this a permanent position then?"
Blythe stared at him in stunned silence for a couple of minutes. When she found her voice again, all she could say was, "Do you really mean it?"
"Of course I do." He smiled down at her gently. She was just about to speak again when Albus raised his hand to silence her. "Before you answer, there are other matters I need to discuss with you. I will wait until the end of the school year for your decision about the job."
"Alright, Albus. What else did you want to talk about?"
"Meet me in my office after dinner tonight. These are delicate, but important matters."
"Okay.", Blythe responded slowly.
Albus just smiled mysteriously at her and they walked up to the castle together.
After they were finished in the Great Hall, Blythe took her other classes outside as well. All the students thought this was a real treat because the only class they'd ever been allowed outside for was Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid.
She gave all of her classes the same lessons and reading material, both for the sake of simplicity and the enjoyment of the students.
When the classes were over, and dinner was done, Blythe walked to the corridor where the gargoyle stood guarding the secret entrance to Dumbledore's office.
"White Bumblebee.", Blythe said to the statue. It moved aside to let her pass. As she watched the wall open, she silently thanked Albus for giving her the password at dinner. Blythe made her way up the spiral staircase and politely knocked on the door at the top.
"Come on in, Blythe.", came Albus' aged voice from within.
She smiled as she entered. "Evening, Albus."
"Evening, Blythe. Please, have a seat. Would you like some tea?"
"No thanks. I had enough to drink at dinner."
Albus nodded, helped himself to a cup, then sat down behind his desk. "I've heard you've been studying about the Wizarding World.", he mentioned offhandedly, but his eyes glittered with something Blythe couldn't discern.
"Yes, I've taken a great interest in this world."
"I'm glad to hear it. Have you been learning much so far?", his tone remained ever friendly and casual, but Blythe had the impression that he was trying to find out something specific.
"A lot, actually. I've been reading about Quidditch, famous Witches and Wizards, different artifacts, Magical Beasts...." She paused for a moment then asked, "Is this about Remus?"
"It didn't take long for you to figure that out. I'm quite impressed." Albus smiled kindly at her.
"I have to say I couldn't have figured much of this out if I didn't have a little help."
"From whom?"
Blythe smiled slightly and turned her eyes. "Oh, no one in particular. Just someone who knew a thing or two about what I wanted to find."
"I see. Well, shall we get on with it then?"
Blythe nodded and waited patiently for Albus to continue.
"I shall assume you now know what Remus is and I wanted to be certain that you weren't afraid of him."
"I've heard of strange things before, but never something like this. I have to admit that I never would've imagined Remus to be a Werewolf, he just doesn't seem like the violent type. However, I've never been one to judge a book by its cover and I'll do no less with Remus. I'd much rather hear the words from his own lips, but I expect nothing from him. I never have."
Albus nodded and seemed to contemplate her words. "I'm glad to hear that you don't feel any differently about him simply because of this. I've received a great deal of ridicule from a few people who know about him because I hired a Werewolf as a Professor, but he's a good man and would never do anything to jeopardize a person's safety."
"I figured as much. He's a true gentleman and I've met very few of those in my life." Blythe smiled warmly, her green eyes glittering with cheer. "I could never think or feel any differently about him. He's been so kind to me, and that alone is more than enough to prove to me that he would never do anything to hurt someone deliberately. I'm considered very strange in the Muggle world, and I often receive a lot of negativity from others because they don't understand me and refuse to take the time to get to know me before making any judgements, so I can somewhat understand why Remus doesn't want people knowing about this. Look at the reaction he's already received from those who've complained to you about him. It's obvious to me that he doesn't deserve this kind of treatment, but people will be people whether they're Wizards or Muggles and they'll always be afraid of what they don't understand."
"This is very true, Blythe. You're quite a wise person to realize these things, and your own experiences have obviously taught you not to be judgmental of others, which you should be commended for. There's just one other thing."
"And what's that, Albus?" Blythe looked over his face with a warm smile of gratitude.
"Could we keep this between the two of us? It sounds as though Remus hasn't said anything to you about it yet, and I wouldn't want to see any trouble come about for either of you."
Blythe nodded solemnly as she spoke. "Of course. I wouldn't dream of saying anything to him. I'm glad I know what's been bothering him lately, and I'm sure he'll tell me himself when he's ready. At least this way it won't come as any huge shock and I'm more prepared to handle the situation when it arrives."
"That's excellent, Blythe. And thank you for being so open about this whole matter."
After the chat in Dumbledore's office, Blythe felt rather relieved and tired from the entire conversation. She decided to retire to her chambers for the night to think about the day's events. When she arrived at the door to her room, she found a note on the wood. She took it down and paled at the words written on the parchment.
'Your time is running out......quickly. Beware what lies within the castle walls as well as what lies outside of them. When the hourglass fills, you will have to make a choice your life could depend on.'
The first of May was warm and sunny. Blythe woke to the sunlight beaming through her bedroom window and smiled. She had a feeling this would be a wonderful day. She went about her business, spending a little extra time on her hair and clothing. She braided her long hair, then wrapped it about her head in a sort of crown. She then dressed in a flowing, flower patterned dress of thin material and left her room for the Great Hall.
She decided that since it was such a beautiful day she didn't feel like being cooped up in the castle. So, classes were spent outdoors. They spent class time reading and occasionally discussing their books. They had read Shakespearean plays, half of the DragonLance series and various other Muggle literature. The students all seemed to love the material.
Blythe also taught them about electricity, several modes of transportation and other Muggle ways of life, like the postal service, telephones for communication and televisions for entertainment.
As she was walking back up to the castle for lunch, Albus came out and stopped her. "I must say you're making excellent progress with the students, Blythe. They've all really taken to you."
"Thank you, Albus. I have to admit, they've grown on me too."
"I'm glad to hear it. Perhaps you'd consider this a permanent position then?"
Blythe stared at him in stunned silence for a couple of minutes. When she found her voice again, all she could say was, "Do you really mean it?"
"Of course I do." He smiled down at her gently. She was just about to speak again when Albus raised his hand to silence her. "Before you answer, there are other matters I need to discuss with you. I will wait until the end of the school year for your decision about the job."
"Alright, Albus. What else did you want to talk about?"
"Meet me in my office after dinner tonight. These are delicate, but important matters."
"Okay.", Blythe responded slowly.
Albus just smiled mysteriously at her and they walked up to the castle together.
After they were finished in the Great Hall, Blythe took her other classes outside as well. All the students thought this was a real treat because the only class they'd ever been allowed outside for was Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid.
She gave all of her classes the same lessons and reading material, both for the sake of simplicity and the enjoyment of the students.
When the classes were over, and dinner was done, Blythe walked to the corridor where the gargoyle stood guarding the secret entrance to Dumbledore's office.
"White Bumblebee.", Blythe said to the statue. It moved aside to let her pass. As she watched the wall open, she silently thanked Albus for giving her the password at dinner. Blythe made her way up the spiral staircase and politely knocked on the door at the top.
"Come on in, Blythe.", came Albus' aged voice from within.
She smiled as she entered. "Evening, Albus."
"Evening, Blythe. Please, have a seat. Would you like some tea?"
"No thanks. I had enough to drink at dinner."
Albus nodded, helped himself to a cup, then sat down behind his desk. "I've heard you've been studying about the Wizarding World.", he mentioned offhandedly, but his eyes glittered with something Blythe couldn't discern.
"Yes, I've taken a great interest in this world."
"I'm glad to hear it. Have you been learning much so far?", his tone remained ever friendly and casual, but Blythe had the impression that he was trying to find out something specific.
"A lot, actually. I've been reading about Quidditch, famous Witches and Wizards, different artifacts, Magical Beasts...." She paused for a moment then asked, "Is this about Remus?"
"It didn't take long for you to figure that out. I'm quite impressed." Albus smiled kindly at her.
"I have to say I couldn't have figured much of this out if I didn't have a little help."
"From whom?"
Blythe smiled slightly and turned her eyes. "Oh, no one in particular. Just someone who knew a thing or two about what I wanted to find."
"I see. Well, shall we get on with it then?"
Blythe nodded and waited patiently for Albus to continue.
"I shall assume you now know what Remus is and I wanted to be certain that you weren't afraid of him."
"I've heard of strange things before, but never something like this. I have to admit that I never would've imagined Remus to be a Werewolf, he just doesn't seem like the violent type. However, I've never been one to judge a book by its cover and I'll do no less with Remus. I'd much rather hear the words from his own lips, but I expect nothing from him. I never have."
Albus nodded and seemed to contemplate her words. "I'm glad to hear that you don't feel any differently about him simply because of this. I've received a great deal of ridicule from a few people who know about him because I hired a Werewolf as a Professor, but he's a good man and would never do anything to jeopardize a person's safety."
"I figured as much. He's a true gentleman and I've met very few of those in my life." Blythe smiled warmly, her green eyes glittering with cheer. "I could never think or feel any differently about him. He's been so kind to me, and that alone is more than enough to prove to me that he would never do anything to hurt someone deliberately. I'm considered very strange in the Muggle world, and I often receive a lot of negativity from others because they don't understand me and refuse to take the time to get to know me before making any judgements, so I can somewhat understand why Remus doesn't want people knowing about this. Look at the reaction he's already received from those who've complained to you about him. It's obvious to me that he doesn't deserve this kind of treatment, but people will be people whether they're Wizards or Muggles and they'll always be afraid of what they don't understand."
"This is very true, Blythe. You're quite a wise person to realize these things, and your own experiences have obviously taught you not to be judgmental of others, which you should be commended for. There's just one other thing."
"And what's that, Albus?" Blythe looked over his face with a warm smile of gratitude.
"Could we keep this between the two of us? It sounds as though Remus hasn't said anything to you about it yet, and I wouldn't want to see any trouble come about for either of you."
Blythe nodded solemnly as she spoke. "Of course. I wouldn't dream of saying anything to him. I'm glad I know what's been bothering him lately, and I'm sure he'll tell me himself when he's ready. At least this way it won't come as any huge shock and I'm more prepared to handle the situation when it arrives."
"That's excellent, Blythe. And thank you for being so open about this whole matter."
After the chat in Dumbledore's office, Blythe felt rather relieved and tired from the entire conversation. She decided to retire to her chambers for the night to think about the day's events. When she arrived at the door to her room, she found a note on the wood. She took it down and paled at the words written on the parchment.
'Your time is running out......quickly. Beware what lies within the castle walls as well as what lies outside of them. When the hourglass fills, you will have to make a choice your life could depend on.'