Author's Notes and a small disclaimer. Again, JKR owns her stuff I'm not laying claim to it. I have an obsession other than Harry Potter. Yeah, I'm a Tolkien fan too *g*. So bits should be credited to J.R.R. Tolkien I added this bit because I wanted to show Dumbledore gathering together the magical peoples of the world and also because my mom had Issues with Elves. She didn't get Tall elves like in Norse Mythology ( I think) or in the world of LOTR (or other popular Fantasy). The only ones she'd ever seen were the short ones that helped Santa or house elves like Dobby. So here's a small bit trying to rectify that situation. For further notes see the end. ^_^ PS: the lines of asterisks ******* indicate a change in reality. I'm trying to show that they are closely paralleling one another. Ooooooo trippy! Alternate reality! (so if you wonder why some characters act the way they are acting, you've stepped into the twilight zone ^_^)
A world away…..
Ron was again buried in his transfiguration and (recently added) Jhereg anatomy books at breakfast the next day. Brand new additions this morning were copies of "Transfigruation weekly"
"McGonagall gave me a bunch of her back issues," Ron explained as he hauled the stack down to breakfast with him. Harry offered to take half the stack and Ron gave him half with a smile of thanks. When they reached the Gryffindor table, they set the piles down with twin 'thumps' and began filling their plates. Harry scanned the topics of the magazines' issues and noticed that a lot of the titles were about Animagi, magical creatures and transfiguration, and lizards and transfiguration; all in all, not very surprising. Harry pulled one issue with an article about canine Animagi from the stack and began flipping through it. He thought of Sirius and his dog transformation, then of his father and how brilliant he really must have been to figure all of this stuff out on his own.
Harry could sort of understand what Ron went on about when he muttered about Animagi transfiguration while he made neat notes on a piece of parchment and read and re-read the books he'd got from professor McGonagall. Harry knew he would have needed a lot of instruction to become an Animagus and he was proud of his father's cleverness even if it had been a rather dangerous thing to do. Harry felt ill whenever Ron showed him pictures of transformations gone awry. The most recent had been one of a tiger man. The failed animagi's face had been painfully stretched into a muzzle and his hands were twisted paws and overlarge claws. The man in the picture was continually dosed with pain killers by attendant medi-wizards and grimaced often. The article Harry had picked was thankfully sparse on both overly technical terms and grotesque pictures of what NOT to do.
The two boys looked up from their bacon, eggs and reading material as a group of squealing Gryffindor girls rushed into the hall, grabbed some of their friends, and rushed out again in a much larger, much louder group.
"What's with them?" Ron asked. The same phenomenon was happening at all the house tables.
"Dunno," Harry shrugged
Hermione came in soon after, chatting with several other Gryffindor girls. Their voices were high pitched and fast.
"What's got you all in a fluster?" Ron asked after Hermione had separated herself from the rest of the chatting mass and had sat at her usual spot at the table.
"Oh," she breathed. Ron and Harry exchanged glances, "We just saw professor Stonehoof greet today's guest speaker," Hermione began idly running a hand through her bushy hair, trying to tame it.
"And you're all acting like a bunch of ninnies because…?" Ron asked. Hermione shot him a glare.
"He's an Elf," She said, as if that would explain it. The matter closed she helped herself to some of the warm porridge.
"An…Elf," Harry asked and Hermione nodded.
"Last I checked, Dobby wasn't much of a prize by human standards," Ron said, puzzled but the girl's reaction. In fact he was greatly surprised that Hermione was acting this way at all. She was acting like a…like a girl.
"No, no! He's a Woodland Elf, not a House Elf. Really, we did go over this at the beginning of the semester," Hermione rolled her eyes.
"Ah, ha. So what, he's a tall Elf? Bigger ears, bigger nose than normal?" Ron asked. He could vaguely remember something about tall elves. Orcs came to mind for some odd reason. Hermione sighed and wondered how Ron managed to pass any of his classes.
"Woodland Elves don't look anything like their cousins the House Elves. You'd know that if you paid as much attention in Defense Against the Dark Arts as you do in Transfiguration," Hermione grumped.
"Since we did Elves earlier, why are we getting visitors now?" Ron questioned. Hermione gave him a look and just shook her head. Ron scowled and buried himself in his books and magazines for the remainder of breakfast, completely missing the smirk on Harry's face.
When breakfast was over, Ron stood with his friends and then realized he'd carried an awful lot of books with him. Hermione performed a simple shrinking spell, muttering something which sounded like "helpless". Ron swept the books into his bag and the three ran to catch up with their classmates.
Harry, Hermione and Ron arrived at the DADA classroom to find that the first two rows were nearly filled with the girls. Hermione dashed over and took the last seat in the first row, narrowly beating Lavender for it. The boys had no choice but to sit further back.
"Harry Potter sir!" a small voice called. Harry looked down and saw Dobby's squished face beaming up at him from under his tea cozy hat. The House Elf was in his usual attire; an oddly patterned tie (which reached to his knees), baggy sack-cloth tunic, wildly mismatched socks and tea cozy hat.
"Hi Dobby," Harry greeted. Ron grunted what may have been a greeting, but was otherwise absorbed in the magazine he was reading.
"Dobby is helping out the professors today," Dobby squeaked, "Dobby has been asked to talk about House elves, sir"
"That's great," Harry said, though he wasn't sure Dobby was a good representation of what it meant to be a house-Elf. Dobby had been freed and now worked in the kitchens for a wage. It was unheard of and downright scandalous to the other house-elves, not to mention embarrassing. Dobby scampered to the front of the room as he heard the teacher approach. Harry quickly took the seat between Ron and Dean.
Professor Stonehoof strode in and, noting the seating arrangement, stifled a chuckle.
"I see you've all heard about one of today's guests," She said wryly. The girls all blushed and made furtive glances at the door. A chorus of soft 'ahhs' erupted from the first two rows as Stonehoof beckoned her guest in.
The Elf was tall, probably 6'5", and he had long white-blonde hair. He wore a soft green tunic and trousers, the shade of which seemed to change as he moved. The edges of his clothing were worked in an ornate scrawling pattern in silver and gold thread. The tips of his gently pointed ears were clearly visible. His green eyes crinkled at the corners as he smiled, making all the girls sigh. Harry had to admit he had never seen a prettier man, not even Lockhart, though what any woman saw in Lockhart to begin with was still a mystery to him.
"Hello, I am called Malfan," The woodland Elf greeted. The girls in the first two rows sighed again and echoed his greeting faintly, even Hermione. Harry spared a look at his other classmates. Neville and Dean were watching with polite interest, Harry didn't know how to classify the expression on Seamus' face, and Ron's look was half way between annoyance and confusion. Common to all the boys, save perhaps Dean, was bafflement at the strange power this man seemed to have other their female classmates. It was like when Lockhart had been teaching…only worse.
The woodland Elf broke into a wide grin as he saw Dobby standing on the edge of a chair next to professor Stronehoof's desk. The two clasped hands and exchanged soft words of greeting.
"Our other guest today is Dobby the house-Elf," Stonehoof continued, " These two have graciously come to teach you more about some of the other magical species we share the world with," Stonehoof said cheerily. The girls nodded, but their eyes never left the Woodland Elf. Almost immediately, Seamus Finnigan's hand shot up.
"Mister Finnigan,"
"Do you live in the grey havens now? Was there really a Third Age? Is there really a Galadriel? Is she really that pretty? Can you tell us about Valinor? Were there two trees? Were they really that fantastic? How about the war of the jewels?" Finnigan began in a rush. It was then that Harry noted that Seamus was almost as transfixed as the girls. The woodland Elf laughed.
"You've read Tolkien, haven't you?" Malfan asked. Seamus nodded rapidly, eyes the size of dinner plates.
"Oh, yeah. Lots of Tolkien. It's dad's favorite. He read all the stories to me. Are they- are they true?" Seamus asked, hardly daring to hope they were.
"Parts, but I won't bore the entire class with the details. We can, if you like, discuss them in greater detail after class?"
"I'd like that sir," Seamus looked as if Christmas and his birthday had just come early. The girls shot jealous looks at Seamus.
"Why don't we have out two guests talk a little and then begin question and answer," Stonehoof suggested quickly, noting the almost murderous looks on Parvati and Lavender's faces.
**************************(our world)*****************************
"I am so tired,"
"You went to bed early,"
"yeah but I'm still tired," Lisa let her head drop to the desk top.
"You'll wake up when we get to Defense. I've heard the Guest speaker is particularly yummy,"
"Who're we seeing again?"
"woodland Elf,"
"Huh. Thought they kinda kept to themselves. Wonder what he's doing out here,"
"Who cares?"
"True,"
"I hate Potions," Ginny muttered as she slid into her seat. Fourth year transfiguration was about to begin. Suzannah waved hello and Lisa grunted. Transfiguration class was proving to be a bit of a sore spot for her. She was usually able to perform all the transformations McGonagall assigned, usually on the first try. McGonagall had asked if she'd had the material before and Lisa had replied that she hadn't. Recently though, her transfigurations had become wildly erratic. She'd produced a gauntlet when she'd been assigned to produce a glove, a small owl from a stone rather than a puffskein and a rather amazingly colored cloak when she'd been assigned to create a shapeless swath of fabric. The most spectacular mistake had been last week during a lesson on changing objects of a single substance into two. Lisa had produced a lovely dagger out of an oblong rock. The assignment was to turn it into a stuffed bear, so she'd gotten an odd look from her classmates and teacher.
"Everyone hates potions," Suzannah muttered, "Even the Slytherins. They just tolerate it better because Snape gives them a lot of points,"
"Afternoon, class," Professor McGonagall entered the room, emerald robes swishing, "I hope you are ready to demonstrate what we learned last week? Everyone get a rock and I will go through and check each of you,"
Lisa sighed, recalling the owl incident.
"Just think of Defense against Dark arts," Suzannah poked her.
"Right," Lisa said as she dragged herself to her feet.
"Thank you for coming," Dumbledore smiled.
"No thanks are needed," Malfan closed the study door behind him. The last class of the day had finished and he was not free to engage in the task he'd truly been assigned. "We know of this great evil, though we do not travel to this world often anymore. We still hear things though friends. We will of course help your ally. Had but few others asked this of us, we would not have done so,"
"Few others know how to even reach you," Dumbledore pointed out.
The Elf laughed, his voice rich and musical "Too true!" he chuckled, "But all the same, we have isolated ourselves. Too much I think, though others would disagree," he sighed, "Perhaps one day we'll walk openly with Men again. Indeed our ultimate fates are twisted together. But for now we live apart," the Elf said somewhat sadly. He for one missed the interaction with Men. They were so delightfully curious and often pigheadedly noble and they seemed to live their comparatively short years to the fullest. Plus they threw damn good parties.
"Our friend should be arriving shortly," Dumbledore's voice drew Malfan from his reverie. The Elf nodded and went to study Fawkes.
"A phoenix? I have never seen one before. I have heard tales of ones which used to inhabit our woods, but they left or hid themselves from even our eyes long ago," He fished out a bit of waybread for Fawkes who accepted it graciously, seeming to understand the grave honor, "They missed men I think," Malfan mused. The door opened and a large black dog trotted in just behind Professor McGonagall.
"Ah, thank you Minerva," Dumbledore said with a smile, "You," he said to the dog, "will be going with Mr. Malfan to be with his people for a little while. He has been fully briefed about you. Things seem to be getting a little tense around here. I am not entirely sure that recent events were not the result of their perception of your snooping. I need to shore up old alliances and you need a break," the old man smiled at the dog who hesitantly wagged his tail.
"See if you can't get some rest before you go back out searching for information and back into hiding. They have agreed to acquire a new wand for you as well as some new clothes and travel gear. They will also take care of your winged friend. I believe you know the one I am speaking of," the dog deliberately nodded, "Good. Collect your friend and I shall see you when I see you,"
Malfan clasped hands with Dumbledore and exited the office, the shaggy dog trailing close behind.
"Well, that's good. He'll be fed well and be properly armed," Albus mused as the door closed, "Remus Lupin mentioned he's been having nightmares. Not that I blame him,"
"Dementors are such horrid creatures. I admit I had nightmares the first time I ever saw them. The minister had a group of them collect some of Grinwald's supporters after that raid in London,"
"I remember that. The first time I saw them they had just struck their deal with the ministry. I still think it is a bad idea and that we may come to regret it,"
"Changing the subject, I think Snuffles was a bit surprised that I collected him," Minerva said, her voice was tinged with the slightest bit of amusement.
"It didn't seem very wise nor profitable that you be kept in the dark, Minerva," Dumbledore said as he sat behind the great desk. She chuckled and took the seat across from him.
"It certainly explains why his transfiguration grades suddenly began improving. I see Ron Weasley doing the same thing,"
"How is his progress going?"
"Quite well in fact. I am very pleased. His grades overall seem to be improving as well. Apparently he is rather… 'Intense' is the word miss Granger used I think, when he does all his homework,"
"In a hurry to study his transfiguration books?" Albus chuckled with Minerva, "and how is our other Animagus student?" Minerva's face fell a little.
"She isn't doing so well. She's practically lost everything she was once capable of,"
"That is odd," Dumbledore mused.
"I know. Well, I have some things to see to," Minerva said rising. Dumbledore nodded and watched her go. He idly watched the silvery instruments whir on the edge of his desk and contemplated. Sirius would be well cared for and well hidden with the Elves. Few were allowed to even find their boarders, let alone cross them. Sirius was proving to be a valuable source of information, and one Dumbledore was not keen to miss for a few weeks, but he'd noted that Sirius seemed to be tired. Rest was therefore in order and it was also an excellent opportunity to make overtures to the less xenophobic elves. They would need all the allies they could get. He'd been afraid that the attack on the giant boy would lose his support among their kind. Instead they'd seen it as a direct attack against them and the few enclaves who'd pledged support had drawn in several more. Dumbledore only wished it would have happened under better circumstances.
The boy's condition had improved immensely in a few hours time and Poppy Pomfrey had prescribed a week of bedrest to be sure the poison had exited his system completely. The school had returned to a much more normal state after that announcement. Dumbledore was glad they managed to isolate the venom so quickly and set things right. They explained to the students that it had been a lost gripper-lizard and that the beast had been chased from the school grounds into the forbidden forest. The students had believed the story and hostilities between Gryffindor and Slytherin had settled back to their normal levels
"Mr. Malfan!"
"Hello. I didn't forget you," the woodland Elf paused in the hallway, waiting for Seamus to catch up with him. The tall Elf was accompanied by one of the biggest dogs Seamus had ever seen, but he barely paid attention to the animal.
"So," Seamus panted, "So, what bits are true? Can I come visit?"
"Perhaps," the Elf smiled and resumes walking. "Some of my people are less tolerant of visitors from the land of Men than others. Generally we only freely let in Elf-friends and Peredhil. Wizards and Witches are generally more accepted than what you call muggles, so you might stand a good chance of being allowed in. I will speak with the council on your behalf."
"Wow! Thanks! How about my dad? He'd love to come and I'm sure he'd be polite,"
"We shall see," The blonde Elf smiled.
"Say…Peredhil? You mean there are actually half elven?" Malfan nodded assent.
"Though few are actually half and half anymore since we do not associate with Men so much. We use Peredhil for all part Elven peoples now. Now, as for what is true and what is not? The great enemy was true, though not in the way described. The grey havens are an integral part of our traditional lore and history,"
Harry spotted Malfan and Seamus talking as they crossed the hall. Following behind them was a large, shaggy, black dog. The dog caught sign of him and bounded forwards. Sirius tackled him and gave him a slobbery kiss before backing off. Sirius sat on his haunches and wagged his tail.
"He likes you I think," Malfan observed and winked at Harry. Harry grinned back and scratched Sirius behind the ears. "I think he and I need to be getting back to my home though. Seamus Finnigan it has been a pleasure talking with you. Perhaps we will be able to speak at greater length sometime in the future?"
"That'd be good," Seamus nodded, "you wouldn't mind meeting my dad next visit would you? He's a muggle but he's pretty understanding, what with mom and me both being magical,"
"I wouldn't mind a bit," Malfan smiled. He quickly took off the ornately carved wooden broach on his tunic and gave it to Seamus, "A promise that we shall speak again. I have questions for you as well. This television invention sounds extraordinary and my kinsman has told me about something called an inter-network?"
"The internet? Oh hey, I can tell you lots! My dad's a computer networking consultant,"
"Computer? Hm, I have heard of these machines but I confess I don't know what they are for. They seem to be important to the muggles who use them. I have never heard a witch or wizard speak of them, though,"
Harry fought back a grin as he listened to the conversation. Who would have thought Mr. Weasley had a muggle-happy counterpart with the elves. Harry bit the inside of his cheek as an amusing scene played out in his head. Malfan and Mr. Weasley were doggedly questioning Uncle Dursley about all things Muggle.
"We shall have to speak again Seamus Finnigan. But now, I must depart. I am expected back at the border," Malfan nodded at Harry and tapped Sirius on the shoulder. Sirius wagged his tail to show Harry everything was ok and then followed Malfan out of the school.
"That was the biggest dog I've ever seen," Seamus said after the two had disappeared from sight, "He reminds me of the wolfhound chieftain Huan.
"Who?" Harry asked.
"The muggles you live with never let your read any Tolkien?" Seamus asked, ton indicating he thought this was a major sin of some sort.
"No," Harry said, "is it fantasy?"
"Uhm, well. You know, I don't know anymore. Mr. Malfan was telling me some of it was true. But, yeah it's Muggle fantasy genre. There's this Wizard in it who reminds me of the Headmaster,"
"Well if it had magic in it, they would have outlawed it outright," Harry told him.
"I'll lend you my copy of Lord of the Rings. It's a thumping good book. You'll like it,"
"Thanks, Seamus," Harry grinned. It would be nice to read something other than Text books for once.
Seamus was explaining hobbits to Harry when they heard raised voices down the hall.
"Oh, just give it up Weasel. We all know you did it," Draco and Ron were at it again.
"And WHY would I attack a member of my own house? I don't know how it works in Slytherin, but in Gryffindor, we don't do that,"
"I saw him talking to your new girlfriend, the batty Yank. Maybe you felt threatened, so you might have turned into the little lizard and bit him. Jhregs are poisonous,"
Ron dove at Malfoy, but was caught by his Housemates, preventing a certain detention and Malfoy from betting a broken nose.
"Easy Ron. Ignore him. He's a git," Seamus told him.
"He just wants to see you get into trouble," Harry cautioned. Draco smirked and strode off. Ron growled and threw his friends off, staring daggers at Malfoy's back.
"C'mon Ron," Seamus offered, "I was just about to show Harry some of my Dad's books about Elves,"
"Sure," Ron grumbled, "Wait, Muggles have books about elves? Weird,"
"We are beyond prying eyes now," the woodland Elf said to his companion. The dog turned into his human shape once more and took the Hippogriff's reigns from the Elf. Sirius was glad the Hyppogriff had decided he liked the Elf. He'd been worried that convincing Buckbeak to follow would be a problem.
"Thanks," Sirius Black growled, his voice gravelly from disuse.
"Not a problem. Here's our ride," They'd come to the edge of a small river Sirus hadn't known existed. A grey boat was being directed towards the shore by a woodland Elf with long, dark hair. He greeted them as the boat's bottom scraped the rocky shore. After a few moments in which the three tried to convince Buckbeak that the boat was perfectly safe, they set off downstream. A watcher would have lost them in a sudden bit of mist which hid them from sight.
The land of the elves was separate from both the wizard and Muggle worlds, and was beautiful beyond anything Sirius had ever seen. Quiet music filtered through the sweet air as the sun set.
"Someone is singing the sun down," Malfan said as he leaned on the carved stern of the boat. Large fireflies began to appear as the air grew warmer and the sun set. One glowing specimen alighted on the edge of the boat and Sirius saw that they weren't insects, but small glowing lizards. They seemed to glow with an internal blue-white fire. The creature "cheeped" at him and then took off on gossamer wings.
"The air is getting warmer," Sirius commented as he shrugged off his outer robes.
"Our world is much more tropical here than it is in your world," Malfan explained, "The boarders are a little colder. Listen," He tiled his head and smiled, "The singing grows louder, we are almost there," The little boat rounded a bend and Sirius, who was not normally moved by such things, had to gasp at the beauty of the Elfhome. Tall trees, easily as tall as Hogwart's tallest tower, arched over the river, their silvery bark shone in the waning sunlight. The branches grew into one another, creating huge bridges, platforms, walkways and further canopies. Elegantly carved houses seemed to grow up from the rocky ground into the trees above, coexisting flawlessly. A flock of the glowing lizards flew by, chirping. They alighted on a tree near the water's edge where Elf sat beside the river, singing to an audience of lizards and elves and strumming a small silver harp.
"A hand?"
Sirius was stirred from his reverie as the boat approached a landing. A great stone swan's wings extended out into the river, holding many boats at dock . They attached their boat to a small anchor in the stone and then stepped onto the wings.
"Well come travellers," A tall Elf woman with long, wavy, brown hair greeted the men as they climbed up the stone swan's back onto the brilliant green grass. She wore a circlet of silver which reminded Black of intertwined vines, and was obviously someone of great import for the elves seemed deferential to her. Her grey and blue robes were queenly and would have cost a few hundred Galleons in a wizarding shop. Sirius ran a hand quickly through his tousled hair and over his wrinkled clothing, trying to look a bit more presentable to his host.
"Thank you Lady," Malfan bowed, "This is Sirius Black, your kinsman's friend," he told her in a quiet voice. The lady nodded.
"Well come. My heart is saddened by your trials. We hope your spirit will be lightened by your stay here," caught off guard by her rich alto and her piercing blue gaze, Sirius lost his voice for a moment before finally being able to answer.
"Th-Thank you," Sirius stammered, "My Lady," He added. It seemed appropriate. The corners of the woman's lips tiled in the hint of smile before she indicated with a graceful sweep of her hand that Sirius should follow her.
"If you will,"
"Certainly,"
*******************(The other world)*********************************
"Change!"
Ron immediately turned into his Animagus form at McGonagall's command. He only missed a few strides as he raced around the courtyard. A group of first years stood in a little cluster in the covered walkway. They "oohed' and 'ahhhed' each time he changed from one for to the other.
"That's enough of that Mr. Weasley," McGonagall called out. Ron trotted over to her and changed again. He dabbed at the sweat beading on his forehead as McGonagall scanned the courtyard, " I want you to change back and then leap from the ground to the top of that stone and back down again," she pointed, "Once I am sure you won't kill yourself, we'll try it from a higher height. Eventually you should be able to leap to the top of that roof from the ground," she pointed to the roof of the walkway the first years were standing under. Ron nodded and trotted off to practice jumping.
"Professor?" A Hufflepuff prefect held out a letter, "The headmaster told me to give this to you. He said that he'd just gotten the owl,"
"Thank you," she opened the letter and read;
"Dear Mum and Dad,
I'll be coming home shortly. I have some interesting information about Athena. I've already contacted her partner. I don't know when the next portkey is running out of this place since I just got back into town, but I'll be home as soon as I am able.
Love,
Artemis,"
With a slightly trembling hand, McGonagall folded the letter from her daughter and tucked it away in a pocket. Composing herself, she attended to Ron Weasley, who was diligently practicing his jumping. He was doing remarkably well. It was difficult to get the feel of jumping with a tail at first, and Ron also had to deal with the added difficulty of wings. Ron moved to a higher target and managed that jump very well, only one long clawed toe missed the landing the first attempt. A trickle of dust and debris slid off the top of the slab to the ground. Ron promptly turned around and jumped back to earth. McGonagall noticed his wings automatically snapped out just a little, slowing and stabilizing his fall. Ron was indeed making excellent progress. Minerva hoped that Artemis was bringing good news. Perhaps Athena would be able to tutor Ron in the fine art of flying when they found her.
They walked along a smooth stone path under the canopy of silver and green in silence. Sirius mind wandered as he took in his surroundings, absently noting that the entire area was mostly in the Slytherin's house colors. He mentally slapped himself for thinking in terms like that.
"Tell me, what is going on in your world?" the woman asked, startling Sirius.
"Well," he said after a moment, "You-Know-Who seems to have returned," He figured that if this woman knew Dumbledore, then she'd know about Voldemort. "He kidnapped my Godson last year and killed one of his schoolmates. He seems to be rallying his old supporters, so we're working to counter him,"
The woman nodded and sighed.
"Such evil must be destroyed if it cannot be contained. He is hunted and that makes him desperate," she said almost to herself, "The desperate are the most dangerous,"
Sirius was still pondering this when he noted that his host had walked off towards a great stone dwelling. He hurried to catch up, disturbing a resting flock of the glowing lizards with his hast. As he caught up with her, he noted that she was speaking with an elderly human couple. The woman had her dark grey hair neatly tucked into a bun, her pointed witch's hat on the stone bench beside her. Her husband wore what Sirius thought looked like muggle clothing; a pair of khaki trousers and button-down shirt. The woman gasped in horror when she saw Sirius.
"That's Sirius Black!" she shouted and reached for her wand.
"Who, dear?" The old man asked.
"Sirius Black! One of You-Know-Who's supporters!" he'd found her wand now and had it pointed at Sirius' chest.
"Now that's not true!" Sirius growled in his own defense.
"Indeed, it is not true," The lady said, "his heart is as pure as yours is Imelda," her voice was firm, stopping the woman from hexing Sirius.
"Then. What happened?" the woman now looked at him with intense curiosity instead of fear or hate. The change was so sudden, from bitter hate to sincere speculation, Sirius was thrown off balance.
"I was framed," Sirius explained the bare bones truth.
"You didn't kill those muggles then?"
"No. I was mistaken for their killer. They were killed by Peter Pettigrew,"
"Pettigrew is dead, it was in the Daily Prophet. Did you kill him?" the witch asked, tilting her head to the side. She reminded Sirius of some sort of little grey bird.
"No," Sirius growled, "Pettigrew faked his death so I would be blamed for what he had done,"
The witch frowned in thought.
"Well if you were permitted here, that must be the case," The man said, as if that solved the entire situation. The witch tilted her head to the other side then nodded. "I'm Henry Brown," the man got to his feet and put his hand out towards Sirius. Sirius shook his hand and then the witch's.
"Imelda Brown. I hope your name gets cleared, dear," The woman was now as friendly and motherly as Molly Weasley.
"Thank you, I hope so too,"
"Imelda and Henry are something of permanent fixtures here," The Elf woman told Sirius. "They are invaluable in helping to discern what is happening in your world and how it affects us,"
"They have such a nice library, Its wonderful to do research here so giving them a human perspective is a small price to pay," The witch said happily. Ravenclaw, Sirius thought. Definitely Ravenclaw.
"I like that they're perfectly willing to ignore my status as a "lowly Muggle," Henry joked. His wife rolled her eyes. This was obviously a well worn line. "Imelda and I met here. The natural entrance here is on land my family has owned since before William landed,"
It took Sirius a moment to understand that by "William", Henry meant as in "The Conquerer. Battle of 1066 and all that.
"If you will excuse me and our guest, I would like to get his settled before dinner,"
"Oh of course!"
"Certainly,"
"I didn't expect to meet other humans here," Sirius admitted as he walked through the grand stone arch into the main building.
"Few other than a special number come here. Imelda and Henry both have the distinction of being an Elf-friend,"
"Is Dumbledore an Elf-friend as well, then?" Sirius asked, unsure of exactly what the title meant. His host laughed, her voice was light and musical. Her blue eyes twinkled as she pushed the door to a spacious room open.
"Albus is one of my kinsmen," She explained, "This is your room. I will have someone send in some clothing before dinner. For now I bet you'd like a nice relaxing bath before dinner. I have been told your recent life has been most rough. I am Galadlalaith, one of the three keepers of this home, and I bid you farewell until dinner,"
Sirius stood dumbstruck in the arched doorway as he watched his host glide away down the corridor. One of her kinsmen? Well that certainly explained several things about Hogwarts' headmaster. Of course it also uncovered several more mysteries, but Sirius supposed it didn't matter.
The room was elegantly appointed and had a balcony with a breath-taking view of the little river valley. The huge bed looked very inviting, especially to someone who'd spent more than a decade in a place where one was lucky if they had a pile of rotting straw on the ground. Sirius flopped onto the bed and started up at the ceiling which was a breathtaking combination of carved stone and stained glass made to resemble the canopy outside. Sirius hadn't even realized he'd drifted off when a soft knock at the door awoke him. A pile of neat clothing was draped over the end of the bed, left by some silent servant while he'd slept.
"So you are awake," Malfan said from the doorway, "Dinner is in an hour," he said and slipped away down the hall.
"Thanks," Sirius said to the air. He pushed himself off the bed and went in search of the shower.
*************************(Our world)********************************
A world away, at Hogwarts, the fourth year girls' dormitory was usually quiet in the afternoon as most of its occupants were in the common room, gossiping or doing their homework, or both. This afternoon was no exception. The only sound disturbing the silence was the soft sound of a quill scratching the surface of parchment. The door creaked as Ginny Weasley looked around the doorframe into the room, looking for her friend Lisa. Weeks of observation had lead her to a hypothesis she wanted to test.
"Lisa,"
"Hi Ginny," the blonde said from the middle of her bed. She paused from writing to smile up at her friend. The essay she was working on was draped over the end of the bed, nearly complete.
"I'm almost done with Snape's essay," She added the last few lines with a little extra flourish and then sat up with a sigh. She returned her quill to the ink pot on her bedside table and then hopped off the bed to stretch. "did you finish your essay?"
"Yeah. I finished last night," Ginny said. She took a seat on the end of her bed and set her feet on the well-worn trunk.
"I can't believe Madamoiselle Delacour added another 5 inches, "Lisa grumbled as she rolled her parchment up and tied it closed with a bit of string.
"I don't think anyone liked that," Ginny agreed. He other girl stuffed her parchment into her knapsack and then plopped back on her bed. A little bell went off and leapt up again and began rummaging in her trunk.
"I almost forgot I have to take these," she pulled out a brown bottle of pills.
"Lisa, could I ask you a personal question?"
"Well, I suppose so," Lisa frowned, and sat up
"What do you take that medication for?"
"I….I am not sure. Mom and Dad said to take it,"
"See," Ginny told her, "that seems a bit odd, doesn't it?"
"Well, I suppose so," Lisa felt like a broken record.
"Do you know what the medication is?" Ginny asked. Lisa nodded and opened her mouth to answer, but then grew puzzled.
"I'm sorry, what was the question?" she asked politely and Ginny frowned. After asking four more times with the same result, Ginny was now very worried. Ginny had performed this same ritual with Lisa yesterday and a similar one with her at lunch. Her observations had lead to a hunch and it seemed like she was correct. Time to act.
"Lisa could I test one of those pills to see what it is made of?" Ginny asked.
"Well, ok," Lisa tipped one pill out into Ginny's hand.
"Do you know what the medication is?" Ginny asked. Lisa nodded then her expression became oddly blank.
"Uhm, no?" she said and frowned. Ginny's expression became grim.
"I get the feeling that I am forgetting something," Lisa said, looking at the small green pill warily. "I hate these, but I know I am supposed to take them. Mom and Dad sent me an owl with another bottle last week, but I always feel so fuzzy when I take them."
Ginny nodded to herself. Her friend had been getting a little tired, forgetful and generally fuzzy since she'd gotten the pills. The nagging sense of not-right-ness was increasing. She wouldn't even had noticed except for the Owl at breakfast the week before.
"Well let's see if we can't fix that. Stay here, I'll be right back" Ginny told her and hurried over to the fifth year girls' dorm.
"Hermione! I have one. I kept asking what was in it and she kept forgetting and it was frightening."
"Kept forgetting?" Hermione asked, setting the book she'd been reading down.
"It was like she'd never even heard me ask the question sometimes. It was scary. But I think I'm right. I think these are what're making her sick,"
"Well, lets see what's in this then," Hermione said. She picked up a book from under her pillow entitled Advanced potions for the precocious wizard. They collected a worried looking Lisa and set off for the potions classroom.
"It's a very good thing that fifth years learn how to unmake potions," Hermione said and patted her book lovingly. The three set off for the Potions classrooms.
Author's notes Cont'd.
I wanted to give Sirius a bit of attention and I figured he was probably the character most in need of a relaxing vacation in a place where he didn't have to hide or worry. I also wanted to show a possible scene where someone who'd grown up with all of this as fantasy was suddenly confronted with its reality. Hermione is far too practical and throws herself into everything. she would have just accepted all of it as fact and then done extensive research on everything Muggles got wrong (in fact I think that's what she did). Seamus is half and half, so he's probably known about things like dragons and griffins existing for awhile. But he might also live in a mostly Muggle area and he might not be as completely familiar with all aspects of wizarding society, as say, Ron or Draco would be. I've also tried to include that while he'd probably be familiar with House-elves like Dobby, he probably wouldn't be as familiar with the other type since (I decided) that they are reclusive and few Witches or Wizards ever see them.
I also decided that in my own warped mind ^_^ that Dumbledore is a quarter Elf. Wizards and Witches live to be really old, but I picture him as being amazingly spry for his great age and quite likely to continue on for quite a bit more before he shuffles loose his mortal coil. I think it'd also explain why he's A) tall and lanky, B) so powerful C) Old but youthful and D) why Fawkes sticks around him. We've seen part Veela so far, so I don't think this is too much of a stretch. Fleur was a quarter Veela and still retained many characteristics of her "grandmozzer"
Ginny has been suspecting that something-is-up with her friend. She's been playing Sherlock and had decided that she think she knows the reason. Answers next chapter! Stay Tuned!
To my reviewers: Thank you! Thank you!