Disclaimer: The characters that look familiar to you belong to J. K. Rowling. The ones you cannot find in any of her books are mine. I don't intend to make any money out of this. I'm just having some fun.
Bantu
Harry and Ron went to the Sams' kitchen to have some breakfast. After some days, they had got used to the new location of Black Manor and agreed that it was for the best. Now they didn't need to stay all of the time inside Headquarters, they could visit Yamiko or even stay outside, enjoying the warm morning sun. Since Lestrange had burned Harry's Firebolt and also Ron's broom, they couldn't play Quidditch, but Yamiko let them mount her dragons sometimes, and it was really exciting. Dragons flew very fast, much faster than Hippogriffs or Thestrals, but Harry still preferred brooms. He felt he couldn't really control animals, and was always fearing he would fall and break his neck.
When they entered the kitchen, Lupin was already there, having some tea and reading a parchment.
"Good morning!" He greeted them with a smile.
"Morning," Harry and Ron grunted, they were still too sleepy to smile.
"Ready to go for a walk?" Lupin asked amused.
"A walk? Where to?" Harry asked surprised.
"Yamiko is going to take us to the nearest village, she said it's an ashanrii village, no muggles there, and only very few wizards. It could be fun," Lupin said.
"Cool!" said both Harry and Ron at the same time, grinning from ear to ear.
"Are you sure we are allowed to come?" Harry asked, suddenly doubtful.
"Yes," Remus answered, "in fact, I think we are all going. We shouldn't be in danger there, we'll be surrounded by fuocciris, Voldemort wouldn't dare attack us there."
"Why didn't you tell us yesterday?" Ron asked.
"It's a last minute decision," Lupin explained, "Yamiko wants to go to the village to buy some things, so she thought it would be a good opportunity to show us around a bit. She says we could go to the village anytime we want to, she can send her dragons with us as a protection, although we wouldn't probably need it."
"Do you mean we would be walking around a village escorted by dragons? Wouldn't the people panic?" Ron asked.
Lupin thought for a moment. "Well... we didn't really speak about the details. Today Yamiko is coming with us, so we don't need the dragons. We can ask her whenever we decide to go there alone."
"Tomorrow?" Harry asked, grinning.
Lupin laughed, but Ron had to agree with Harry. Why not go every day?
"Maybe you won't find the village so interesting," Edvard said, coming into the kitchen and taking a seat next to Lupin. "Fuocciri villages aren't really that special," he said, buttering some toast now, "once you get used to the fuocciris' beauty, there is really nothing much to see in Samrai." Edvard noticed amused that everybody was waiting for him to add something else. "Samrai is the name of the village we are going to visit, and it's one of the oldest fuocciri colonies still inhabited."
"Samrai?" Lupin asked. "Is that the reason Yamiko and Samako's surname is Sam? Because they were born here?"
Edvard looked speechless for a moment. "No, not really, but that was a really good guess. The truth is that the village is named after the Sams, since it was founded by one of Yamiko and Samako's ancestors many centuries ago."
"Is their family so old?" Sirius asked from the doorway. He had come in just in time to hear Edvard's last words.
"Older," Edvard explained. "Kwan-yin Sam was one of the three first fuocciris that ever existed. The legend says that three beautiful and powerful women were born out of a fallen star in the night of the Summer Solstice, many years ago. They were protected and nourished by dragons. As children, the three sisters played and learned together. When they grew up, they decided to follow separate paths and see the world, and promised to come back in a year, to tell their sisters what they had seen. When they came back, two of them were pregnant: Kwan-yin and Kwei-mei. The third sister, La-may, had fallen in love with a man too, but the man hadn't returned the feeling, and she felt very unhappy, specially after seeing her sisters had been luckier. To console her, the other two sisters decided to give her part of her powers as a compensation, and since then, the descendants of that sister, who did have children some years later, have been Princesses of the fuocciris, while the descendants of Kwan-yin and Kwei-mei are bounded by blood to defend the life of the Princess and follow her rules."
"So all the fuocciris are sisters, in a sense?" Sirius asked.
"No, not really." Edvard said. "You must bear in mind this is all a legend, we don't really know how the first fuocciris were born. Probably just by chance, like a wizard who is born to muggle parents."
"Like Hermione," Ron said.
"Exactly," Edvard agreed. "The legend says that many stars have fallen from heaven through the years, and from each of them, at least one fuocciri was born, usually more. That way, other families began."
Everybody was so lost in Edvard's words, that they hadn't heard Sandrine coming downstairs. Thus, they all turned at the same time when the orange jar clinked against Sandrine's glass.
"Sorry!" She said sheepishly, "I didn't mean to interrupt."
They all stared at her. She looked absolutely astounding. She was wearing a soft green kimono embroidered with gold and had her hair up in a tight bun. Edvard smiled amused, he was used to Sandrine's effect on people, specially on men. Until today they had only seen her tired, with dark circles under her eyes and usually wearing muggle clothes. Sandrine looked much better in ashanrii clothes, no doubt about that.
Sandrine seemed not to notice that everybody's attention was on her and busied herself preparing some coffee. Then they could hear Mrs. Weasley coming, talking animatedly with Yamiko.
"Dear, you look wonderful!" Molly told Sandrine, and every men in the room immediately muttered a distracted 'yes'.
"Thank you," Sandrine smiled brightly. "Yamiko's present," she added, meaning the dress.
Mrs. Weasley looked with rounded eyes at Yamiko and nodded appreciatively, to show she liked her taste very much.
"And are you wearing it for a special reason?" Molly asked.
"Several!" Sandrine laughed. "In the first place, because it's the first weekend I'm not working in a very long time, and that's a good reason to celebrate. And then because this evening we are going to pick Mr. Lupin's students..." she said, smiling at Remus, "and my godson Neville is coming with them."
"You are Neville's godmother?" Ron asked astounded. He wished he had a godmother like that!
"Kind of," Sandrine replied, shaking her head a bit/with a tosh of her head, "I am, in the ashanrii way, which means I'm really his guardian."
"But you didn't come to the Ministry of Magic when he was attacked by Bellatrix the night Sirius... died," Harry finished awkwardly.
Sandrine's smile faded, and her eyes were round with shock for a moment.
"Harry!" Sirius reprimanded him.
Harry hadn't mean to accuse Sandrine of negligence, he was just wondering why she hadn't come to protect Neville, but she had saved Sirius' life, when she didn't even know him.
"It's ok," Sandrine said raising a hand to calm Sirius, "Harry is right, I should have been there. I guess the Ministry is protected with so many wards, that I didn't sense Neville was in danger. And then I was sleeping too at the time, which probably lessened my perceptiveness. With Sirius it was different, the moment he died, he wasn't any more in the Ministry, strictly speaking, so I could feel his spirit fading away. That's the reason I helped a total stranger and failed to protect, Neville, which I guess is what you were referring to, Harry."
"I didn't mean to offend you, Sandrine," Harry said looking at the table, "sorry."
"Oh, that's ok!" Sandrine replied cheerfully once more. "I'll just put some poison into your pumpkin juice tomorrow, and everything will be forgotten," she announced, putting a very comically serious face. Harry chanced a small smile, and Sandrine winked at him.
"Well, are you all ready?" Yamiko asked, trying to change the subject. "Where is Hermione?"
"Reading a book in the library," Sirius said.
Harry and Ron rolled their eyes. They had thought for once they had waken up before Hermione, but it seemed they were wrong.
"Ok, we'll meet in five minutes in the front door, if that's ok with you, and then we can leave," Yamiko proposed. There was a series of nods, and then people scattered.
***
Samrai was a small village formed by exactly six streets that criss-crossed in the middle, where a big square united them all. This circular square was the most crowded place any of them had ever seen, even more than Diagon Alley the week preceding the start of the school year. There was a big market in the centre, where they could see a bit of everything: food, perfumes, clothes... The air was full of intoxicating smells and the voices of the busy people, selling or buying, sounded like a carnival. Everything was full of brilliant colours, and the animated life in the square made them all feel suddenly happier, as if their worries and fears weren't so important anymore.
"We will split here," Yamiko proposed, "this way everyone will have time to look around and buy anything that might interest them. See that small blue house there on the corner?" Yamiko asked, pointing in the direction of the house. "We'll meet there for lunch, say at one o'clock? There is a clock in the town-hall, which is that big maroon house just on the other side of the square, can you see it?" Everybody nodded.
"Very well," Yamiko said, "before we split though, I want you to have a piece of this. It's a magical pastry made by my people. It will allow you to understand Chinese and will let the people here understand what you say in English for a while, so that you can do your dealings. It's not perfect, and sometimes you'll have to use body language to help you express what you mean, but it's a great help nevertheless. Just keep it in your pocket, and take a bite before speaking to someone. A tiny bit should be enough. Don't eat it all at the same time, because then you'll only be able to speak for a while, and you'll have none left in case you want to speak to someone else later."
Everybody listened attentively at Yamiko's instructions.
"Now, I'm going to buy some food with Sandrine. There are more shops on the streets, but the better ones have a stand here in the central market. You can use wizard or muggle money. We accept all sorts. You can wander the streets without fear, there is nothing dangerous in Samrai. If you see some dragons or other magical creatures, just ignore them, sometimes people let their pets out for a walk, but they won't attack you if you don't attack them first."
They all nodded to show that they understood, and then they all split.
***
Mrs. Weasley joined Yamiko and Sandrine, and insisted on paying for part of the food. Yamiko and Sandrine rejected her offer politely.
"Don't worry, Molly," Sandrine said, "we don't usually pay much anyway."
Mrs. Weasley didn't quite understand Sandrine, but after a while she started to see what she had meant. It was obvious that Yamiko Sam was a very respected personality in Samrai. Many people would bow at her respectfully, or even approach them to talk with her, while Sandrine and Molly waited patiently a few steps behind. But then there were many people who brought Yamiko big baskets filled with fresh fruits and vegetables, meat of all sorts and other basic ingredients, like rice or noodles. Yamiko clapped her hands once and immediately one of her dragons appeared at her side to carry the presents.
While Yamiko talked with the people who approached her, Sandrine would whisper in Mrs. Weasley's ear to inform her of who they were: neighbours, relatives, friends, parents of Yamiko's students...
In some cases, Yamiko would bow first, which Mrs. Weasley deduced was because the other person had a higher rank in the ashanrii society than her. And once, Yamiko kissed another woman's cheek after bowing.
"This woman is one of Yamiko's older cousins," Sandrine explained, "her daughter, the young girl standing at her side, is the girl Yamiko is mentoring now."
"I think I remember them from the meeting with Princess Yokiro," Mrs. Weasley said.
"Probably," Sandrine agreed, "Yamiko's cousin is part of the Princess escort, and her daughter, as Yamiko's apprentice, is allowed to join the escort too."
"So, she is not usually part of the escort?"
"No, she is too young yet for that," Sandrine explained.
"And what about the presents? Why does everybody give Yamiko so many things?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"Oh, for different reasons," Sandrine said. "Some of them want to thank her for teaching their daughters, because Yamiko is a very respected teacher. She has been teaching since she was 14 years old, she is the youngest fuocciri teacher ever, and many people want her to teach her children, so the ones lucky enough to have that honour, always want to thank her. The ashanriis education is completely for free, the school provides even the books, so the parents don't spend money on their daughters education, and instead they give presents to the teachers."
Mrs. Weasley was very impressed.
"Then there are people who are grateful because Yamiko has helped them in some way," Sandrine went on explaining, "by protecting them from the giants, or by healing someone in their family, or by giving them food or money when they had a bad year... And finally there are those who just want to honour her out of respect for her ancestors."
Mrs. Weasley turned suddenly serious. "I wanted to thank Yamiko too when she saved my son's life, but she wouldn't take anything. Now I realised I should have given her something nevertheless."
"Yamiko doesn't do things because she expects something in return, Mrs. Weasley," Sandrine said. "She just likes to help. The Sams are like that, it's in their blood. Not every fuocciri would do it. It's different for Yamiko here, in Samrai, because it would be a great offence to reject these people's presents, but she doesn't really like being honoured like this. In fact, she rarely comes into Samrai herself. She usually sends her sister, because Samako has been living abroad for a very long time and people don't always recognise her. And then, Samako is not a fuocciri teacher herself, and thus not so many people give her presents."
"Still, I would like to make her a present too, the only thing I gave her was my address, in case she ever needed my help, and now it has turned out that it's me who is practically living under her roof."
"You gave her your address?" Sandrine asked smiling.
"Yes," Mrs. Weasley replied in a sad tone.
"I bet she liked that. Maybe you can invite her to visit you in England when the danger is over," Sandrine proposed. "She likes to go there now and then, to do some shopping, or just to visit some art galleries. She can stay with me, but I'm rarely at home, and she doesn't like to stay alone in my flat. She says, if she comes and has to stay in my flat or go out alone, it's not worth it, she'd rather stay in her house then. So maybe you could accompany her to some places. Show her around a bit. I don't think she's ever been to Diagon Alley, for instance."
"Really?" Mrs. Weasley couldn't imagine life without Diagon Alley. Maybe if she invited Yamiko she would let her buy her some small things, maybe some robes in Madam Malkin's or something like that. It would be expensive, but Molly really felt she had to do it.
"But who knows when all this will be over, dear?" Mrs. Weasley objected anyway, "what if I never get the chance to invite her to my house? What if..." Mrs. Weasley was going to say 'what if we die before that,' but checked herself in time. Sandrine seemed to get her meaning though.
"Molly," Sandrine said, suddenly serious, "do never loose hope."
***
Harry, Ron and Hermione had bought some sweets and then had wandered the streets aimlessly, just talking and enjoying the peaceful morning. Ron and Hermione were holding hands. It was an awkward situation, because it was the first time that the three of them were out for a walk alone since Ron and Hermione had started dating.
"We've been here before," Ron said, stopping, "I remember walking by that pink house earlier."
Harry and Hermione agreed. What a pity that Samrai was so small! They had already walked up and down all of its streets, and it was still early, they had time to wander some more.
"Maybe we should go back and look for a place to have a drink," Hermione proposed, "I think I've seen a small stand where you could get all sort of juices, even flower juices, I think I want to try one of those."
"Ok," Ron said, "but I haven't got any more of that food Yamiko gave us left."
"Me neither," Hermione sighed. "What about you Harry?"
Harry didn't answer, he was looking at something.
"Harry?" Hermione said.
Harry turned to them. "Sorry, what were you saying? I wasn't listening."
"Hermione wanted to go back to the market and have one of those flower juices we saw before," Ron repeated.
"Oh, sure, fine," Harry said in a not very convincing tone, and turned a bit to look at the clock in the town-hall. "But we still have time. What if we go first to that house up there?" He proposed.
Ron and Hermione turned to look in the direction he was pointing.
"Sure," Ron said without a second thought, and tugged Hermione's hand, but she wasn't moving.
"I don't think we should go there," she said worriedly.
"Why not?" Ron asked.
"Yamiko said Samrai was a safe place, but if we walk up that hill, we won't be exactly in Samrai, will we? And who knows who lives in that house anyway? Why do you want to go there Harry?"
Harry looked at the floor. "I don't know," he said, tracing lines in the sand with his right foot, his hands in his pockets. Then he looked again at the distant house. "I just have the feeling I should go there, it's weird."
Ron blanched a bit. "It doesn't have to do with your scar, does it?"
"No, not at all," Harry said, "it's more a... a hopeful sensation, it's as if... as if I had to go there for my own good, I really can't describe it."
Hermione and Ron didn't like this one bit.
"I think we should really go back," Hermione said.
"Fine," Harry said a bit too harsh, "you go back then, I'll go there alone."
"No way, mate, we are not leaving you alone," Ron said immediately.
Hermione was thinking fast. "Why don't we search for Yamiko and ask her who lives there? She must know. Then we can go there, once we are sure it won't be dangerous."
Harry had to admit Hermione's proposal seemed right, but somehow, he felt he had to go now. He didn't have the time to search for Yamiko.
"I'm going now," Harry said, "are you coming or not?"
Ron looked at Hermione, and she finally agreed. "Fine," she said, "but I don't like this at all."
Harry smiled at her. "Where is your Gryffindor spirit?"
"Probably back at Hogwarts," Hermione replied touchy.
And so they started walking to the house on the hill.
***
Remus was sitting outside a teashop, enjoying the bustling of the square, when Sandrine approached him.
"Hi!" She said, sitting in the chair opposite his with a sigh and letting go of her numerous bags.
"Hi!" Remus greeted her, "I see you've been really busy," he added amused, looking at all her bags.
"Oh, yes, I guess," Sandrine laughed. "There are a lot of celebrations coming this month, and I had to buy presents for everybody."
"All those bags are full of presents?" Remus asked, honestly shocked.
"Yes," Sandrine said smiling, "it's my godson's birthday in a few days, then Edvard's, then Grace's -a friend of mine-, then Yamiko's and Amanda's -another friend of mine-, and that's all until the end of August. I'll worry about September later," Sandrine said with a sigh.
The waiter came to take Sandrine's order and came back immediately with her cold orange tea.
"I should have probably followed your example," Remus said, "it's Harry's and Sirius' birthday soon too. I hadn't really thought about it."
"Really? When?"
"Harry's is the 31st of July, and Sirius' the 11th of August."
"Oh! Neville's is the 31st of July too! And Edvard's is the 9th of August. Maybe we could have a join party or something like that. I was planning on having a party on the 31st for Neville, we can celebrate now Harry's too. And then we could celebrate Edvard's and Sirius' birthdays the 11th."
"Why not the 10th? It would be in the middle," Remus proposed.
"No, no, I don't like celebrating a birthday before the actual date. It's supposed to bring bad luck."
Remus was surprised at this stroke of superstition in Sandrine.
"Don't tell them, ok?" Sandrine proposed. "That way it will be a surprise. I haven't told Neville and Edvard yet, but I'm afraid they won't be too surprised, because they are used to my 'surprise parties'."
Remus laughed. "My birthday is the 1st of March, in case you want to organise a surprise party in my honour," he joked.
To his surprise, Sandrine took a small agenda out of her bag and noted Remus' birthday on it.
"I was joking, Sandrine," Remus said a little bit uncomfortable, "please, don't feel obliged to organise the party, I..."
"Obliged?" Sandrine asked surprised. "It's obvious you don't know me yet. I live to organise parties. I love it! Just wait and see what a summer we'll have."
"You'll be with us more often now?" Remus asked.
"Yes, I still have to work this week, but I'll be on holiday in August. I'll probably be coming and going a bit, but I plan to stay most of the month. I usually come to visit Yamiko during my holidays. We don't have much time to meet during the year, specially when she is teaching in the Fire Castle."
There was a short silence, and then Sandrine cleared her throat and said awkwardly:
"Remus, I wanted to thank you for the support you gave Neville some years ago, when you were teaching at Hogwarts."
Remus was very surprised. "What do you mean?"
"Well, the Longbottoms' are all very nice, but I don't think they are right about Neville, you know. They tend to treat him as if he was silly or something, but I'm sure Neville is a perfectly normal boy, only that he hasn't had a family to support him, and then the sadness of having to see his parents every summer, knowing they don't recognise him, has surely affected him. I've talked to Mrs. Longbottom many times about it, but she doesn't understand. She thinks Neville is almost a squib, and compares him all of the time with his father. I'm not saying Frank Longbottom wasn't a very powerful wizard, but I think that Neville could be a very powerful one too, if people would only give him their support.
"The year you were teaching at Hogwarts, his marks improved a lot, not only in your subject, but also in others. I think he felt you trusted in him, and that made him feel a little bit more sure of himself, you know. I could feel it in his letters. He was very sad when you had to leave, and wouldn't talk about anything else during all summer. The following year, his marks were still ok, although not as good. I hope he did well in his OWLs, because I know how important it is for him, and he's been working really hard. He wants to become a healer, you know, to try and help his parents."
Lupin didn't know what to say. He was touched that Neville had really benefited from his presence at Hogwarts, and at the same time he found it hard to believe that his improvement was related to him in any way.
"I would have thanked you earlier," Sandrine went on saying, "but I didn't realise you were 'the Professor Lupin' Neville had told me about. It wasn't until Edvard told me yesterday that you might go back to Hogwarts this year that I made the connection in my mind." She paused for a moment, licked her lips nervously and then said, "I... I don't want to pressure you or anything, but... I really hope you'll go back. I'm sure that if you could help Neville so much, you must be a wonderful teacher, Remus."
Remus forced a smile. Why couldn't they understand? He wanted to go back, but did he dare?
Just then Sirius, Edvard, Michel and Molly joined them.
"Where is Yamiko?" asked Sandrine.
"I think she wanted to buy some new paintbrushes," said Mrs. Weasley.
"Ok, it's still early," said Sandrine. "Do you want to have some tea now or would you rather go to the restaurant? We can wait for her there."
They all decided to have a drink, it was very hot, and they still had time.
***
Harry, Ron and Hermione finally reached the house. They were panting, because it was very hot and the hill had been stepper than they had thought at first. They were all thinking longingly in those juices in the market square.
"What now?" Ron asked.
"Maybe the house is empty," said Hermione. "And what if the owner doesn't like visitors?" She asked, a bit worried.
Harry was feeling a little bit silly. He wasn't sure anymore why he had wanted to come up in the first place. There was nothing really striking about the house.
"Well, we are already here, so we might as well knock," he finally said, rising his fist, but before he had touched the wood, the door opened with a strident screech on its own accord.
They all looked at each other nervously.
"Hello?" Harry asked. "Is anybody at home?"
There was no answer, but curiosity overtook prudence once more, and the three of them stepped into the house.
The room they were in was very dark, in fact, there seemed to be no windows in it. The only light was coming from some burning torches hanging from the walls.
There was a small round table in the middle of the room with a crystal ball on it and four wooden stools around it. Apart from that, some scattered books was all that there was to see.
"I don't like this," Hermione whispered.
Ron and Harry nodded. They had a creepy feeling too.
"Let's go back," Harry whispered.
They turned to the door, but to their shock, it decided to close itself with a loud bang. Instinctively, they turned around once more, but they were still alone.
Then another door in front of them that they hadn't noticed yet, opened. They could see nothing beyond that door, it was all dark, but they could hear a clinking noise. Little by little, they could discern something inside the darkness, a tiny hunchbacked figure, leaning on a stick. Harry had a flashback and remembered the figure that had approached him and Cedric in that backyard where Voldemort had been reborn. The figure had turned out to be Wormtail carrying a baby Voldemort in his arms, but Harry's scar didn't hurt at all, and so he hoped whoever it was wouldn't be following Voldemort's orders.
The figure crossed the threshold and the second door closed again, and they could see the person better. It was a very old woman with long white hair falling tangled down her back and very strange colourless eyeballs. Ron and Hermione instinctively stepped in front of Harry with their wands out.
The woman said something, but they couldn't understand her. Harry quickly took out the food Yamiko had given them -he hadn't used his yet-, and gave a small piece to Hermione and Ron, and then swallowed another bit himself.
The woman spoke again, and now they could understand what she was saying:
"Welcome to the humble abode of Bantu. Thank you for coming. Please, take a sit," and she signalled to the stools around the table. Ron and Hermione turned a bit to look at Harry, and he nodded. They lowered their wands and sat, and then the old woman, Bantu, sat too.
"Aaaaaaaah," she said in a misty whisper, "the time is close, I can feel it. The Greatest Ashanrii Of All Times will be born soon, and then Darkness will lift, and the world will live in peace for many centuries yet to come. The Chosen Five will protect HER, but they can't do it alone. They'll need help, your help."
Hermione snorted. Another freak like Professor Trelawney. "Sorry, but we are quite busy at the time with school, Voldemort, and all of that, we don't have time to help your friends," she said testily.
The old woman looked dumb for a moment. "But they need your help," the woman suddenly said in distress, "I've seen it! When they fall, they will be too weak to raise again on their own. You must help them, so that they can come back, stronger and wiser than any other ashanrii has ever been before, and with them, they will bring HER."
"Who?" Asked Ron.
"The Greatest Ashanrii Of All Times," the woman explained patiently, "the one that will erase evil for ever from the face of the Earth."
Hermione and Ron sighed in annoyance. They didn't believe in all this crap. Harry was looking transfixed at the woman, though.
"How will we be able to help them?" He asked.
"Ah! I knew you were different, I knew you would listen to me," the woman said smiling feebly. "Look into the crystal ball, and you will see it."
Hermione rolled her eyes and stood. "We must leave now, bye."
"Wait!" The woman pleaded, "won't you at least look into the orb and see what I mean? I'm not lying, I've seen it many times myself. It's getting clearer everyday, the time is coming closer."
Hermione wanted to go, but Ron and Harry didn't seem to want to leave just yet.
"Hermione, wait," Harry pleaded, and Ron tugged her hand, he had to admit he was curious.
The girl swallowed and sat again.
"Thanks," Bantu said, and waved her hand at the crystal ball in the middle of the table.
Harry, Ron and Hermione looked at it, not really expecting to see much, but to their surprise, something seemed to be moving inside the orb, and soon they were looking at it mystified, seeing images as clearly as if they were watching a muggle film in a very small screen.
There were shadowy figures walking with their backs to them. Then three of them started to look sharper, and they recognised themselves, wrapped in thick clothes and walking slowly, fighting against the cold wind and the snow blocking their way. They couldn't discern who else was with them, but they were probably their age, because they were more or less the same high. Then they finally stopped, the wind seemed to have disappeared. Their figures in the crystal ball looked up, and they saw a huge building made of ice, with many turrets and windows. It was probably four times bigger than Hogwarts. It looked very macabre though, as if it was a gigantic tomb.
They approached the door, and one of the people going with them, someone smaller, stepped in front of the rest and touched the door. It started to open...
A sudden bang behind them made them all jump, and they blinked when the light coming in through the open door hit their eyes. Yamiko was standing there, looking absolutely furious. She shouted something, and then they realised the effects of the magical food had wore off, and they couldn't understand her words. Harry still had a small piece big enough for the three of them, but he wasn't sure he dared eat it in front of Yamiko. Maybe she didn't want them to understand what she was saying.
Yamiko approached them in two strides and shouted in English:
"YOU THREE, OUT, NOW!"
Harry, Ron and Hermione stood hurriedly and went to the door, but didn't leave. They had never seen Yamiko angry, and they didn't like it. She looked really dangerous. Harry took the opportunity to give Ron and Hermione some more magical food and then he ate the rest. Yamiko was still shouting:
"...the children, Bantu? I had expected better from you, you owe respect to my family, and I told you I didn't want to hear any more of your fantasies. Now you go and scare my guests, how do you dare?"
The old woman had stood too and was walking slowly to Yamiko, with her left hand outstretched to her.
"General Sam! You have to believe me! The time is coming. Don't feel bad for failing your friends, it's all written, you can do nothing against it. They will understand and forgive you. You must get ready. SHE is going to be born soon. And the future generations will honour you as one of the Chosen Five!"
The old woman had reached Yamiko now and had laid her hand on Yamiko's arm, holding to her for support, and looking pleadingly into her eyes.
Yamiko let go an exasperated breath and closed her eyes for a moment, trying to calm herself. Then she laid her left hand on the old woman's and said, in a sad tone:
"Bantu, you have to forget about your fantasies, they will never come true. I am not one of the Chosen Five. The Chosen Five don't even exist. They are a legend." Then she paused and added in a more hurt tone: "And I will never fail my friends."
Yamiko took the woman's hand carefully from her arm and helped her take a sit. Then turned to Harry, Ron and Hermione, who were looking at the scene in fascination. She made a movement with her head to tell them to get out, and they obeyed without complains. Outside the house there was a dragon, carrying a heavy load of food and other items. Yamiko took a couple of very heavy baskets and laid them on the doorstep of Bantu.
"Let's go," she said briskly, and turned and started walking downhill quickly without looking back.
Ron and Hermione followed at once, looking very guilty, although they weren't sure if Yamiko was mad at them or not. Harry stood for a moment longer and looked back for the last time, and before the door of Bantu's house closed, he could see the old woman still sitting in the stool were Yamiko had left them. She was crying.
*****
Thanks for the reviews!
Thanks all for reading and reviewing!
I'm really worried, because I have the feeling you are still a little bit confused about the girls in the story. I had the intention of writing a chapter where they would be together and hoped thus you would be able to identify them, but the story didn't go as I had planned it at the beginning and that chapter didn't finally come into the fic. In Chapter 23 we'll be going back to Malfoy Manor, but in Chapter 24 I'll try to explain again about the ashanriis you have met so far, make a kind of summary.
So, what do you think of this chapter? I had no intention of bringing Bantu into the story so soon, but I was writing and suddenly Harry saw her house, and I had to introduce her. I don't think she will be coming back, though, at least not in Finding Allies. Of course, I cannot tell for sure, since the story is not completely written yet.
Kadi Rilla Wholi: Thanks! Yes, we'll know what other animals Amanda can turn into pretty soon. I think Amanda is kind of interested in Severus, but I'm not so sure he returns the interest. We'll see...
Lily Skylo: I'm glad your Internet is working again. I'm thinking of a way to answer your questions about Edvard through the fic. I think I know how to do it, but the bad news is that you'll have to wait a lot yet. Sorry! We'll see Benjamin and Ginny soon -and Dean Thomas. :D Remus is not sure yet if he is going back to Hogwarts or not. He wants to, but he is afraid something could go amiss, like the last time.
weelassie: Thanks for confirming Irish is the name of the Gaelic spoken in Ireland. I hope you are enjoying my fic. ;-)
Sirius Black: I'm glad you like my fic. What do you want to know about being a ff.net member? How to register? I'll send you an e-mail, ok?
hermionegreen: Oh, yes, a lot of possibilities. Aaaaaaaaaah! Whose sister are you talking about? Amanda only has one sister: Sha-adi, the mermaid. Yamiko and Narcissa are just friends, although it's true Amanda loves them as sisters. Who were you referring to?
dweem-angel: Thanks! I wanted to update yesterday, but couldn't find the time. I hope I'll have the following chapter up in a couple of days. ;-)
LyssasPen: Thanks, I'm glad you like my story. Mmmmmmm. Conflicts between Sirius and Severus? Well, it's obvious they don't like each other, but I don't think they are going to fight over women, if that's what you mean, you'll see why. :D
JKReviewer: Thanks for your review. Yes, the time in the fic is progressing really slow. I really want to skip some days or weeks, but there is just so much to tell! And every day seems to take up one chapter or two! I think August is going to be much more light, though. When I started writing, I doubted the fic would reach chapter 10th, and now I've updated Chapter 22, and not even a month has passed! Lupin's lessons will start in Chapter 24. Between us, Marietta will definitely not attend the summer classes -I haven't invited her. :D
