Disclaimer: I hereby swear that at this point in time, space, and slot on
fanfiction, I don't own LOTR, HP, or the Mists of Avalon. Maybe in another
dimension in another era......
A/N: I got two more reviews! Hallelujah! I am eternally grateful to Holli and Estel-rules for reviewing! ;-) THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! *Wipes away tear* As you requested, the next chapter cometh. Also, I will now update on a regular basis, meaning once a week on Saturday.
*******Tales of the Nine*************************************************
Pippin glanced across Dumbledore's office at Merry. He and the rest of the company had been brought back to try and clear up where they were from, what they had been doing prior to their arrival at Hogwarts, and why they were at Hogwarts at all. They had explained every aspect of their story, while carefully skirting around the subject of the Ring, and he was growing impatient at the fact that there was still a prevailing smog of doubt emanating from the professors. He caught Merry's glance, but his older cousin just shrugged after he mouthed his thoughts to him. Pippin shifted impatiently: they had been standing for several hours, and the solemn faces around the room made it seem eerily like a trial.
Snape wasn't wholly swayed by the testimonies of these newcomers. He had to admit, they didn't seem to know anything about Voldemort, Hogwarts, or anything relating to the magical world. What was this Middle Earth place they kept on nattering about? He sighed and brought his attention back to the room, where that young fool Potter and his upstart friends were whining about the innocence of the newcomers.
"Professor, they didn't mean to do anything," Hermione said, hoping to appeal to Dumbledore. The others nodded behind her.
"They don't even know where they are! Wouldn't you be scared if you were them?" Ron said in staunch support. Gimli looked highly affronted at this statement; he gave an indignant huff and settled to glowering at whoever looked at him.
"How could they possibly mean us harm if they didn't know who, or even what we are when they heard us?" said Harry. Dumbledore nodded in agreement with the children. He was resting his hands on the desk as he listened to all of the affidavits of the people in the room. He moved his arms downward so that they rested flat on the table with his fingers still threaded together. As he rose to his feet, he looked at Professor McGonagall, who was Legolas' chaperone, and motioned her over to him. She released him and gave him a look of warning, but she was sure it wouldn't be bad news. After holding a brief and inaudible conversation, he turned back to the rest of the room, the members of which were waiting with a jittery and nervous edge. He gave a benign smile to the company members.
"After much deliberation," he said, eyes twinkling in slight ironic humor, "It is my decision that you shall go free. You are now guests at Hogwarts, until we can understand what we must do."
The children, Fellowship, and several of the teachers broke into smiles of relief at this declaration; the chaperones for the Fellowship members released their charges. Frodo still looked worried, though, as he rubbed his wrists where they itched once the bristly ropes used to bind them had been taken off.
Dumbledore waited until everyone was untied before speaking again. "Now, the questions are how to get you back to where you came from, and what to do with you while you are here?"
They spent some time brainstorming ideas, but each one had a disastrous hole in it. Finally, Aragorn said, "Mayhap we could stay on the castle grounds, but away from the castle itself? We know naught of magic, and we would probably frighten the students, so that may be an idea worth considering."
There were murmurs of assent from the various people around the room. Professor McGonagall muttered, "And it would keep them away from Umbridge." There were several small, grim chuckles at that, and Dumbledore's smile became rather taut at the mention of the name. The Fellowship members merely looked puzzled.
"Who is Umbridge?" Frodo asked Harry quietly.
"Just pray you don't have to meet her," Harry answered fervently. Frodo didn't question him further.
"Alright, we'll find a suitable place for you to stay while you're here, away from the castle," Dumbledore said decisively, pleased with Aragorn's plan.
"Can we still visit you guys?" Ron asked curiously. The other children nodded. Legolas smiled. "If you are allowed, we would be happy," he said. The hobbits grinned at the prospect.
As everyone filed out a small voice said, "Don't leave just yet."
Soon, the children, the Fellowship, and Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were left in the room. Apparently, not everyone had heard the voice. All who remained were wondering where it had come from. They waited expectantly, with a slight sense of foreboding, for several moments.
Suddenly, there grew a grayness in the room. A pale, thick air had swirled into the room, leaching all color. The air thickened into a mist that permeated the room, collecting especially around their feet. Everyone stared at it; Ron and Harry were slack jawed.
Suddenly, through the fog, everyone heard several voices. Sam and Frodo instantly remembered one of the voices; it had spoken an undistinguishable word when they passed through the fog to Hogwarts.
Three voices were accompanied shortly thereafter by three bodies that materialized out of the fog. The bodies were not solid, but, due to their coloring, they couldn't be ghosts. Everyone drew back from them; the wizards went for their wands, while the Fellowship members, deprived of their arms, readied themselves to go out fighting.
The foremost figure, an old woman, gave a catlike smile at their reaction, the other two behind her – both women much younger than she – remained silent and motionless. The old woman ghost, or whatever she was, surveyed them intensely. The catlike smile having vanished, she had no expression upon her countenance to indicate her thoughts.
"So you are to be the aid we have been searching for? I hope you are up to the task," she said. Aragorn spoke: "Are you the one who has done this to us? Be not silent, explain why we are here! Is it some whim of thine to do as you please to others, transporting them from place to –". He was cut short as the old woman's face, which had been so calm before, contorted with rage for a split second before returning to the cat smile. The old woman seemed to grow to immense proportions, drawing herself up as she spoke to them in a voice that commanded respect. Her eyes were flashing and everyone in the room, with the exception of the two ghostly forms of her fellow women behind her. "You dare accuse the Lady of Avalon?" she said, her voice calm and low pitched no longer, "You have been brought here so that we could summon you all at once! We know a way to save our homes, and you should not contest me, if you wish to save yourselves!"
Aragorn had come to the front of the room, swiftly followed by Dumbledore. Neither of them looked afraid of the woman, who had now shrunk back to her original small size. "Yes, I dare, Lady, because Aragorn, the heir of Isildur, son of Elendil will not recoil from thee!" Aragorn said. Dumbledore simply looked unfazededly at the old woman. The woman smiled a far more sincere smile this time. "Do not worry; we will explain everything to you when we summon you to where we actually are." This earned a small smile from the youngest woman, who could have passed herself off for a much younger version of the old lady. The old woman continued, "At the end of this moon, a fortnight from now, be waiting by the edge of the lake." With that, all three women held up their arms in a sign of departure and the youngest said, in a wonderful rich, low voice, "The Goddess protect you."
At that, the fog dissipated as the women faded out. Everyone was left stunned with the exception of Aragorn and Dumbledore. After several seconds, a hated voice was heard at the door of the office. "Minerva! Albus! I must speak with you. I've just received a dispatch from the Ministry of Magic!" A/N: Please forgive me for updating this story so late. My computer didn't work for AN ENTIRE WEEK! *Kicks the monitor* *Smiles sweetly* Anyway, next chapter, the Arrival of the Most Hated Character in Harry Potter! Dun, dun, dunnnn....
A/N: I got two more reviews! Hallelujah! I am eternally grateful to Holli and Estel-rules for reviewing! ;-) THANK YOU SO MUCH!!! *Wipes away tear* As you requested, the next chapter cometh. Also, I will now update on a regular basis, meaning once a week on Saturday.
*******Tales of the Nine*************************************************
Pippin glanced across Dumbledore's office at Merry. He and the rest of the company had been brought back to try and clear up where they were from, what they had been doing prior to their arrival at Hogwarts, and why they were at Hogwarts at all. They had explained every aspect of their story, while carefully skirting around the subject of the Ring, and he was growing impatient at the fact that there was still a prevailing smog of doubt emanating from the professors. He caught Merry's glance, but his older cousin just shrugged after he mouthed his thoughts to him. Pippin shifted impatiently: they had been standing for several hours, and the solemn faces around the room made it seem eerily like a trial.
Snape wasn't wholly swayed by the testimonies of these newcomers. He had to admit, they didn't seem to know anything about Voldemort, Hogwarts, or anything relating to the magical world. What was this Middle Earth place they kept on nattering about? He sighed and brought his attention back to the room, where that young fool Potter and his upstart friends were whining about the innocence of the newcomers.
"Professor, they didn't mean to do anything," Hermione said, hoping to appeal to Dumbledore. The others nodded behind her.
"They don't even know where they are! Wouldn't you be scared if you were them?" Ron said in staunch support. Gimli looked highly affronted at this statement; he gave an indignant huff and settled to glowering at whoever looked at him.
"How could they possibly mean us harm if they didn't know who, or even what we are when they heard us?" said Harry. Dumbledore nodded in agreement with the children. He was resting his hands on the desk as he listened to all of the affidavits of the people in the room. He moved his arms downward so that they rested flat on the table with his fingers still threaded together. As he rose to his feet, he looked at Professor McGonagall, who was Legolas' chaperone, and motioned her over to him. She released him and gave him a look of warning, but she was sure it wouldn't be bad news. After holding a brief and inaudible conversation, he turned back to the rest of the room, the members of which were waiting with a jittery and nervous edge. He gave a benign smile to the company members.
"After much deliberation," he said, eyes twinkling in slight ironic humor, "It is my decision that you shall go free. You are now guests at Hogwarts, until we can understand what we must do."
The children, Fellowship, and several of the teachers broke into smiles of relief at this declaration; the chaperones for the Fellowship members released their charges. Frodo still looked worried, though, as he rubbed his wrists where they itched once the bristly ropes used to bind them had been taken off.
Dumbledore waited until everyone was untied before speaking again. "Now, the questions are how to get you back to where you came from, and what to do with you while you are here?"
They spent some time brainstorming ideas, but each one had a disastrous hole in it. Finally, Aragorn said, "Mayhap we could stay on the castle grounds, but away from the castle itself? We know naught of magic, and we would probably frighten the students, so that may be an idea worth considering."
There were murmurs of assent from the various people around the room. Professor McGonagall muttered, "And it would keep them away from Umbridge." There were several small, grim chuckles at that, and Dumbledore's smile became rather taut at the mention of the name. The Fellowship members merely looked puzzled.
"Who is Umbridge?" Frodo asked Harry quietly.
"Just pray you don't have to meet her," Harry answered fervently. Frodo didn't question him further.
"Alright, we'll find a suitable place for you to stay while you're here, away from the castle," Dumbledore said decisively, pleased with Aragorn's plan.
"Can we still visit you guys?" Ron asked curiously. The other children nodded. Legolas smiled. "If you are allowed, we would be happy," he said. The hobbits grinned at the prospect.
As everyone filed out a small voice said, "Don't leave just yet."
Soon, the children, the Fellowship, and Professors Dumbledore and McGonagall were left in the room. Apparently, not everyone had heard the voice. All who remained were wondering where it had come from. They waited expectantly, with a slight sense of foreboding, for several moments.
Suddenly, there grew a grayness in the room. A pale, thick air had swirled into the room, leaching all color. The air thickened into a mist that permeated the room, collecting especially around their feet. Everyone stared at it; Ron and Harry were slack jawed.
Suddenly, through the fog, everyone heard several voices. Sam and Frodo instantly remembered one of the voices; it had spoken an undistinguishable word when they passed through the fog to Hogwarts.
Three voices were accompanied shortly thereafter by three bodies that materialized out of the fog. The bodies were not solid, but, due to their coloring, they couldn't be ghosts. Everyone drew back from them; the wizards went for their wands, while the Fellowship members, deprived of their arms, readied themselves to go out fighting.
The foremost figure, an old woman, gave a catlike smile at their reaction, the other two behind her – both women much younger than she – remained silent and motionless. The old woman ghost, or whatever she was, surveyed them intensely. The catlike smile having vanished, she had no expression upon her countenance to indicate her thoughts.
"So you are to be the aid we have been searching for? I hope you are up to the task," she said. Aragorn spoke: "Are you the one who has done this to us? Be not silent, explain why we are here! Is it some whim of thine to do as you please to others, transporting them from place to –". He was cut short as the old woman's face, which had been so calm before, contorted with rage for a split second before returning to the cat smile. The old woman seemed to grow to immense proportions, drawing herself up as she spoke to them in a voice that commanded respect. Her eyes were flashing and everyone in the room, with the exception of the two ghostly forms of her fellow women behind her. "You dare accuse the Lady of Avalon?" she said, her voice calm and low pitched no longer, "You have been brought here so that we could summon you all at once! We know a way to save our homes, and you should not contest me, if you wish to save yourselves!"
Aragorn had come to the front of the room, swiftly followed by Dumbledore. Neither of them looked afraid of the woman, who had now shrunk back to her original small size. "Yes, I dare, Lady, because Aragorn, the heir of Isildur, son of Elendil will not recoil from thee!" Aragorn said. Dumbledore simply looked unfazededly at the old woman. The woman smiled a far more sincere smile this time. "Do not worry; we will explain everything to you when we summon you to where we actually are." This earned a small smile from the youngest woman, who could have passed herself off for a much younger version of the old lady. The old woman continued, "At the end of this moon, a fortnight from now, be waiting by the edge of the lake." With that, all three women held up their arms in a sign of departure and the youngest said, in a wonderful rich, low voice, "The Goddess protect you."
At that, the fog dissipated as the women faded out. Everyone was left stunned with the exception of Aragorn and Dumbledore. After several seconds, a hated voice was heard at the door of the office. "Minerva! Albus! I must speak with you. I've just received a dispatch from the Ministry of Magic!" A/N: Please forgive me for updating this story so late. My computer didn't work for AN ENTIRE WEEK! *Kicks the monitor* *Smiles sweetly* Anyway, next chapter, the Arrival of the Most Hated Character in Harry Potter! Dun, dun, dunnnn....