Bad Romance,
Chapter 55, The Greatest Wizards Of All Time
Bellatrix could hardly believe she was actually about to speak to Merlin and Nimue, even if it was the reincarnated versions.
"Just put the crystal earphones on your ears and look into the crystal ball while performing the locating spell that I will quick teach you.
Kereston gestured at one of the empty chairs on the other side of the desk from her own.
"Have a seat."
When Bellatrix sat, Kereston carefully pushed the quartz earphones, as she called them, over to her, then slid the huge quartz ball on its stand after them.
"You perform the location spell once the earphones are in place," Kereston explained.
As Bellatrix carefully lifted the band of what appeared to be ornate copper and slid it over her hair, settling the flat shards of quartz over her ears, Rodolphus settled into the chair beside her own to watch.
"Are sounds actually going to come out of these," she asked with a skeptical frown.
"It doesn't work like that," Kereston said with a shake of her head.
"You are communicating with them in thought form. We just went for the earphone concept because we are mentally hearing them and the spell helps the crystal enhance our mental hearing as it were."
She shrugged apologetically.
"You shall just have to try it and see for yourself. In this case, experience provides the best explanation."
She gestured to the quartz ball.
"Once the spell is cast, you will see them in this and their thoughts will be amplified through the crystal earphones. Sometimes the spell must be cast more than once," the Minister concluded apologetically.
"Probably comes of communicating with them from another world," Bellatrix said dryly and Kereston nodded.
"You point your wand at the crystal then draw it backward toward yourself and say, Merlin, Nimue, I seek thee. Insert your name after I, it will help them to know who you are."
Nodding, Bellatrix took her wand from her corset and aimed it at the globe sized crystal orb, then drew it backward toward herself as she spoke.
"Merlin and Nimue, I Bellatrix Lestrange seek thee."
"Ah, you're finally talking to us, then? We've heard so much about you. In fact I may be a little frightened."
The young woman who appeared in the globe had long red hair and green eyes.
"You used to have black hair," Bellatrix commented.
"Rather like me...without the curls."
She was babbling and probably sounded silly, Bellatrix noted in some mild horror. Not to mention making stupid comments straight off!
"You don't have to speak aloud, but if it helps you to focus your thoughts toward them, by all means," Kereston said.
"Yeah, but I wanna hear what's being said at least on one end, so keep it up," Rodolphus interjected.
"As it turns out, I have black hair in some lives and red in others," Nimue replied.
"I think blonde once or twice," she murmured as a seeming afterthought.
Nimue's words, as Kereston had said, spilled into Bella's mind more as thought forms, though very clear ones, with an obviously different feel from her own.
"Why would you be frightened of me," Bellatrix asked, recalling that bit at last.
"Well...the torturing people could be somewhat frightening to some," Nimue replied slowly.
"Come off it! I am fully aware of the druidic sacrifices you and Merlin made back in the day when performing your war magic for Arthur," Bellatrix said.
The more she practiced this, the stronger she felt her thoughts were becoming when directed to Nimue. Still she spoke aloud for Rod's benefit, though.
"But you lot aren't known to be particularly stable, so...it seems as though you could just torture at the drop of a hat."
Bellatrix scowled.
"Many people believed you to be insane, you know...What was that?...those three druidic wounds, the wound of the spirit, the wound of the body and the wound of the mind that you had to go through to become a full initiate?"
"Yes. The wound of the body can be any physical injury, the wound of the spirit, any painful loss and the wound of the mind any sort of mental trauma," Nimue confirmed.
"I don't recall torturing people as a result of mine, though. It just makes one feel that you could turn on them for no reason is all."
From the hesitant way the other woman spoke, Bellatrix could tell that Nimue wasn't saying that she was quite certain that she had not tortured people, just that she didn't remember it.
Bellatrix smirked, ready to push her victory home. She had read her wizarding histories, after all.
"But didn't you and Merlin have that thing," she began and Nimue nodded, one hand coming up in a mildly apologetic gesture.
"Oh yes, there was that, but it was necessary. It was vengeance, you know and that's quite different."
"I want to talk to Merlin," Rodolphus said suddenly, obviously wanting his turn.
"It doesn't always work like that," Kereston said apologetically.
"You get who you get. That is, who ever can hear you. I actually got in contact with Morgana first when I was going for Merlin. The spell really isn't reliable."
"But aren't they enemies? I don't want to have to wonder if I am speaking to bloody friend or foe," Rodolphus complained.
"Are you still there," Nimue asked Bellatrix.
"Oh they were friends," Kereston said.
"That about Morgana not helping Arthur was all screwy politics and not at all true. She didn't try to shag him either, that's nasty."
Bellatrix bit her lip, trying not to laugh.
"Good to know," she said and Rodolphus nodded fervently.
"What," Nimue asked and Bellatrix frowned.
Having two conversations was stupid and she silently vowed to stop it this instant. If only Rod and Kereston would shut up!
"So," Bellatrix asked, directing her attention completely to Nimue.
"What is it that you're doing to help against Delphini?"
Nimue hesitated, frowning in open consternation.
"Well...We aren't exactly sure. Our magic is different in this world, and we aren't certain as to how helpful we can actually be."
She was bloody kidding, Bellatrix thought, openly struggling not to grind her teeth in frustration.
Removing the crystal things from her ears, she passed them to Rod before pushing the large crystal ball to stand in front of him. As she did, Nimue's image faded, leaving the orb entirely clear once again.
"I heard her just fine and she has no idea how to help us," she bit out to Kereston.
She was disappointed, let down, angry...wait wasn't that basically all the same thing? It certainly felt like more than one negative emotion, though. Merlin an Nimue and even bloody Muggle Arthur were supposed to bloody return and bloody help Britain when it was bloody threatened! Right now Delphini was a bloody threat so...
"It's just that they've forgotten a lot as I said before," Kereston said a little tightly.
"They believe their magic is different now and weaker, but we believe they can do far more than they recall. Blaise and Gellert have begun working on...sort of retraining them to open their memories."
Bellatrix's eyes widened as she struggled against her frustrated rage.
"Seriously?"
Kereston sighed.
"What other recourse do we have? We did find them, so we have to try! We need help and they are them."
"Hey I got Merlin," Rodolphus crowed, and Bellatrix leaned forward to see a youngish man with wide shoulders, short curly black hair and intense blue eyes regarding Rodolphus with curious, thoughtful interest.
"That's some skill," Kereston said, openly impressed.
"I can never get Merlin. Just Morgana or Nimue. They're both quite nice, though so that's alright," she added hastily.
Bellatrix made a scoffing sound.
"Nice and apparently quite useless."