It was in the early morning hours in the Weasley household, as the family sat together for what Ginny had dubbed their war council. Hermione found such martial connotations rather unfitting and childish, but the true reason why they had come together was anything but.
Dorea Potter was missing. Ron had searched for days, first alone, later with the help of other Aurors who got all starry-eyed the moment anyone even mentioned the vaunted heroine that had defeated the evil dark lord. But all had been for naught. There was no sign of her, only her ransacked room at Grimmauld Place and the wreck that had once been Sirius Black's enchanted motorcycle. Except that, nothing.
Not even a whisper, which was the most unusual about all of it. Even when Dorea has one of her moments where she needs the world to bugger off and leave her alone, someone would usually sees her or there would be rumors about her. Someone as famous as her just does not disappear without a trace...
The last time she had run away, after a fight with Molly Weasley, she had left an easy enough trail to follow. Britain, France, Italy, and even in Bulgaria people knew who she was and her presence caused the tabloids to go wild with rumors.
Especially when she appeared in the dragon sanctuary in Romania, made a dragon cower away in fear of her while she grabbed Charlie Weasley by the collar and shook him while making it abundantly clear to everyone that no matter what Molly Weasley was planning, she wouldn't marry him. Ever! The poor man was so shocked by this that he wouldn't even dare to look at the irate woman ever since.
But despite that, Charlie was here as well, to help find their missing friend...
"We are missing something here," Ron said, as he sat at the table, his head buried in a foreign newspaper that Hermione had translated for him with a small charm. "Someone like Rea doesn't just vanish into thin air. There has to be something!"
He was visibly frustrated by his lack of progress, much to Hermione's growing worry. Her husband was obsessed with this, even though this might be just one of Dorea's moods again.
"You should calm down, Ron. You're running yourself ragged like this," Arthur Weasley said, as he took the newspaper from his son.
"I know, dad, it's just... something is very wrong, I just know it. Kingsley all but threatened me and the other Aurors to drop our investigation. Too little evidence he says," Ron spat bitterly, "What are they hiding?"
Hermione frowned as she heard this. The Minister wouldn't order this without a good reason. The sheer number of Aurors searching high and low for the most famous witch of this century would have caused even more trouble. She had tried to explain this to her husband, but this was one of those cases where Ron was just too damn stubborn to listen to reason. Too bad for him that she could be just as bad.
"Minister Shacklebolt was right to do that, Ron," she started, "You don't even know if anything has happened to Dorea in the first place. She had been... we had been at odds during our last meeting. I'm sure she's just angry and traveling the world."
"But she would not have just abandoned her job at the hospital," Bill Weasley interjected, "She was too proud of becoming a healer at St. Mungos. She also would have let us know that she would not be able to make Victoire's next doctor's appointment."
"Surely there is a better..." Hermione's words were cut off when another guest arrived through the Floo Network.
Neville Longbottom, Hogwart's newest full-time professor had arrived rather late for the meeting.
"Neville! Oh how wonderful to see you again, my dear," Molly Weasley sprang into action the moment she saw her new guest. She had been rather silent during the entire meeting, clearly worried for the woman she considered her second daughter. But a guest, that was obviously a more than welcome distraction. "Let me help you with that soot on your robes. Can I get you something? A cup of tea perhaps?"
"Ah... no need, really," Neville replied, clearly flustered by the fussing of the Weasley matriarch. "I can't stay for long."
"Has something happened?" Ron asked.
"Just busy preparing for the new school year and all. No worries," Neville replied, "But there was something odd that Hagrid told me after the staff meeting this morning. He said he had seen Dorea."
At once he was the center of all the attention in the room, much to his visible discomfort. Ron had nearly jumped over the table and was suddenly right next to him.
"When? Where? Does he know where she went?" Ron shot his questions in rapid succession at his friend.
"It was... a few days ago. Hagrid had told me that he had seen Dorea sitting on the bench near Headmaster Dumbledore's tomb for a while."
Hermione shook her head in dismay. She wasn't surprised to hear this. Dorea still had the Elder Wand and she had even admitted that she had visited the tomb several times before. It all made sense. Bloody stubborn Dorea, vanishing from sight to solve a problem on her own. Admittedly, this time her problem was her obvious immortality and connection to some very dark artifacts.
"And she wasn't alone," Neville continued. "Hagrid wasn't sure, but he said that he had even recognized the person she had been with."
"Who?"
"Perenelle Flamel... Hagrid said he had recognized her from the day the woman and her husband had visited Hogwarts in the summer after our first year..."
While most in the room needed a moment to understand just what this meant, Hermione had no such problems... Perenelle Flamel... wife of the famous alchemist Nicholas Flamel. Another immortal, though the ancient couple should have died years ago... Just what had Dorea gotten herself into this time?
Ironoaks seemed even darker and less welcoming the day following the death of its lord. Where life had followed a slow rhythm before, there was now anxiety and distress among the people. They had to prepare the send-off for their lord, while many feared what might come next.
Lord Waynwood had no living sons, only a daughter, who herself had given birth to several sons who all bear her name instead of that of her husband. But then there was also the lord's younger brother, Ser Elys, who himself had no living sons, only daughters to continue the family.
Elbert had explained to Dorea that the matter of succession was contentious and even the knights sworn to House Waynwood were divided on the topic. Lord Waynwood had never chosen an heir while he was still of sound mind. His illness had taken him quickly and without warning, so there had been no time for him to name an heir before his life ended.
But Dorea had no interest in getting dragged into a possible fight for this land. No, she was far more interested in the reason for the lord's passing. She knew she had to be quick and careful if she wanted to have any chance to have a good look at the dead man before his family would put him in the ground. It was a remarkable chance to study the diseases of this world.
So she waited until it was late at night before she took her Invisibility Cloak and sneaked out of her room. She had heard from some servants earlier that the body of their dead lord had been taken to the small Sept of the castle. Only belatedly Dorea had realized that they had meant a chapel of sorts, dedicated to their gods.
One of the many things she didn't know about this world just yet.
But once she knew what it was, it wasn't hard to find. But it wasn't as abandoned as she had hoped. Lord Waynwood's body had been laid out in the center of the Sept, surrounded by seven altars covered with burning candles. But next to the body stood a man, dressed in the leather armor she had seen the knights wear underneath their bulkier protection.
The man grumbled something, but Dorea had been too far away to understand it. She approached the man slowly, careful to make no sound or sudden movements that would disturb the many candles.
"... and look at you now, brother. Dead before your time. What a waste," the man spat.
Brother... so this was Ser Elys Waynwood. Dorea had not seen him before, but there was a certain family resemblance to Lady Anya. She also remembered Elbert mentioning that the man was married to another family member of his... a cousin? An aunt? She wasn't sure.
"That damn girl, to go this far just to secure her inheritance. I never wanted this place. I'm a knight, not a lord. But now she leaves me no choice. I hope you can forgive me for what I have to do now, brother..."
Ser Elys stood rigid, his fists clenched, as he looked at his dead brother. Then he left quickly, without looking back even once.
Dorea sighed, as she finally appeared from under her cloak. This all spelled trouble. Something was about to happen in the morning and she wasn't sure that it would be a good idea to hang around and find out. But on the other hand, it didn't feel right to just run away and leave Elbert and the other people in great danger.
But what if Ser Elys was right? The Lord's death had been somewhat shocking and without any previous warning signs whatsoever. Poison, maybe? Even in the magical communities in her world, poison was the preferred weapon for women. Was it possible that Lady Anya had killed her father to ensure she would inherit Ironoaks?
There was only one way to find out...
The body had been prepared for the upcoming funeral. Someone had washed the deceased and dressed him in what must have been his finest clothes. Several rings glinted on his fingers, except one.
The pinky finger on his left hand was missing, along with the signet ring the man should have worn as the lord of a great family. Dorea had seen the rings on more than one pureblood wizard to remember the importance some families place on them. But perhaps Lady Anya had already taken it, though that wouldn't explain the missing finger. The wound looked too recent, though there was no blood.
Dorea frowned deeply. It was too dark in the Sept to see properly. But using magic to lighten the place was also risky, she could never know when some guard would pass by and see it. So she had to content herself with the charms she had learned.
The magic she had been taught was meant for living patients, so she wasn't sure how accurate the spell would be. At St. Mungos they would never use magic on the already deceased, a taboo, she had been taught. Superstitious as most of them are, wizards and witches were highly paranoid about casting spells on the dead, which also lead to more stupid laws and regulations from the Ministry about this topic. But this certainly wasn't the first... or the last time she would break a taboo...
She pulled a piece of parchment from her robes and charmed it first before she cast her diagnosis spell. Dorea waited with bated breath. Nothing happened at first, but then the first words appeared on the parchment. Bit by bit the spell detailed all the important information it could gather. Once finished, Dorea picked the parchment up and quickly ran over to the candles so she could read it.
What she found, left her bewildered at first, before she realized what this truly meant.
"Oh no..." she exclaimed, "Those bloody idiots!"
With the parchment in hand, she ran out of the Sept, not even bothering to hide on the way out. She had to stop them... but she would need help.
Elbert grits his teeth, as he stood before the table where he had shared an early breakfast with his aunt and their host. But instead of the usual shallow pleasantries, he was now faced with a dozen armed knights, while he had naught but the dagger he always carried on his belt for defense. But despite that, he had still placed himself between the attackers and the ladies at his table, willing to defend them at all costs.
"Move aside, boy. I have no quarrel with my wive's family. I am only here for the murdering wench that my unfortunate brother has unleashed on this world," Ser Elys barked angrily.
But Elbert wouldn't budge, "What madness is this, Ser Elys? How you lost your mind to come here and threaten your niece?"
"Niece? That thing has murdered my brother, she is no blood of mine! If I have my way she will hang from the walls of Ironoaks before the sun has fully risen!"
Elbert looked in shock at Lady Anya, whose face was stoic as ever. Murder? Patricide even... the mere thought seemed ridiculous. But if it was true...
He immediately cursed his inattentiveness, as one of his uncle's knights had used the moment of distraction to attack. The man had gotten close, his sword raised for a strike. On instinct alone, Elbert brought up his dagger to deflect the strike away from his body, followed by a shove that threw the knight back.
"Have you finally drowned the last shred of intelligence in that wine you fancy so much, uncle?" Lady Anya asked scathingly. "To even think that I would ever lay hand on my dear father is preposterous!"
"Stop this now, Ser Elys, before someone has to die!" Elbert exclaimed.
"Foolish boy. One has already died. My brother! My lord! HER LORD!" Ser Elys yelled, his head red as his anger grew more and more. "I will not stop until he is avenged!"
It was at this moment that more people stormed into the room. Men at arms and knights. Lady Anya's men by the looks of it. And within moments the entire room erupted into utter chaos.
Elbert stayed back, always close to the two ladies, to defend them if necessary. Then he saw her. Dorea Flamel, as she entered the one place he didn't want to see her. She was dragging the Maester along, shouting something at the fighting men as she passed them. Elbert, however, couldn't understand a word in the clamor around them.
Now he was torn, between his duty to protect his aunt and Lady Anya, while he also wanted to run towards Dorea and get her out of danger as quickly as possible. But the more he watched the enigmatic lady, the more he realized she didn't need the help. She evaded any swords flying her way with skilled ease, as she continued on her way toward him.
"Elbert!" she exclaimed, as she had finally reached him. "We have to stop them! This is all a big mistake!"
"I'm afraid we can't," he admitted. He felt powerless in this chaos, a feeling he didn't like one bit. "Stay behind me, I will protect you as best as I can."
"Bloody dunderheads!" Dorea cursed.
Elbert wasn't what he had expected her to do, cowering behind him surely wasn't one of the things, but seeing her climbing onto to table surely wasn't on the list. Neither was her taking one of the heavy candleholders and throwing it through one of the large windows at the side of the hall.
"Stop this madness," Dorea yelled, her voice louder than Elbert would have imagined possible from a woman of her stature.
But her yell and the crashing of the window had the desired effect. The fighting subsided for a moment and all eyes in the room were on that lady on the table.
"See, that wasn't so hard!" Dorea huffed angrily, "Now before you start trying to kill each other again, listen!"
She gave the Maester a nudge with her foot. The man was white a sheet, clearly afraid of the chaos around him. But when he looked up at Dorea, her withering glare his way seemed to convince him to speak.
"Our lord... Lord Waynwood has not been poisoned!" Maester Bors said with a shaky voice. "I... we... made a mistake!"
Ser Elys rushed through the room, still raving mad, and grabbed Bors by his robes. "What do you mean he wasn't poisoned? Are you telling me my brother decided to puke out his innards for the fun of it before he died?"
"He... he ate diseased meat. The venison he had eaten the past days before his death. He had already been of frail health for years before, but the meat..."
"How can you be so sure?" Ser Elys pressed, "I hunted those animals myself! The Seven themselves blessed our hunt, those beasts didn't even run away and..." He stopped suddenly and let go of the Maester. "No..."
"It is as the Maester says," Dorea insisted, "The day after my arrival I went into the nearby forest to search for some medicinal herbs I had seen in the book the Maester had lent me. There I saw the animals with my own eyes. A stag, sickly and slow, with glassy eyes and a rotten stench from its mouth. The animal had some sort of sickness and I'm sure it wasn't the only one."
"And Lord Waynwood had shown similar signs of sickness," Maester Bors added, "I hadn't known about the animals. No one had said anything about them being plagued. The men just continued hunting them."
Elbert could see how Ser Elys fell apart at that moment. As he realized that he had had a hand in his own brother's death, unwitting as it was. It all made sense, even the fact that no one else in the castle had suffered from the same ailment as Lord Waynwood. The venison had all been given to the lord, the best meat for their master, to help him recover... only this time it was the slow poison that killed him bit by bit...
"Brother... what have I done..." Ser Elys rasped hoarsely. He then looked towards Lady Anya, whose face was an unreadable mask. "My niece... I am so sorry, I thought..."
"Tell that to the men who died here today," Lady Anya spat back, "So much blood spilled. You should have known better. I loved my father more than anyone else in this world. I would have never harmed him, willingly or otherwise!" A lone tear escaped from the lady's mask before she managed to reign her emotions in again. "And you," now her words and fury were directed at the Maester, "how come you only found out about this when it was almost too late to avert further tragedy?"
"I... As I said, I didn't know about the animals. And I wouldn't have been able to come to the right conclusion without the insistence of Lady Dorea..."
"But how did she know?" Elbert wondered.
All the attention was suddenly back on the lady on the table, who adopted a rather sheepish look now. "Well, you already know about my visit to the forest... and the rest was rather easy to deduce from what I had heard from Maester Bors and after a quick look at the deceased."
"You dared to interrupt my father's rest in the Sept?" Lady Anya exclaimed, clearly outraged. "Such a violation of our hospitality."
"I didn't touch him or anything," Dorea said defensively, as she finally jumped down from the table. "And you're welcome, you know. For saving your life and all that."
"I really can't deal with this as well now," Lady Anya exclaimed in exasperation. "Just leave for now, please. And guards, take my uncle and his knights to the cells!"
Elbert had to stop himself from chuckling when he saw the overly dramatic eye roll from Dorea and when he heard her mutter, "That's all the thanks one gets," as she slowly walked away.
But Dorea was obviously in no hurry. Instead, she stopped for every man she passed, have a look at their wounds and tell them how to treat them best. It was almost comical.
And at long last, Elbert could breathe a relieved sigh. The day which had started so catastrophically had at least not ended in tragedy. And he was sure, for Dorea Flamel all the chaos was nothing new or unusual.
A/N: Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. It took me much longer than anticipated to write a proper end to the events at Ironoaks and even now I'm not really satisfied with the events to be honest. But every other possible arc I had come up with would have taken too long. Intrigues, revenge, and a whole lot of other fun themes. But a small place like Ironoaks felt wrong for such stories. Some things are better suited for the big stage. Dorea still has a long way ahead of her. Ironoaks was never meant to be more than Dorea's quick introduction to Westeros and politics. So I settled for the unwitting death scenario.
The events in Britain won't get as much coverage in the next few chapters. Even though they have some clues, they have no idea that Dorea is no longer on the same world as they are. Though I do like the idea that Charlie Weasley, a fully trained Dragon Keeper, is actually more scared of Dorea than any dragon. I might tell more of that particular backstory later on...
Next chapter Dorea will finally leave Ironoaks and travel to the Eyrie, which means she will also meet Jon Arryn and his wards, Robert and Eddard.
Chapters will also get longer again because there is just so much to tell...
I know some are hoping for a romance with either of them, but that won't happen in this story. Even though Dorea is immortal and barely looks older than 18-19 years old, Ned and Robert are far too young. As mentioned in the first chapter, the story starts in 271 AC so Robert is currently 9 and Ned is 8 years old. And just as a mention, Oberyn is around 14 years old, Rhaegar is only 12 at this time, Bradon Stark is 9 and Jaime is only 5. I chose this start date for a reason. Most characters we know are already there, but the tragedy is still at least a decade away so who knows how Dorea's presence changes the history of Westeros...