Disclaimer: don't own
A/N: sorry about taking so long to update. life has been hectic. thanks to Sugar-high Pixie for reviewing.
Of Blood and Magic
Chapter 16: Inner Nature
Tevelle popped her last piece of blood-candy in her mouth as she walked out of the great hall. The spoils of her hunt the day before had disappeared far too quickly. Idly, Tevelle tried to account for all of the pieces she had eaten the night before and this morning, just in case she had lost one or still had one left. Nope, she had really eaten all of them.
Well so much for replenishing my supply. The wry thought twined through her mind to be blotted out a second later.
"Tevelle, are you finished with your breakfast?"
"Yup. What is it, Xeven?"
"Come to my quarters. I have just received a chess set that I asked Aria to send me. It has been a while since we have sat down to play a game."
"You just want to prove that you can still wipe the floor with me. You know I'm rubbish at strategy games."
"Practice is all you need. How else are you to gain skill if you do not practice?"
"I hardly call getting slaughtered by a master practice."
"Nonsense, you have already improved vastly since our first game."
"Riiight." Tevelle rolled her eyes, greatly confusing a first year across from her.
"Regardless, I expect to see you presently."
"Alright, let me just drop some stuff off in my room first."
Tevelle sighed. She had planned to curl up somewhere with a book and possibly some homework. Ah well. At least chess with Xeven was always entertaining.
After abandoning her bag in her dorm, Tevelle made her way to the tower Xeven was staying in. It was not terribly far and Tevelle made good time. Tevelle was almost there when she started skipping, springing from one foot to the other. Catching herself just before arriving at Xeven's door, Tevelle forced her rebellious feet to a standstill.
Uh, oh. The extra glucose in the blood candy Aberforth had warned her about was kicking in. Tevelle meant to walk the rest of the way, but instead her treacherous body carried her into a leaping turn, covering the distance in a single bound. Upon landing, Tevelle tried her best to bring herself under control. Xeven was not going to be amused if Tevelle barged into his room with song and dance, no matter how tempting it was. The last time Tevelle had been hyper like this the rest of the coven had not been able to decide whether to sell tickets or lock her in an out of the way closet.
"The door handle is not going to bite. Feel free to enter." Xeven admonished silently, having sensed Tevelle's presence.
Forcing one last calming breath, Tevelle opened the door and walked in. She paid special attention to keeping to a steady walk instead of skipping.
The room she had entered was a lavish sitting room, only slightly smaller than the common area of the Slytherin dorm. Bookcases lined one of the far walls. Another wall to the left had a thick oak door set into it and a large fireplace that could easily fit several people standing straight. At the moment a cheery fire occupied the grate. The orange and yellow flames licked the bricks and flicked upwards towards the chimney. The wall to the right was completely covered with a huge tapestry depicting a wide array of stylized animals wrapped into a celtic knot. Hardwood floor layered with thick carpets spanning nearly from wall to wall cushioned her footfalls. The room was lit brightly by a sky-light aided by a good number of wall sconces and standing lamps. Furniture dotted the room in an almost haphazard fashion. A thick-cushioned couch and several matching armchairs created a sitting area by the fire and another nook had been formed by another couple of armchairs in a corner by the bookshelf. In the center of the space was a solidly built circular table flanked by four wooden chairs. The wood of the table matched the floor and bookshelves almost exactly.
It was at this table that Xeven sat, setting up a game of chess.
"Cozy place you've got here." Tevelle said, slipping off her trainers and placing them by the door.
"Albus has been more than generous with my accommodations." Xeven said, gesturing to the chair opposite him in a silent invitation.
Tevelle sat, curling her legs up under her in a vain attempt to keep them still. The rush of energy still had not dissipated and had even become more intense with Tevelle's efforts to contain it. Her toes curled and uncurled. It was better than tapping her foot at least.
Silently, Xeven held out two clenched fists, a pawn in each. Tevelle tapped his right hand.
"White. Ugh, I hate going first. I never know how to start."
Xeven smiled lightly and turned the board so that the white pieces were in front of Tevelle and the black in front of him.
"Whenever you are ready, little bat."
Grumbling, Tevelle picked a pawn at random and moved it forward two squares.
Expressionless Xeven made his first move. The game had begun.
"Why did you send home for a chess set? I'm sure there is an extra set around the castle somewhere. At the very least Albus would have let you borrow his."
"That would be true. Unfortunately, all of the sets in the castle are quite wizardly. I prefer the muggle version of the game. It becomes distracting to have the pieces argue back."
"I suppose that makes sense." Tevelle shifted in her chair, uncrossing and re-crossing her legs.
Time seemed to slow as the game progressed, dragging out between turns then suddenly speeding up when movement was required. Soon enough, whatever strategy Tevelle had started out with dissolved into haphazard and arbitrary leaps. Xeven in turn, seemed to spend increasing amounts of time thinking out his next move. Tevelle briefly entertained the idea that it was becoming harder for Xeven to rework his plan and compensate for her slapdash moves. A second later when Xeven captured yet another one of her pieces, Tevelle reassessed her idea. Her unpredictable lack of strategy had not hampered Xeven at all.
Soon enough, Tevelle found her mind wandering, unable to remain focused on the game. She unfolded and refolded her legs once again, turning her attention to Xeven who had fixed her with a bemused stare.
"What?"
"It is your turn."
"Oh!" Choosing a piece at random, Tevelle prepared to make her move, only vaguely realizing she had inadvertently managed to be able to capture one of Xeven's pawns. "Hah! Take that!" Tevelle nearly shouted as she slammed the piece in her hand down on the board, knocking several pieces surrounding her target in the process. "I am on fire today!"
Xeven raised an eyebrow. "Did you eat a blood-pop from Honeydukes?"
"What gives you that idea?" Tevelle just barely caught herself before she broke into a victory dance. Such a celebration would be highly inappropriate as she was still losing quite spectacularly.
"The dancing for one. You are far too energetic."
"I'm just embracing my Hufflepuff nature!" Tevelle sat down in the chair, this time trying her hardest to sit still. The tapping of her foot betrayed her.
"How many did you eat?"
"Uh…"
"That is not a number. How many?"
"Umm….. three or four….. maybe five."
A stern glare was Xeven's response.
"Eight or nine…. I think….. I lost count after the first couple."
Xeven merely sighed.
Tevelle braced herself for a scolding but was saved by a knock on the door.
"You may enter, Albus."
As the wizard entered, Xeven fixed Tevelle with a look that spoke as clearly as if he had shouted. He was not finished with her.
"Dear me, I hope I was not interrupting anything." Dumbledore looked at Xeven questioningly.
"No, not at all. What brings you here?"
"I simply wanted to apologize to you on behalf of my groundskeeper. What Hagrid said to you was rude and out of line. It was said out of hurt and fear and I am sure Hagrid did not mean to upset or alienate you in any way."
Xeven was silent for a moment and even Tevelle managed to hold still.
How Dumbledore had found out what Hagrid had said to them was a mystery, but she let it slide. Tevelle doubted Hagrid felt apologetic at all if he even remembered what had been said. Yes those words had been said out of hurt and fear, but that was what made them all the more hurtful. Hagrid was not in a state to say anything but what he had truly thought and felt.
"Very well." Xeven did not say he accepted the apology, but he had offered the opportunity to move past it. It was clear from his tone that his thoughts ran in a similar path to Tevelle's.
Another brief moment passed, and all the restraint Tevelle had broke. She leapt out of her seat and half skipped half twirled the foot-long distance between her and the table. The scattered pieces were looking sad. They needed to be placed back in their proper places. Enthusiastically, Tevelle lifted a knight into an upright position.
An amused smile crossed Dumbedore's face at her antics.
"Leave it, Tevelle. Go run around the castle a few times to work off that energy. This game is going to end up scattered across the room at this rate." Xeven's tone was stern, but a wash of affection underlay the words.
"Alright!" A quick leap and a sashay carried her over to the door and her shoes. She struggled with the laces for less than a second for giving up and discarding them. "Eh, I don't really need shoes. I'll come pick these up later."
She did not even wait for a confirmation before she was out the door.
"What is she so excited about?" Albus's voice echoed down the corridor.
Xeven chucked. "Oh, nothing. She is simply 'embracing her Hufflepuff nature."
"Ah, yes. I had almost forgotten she was sorted into Hufflepuff the first time around."
Apparently, running around the castle, even indoors through the corridors (or perhaps especially through the corridors), without shoes was unusual. She garnered many stares and startled exclamations as she sped past. She did not confine herself to just running either. More often than not she was twirling, leaping, sliding, and jumping. Once or twice in the more deserted corridors Tevelle would complete a cartwheel or two. At several points Tevelle was distantly aware of house points being taken off by several professors, but she did not catch exactly how many.
Gradually, Tevelle slowed down. Not for lack of energy, though, but instead for lack of corridor.
"On to floor two! Now where did those stairs run off to?" Tevelle crowed, not really talking to anyone in particular. "Ah! There you are, you wily stairs. Why can't you stay in one place? It would make life simpler. Though I suppose then it would be boring for you. Ah, never mind move wherever you want. Can't have a bored staircase, now can we?"
"I am sure the stairs appreciate your concern." A dreamy voice called from the top of the stairs. "It must be terribly dull for normal staircases who don't move."
"Luna!" Tevelle shouted, leaping the remaining steps and nearly knocking over the girl with the force of her hug.
"How have you been? I haven't seen you in forever. And last winter you left the ball without saying goodbye!"
Luna smiled, her eyes focusing a little more and losing some of their normal almost glassy with distraction expression. The Lovegoods were family friends of the Coven, the Quibbler being one of the few magazines Xeven would read regularly. Luna herself had been periodically visiting with her parents since she was a small girl. And it was to the Coven that Xenophilius and Luna had fled to after her mother died and their house had too many painful memories and ghosts.
"The wrackspurts were particularly agitated that night." Luna offered in explanation.
Tevelle smiled. While she did not believe in half the creatures Luna talked about, there were a few instances where the Lovegoods had been right, so she was inclined to give the girl the benefit of the doubt. Who was she, a magical creature herself, to judge?
"Well, I'm glad to see you now!" Energy was once again rushing though her veins and taking Luna by the hands, she spun the two of them in a circle.
Luna laughed, radish earrings flying. Blinking dizzily when they stopped, the Ravenclaw wiped at her eyes.
"Hey!" a voice called down the corridor, "What are you doing, Slytherin?"
Tevelle blinked. Ron Weasley, looking quite pink in the face and very annoyed was storming down the corridor. Had Tevelle done something to offend him?
"Spinning her, of course. What did it look like?"
"Leave her alone!"
Tevelle tilted her head. "I think you've been mistaken. She's my friend and I was excited to see her."
"Slytherins don't make friends with other houses."
Tevelle shook her head. She was not in the mood for an argument.
"Moving on, can you ask Hermione what is happening with SPEW for me? I haven't heard anything about it in a while and I wanted to know what she thought about those pamphlets."
This seemed to stun Ron for a moment and Tevelle patiently waited for an answer. Well, what she thought was patiently. The tapping of her foot and Luna's giggling indicated otherwise.
"Why would you care about SPEW? You're a Slytherin!"
"And you," Tevelle quipped brightly, smiling her widest and most cheerful, "Are annoying." She continued after seeing Ron's darkening expression. "What? I thought we were stating the obvious."
Executing a complete pirouette, Tevelle turned towards Luna, quite obviously dismissing the redhead. "Sooo, Luna do you want to run around like a crazy person with me?"
"I suppose it could not hurt."
"Wait!" Tevelle ducked her head, fluffing up her hair. "Just to check, no Nargles?"
"No Nargles."
"Good! Let's go!"
Dragging Luna was only necessary for the first minute or so, after that the girl was quite happily skipping alongside Tevelle. The vampire was careful to keep her speed down so as not to leave Luna behind. Still, leaping and twirling would occasionally carry Tevelle down a corridor much faster than Luna was able to keep up. When that happened, Tevelle would backtrack her steps until the two were even again.
"Do we have a destination?" Luna asked airily, only a slight gasping indicated her exertion.
Tevelle pondered that for a moment. When she had started, there had been no destination in mind, the goal being to simply run and frolic until she could not take another step. Now though, she remembered that Krum still had in his possession one sweatshirt that she should probably reclaim before she forgot.
"The Hospital Wing. Krum hit his head yesterday and Madame Pomfrey probably kept him over night. He has my sweatshirt and I should probably fetch it."
"Alright." Luna did not ask how Krum hitting his head would translate to his possession of Tevelle's sweatshirt like others would have. Tevelle smiled at her easy acceptance. It was not the most common trait, especially among gossipy teenagers.
Luna restrained Tevelle just in time with a gentle reminder that Madame Pomfrey would definitely not appreciate the doors being slammed open from an over-exuberant entrance. And so, it was with exaggerated care that they slipped into the hospital wing and made their way over towards one of the few occupied beds.
"Do you think he would mind if I just grabbed it and left? I don't think Madame Pomfrey would be happy if we woke him just so I could ask for my sweatshirt back." Luna stifled a giggle at Tevelle's less-than quiet whisper, but shook her head no in response.
"Alright then, here goes."
Balancing on the balls of her feet as if she were a diver about to leap, Tevelle paused a moment, looking around furtively to see if they had caught the medwitch's attention. Good, they hadn't. In one swift move she snatched the garment and dashed out the cracked doors. Luna followed closely behind, fighting to contain laughter.
"Mission success." Tevelle stated with mock solemnity once they were back out in the corridor and around a corner.
At this the careful control Luna had maintained up until this moment broke and she slid down the wall, clutching her sides in almost-hysterical laughter. Tevelle soon joined her.
"How?" Luna choked out between gasps, "Did you ever get sorted into Slytherin?"
A/N: please review