DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Harry Potter or any of its characters. I also do not make any money from this.
WARNINGS: Yaoi (male x male), Yuri (female x female) adult topics, swearing, sexual scenes and violence.
This has not been Beta'd.
PAIRINGS: Ron x Hermoine
'text' is thought
"text" talking
Hidden Element
Chapter 5: The Story Teller
Hermione came face to face with a light blue painted wall barely peaking through its vine coverings. Following its length, she was shocked to see that it towered high beyond any normal wall height. There was a stiff tap on her shoulder, and annoyed at its insistence to keep her from exploring said wall, turned around to yell, only to have it die down in awe.
Wild trees scattered the meadow in groups of small forests, ranging from exotic sakura blossoms to pine trees on small hills raised at the edges of the walls. Willow trees dipped into ponds and rivers displayed a variety of fish. There were deer and stags weaving through trees and butterflies painted in every colour of the rainbow.
As scattered as the ponds and trees, small houses of straw and brick littered the nooks and crannies of the idyllic meadow, some on stilts over water while others snuggled among the trees. The amount of accommodation and the expanse of land that made this meadow suggested a rather large population.
"This is…" Ginny could merely nod at Hermione's breathy unfinished sentence. There was no need for words, the emotions on their faces spoke far clearer than any could. Saying that, they did watch each others faces in a determination to make sure the other was seeing what they were seeing, and if not, were they really seeing what they thought they saw. One gaze of amazement met their own.
Slowly, they made their way forward, flowers spread beneath their feet, wondering where they'd landed and what connection it had to Dumbledore. Too many 'what', 'where' and 'who's' collided in their minds to make rational questions or answers. They were walking as if in a daze.
As if a veil had been removed, a strange realisation came upon Harry. Surely they weren't alone. But it was unnervingly quiet, and that fact irked him. Where were the natives who belonged to these houses? Neville shot out a hand worriedly across Harry's chest, making him stop abruptly. It was the twitch of the corner of his mouth that made his anxious nervousness evident, and often when Nevilles lip twitched, there was cause to wait and see why.
"There's something here," he said shyly.
"So it's the scrawny one who holds the power of perception within the group? I was leaning towards the curious female with brown hair, but it's always nice to be proven wrong about ones first impressions."
From out of a tree, a teenager sprung, almost of the same height as Ron. His hair was thick and white, his eyes a vibrant green, standing out against his freckled skin. The fact that he had sprung neatly without a wince from a great height was detected by everyone.
For some reason, the hesitance in which everyone showed at this new development made Ginny angry at her friends. He had insulted Hermione in his own way, and might be a threat due to the sword slung against his right hip. If no one was going to question any of this, then she would.
"Who are you?" Ginny demanded with a growl, getting a scornful look from Harry at her sudden behaviour. He had seen Ginny like this, but it was always when she was at her angriest. He was not sure he liked this new stand-off ferocity that Ginny had introduced herself to. They would have to talk. He wanted to find out what had happened to his ex, she was, after all, a dear friend.
"Who am I? I am not the one trespassing on this land, for I live here. The most immediate question is; who are you?" He looked straight at Harry in wait of an answer. Harry inwardly groaned at the fact that even strangers looked at him to make the decisions. The blond smirked inwardly at the slight jerk in the brunettes jaw. It seemed that this alpha did not want to be so, and as much as it confused him, he was not there to concern himself with the problems of others.
"Oh, I apologize. I am Harry Potter. These are my friends Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Ginny Weasley and Neville Longbottom. I am sorry if we came unannounced or are trespassing. We were sent here by professor Dumbledore. I am not sure if you know of him?" Harry asked hesitantly, seeing no evident emotion across the youth's face.
"He is dead then?" The blond sighed in a weary sadness, the emotion only evident in slightly moist eyes. Harry nodded. "He shall be missed."
"You knew professor Dumbledore?" Hermione asked in disbelief. The blond glanced at her curiously then grinned unexpectedly. She was taken aback by his sudden change in mood.
"I am Lazare. I am one of many the guardians of Accacia, but I am not the one you are fated to speak with. Trust me and follow me. I only ask that you not attack anyone, nor glance at them fearfully. It is not recommended here."
"Wha-" Ron started to growl, only to be cut off rather rudely in his own opinion.
"Don't talk, just follow. You'll see why soon enough." Ron huffed in familiar resentment at not having had his say in the matter, though he followed without another word. He would like to think he was above childish resentment, but unfortunately, that childish resentment only bubbled underneath the surface wrought in chains.
Something about the boy before him seemed unnatural, yet he couldn't put a finger on the reason why. Of course, the closer they walked to the centre of the confined meadow, the easier it was to see why he had asked them not to act in a threatening or frightful way.
It took every fibre in his body to keep walking forwards without letting his feelings seep onto his face. Sounds of laughter and fun were heard, and no, that wasn't the problem. It was that the fact that the inhabitants seemed to be of a semi-human origin. About them centurions raced and mer-people surfaced to play catch with youngsters sporting tails.
He had grown out of his prejudices, but to say that he had gained more courage was not completely true.
They looked at them in fear, some with distrust and anger that they had been allowed entrance, and Ron was struck with the thought that THEY should have promised not be attacked instead. He felt very cowardly at this moment in time.
The closer they got to the centre, the more crowded and city-like it seemed to become.
Stone pavements and market places appeared before them. The trees were still a part of things, roots becoming one with houses and leaves sheltering stalled food from the sun.
'One thing we would have to ask about,' Hermione thought, 'is the fact that there are no adults about!'
In the middle of the pasture lay a truly amazing sight. A small trenched lake of water encircled a miniature island, separating what was truly the middle of the meadow from the hubbub of 'the town centre'. Small bridges linked the two areas together, which they crossed eagerly to get a better view of the five towers within.
Four towers stood tall in each corner of the rectangular-shaped space, a fifth in the middle almost defiantly.
One tower was hidden between vine of ivy and rose. There was very little wall to be seen through its tight suite of thorns and scattered flowers. Sunflowers and exotic flowers of various colours stood lazily against its edges, while doves languished on its open windows and colourful lawn.
The tower opposite it stood upon a solid rock, raised higher than the rest. A small and sandy path lead up to it. It looked like a charmed sand castle rather than any real tower. Its walls a grainy sand, that deceived one into thinking that one touch would shatter it. A huge chasm lay at its right, running through the side of the tower haphazardly.
The third tower to the side of the sand castle seemed more like a lighthouse. It looked as average as any medieval tower would, yet from its highest point, a light shone from it so bright it hurt to look at it.
The fourth was covered in torches and there was not one stone in sight that didn't seem somehow set alight. If one looked too quickly, one would almost think the tower was on fire.
The fifth and centre tower, was the most impressive of all. Its foundation was pure black, its starting wall the same sooty colour, yet as the wall elongated towards the ceiling, it became clearer and, slowly but surely, turned to ice. One could only think it to be charmed as a tower of that material could never stand outdoor weather of this kind.
"Hello." A tiny voice attracted their attention "I have waited for some time. But you have finally come." The joy in the voice shocked them compared to the weary whispers they had received upon entrance. Before them, stood a small boy that Hermione recognized all too soon.
"You!" she couldn't help but gasp "But you were…"
"Helping. It did, since you are now here. Would you like to sit down?" Harry imagined that this boy was the one Hermione had mentioned seeing in the mirror. True to her word, the boys eyes hinted at something more wolfish under his human appearance. The boy seemed to notice it and smiled softly.
"Yes, I am a werewolf, but if you hadn't noticed, I am not the strangest thing here." At that the group couldn't help but laugh, and the ice was thoroughly broken between them.
"Thank you, Lazare, you have been awfully kind." Lazare nodded in kind and left the group to sit down on the soft grass.
"Who are you?" Hermione asked curiously at the boy's seemingly higher position.
"I am no one of higher consequence; Lazare is protector to Acaccia, one of four, one for each wall." She worried herself over thinking that the boy could possibly be psychic, but dashed it away with previous knowledge of werewolves not having any such thing at their disposal. She had asked, it wasn't just a booked fact.
"I am who they call the story teller. I watch and learn, and then I tell them. Or one could simply say, I have been charged with the memorizing of things and can merely tell it in a pretty manner. You may ask any question of me and I will answer to the best of my ability."
"I'm sorry if this is rude, but this…" Ginny gestured widely to the meadow and then the towers, "how did this… I mean… wow?" she blushed at her own inability to speak the words she wanted to.
"That is part of a Dumbledore related story," he said softly. "You can ask if you want, for he gave us the five founders who made this place of their own free will."
"The five founders? You mean four, right? Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw? Are you a school for the more than magically gifted?" Harry phrased carefully. The tiny boy shook his head in amusement.
"Yes, we are a school for those who are inclined to a magic other than the wizarding kind. Your founders, however, did not create our school. Ice, Fire, Earth, Light and Nature did."
"The elements?" Neville voiced everyone's confusion.
"No!" the boy laughed as if Neville were being silly. "The people of course. It's another Dumbledore related story."
"These towers are truly magnificent! And there are five! So each tower represents one of the founders!" Ginny said triumphantly, only to look unsatisfied by the younger boy's look of confusion. After his rapid blinking stopped, he asked a question not one of them had thought of since they'd walked away from the wall they'd apparated at.
"Why are you here?" the storyteller asked her with a lick of his dry lips, anticipating an answer he hoped he would receive.
"There have been strange attacks around the globe that we believe to be the work of elementals. We followed hints that professor Dumbledore left behind for us, that led us to this location. He said it would be the next part in our journey to finding the truth. We were hoping to find something here that could help us on our way," Hermione concluded. The meadow was so big and they hadn't even begun their search! They might have to come back and search after they'd made a map, or been given a map for use.
"Then why have you not asked me when I hinted at knowing a Dumbledore related story?" the young boy giggled at the look of obvious shock on her face, though hers was not the only one to display such emotion. They had all been too dazed at what was around them that they had missed the subtle hint.
Hermione did not like to think that a boy this young would have had to memorize such a tale, and she reprimanded the old man in her head for not having thought better than to ask someone of this age to do a job like this. She was not one to talk, she knew, she had been a mere child when she had gone on a grand adventure to destroy evil. She was, however, not an eight year old at the time.
"Would it be alright, to hear this tale?" Harry found himself asking softly in encouragement. His legs crossed and hands stretched backwards to lean on.
As the story began to unfold, Harry allowed the soft voice to carry him away. His eyes closed in relaxation at the warm breeze around him and felt his body rest against the cool grass underneath him. At the sounds of shifting around him, it seemed evident that the rest of the group was getting comfy in their own positions as well.
"It started with a deal between Dumbledore and the five founders..."