A/N: As promised, the next update is up. I've managed to get it ready on time, despite being away from any computer for the whole week-end. Whooohooo! *stops to cheer and looks around in embarassment* er...

Anyway, this one was at first meant as a filler, but I felt I needed to develop the back story of these new guests, while maintaining the mystery around them as much as I could without looking too obvious. Hope that worked.

A heavy part of this relies on Arthurian mythology, as one could have expected, since we're dealing with Merlin. For the record, that version of Merlin's story will be revisited a few times along this storyline, the next, and even further in the sequels. So, I need to explain where it comes from. That explanation will come after the chapter, so there won't be any spoilers.

Again, I must thank all the people who are either following or have favorited this story. Do not hesitate to review!

I again apologize for the delays between updates, recently, and I hope I'll be able to complete this one soon.

On to the story and let's find out who the hooded guys are, shall we?

The Brotherhood

Usually, after the feast that marked the start of term, the first week that followed saw nothing but young students falling back into the familiar routine of the school year. The most remarkable event would be the discovery of the time tables.

But this year, there was new object of curiosity among students, and that was the Brotherhood. The hooded wizards had settled in the common rooms of the three Houses they had been sorted in, but even if on a personal level, they had found a place, there was still this aura of mystery surrounding the Brotherhood itself. Very few people actually knew who they were and where they had come from.

Rumours, of course, were running like mad across the Hallways, but none of them were really reliable.

The main idea was that Dumbledore had just invited his old friend to promote his belief in open-minded education, as he had said at the Feast. Anything deviating from that for too long ended up being labelled as silly talk.

Of course, Ravenclaw students were delighted to welcome most of the students. One of the benefits from it was that the dormitory room that Ian, Edwin, Mark and Joel were now sharing with Orlando, had been magically enhanced, and was now larger. The dorm room of the Seventh Year, at the very top of the Nest, was now as large as the Common room, at the bottom. It was an amusing fact, given that the tower still looked the same. The Magic which operated the castle of Hogwarts was truly impressive.

Also, their classmates had quickly realized that the Brothers were pretty dedicated students. Their knowledge in History, in particular, was impressive. And even Snape, the first Teacher to have greeted the fourth years on Monday morning, had failed to find any fault in Orlando, who seemed very accurate in his brewing.

But still, it was just the beginning of the year, and one couldn't easily forget that the Brothers remained outsiders. And the brotherhood was clearly showing their difference from the regular Hogwarts students, with a few habits of their own, as Orlando had explained his dorm-mates. Even if they were separated among three different Houses, and in different years, they were to meet once a day, just before dinner, to discuss their day with their Masters, and work on their own subjects. Orlando had told Ian that it was a schedule decided by Master Anselme, in order 'to ensure that the young Brothers wouldn't forget where they came from'. The other mark of their difference was in the way they dressed. Like the first evening they had spent in Hogwarts, they were still dressed in the hooded, golden sewn brown robes, and all walked with what appeared to be canes. Some Slytherin student said that they were too weak to walk on their own. Beyond the basic stupidity of the comment, Ian was convinced there was something more than met the eye about the canes. But he was sure that the Brothers would explain that on their own terms.

The first week passed without incident and it seemed that the brotherhood was fitting in nicely, despite all of these little quirks.

The evening before the first week-end, Ian hurried to the West Tower, to reach Alexander's Office. He knocked on the door, which opened on its own.

"Good to see you on time, for once, Ian," Alexander greeted him with a smile.

Ian had a chuckle as he made his way toward his usual seat.

"Well, I wouldn't miss the first lesson of the kids," he said, sitting down.

"The kids?" said Susan Odinson, who had settled in one of two new armchairs, facing Alexander's desk.

"Who is he calling kid?" asked Sven, on the exact same tone.

"Ian believes that he's something special," said Alexander with an indulgent smile.

"Well, aren't we all, actually?" said Ian.

"Quite true," said Alexander.

The twins seemed a little surprised by the way Ian was talking to his teacher.

"Er… Professor?" asked Susan.

Both she and his twin spoke on a slow moderate tone, their accent clear, and they chose their words very carefully.

"Alexander," corrected Alexander with a smile. "I never got used to the 'Professor' thing."

"Ah," said Sven. "It is strange to call a teacher like that."

"You'll end up liking it," said Ian, winking.

Susan had a shy smile before going on.

"I don't know why we get these special lessons," she said, carefully. "We only had a few accidents… from time to time. Mum said that this would be sorted out in time."

"Accidents like the Sorting Hat floating from your head to your brother's?" asked Alexander, helpfully.

Blushing slightly, Susan nodded.

"These are no accidents, Susan," said Alexander. "These are manifestations of a different power."

"Different?" repeated Sven.

"Nothing too scary," said Ian, with a reassuring smile. "It has its pros and cons, really."

"Why don't you explain to your new classmates what you know about this, Ian?" said Alexander. "That way I'll make sure that you've retained what I tried to teach you."

Ian gave his mentor a sarcastic smile and turned to the twins.

"Alright," he said. "You're both Chaoticians."

"Back home, people say that we could be Entropists," said Sven.

"That amounts to the same thing," said Ian. "The 'Entropist' is Alexander's nickname, but we're all Chaoticians. Chaos Magic is special, because, instead of focusing Magic around us through a wand and forging it with our mind, we, and that includes you, are able to draw it on our own and to use our will to give Magic its form. We are using the rawest forces in Magic."

The twins were looking at him, fascinated.

"That explains why you two made your bed float when you were three years old, and why you must have someday started to float in the room, with strange lights sprouting out of you," Ian went on.

"How do you know that?" asked Susan.

"Because the same happened to me," said Ian, amused. "I was just guessing, there, but it seems it happens to all of us, at some point. Since we have them, we must learn how to focus these abilities the best way we can."

"And what can we do with this?" asked Sven. "We never controlled any of it."

"It will require some work from you," said Alexander. "You'll have to train your mind. Soon, you'll be able to do the simplest Magic without having to draw your wand. While any wizard can perform wand-less magic, only Chaotician can accomplish complete spells on willpower alone."

"Really?" said Susan with eyes like Galleons.

"Ian?" asked Alexander.

Ian smiled and waved his hand to Alexander's desk. The quill in his inker suddenly began to shift shape and after some time, a little bird was singing at the top of his voice. So high, in fact that it was uncomfortable. Ian waved his hand once more and the bird was silenced. Then with another wave, it turned back to its original state. Alexander nodded.

The twins were watching in awe.

"That's a basic manipulation, once you catch the trick," said Alexander. "You'll soon discover that you can do more than most of the students here, in certain areas. But you must be warned. This Magic is very powerful and very unstable, by its nature. It's a huge work to control it entirely. But I'm sure you'll manage."

Susan and Sven were now exchanging strange looks, and were nodding from time to time. Ian looked at them, surprised.

"That would mean…" whispered Susan.

"I don't know," said Sven. "Maybe…"

"No way," replied Susan. "They wouldn't…"

"No, I didn't mean that," Sven went on. "It's just that…"

"Oh, sure, but honestly, when you consider…"

"Yeah, that one was weird," said Sven smiling at some memory.

Alexander seemed dumbfounded. Ian was wondering what could be going on.

"Are you two always talking like this?" asked Alexander.

The twins gave a start, and turned to him. They both blushed.

"Sorry," said Sven. "Mum told us not to do it in public."

"That's not the issue," said Alexander. "Do you often talk like this, with only half sentences?"

"Yes. It's like I always know what he wants to say," said Susan, smiling a little uncomfortably. "It's excluding for other people, so we try not to talk too much like that."

"I'd really appreciate. It's not that it's not useful, but I couldn't follow," said Alexander. "But this could be an aspect of this Magic. So what was your concern, exactly?"

"We were wondering if that could explain a few things that happened to us," said Sven. "But why didn't anyone tell us about this sooner?"

"Well, I'm the only Chaotician that has been registered by the Ministry of England, so far. I know many countries do not acknowledge that gift," said Alexander. "As for you, your parents contacted me because they were already considering an education abroad for you. When they heard I had an apprentice in Hogwarts, they asked for my expertise about your magic. Since the effects of Chaos had never showed any ill effect on you, there was no need to worry you. So they just enrolled in Hogwarts, knowing I would take over from here. Let me repeat that. You are in no danger, whatsoever. Is that clear?"

Sven and Susan nodded in understanding.

"So, from now on, we will meet once or twice a week, depending on your schedule," said Alexander. "We will start with concentration exercises, and then the transfiguration spells. Ian will tutor you in the beginning. We will have extra lessons, Ian, just the two of us, so we can go on with your own training."

Ian nodded. To have more lessons with Alexander was hardly bad news. If you would have given him double Charms with it, Ian would have thought this was the best year ever.

"Alright, so to begin, I'll start by explaining to you what exactly Chaos Magic actually is and how it works," said Alexander.

And so the lesson began.

The next day started with Charms. Kenneth and his friends were due to have double Potions after this. But even this prospect couldn't ruin their good mood. They were all glad to be back in school. Soon they would all probably be moaning over their homework, but for the moment, they were just enjoying it.

Among those who shared the relaxed, friendly atmosphere, Thierry was chatting with Kalindra. Kenneth had to admit he was still astonished by how easy it had been to accept Thierry among them. Even still wearing his Monk robes and holding his strange walking stick, you could almost feel Thierry had been in Gryffindor for years.

Kenneth hadn't been spared by the phenomenon. He had been one of the firsts to warm up to the young Novice. Besides, since the train ride, he had made a point of not sitting anywhere near Julie, and so he had begun to sit beside Thierry on a regular basis, offering his opinion on each teacher they had met so far. As expected, Thierry had been fascinated by Professor Potter, which was quite understandable, as he was the very closest thing to a living legend he must have met, so far.

Once he had gotten rid of his initial awkwardness, Thierry had revealed a witty, clever personality that had done a lot to win over people like Kalindra, Will, Rob and Mandy. He had a very fine sense of humour, his sarcastic comments often cracking his house-mates up. He also seemed to be slightly rebellious in nature, although he showed the deepest respect to Professor McGonagall. The Gryffindor Head seemed surprised by this attitude, actually, as if she had been expecting something else from him. Kenneth still didn't know why.

Upon entering the classroom, the students all headed for the tables they usually sat on, but Flitwick told them to get up and to follow him into the large room next door, which was the place where new spells were demonstrated. There, a large stone was standing. He held up Thierry, for a few private words, and then he walked in front of the students, that formed a line at his request. Kenneth's eye caught sight of Gillian Crawley in discussion with Eamon Clarke, the sixth year prefect for Ravenclaw. She saw him and had a nod and a smile for him. He nodded back, before to be nudged in the ribs by Kalindra.

"Quit flirting, Lionheart, and pay attention," she joked.

"In what reality is a nod considered flirting?" he muttered.

"I'm seeing all this in the frame of reference you've given me, Kenneth," said Kalindra. "A nod to a girl from a different house is huge for someone like you."

"Oh, shut up," he groaned, just as Flitwick called for silence.

"Welcome, students, to your first NEWT lesson in Charms. As you can see, not all Houses are represented. I'm glad to announce that your year's result in last year's exam were so impressive I had enough students for two groups. Gryffindor and Ravenclaw will share this one, while the other will house Hufflepuff and Slytherin. I'm glad to see that so many of you have achieved the OWLs needed to get here. So now, this year, we're going to study more delicate spells together. You'll find that many of these Charms and Spells are commonly used in Defence, Healing, or Invocation. So we should get the chance to get into very interesting stuff."

He seemed pretty excited by the prospect.

"Today, we're going to study the Shattering Spell, used to break stone. Some of you may have heard of it before," he went on.

Kenneth remembered the spell pretty well. Ian had used it last year, against a Golem in the depths of the Maze of Era. When Kenneth had asked where Ian had ever heard of such a spell, the third year had told him he had 'his sources' with a wink and a smile. It seemed that Professor Lockenburn didn't hesitate to teach his apprentice advanced magic, regardless of the usual progression of students.

"But before we get into that, I would like to seize the opportunity provided by the entrance of one of our esteemed guests in this group, to demonstrate the various uses of objects as the vector of the spells. You may already know that not all wizards are using wands."

There were stupefied expressions among the students. Kenneth frowned, puzzled, and took a look at Thierry, who was only smiling.

"Our new student can illustrate what I mean," said Flitwick, nodding to Thierry. "He will give us a demonstration on the Shattering Spell."

"Aren't you using a wand?" asked Kenneth, surprised.

"No," said Thierry. "Well, not really."

He then tapped his finger on his cane. He then raised it and it emitted a light spark.

"Staffs are a perfect example," said Flitwick to the class. "It's an old, elaborate way to channel magic that predates wands by a few centuries. The building of a staff is far more delicate to handle than a wand, because the will of the Staff is stronger than the will of the wand. A Staff shall not only choose its wizard. It will also grow and evolve with the wizard's maturity and power. Knots and twists are forming along the staff with each of the experiences of its bearer. Also, at the end of his life, the Wizard's staff can reach a size similar to that of Master Amanio's. Wizards can pass on their staff to an heir, like a wand. But unlike the wand, a staff shall take the experience of its new owner into account and sometimes, shrink back to a more modest size, only revealing the power it has acquired when the new bearer is ready to access it. As it does, it will grow again, but on a different form, based on its new owner."

"That's fascinating," said Jennifer.

"Indeed," said Flitwick. "Staffs are still made of the same woods and substances as wands. Thus they have the same uses, even if it seems a little more spectacular. Mr De Vannes, could you give us a demonstration?"

Thierry nodded, and made three steps before the line of students.

"Careful, this spell is very delicate and dangerous," said Flitwick. "Master Brünwald told me you have studied it recently."

"Yes, I learned about this spell a few months ago," said Thierry.

He took a deep breath, and made his staff swing and swirl, before to speak the word.

"Fracasso!" he shouted.

A huge flash of energy shot out of the Staff and the stone exploded at the impact, which made all the students start.

"Also, we must underline the fact that Staffs possess a potential strength which is higher than the usual wand," said Flitwick casually. "They can perform very powerful spells with a lesser risk of backfiring on the user."

"Nice," whispered Kenneth.

"Don't worry, Mr Lionheart," said Flitwick, while repairing the stone, with his own wand. "You won't be overthrown as the best spell caster of our group any time soon. Staff users still have to learn their spells."

"Don't you?" asked Thierry.

Kenneth shifted on his feet uncomfortably.

"Mr Lionheart," invited Flitwick.

Kenneth made a step forward and he focused on the stone. He tried to visualise the kind of waves he would have to make to blow up this stone, without resorting to the Fire Whip thrust he had used in the Maze of Era. Then he felt the familiar tickling in his hand, which informed him that his wand knew what he wanted to do. He raised it, and little sparks flew out of it.

He slashed it in the air, and darted the wand to the Stone, which exploded loudly, surprising every student. Flitwick had little laugh, clapping his hand with a little squeal. Thierry looked at Kenneth with eyes round as the plates of the Feast. Will put a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"You're one of us, now, dear friend," he said. "Welcome to the WACKY."

"The WACKY?"

"The Wizard Association Cheering for Kenneth Yikes," said Will, with a broad grin.

"Yikes? Why Yikes?" asked Thierry, half-laughing.

Kenneth came back to Will's side, and slapped the back of his head.

"Yikes! Because of that," said Will, rubbing his head, smiling. "Kenneth hates the idea of a fan-club."

Thierry laughed at that. Kenneth winked at him.

At the exit of the lesson, Kalindra watched Kenneth watch Julie step out of the lesson, acting as if nothing was wrong. This attitude, that the French girl had been sporting since September the first was starting to get on her nerves. Granted, knowing Kenneth, she hadn't been expecting him and Julie to run toward each other and fall in a romantic embrace with a kiss in slow motion as violins would be striking up a triumphant tune, but to see them go from hesitant attraction to completely ignoring each other was just beyond her comprehension.

She was sure there was some reason for this behaviour. And, since Kenneth wouldn't say a word, she wanted to talk to Julie about it.

But before she could reach Julie in the crowd of students, somebody called after, and Robert came running, to catch up with her. Kalindra mentally swore as the prefect was reaching her friend.

"I wanted to ask you something, Julie," said Donahue.

"What is it?" asked Julie with a smile.

"Don't be late, Julie," said Kenneth, passing by her with Thierry. "You know Snape doesn't like to wait for students."

"What's your problem, there, Lionheart?" asked Donahue, turning to Kenneth, a little too harshly for Kalindra's taste.

Kenneth only narrowed his eyes.

"I have no particular problem, Donahue," he said, with a tense smile. "I was just pointing out that Julie doesn't need to be late to the next lesson, that's all."

"I think I will handle this problem, thanks," said Donahue.

"Didn't know you had a Time Turner," said Kenneth.

"A what?" asked Donahue.

"Forget it, Robert," said Kenneth. "See the problem, here?" he said, turning to Thierry, while walking away. "How can we have a decent sparring with these guys if they simply don't know anything?"

Thierry chuckled lightly. Donahue caught Kenneth by the arm, suddenly. Kalindra saw the tension rising, both in Kenneth and on Julie's face. Kenneth was even faster in his reaction than she had thought. He made a swift move with his arm, pushing Donahue back, before he could even do anything. Surprised, Donahue looked at him with round eyes. Kenneth's were ice cold.

"Do not push me, Robert," he said with a half-smile. "I'm losing patience with the likes of you."

"What is that supposed to mean?" asked Donahue aggressively.

"You were the one picking a row, here," said Kenneth. "I was just warning Julie about the time. Don't ever think I will tolerate you coming at me again. You already know what I can do about that."

Donahue held his gaze for a moment, then shrugged and turned to Julie. Kenneth had another half-smile and walked away with Thierry.

"Wise boy," commented Thierry.

Donahue clenched his teeth, and looked at the back of the two Gryffindors. He turned to Julie and Kalindra, as if taking them as witness.

"Don't expect me to say anything," said Julie, a little coldly. "You were rude in the first place."

Donahue seemed shocked, but after a moment, he sighed.

"I guess you're right," he said. "Can you tell them I'm sorry?" he asked Kalindra.

"I'm not your errand girl, Robert," she said, scathingly, before to walk away, without paying any attention to him.

After a few moments, she heard Julie catching up with her.

"What's wrong, Kallie?" she asked.

"That's what I'd like to find out," said Kalindra. "I'm kinda wondering why my two best friends are suddenly acting like idiots and why, in the name of sanity, you're still dating that jerk."

Julie's concerned face closed suddenly.

"My relationship with Robert is none of your concern," she said.

"Apparently not," said Kalindra. "You know what? You come back to me when you finally start making sense again."

And she left her on that, speechless in the middle of the corridor. Julie seemed to be just as closed as Kenneth about the issue and it seemed unlikely that she would get to the bottom of this through her. She'd just have to keep digging with Kenneth. He was stubborn, but at least, she knew how to get through to him.

Ian and the fourth years were really enthusiastic about their first week. Today, they had Defence against the Dark Arts, in the afternoon. Ian, Kieran, Joel and Mark had taken over the task of showing Orlando around. They guided the novice across the halls and corridors of the school. Orlando couldn't really hide his enthusiasm about the place, as he kept reminding his new classmates.

"It's hardly conceivable that this castle was built by humans," he said, while looking at the main staircase, surveying each flight of stairs moving and shifting place with each other, opening new passages and freeing some that weren't reachable if the stairs didn't want it.

"Most of the construction involved Magic," said Ian. "Slytherin and Gryffindor have designed most of the place, except for the Nest. Rowena Ravenclaw wanted a place of her own doing, so she added her tower and the whole wing around it."

"What use was it to build it, if it was to fill it with losers like you?" said the familiar voice of Timothy Macke, from behind them.

They were walking up the stairs toward them. Ian suppressed a wave of hatred inside of him. If he wasn't able to control his temper, it would send Macke flying to the other side of the flight, and hopefully, down the whole staircase. No matter how appealing this idea may be, Ian pushed it away.

"I can't say it's a surprise," said Macke. "If this one can marvel over architecture like some nerd, no wonder he's hanging on with you guys."

"What do you want, Macke?" sighed Ian, with a very bored expression on his face.

"Point to the fact that no one of these precious little monks had the wits to get to Slytherin," said Macke, with a nasty smile across his face.

"I thought that most of Slytherin lacked the wits to get in Ravenclaw," replied Joel, casually.

Macke narrowed his eyes, and shot a venomous look to Joel.

"That would be assuming we want to be in your House of pathetic bookworms," he said.

"Better be a bookworm than a real worm, Macke," said Kieran.

Ian smiled at that. Macke was now about to make a step ahead and slap her. Ian stepped in his way, his eyes flashing.

"Watch it," he said.

"And once more, the Freak comes to the rescue," commented Venansius. "You're in for a wasted year, hanging on with people like this," he added for Orlando's benefit.

"Who is this guy?" asked a voice from behind Venansius.

Three Brothers were now standing near them. They were the ones in fifth and sixth year. Ian recognized the one that was in Gryffindor at the lead. He was the one who had talked.

"Need any help, Orlando?" he asked.

"Not really," said Orlando, with a shrug, "but thanks, Thierry. Macke was just expressing his views on Ravenclaw. He didn't make any sense nor was he very interesting, but he seems to love hearing himself talking, so…"

The two older novices sniggered, and De Vannes shot an ironic look at Macke.

"I doubt you'd want to make enemies out of us, Mr... Mack," he said, obviously making sure to mispronounce his name. "You'll find that we've got each other's back. Orlando, Master Amanio wants to see us."

Orlando nodded and followed them, under the piercing look of Macke. Ian faced the Slytherin.

"Aren't you due somewhere, Macke?" he asked. "I don't know… the dungeons, the Library… the depths of the Lake?"

"Clever, Malcolm," spat Macke. "Someday, I'll get you. Mark my words."

"I'm shaking," said Ian dryly.

"Maybe you should think of something bigger than a Golem, then," said Joel. "It seems the absolute minimum."

Macke strode away, furious, Venansius at his heels.

"Strange thing, these meetings," said Kieran. "Did Orlando explain what the Brotherhood was, exactly?"

"An order of wizards," said Joel. "They're studying, putting things in records, and expanding knowledge in general. How they are linked to Merlin, I couldn't get it out of him."

"Then I guess I'll have to do some research," said Kieran.

"Alright," said Mark. "You'll tell us tonight, then."

"I'm not that fast, Mark," said Kieran, patiently.

Indeed, it took more than one afternoon to find elements on the Brotherhood. Kieran came up with the solution a little later. The very next morning, during the break of ten o'clock, she showed up in the Library, sitting next to Ian, Orlando, Mark and Joel.

"I've got some information on this Brotherhood of yours," she told the young Italian boy, opening a very old looking book.

"Not that fast, huh?" said Mark, ironically.

"Maybe if Orlando wasn't so discreet, it could have saved me some time," said Kieran, with a patient smile to the novice, sitting across the table.

Orlando smiled, shrugging.

"I'm not specialized in History," he said. "You should ask Thierry. He's the walking history book."

"Well, you can still correct us if the book gets it wrong," said Kieran. "Alright, the Brotherhood of Merlin was founded by the famous magi himself, although it didn't carry this name at the time," she read. "The reader must remember that Merlin was the most powerful Wizard of his Era and that he marked History. Merlin is one of a kind Wizard, because never before him has a wizard be remembered by both Muggles and Wizards. Merlin and Morgane were the first ones, even if they had marked History through myth and legend…

"It is clear that Merlin's fate had many remarkable aspects, and his influence on the Wizarding World was major. He also is part of a select few, among wizards, who have marked both Muggle and Wizarding History, even if his mark on the Muggles only remains in myth and Legend," said Professor Binns, the ghost who was teaching History of Magic.

The lesson had been going on for half an hour. It was as boring as ever, if you had asked Kenneth, even if the subject was Merlin. It seemed that the arrival of the Brotherhood had created some kind of signal, and most of the teachers had adapted their classes to the fact that the Brothers were in Hogwarts. First Flitwick, and now Binns. But no matter how fascinating the subject may be, Binns was still as soporific as he had ever been.

"And now, we will study more accurately the life of Merlin. The birth of this very famous wizard is lost in the dark ages, and we lack facts on the matter. Nobody knows exactly when he was born or where he came from, although the main belief is that he was born in the Forest of Brocéliande. The origins of his family remain unknown. Legend says that he was an Atlantean by blood, but nothing has been proven so far."

Somebody cleared his throat, and Binns interpreted this as a question. He nodded, without looking at the one who was asking.

"Merlin being an Atlantean is actually a fact," said Thierry.

"I'd like to know how you can be so sure about this, young Mister," said Binns, with some haughtiness in his voice, without even bothering looking at Thierry.

"Well, the brotherhood of Merlin happens to be in possession of Merlin's personal records, which state clearly that his father's line originated in the Island," explained Thierry, with the same haughtiness, but some irony in the tone.

Binns raised his eyes to the young insolent, to find himself facing a young man in a monk like robes. He then must have realised that he was speaking with someone who possibly knew more about Merlin than himself. He hesitated for a while, then he came to a decision that surprised everybody.

"Could you maybe expose what you know of the subject?" he said, more respectfully.

Everyone raised an eye, or an ear from the usual nap they were taking, during any History Lesson. Thierry smiled a little shyly, and then walked to the blackboard. He took one piece of chalk, and drew a symbol, that looked like a coat of arms. It was made of a unicorn's head and was surrounded by a circle of stars.

"This is the seal of Merlin," said Thierry, writing symbols over the Unicorn. "The text above says 'Myraya, Taliea Amborea' in the ancient Atlantean language. In the old Celtic tongue, the first name was translated Myrdhin. Taliea refers to Merlin's Father, Taliesin, who came from Atlantis. Amborea means, 'from the forest', as Merlin was born in the woods of Brocéliande. It has become another name in Latin, Ambrosius. Merlin was mostly known under his Latin Name, Merlin Ambrosius."

"Is there a relation to the Minister of Magic?" asked Will, clearly fascinated.

"In fact, there is," said Thierry. "We have established recently that Cheldon Ambrosius' bloodline goes down from Merlin's descendants, on the side of nephews, or at least, from the line of Taliesin. The whole line took the name Ambrosius after the days of Merlin. Of course, Merlin had never wanted his name to be a matter of nobility, so the Minister's family never insisted on it."

"Wow," whispered Kalindra.

"Merlin was born in the Dark Ages, near 450 AD," Thierry went on. "We can't be more precise since the Atlantean calendar and our own have some difficulties to fit. He was born in Brocéliande. When he reached fifteen, he crossed the Channel to follow the teaching of a very wise witch named Nimue, who was one of the last holders of the Atlantean High Magic. He quickly became a very skilled Wizard, and also quite an accurate Seer. In his time, the Britons were led by a man called Vortigern. To protect his country from invasions, Vortigern had hired Saxon mercenaries, who turned against him. He became an easy target for a group of Wizards whose goal was to take control over Europe. They were called the Warlocks of Atlantis."

Both Kenneth and Julie raised their eyes and their eyes met for a second. They were clearly both surprised that the Warlocks had left a trace in History. The memories of the Maze swept over Kenneth and he saw that the same went with Julie, before the rest caught up with him. Kenneth looked away and focused again on Thierry, choosing not to see whatever Julie's face was showing now.

"The Warlocks sought conquest above all," Thierry went on, "and, in their view, Vortigern's subjects' will was irrelevant. But the man was ruthless and the Britons finally turned against him, causing a revolt and the rise of another leader. His name was Uther Pendragon, a warrior unaware of things like Magic. Sensing the danger of the Warlocks' influence on Britain, Merlin came to him, and told him about our world, before to give him the Sword of Power, Excalibur, that he got from Nimue. With this sword and Merlin's advice, Uther overthrew Vortigern, and at the same time, he pushed the Warlocks back to the main continent. Throughout his rule, though, he made some mistakes and finally died, facing a rival in power, one of his own Dukes."

"If Uther was ready to go to war with his own Dukes, why would Merlin advise such a man?" asked Rob.

"Because, as I said earlier, Merlin was a Seer," said Thierry. "And he had a vision of a great Kingdom, able to resist the plots of the Warlocks. He dreaded the influence of this ancient Atlantean cult on both Muggles and Wizards. So he took in his hands the task of building this Kingdom he had seen. To this end, he helped Uther to the throne, and Uther conceived a child. When Uther died, this child was raised by a little Lord of the Muggles, and taught by Merlin, in all things magic. When he was deemed ready, Merlin took young Arthur to the deserted court of Britain and presented him before Excalibur, which recognized its master. Arthur was crowned King of the Britons."

"Wow," Kalindra whispered again.

"Arthur united the country again and finished what his father had started, driving the Saxons off the Island and securing his kingdom against the Roman Empire's manipulations. The Warlocks tried to approach him before they realised that Arthur was in fact Merlin's pupil. Arthur rejected the Warlocks, as he was quite aware of who they were. He built the city of Camelot, and gathered around him many people, from Knights to counsellors, including wizards. Merlin was the most powerful magi of the age, so he was drawing followers quickly. He and Arthur gathered two brotherhoods in Camelot: The Knights of the Round Table, servants of Arthur and protectors of the land, and a more secret one, the Brotherhood of the Unicorn. It was an alliance that gathered people from all over Europe. Merlin also managed to secure close ties with the Alliance of the Wand, who was, at the time, led by Sven Thorsen's great grandson. The fact that Camelot was allied with the Wandmasters sent a signal for all dark wizards in the world: the Kingdom of Arthur wouldn't yield before Evil."

Some looks turned to Kenneth, who ignored them decidedly.

"The Brotherhood of the Unicorn wasn't bound by borders. Soon, most European wizards had joined Merlin in his fight against the Warlocks. To delay Merlin's moves, the Warlocks stole the Chalice of Life, an ancient, powerful relic, from the ruins of an Atlantean Temple. They hid it in the Muggle World, out of reach for wizards. Perfectly aware of the threat, Merlin knew he had to retrieve the Chalice before to do anything. He entrusted this task to the Knights of Camelot, who conducted a long quest, until the artefact was found by a man called Galahad. When the Chalice was secure again, it was the signal for open war. The Warlocks launched the people and creatures they had enslaved in an invasion of Europe, but Merlin's forces, both Muggles and Wizards stood in their way. The War that ensued went down in history as the War of the Unicorn. At the end of the conflict, the Warlocks were decimated, but Magic took a huge step backward, as many wizards died in the fight, on both sides. Merlin was broken by this War. He left the Muggle World and retired in Brocéliande, leaving Arthur in charge of his Kingdom. Back in his home forest, Merlin founded a new home of the Brotherhood of the Unicorn, which then began a life of study and meditation. But Arthur's Kingdom wasn't meant to last. He was betrayed by his own kin when Mordred, his son, turned against him, in spite of his mother's advice. Among muggles, Morgane Le Fey is renown for having been the reason of the fall of Camelot. In truth, she tried to help her brother. Mordred was corrupted by an unknown wizard, and betrayed Merlin and Morgane's dream. Camelot collapsed after Arthur and Mordred's death, on the field of battle. Merlin never really recovered from the loss of Arthur. Nobody knows where he went, if he died or reached another level of existence. But after Merlin's departure, the brotherhood carefully conserved all of his belongings and his knowledge in order to serve the common wisdom. We named ourselves the Brotherhood of Merlin, as a form of homage to our guide."

The silence that fell on the room was a very intense, as if one wonderful story had just ended. One could almost expect clapping to begin soon. Kenneth allowed himself to smile lightly. He was impressed by Thierry's exposé. He was convinced that Thierry was one of the most savant people he had met, when it came to History.

"Well, thank you," said Professor Binns, as he was recovering from the whole thing. "It was really interesting…er… Could I convince you to write all of this down, so I can include it in my next lessons?"

"Actually, I'm sure that Master Amanio will be pleased to give you some material covering Merlin's life and the whole era," said Thierry.

"That would be great," said Binns, clearly excited, which did shock Kenneth quite a lot.

He had never seen the ghost enthusiastic about anything. Thierry got back to his seat, next to him, and smiled ironically.

"Please tell me I wasn't as boring as he was," he whispered.

"My friend, you must have been the most fascinating lesson we got so far," said Kalindra behind him, under her breath, making him blush and Kenneth chuckle.

After the lesson, Kenneth and the others were walking toward the Great Hall to get their lunch, discussing the whole lesson.

"Say something, Thierry," asked Kenneth. "You dodged the issue, about the identity of that wizard… the one who corrupted Mordred..."

"Oh, so you were actually paying attention, then?" joked Thierry. "Well, I didn't want to create any tension, since there were Slytherins in the classroom, but the Brotherhood has to be among the rare who know who he was. That's how we got so interested in the History of Hogwarts, actually. The man was a very cunning Wizard called Elazar."

Kalindra raised her eyebrows.

"Elazar? That does sounds familiar. Does this mean…"

"Yes, Elazar Slytherin," said Thierry, nodding. "As far as we can tell, he was the first of the line. One funny thing is that his descendant, Salazar, helped to found Hogwarts because he somehow felt guilty for the fall of Camelot. Of course his own legacy kind of went off the rails, too."

"Wow, I don't know about you, but the more I learn, the less I like the Slytherins;" said Rob.

Kalindra chuckled, and kissed him on the cheek.

"Good boy," she said.

Rob didn't say anything in protest. He was red as a tomato, and he was looking at Kalindra as for the first time. Kenneth succeeded in not laughing.

The tale of the origin of the order spread quickly in the school, and soon, most students knew exactly who the Brothers of Merlin were. The brothers were making no mystery of their history, nature or goals, which were knowledge, recording, and learning. But they were rather secret over one thing.

Why were they in the school? Soon, the most idiotic rumours began to run throughout the Castle. Some said they were in hiding. Some Slytherin insisted that they were spying on the school, as a first step to the mounting of an attack on the Ministry, which was so ridiculous, that no one found useful to comment it.

"And they actually claim to have say they have wits?" said Ian, exasperated.

"You've got to understand them, Ian," said Terry. "Given that they're completely stupid, how do you expect them to be lucid on their own intelligence?"

The absolute serious of his tone, as if to excuse the poor Slytherins for their failing, made Ian burst into laughing. Orlando, sitting next to him, had a smile for Terry. They had all settled in the Library, per usual, and Terry had joined them for a short moment, which was more unusual, in fact, especially this close to the try-outs.

"The Slytherin view is not completely unknown of us, unfortunately," said the young Novice.

"What do you mean?" asked Kieran.

"Well, our main goal is knowledge, so most of us are in Ravenclaw. But I know one or two novices who would have done very well in Slytherin. Colville and Wats, for example. They have a high opinion of themselves and of the Order compared to other wizards," he explained.

"I had hoped your brotherhood would have been exempted from that flaw," said Edwin.

"Nobody's perfect," said Orlando, with philosophy in his voice.

"I wonder who Macke will go after, now that he knows that you're out of his reach," said Joel. "I mean, he could harass one of you, but not your whole group. So who do you think he'll turn to?"

"You really need to ask?" said Ian, with a sarcastic look to his friend.

"I still don't understand why we accept these freaks in our school," said Tim Macke to his best friend, Wilfrid Venansius, as they were surrounded by a large amount of Slytherin first years.

On the other side of the corridor, the subjects of the discussion were standing with their fellow Gryffindors, visibly oblivious to the rambling of the fourth year. Susan and Sven were in a discussion with Ewan. If the twins were serene as ever, the young Gryffindor was starting to get angry. He threw a look at the twins, who had this enigmatic look on their face, as if they were sharing some private thought just by trading looks, which was probably the case, given what Ian had told him.

Ewan had been able to witness the tight bond between the twins, and the way they could always speak with only half words as if the thoughts of Susan were ending in Sven's head, and vice-versa. It was sometimes disturbing, but it was also fascinating to watch, too. As the Odinsons were both very well mannered, they were always cautious not to use this ability too much, to be polite, and not to exclude anyone from their talks.

Right now, Susan had a little chuckle, and Sven smiled as someone who had made a good joke. Ewan and Chris Wagner bent near them. Since their sorting, the four had been very close, even if Ewan had found a great group of friends in his Gryffindor year.

"Care to share the joke?" asked Chris.

"I just pitied the way this guy exhausts himself over nothing," said Sven. "We wondered if his way of shouting at the rain is admirable or pathetic. Susan was settling on 'pathetic'."

Ewan smiled, impressed by the twins' nerve.

"You don't care?" he asked. "About what he says, I mean."

"What? That he calls us 'freaks'?" said Susan, shrugging. "We are freaks. We're freaks who soon will be able to kick his butt whenever we like," she added with feint arrogance.

"I'll make sure to buy tickets," laughed Ewan. "The look on Macke's face only would be worth a few galleons."

"Am I some king of joke to you, Malcolm?" said a voice right behind him.

Ewan turned and found himself looking up at Macke who had a piercing look on his face. Ewan found that he wasn't really afraid of the older boy. But he was still angry. What on earth gave this guy the right push him?

"So, what if you are?" he asked defiantly.

"I find you very arrogant, for a feeble first year," said Macke, narrowing his eyes.

"And I find you particularly annoying, but hey, you don't hear me complaining," said Ewan. "I mean, what are you going to do about it? Jinx me?"

"You'll learn not to mess with me, twerp," said Macke, his hand reaching for something in his sleeves.

Ewan was about to charge right into his stomach, the proper response if one first year didn't want to take the chance of being cursed, but he was stopped by a strong voice that echoed across the hall.

"Your hand," it said. "You put it away right now."

Kenneth Lionheart walked into the scene and threw a withering look around, as if to challenge any Slytherin to dare to make a single move. He had his own wand in his hand.

"What do you want, Lionheart?" asked Macke, very aggressive.

"Right now? I'd really like to create a huge Macke-shaped hole in this wall. But we can't have always what we want, can we?" said Kenneth.

"Are you threatening me?" mocked Macke.

Kenneth leaned closer.

"Why it does look that way, doesn't it? And they say you're stupid…" he said.

"You can't harm me," said Macke, very quickly. "You don't know who you're dealing with. My Dad…"

"Oh, that's rich," said Kenneth. "Let me finish that one for you. 'Your Dad is very influent', isn't he? Is that why you weren't expelled last year, despite conspiring against a teacher? Newsflash, Macke, I don't care who your father is. You stay away from my housemates, or you get it. Is that clear enough?"

"You're friends with the freaks, then, Lionheart?" said Venansius.

The look Kenneth turned toward the fourth year was enough to make him flinch a little.

"There's no freak in here except for you, Venansius," said Kenneth, coldly. "You're the one who tried to poison Ian last year…"

"Prove it!" said Venansius, his face closing.

"Oh, come on! Do I need proof, really?" said Kenneth, looking down at him archly.

"If you do anything to us, My Dad will get you," said Macke.

"See, I don't think so," said Kenneth. "It so happens that my Dad is a well-known Auror, with a very established reputation as a war hero and heir to a long, very long bloodline, that would make yours look like a bunch of upstarts. In fact, should my family be playing the disgusting games yours seems to relish in, I don't think you guys would come on top, at all. You'd better stop acting like a coward, and try to stand up for yourself, instead of hiding behind Daddy. After all, he's not in the castle, right now, is he? Get out of here."

"You have no order to give me…"

"NOW!" barked Kenneth.

Macke threw him a venomous look, and then nodded to Venansius. They walked away, under the looks of the Gryffindors, who had the presence of mind not to laugh.

"Is he always like that?" asked Susan to Ewan.

"Macke? I heard stories from my brother," Ewan said. "Macke has always tried to go at Ian, for any reason, since he's been identified as a Chaotician."

"He must have had a sad childhood," said Sven, seriously, before to explain, seeing the puzzled looks from Chris, Ewan and Kenneth. "Well, that's how Mum explains people's attitude when they're mean to anyone without reason."

"Don't take it personally," said Kenneth. "The guy is an arrogant jerk."

"It's not like we care," said Sven. "We got far worse from Benny, back home."

"Benny?" asked Ewan.

"Our Cousin," said Susan. "He's from a branch of the family that'd rather die than accept change. I think they surrendered to the idea of using the wheel because they had no other choice. Let's say that 'freak' is the nicest thing he had to say about us. Mum said that one day, the way he acts, Benny's going to step on the tail of a short-snout and be out of our hair, so why bother with a response? If we don't care about our creep of a cousin, why would we bother for that stupid brat?"

"I like the way of thinking of those two," said Kenneth to Ewan.

"Yeah, they're just my kind of people," Ewan laughed.

As always, Ian didn't mean to eavesdrop. He never really meant to. He just happened too often to be in position to do so. Maybe it was because he was more often in the teacher's offices area, due to his lessons with Alexander.

Nevertheless, when Ian got to Alexander's Office, in search of one of his quills, he did happen to hear voices that caused him to stop dead in front of the door, instead of knocking and entering. He slipped in his usual spying spot and opened his ears, mainly out of reflex. He could have felt a pang of guilt about this, but seriously, if he was honest with himself, what would be the point? The voices were familiar. Dumbledore, Potter and Alexander… Soon, Ian recognized the fourth voice as Master Amanio's.

"So you must wonder right now why we have sought refuge in your school," said Amanio.

"From what Albus told me, your school was attacked," said Alexander. "Do you have any idea of who's behind it?"

"Sadly, no," said Amanio. "It was more an attempt than a real attack. Intruders tried to infiltrate the grounds, and one of our Brothers caught them. He gave us a warning and I was able to secure the place. As for who did it, we have many enemies," said Amanio. "Enemies of Merlin's cause to unite the wizards of the world against Evil or people who would like to get a hand on the knowledge we collect for their own gain. And Albus tells me that you have faced the Warlocks of Atlantis, last year. I'll admit that I wasn't aware of their continued existence, but the Warlocks are a sworn enemy of the Brotherhood. I hadn't realised that the people we faced all these years ago were Warlocks," he added, for Dumbledore.

"They have been very careful not to reveal themselves," said Dumbledore. "We put a name on our enemy purely by chance."

"But the Warlocks' main purpose is to raise their lord," said Professor Potter. "They have the knowledge of how to do it, already. I fail to see the benefit they would get from an attack on a group of scholars like you."

"We are the guardians of very delicate knowledge," replied Amanio. "We have been entrusted with secrets that could change the whole world of Magic. We swore that no one would use it for the wrong ends. But still, some of these secrets could be used as a weapon or a tool in their quest for power."

"This is no ordinary school you had there," said Potter.

"No," replied Dumbledore. "This is the Sanctuary."

"The Sanctuary?" repeated Alexander.

"It's the most sacred place for the Brotherhood, the place where it has been founded," explained Dumbledore. "The Brotherhood has chapters across the whole world, but the Sanctuary is their biggest Library. And it is near the Core."

"I see," said Alexander.

"I don't," said Potter. "What's the Core?"

"I'll explain to you later," said Alexander.

"Anyway, why didn't you seek refuge with your own?" asked Potter. "It's not that you're not welcome, but if your presence is a danger to the school, we must know…"

"There's indeed a possible threat," said Dumbledore, in Amanio's place. "But we are fitter to protect Walter and his disciples than the other bases of the Brotherhood, right now."

"If the intruders have managed to step through our defences as far as they went," explained Amanio, "it means they have broken a few of our secrets. Hogwarts' defences are safer, for now, whoever our enemy is. They don't want to be exposed, or they would have mounted an open assault. The Sanctuary isn't a fortress. They can't afford to attack a place like Hogwarts."

"What do they want?" asked Harry.

"The Secrets they are after are safe, right now," said Amanio. "I hope you will forgive me, if I can't say anymore, for the moment."

"So, what do we do?" asked Potter.

"I warned the Order of the Phoenix," said Dumbledore. "They're dispatching men in Hogsmeade, as back up. And in the meantime, we must identify who the attackers were. I will need to analyse the magic of the defences that have been broken, back in Brocéliande."

"If we show up there, won't it draw attention to the fact that we're onto them?" objected Potter.

"I have an idea to avoid the difficulty," said Dumbledore. "We'll take students with us, to visit another site of the Order, there. It will serve as a diversion and also serve an educational purpose, I think."

"That seems risky," said Alexander. "That's telling everyone that some Brothers have sought refuge in Hogwarts."

"The Ministry has been notified of Walter's presence," said Dumbledore. "By this time, I can guess that a respectable number of students have written their family about the newcomers in the school. I doubt many wizards in England or France are unaware of our guests. Besides, Walter will stay here, during the visit, as a precaution."

Ian heard some noise in the hall and decided he had heard enough. He walked away, wondering if the Warlocks were involved in this and if so, what they could want with the Brotherhood of Merlin. But it wasn't sure that the warlocks were indeed involved.

But there was definitely something fishy, there. He would have to keep his ears open. It looked like his spying days were far from over.

Although, the next days were calm, Kenneth was still seething after his encounter with both Donahue and Macke. He wasn't keen on keeping his grudges. But the situation with Julie was affecting his attitude. Anyway, Donahue's aggressive behaviour and Macke's obsession in trying to discredit the Brotherhood and the twins were getting to his nerves.

"You should try to loosen up," said Thierry, as they were walking in the Hall leading to the Great Hall. "Too much stress isn't good for your health."

He had found a surprising confident in the Novice, and the French boy was actually pretty good at reading his moods.

"I know," said Kenneth. "I've got a serious history with those two."

"Yeah, Kalindra told me so," said Thierry, grinning sympathetically.

Kenneth gave up the idea of asking Thierry what Kalindra could have told him. Given she was worthy of trust, she had probably kept to herself that he was hopelessly in love with Julie, even if Kenneth's current state of mind made him doubt this, these days.

They walked across Master Amanio and Master Anselme. Thierry stopped and bowed in front of the two Masters. Amanio nodded, with a little smile. Anselme stayed as stiff as usual.

"I heard you're doing pretty well in charms, Thierry," said Amanio, with a proud smile.

"I try, Master," said Thierry. "In fact, Professor Flitwick only asked me to demonstrate the difference between wand and staff. That wasn't much."

"You're not here to accomplish feats, De Vannes," spat Anselme. "I don't want to hear a thing about you in this school. I heard Gryffindors are often involved in trouble in here. I don't want you to associate with just anybody."

"I'll do my best to stay out of trouble, Master," said Thierry, bowing again, even if there was a little tension in his voice.

"Don't be so insolent!" said Anselme.

"There, there, Hector," said Amanio, appeasing. "Try not to lose your temper. We're not here to be tyrants, are we?"

"I just try to preserve the discipline in this place," said Anselme.

"I think that, in fact, it's Professor Dumbledore's job," said Amanio. "As for our own pupils, I don't think they would suffer such a bad influence in here."

Kenneth couldn't refrain a little smile. Anselme saw it and shot him a furious look.

"What's so funny?" he asked dryly.

"I was just thinking that, so far, Thierry is actually a model of wisdom in our year, Sir," Kenneth said casually. "We're not really the easy stuff."

Amanio had an amused smile.

"There's nothing to boast about!" commented Anselme.

"Are your rules so severe, Sir?" asked Kenneth respectfully. "I admit I know nothing of them."

"They're of no concern for someone like you!" countered Anselme, sharply.

Kenneth had tried to act respectful, but the rudeness of the man was starting to get to him. He was about to retort, politeness be damned, when Amanio spoke up.

"Hector!" he said, his voice suddenly strong and impressive. "Now you are being rude! To answer your question, young man," he told Kenneth. "We have a certain discipline, but I'm afraid Master Anselme believes in it more than I do."

"Master!" protested Anselme softly. "Why would you bother replying to him? He's nothing but a boy! He's not one of us."

Kenneth raised his eyebrows. Thierry rolled his eyes.

"What is it, Thierry?" asked Amanio, who had seen his novice's reaction.

"Master," said Thierry, with a respect that didn't sound forced. "I'm not convinced we have to be so secretive about our discipline or our rules. You trust professor Dumbledore enough for us to be here, so if we can't trust his pupils, what's the point in joining them?"

"Quite true," said Amanio, with a severe look to Anselme.

"Second, Kenneth is no mere boy," said Thierry, surprising Kenneth. "His name is Kenneth Lionheart, from Clan Lionheart. He's the great-grandson of Percival Lionheart and the son of Lancelot."

Anselme's eyes shot out of his head and his face went very pale. Amanio seemed impressed, and a more decided nod to Kenneth, to the young man's shock.

"The main line, then," said Amanio. "I see the way your hair are tied, young man. I'll assume you have come into your gift, already?"

"Last year, Sir," said Kenneth, still puzzled.

"Impressive," said Amanio, appreciatively. "I haven't heard of such an early awakening in centuries. Well, I'm all the more pleased to meet you, Mr Lionheart. Now, Hector, we have things to discuss with Professor Potter."

He nodded to the two students and walked away. Anselme threw another harsh look at Thierry, and then his face went pale again, when he looked at Kenneth.

Thierry waited until they were out of sight, before to turn to Kenneth.

"You have Donahue to ruin your mood?" he said. "I've got that one. Anselme seems to be born only to make my life miserable."

"Why does he act like this?" asked Kenneth.

"He's a fanatic of discipline, behaviour and traditional rules. He wants us to live like the Monks of the Dark ages. He doesn't care if the first members of the Order were rich wizards, in quest for knowledge and meaning, ten people living where we're now a hundred. He seems to think we should act as a monastic Order, Merlin knows why. If he could order us constant silence, he would. I'm not fit with this kind of rule. So he has hated me for years, now."

"I see," said Kenneth. "What was that all about? Their reaction to my name..?"

"Ah," said Thierry. "I haven't told you, because Kalindra told me your family doesn't like fame, but for an order of scholars like us, the Lionheart bloodline is the stuff of legend."

"Excuse me?" Kenneth said.

"We know about Wandmasters, as you could tell from the exposé I gave about the War of the Unicorn," said Thierry. "Your ancestors have been part of our tradition for a long time."

"Is that supposed to be an answer?" asked Kenneth, with a twisted smile.

"Well, no, but a true answer would lead to things I'm not sure I can tell you," said Thierry with sincerity. "Not yet, anyway. It's just that I hated the way he was looking down at you. Anselme sometimes needs to be reminded he's not the almighty Lord of Knowledge."

"So you used me to score against your pet peeve?" pointed Kenneth.

"I hope you won't get mad at me like you get at Donahue," said Thierry. "I've heard things about a certain duel."

"Don't worry. You'd have to do far worse than this to upset me the way he does," said Kenneth.

That was disturbing to know that somehow, the Brothers seemed to know something important about him. It was a strange feeling. Kenneth was quite proud to know a lot on his own family History. But the reaction of Amanio and Anselme was telling him that there was something else to be discovered.

And another mystery to solve! he thought. I'm definitely not getting bored this year.

Aaand... done!

Now, it's time for a little explanation, as promised on the backstory.

Basically, this version of Merlin's story is my own creation, but I drew on several sources to create it, and I feel the need to acknowledge them.

First and foremost, I based my outline on children books I read (reading is not a right word, there, I devoured these books as a kid!) by Alex Voglino and Sergio Giuffrida, that were published in France, when I was little (like seven, eight years old).

They covered the entire life of Arthur, with gorgeous illustrations, inspired by stained-glass images. This was the first book to ever tell me that Arthur lived near the fifth century, in a country that WASN'T England, yet, but Britain. I had seen only the visuals from the "Sword in the Stone" or "The Knights of the Round Table" with Robert Taylor, which led everyone to believe that it was taking place far later. So the rise of Merlin, Uther and Arthur was based on that.

Then, inspiration from my take on Morgane Le Fay's character came from Marion Zimmer Bradley and "the Mists of Avalon" series. The positive light cast on Morgane really got to me, and I pushed it a step further, as you could see. So I made the story of the Fall of Camelot more of a tragedy without any real culprit (even the intervention of Elazar wasn't that much of an influence, really), save for Mordred's ambition. It will be revisited later, too.

Finally, including the Warlocks of Atlantis and Atlantean magic in the whole mix (including the 'Holy Grail' thing) was a necessity, because the story arc does revolve around Atlantis and its legacy, but the way of weaving it into the story came at the inspiration from Stephen R. Lawhead's "Pendragon's Cycle".

To clear up any misunderstanding, I will admit I haven't read the book. I've only read the premise and found the idea interesting. The first book in the Cycle gave me the inspiration for Taliesin, in the novel a Druid-bard in love with a princess from Atlantis and father to Merlin, but, in my story, a Prince in his own right, last of a line of survivors from Atlantis. Lawhead placed the fall of Atlantis very close to the beginning of the Arthurian legend. My take on this fall places it centuries earlier.

In most version of the Arthurian legend, the quest for the Grail serves as a peak for the story, and once the quest is complete, it's all downhill from there. I chose to make the Quest for the Grail a stepping stone for something much larger (the War of the Unicorn) and to centre it not on Arthur, but on Merlin. This is JKR's universe and Merlin had to be more important than Arthur.

The Grail also becomes a more "wizarding" artefact, rather than the religious symbol it stands for in the usual rendering of the Arthurian Legend. This is due to the historical proof that most characters in the standard Arthurian Cycle (most precisely Percival) are usually stemming from more celtic, pagan roots, and therefore, since christianty has been avoided as a whole through the entire HP universe, I felt I didn't want to include it in my fiction. So the Grail was an artefact of Magic, and its true nature will be established later.

Phewww! That's some closing comments! Now, I hope you liked the chapter. The next bit should be up soon (very soon, hopefully within two days!). I am nearly finished cleaning up the chapter. Again, I'm open to any offer for a beta!

See you!