Harry Potter and Big Sister
Chapter 4: Black Mage and the Elf.
The supper were rather uneventful, if you don't count the small chitchat between Tonk, Hermione and Ginny about the former's shape shifting ability and the showoff, and the Weasley twins whining about Mundungus do not present there to tell some interesting 'stories', or Sirius openly announced that if he's Harry, he'd rather accepted the defend against Dementors than sitting still in Dursleys' house with nothing to do, even if it'll land him in the court like this, something that Harry agreed while other just shook their head at the two rebellious godfather and godson.
Meanwhile, Aisha refused to talk while her mouth was full with food and everyone still eating, insisting that talking while still eating is a very bad manner in itself since food can be spilled on other's face when Mrs. Weasley, who noticed after half of the food were gone, that she kept silent for the entire conversation and all events going around the dining table and ask her to at least join with others. Everyone then begin to see her logic and complied for the rest of the meal just for the sake of holding some wager against her when they can finally question her after.
And an interrogation they do.
After cleared out the dining table, rid of food and drinks, everyone sat in circle around the table, Aisha next to Harry, follow by Ron and Hermione then the rest of Weasley siblings, another side, however, was occupied by Alastor 'Mad-eye' Moody, Lupin, Tonk, Mr. and Mrs Weasley, and Harry's godfather Sirius, all of them eyeing the purple haired Aisha with varied level of suspicion and what they wanted to ask in their mind.
Moody coughed, gaining attention of all occupants of the table before he begins first. "Now, as everyone already eaten, I want to get straight to the point about this 'Aisha' girl over there, but…" He then glanced at other teenagers one by one, "…better get these kids, boys and girls here, to sleep first, this's not something that kids should know!"
Pandemonium ensue in an instant when those 'kids' started shouting angrily at the ex-Auror for denying them the rights to know what's going on, Fred and George included thanks to unable to gain any information on their own with their 'Inventions' due to their mother somehow know about it and prepared countermeasure every time the meeting being held in their vicinity, Harry is the biggest protestor in all this because what Moody just said had made the memories of left out alone at No.4 Pivet Drive surfaced all the way back again, adding fuel to the fire, not to mentioned that while Sirius did not support this cause of action, he don't even tried to stop them either.
At last, it took a loud bang of a fist slamming down that shook the entire table by Aisha, of all people, that finally restored orders, she slowly glare at each of them, linger a bit on Harry, before coldly states. "I know you don't like it that they wanted to lock you out of the loop, I once been in your position myself, why shouldn't I know how you felt?" She paused a little and let her words sink in then continues. "And since you all know that I'm going to sit in this, why don't you all just asks me nicely to tell you what's going on here? It's not like I'm going to tight-lip everything you know… and they can't exclude me away either…"
Moody's face seems to become a shade of red-purple once he realized what she just implied, and so bark out order to her, cutting her off mid-sentence. "If you're going to do that, I'll have no choice but have you swears secrecy and loyalty by an Unbreakable Vow to not tell them anything if I had to!"
"And why must I complied with something that obliviously impossible to achieve from that course of action?" Aisha countered. "They lived in what basically YOUR stronghold! Their family members are member of said Order…" She glanced at Mr. and Mrs. Weasley with more or less a disapproving look. "Sure that they still tight-lip about it, but with them this near, they will found out eventually. Especially when you keep them in the dark long enough, their desires will grow and it'll drive them to find the way." She stared directly at Mrs. Weasley who glared back, no one willing to avert each other's gaze, before she speaks softly. "If you really wanted to keep them away from this 'secret', you better leave them at home and tell them that you come here for a part-time job or whatever."
"I cannot leave my children at home, they'll be at risk." Mrs Weasley explains.
"Then explain that what you're doing or trying to do, to them, so they won't risk themselves trying to find out on their own, if this job of yours is the source of said risk in the first place, Ma'am!" Aisha quickly shot back, made the older woman's frown deepen even more, angry.
"Enough, Molly, she has a point…" Mr. Weasley steps in and stop his wife before she start a shouting to get the children to bed instead, before turning toward the purple-haired girl and apologize. "I'm sorry, but as she said, sooner or later, they'll find a way of their own, and when that happened when we do not aware, things may get ugly when they try to do things their way about it."
"Indeed, at least we should let them know some information while we tell them why we do that and why we don't, so they won't run out and do things their way." Sirius agreed with the girl because, he himself although knows what's going on, but cannot do anything to help them, not even move out of this home, so he's at least wanted to make sure that other, who has the rights to know, do not get keep away in the dark about it.
Molly Weasley, seeing that she has two members against her, turned to Bill and Tonks for support, but to her dismay, even they agreed with her husband and Sirius to share at least some information to at least keep the teens in line instead of denying them because they're just a kids like she thought. Finally she sighed in resignation and sit down, nod her head as in 'Go ahead, I won't stop you anymore.' While shots a disapproving look at her husband all the time.
After all members present finally gave in, every teen suppressed their urge to celebrate right then and there, staying silent as if they suddenly realized that they don't know what to ask first, and so, the raven-haired boy is the first one to take the initiative.
"Mr. Weasley, I want to ask about…"
But he was cut off by the old ex-Auror who barks out in disbelieve of their sudden change of heart. "We're ignoring a serious issue here!" He pointed at Aisha. "Before asking anything, better we know that everyone within earshot is trustworthy first! Oh, and while we're at it, better have these kids promise not to spill it out with anyone who's not belong to our Order as well, else we have a severe case of information leak here!"
Hearing that, Aisha crossed her arms, looking directly at Moody with her purple eyes locked with the 'normal' eye of his, and nods. "So go ahead, what do you wished to know?"
Moody's eyes narrowed down, both artificial one and the real one, before he could 'interrogate' her, however, Arthur Weasley beats him up at it by asking first. "Then I'll go straight to the point, Miss Aisha, as Alastor just said, we cannot trust someone blindly during this crisis which the rest of the Wizarding world turned a blind eyes on, and your appearance to saved Harry…" He glance at Moody, who nodded in response "…made some of the more… paranoid members suspect that…"
"…You suspect that the… Dementors thingies as the kid called it, was a set up for me to dive in and save the kid, and gaining his trust?" Aisha quickly reached the conclusion.
Arthur nodded and continues. "Indeed, that's what some of us thinking, and the fact that you've used magic style that do not registered in any classification in the Ministry or Wizarding world at all, made them even more suspect, that you might be using a form of Dark Arts."
"Dark Arts…" Aisha frown at the mention of the name, clearly confused, then she realized something that shouldn't be ignored. "Wait, did you just said that if it was not the spell your kind using, it always means Dark Arts?"
It was Hermione who explains to her, in a matter of facts tone like some teacher, such is her usual habits. "It's quite exactly that Miss Aisha, spells you use… showed us when we're waiting for adults to finish their meeting…" She shifted the words around, trying to avoid landing the one whom her friend look up to in a bad position. "…they are not qualified by the Ministry, from what I've read in the law book they published, they're unidentified, and if they are not qualified then they'll categorized it as 'Suspect of being Dark Art'"
"I see…" Aisha nodded, seemingly understand.
"We're straying off topic here!" Moody barked out yet again, eyeing Aisha suspiciously. "So you're admitting using another spell that was uncategorized by Ministry, that's even more suspect than those 'Homing Stunner' earlier! Did You-know-who send you in to infiltrate us?"
Aisha sighed, while facepalm herself "It looped right back to the start, isn't it…" before she answers in a stern voice "As I told you before, if I'm sent by that man, I'd have offed Harry long before anyone arrive already, if isn't that enough to prove my trustworthy, then what?"
"Tell us about your homeland." Hermione interject her thought, clearly excited to know more about this 'mysterious homeland' of Aisha. "I know that we practiced magic in different way, one that we perceived as 'Dark' may not apply in your case so we can let it dropped."
Harry snorts mentally at that word, because he doubt that Big Sis Aisha's magic will have such classification at all due to the vast difference between hers and his wizarding magic, from his observation of course, but then again, the suspicion from the adults still stands, and so he voices his opinion. "Maybe they'll satisfied to know that your homeland is not going to associated themselves with You-Know-Who, that might ease our doubt a bit, Sis."
Aisha glanced around the table, seeing that everyone now has their attention on her, both eager, interest and doubt, the doubt parts came mainly from adults, while the eager and interest parts from the young, weighing her options mentally, she slowly, carefully answers. "If your wizardkind do not have access to powerful magic that can breach the barrier between this world and my homeland, or I do not passed my knowledge to others, then I doubt even Voldermort can find his way there."
She paused a little before continues in soft, small voice as if she do not wanted to speaks about it. "As for my own people, they're less likely to throw themselves into another conflict, the last war just ended not even three years ago, destruction was indiscriminate, live lost in a millions, every survivors are still rebuilding their home and town as I speak here, many literally from scratch and dust where it once stood, it'll take at least a decade to even grace their former glory again, some even longer…"
She trailed off, sighing and stop her tales there. Everyone stay silent, horrified at what her story could've implies, until Lupin broke it and try to shift the subject toward another less depressing but nonetheless important. "So, you are the only one who knows how to travel between the ward that secluded your homeland from the rest of our world right?"
"Yes…" Aisha replies confidently, and adds some answer to the disbelieving Moody. "In case you're wondering why I'm coming here instead of staying and help rebuilding my homeland, there's not much I can do there at the moment, everything are on schedules, and I've done my parts in… stabilizing the land with my expertise already, that, and my friends just wanted me to keep my word that I gave to Harry here seven years ago." She slaps his shoulder lightly, nothing hurt and no shock though.
"I see…" Sirius muttered, looking right into Aisha's eyes to find any sign of lying, but he found none, before speaking his thought out loud. "At least we can be certain to some degree that Voldermort…" (At this word, everyone suddenly shakes in terror, excluding Aisha, Sirius and Harry.) "…won't have backup from another source we didn't know, and that he couldn't create a secret hideout there either unless he extract the knowledge from Aisha here, which means The Order must at least ensure that he couldn't get his hand on her, or any powerful magical artifact that has some transportation capability, least we might find ourselves dealing with another armies of Imperius human from nowhere."
Lupin nodded to his old friend signifying that he agreed, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley seems neutral, while Aisha, who already know what 'Imperius' was, is snickering a little for unknown reason, and lastly Moody grumbled "Fine, at least we are not letting her snooping around without someone watching her, so I can agree with that, Sirius, or until Dumbledore stated otherwise!"
"So, this case is closed then." Sirius concluded.
"If my issue has been dealt with, then when will you explain what this 'Order of Phoenix' is all about? Seems the kids ready to go mad with it already, and I thinks that if you guys gonna keep peace in this house, then you better give a good and acceptable answer." Aisha pointed her hand in general direction where the 'kids' in question sat, well, more like teens actually, which each of them expressed it on their face quite clearly that they won't tolerate any more distractions now.
Seeing fury in their eyes, the adults looked at each other, before sighing out of desperation.
This going to be a long night…
It was nearly 2 in the morning, after constant debate between Sirius Black and Molly Weasley about every single topic they asked whether to reveal it or not, and constant protests to support Sirius belief that the teens should know something from the twins, before all the questions has been answered enough to satisfied most teens, well, mostly, because due to some circumstance has yet to explained, the adults, Sirius included, albeit grudgingly, purposefully left out some details at the last minute and shooed them to their bed once Harry, Fred and George trying to pried it further.
Of course, this did nothing to stop them from holding up a meeting after Mrs. Weasley thought they were sound asleep, well, it's more like Fred and George Weasley decided to abuse their reach of seventeenth, able to use magic without breaking the law of underage usage, by apparating right into Harry and Ron's shared bedroom to discussing about what they just heard. Apart from Aisha's revelation about her own society that still recovering from war and thus cannot provide support for Order of the Phoenix in any shape or form, even if they know how to travel between the barrier, no the Weasley twin discussing with them about Voldermort and what he's doing at the moment, especially when Sirius and Lupin accidentally slipped up that he's searching for something.
And also, all teens express their displease at Mrs. Weasley, and by extension, all the adults' declaration not to let one of them join in the Order despite they themselves opposed Voldermort and his Death Eaters, thus wanted to participate to help put a stop to the man's plan.
In truth, Harry would've burst out on his Big Sis as well, seeing that she's not even try to persuaded them to give in and let them join, if not because Big Sis Aisha reminded him that he has bigger problem to deal with on his own in August 12th and should prepare for it, not quarreling about joining the organization that his usefulness will be as good as decoration wallpaper should he not passed the trial, which means cemented his status as liar and attention-seeker boy, not to mentioned he couldn't use any further magic when they destroyed his wand beforehand.
But the discussion was short-lived when Mrs. Weasley comes to check them, thus forcing the Weasley twin to quickly apparated away before they get caught, ending the discussion, leaving both fifteen years old boys confused and slightly anger that they couldn't know anything much better than the conversation after supper at all, before they were overtook by tiredness and went asleep a few minutes later.
Unknown to the boys, there's another spectator about two floors above them, listening to the sound travelling through the old, yet still solid and intact wooden floor and brick wall, all the way up the small bed, through the pillow into the purple haired girl's ear, whose form rested on said bed, without changing her clothing as if this is the only one she had.
Not that Aisha minded wearing only these clothes though, the war with the machines, maniacs and zealots that raged in her homeland not so long ago made her to forgo all form of comforts and luxury to survives, and even when it ended, this habit just simply stuck and won't go away even three years after the war ended.
And besides, she can just clean herself and her clothing without taking it off by using her water spell anyway, so she is fine with just this limited wardrobe of hers.
Apparently, Aisha got her own room, not sharing with Mrs. Weasley nor Hermione and Ginny (Tonk cannot stay since she has work as an Auror and thus return to her home instead.) due to Moody's paranoid that she could hold her roommate hostage should things went sours, or so he reasoned, but it seem he forgot that it also giving her free reign in this personal room to do who-know-what which may or may not threaten them, without anyone figure it out until it's too late.
But when the girl thought about it, it seems these witches and wizards are not the brightest folk when it comes to stealth and subterfuge, evident by the Weasley twin's thunderous sound whenever they used their personal teleportation spell, that, and considered what she gathered from eavesdropping them, this's normal for them, thus Moody's decision came out logical because he thought that she couldn't do a thing without alerting the entire house, it seems.
Silence reign once more, now all she could hear is only snoring from one of the Weasley twin travelling though the solid matter of the house from one floor below her, and if she was to focus her power enough, she could also hear others from the lower floor as well, but it's no point to do so because she'll have a hard time distinguishing one's voice from the others, and during this sleeping period, it serves no purpose but to reminded her how fragile this peace was, and that it may shatter at any moment if the bad guy, Voldermort, did not put to a stop soon, something that's easier said than done.
'I am indeed got myself into another war, huh?' Aisha mused to herself sadly, reminiscence about her life in the past at her homeland, both before, between and after the Great War. 'Such is my fate, troubles all over the place I went, well, some might have blame the boy, but I have no delusion that some also mine wrongdoing as well… hmm!?'
After went through the war that spanned four years straight, Aisha has enough experience to know from information that this 'Order of Phoenix' willing to share with teens and her, that Wizarding world is wholly underprepared to face the bad guy, even said bad guy now has to gather his allies and build up his force nearly from scratch again, but since the head of the state is so convinced that Dumbledore and little Harry are just some fools and attention seekers to the point of possibly send in their prison guards to provoked Harry into breaking the law in self-defense, then those advantage of having more resources, manpower, and the like are all thrown out of the windows, once they realized who's the true threat, Voldermort might have snatched half of those manpower away from the Ministry already.
Of course, Aisha snorts mentally, she didn't hold optimism when it comes to evaluating dangerous incident, everything was pointing out that the Ministry was behind the attack, other possible explanations do not hold more weight than this one, it's too perfect, too much coincidence that Dementors just popped up out of nowhere, and with scores of human residence around to select as prey, including non-magical people that cannot fight back, they somehow have to tried their hands on Harry, who obliviously could see them and could retaliate.
Even they said that Voldermort can promised these despicable creatures more rewards and 'food' for serving him than serving Ministry like the last war decade ago, Aisha doubt that Voldermort will strike the deal with them this early, when he did not have any force or power to prove to them that he can deliver that promised reward, and even if he somehow did, he should know that just two Dementors won't cut it if Harry could escaped Voldermort himself not even half a year earlier like that so he would've sent a much better force if he really wanted to take out the boy, or he may...
Aisha shook her head, clearing the thought out of her mind, it's no use for her at the moment to think too much about what that snake-face (She never see him face-to-face yet, only from what Harry told her, which he himself has nothing to gain to lie about this to her, but even more to lose if she somehow face him without knowing and fall for his sudden attack.) was thinking, as she concluded earlier, it hold less weight than theory that Ministry was behind the attack, hell, the probability that Voldermort would behind it is as good as Harry able to use her style of magic with his mindset, or rather, normal human mindset, Wizarding or not, their mindset still the same from what she observed, though.
But when Aisha's about to close her eyes and get to sleep, she suddenly felt a presence in her small room, the mystical power that defined one being with magic is moving somewhere around the corner. Without a second thought, the girl jumped out of her bed, staff flew to her hands, power surged through her vein ready to unleash upon the intruder or possible attacker, however, when she pinpointed the location and started to swings her staff to meet the intruder, the small, old, raspy voice yelled out in fear.
"Please, don't hurt Kreacher, Mistress of the four Elements! Kreacher meant you no harm!"
Aisha's eyes narrowed down, trying to adjust them to darkness, and then she saw one little humanoid creature, whose height about few inches above her knee, wrapped in ragged, dirty towel around its waist, have its limply hands up front as if trying to protect itself from something preventing her from seeing its face clearly. Its small limbs that were its legs were shaking with fear of something with more authority than him.
Seeing that the creature meant her no harm, she lowered her staff a bit, but the power within and the nature around her still ready to protect her if it try something funny, although that never come, even when she knelt down to inspect the creature more closely, her purple eyes slowly taking in details, the ugly face with disproportion nose bigger than it should be, the many wrinkles, some strands of white (?) hair then and there that should found on an old man, and… pointy ears that share some similarities to those she knew back in her home, although this creature clearly has a more ugly version of it.
Curiosity gets the better of her, and thus she greets the creature with her question, trying to be nice as much as possible to at least make a good first impression on the little creature. "Hello, there, my name is Aisha, nice to meet you. Are you somehow an elf of some kind?" Her eyes glanced at his pointy ears as if to explain where she got that idea from.
Kreacher suddenly stiffen, his eyes looking at the girl knelt down next to him, and then he spotted the staff at Aisha's side, his nose seems to sniffing out something in the air that no one could smell, then he approached the purple-haired girl, and speaks back with surprisingly polite tone that he never used with anyone in No.12 before, if you don't count the picture of Sirius's mother that is "Mistress of the four Elements… Kreacher did not deserve to be called by such noble name of the old one. Kreacher is but a lowly house-elf, nothing more."
"House elf? I heard the boy two floors down called you as such." Aisha muttered, surprised that she actually found the one that supposedly took care of this house, although terrible at it, in the middle of night where everyone supposed to sounded sleep...
Kreacher's eyebrow twitched at the mention of Weasleys who came to lived here, kept his mouth shut, saying nothing, but that's all it take for Aisha to realized that this house's caretaker do not pleased with those that suddenly barged into his responsibility that much. Aisha's eyes narrowed down on the old house-elf as if she was trying to read his intention, before asking it bluntly in his face. "I'll straight to the point, what are you doing here?"
However, the house-elf attention is now on the metal rod protruding from the floor that is her staff she planted there, he eyed the item warily before turn his attention to Aisha and asks his question in return. "Kreacher wished to asks, where did you found this treasure of The Old One, Mistress of the four Elements?"
"Old One?" Aisha repeated, clearly confused of what the house-elf was saying.
"Your staff, Mistress of the four Elements, It was The Old One's creation." Kreacher explains as a matter of fact.
"Oh, this?" Aisha stretched her hand and touches the staff in question, while her sight seems to drift away into the sea of memories. "A friend of mine forged it for me many years ago, using the arts that no human can hope to match, and I carried it with me since then." She's slowly rubbing it with her hand. "…it saved my life, and said friend so many time that I lost count already."
"The Old One… still alive?" the old house-elf's eyes nearly bulged out of its sockets, suggested that whatever this 'Old One' was, it's significant to the house-elf.
Aisha noticed Kreacher's reaction, she look right into its eyes and asks for the second time. "Your name's Kreacher, aren't you?" The house-elf nods at the question instantly, "So I ask you thus, why did you called me 'Mistress of the four Elements'? Why did you imply that my friend who forged this staff is one of this 'Old One' of yours?" She paused a bit and let the questions sink in, before asking the last question. "And lastly, what is this 'Old One'?"
Kreacher coughed a few times, before bowing its head down at her feet and rambles. "Kreacher do not deserve to be called his name by the Mistress of the four Elements, Kreacher is even more unworthy to be call his name from the friend of the…"
"Cut the drama please…" Aisha interrupted its rants mid-sentence. "If I do not called you Kreacher, then what you wished me to call you? But that's not the point, answers the questions, if you would, please." She added.
The tiny house-elf nodded, before slowly answering each question as ordered, no, requested. "Kreacher called Mistress of the four Elements as Mistress of the four Elements because of the power that Mistress had over the great mother-nature that is the root of us all…" These words will surely makes Hermione quickly turn to look at Aisha as if she is something never before seen by anyone, if she was present there that is, while Aisha just nods and motioned the house-elf to continue. "For second question, The Old One's power still lingered in their masterpiece, Mistress of the four Elements, and Kreacher can sense it."
"…" Aisha's eyes narrowed down a little, not because she's angry, but because she's interested in the little house-elf's explanation already, so she didn't say anything beyond motioned him to continue again, and so he did…
"As the last question, The Old One is the progenitor of all house-elf, Mistress of the four Elements… they're the one who uplifted us, made us into something better than animal. It was from what Kreacher's mother, and Kreacher's mother-mother told Kreacher long time ago… That, in ancient time, after being uplifted by the Old One, our ancestor demanded too much, ungrateful of their help, making pacts with wizards and witches of the ancient time to help us usurp them, conquered them, taking all of their treasure as our own, but they're too powerful, nature are on their sides…"
"They won the war we created. Yet they do not kill us for our betrayal. They leave us, moved away from our realm long before Merlin ever born in Camelot, and we serves human ever since due to the pacts our leader in that time made with them… to be in servitude of Wizardkinds forever whether win or lose against the Old One, and that pacts stand to this day… and Kreacher will upheld it as a punishment for Kreacher's kind's sins."
Aisha thought back to her friend on the other side of the barrier, she's older than even her great-great-great grandfather, but she never once mentioned creature like this house-elf having before, nevertheless, she nodded and pry further. "I see… did all the house-elf known about this story?"
Kreacher shook his head, denied her claim in raspy voice. "No… No… Mistress of the four Elements, no house-elf of this age ever remembered that anymore, it was blight in our history, no elder will ever know it, no one, except Kreacher's great, great, great ancestor and some house-elf in very-very old family that came before even Merlin will ever know that the Old One once walked this land."
Seeing that it was a tales, Aisha knew that she cannot gain any more reliable information than this, thus no point in probing further. "I see… but you still didn't explain yourself, Kreacher, Why… Are… You… Here?" She stressed the question again.
The house elf eyed Aisha warily, hesitated, unsure of what to answer for quite a while, which would've send the girl in rage and choke the answer out of him already… if she still fifteen years old that is… by now, she's matured enough to know that such method only forged hate and mistrust among those who involved, only viable if they're already hated each other to the point of never getting straight answer out that is…
And since this house-elf, from what the habitats of this house, albeit recently, like Sirius, Ron and his Weasley siblings, spoke about him, warned her to be wary of due to its eccentricity, yet he seems to treat her nicely, no malice intention in his eyes, no body language that signifies hiding something to her, all was trustworthy thus far, so she decided to played it nice with him and gave him benefit of the doubt.
Looking at the house-elf who has yet to stop shaking, Aisha sighed, standing up and tell him. "Fine, if you don't want to tell me then so be it, but please, do not get into someone's room unannounced, ok, I know this room once belongs to someone else who once lived here, not me…" She quickly added when she remembered how he feels about this 'Order of the Phoenix' intrusion. "…but for now, it is my room, at least asks if I'm still here or not before barging in, can you do that?"
The house-elf stay silent and Aisha took it as a sign of acknowledgement, so she sat down on her bed, ready to plummet into dream world when he calls out. "Mistress, wait!"
Aisha glanced back at Kreacher with annoying look, muttering to herself "Seriously, did this land has a tradition to wait until one's going to give up his or her question and let you go before you can finally confess something that you wanted to say to them?"
Kreacher shook his head, making the girl sighed yet again while plummeting her head down on a soft pillow, purple eyes locked at the old caretaker of 12th Grimmauld place signifying that she still listening to him, and also said to him that he should hurry up and tell her whatever he has in mind now or she won't listen anymore, for this night that is.
Looking around cautiously, the house-elf raised his finger to his mouth, asking her not to make any noise, and then he vanished right before her eyes!
'Well, I should've know it… even house-elf that fallen from the 'Old One', they still better than human magic users of this land, consider they make just small 'pop' sound, unlike mine which has nothing to indicate its use.' Aisha mused to herself, and a minute later, the elf returned, with a small locket which she couldn't make out the detail of color due to darkness cradling in his hands, but she didn't have to see to know that something… evil, and malicious are lurking, clinging to that item in Kreacher's hands.
Her eyes narrowed down, jumped up on her feet in an instant, hand on her staff which quickly pointed at the locket. "What's that thing?" She demanded in serious tone. "Where did you find it? Kreacher… no… that's not important… drop it to the ground, NOW!"
The house-elf complied and put the thing down on the floor, slowly back away from it so it lies between her and the house-elf, both looking uncomfortably at the item, and in case of Aisha, magical power surged through her body ready to defend herself should the thing suddenly sprang up and attack them, for a while, before Aisha finally breaks the silence, while still keep her guard up, attention partially on the locket the whole time. "All right, Kreacher, where did you find it? And what purpose do you have in bringing it to me?"
Kreacher said nothing for a minute, which is long enough to irritate Aisha to the point of consider a small 'interrogation involving electric shock' on Kreacher due to the tension of having unidentified malicious locket sat next to her without knowing what the hell it is, before the house-elf finally start explaining, saving himself in the process without knowing it. "It was a long story, Mistress of the four Elements… Kreacher know not if Mistress will be patience enough to hear the story that Kreacher will tell out, but…"
"…but I want to hear it." Aisha said it firmly, decided that if the house-elf trying to tell her some story, then the thing is not something dangerous to the point of warrant immediate attention, but her voice still on edge telling that she still minded it a lot. "At least I have to know what I get myself into, and I hope that you will not lie to me." She shot Kreacher a glare, serious expression on her face.
Even they're in a dark room without any light source to see each other clearly, of course, Kreacher couldn't see the girl's serious face from this distance, yet, there still an aura emanating from her form which no normal Wizards or Witches could sense, but he could sense it, and that was more than enough to tell that she'll not tolerate liar about this one, and so the house-elf began his tales.
"Long ago, there are two boys who was the candidate heir of this house, Mistress…" Kreacher's eyes drafted toward the ceiling, as if to recall his memories. "One you've met today, Sirius, he's the blight of the Black family, refused the ideology that Black house upheld for generations… another was a great follower of pureblood way… he joined with the Dark Lord…"
Aisha worked her mouth a bit, but then decided to let Kreacher continues his tales in silent, and then it reached climax, in one day during time of the first Wizarding war, he was drafted by this younger brother of Sirius Black, current owner of this house, to accompanied Voldermort on a mission which nearly cost his life has not for the order of his master to return home, but even then, death claimed his master's life instead as a price to pay for bringing this dark treasure of the Dark Lord away from its master's hiding.
…A cost of betraying one's master, albeit because of realization that what he has done was terrible and must be stop at all cost…
"Kreacher has been ordered to destroy this artifact decades ago, when the head of the Black house, the Mistress in the picture at the hallway… still alive…" he sniffed at that word, tear welled up in his eyes, voice shaken. "…no matter what Kreacher done, it persisted, the magic, the vile being that the Dark Lord stored inside it do not gone, it was beyond Kreacher, beyond what the sinned one like us can do…"
Then the house-elf sidestepped around the locket, moved toward the girl, and bows down, its head to the floor. "Please! Kreacher know that Mistress of the four Elements opposes the one such as Dark Lord, oppose those who seek to destroy. Kreacher beg of you, to fulfill Kreacher's little master's dying wish, destroy this thing. Please do not let his death be in vain…" He pledged at the last word, a drop of tear fall down to his feet.
Aisha crossed her arms, then order sharply. "Stand up, Kreacher, and look at me." When she saw the house-elf doing as she asked, she continues. "I ask you thus, why do you trust me with this secret? What make you think I am trustworthy? We just met literally a few hours ago, not to mention that, given other people's attitude…" She trailed off, motioned toward downstairs, where young Harry, Weasley family, one ex-Auror, one last true heir of the Black family and his best friend who happened to be werewolf, to tell Kreacher what those 'people' she was referring to. "…You seem to mistrust and despise other people here, for one reason or another, why trust me? Oh, just call me Aisha is fine, don't need to add honorific yet." She chuckle at the last word.
Kreacher shook his head, and then explains to the slightly confused and slightly annoyed 'Mistress of the four Elements' with polite, even tone, like stating a matter of fact. "Those guests are the violation of late Mistress's orders, to the idealogy that Black family upheld, the pure-blood way, but the last true heir, Sirius Black, let them in, so there's little Kreacher could've do but stated that his Mistress will not approve of…"
Then its large eyes stare at Aisha with some kind of confidence, and stopped calling her that overly long title, but still add honorific regardless when he explains. "But Mistress Aisha is different, mother-nature entrusted Mistress Aisha with her power, mother-nature's authority preceded all of us who born of her, even if the Wizardkind do not acknowledge it, and mother-nature will ever trust such power to anyone but those who prove themselves worthy of mother-nature's power."
Even if the logic of the house-elf sounded strange, Aisha was sure to hide her expression well, she glanced at the house-elf, and find no indication that he might lied to her, meanwhile Kreacher adds more of his thought, his eyes occasionally look at the staff on her hand. "One more reason that Kreacher can trust Mistress but not the Wizards, is that Mistress has been granted a gift of the 'Old One', they will not bestowed it upon those who they not trust completely, Mistress, not after our ancestor's betrayal eons ago… and if Mistress to suggest that Mistress stole it, then the aura of power emanating from the staff would be vastly different than what Kreacher sense right now. So, Mistress Aisha is trustworthy in Kreacher's eyes."
"Fair enough…" Aisha muttered, clearly impressed and surprised that her friend's ancestor once walked this land, and leave a good impression to be told even the time passed long after they were gone, she is now make sure to not forget to asks her friend once she can contact them.
Then she turn to deal with the issue at hand, she eyed the locket warily, then turn to ask Kreacher with a whisper as if fear that whatever lurking in it will hear. "Kreacher, if my trustworthy issue has been dealt with, then what make you confident that I can and will be able to destroy this treasure of Lord Voldermort?"
"Nothing ever has greater power than mother-nature, Mistress Aisha, nothing will…" Kreacher stated confidently. "Mistress has been entrusted with mother-nature power, so Mistress can lend her power to destroy this unnatural creation."
Aisha scratching her head with her free left hand while replies with conviction. "Well, better try it now, I know not if I can destroy it, but to left it like this is not an option either. Who know what it could do if left alone, or worse, someone get a hold of it and triggered something in the future."
With those words, the small frame of her body suddenly moved, staff lifted up and then barreling down toward the locket on the floor in a blink of an eye. A loud metal clashing sound echoed through the dark room along with small spark flying from the frame of the locket, yet the cursed item nor the staff crafted by 'Old One' didn't even scratch or dent despite she swung it down with her strength enhanced by magic!
Before she could formulate a new plan of destroying the locket, suddenly the object in question started releasing a silver smoke, it oozing out from non-existent pore or hole on its body, and instead of dispersed out around the air and, the smoke held firmly together, forming a silver cloud in front of the one who attacked its origin earlier.
Aisha watched the cloud carefully, while also glanced at Kreacher who quickly hide behind her, watching fearfully from the sideline, his face clearly shown that he didn't expect this to happen as well. In her mind, she pondering the purpose of this smoke, while simultaneously realized her mistake from Kreacher's word earlier about his attempt to dismantle it, that she should've blasted it with some form of very strong magic instead, but now, it's too late, and she now has to face the smoke that started to form itself into a figure in front of her.
The smoke suddenly shone a dimly lit light out of itself, revealing the form of a middle-aged man, with one eye covered in grey eye-patch thanks to the nature of the dust that cannot change its color, and then its mouth began to open.
"What's up, you tiny brats" The voice seem to echoed not from the smoke itself, but from somewhere far away, adding to the dark room and silent of the night, it fit perfectly to the spooky atmosphere of those founded in ghost stories.
Aisha's eyes widen in recognition of the figure, and seem the figure itself know that too from the next sentence it speech boomed like a thousand voice echoed throughout the small room. "You remembered me… of course, your first kill! Why wouldn't you? I just wanted to be rich, just wanted to become famous, and then you brats come along and kill my men, kill me! Hunt me from forest to the end of the earth!"
Lacking response from any other occupants of the room, which Kreacher hid behind Aisha's legs, peeking out to look at it fearfully, and the girl herself stay silent, eyes narrowed down, the figure continues. "What I have done wrong to you three? You three answered the call from senile old man which barely keeps his village together! Then hunt me down! Is this a justice? Are you satisfied with me dead now? No… you went on and kill again and again without stopping!"
The smoke shifted once more, turning into a shape of woman head with emotionless eyes and a giant ball attached to her forehead, color remain silvery as always, then it spoke in feminine voice "You destroy my people, my kingdom, all crumbled into dust in your quest for power! Did you see them as machine so you judged that they have no soul?"
"What is this Aisha, what is this? You kill us all for the sake of getting more of your power, for the sake of those senile men and women who thought that peace can be achieved through power!" the figure then turned into a formless head whose features couldn't recognized at all, as if it was a thousands upon thousands of face to choose from, but the smoke couldn't decide which would best suit to torment the girl before it.
Until it settled for a certain spiky, messy haired boy, without glasses staring at the girl, his eyes set his sight on the purple orbs before him. "You're just a power monger brats! Aisha, you just wanted to gloat that you're the best of the best so you could just look down on everyone, even me! Who saved your ass more than once! But in truth your word are just as empty as your soul, mankind ill need a woman such as you!"
"To tell you the truth, I never once love you! And I have no doubt that no one will!"
It was then that Aisha decided that the thing has crossed some hidden line and sprang into action, suddenly, a blow of wind swept through the smoke, shattered it, and constantly disrupt its attempt to take form of another person's face by whirling in cycle around the locket, as if the object has created a whirlwind around itself.
A sound of metal clanging echoed once more when Aisha planted her steel staff down on the floor, she then mutters, seemingly to the smoke than to Kreacher, with her face harden, a mix of sorrow, rage, and regret. "Everyone has their flaw and mistakes, you're right, I'm once as bad as you described… and those who died because of me may never forgive me, for killing them myself, or for sending them to die on order… or necessity of the many…"
She glared at the smoke and then speaks with resolve. "…But no matter how much I regret what I've done, the past cannot change, it'll remained that way for eternity, no dead can be brought back, no deeds can be undone, only thing that will change is the future, where we use the past as a lesson to strengthen ourselves, to be a warning that will not let ourselves fall down the wrong path, to not make the same mistake yet again. And that's what we human do to make amend on our past action. Now, begone!"
With that word, a blue flame ignited on the whirling smoke, burning it into nothingness within seconds, however the dim light from the locket still glowing on the ground defiantly at the display of Aisha's power over its illusion and trickery that played on her memories during the bad day of her life.
She then drew her staff up, hold it firmly in her grasp pointing at the offending object on the floor, her eyes shot one glance at Kreacher at her feet as well as warning coming out of her mouth. "Get out of the room now Kreacher, I know not how much power needed to completely destroy this artifact, and I'll better safe than sorry when dealing with such foul magic like this…"
Kreacher slowly back away from Aisha, but his eyes still look warily at her, and then the room, something that Mistress understood without the need to look at him the second time, so she spoke out seriously "I cannot promise that this room will be wholly intact afterward, but I'll try to keep collateral damage to a minimum, after all, we can't afford having other people here to mad at me, or in your case, the memories of Mr. Black Jr. to mad at you, right?"
"Indeed Mistress, Indeed…" Kreacher nodded in understanding.
"So get out now, and we can get this over with!" Aisha ordered, and Kreacher obeyed, with a 'pop' sound and he was gone, so Aisha took a deep breathe, power courses through her vein, natural energy which flowing through the air since the birth of universe began to move at her will, the air around the artifact started to heat up as she concentrate her spell while moving toward the accursed artifact until she was right next to it…
And then it burst into flame…
A blue fire erupted around both the girl and the small locket, twisting and whirling around them in circle akin to the earlier twister, the flame then expanding, from just a small ring into mini-tornado that engulfed everything, Aisha and the locket included at the epicenter, a smell of the wooden floor which begins to catches fire mixed with a burning blanket, and a faintly smell of melting, hot metal.
The blue light of flame illuminating Aisha who stood still, eyes on the locket, ignore the raging inferno all around her as if it was nothing but a hot air blowing pass her, however the locket at Aisha's feet was another story entirely, its frame started to deform right before her eyes, drip of molten red metal fallen onto the flaming wooden floor drops by drops, losing its original color, and then, when the frame was half-melted, a faint scream echoed from the molten locket, and with it, the artifact suddenly crumble to dust…
Flame continues to burn around the room for a while, strangely that this burning smell did not awake anyone inside the Grimmauld place to investigate what was happening at all, maybe she have to owed it to Moody who settled her on the third floor with no one who slept above her, since the plume of fire always rise up and not going down, so it's understandable that they'll unable to detect or sense that the place is burning right over their head.
Seeing that the locket was destroyed, Aisha waved her free hand, and then, from her feet, a patch of ice started expanding outward, clashed with the raging inferno, extinguishing them, turning into hot vapor floating upward, the bright blue flame then turned orange, signifying its decrease in temperature, shrinking rapidly when the ice cover all the fuel, namely wooden floor, cupboards and blankets with a cold, glassy blue sheet and soaking them wet when melted, finally the magically created fire has nothing to consume anymore when Aisha stopped supplying 'fuel' both magically and physically to them, and thus they vanished…
Standing alone in the middle of a soaking wet, slightly burned room, Aisha eyed the last spot where the locket once was cautiously, as if she was trying to determine whether whatever the curse, the things that resided in the locket is truly gone, and not possessing anything around here instead, a small 'pop' can be heard behind her, yet the girl didn't care about that, even when a small footstep came closing on her, until it stopped just a few inches from her that Kreacher's voice spoke from there. "Mistress, is it finally gone?"
Aisha took a deep breathe, eyes closed for a few seconds, moved her head left and right slowly, then turned toward the house-elf, knelt down to level her eyes with his, and replies. "I cannot sense it… that evil power… anymore, if you ask me, I think it's indeed gone…"
Kreacher seems ready to kneel down and thanks her, but Aisha interrupt him first. "But it seems that something hadn't gone to alert other people after seeing all those displays…" She then looked up at the doorframe, which still shut and call out. "Come in now, Harry Potter!"
Kreacher, who was confused to what Aisha was referring to suddenly let out a gasp when the door swung opened, revealing a boy with messy jet black hair wearing glasses in robe behind it, who slowly steps into the room, on his hand was a transparent sheet of cloak, his face a bit red with embarrassment of being caught, before he asked. "How can you know I'm watching you, Big Sis?"
"How could I know?" She repeated his question with amusing tone, and then explains. "Whatever technique you used out there may fool vision of the eyes, like this old Kreacher here Harry, but it doesn't fool other senses."
Kreacher stiffen a bit at the mention of his name, but choose to stay silent, its big eyes observe the duo with curiosity, while Harry himself only glanced at the house-elf for a second before return his attention to Big Sis. "I see…" he spoke, slightly impressed that his Big Sis didn't have anything on her person that might have the same properties as Moody's magic eye, yet detected him anyway. "So, is that's one of Voldermort's weapon?" He tried to start a conversation, but know not what to do, so he begin with speculation about what his Big Sis just do.
However, that made Aisha chuckled a little, sat on her bed, laying staff down while asks him back, straight to the point. "So, how much do you overheard us talking? You know, eavesdropping is not a good way to make first impression, especially when the host didn't invite you to come."
Her eyes glanced at Kreacher a second, along with Harry who realized what his Big Sis was trying to implied, so he knelt down toward the house-elf, and then greet him. "My name is Harry Potter, I'm sorry for trespassing in your master's properties, but everyone insisted that… that…" he stuttered, tried to find a good excuse to apologized the house-elf, but found none that do not painted his friends, their parents, alongside every Order of the Phoenix member in bad light, something that conflicted in his mind, because on one hand, they're keeping him out of the loop, only showed up when things seem to get out of hand, but on the other, they still care for him, and did that because they thought it would be best for him.
It was then that Kreacher make the initiative by bowing to him and mutters honestly. "If you're Mistress Aisha's younger brother, and if Mistress see you as such, trusted you as such, then Kreacher have no objection, and you are always welcome here, like Mistress Aisha, for the trust she had in you, and for the deed she done to fulfill Kreacher's little master's last wish." He then looks at Aisha with respect.
Harry blinked in surprise, he expect something rude, something insulting from this house-elf due to those stories Ron, Weasley twins, and his godfather told him, he didn't expect this kind of polite greeting at all, moreover, it seem that Big Sis Aisha have something that managed to pacified, and garnered the house-elf's respect akin to those owner of the house despite she's not one, in fact, it's ironic that Sirius told him that Kreacher only obeyed him out of duty, not respect like Big Sis, which brought him back to the conversation he eavesdropped earlier…
"Big Sis, what does that 'Mistress of the four Elements' mean?" He quickly asked, and then shut his mouth up once he realized what that question will implied, but it's too late.
Aisha pointed her finger at him triumphantly, air of maturity she always project faltered completely. "Aha, so you've eavesdrop us indeed, kid!" Then she narrowed her eyes, looking at him inquisitively. "So, how long did you remain behind that door? And more importantly, why didn't you go to sleep as a good kid?"
"Er…" Harry looked down on his feet, and then apologetically explains, too embarrassed to face his Big Sis directly. "I just sort of cannot sleep, Sis, too much information to think about and I slept during the day earlier as you told me..."
But Aisha quickly interrupted. "…I don't' think there's much to process about, consider how vague they tried to make it sound…" then she tried to mimic Lupin's words in a very mocking tone "…Something he wanted to possess, like weapon? Yeah, right… I think they just don't want us to know what they're talking…"
"What are you trying to tell me, Sis?" Harry still not understands.
"There're many ways to interpret that, kid, even 'information' is a weapon, plans and strategies are also weapon, you cannot assume that 'weapon' will means only just… well, weapon…" Aisa explains.
Harry gives his Big Sis's word a thought then nods. "I see, sorry for bothering you with this nonsense Big Sis Aisha." He apologizes to her.
Aisha waved her hand lazily, slowly laid her head on the pillow on her bed, which miraculously survived the onslaught, then replies. "Don't be, you're still angry and conflicted because of what those people told you, so rational thought might be hard to do…" then she spoke in serious tone. "You better practice controlling your emotion, kid, letting it clouded your mind during the worst crisis will only put you and your friends in even more danger, not mentioned you may play along your enemy's plan like a puppet on strings…"
"I'm trying, Sis, I'm trying, but it'll be hard…" Harry promised.
"Hope it's not empty promise then." Aisha warned him, and proceeds to another subject. "To sate your curiosity earlier, Kreacher referred to me as… well, you heard it already… and that brings me to attention of something here… wait a minute Harry…" then she shot a glance at Kreacher, who look back as if to ask what task she wished him to do then speaks to him kindly. "You should get some rest, Kreacher, I know you're worries about your deceased master's house, but after all these decades of torment which you cannot tell anyone and cannot do anything, you deserve it…"
Seeing that the house-elf do not complied with her request, she sighed, then guessing what he thought out loud. "You wished to preserve some of the treasures of your late master isn't it?"
Kreacher nodded, prompt Aisha to continue. "…well, as long as the objects in question do not possess some… unwanted properties…" she glared at the floor, where the locket once was to emphasis her point. "…I won't mind if you tried to sneak them out when I'm around, which I'm quite sure I will, considered that those 'adult' seems to saw me as another kid… or rather, another nuisance…"
She chuckled a bit, making the house-elf nervous, and then she continues. "…I might be tasked with the cleaning alongside them, anyway, and since you're the caretaker of this house, we…" she glance questioning look at Harry, who decided to comply with a nod. "… might need your help in clearing all the mess, you knew everything in this house, correct?"
The house-elf caught on the underlying meaning behind those request, he sniffed, and shedding tears from his big eyes with his hand, and then replies. "Mistress has done so much for Kreacher, Kreacher will never forget! Kreacher will do as Mistress asked, Kreacher will go now."
With a small 'pop' sound, the house-elf was gone, leaving one teen and one woman alone in the room…
Aisha looked at the last place Kreacher once was for a moment, before letting out a tired sigh. "Now that's another problem being dealt with…" She then rolled on her bed, then motioned at Harry, and look toward the ground. "Well, my room just trashed a few moment ago, so if you want to sit, then on the ground please." She spoke mockingly.
Harry looked at the soaking wet floor, then shook his head and snort at her. "Well, that's not nice of you, Big Sis…"
Aisha yawned a little, then look directly into the boy's eyes. "Well, there was a custom in my land to not sharing bed with other unless both of them were married. And I prefer to keep it that way."
Harry's face reddened at her explanation, then quickly shift subjects back to the beginning. "Big Sis, you're leading me away from my question again, are you not?"
She giggled, and then confirms his speculation with an answer. "Of course, but seem I've toyed with you a bit much right?" and then she tell him what Kreacher told her in details along with some vague explanation about what that smoke which raised from 'Voldermort's treasure' did as well.
"It tried to bring back my worst memories during the war in my homeland…" Aisha explained, then chuckled a bit. "It seem that Voldermort actually made a compact version of that 'Dementor' thingies don't you think?"
"Well, I guess more worries for us, if he spread such things around…" Harry shuddered at the thought of such artifacts lying around, waiting for unsuspecting people to pick it up and experience their most painful memories over and over again. Thus he quickly shifted subjects toward 'The Old One', asking what they are and how come Big Sis Aisha knew one of them.
This caused her to giggled, looking at Harry mockingly then stated bluntly. "You've already met one of them, Harry!"
"Huh?" Harry was dumbfounded by this declaration, his eyes narrowed down, searching his memories, trying to find a clue, which made Aisha nearly laugh out.
Decided that leaving the teen in the dark for much longer will be detrimental to his health due to its already 3 in the morning, she reveals. "You remembered Rena, aren't you? The girl with neon-green hair that always wears earmuffs all the time?"
Harry's emerald green eyes widen in recognition, he then ask in surprise. "What? I thought that progenitor of house-elf would look like…" he paused for a while then continues "…well, house-elf, not human."
Aisha let out a sigh and asks him. "Did you never notice why she never took off her earmuff? Because she has the same ears as Kreacher's you saw earlier! And as a plus, she was about my age when my great-great grandfather hasn't even born."
Harry's eyes widen at the revelation, he never thought that progenitor of house-elf will be the like of the noble-looking girl like Big Sis Aisha's friend whom he only see a few time at all! And Aisha seemed to notice his reaction too, so she yawned lazily then said. "And that's all for today, I doubt that you'll have any more questions to asks, oh, and as you know it, I won't teach you my magic yet. So get to sleep, those so-called 'adults' had prepare tasks for us to do tomorrow, isn't it?"
The-Boy-Who-Lived couldn't find any counter argument to that at all, since Mrs. Weasley made it clear in the dining room already that they're to help her clean this mess of a house tomorrow, and it might stayed that way until he's going to face trial… speaking of which… he sighed in frustration that he cannot do anything beyond going through all the law books to find some good excuse to use in court, and that Aisha might have to be present there too, which worried him if they'll mistook her magic to be 'Dark Art' and arrest her on the spot or not, after all, Moody suspected her as such when she just used modified Homing Stunner Charm, what's to says about other she had in her arsenal?
His presence still noticed by his Big Sister despite she already closed her eyes and turn toward the wall, she muttered annoyingly to him. "Go to your bed kid, it's not good for your health to stay out late like this!"
That snapped him out of his thought, maybe she was right, he's thinking too much without anything fruitful coming up at all, better go to sleep to clear his thought, so he move out of the room, closed the door with a parting word "Good Night Big Sis Aisha."
"Un… Night… Harry…" She mutters one last time, and then Harry slipped back toward his room silently, slowly cover himself in blanket without awaken Ron, and fall into sleep the moment his head touched the pillow…
Then the No.12 Grimmauld place went silent, all habitats at rest, prepare themselves for the tasks that awaited them in the morning…
Author's Note: Well this one is a bit longer than expected.
Hope that I do not portrayed anyone in the story wrong or out-of-character. If you spotted one, please tell me.
And thus the third Review nailed it right in the bull's eye. Yes, this 'Aisha' is indeed Aisha from Elsword Video game. It seems I have to move this story to 'Crossover' section soon, maybe next chapter I think.
Review or comments are welcome, see you next chapter.