Welcome back to another Chapter of "Bad Moon Rising", in which we meet Tomoe Makoshi, a few members of the ICE, and see Scáthach be a doctor.
Also, I got an editor! Everyone give a big thanks to Politically Problematic Prose Pundit for turning my ramblings into something more readable.
On with the show.
Harry Potter, October 15th.
Harry stands in the entrance hall, watching as the foreign princess glares down at Umbridge. While Harry can't see her face, by how she takes a wary step back from Makoshi, the toad-like woman knows exactly who she is talking to. But Harry was confused about another thing entirely, and that was just why Makoshi was here in the first place. Did it have to do with the Aurors questioning him about Voldemort's return?
"Miss Umbridge," Makoshi says, once again hiding her lower face behind her fan, "you have three choices before you. First, you may step aside and allow me and my guards to pass by without the harassment. Second, you may continue to impede my way, and if you do, know I will move you myself. Three, you fetch the Headmaster of this school and inform him that I have arrived. Well? Choose quickly before I choose for you," she snaps at the so-called high inquisitor.
Umbridge slowly and carefully takes a step to her left, moving out of the way of Makoshi, whose eyes never leave the Toad, to stand by the wall, much to Harry's disappointment. Makoshi gives Umbridge a dismissive look before snapping her head forward and begins to move through the entrance hall, the crowd of students moving to the side to allow the odd group through. The giant of a man and the tiny girl take the front as the other two take Makoshi's flanks as they walk through the gap made for them and pass by Harry. Makoshi paused for half a second, her fan still raised. Her eyes glanced from his silver jacket, to the scar upon his brow, and then to his eyes. Harry felt a weight upon his shoulders, the woman's resolve and strength bearing down upon him, but he didn't avert his eyes or bow his head as he met her gaze unflinching before she walked past him, moving further past the press of students.
By the time Harry turned back to Umbridge, she was already retreating towards the school gate in a fearful cringe.
"Who the hell is that bird?" Ron asks in a whisper, looking over at Makoshi with interest before Hermione smacks his arm.
"She's not a bird, Ronald, she's a person," Hermione snaps at him, but turns to look at Makoshi with narrowed eyes and a deep frown.
"I don't know about that, Hermione," Delphini opines as her eyes sweep over Makoshi's form before flicking to the older ZZ-Top-looking guy in the back, "I'm gonna have to agree with Ron here. She's fit," she says with a grin as Hermione rolls her eyes at her for some reason.
"Her name is Makoshi Tomoe, she's…" Harry begins to say before looking at Delphini who was looking back at him with interest before raising her brow at him, "She's a Magician with the ICW, and someone on Dumbledore's and Voldemort's level of power," Harry says, causing all three of them to look at him in surprise, but for different reasons.
Delphini lets out a low whistle, "Well, I'd imagine she was a big shot if she had Olezka Voyna following her around like a lost puppy," Delphini says, eyeing the ZZ-Top guy again.
"Who?" Harry asks, looking back at Delphini.
"The old guy in the suit, his name is Olezka Voyna. He used to be a boogeyman for dark wizards and witches in Russia, kinda like how Mad-Eye Moody is for England, except Voyna isn't afraid to use dark magic to fight dark magic," Delphini says, speaking with a bit of admiration in her voice as she watches the man walk down the hall with the rest of the guard for Makoshi. Harry watches the group as they continue into the castle, forming around Makoshi, and other than the tiny Asian girl who was being her absolute rudest to everyone around her, the rest were being polite and asking the students to step back as they cut through the crowds.
Dumbledore steps out from the great hall with McGonagall at his side, a faint bit of confusion is on his face as he looks around the hall before catching sight of the visitors, which makes a smile split across his face before he calls out, "Lady Makoshi!", raising a hand in the air as he walks forward.
Makoshi immediately turns her head to spot the Headmaster and does something Harry had not expected. She lets out a girlish squeal of "Dumbledore-sama!", before charging at the Headmaster, who begins to laugh. They stop a few feet from each other and place their hands on the front of their thighs before bowing low and at the waist, Dumbledore's beard sweeping the floor before they both straighten back up. then stepping forward to embrace each other like old friends.
"Tomoe, it is wonderful to see you again my dear girl," Dumbledore says, pulling back from the embrace but keeping his hands on her shoulders, "but what are you doing here at Hogwarts?" he asks with a smile.
Makoshi smiles back at Dumbledore, resting her hands in front of her, "I had come to England on behalf of the ICW to speak with your Minister about the possibility of running joint operations with your DMLE and the Auror office, but he quite rudely ended our meeting earlier than scheduled. You've always told me if I was in England and had time to kill to come see the castle," she says with a shrug, "So, here I am,"
Dumbledore chuckles at her words before smiling softly, "But of course my dear girl, it would be a great honor to show you around the castle. Perhaps after a pot of tea and some lunch, if you haven't eaten already?"
"We stopped for some of those fish and chips you like to go on about from time to time, and I found that I disagreed with them. Far too oily," Makoshi says before fanning her face as Dumbledore chuckles again and waves his arm to gesture to the Grand Staircase.
"Then perhaps I can have the house elves whip something up that you and your guards will find more agreeable, hm?" The Headmaster offers before Makoshi bows her head in thanks as her entourage leaves the entrance hall behind her, chatting like old friends.
"Well, that wasn't odd at all," a new voice says, causing Harry to turn sharply to his left to see that Theodore and Tracey had somehow snuck up on them. Theodore looks at him oddly then turns back to the retreating forms of the Headmaster and his guest. "What do you think that's about?" Theodore asks, nodding his head toward Makoshi and Dumbledore.
"Voldemort," Harry says, ignoring the flinch from most people around him, "I know Makoshi believed Dumbledore when he said Voldemort wasn't dead and she was looking forward to the chance of killing him herself, it's the only reason that I can think of that would bring the head of the international Auror task force here," Harry tells him while slipping his hands into his pockets and begins to fiddle with Serpent-Hunter as Theodore frowns.
"It normally takes a three-fourths majority vote from the Wizengamot to call on the ICE," Theodore says, one of his hands coming up to stroke his chin. "I know the ICE isn't allowed into a signed ICW government country without permission and for the Head of the ICE to be here, yeah, I would bet my left leg that meeting at the ministry was about Voldemort," Theodore admits as Tracey wraps her arms around his waist.
"Luv, do me a big favor, and stop saying that bloody name?" Tracey asks, in a pleading tone causing Theodore to turn to her with a roll of his eyes.
"It's just a name, Tracey, and a stupid one at that," Theodore says with a sigh, trying to put an arm around his girlfriend but Tracey let go of his waist before stepping away from him with narrowed eyes as she crossed her arms and cocked her hips.
"Oh, is that so?" Tracey says, looking hard at Theodore who freezes at his girlfriend's glare, "I don't care if you say it, Theo, I care that you say it around me, but if you're not going to stop for little old me, I know who you'll stop for," Tracey says with a wicked grin growing larger by the second to Theodore's growing horror.
"Now, Tracey, Luv, you don't need to go that far, please," Theodore begged with his hands raised in a placating manner, but Tracey was no longer listening.
"LUPUSREGINA! THEODORE IS BEING MEAN TO ME!" Tracey yells, and Harry watches as his friend's horror grows to an apex as a loud shout echoes down the entrance hall.
"MASTER THEODORE! HOW DARE YOU!" The normally high and cheerful voice of Lupuserigna cries out angrily as the woman herself storms out of the Great Hall, her eyes locked onto Theodore, who is now looking for an exit or help only to find an amused set of Lions and Snakes trying to hide their smile as the red-haired woman with an overly large purple witches hat came over and wrapped Tracey in a tight hug before pulling the Slytherin girl's face right into her chest. "How dare you, Master Nott! Being mean to Mistress Davis like that when she did nothing but ask you to be polite to her and her sensitive sensibilities! you will apologize for it this instance!" She glares at the mismatched-eyed boy as Tracey shoots Theodore a smug but dopey smile as she buries herself against Lupusregina's breasts.
Harry watches the show unfolding between the three with amusement. Ever since Fúamnach got hired on to Hogwarts as a temporary teacher, she had made it her life mission to embarrass and mess with Theodore every chance she got and unknowingly roped Tracey into it as well. The Immortal Witch and Cackling Beanie-Wearing Troublemaker got along like a house on fire when they teamed up to torment and tease Theodore. It was honestly as entertaining for Harry as it was embarrassing for Theodore. But as the crowds begin to part and students start rushing off to the afternoon classes, someone that Harry was trying to avoid marches through the crowd to snatch Tracey by the ear and pull the beanie-wearing girl from the bosom of Fúamnach, Daphne.
"Must you do this every day to Theodore?" Daphne asked while twisting Tracey's ear, as she glared at her best friend as she yelped.
"Ow, Ow, Ow, Yes, Ow, damnit Daphne, that hurts!" Tracey cries out, stumbling a bit as she goes with her in the hopes that her ear will stay connected to her head, "Why must you ruin my fun?" Tracey wailed.
"Because you're being a nuisance," Daphne says flatly before she stops twisting the ear of her best friend and turns to look at Harry. The boy who lived quickly looks away before readjusting the shoulder strap of his bag and walking away. He hated that look in Daphne's eyes, the "I wish it wasn't like this" look because he felt it twisting in his guts. He wished it wasn't like that as well. So Harry quickly makes his way to the Grand Staircase, doing what he always did when he was faced with a problem he couldn't hunt, and he ran away, hoping his day would at least get better.
Harry Potter, two hours later, Transfiguration.
Harry was sitting at the front of the class with Hermione and Ron like they have always done, doodling on a piece of parchment with his tongue between his lips while trying to draw Hedwig wearing a crown and catching a toad as the rest of the class studied the basic elements of conjuration, something Harry had learned from McGonagall last year. She had called on him a few times over Hermione when she was asking questions to the class while going over the basics, and Harry was proud to say he answered every question correctly and earned a whopping twenty points for Gryffindor; half of what he normally would have gotten, but seeing that McGonagall had trained him in this last year, Harry saw that as fair. McGonagall had just gotten to the alchemic structure of brass when a knock came on her classroom door, making McGonagall turn from the blackboard with a confused look on her face before calling out to whoever it was to enter, and much to everyone's surprise, it was the Head Boy, Cedric Diggory.
"Excuse me, sorry to interrupt your class, Professor, but the Headmaster sent me to collect some of your students," Cedric says with a smile while taking a step into the classroom and folding his arms behind his back.
"Please not me, please not me, please not me," Harry thinks to himself as he looks back to his doodle and lowers his head.
"And who did the Headmaster want, Mister Diggory?" McGonagall asks while looking back at Cedric.
"Harry, Ronald, and Hermione," Cedric says.
"Fuck," Harry mutters under his breath, causing Ron to snort and Hermione to give him a very disapproving look.
"Will I be getting them back, perchance?" McGonagall says with a sigh, her eyes drifting over to the three students in the front row watching them as they begin to pack away their things.
"I don't think so, Ma'am. The Headmaster wants them to show some guests around the school, and they probably won't be done until dinner," Cedric says with a polite smile as Harry mutters darkly under his breath, throwing his bag over his shoulder before McGonagall gives Hermione the homework for tonight and the Golden Trio make their way out of the classroom and follow behind Cedric.
"We'll be making a pit stop at Gryffindor Tower so you three can drop off your bags," Cedric says, with a look behind him while smiling, "Do you three have any idea why the Headmaster asked for you?" he asks, sounding curious as Ron and Hermione both turn to look at Harry who sighs.
"Cedric, do you still talk to Fleur?" Harry asks, and watches Cedric nod, "Can you ask her to come over from France or the Hedge or wherever she is and kill me?" Harry asks flatly, really not meaning it but everyone looks at him oddly as he rolls his eyes.
"Well, ah, she wouldn't have to travel that far, she's working at Gringotts now in the records department," Cedric says as they begin to climb the stairs to the Gryffindor Tower, and Harry idly wonders how Cedric knew where the Gryffindor Tower was. It, like all the rest of the houses, was a secret. Why it was a secret Harry didn't know and personally thought it was kind of stupid if not a bit fun. But Cedric's words stop Harry dead, as his eyes widen a bit, and looks over to his rival on the quidditch pitch.
"Fleur is in England?" Harry asks, stopping and having Cedric look back and nod with a sort of confused but amused look on his face before Harry to Hermione, but before he could even say a word Hermione beats him to it.
"Remind you not to go to Gringotts without someone else with you, already noted Harry," Hermione says without even looking back at Harry who just smiles and shakes his head before quickly climbing the stairs.
"I'm kinda surprised that you three didn't already know that, especially, you Ron," Cedric says, causing Ron to look at him oddly.
"Why would I know that?" Ron asks, and Cedric just chuckles, and Harry gets a horrible premonition, like a lance of ice through his head, that he might be seeing Fleur much sooner than he would like.
It doesn't take them long for the trio to drop off their things in the tower before heading to the Headmaster's office, On the way, the three of them talk to Cedric about a few things like the start of the Quidditch season and what he was going to be doing after school. Seeing that this was his final year, he had hopes of getting accepted to the Auror Department, which to Harry sounded like a pretty good idea and had wished him luck at it before they parted ways. By the time they made it to the gargoyle that guarded the Headmaster's office, the group of Makoshi's guards were already standing outside of it, keeping their eyes on the hallways. It was the taller, older man who stopped them with a raised hand before they could get within fifty feet of the entrance.
"Whoa, there kids," Ozwalt says, "Sorry to tell you, but the Headmaster's office is closed right now. If you have an urgent message, you can leave it with us, and we will run it up to him," he said politely while in a tone that said he wasn't going to be moved.
The Trio had stopped when the man raised his hand and waited till he was done talking before Hermione spoke up, "Our apologies sir, but we were asked to come here by the Headmaster, Isn't there a way you'll let us by?" she asks, just as politely as Ozwalt just before his eyes lit up in recognition.
"Ah, so you're our tour guide, huh?" Ozwalt asks with a bit of a grin, confusing the trio, but before they can ask what he means, the gargoyle slides aside, and Makoshi Tomoe steps from the spiral staircase that leads upwards, her hands folded in front of her allowing the long sleeves of her robes to hand down as she had a small smile on her face. She immediately locks eyes with Harry as she steps into the hall and makes her way over to the Trio. Harry could feel the same weight from her as he did earlier, like some invisible hand trying to make him bow his head, but as stubborn as Harry was, he refused to do it.
Makoshi pulls the same golden fan she was using when Harry first saw her from the sleeve of her robes, snapping it open. Her guards fall in line behind her as she walks up to the three teenagers and hides her lower face as she stops right in front of Harry, "You would be the three students that Albus has spoken so highly about, are you not? A Miss Granger, Mister Weasley and Mister Potter, yes?" she asks as she looks down on the three students before her.
Hermione blushes a bit at the perceived praise from the Headmaster as Ron looks confused because he knows other than a couple of crazy adventures, he wasn't all that good of a student, while Harry just looks at Makoshi with a grumpy look. "Yeah, this is Ron and this is Hermione," Harry says pointing at both of his friends, Makoshi's eyes never leaving him and he feels that same weight from before intensify.
"A bit presumptuous of you, boy, thinking that I would know who you are," Makoshi says as she glares over the top of her fan and down at Harry who scowls back up at her.
"I'm pretty sure you know who I am, all things considered, and I may be a bit slow on the uptake but It doesn't take someone as smart as Hermione to figure out who is who once you already know one person of a three-person group," Harry says banefully to Makoshi who raises an eyebrow to him as Harry buries his hands into the pockets of his jacket, "I don't like people trying to lie or pretend that they don't know something when it's obvious that they do," Harry says as Ron, Hermione, and Makoshi's guard all look at him like he had lost his mind.
"Agent Doe never mentioned you were this rude when I last spoke to him," Makoshi says as she drops her fan to reveal a deep frown on her face as she now openly glares at Harry.
"Yeah, well, he knew my mom," Harry says with a shrug while looking Makoshi in the eye.
"Hm, you need to learn better manners, Harry Potter, Son of Artemis," Makoshi says before folding her hands in front of her at mid-waist, "But in this instance, you would be correct, I do know about you and what you have accomplished in such a short time, killing a basilisk at twelve with nothing but a sword, killing the Xiē zî jing at thirteen, and the mighty Fàfnir at fourteen, with a growing understanding of this country's ancient battle magic, and having a small body count of three dark wizards to your name. Impressive for one so young, truly," She says as she looks Harry up and down with a frown, as if she was trying to find something.
"And for one so scrawny," The other Asian girl mutters under her breath as Harry turns to glare at her, "The fuck are you looking at Xiǎo mǔgǒu?" She says with a scowl and crossed arms.
"Shi, that's enough," Makoshi snaps at her, causing the tinier girl to fall quiet with a scowl at both Makoshi and Harry, "Please, forgive Shi, much like yourself, she lacks proper manners," She says dismissively as she sticks her tongue at Makoshi before Olezka Voyna smacks her in the back on the head. "But we digress, while it wasn't my original reason for coming to Hogwarts, Albus spoke that only you have the power to destroy the serpent, though he did not explain how or why, it has piqued my curiosity in you more so than it already was," she tells Harry flatly, her eyes never leaving him nor did the weight leave Harry's back.
"Why did you originally come to England then?" Hermione asks, before Makoshi's attention shifts to her, causing Hermione to take a slight step back.
"I had originally come to have a meeting with your Minister, the head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, and the Head of the Auror Department concerning the return of the known terrorist, Tom Riddle. Sadly the minister saw no reason to hold the meeting and ordered me and my guard to leave the Ministry," Makoshi says before turning back to Harry, a frown on her face, "So, with a day to kill, I came to Hogwarts to visit Albus to find out what's been going on, and I must say, I am greatly disappointed in this country's reaction to a reemergence of a man who brought it to its knees and also took it over and the sad, pathetic, ego-fueled men that hold office here when they should have been executed for such incompetence long ago," She says in a harsh tone before bringing her fan back up to her face to hide the look of disgust that had crawled across her face.
Harry agreed with Makoshi, though he didn't voice it, just scowled at the woman, "So, why did you ask for me?" he asked.
"I didn't," Makoshi admits, "While I was interested in meeting you, I hadn't expressed this to Albus. Why he chose you three to show me the castle, I can not say. Perhaps he could tell or maybe he thought we had much in common to speak about, such as our shared status of Magician, or our desire to see justice dealt swiftly upon the head of Tom Riddle," she tells Harry, not dropping her fan. Personally, Harry thought the fan was stupid, but didn't say anything about it before Hermione spoke up.
"Perhaps we should get this tour on the way. Then, maybe, you'll find something to talk about," Hermione says, turning to gesture down the hall, wanting nothing more than to get this over with.
The tour lasted forever for Harry, with neither Harry nor Makoshi saying a word to each other as Hermione directed them through the castle and talked about certain places in the castle that she knew, thanks to Hogwarts: A History and their adventures throughout the school. Hermione, ever inquisitive, had asked Makoshi a few questions about her school years at a place called Mahoutokoro.
"Mahoutokoro is much like Hogwarts in some ways, but the architecture is, of course, quite different. Mahoutokoro is a single tower that, on the outside, stands only six stories tall, but on the inside is an ever-expanding labyrinth of sliding doors and rooms where the teachers and students live together throughout most of the school year, but never in the same rooms thanks to the ever-shifting nature of the tower itself creating a unique, sprawling city one year and cramped apartments the next," Makoshi explained when they had mentioned the ever-shifting staircases to the woman. "Though some places in the tower never changed, like the cafeteria or the library, no matter how much the tower shifted," she said as Hermione eyed her robes.
"So, you went to Mahoutokoro all seven years?" Hermione had asked, as Makoshi saw her eyeing the pure white robes with a critical eye.
"Ah, a very well-read girl, I see," Makoshi said, hiding a smile behind her fan. "Are you perhaps wondering about my Jūnihitoe and why it is white?" Makoshi asks as Hermione flushes a bit in embarrassment.
"I didn't want to make assumptions, Lady Tomoe," Hermione said with an awkward but polite smile.
"It is Lady Makoshi, Miss Granger. In my homeland it is the family name first before the given, but your curiosity is understandable and to answer your unspoken question, my Jūnihitoe has been white since the day I first put it on thanks to who my Divine father is. I have never cast dark magic," Makoshi explained, fanning herself a bit as Hermione nodded her head.
"If you don't mind me asking, who is your divine parent?" Hermione asked politely as they continued down the stairs on the way to the second floor.
"An Oni by the name of Shuten Dōji," Makoshi admits with some heat to her voice when she speaks the name, an underlying hatred etched into her words that Hermione decided not to comment upon before moving on with the tour.
Astoria Greengrass, Defensive Arts Classroom.
Astoria was bored as she sat in the back row of the Defensive Arts class, idly listening to Professor Árd-Greimne lecturing the class about Boggarts and the best way of dealing with them. Astoria liked Professor Árd-Greimne, but her heart just wasn't into learning today, with her stupid older sister breaking up with Harry and fussing over her because of how she looked, paler than normal and sickly. Not that it mattered, because Astoria always looked sick thanks to the malediction that squeezed around her magical core, promising nothing but a short life.
Though Daphne might have a point. It was a rough day for her, with her breathing ragged and short. She decided to stop by Professor Snape's office to get her potion that prevents the malediction from causing an attack, just in case.
"Now, the homework tonight is going to be six inches on Boggarts and I'll be looking for an emphasis on how they can be banished, and no, Mister Jameson, you can't just lock the trunk and toss it in a river. Focus on the magic, children," Professor Árd-Greimne says with a smile before the bell rang, signaling the end of class, "Oh, and before I forget, we'll be having a guest speaker at the end of the month. An old face many of you may recognize," she says with a smile as the class writes down the homework assignment and begins to pack away their things.
Astoria had just put her back strap over her shoulder and stood up as the Professor called out to her, "Miss Greengrass, could you please stay behind for a moment?" Professor Árd-Greimne asks much to the giggles and "ooohs" from her classmates that cause Astoria to frown before walking down the steps and over to Professor Árd-Greimne desk.
The Professor waits until the rest of the students leave the classroom, Astoria's friends saying they will wait outside for her before Professor Árd-Greimne shuts the door behind them. With a simple wave of her wand, she conjures a chair for Astoria to sit upon behind her desk before walking over and settling down herself. "Before you ask, Miss Greengrass, no, you are not in trouble for anything. I just wish to speak to you about a few things," Professor Árd-Greimne says before calling out to a house elf named Dobby to bring them some tea if he had the time; the time arrived promptly.
After handing Astoria a cup with sugar and cream(how the Professor knew how she took her tea, Astoria had no clue,) Professor Árd-Greimne speaks. "I have been informed by both your head of house and your older sister that you suffer from an illness that makes casting magic very difficult to do," she says before taking a sip of tea. "I was hoping, if you feel up to it, to answer a few of my questions about it?" she asks Politely as Astoria shuffles uncomfortably in her seat.
Astoria frowns a bit, "I can do magic just fine, I don't need any special treatment, Professor Árd-Greimne," she says, hating how people looked at her when they learned of the malediction, like she was some broken doll or fragile dying flower. Astoria hated pity, hated how people looked at her when they found out she was sick.
But Professor Árd-Greimne just smiled softly at the young girl. "I can see that just fine, Miss Greengrass, and have no intention of not pushing you as hard as you can in your studies," the Professor tells the young blonde girl, who grins a bit at her words. "But my curiosity stems mostly from an academic interest. I've come across some rather powerful maledictions in my life and was wondering if I could help," she says, causing Astoria to frown once more.
She couldn't even begin to count how many people approached her mother and father with offers of breaking the malediction or some type of miracle cure for it. Each time they had heard them out and each time they were turned away by either her father who would call them "snake oil salesman" or her mother flatly calling them idiots for not understanding the basics of ritual magic. Her father had tried and failed to break the curse in a thousand different ways, almost dying a few times because he would let anyone touch her without testing it on him first.
"I doubt it," Astoria mumbles, looking down at her feet. She had lost hope of ever removing the malediction and all she wanted was a way to fight it so she could at least make it past the age of thirty-five, even if it's only by a few years.
The Professor finds no insult in her words as she takes a sip of tea. "Even if you do, Miss Greengrass, I would still like to see if I'm able to," she says with the same soft smile. "So if you do not mind, could you tell me more about the curse?" she asks before Astoria sighs and begins to list off the symptoms of the malediction. Shortness of breath, weak swallowing while eating, a frail constitution, a thinner magical core, how using too much magic causes an attack that coagulates her blood in her veins, and finally, sensitivity around Dark Magic.
Professor Árd-Greimne nods along with her words and waits till Astoria is finished to ask any questions. "What do you mean by sensitivity to Dark Magic?" the Professor asks, an eyebrow raised.
"Well, sometimes when I was little and my mom came home from St. Mungo's, I would have an attack if she didn't do a purification ritual after dealing with a cursed patient, or last year when Daphne came back from her first defense class where Professor Moody was showing them the Unforgivables," Astoria says with a shrug as the Professor narrows her eyes in thought as she tapped her fingers on her desk.
"Tell me, Miss Greengrass, do you know what happened to the cursed patients that your mother treated?" Professor Árd-Greimne asks, but Astoria just shrugs, Her mother never went into details about the people she treated at home, and the Professor frowns before asking another question. "Can you see the Thestrals?" She asks.
"The what?" Astoria asks, her brow raised.
"The creatures that pull the carriages up to the castle," Professor Árd-Greimne explains and watches Astoria's eyes widen.
"That's what the spooky horses are called?" Astoria says in surprise, causing the professor to throw her head back in a laugh.
"Ha! Yes, the spooky horses. You can see them, then?" Professor Árd-Greimne asks, and Astoria nods her head. Astoria has been able to see the spooky horses since she first saw them pulling the carriages during her first year when she saw Daphne off to Hogsmeade for the first time. She had refused to get anywhere near them, especially when they all turned to look at her when she had approached them at the same time.
"Interesting," Professor Árd-Greimne says before standing up and placing her cuppa down. "Can you stand up for me, Miss Greengrass? I wish to examine you," she says, and Astoria frowns, remembering her mother's talks about no-no zones and bad touches no matter the person.
"What are you going to examine?" Astoria asks with narrowed eyes.
"Just your magic core, though I will need to touch you to do this," The Professor says. "If you do not feel comfortable with that, it is fine, but it will help me better understand what is wrong," she says, raising her hands in a show of stepping away.
Astoria turned it over in her head for a moment with a frown before shrugging, Professor Árd-Greimne seemed to be on the up and up, and if she tried anything, Astoria would go right to Professor Snape no matter what the woman in front of her said. "It's located at my tailbone, but your hand goes any lower, my daddy will turn you inside out after my mom and Professor Snape get done with you," Astoria says with a glare, much to the other Professor's amusement.
"Have no fear, Miss Greengrass, I would never harm a student like that," Professor Árd-Greimne says with the same sort of soft smile. "Now if you will stand up and place both hands on my desk," she tells Astoria as she stands and gives her one last glare before doing what the Professor says. Professor Árd-Greimne places one hand on Astoria's forehead before placing her other on her mid-back before the professor's hand travels down. It doesn't feel weird, it feels like how her mother used to examine her when she was younger, Professor Árd-Greimne even turns her hand to place it flat against her tailbone like the other healers had before, however, unlike before Astoria feels a pulse of magic through her body.
"There you are," The professor whispers right before Astoria feels the familiar feeling of her blood freezing in her veins, and as she grips the edge of the professor's desk, she has little doubt that her blood is turning black in her veins. As Astoria's breathing comes to a halt as she gasps, she barely feels Professor Árd-Greimne turn her hand on her lower back before all of a sudden…
Astoria could breathe again, her blood began to pump again, and her muscles were no longer seizing from an oncoming attack as the professor stepped away from her as she drew in greedy breaths.
Except something was wrong, wrong in a way that it wasn't like normal.
Astoria could breathe better, better than she had in years, she could feel her magic spill out into her and hum so strongly just beneath her skin, She no longer felt tired or worn down, like she was full of energy and could run for kilometers.
"Wh-what did you do?" Astoria says in shock as she looks at the professor with wide eyes.
"I forced what you think of as a curse to be inactive," Professor Árd-Greimne says as she takes a step back and folds her arms behind her back. "But I have some bad news and some good news, the bad news is that while I forced the curse to be dormant, it will not remain so and your symptoms will return in a few weeks," the professor says, causing Astoria's face to drop.
"And-and the good news?" Astoria asks.
"I do believe that I can remove it, and if not, make sure that at least you can live a long and happy life, for what your family thinks of as a curse, is in fact, quite the opposite," Professor Árd-Greimne says with a smile.
And Astoria, for the first time in a long time, feels a spark of hope in her heart.
Harry Potter, Hogwarts Dueling Arena.
The tour had been going on for the last few hours, and Harry had left the talking up to Ron and Hermione. Why the Headmaster thought he would be a good tour guide was beyond him, but he stuck with the group as they had wandered around the castle, covering all the major landmarks, even showing the visitors the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets, though he had to open it to prove it.
Makoshi seemed interested and attentive to everything that Hermione talked about and Olezka Voyna seemed interested in the Chamber but didn't ask anything more than if the tales about it were true. The rest of the visitors seemed bored and politely went along with the tour, other than the Shi girl, who did not stop bitching under her breath about everything she saw and voiced many times how she just wanted to leave. Thankfully, the last thing that Hermione planned to show them was the dueling arena before escorting them back to Dumbledore's office.
The dueling hall was as impressive as always, maybe even more so now that the house elves were cleaning it and had repaired many of the broken seats in the stands, returning them to their former glory that showed off the house colors of each of the houses. Harry had wondered why the house elves had done it, but had shrugged it off as they found out people were using it again.
"Very impressive," Makoshi says, as her eyes sweep over the room, "The ICE office has something similar but not as large for training purposes. Tell me, does the arena have the same enchantments and wards that a professional dueling arena does?" she asks, looking over to Hermione whose face scrunches up in thought.
"I believe it does, they used to hold tournaments here before it was no longer used thanks to a low student population and lack of a devoted teacher," Hermione says while looking over the arena. "Though I believe we'll be seeing it used a lot more regularly in the coming years thanks to our current Defensive Arts teacher," she says before looking back at Makoshi with a polite smile.
"Oh, perfect then!" Makoshi says with a smile before snapping her fan shut. "Ken, if you would," she says with a smile as she begins to make her way to the stands, confusing the three students, just before the pale man in the baggy outfit suddenly grabs Harry by the back of his jacket before sinking his fist into the boy-who-lived stomach, knocking the wind out of him and kicking him, hard, across the room and into the sand pit of the dueling arena.
As Ron and Hermione draw their wands with shouts and questions, Voyna's own wand lashes out as quick as a whip, sending two disarming charms at the schoolchildren, sending their wands flying out of their hands before Shi snags them before they hit the ground.
"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Ron yells angrily at Makoshi's retreating form as Harry begins to pick himself up off the ground with a grunt.
"I wish to see what the boy can do," Makoshi says before taking a seat in the front row before she begins to fan herself. "Rumors and eyewitnesses may be one thing, but I much prefer seeing what someone can do with my own eyes," she simply states.
"The Headmaster-" Hermione begins to say, only to be cut off by Makoshi.
"Will overlook one little fight so long as the boy doesn't come to too much harm," Makoshi says, her eyes never leaving the dueling pit as Harry turns a glare at her. "Now, child of Artemis, let's see what you can do," she says before hiding her smile behind her fan.
Harry turns his glare to the man stepping onto the field as his wand slips into his hand and the man speaks for the first time in a flat tone as his clothes start to smoke. "Forgive me child, and know I take no pleasure from this, but the orders of Lady Makoshi are clear," he says before the baggy dark outfit bursts into flames as he steps from the ashes and cinders unfazed by it and Harry sees what was hiding underneath: blazing golden armor.
From shoulder to fingertips, thigh to foot, and from neck to waist was glinting golden armor, shining in the witchlight that illuminated the arena. It was beautifully intricate and set with scores of rubies that seemed to radiate heat, causing the air around him to become a mirage and twisting the man's slim and willowy figure, and the most concerning thing was that it seemed to be fused to his skin like a golden carapace. He raises his hand and in a burst of fire and heat, a golden spear is summoned to his hand, "My name is Kedeer Singh, the reincarnation of Karna, Son of Surya and one of the six Pāṇḍava brothers. Prepare yourself," he speaks, sounding neither excited nor saddened, just flat, blunt, and to the point.
Harry, still without the Hunt, grits his teeth for the incoming fight and couldn't help but wonder, "Who the fuck is Karna and the fuck is a Surya!?"
Chapter done!
And oh boy, it's about to go down.
It's The Son of Artemis vs. the reincarnation of Karna, one of the heroes of the Mahābhārata.
Translation!:
Xiǎo mǔgǒu: "Little Bitch" in Mandarin.
Jūnihitoe: a style of formal court dress first worn in the Heian period by noble women and ladies-in-waiting at the Japanese Imperial Court.
Shuten Dōji: an on from Japanese folklore, it is considered one of the three great evils of Japan, in this fic, it is considered to be divine as Oni are Demons.
For those of you who are wondering the other two members of the ICE guards are:
James Ozwalt, a legacy of Ares and an ex-special forces member that Makoshi poached from a private military group.
Shi Wukong: a Demigod who was enslaved to a dark wizard who was leading a band of bandits in Southern China whom Makoshi took in after killing said dark wizard.
A list of the Tuatha De Danann that i'll be using:
List of Dé Danann:
The "Big Three" for the Celtics:
The Morrígan[freed] (Death, fate, war, sovereignty)
Manannán Mic Lir [freed](the Sea, the Mist, sovereignty, war)
Nuadha[Sealed] (Sovereignty, law, [Spoiler])
The other 11
Scáthach[freed] (Swift death, the dead)
The Dagda[freed] (Life, death, magic)
Lugh the long arm[freed] (The sun, Trickery, justice)
Ogma[freed] (learning, protection, war, agriculture)
Cerunnos[freed] (Hunting, storms, the dead)
Dian cécht[freed] (healing, medicine, plants)
Ecne[freed] (wisdom, knowledge)
Trí dé dana[freed] (Smithing, crafts, arts)
Brigid[Missing] (wisdom, poetry, healing, domesticated animals, [spoiler, [spoiler,)
Clíodhna[Freed] (Family, Hearth, beauty, music)
Aengus[sealed] (Love, youth, summer)
Honorable mentions:
They aren't a part of the Tuatha Dé, but they are gods/bound by the rules of the Tuatha Dé.
Cait-Sith: Trickster cat of nine lives.
Macha, Anand, and Badb: Aspects of the Morrígan.
Fúamnach: Witch of the Tuatha Dé.
Rhiannon: welsh moon goddess.
Kingsaxcul, out!