Regalus took off his school robes and shirt, leaving his tie on as he went to swim in the great lake, much to Luna's joy. Luna was zoned out as she watched Regalus swim in the great lake.
But Ron was deterred from joining Regalus and giving the girls a show, when a rustling in the tree, he leaned against, made him look up. FIrenze sat on the second lowest branch, much like a cat, hidden by the full leaves on the branch. Firenze moved the leaves aside to peer down at Ron.
"Watcher Firenze," Ron greeted. Parvati voiced a greeting, having seen Firenze too.
"Hey guys," Firenze greetd. "What's with her?" Firenze nodded towards Luna.
"Don't mind her, she's just simping over the newest Black star constellation that's going to be the future Lord Black," Parvati rolled her eyes. Ron choose not to add that Parvati was also simping over Ron. Ron might not be named after a constellation, but his family was big enough to make up a constellation of red dwarves. Ron winked at Parvati when she glanced at him. He was still grinning when Parvati gave him the finger.
"Well anyways," Firenze said. He ignored the odd witch, who he sometimes saw come to the edge of the Forbidden Forest, in his original timeline. Never to centaur territory but when he was grazing near the edge of the forest, he could see her leaving galleons out in traps for nifflers. Or asking treebranches if they were bowtruckles out of 'curtsey'. Or sometimes she brought Ginny and had her extend her arms to find theastrals. And other times she'd leave food out fo the centaurs and ask for money. When Firenze would ask her about this on behalf of less amused centaurs, Luna would claim she was opening a centaur restaurant. And she would bring her house elf chef along. Firenze simply told her not to fu- mess with the centaurs, because she made them extra grumpy. "Ignoring young wizard and witch hormones, I want to discuss our Greater good plan."
"Right," Ron replied. "I'm not so sure Dumbledore will be excited to relive his traumatic palst, and continue where he left off after his meglomaniac bestie went rogue. And was the reason Dumbledore lost his sister and realized he had a little powertrip problem, mate. I wouldn't be giddy about that either. Especially when Tom Riddle is being a pain in the arse right now, recruiting Dumbledore's Slytherin students, teaching them to terrorize their house mates. So being a more pain in the arse by escalating interhouse violence. I wouldn't be open for a trip down memory lane to be reminded my old friend was like the new pain in the arse, either."
"Ok language young Weasley, and yes I admit Dumbledore was always a bit too ambitious, in all the wrong ways. All his projects are usually dubious by default," Firenze muttered.
"And someone always has a good chance of getting hurt in uthem. But that's not what I meant. We aren't going to ask Dumbledore to enslave muggles. Merlin no. That's no better than asking Tom to enslave muggles. No my boy, we simply want Dumbledore to help restore the order of the magical world, which was formed in the times of the Roman Empire. . That way that half-blood joke Tom won't be able to brainwash pureblood families."
The trio glanced at Regalus. He was swimming and watching Luna. Every now and then he would send a jet of water at Luna, completely soaking her. She would reply with throwing a huge ball of grass and dirt at him. Their war stopped when Regalus levitated a shrieking Luna herself towards the lake. Several students were staring at them, and Firenze had to hide in the leaves again. Regalus dumped Luna in the lake and their fight continued in the water. But they were awefully close for a fight. The students muttered to themselves about the two, noting new gossip, then ignored the pair again.
Firenze peaked through the leaves again. "Let me explain the history of the magical world, which intertwines with the history of muggles," Firenze said.
"First off, I'll ask something I asked my clan recently, in our timeline. Have you ever wondered why none of us beings, creatures, etc ever had a Greater Good rampage of our own? Why haven't we overpowered muggles and ruled over them? Do you think we were afraid of muggles since the beginning of the Roman Empire? Does it look like we were hiding behind wizards and refusing to face muggles? Because wizards were outnumbered by muggles or being born into muggle families. And some wizard lines produced only squibs, that down the line believed they were muggle, or forgot they were wizards. But magical creatures always had the same population as muggles. We could've tore down the statue of secrecy."
"What stopped you?" Ron asked.
"It's certainly not because House elves were eager to serve wizards, who lived by muggle kingdom court rules. Nor was it because House Elves preferred to hide away from muggles in their powerful pureblood master's dusty, dark, damp home. Well atleast not back then, for elves that hide away in their master's homes." Firenze ruffled some leaves.
"To answer your question let me tell you about the history of the magical world. Muggles were fanatically religious and had royalty for the longest time. Whever they saw one of us, they'd think we were the devil or in the case of house elves, brownies who fixed their shoes.
"Now elves are just peaceful little being pleasing, hippies. The elves made stuff and traded to thrive. While the rest of us beings or creatures weren't willing to live in war with the muggles for centuries, either.
"Not anymore than wizards were willing to. The muggles would make the wizard kids obscurals if they washed war. And we were living comfortably in our own lands, while muggle kings were always fighting. Their kings threw nonstop tantrums. And they had nonstop affairs. The wizards were either joining them or emulating them.
We weren't going to waste our resources or peaceful order to fight muggles for no reason. We didn't want to be like the English and French kings over Caliais. We weren't going to create upheavels with the muggles having holy wars in the low lands of Europe. The chaos they created probably prolonged their dark ages. Even their Catholic churches had some information about plows. But the kings just kept going at it from their countries. They politicized everything form marriage to having kids. Kids fought to be heirs. Courts fought each other. Kings fought each other in some Asian countries. Invaders could easily get in some places because of the non stop kings fighting.
One must ask why muggle kings fought so damn much? Were they getting more gold or lands from it for it to be worth it? Somehow I doubt it. Did they get to spread their religious beliefs? I don't think they always did either. The answer must be land and obsessive house or country pride, as another wonderful muggle war showed us in the mid 1900s. By then Grindenwald joined in on the action."
Firenze neighed and huffed, kicking his hoofs against the tree trunk. "Anyhoo us centaurs have our fair share of politics. We're no stranger to political marriages and fouls we name as heirs. Druid heirarchy isn't perfect. But did we fight like muggles? Of course not.
"We realize some xxx classifcation creatures were more closer in self awareness to animals species? Yes. We understand how nature operates. Kneazles are bred with cats, blasted end skrewts eat their young ones, dragons sit on gold they don't run banks, trolls don't like to trade, grindylows eat half of their mates, hinkypuffs don't make laws, dementers don't have fun during spring break, and bowtruckles don't prance through the forest.
"We get that nature is messy, nothing will be easy even with equality. We understand this. We want to keep the natural balance and order of the magical world.
"This brings us to House Elves..gain they didn't just decide to hide in their master's derelict houses, nor is servitude in their genes. It's not their hobby either.
"It goes back to the times of the Roman Empire. Putting it simply, the Romans conquered vast amounts of terrirtory and were very tolerant of the religion of their conquered people, provided those people incorporated the imperial cult in their worship.
"Romans also traded enslaved people accross the borders of Roman territory. The Romans society was divided in two classes- the upper-class Patricians and the working class- Plebians. Of course the laws were in favor of the Patricians until the period known for the Conflict of Orders. And Romans' had their muggle slaves clean their clothes with urine. I know, gross. It wasn't an easy time for muggles.
"Going to back to us creatures, most of us weren't going to waste resourches to subjugate muggles. What would we even gain? Their subjects or thir land? We had oour own which was majestic thanks to our powerful magic and herbs. If they trespassed on our land, we might show them who was in charge.
"But even wizards didn't challenge them, much. But at the same time, hiding from muggles was tricky. Whenever they accidentally spotted us, they would think we were demons or if they spotted a hosue elf, think they saw a brownie.
"Sometimes leprechauns entered their house to do mischief and accidentally turned some of their stuff to gold. And the muggles go on to mistaken the leprechauns they see running out of their house, as brownies who left them gold coind.
"Sometimes they thought hags, banshees, vampires, merpeople, veelas, and us were the true form of what they thought witches were like.
"They believed we were the demons that came with the devil to dance with the witches. They also made up a name, mermaids, after some muggles spotted merpeople in the oceans. Mermaids became characters in their fairytales. Some merpeople have read these texts and couldn't stop laughing.
"The biggest joke was that muggles would capture muggles they were dead certain were witches. Those muggles would be tied to a rock, before being thrown in the lakes. If the poor muggle sunk they were innocent aka muggles, if they floated they were witches. If the used the bubblehead charm or apparated away, they were real witches. We weren't afraid of them but it was a impossible to live among them.
"A wizard couldn't be on the throne or in power without muggles having rebellious plots. The only way a wizard could rule was to wage war on not just their country of muggles, but every religously fanatic muggle country. Even the protestant and 'heritic' muggles were anti magic. Medieval muggles were all religious fanatics.
"Magic was black magic, a sign of the devil. On top of that some innocent muggles would be burned as witches, if real witches called attention to those muggles by using too much magic around them. It was the same if one of us was close to a muggle long enough to bring the wrong type of attention on that muggle.
Eighty percent of the muggles falsely accused in Europe and colonial America were women, and usually women who were in some way not living by the norm: ''they lived alone; they were healers or midwives; they were widowed and controlled property or they were poor and indigent; they practiced religion differently or not at all; they were overly prideful or vain; or they grumbled in public. A witch, in reality, could be any muggle woman. That was the problem.
"Muggle witch hunts centered around women's sexuality, male impotence, and infanticide. The obsession with witches' sexual relations with the Devil are a salicious detail they focused on.
"Muggles even believed witches used broomsticks for their carnal pleasures when the devil wasn't there. And likened broomsticks to muggle pleasure objects. Muggles basically corrupted magical broomsticks.
"The muggles' fixation with women's sexuality, male impotence, and infanticide is not just about lecherous interest and Christian repression.
"Witch hunting built legal and state muggle systems to police women's sexuality, because economics and power mattered to medeival muggles.
The onslaught of misogynist violence and witch hunting panic that defined 'early modern Europe from the fifteenth to the seventeenth centuries was driven by the need to claim women's reproductive capacity and sexuality for the state and for capital.
"In simple terms, women needed to produce new workers, new slaves. This was a purposefully a undeviating policy in early English America: slave owners called enslaved women of childbearing age were called "increase" because of the huge likeliness of those woman to double their owner's wealth.
So this is where house elves' servitude comes in. They're chill, hippie creatures.
"They're great at their craft, as well as great builders. They excell at labor jobs. Trading muggles for food with fixed shoes was one of their earliest trades. They build fortunes off of the amount of food they got for a simple shoe fixing labor. They didn't have to set up shops or worry about supplies. The house elf lands never had a shortage of food.
"House elves would even help Roman slaves who cleaned clothes, along other things. House elves would help them in the form of 'brownies' again.
"They would clean the clothes better for the muggle slaves, or strengthen to primative cleaning solutions. They would get food or gold coins, in return.
"The simple but effective trade, that left muggles spellbound, build the house elves' fortunes. And secured their druid kingdoms.
"House elves begin to establish a good relationship with their muggle customers. House elves would become loyal to the families or familes of the slaves they traded with.
"Sometimes they would become invested with those families' houses. House elves would sometimes forget right, wrong, and healthy for those houses.
"Around the late first century of the Roman Empire, wizards discovered some 'brownies' were actually house elves. Some pureblood wizards offered them a more attractive offer, a trade of the same skills for not just food, but a shelter over their heads. And clothes thrown in too, as well as freedom to roam the house.
"House elves accepted, not knowing their naitivity would be abused once they bonded to those families. Sadly house elves were used by wizards.
"And since house elves were also formally loyal to the interests of muggles, they never tried to enslave muggles. Instead house elves' loyalty switched to their wizard families'. The adopted those pureblood families' beliefs, again forgetting right, wrong, or healthy.
"The house elves would be alright with to hiding in their masters' direlect houses to avoid attracting muggle attention. And most sadly house elves adopted the practice of punishing themselves to ensure a good trade with their wizarding families. The house elves haven't realized how those practices hold them back, even in modern times."
Pansy gasped at Firenze. "Wow our history is so intertwined with the muggles, but different."
Firenze looked down at her. he parted the tree branches, filled with leaves, to get a clear look at her. "I'm telling you as a centuar, the history of any beings was never black and white. No one is an angel. Not even dinasaurs.
"There wasn't a Most New and Ignoble House of White family that Sirius begged to adopt him. No family did just light magic, just like no house only did dark magic.
"Four of Blacks in Sirius' generation were on Harry's side. Bellatrix was the only exception in that generation, unless you count Lucius being with Voldemort until the end of the 2nd war. That could be seven if you count Draco's generation too. Draco, Dora, and Delphini all turned out good.
"Delphi is not evil. Delphi was born of a hate potion. Her parents didn't want to get too attached so they both had hate potions.
"Tom was born from a love potion and couldn't love. But Delphi being born from a hate potion meant Delphi can love extra.
"IDelphi is no more her parents then Barty CrouchJr was his father. She wouldnt even tranfigure her parents to bones."
"Er- I was an auror on duty with Harry when we saved five year old Delphi from Rowle. A child mind healer checked her at St. Mungos. She was just brainwashed by that abusive cow Rowle, that's why she wanted to bring back her father.
"After she saw a mind healer for a year she was cured from Rowle's brainwashing. She was brainwashed by a cultist."
"I was a magical experience coordinator at St. Mungos at the time and saw Delphini brought in. I was there until her last day there," Parvati spoke up.
"She really was cured of her brainwashing. She's a very sweet child, she always shares with the house elves in St. Mungo.
"She probably has the Black's issues from inbreeding or some genetic condition, but she's very thoughtful. And generous. I think she's a nice person regardless of her parents."
Firenze smiled. "I'm glad you can see past her parentage. It couldn't be hard for you or Harry, Ron. After what you lost by her parents' hands. That's a sign of greatness for you to overlook Delphi's parentage to give her a chance."
Ron's ears turned red. "We all desrve a chance," he muttered.
Firenze smiled at them again. "The reason we need the Greater Good is to change old practices. Such as vampires drinking less violently, and waste less blood by drinking at end cycles. Wolfsbane should be freely available to werewolves. The piciferious spell can also be used during full moons.
"Giants need anger management therapy and constructive programs. Creatures need more rights. Poltergeists can be held more accountable. Elves need have elvish welfare packages. You get the idea."
"How will we achieve that if Dumbledore agrees to do a Greater Good?" Ron asked.
"If we can get him to fight for all creatures' rights to assert themselves besides how wizards chose to live among muggles, things will change.
"Wizards took our passiveness against muggles to mean we were passive and kept us down. If we forget history, we're doomed to repeat it. If we don't close the bridge, muggles will abuse our culture to kill themselves in the name of fearing the devil.
"In reality their societies do this when they fail, like for example the very strict Puritans had the witchtrials because their society failed. Neighbors started suspecting each other and it was just politics. It wasn't just one crazy muggle girl fals accusing muggles of being witches.
"We need to build a healthy society for all of us. And never let anyone use violence to control things. But I do hope Riddle ends up on the end of a nasty witch hunt in this timeline."
We canlg ministry of magic box us in without grasping our complex history. The ones went throught the worst parts of history or built their familes from the ground, should the be the only ones who can get on their soap box to tell us just what will help the wizard society.
"The Ministry of magic is, has, and always will be a joke. This is why we need a Greater Good," Firenze finished.
"What a lovely story," a voice said. They turned around to see Albus Dumbledore standing there.