Fan Fiction ❯ The Year of the Phoenix ❯ Enter Teluryon ( Chapter 2 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Their journey to Platform 9 3/4 was uneventful. Shadowmyre spoke not a word during this time and Deanne did not prompt him to do otherwise. When they reached the train was when he finally spoke once more, and it was a voice barely audible. "This must be the last words spoken by me to you as someone who knows and trusts you... outside of HQ, that is. Please inform the others of the situation and the necessity of my seclusion. I know not which house I shall be in, but chances are one of us will be in the same house. They must not contact me and act as if I am an unknown to them. My ruse is not only in my hands to keep, but in all of theirs," his tone was informative and not commanding, thus Deanne's blood did not boil at his statement's apparent audacity.

"Understood," she whispered and the two parted ways. She already had selected the cart and booth where she would meet Cordelia and Meriam. Those two had done plenty in the past few months to earn promotions in the chain of command, and Deanne saw fit to give them thus. Of course Cordelia turned out to be more useful more often than Meriam and so Cordelia has climbed from the bottom of the barrel position that Telarius threw her in. As far as rank was concerned, they were tied.

Deanne sighed. They were tied alright. That was another source of aggravation with no forseeable end. Everytime she was in the presence of either or both they would vie for her favour. It had gotten to the point where she never really knew when they were sincere and when they were just looking for that next promotion above the other. Witnessing how the two interacted together was the worst of it, though. It was like seeing two popular girls talking back in high school. Sure, they seemed quite friendly with each other. Catch them later, though, and you'll hear the kind of backstabbing comments about the other that could start wars.

And all the while Deanne was caught in the middle. It was like being a single parent of two children. Sometimes she would wonder how Telarius would handle it and laugh. Even now she envisioned the scenario as she walked in on the two of them having their idle chitchat. He would demote the both of them so long as their behaviour continued, and he would not tell them why. The only hint they would have was that the demotions would occur whenever they tried to one up the other one, and would happen to them both regardless of who initiated the action.

He would do this, of course, to prove a point. Eventually they would realize that they would have to rely on each other in order to succeed, and that their rivalry and desire to better the other and advance above them would ultimately destroy them both. Before this realization they would hate him. After this realization they would hate him more, as they would believe him arrogant to think that he needed to be so indirect and manipulative to teach them that lesson. Deep down, though, they would know that he was correct. And then they would hate him even more.

Deanne was not Telarius, and her methods of handling situations differed from his. She could only bring herself to be that cold under the most stressful and frustrating situations, when her mood was at its darkest. Telarius often told her that her warmth was her strength. She wished she could believe him. Currently it seemed more of a nuisance.

"Entilza," both spoke in unison and stood, giving the simple salute that Phillip had suggested they use when not in battle. Deanne always felt a bit sad when she witnessed any of the salutes. Phillip had suggested them all, of course, and Telarius approved each one. She did not know Phillip as well as Telarius did, but she mourned his death no less than he. She knew because in the days leading up to Phillip's death, Telarius was beginning to lose his baser emotions.

But that was a thought train for another time. She had to stay focused on the moment. Telarius once said that perfect thought and execution could only occur of the moment, and not before or after. It was difficult not to look forward or behind, but she did experience more focus when the avoided it as much as possible. Perhaps the samurai of feudal Japan were on to something.

"Report," Deanne kept her tone sharp and commanding, delivering her solitary word after returning the salute to them, while she was in a motion of sitting down across from the two. She thought it odd just then that they would sit next to each other.

"I..." both spoke simultaneously, eager for their news to be the first heard. They exchanged looks and Deanne laughed, warmly. This caused them to laugh as well, and smile. She felt the general mood in their booth become more relaxed. Deanne gestured for Cordelia to go first. Deanne marked her graciousness in her mental notebook.

"I have become a bit better at scanning large crowds of minds," Cordelia began, ever the professional, "It is a tricky task to set oneself to. The human mind is often clouded and chaotic. To isolate primary thought patterns is simple. To isolate thought patterns by subject is difficult. The more minds, the longer the scan takes to complete. Once it is done, I find I have a problem sorting the barrage of information I receive. Even if I sort it, by the time I am done reviewing the last bits of data, I have long forgotten the first. That being said, my information is more limited than it should be, and I do apologize for that."

"Your humility is noted, and your apology is unnecessary," Deanne smiled, "I have never had cause to doubt your work to be anything but your best on any occassion. I do thank you for the explanation, however. Please proceed."

"Thank you, Entilza. I gathered that there was something new involving Telarius. Apparently there has been a movement of some sort. I assume to a different compound under a different interragator, since Fenrir has come to Hogwarts to teach, but this is conjecture only. The general mood of these thoughts is confused, which leads me to suspect that they believed Fenrir adequate to succeed in... well, whatever it was they were attempting to do."

"Is that all?" Deanne asked.

Cordelia seemed to take that question to mean that what she said was not enough information to warrant any special merit. Deanne actually noticed her concentrating, trying to think of something else to push that envelope a bit and earn more favour. It made Deanne a bit irritated. Cordelia at least respected her enough not to fabricate anything, so technically that was fewer points out of her favour.

Deanne nodded, then turned to Meriam. "And you? Report."

Meriam smiled a warm smile. "I spotted a man today who looked too old for a student and too young for a teacher. He was accompanied by a wolf, which I thought was kind of weird, since we all know wolves are rarely found away from their own kind. I approached and spoke with him... a very nice guy by the name of Teluryon Arcanis."

Deanne's eyes widened. "Teluryon, you said?"

Meriam nodded. "I didn't ask him about that, of course, but I did find out that he's the new head of Gryffindor House and the new Care for Magical Creatures teacher."

"Then it couldn't be him. They would not hire someone like the Teluryon that Telarius always spoke of as the third," Deanne sighed. Her hopes had risen for a bit.

"I don't know. Perhaps Teluryon is skilled in the art of deception. Moreso than Telarius was. He always said that Teluryon was the eldest of the three," Cordelia chimed in, trying desparately to look good. It only made Deanne more frustrated with her.

"Now is not the time for wishful thinking," Deanne snapped, quickly, "Besides, Telarius never spoke terribly well of Teluryon to me, save for in his reflective state. It is my understanding that those two might have had a falling out of sorts a while ago. Who knows? Maybe it is Teluryon, come to correct what he perceives to be Telarius' mistakes. If that is the case, then we had best be prepared for dealing with that kind of adversary."

The silence lasted long enough for everyone in the cart to become uncomfortable. "Deal with Telarius' elder?" the though seemed to make Cordelia sick to her stomach.

"It is a possibility," Deanne spoke shortly.

Meriam nodded, grimly. "Seems as though things never go quite our way. What do we know of him?"

"Telarius spoke of Teluryon's role in the Triumverate to be one of sight. It was rather confusing, actually," Deanne ran her index finger along the slope of her nose in thought, "From what I understand, Telarius was the warrior, Shadowmyre the warden, and Teluryon the sensor. Teluryon acquired the information, Shadowmyre protected, and Telarius destroyed."

"It sounds as though Teluryon is the least dangerous of the three, then," Cordelia exhaled in relief.

"Don't be so certain. You know very well the dangers that information can bring. All he needs to do is know just enough to cripple each of us. He does not even need to lift a finger nor wave a wand to take each of us down if his abilities were as potent as Telarius described," Deanne's tone was one of caution.

"You know, I really hate it when people talk about me when I'm not there to defend myself," a jovial voice came from behind the curtain of their section of the train.

Deanne felt ice upon her neck. She was not sure if it was from the voice or something else. The curtain was drawn from the outside to reveal a man with hair like red copper, trailing a bit beyond his shoulders. His body was well formed, though largely framed. He stood over six feet tall, and wore a goatee quite handsomely. It seemed to accent his green-tinted hazel eyes, which looked slightly down the slope of his nose, whose length seemed almost french in origin. Oddly, the length of his nose did not detract from his good looks. He wore dark green underneath a black cloak. Not for a single moment did he look like a man Deanne would ever need to fear.

She immediately withdrew her wand and aimed it straight between his eyes. "Teluryon. We have not been introduced. I am Deanne," Deanne spoke with confidence from behind her wand. Why should she not? This one proved far better than her former, and with a simple incantation could become a menacing claymore.

Teluryon's eyes widened at the sight of the wand. "Adin! The Rebelling Blade!" he looked from it to her, "Where on earth did you find that?"

He seemed all too friendly to be someone intent upon her immediate destruction. She lowered her guard slightly. If Telarius had led her right about him, Teluryon would know that she was treating him with caution. "I did not find it. It was given to me after the Battle of Hogwarts."

Teluryon's arms went up in a peaceful motion. "I assure you, I am not a threat. Have your telepath scan me if you believe me false. If then you still do not trust me, I believe your temptress can put me in enough of a spell to even convince you that I will do no harm," there was no disdain at his voice at any time. He knew the roles of the other two without ever having to be told. He had no moral quandry with being seduced into a state of acquiescence to prove his good intentions.

Deanne therefore sheathed her wand. "You already know by now that it is unnecessary. I would ask why you have come, though. Your arrival seems too perfectly timed. We are short on allies and you could be a great help. Telarius always told me to be cautious of such things, for if it seems to be contrived by design then it likely is."

Teluryon laughed and lowered his arms. "Telarius needs to learn to be more trusting."

"Funny, Shadowmyre said the exact oppo..." there was a reason for her stop in mid-sentence, "Needs to learn... you know he is alive! You have news of him?!"

Teluryon nodded with a smile and opened his mouth to talk. It was then that the chill Deanne felt on her neck suddenly reasserted itself. All the colour drained from Teluryon's face and he collapsed to the side to reveal the dark silhouette of a dementor behind him.

Deanne's wand was in her hand once again, but she was the first to be assaulted. The others did not have time to react as more dementors piled into the area, each taking a victim for themselves. Deanne knew well the acocunts of dementor attacks on the individual. She thought she knew what to expect.

She didn't.

If happiness was a blanket wrapped about the self to keep warm, then the dementors froze that blanket into oblivion. Suddenly she realized how little she had to be happy about. Her love might never return to her as he used to be. She was in charge of a rag-tag group of people that needed to somehow eventually take down a governmental organization. Things were bleak on all fronts. There was no happy future for her. No house with a picket fence. No 2.5 kids and a dog. No comfort of living outside of fear. No end, except to surrender to the inevitable.

'Were they sent to kill me and the others?' she wondered.

Aeons passed, and then something extraordinary. A fist knocked one of the dementor's clear off their mark. The shining metal of an English broadsword cut one deeply and impaled another. An elbow, a shoulder throw. Whoever was fighting the now four dementors was doing a wonderful job of it. It could not be Shadowmyre, though. He used a katana... and a special one at that. This was not his weapon, nor his style. This was more brute force than anything else. However, the brute force was succeeding and the dementors eventually fled, leaving only a panting Teluryon leaning against his sword.

"Dracius lebtus," he chanted with a slight smile, and his sword became a wand once more.

That was all Deanne remembered before blacking out.

* * *

"So that's what this feels like."

Deanne was staring at the ceiling of the Hogwarts hospital wing, knowing full well that Telarius could probably detail each inch of it from the times he has awoken to the sight. She turned her head left and right, immediately looking for chocolate. There was none in sight.

"I see you are awake," the voice was not one she wished to here.

She summoned all of the energy she had left to maintain a semblance of propriety. "Headmistress. How kind of you to be here."

"Kindness has nothing to do with it, dear Ms. Ember," Umbridge looked at her nails in a disinterested manner, "But I figured that you deserved the right to attend the evening feast and sorting like your friends, so I have been delaying it until you awoke. We are now running ten minutes behind schedule, so I would appreciate it if you would do me a courtesy in turn and move with due haste."

Deanne thought about decapitating her and pulling a general coup over Hogwarts. She gave herself a 50% chance of success. Those odds seemed rather acceptable in her tired state. Still, it wouldn't get her any closer to her long term goals. She rolled her feet off of the bed to find herself still clothed in her Hogwarts robes. She staggered down the halls with Umbridge, making her best effort not to make any sound which might invite conversation.

She succeeded.

* * *

Deanne quickly took her place at the Ravenclaw table, the eyes of most people in the great hall upon her. After being seated, the sorting ceremony began. Somehow it seemed less cheery than last year's. Meriam was thrown into Gryffindor, meaning she would have the most contact with Teluryon, someone Deanne hoped to be their newest ally. Shadowmyre was sorted into Ravenclaw, interestingly enough, and made it a point to sit as far away from her as possible. He even threw in a suspicious glare for good measure. His actions caught eyes up front. Deanne knew, because that is where her attention was focused.

She saw Teluryon sitting in Hagrid's old spot. The Gryffindor House banner had been moved from the chair now occupied by Helena to his. A wolf was by his right side, panting like a happy dog, and a Northern Raven was perched on his left shoulder. His figure was impressive to look at even sitting. Momentarily she found herself staring a bit too intently at that particular feature. It passed.

Deanne's eyes passed over Helena Umbridge with a velocity rivaled only by c. She knew of too many qualities possessed by that individual not to already detest her. Besides, it was not who Deanne was ultimately looking for. Her eyes trailed past Umbridge and stopped at Snape. Snape ventured a quick glance in her direction and flashed a smile whose subtlety was so expertly executed that there was little chance anyone save Deanne caught it. Next to Snape was Lichen. This was Deanne's first sight of Thomas Lichen, and she was surprised.

First of all, he could not have been any older than thirty. The colour which her eyes caught reflecting from his hair was the most generic brown humanly possible. The aforementioned hair was in general disarray, down well past his elbows and sleek and thin. His beard seemed to be having a race with his hair, the finish line being his ankles or something, and was currently losing by perhaps two centimeters. It was quite bushy, which contrasted sharply with his hair, but also served to give him a warm, almost comical look.

His clothing was a rare sight for Deanne anymore. Blue jeans and an off-white t-shirt, the image of a bear roaring in the forest quite evident upon the front of the latter. Over this he wore an ankle-length blue denim trenchcoat. The coat almost looked like armour. He also looked as though he did not require such protection. While Teluryon's figure was obviously muscular, Lichen had mass on him for sure. He reminded her of a mini-Hagrid in that moment. It actually amazed her how little mini meant in that analogy.

Trumping everything was his face. He wore glasses with lenses so thick they were probably bullet-proof, but they added to his overall charm. His expression was the best, though. Cool, collected, calm... in that moment she felt that the entire ceiling could fall on them and he would simply stand, dust himself off, and then proceed to a speakeasy and order a shot of whiskey, saluting those who were his friends and had perished. After taking the shot, he would sit back and take in the evening's performance, a splendid jazz combo consisting of a piano, sax, string bass, and drums.

He was the new Arithmancy professor, and he sat in the location reserved for the Head of Ravenclaw House. He was Thomas Lichen, and Deanne sincerely hoped he was not her enemy. It was possible that he gauged him wrong, of course. She considered this to be unlikely.

She did not find who she was looking for. The seat for the Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor was vacant. Deanne eyed the empty spot with suspicion. Delores did not seem overtly put out by his lack of presence. Quite the contrary. It appeared as though something were planned or staged for some kind of dramatic appearance before the student body. The thought of Telarius' torturor being paraded around the Great Hall of Hogwarts like some kind of hero made Deanne feel immeasureably queezy.

After the sorting had completely concluded, Delores Umbridge stood to make the typical pre-feast speach, welcoming everyone to another year at Hogwarts. Deanne was dreading hearing this woman talk for any period of time, but paid close attention, hoping to glean any information she can.

"Now that the new students have been greeted," the old bat croaked, "I can now welcome the rest of you to another year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry."

There was plenty of applause from all tables. Deanne made it a point not to clap. "Thank you, thank you. Now, as you all know by now, there have been many changes around Hogwarts. Let me assure you that all of these changes were made with the best interests of the student body in mind. It does not do well for the faculty of such a prestigous school as this to be caught up in the meddlings of traitors."

The hall was dead silent. She had not outright said it, but all of them knew exactly what she meant. She had called Telarius a traitor. Deanne wondered what her grounding was, since Telarius had saved the Ministry of Magic from the mechanations of Voldemort.

Umbridge continued, "The changes in the faculty are obvious, of course. The rules, however, need reviewing. Be sure to take mental note of these changes, because forgetting them will not excuse you from the penalties for their infraction."

"First rule: All restrictions on disciplinary action are hereby lifted. Any faculty member may carry out any action they feel is necessary to discipline a student. The decision on what is necessary will only be questionable by the Ministry of Magic, and will only be brought to their attention in the case of severe injury or death."

"Second rule: Any outright mentioning of the conficted felon Telarius by a Hogwarts student will result in immediate expulsion of that student. Any show of support for the aforementioned individual, be it obvious or subdued, will be penalized by a harsh flogging. Even faculty are subject to the terms of this rule. There will be a generous reward for students who report such activity to a member of the faculty. Anyone who feels as though they cannot follow this rule, please feel free to explain to me why you would willingly side yourself with a criminal as horrible as this Telarius."

Deanne's blood boiled and she was tempted to stand up. ~Don't do it, Deanne. She's trying to goad you into reacting.~

~You can read her?~ Deanne asked.

~Like a cheesy romance novel. Never in my time have I found a mind so weak to penetration.~

Deanne chuckled. That comment certainly made her mood a bit brighter. Umbridge soon realized that her tactic had not worked and continued with her speach.

"Third rule: A teacher's class is their own. They may teach it and grade it any way they deem necessary to promote your learning."

Umbridge paused to drink from her glass of water before continuing. It was obvious that she was getting off on this whole power thing. "Before I continue with the fourth rule, I must tell everyone of a change in school policy. It is my belief that the previous administration of this facility, while having the best interests of the students at heart, did not truly make all the best decisions toward promoting your learning. Starting with this term and continuing for as long as this administration lasts, classes will be held every day of the week. Furthermore, the recreational activity known as Quidditch is a distraction from the true intent of Hogwarts. If you wish to practice Quidditch, you may make use of your vacation time. No longer will there be any of that foolishness on this campus."

"Additionally there is the new curfew policy. These are the following locations students are permitted to be in and when you are permitted to be in them: In the halls only when going to a class, the hall for a meal, or your house. No more wandering of the halls during any other hour. The hall for breakfast, lunch, and dinner at the appropriate times, and for whatever festive occassions you are called to them for. Your house at all other times. Incursions to Hogsmeade are only permitted after all classes for the day have been completed, and any group leaving Hogwarts must have a member of the faculty serve as chaperone. In other words, if you are not in the Great Hall, a classroom, your house, or moving toward one of those locations you are in direct violation of curfew."

"Which brings me to the fourth rule: Violation of curfew will result in immediate loss of all house points, as well as strict disciplinary action."

Umbridge smiled a sick, sick smile. She then gestured toward the door of the Great Hall. "It is now my pleasure to introduce to all of you your new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor. Please welcome Professor Hetmo Fenrir with complete silence, by his request."

The doors of the hall opened and Deanne found herself again surprised. Fenrir was not terribly tall in stature, but he had his share of interesting characteristics. He wore a black all-weather cloak with the hood drawn up for concealment. Deanne noticed that beneath the hood there was a mask, covering all but his eyes, mouth, and chin. The mask was made of some kind of pale, dry material and looked like white sand had suddenly decided to converge and solidify into a single, solid object without any moisture. His eyes were in shadow because of the hood, and Deanne could tell this was intentional.

The loud sound of his boots clomping along the marble floor made Deanne believe they possessed metal beneath the black leather in certain, strategic areas. His pants and shirt seemed quite normal for a wizard, but were slightly shredded and somehow more black than usual. These shreds made apparent the most interesting and fearful feature.

Bandages. His shirt's sleeves were short, and where the sleeves ended the bandages seemed to begin. They did not stop, either. The holes and rips in his clothing revealed that the bandages covered his entire body, save the section no decent male would ever allow revealed in public. Deanne was reminded of old mummy movies. Hell, she was reminded of new mummy movies. As he clomped directly by her seat, her nose caught the strong scent of copper that could only come from dried blood.

The silence was not forced on the part of the students. Some looked at Fenrir with concern. Most looked upon him with fear. Deanne shot Cordelia a look after he was a safe distance away.

~The student body's reaction has given me much more information,~ Cordelia did not disappoint, ~Fenrir is one of the Wizarding World's newest Aurors. No one knows where he came from or how long he's been an Auror, but he's known for his ruthlessness and his efficiency. Apparently he's feared by those who are not his allies, and most here believe that his presence indicates that either Telarius has broken or is no more.~

~Which we know to be untrue,~ Deanne quickly threw in.

~Well, Teluryon never had the chance to confirm or deny anything...~

~He's still alive and hanging in there. I know it.~

~Yes, I feel that too.~

Fenrir took his seat and remained silent. Umbridge flashed him a smile, then returned her attention to the student body. "New rules changes will be posted as they are made, or discussed at dinnertime. Now, eat well students. You have a busy day tomorrow."

* * *

Deanne was fuming when she finally reached the Ravenclaw common room. She sat by the fire, wishing it would expand toward Umbridge and burn her into the tiniest cinders. As she stared and concentrated on that thought, that hate, the flames seemed to dance a bit higher and a bit brighter. It caught her off guard. She had never performed sorcery before, and generally had considered herself incapable. Telarius had confirmed it himself. How did he put it? Ah yes. A resonance conflict between her body and spirit. He went as far as to say that her particular combination was the only one he had ever seen with this kind of defect.

It was not just this child body, either. She had since attempted sorcery in her true form, only to find herself once again lacking. She wondered why such a conflict existed... why her spirit was so bloody particular about the bodily resonance for her sorcery. Telarius probably could hypothesize something. She missed him. She wanted him to be there.

The flames grew brighter still, but Deanne then felt a breeze from an open window. 'That must be it,' she thought, 'Air fuels the flame.'

"Now there's the Ravenclaw look if I ever saw it," came a calm but gentle voice from beside her.

She looked to find the new master of the house looking back down at her. "What do you mean Professor Lichen?" she asked, being as polite as she could.

"You're sitting in that chair, in front of that fire, your face contorted in some kind of deep contemplation. No doubt you're attempting to solve a mystery, perhaps even wishing for help?"

Deanne was tired, but not tired enough to miss the amount of perception and awareness that Lichen was displaying. "Read my mind, Professor," she replied.

He smiled and sat down next to her. "Naw, it was just a hunch. Surprised I was right this time," he leaned back against the chair and stared directly into the fire, "What's on your mind?"

It felt a bit awkward for Deanne at that moment. She barely knew the guy, and already he was asking her questions and talking with her as if they had been associates in the past. Still, his chummy-ness had a sort of appeal to it in her sleepy state that she could not rationally override. "I was thinking about my soul's resonance," she answered, simply.

Lichen's smile faded, but not into a frown. His expression was more astonished than anything else. "You know of resonances of the body and soul?" his expression shifted once more, as if suddenly realization dawned on him, "Dumb question. Of course you do. You knew him best, after all."

Him. He was talking about Telarius. Deanne felt a warmth creep into her that she never felt before. For the first time in months she heard his name spoken in a tone that was not sadness, contempt, dismissal, or apathy. Lichen's tone was one of reverence. "He told me that my spirit's resonance was particular when it came to sorcery... that I could not perform sorcery in this body because the spirit disagreed. He said it was unusual for such a thing to happen in someone who can perform wizardry without such a conflict."

Lichen nodded. "Indeed it is. Difficult to explain why, though. Usually the frequency agreement which permits sorcery is also what triggers the potential for wizardry in an individual. In over 99% of all cases, someone without a body/soul frequency agreement for sorcery is simply a muggle or a squib, though there's no real difference between the two."

"So what is it about me that's different?" Deanne asked, hoping that Lichen might finally have an answer for her.

"Damned if I know," Lichen said with a laugh.

Deanne sighed a disappointed sigh, and Lichen was not deaf to her emotion. "I'll make you a deal, though," Lichen began, standing from his chair, "I'll research the possibilities and get back to you on it if your promise me that I can meet him someday."

Lichen did not wait for her response. He walked away casually, but she knew that he had intended that last bit to end the conversation. She sat there dumbfounded for a long time, wondering how on Earth Lichen could have been chosen by the Ministry for this position when he so far seemed pro-Telarius.