Chapter 4: Rising Moon IIII
Summary:
In which the moon learns something.
Notes:
Welcome back ladies and gentlemen, to another chapter of Under the Hunters Moon.
A quick note before going on, there will be no bashing in this fic, each character will be as close as I can possibly get them from canon, if you don't like that, well…sucks to be you.
Now step right up, the unknowing is about to begin!
on with the show!
Disclaimer!
I don't own any of these stories, not the characters, I'm just borrowing for the time.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
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Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore has had a day almost twice as long as his name, after the Chamber of Secret fiasco that young mister Potter had ended one would think that was that. But oh no, dealing with the DMLE and keeping their appearance in the school from the students was a circus by itself, but also dealing with the board of governors, the ousting of Lucius Malfoy from the said board, and the paperwork that had piled up while he was away; he honestly couldn't blame Minerva for that last one, the school HAD been in a crisis after all.
And now after a long day of dealing with the aftermath of the Chamber of Secrets and keeping young Harry's name away from it all, Albus was finally climbing the stairs to his office, where soon he'll be able to enjoy a nice cuppa with a splash of brandy before turning in for the night, so much work to be done tomorrow as well, he just hopes he'll be able to keep his word to young mister Potter.
Stopping before the door to his office and reaching with his magic to undo the wards that sealed it in his absence, he pauses. It was an oddity, the wards were whole and intact, and none had been breached or destroyed but still, the wards told him there were two beings inside his office.
Now one he had expected, for there was no ward known to Wixen-kind that could stop a Phoenix from going where they pleased, beings of fire, life, and light as they were.
Fawkes has been his steadfast companion for many years, Albus had expected him to return to his roost after helping in the Chamber.
But the other Being was a surprise and Albus truly meant the word Being, for how old their magic felt it was no human within his office.
What most wizards and witches speculate on how powerful another Wixen is, is based on the thought that if you had more magic, then you are more powerful.
This is a falsehood, for most Wixen did not have magic. They had a core or soul that could Channel magic through it and use it with a foci, one could only measure the strength of one's magic by the AGE of their core and the knowledge they had gained in their studies.
Only with understanding and time can one cast the most marvelous or malicious of magics. There are rare exceptions, yes. But this was the truth that most magic followed.
Albus was old enough and wise enough to feel out the age of the magic around him, it was not as fine-tuned as many would think. He can tell if it was younger or older than him, that was all and not a very good way to try and measure power. He could feel the age of Fawkes and know the Phoenix was older than him, he could feel the magic of Hogwarts through the wards and feel the ancient thrum of power of the old castle.
But the guest beyond his door was older than both.
So with this in mind, Albus quickly comes to two conclusions, the first is that without a doubt that the being beyond this door was waiting for him, and that put him on edge.
The second was, that while whatever was in his office may be hostile to him, it wasn't to the school, or else the wards would have alerted him. So with those two facts in mind, the Wand of Destiny slips into his hand from his sleeve before he opens his office door, better safe than sorry after all.
What he found in his office was honestly not what he had expected, he felt the age coming off the being standing at the window that overlooks the grounds of Hogwarts, but seeing that said form was that of a first year in what looks to be a silver bomber jacket, admittedly, had him on the back foot. He looks over to his long-time friend to see him asleep on his perch, head tucked beneath his wing.
With a nod, Albus closes the door to his office and turns back to his guest.
"Good evening Miss," Albus begins with "it seems you've caught me right before I was going to have some tea before going off to bed, would you care to join me?"
The girl by the window slowly turns to look at him and, ah the eyes are an odd bit yes, and asks him "You find a stranger in your office in the early morning hours and you offer them tea?" Amusement and disbelief colored her tone of voice.
Albus smiled before answering back "my mother would never forgive me if I did not mind my manners, and you are in Great Britain, and in Britain, we drink tea." The girl snorted before turning to look back out the window as Albus climbed the stairs to his desk and pulled out his chair, before turning back to the young-looking girl.
"Last chance for that tea Miss." He says, pausing for a moment, to let her answer. "It seems if I am to be a guest, I should act like one. Yes, tea sounds lovely, thank you." She said in a flat, uncaring, but polite tone.
Albus nods before summoning Tipsy, a house elf, and orders tea for two with biscuits, the elf nods before popping away.
It is when Albus takes his seat does she speak to him, instead of answering a question. "You…are Albus Dumbledore, correct?" She asks without turning around from the window.
"I am indeed, Headmaster of these hallowed halls of Hogwarts School of witchcraft and wizardry, along with other unimportant and superficial titles that are worth much less than the first, yes." He answers, but all the girl does is nod and remains quiet.
Another popping sound fills the room and appearing on the Headmaster's desk was a tea tray with biscuits. With a wave of his hand, the chair on the other side of the desk slides out, and Albus asks the young lady to join him.
The mysterious girl simply looks at him for a long moment, before nodding and taking the seat across from Dumbledore. "How do you take it?" He asks her, the girl tells him plain and that is how the cup is placed in front of her. Albus on the other hand puts three sugars and reaches into his bottom drawer to pull out a bottle of brandy before adding a splash.
They sit at his desk, neither saying a word, Albus studies the girl and the girl glares at her cup as if looking for words she isn't quite sure how to say. It's Dumbledore who breaks the silence after a few minutes, "Hopefully, you will excuse me Miss for how rude I am going to be here in the next moment, but I find it pertinent to ask, What are you?"
The girl looks up from her cup with a raised eyebrow before saying "Most would ask who, not what." She states simply.
Dumbledore chuckles at this, "So, you would be a person of some renown by how you put that, and with the power you project I do not doubt that. However, it is your age that throws me off, because, from my point of view, a young girl has more power and age behind her than the three of the most talented wizards in the last century rolled into one." He says before taking a sip of tea.
"To me, it speaks that the form of the young girl before me is but a mask or illusion which you project. And since metamorphmagues do not typically live to the great age I feel coming from you, I can only ascertain that the term what is far more useful to know than the who at this moment." Dumbledore explains before taking another sip of tea.
The young girl smiles ever so slightly at the aging Headmaster, "They did say you were smart and sharp when they spoke of you." She says.
It is the Headmaster's turn to raise an eyebrow, "and who are they, in this?" He asks.
The girl just smiles before saying "James Potter and Lily Evans. But we are getting off-topic, I will introduce myself and perhaps you will figure it out from there, my name is Artemis Phaesporia." She informs him.
At the mention of James and Lily, the Headmaster was surprised, he had thought he knew all their friends and family, but when the young woman introduced herself Dumbledore's face went passive, then his brow crinkled and he began to stroke his beard in deep thought.
He looks away from the girl, gears turning in his mind and considering what his next move was, because if the girl in front of him was truly the Goddess Artemis then this conversation was about to take a very dangerous turn for him.
He looks back at the girl after a moment, "Forgive Lady Artemis, if I, once again, seem rude or overstepping my bounds, and while well aware of what usually happens to mortals when they question a God. I can't help but ask you, as the younger generation would say, to prove it." Dumbledore tells the goddess sitting opposite of him, goosebumps rise on his arms as a chill runs down his back, and the air grows thick with power from the young girl. Fawkes wakes from his slumber as he feels the effect of Artemis' rising anger.
Artemis narrows her eyes at the aging Headmaster, "I am in a good mood this night Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, do not test my anger over foolish mortal pride." She speaks softly, but the hard steel of fury in her voice is undeniable. To Dumbledore's credit, he does not show fear, nor does he start to cower and beg, he bows his head and says "forgive me, Lady Artemis. But I am an academic first, and a man of faith none at all." Keeping his head down in respect, "I ask this to not only prove to me that I have been wrong for a great many years, but to also prove your claim." He doesn't look up, even as the feeling of him being chased down by dogs hungry for his flesh abides.
There is a pause for a short minute before Artemis speaks again, "Fine, what can I do to prove to you that I am what I say." Her voice was still hard from the insult paid to her.
Albus finally looks up and with a wave of his wand he conjures a plate and utensils, "Simple, a piece of roasted wild game, could be any animal really, just a small piece."
Artemis looks at him and through him, trying to find if there is a trick, her eyes flicker to the plate as reality folds like origami and a slice of roast sits on the plate.
Dumbledore simply nods and casts a few spells before picking up a fork and stabbing the meat, after a moment he picks it up, and eats it.
"Marvelous, venison!" He says with the sound of joy in his voice. "My deepest apology Lady Artemis, but I had to be sure and I thank you for showing patience with me, the humbled fool." The old man says with a smile and twinkling eyes.
"That's it? A piece of venison and you're ready to worship me with joy?" Artemis says with a confused look on her face. "You are an odd man, Albus Dumbledore."
Dumbledore laughs, taking no offense to being called odd. "It was not just a piece of venison, Lady Artemis. You irrevocably broke a law of transfiguration, something we mortal wizards and witches could not do no matter our age or knowledge. You conjured food from nothing, that in and of itself proves to me who you are without a doubt." Dumbledore explains to the Goddess of the Hunt.
He vanishes the conjured dishes before picking up his tea, and with a shake of his head and a smile takes a sip. The elderly wizard continues to smile, to find out the old legends are true was simply amazing, but it also brings about other questions, one he gave voice to. "Lady Artemis, do not get me wrong, as much as I'm honored to have you here, I do not believe, no matter how arguably important I am in the wizarding world, that you would come to see me and chat over a cuppa. If you are here to recruit for your hunters, I would ask, humbly, that you recruit from our 5th year and up." He smiles at the last part, intending it to be a joke, but the goddess doesn't smile.
"I'm here about the boy." She simply states. Dumbledore sets his cup down, "oh, and which boy is that Lady Artemis?" He asked the goddess, but already knew the answer to the question.
"Do not play coy with me, Albus Dumbledore, you know which boy I speak of." She states bluntly with the hint of the earlier steel back in her voice. And indeed he did, he knew who this was about the moment he saw her eyes. For Albus had encountered only one other person with eyes like that, in a small unused classroom holding a mirror in the middle of the night, when only a few hours before they were normal.
"Harry Potter." He says, not a question or doubt, a simple statement of fact.
"Yes." The goddess replies, her glowing amber eyes burning into Albus' blue ones. "Did he somehow offend you, Lady Artemis?" The old Headmaster asks back, his mind whirling with theories about the connection between the two. "No, I was more impressed by his hunt under your school than anything else, tell me about him." She says.
Dumbledore pauses to collect his thoughts, unsure of where this was going but very much worried about young Harry. "The boy is quiet but polite, prone to odd behaviors, and if I am being honest, a poor academic." Albus says, the goddess' face does not change from the uncaring and passive look upon it. But she does ask a question "odd behaviors? What do you mean by that?"
Albus is quiet for a moment, studying the immortal in front of him, her face hadn't changed but there was an odd thing flashing in her eyes, he would not call it an emotion more of a twitch of a shadow of emotion. "It had been brought to my attention last school year of Misters Potter's behavior by his head of house, Minerva McGonagall, who in turn had been told by the house prefects. Mister Potter had an odd habit of never staying in his bed, he would bunker down with his roommates but by the time morning would come, many would find him sleeping on the couches or chairs in the common room and one time under his bed." Albus pauses here to take a breath before continuing,
"It is not the only odd behavior that I had noticed, for the first three months he seemed to have made no friends, no social circle, and he did not eat with anyone. If it wasn't for a certain incident on Halloween of that year, I think Mister Potter would still be friendless."
The goddess doesn't ask about the incident, perhaps she had already known about it, perhaps she didn't care.
Albus went on to explain the boy's poor grades, how in almost every class except astronomy he had a failing grade within those same months, but soon changed thanks to the help of one of his friends, a Miss Granger.
The goddess's lips twitch at the mention of astronomy but otherwise as impassive as most of the conversation thus far.
It was when he got to explaining how Miss Granger had approached her head of house with concerns about the boy, about his trouble reading The goddess had the rest of the story before it even left his mouth, how the boy would get headaches and how the letters and words floated.
This caused Albus to pause before he continued about the boy's trouble in the classroom, how he had lost more points than he had earned because he had trouble sitting still and paying attention, but once again she had known his problem before he even started to explain it.
Once again Albus pauses, looking closely at the goddess of the hunt as she continues looking at her cup of cold tea, "Lady Artemis, please forgive me if I am too forward with what I'm about to ask but, do you happen to know what is wrong with the boy?" He asks.
The goddess is quiet for a moment before she speaks again, "These problems stem from what the child is, the boy is a Demigod."
She says it calmly, quietly almost like a whisper in the silent office, and with that utterance, several pieces fall into place for one Albus Dumbledore, and his eyes grow wide as he begins to understand the power he knows not. He also understood something else, something he gave voice to.
"He is your son," Dumbledore says breathlessly
This causes the goddess to finally look up, her burning amber eye staring directly into Dumbledores, but the elderly Headmaster continues anyway ignorant of the anger building in Artemis.
"You were Lily Potter, that certainly explains her almost intuitive-" but that is as far as the Headmaster gets in his speculation as Artemis stands abruptly, the chair she had sat on sailing out behind her and smashing into the wall, shattering.
"YOU DARE!?" yells the Goddess, whose eyes were like an inferno, a harsh silver light begins to come off her form as her anger reaches its peak and the sounds of a hunt begin to fill the office. Albus Dumbledore has never felt so close to death until this moment.
Not with his duel with Gellert, nor with the few times he had faced Tom, at this moment he was a bowstring from death and he knew it just as well as he knew of the hounds snipping at his heels.
He falls quiet as he looks at the Goddess of the Hunt, "The boy is not my child, he is the child of James Potter and Lily Evans." She says with such steel in her voice, that it causes the windows in the office to crack.
She turns on her heel and walks down the small steps, stopping before the fireplace.
She is quiet for a moment, getting her temper under control, she still needed the old man and could not kill him yet for his insult.
After a moment she explains, "The boy is not mine, though he does have a piece of me in him. He is a curiosity to me, that is all. I had helped Lily Evans on a whim, nothing more."
"The curse," Albus concludes, and Artemis nods "Lily Evans invoked a very old ritual, she had hoped to summon another goddess, but she had called me instead. I granted her a boon on the agreement that she would take care of the child, but she died before she could fulfill her side of the agreement, which brings me to why I am here tonight." Artemis says as she turns back to the Headmaster, "Tell me what happened that night." She orders.
Dumbledore did not need to ask what night she meant, so he did what was asked of him and told her of that Samhain eleven years ago, the story of betrayal, murder, and a sacrifice made out of love. Artemis takes it all in without once speaking a word or asking a question. After she asks how the boy was hidden, hidden so well that not even she knew the boy was alive, Dumbledore explains that it is most likely for him to be blamed for that.
"You see when Lily Potter sacrificed herself she once again invoked an ancient magic, one so old and powerful that not even I, with my great understanding of magic, could not make heads or tails of. But through the development of this ritual, we corresponded and she shared with me her notes, with which I was able to create a powerful ward on her sister's home. So long as the boy could call the place where his mother's blood dwelled home then he would be protected and hidden from all those who seek him. His enemies could stand on the front lawn and he on the porch and they couldn't even begin to comprehend that he stayed in the house, let alone was standing in front of them." Albus explains to her.
Artemis nods at this, if the ward was powerful enough to block her out then it stands to reason that the other Olympian Gods couldn't find him either, and if they couldn't, then the monsters that would eat the boy couldn't. Artemis feels relief at this, but she could not say why, she pushes it aside, for now, there are other matters to deal with.
"The boy will need to be trained." She tells Dumbledore, and he raises an eyebrow at this before pointing out that is the reason he is at Hogwarts.
"No, the boy is here to learn, not to train. With him having a piece of me in him, he has my blessing, which comes with a downside." Artemis begins "The call of the hunt is a dangerous thing if left alone the boy will lose himself to it, he'll become no more than a wild beast hunting everything and anything around him until he has to be put down like A rabid dog." The Goddess explains she has seen it happen many times before, starting with Orion. "Did you not stop to consider why the boy went after the basilisk, even knowing how dangerous it was? He felt the call and followed it like a bloodhound with a scent" the goddess goes on before pausing for a moment and saying "Then there is also the fact that the boy's dyslexia can be helped, his brain is hardwired for ancient greek, if he can get his books in that it should help with his reading problem," Artemis informs the Headmaster.
Albus nods "I think I will pass this along to his friend Miss Granger, that and a simple translation spell." Artemis looks at him with a raised brow, Dumbledore merely chuckles before saying "I would be a poor educator indeed if I did not help a student in need, Lady Artemis." The twinkle in his eyes returning, "But that does leave the question of training, I do not believe anyone on my staff could train the boy properly."
Artemis silently agrees with the Headmaster, looking into the crackling fire she thinks about it for a few minutes before answering. "I will send one of my hunters, the boy will not know as to why she was sent, but she will help him control his urges, and teach him the finer points of hunting," Artemis says, coming to a decision. "Expect them at the start of your next school year, they will make contact with the boy, you need not interfere with that." To this all Albus could do is nod.
"Will you not tell the boy?" He inquires of the Goddess, and without looking away from the flames she answers "No, nor will I claim him publicly for my own reasons." She says in a tone that brokered no argument, and all the Headmaster can do is nod, if she would not tell the boy, then he will when the time is right.
"Then I will make sure accommodations are made for your hunter, she will be treated as a guest of Hogwarts," Albus tells her before the goddess rebuts him. "No, you have a forest on the grounds, and they are a hunter, that is all the accommodations they will need. If anything, the forest will be cleared of anything too dangerous before the next year is up." Artemis says.
"Be that as it may, I will still prepare another room for them to use if they so choose, Scotland can have some very cold winters." The Headmaster's tone also doesn't give room for argument.
Artemis scoffs, but otherwise remains silent, turning away from the flames she looks back at the Headmaster, "That is all I need from you this night, Albus Dumbledore, my hunter will introduce themselves when she arrives so you know her, but except that will be the only contact you have with her." She tells him before she turns to the office door and begins to leave.
"Then, Lady Artemis, I wish you a good night and a happy hunt." He says as the goddess just nods at him and closes the door.
After she leaves, the weight of the ages leaves with her, and Albus sighs out in relief. This night has truly been one of Revelations for him, the boy was a Demigod, the diary that the younger Tom had come from, that the old legends are true, and if that was the case, could Dún Scáith still exist? The Tuatha de Danann? What about the myths and gods of the united kingdoms before the Judeo-Christian conquerors came? could they still be running around with the wizarding world ignorant of them?
Questions for tomorrow he had decided, for now, to finish his tea and bed, he'll talk to Minerva in the morning about Miss Granger.
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New Jersey Pine Barrens.
It was late when Artemis had gotten back to camp, the patrols of hunters bowing their heads in acknowledgment of their patron as she walked back to her tent, slipping inside; she is not surprised to see Zoë and her Hind waiting for her.
"Report." That is all she's said before Zoë lunches into a quick rundown of what had happened while she was away, no hunters lost, no Hind caught, but they did kill a horse goat thing with wings about an hour before she returned, how odd.
As she sits down and listens to Zoë's report as her hind lays down beside her, placing its head on her lap, she absentmindedly strokes its head. Artemis' mind is a thousand miles away, with a boy with unkempt hair and green eyes, she sighs.
"My Lady?" Zoë asks "is everything alright?" Her lieutenant has a worried look on her face, she has been with Artemis since the start of the hunt, she took her blessing after being cast out of her home by her sisters, there is no one more loyal to her, no one more trustworthy. But she did not doubt that if Zoë found out about the boy she would hunt him down and kill him for the sacrilege he represented, which would be a shame after finding him alive again.
Artemis sighs, before nodding "Yes Zoë, everything is fine. It has just been a long few hours of dealing with some things." The Goddess of the hunt explains, "is there anything I can help with, My Lady?" Zoë asks with the same worried look on her face.
Artemis just shakes her head, "No Zoë, but do not worry, all is well. It has just been a long day, even for a god." Zoë just nods at her mistress's words before going back to her cross stitch, some habits die hard, and hobbies are forever Artemis guessed.
The goddess of the hunt loses herself to thought, going over what she had learned today, the boy was alive and protected behind a set of blood wards powerful enough to hide him from the eyes of the divine, it was better protection than even Camp Half-Blood could give the boy. So no need to send him there, but the boy's urges to hunt will need to be brought to heel, he went after a Basilisk alone and armed only with a sword. What kind of fool boy does that?! He could have been…
It doesn't matter, the boy is alive, he is armed and armored and all that needs to be done is to get him trained. One of her hunters will need to go, she'll just rotate one of the handmaidens from her temple into the hunt, but who to send? Not Zoë, not Phoebe for almost the same reason.
Artemis sighs before looking up, she sees her brother's chariot peaking over the horizon before turning to Zoë, asleep on her cot, huh? Was she so out of it that she didn't notice that? How odd.
She stands and leaves the tent, letting her second-in-command sleep in considering her late night last night. She stands on the edge of the circle of tents, watching her brother raise the sun, her thoughts still twisted up in her mind.
Artemis' quiet is disturbed in the early morning light, by one of her hunters walking up with a smile, she tips the Italian football club hat as she greets her "me'lady." The hunter says with a smirk.
She's tall, even taller than Zoë, her shortcut blond hair comes down to around her ears, and her green eyes sparkle with a bit of morning mischief, she's lithe and long with a runner build, underneath the silver leather jacket is a green and gold skirted leotard, her black leggings are skin tight and cover much of her legs and wrapping around the arch of her foot. She said she hated wearing shoes of any kind and liked the feeling of mud between her toes.
Hmm, she was an old hunter and knew of the dangers of her blessing, she was good with the recruits and would not be welcomed in her temple on Olympus thanks to her checkered past, yes.
She would do.
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