Kalliope frowned, “we have to do something about them…”
“They’re not causing any problems,” Remus pointed out, “you could just let them remain there in their encampment.”
“It’s just not like them to stay in one place for so long…”
“Maybe they’re waiting for someone from the temple to come talk to them,” Nimue suggested.
Remus shook his head, “they don’t like humans very much. They’ve spent too much time being persecuted by them. They’ve gotten a rather scandalous…” he coughed, “a rather bad reputation. They may not want to deal with us at all. You have to be very careful when dealing with the Satyrs.”
“That’s it!” Kalliope declared, “we’re solving this once and for all and I just figured out how.” She turned to Remus, “you are going to serve as ambassador to the satyr encampment! You’re right in that they are not always very trusting of humans, if we send a werewolf they’ll be much more likely to succeed. But we still need a representative from the temple…”
“You could come with me,” Remus suggested.
“No, the high priestess answers to no one, it would not be fitting…” her gaze finally rested on Nimue. “Remus, I need you out of here now, take your best tunic with you and get changed and make sure you shave,” she thrust what he would need into his arms and shoved her consort out the door. Next she grabbed Nimue, stripping the girl’s clothing from her as she pulled her to the back of the room. Nimue didn’t even have a chance to protest.
“Here, put this on,” she thrust a pristine white gown at the girl.
Nimue, looking shocked, obediently pulled the fine white linen over her head, and with Kalliope’s help fastened the loose shift over her right shoulder with an electrum fibula, leaving her left arm and shoulder completely bare.
Kalliope looked the girl over, “not quite… we have to make you look a bit more impressive…” she retrieved a small wooden box that was decorated with delicate inlays of polished marble. She first pulled out a small clay jar with a very narrow neck and a wide, flat brim. “Here, give me your wrists.”
Nimue watched in fascination, still not quite sure why she was letting this be done to herself, as Kalliope tipped the jar over and used it to apply sweet smelling oil on her wrists and the insides of her elbows.
Kalliope next retrieved a rather squat looking jar made of bronze, which she took great care in opening. Nimue couldn’t see what was in it as Kalliope took a small handful out, carefully cupping it in her hands. “Hold still,” she instructed the girl. Nimue was too nervous to even think of moving.
She couldn’t quite hide her shock when Kalliope came to stand directly in front of her and gently blew on the contents of her hand. She looked down and saw a shimmering substance clinging to her skin.
“It’s gold,” Kalliope told her as she straightened up, “finely powdered.” She stepped back to observe the girl. She had grown a bit taller in the last couple of months, but was still as willowy as ever. Clad in the pure white linen, which clung to her body with the slightest breeze, and positively shining from the effects of the gold powder, and those large violet eyes… she looked like one of the immortals. It was perfect.
As was Remus’ timing as he reappeared just then. He let out a low whistle, “that would probably put Snape into an early grave,” he said as he looked Nimue over.
“Almost finished,” Kalliope said as she came forward to drape a finely worked belt of electrum around Nimue’s slim hips. From it she hung a small bronze mirror engraved with a picture of the abduction of Persephone. “There…” she turned to Remus, “if you let so much as one speck of dirt get on her on the way to the Satyr camp you shall never be welcome in my bed again!”
“She shall arrive untouched,” Remus said, holding out his hands as though to ward off an attack.
“Make sure that she does,” Kalliope said imperiously.
“What am I supposed to do?” Nimue asked nervously, having absolutely no idea what was expected of her.
Kalliope put her hands on the girl’s shoulders and looked her in the eye, “let Remus do most of the talking, your presence will be mostly symbolic. Do not let them make you nervous, and if they do, do not show it. You shall be representing the Goddess, remember that.”
“But what if they want me to say something?!”
“You have been with us for awhile now, long enough to know the ways of the temple. I trust that you will be able to handle any situation that arises. Remember, you are very nearly a priestess. Just act in a manner fitting your position. You deserve respect and do not hesitate to command it.”
“But what if…”
“You will be fine,” Kalliope assured her, “and Remus will be by your side the entire time.”
“Perhaps one of the other priestesses…”
“Satyrs appreciate theatrics, you are the only logical one to send.”
Nimue wasn’t quite sure what that was supposed to mean.
“Go child, and may the Goddess be with you,” she gently pushed Nimue towards the door. “Make sure nothing happens to her,” she commanded Remus.
~~~~~~~~~~~
“You’ve been stopping by awfully frequently of late,” Armand said with a smile as Kamen apparated into the room. They had to stop all flooing activity into and out of the Brotherhood headquarters due to the way Voldemort’s followers were watching the network, “this is the third time in as many weeks that you’ve come by when we haven’t had an assignment for you.”
The last couple of weeks of September and now heading into October Kamen kept finding reasons to come and see Slytherin. He grinned, “what can I say, he’s good company.”
“Come and see him as often as you want, he never talks to anyone else, except for Dumbledore of course. I think he’s a bit lonely.”
“I enjoy his company, he can be very informative when he wants to be.”
“Just let me know if he gives you any ideas on how to further our cause.”
“Will do,” Kamen gave Armand a sloppy salute as he headed into the now familiar room that housed the portrait of Albus Dumbledore and the tapestry of Salazar Slytherin. Today Dumbledore was present and the curtains that usually covered Slytherin were already pulled back. The two likenesses were arguing good naturedly about the use of shield charms.
“Back again I see, Mr. Snape,” Dumbledore was the first to see their guest.
“Until you tell me to stop coming,” Kamen replied as he pulled up the familiar and dusty armchair.
“And that is not likely to happen anytime soon,” Salazar assured him, “Dumbledore here can get out and visit his other portraits, mind you he has about five of them. I, on the other hand, am stuck here all the time.”
“Well, I’m quite sure we can find something more entertaining than shield charms to discuss with our young friend,” Albus said as he poked through the candy dish sitting on his desk.
“Quite right,” Slytherin agreed, “what will it be today young squire? Politics? The arts?”
“I was thinking more along the lines of another history lesson,” Kamen said as he leaned forward slightly.
“Hmpf… I’d think you’d want to discuss something a bit more interesting than my life.”
“Be fair Salazar,” Dumbledore said as he carefully selected a lemon drop, “people these days know very little about the founding of Hogwarts. And you’re constantly complaining that what they do know is wrong. I would think that you would be very pleased to have the chance to set the record straight and such a ready and willing audience.
“Very well, very well…” but Salazar did look rather pleased at the interest being shown. “What is it that you would like to know?”
“Kamen, did you know that Salazar and Godric Gryffindor were the best of friends at one time?”
“Really?” Kamen couldn’t hide his surprise and turned expectantly towards the tapestry of Salazar.
“Well then…” Salazar made himself a bit more comfortable, “where to begin…”
“I suggest the beginning,” Dumbledore said helpfully.
“Bloody old fool…” Salazar mumbled, “Godric and I first met in Londinium, or London as you call it nowadays. We both immediately recognized each other as wizards and struck up a close friendship. He was present at my wedding and I… well naturally I attended his, I had to give the bride away.”
“Why?” Kamen asked.
“She was my sister. Now then…”
“Godric Gryffindor married your sister!”
“Oh don’t sound so incredulous boy. It was a good match at the time. He was my closest friend and a wizard. I knew he would take care of my sister and I knew that he would never condemn her for being a witch, which would have been a great concern had she married a muggle…” he trailed off.
Kamen had enough sense to remain quiet, knowing that Salazar was probably thinking of his first wife.
“Anyways, we got it into our heads that we could start a school. We saw the devastation that the church was causing and the number of children who suffered from accusations of witchcraft, whether false or true. We were both family men and it affected us deeply. The result was Hogwarts.”
“What about Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff?”
“Oh yes, a fine pair of women. We met them while looking for a location for our school. It is because of them that Hogwarts was able to take on such a grand scale. Without them we would never have been able to take on more than a handful of students.”
“Never underestimate the power of women,” Dumbledore said, looking directly at Kamen.
“They are devilishly tricky to understand,, it’s always best if they’re on your side,” Slytherin added.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Kamen couldn’t help but smile.
“Now, where was I… ah yes, the school was immediately successful. I was hesitant at first about admitting students who came from on-magic backgrounds, but the other three were insistent that we should admit anyone with magical potential. I graciously withdrew my complaint and went along with them. Until my own children were murdered. I brought up the subject again. But Godric always was so damn pig-headed…”
“And you weren’t?” Dumbledore questioned quietly.
“I was as well I suppose… still am…”
“Is that when you left the school?” Kamen asked, wanting to be tactful but also eager to hear what happened.
“I’m getting there. Helga immediately took Godric’s side on the matter. She wanted to teach everyone. Rowena, I think, was the only one who ever saw my point. But she too eventually sided with Godric. She was a shrewd woman, Rowena, she knew just how ruthless Godric could be and she wanted to be on his side, not fighting against him. So I left.”
“What did you do then?”
“I had already been in contact with those who wished to found a school up North. I lived there for awhile. As you know, I met my second wife there. We eventually returned to England and settled down. We had three children. Two of whom barely reached adulthood before they died…”
“That’s horrible… you lost so much…” Kamen couldn’t imagine how this man had stood to lose so much of his family, so many of his children.
“Salazar smiled sadly, “feudal warfare was a way of life. Two of my sons died in battle. The third lived a very long life, for which I am thankful.”
“Were they all wizards?”
“Yes, and as a gesture of goodwill I sent them all to Hogwarts. I wanted the others to know that I bore them no grudge and I respected that they had carried on with the school.”
“Were they sorted into your House?”
“Of course, but perhaps it would have been better if they had not…”
“Why?”
“I bore no grudge towards my fellow founders, but Godric still bore a grudge towards me. He never missed a chance to belittle or insult my sons. That is when the House rivalry, which I was very sad to hear continues, truly began.”
“That doesn’t sound very fair.”
“It wasn’t, but thanks to Godric the members of my House have suffered from slander and ridicule ever since. And some people seem happy to let those sentiments continue.”
“We are all only human,” Dumbledore said.
“But it doesn’t sound as though you made much of an effort old friend.”
“I did the best I could Salazar.”
Slytherin shook his head, “even Godric’s own hat, the Sorting Hat, despises the practice of splitting all you children up into different Houses. It is no way to promote unity, it is only a way to promote segregation. And that blasted point system!”
“A means of…”
“Yes Dumbledore, I know! A means of punishment and reward. But the only thing it is good for is inciting discord between the students. To promote a competition in which they are encouraged to triumph over one another instead of working together… it disgusts me.”
“We do the best with what we have, the institution has been in place for centuries,” Dumbledore said calmly.
“And worst of all are those Quidditch matches…”
“Those are the best part of school!” Kamen quickly interjected.
Salazar snorted derisively, “the best part indeed, they are the best at disrupting any chance of unity between the students. It is sickening to hear how you are encouraged to compete with one another. You should be encouraged to work together! The cunning of my House and the bravery of Godric’s were meant to go hand and hand. Together the Houses can balance each other out, correct flaws and extol virtues. Apart… we only see the worst in all of you. You never even give yourselves the chance to be great together, you are content to be mediocre apart.”
Neither Dumbledore nor Kamen dared speak for several minutes.
“You will fail if you do not learn how to unite yourselves,” Salazar said as he turned on them.
“That’s not likely to happen,” Kamen muttered under his breath.
“Not with that kind of attitude it won’t,” Salazar assured him.
“You may not realize this Kamen, but your father is the best thing to happen to the House of Slytherin in many years, perhaps centuries,” Dumbledore said quietly.
“I don’t see how,” Kamen said bitterly, “he always favors the Slytherins in class. It seems to me that he does more to promote the House animosity than to promote their unity.”
“As Salazar has pointed out, his House has been the subject of much dissent since very shortly after the founding. Its members have often been bitter and just as untrusting of each other as they have been of the other Houses. The qualities of the Slytherins often make them better suited to a solitary existence than one centered around the fine art of team work.”
“Yeah, and they still refuse to have anything to do with the other Houses…”
“Ahhh… but they have united themselves. What was once a House full of individuals, each going their separate way, desperate for their own glory, has become a united House working for one common goal under the guiding hand of your father.”
“That is the way it should be, that is the way it was meant to be,” Salazar added emphatically. “Unless the Houses can be loyal to their own members they cannot be loyal towards the ultimate goal.”
“Each House is loyal to itself, they are all working towards getting more points, earning the House Cup…” Kamen started to argue.
“As I already said, that is a goal that only increases animosity between the Houses, it is not a means of improving inter-House relations,” Slytherin sighed heavily, “sometimes I wonder if we have already lost…”
“We have not lost yet!” Kamen declared, balling his hands into tight fists, a look of determination on his face.
Dumbledore nodded in agreement, “we have not lost by a long shot, and even if Voldemort were to triumph, I am sure something would be done…” he gaze flickered over to Kamen, but the boy seemed oblivious.
Salazar stroked his beard thoughtfully, “now there is the problem of uniting four Houses that have been set against each other for centuries…”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
