8Chapter 2 – A Time of (yet more) Rain
AN – Sorry about the wait – mistakes are mine.
"With all the blissfully manageable weather patterns that are present on this world of ours, why are we forced to endure weather like this?" Niara thought angrily, directing the comment at the slashing rain which was currently dripping down the opposite side of her window. A particularly large bump jolted the Thestral towed carriage upward, causing Niara's forehead to bounce slightly on the window pane, and hold her handbag even closer to her chest in an attempt to remain on her seat. It was a hard battle to win.
It had been over three hours, and Niara wasn't sure how much more of the jolting her sanity could endure. Not to mention the bumping…or the endless potholes and mindless lurching of the wheels as they wove their way down the muddy pathway.
The rain flecked glass, coupled with the darkness outside, made the glass window work as a sort of mirror when the light struck it correctly. It was all Niara could do to not grimace at the image reflected back at her.
Niara wasn't tall for her age, but she wasn't short either. More stocky than lean, the years of training in all conditions had bleached her hair a light brown, and had bronzed her skin to a weathered tan. With her hair down she looked hideous and wild, and so preferred to keep the split ends hidden within a braid or bun. Crow's feet were visible at the corners of her eyes, which had bags underneath that never really seemed to go away, and only served to highlight the blandness in her plain, brown eyes. Her lips, when parted in a smile, could light up her whole face. But when she was dead tired, like she was now, with rain streaked hair and bloodshot eyes, she looked worse than a banshee.
"What better way to greet your future employer than looking like death warmed up?" Niara muttered humorously to herself.
Her eyes searched longingly for some sign of civilization through the rain induced mists. The weather had decided to accompany her ever since she had left the village at the base of the mountain nearest to the monastery. Niara was initially ecstatic to be greeted by the sight of the covered carriage, and the respite it promised from the rain. Needless to say, her enthusiasm was now severely dampened.
She wanted out of this carriage, and she wanted out now.
Strangely enough, (or maybe not so, considering the current circumstances) the one place she wanted to be right now was back at Limfiti's.
On her last morning at Limfiti's, Niara had been enjoying her late breakfast with the other Masters when Custer had received a small, unremarkable letter from a northern hawk owl. He'd opened and scanned the letter quickly, his expression growing grimmer with every word he read. Muttering apologies to those at the table, Custer had left his seat in a hurry, the letter grasped tightly in his left hand. He'd been acting oddly ever since.
If Niara was self-centered, she might have assumed that his mood was entirely due to sadness at her leaving. But Niara knew Custer well enough to know when something was up.
Niara started muttering to the shadows splayed on the wall by the swinging lamp attached to the roof of the carriage.
"He's not one for dramatics, and he usually fills me in on important things." Niara thought back to that morning. Custer had volunteered to help her pack up her things a few days before she had to leave, and was helping her out after the letter had arrived.
"It was so very odd" Niara remarked to the shadows. They didn't reply, but it made Niara start to think back…
For the first part of the packing, Custer had been silent, going through her clothes with almost mechanical distain. When he had reached over to pick up one of her knives from where it had fallen on the floor, he stopped mid-stretch, fingers closing on thin air, as he was seemingly overcome by thought. He glanced over his shoulder at Niara, sighed, then looked back at the knife, picking it up with rigid fingers.
"To be truthful, I'm kind of glad that you're leaving right now" Custer remarked in an would be casual manner, not looking her in the eye. He moved slowly around her small room, every so often picking up a nick-knack and throwing it into her bag.
"What on earth are you talking about?" Niara asked bewildered, twisting her head over to the side in order to follow Custer's movements. He seemed agitated, and ill-at-ease, a huge change from his normal cavalier and carefree attitude.
"What I said – I'm… I'm glad you won't be involved in … well…involved in all of this anymore." Custer said, gesturing with his hand to the room around them.
"You mean, you're glad I won't be in the monetary…"
"No, gods no Niara, I never said that." He put out his hands, as if to convince her he hadn't meant his words in that manner. "You know that I'm going to miss you like…"
"So why are you glad that I'm leaving then?" Niara interrupted, crossing her hands across her chest as she confronted him. "Don't go chauvinistic on me Custer, I know that you're better than that…"
"I'm not going chauvinistic!" Custer exclaimed, bringing a hand to his head.
Niara narrowed her eyes at him in an attempt to figure out what was going on. "If this is some attempt at expressing your undying love for me, I can tell you now that it's not working very well…"
Custer barked out his half laugh, then started to pace, "I can assure you that this is not a profession of love…"
"Then please get to the point Custer…" Niara countered
"I can't tell you the point, because I don't know it yet!" Custer almost shouted. "God's Niara!" he exclaimed, then sighed again, running a hand over his face and then pulling at a strand of his hair.
"You're not making any sense" Niara said to Custer levelly, trying to make him start acting rationally.
Custer looked at her again, and then down at the small knife he held in his hand. He went over to Niara, grabbed her left hand in his right, and place the knife handle in her palm, closing her fingers one by one over the hilt with his own.
"Something needs to be done." Custer said softly, almost as though he was speaking entirely to himself. Then he looked her in the eye again "Things are going to be done. God's know that if you were here you'd help us out all that you could…I know you would…but as the matter stands…"
"Custer!" Niara exclaimed, yanking her hand from his and looked at him expectantly. "You are not making any sense whatsoever. Now, if you could please inform me of what you are talking about, we can continue this conversation and…" She broke off at the look on Custer's face – one of a man defeated
"What aren't you telling me Custer?" She asked softly, worry clearly evident in her tone.
Custer shook his head, moving over towards the door, but Niara stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.
"What aren't you telling me?" Niara asked again.
Custer swallowed, put his hand on the doorknob, but still said nothing.
"It was something to do with that letter wasn't it?" Niara stated. Custer remained silent, but by the set of his shoulders, Niara could see that she was correct.
"It needs to be done. But I'm glad that you won't be forced to endure all that…that you'll be safe and…"
"CUSTER!" She said exasperatedly, throwing the knife down onto her bed as she moved over towards him. "You can start explaining what you're talking about anytime now!"
Custer looked back at her, smiled his sad smile, then lent over and kissed her softly on the cheek. Pulling back, he whispered softly "I can't."
Niara shook her head in total confusion, but Custer had already started to open the door. He stopped in the doorway mid-stride, turned back at her, and offered a half-hearted grin which was only a ghost of his former self. "You take care of yourself now."
"I still don't understand…" Niara almost moaned to herself.
She nearly didn't hear the answer over the soft closing of her door, and Custer's footsteps as they echoed down the hallway.
"You will."
"Ah, gods bless the bloody, stupid, rainy season" Niara muttered grimly to herself, taking out her anger at being left in the dark by Custer by cursing the weather. She didn't like the way he'd been acting – not one bit. The only way she could possibly have gotten to the bottom of his behavior involved hanging around at the monastery, hassling him until he caved in and told her everything.
Unfortunately, that option was obviously out of the question at the current moment.
Niara held on as the carriage dipped again into another pothole, causing a spray of mud encrusted water to slosh up onto the carriage. As some managed to leak through the cracks in the carriage door, Niara smiled with sad disgust; at least some of the mess inside the carriage wasn't her fault.
"On that happy note, how did I manage to get into this mess?" She thought savagely to herself, referring not only to her appearance, but also to the profession which the carriage was taking her to.
"One little letter, 'just a little favor' he said – oh little favor indeed!" A death sentence was more like it. One year, if not longer, smack dab in the middle of war ravaged Britain, acting as a teacher for a school that the most wicked wizard living hoped to blow up; a school full of pea brained idiots who wouldn't know a sword from a spatula.
"A sword marm…professor" she quietly corrected, mimicking in the silence what she expected to hear as soon as she arrived at this pampered playhouse "I don't really know – looks like some sort of cooking utensil to me." She gave an unladylike snort, then switched to another voice that reeked of childlike naivety:
"I don't really see the difference – they're all the same really, seeing as they each have a handle and all…the sword…the spatula…"
Laying her head against the backrest, Niara reasoned with herself "Maybe I'll just run away, and go live in the forest near the school. I've heard it's a rather challenging one to get by in…but then again, most things work out that way." She shook her head slightly in utter contempt at her position.
Then, in the distance, pinpricks of light could be seen, straining out in the blinding darkness. Gripping her bags more tightly to her chest, she tried to ignore the first stirrings of panic at the sight of finally seeing where she would be working.
But fate still seemed to be laughing at her. The carriage jolted, rear wheels spinning wildly, as the carriage came to a sudden halt. Thinking that she had finally arrived, Niara cautiously opened the door, and stepped out onto the sodden pathway. Niara was immediately buffeted by the wind and rain, which she tried to ignore as she surveyed her current situation.
The carriage was completely and utterly bogged down in the mud, and no straining by the Thestrals seemed to be changing this. The animals were beginning to panic, eyes wide with terror as they pulled against the harness which held them to the carriage. One reared up on its hind legs, and Niara she rushed over to calm it, fingers fumbling over the brass fastenings of the harness for some way to set the beasts free.
"Easy there fellows, we'll have you out of these things in a moment."
As the final clasp was loosened, all six of the animals broke free, galloping wildly off into the distance. Niara gazed mournfully at their retreating backs, cursing her stupidity at letting her only form of transportation escape, and yet knowing that there was no other way around it.
She walked back to the door of the carriage which was creaking loudly in the wind. Opening the door with frozen fingers, she began to pick up her limited processions.
The bag with most of her clothing and assorted objects was unceremoniously slung over her back, and with a swift tug Niara had freed her staff from where she had stashed it underneath the carriage seat. Closing the door to the carriage tightly behind her, Niara pushed back her shoulders, and started to make her own way down the muddy path, boots squelching with each step as the rain pelted her.
In the gloom, Niara failed to see the signpost on her right, worn wood weeping in the rain. But fate, this time, seemed to have taken pity on her.
She was on the right path to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
A muddy, dark, and twisting path.
How oddly fitting.
AN: Thanks to all who've reviewed for your interest, sorry about the wait. The next installment is on its way…and I have just had a brainwave for the plot. Three cheers to exams and paperwork – how happy our lives would be without them…
The characters we all know and love are on their way in the next chapter.
Any questions and comments will be happily accepted and criticism is always appreciated (as long as its constructive). Reviews are always enjoyed
Until Next Time - Eilisan