Chapter 13
That morning Hermione indulged herself by allowing herself a few more minutes in bed before she woke up. If she didn’t know better, she would be convinced yesterday’s events were simply a strange dream her mind concocted due to not being able to find out anything about the Emrys family. As it was, never in a million years would Hermione ever be able to vividly imagine the Magic she felt from Merlin’s wand. It was as if she could still feel an echo of immense power even.
No - yesterday was no mere dream, that was reality.
Merlin is alive.
It’s a strange thing to think about. Merlin, after all, was a mythological legend even amongst muggles. Hermione herself, had grown up with stories of Merlin and King Arthur and now she sees the man everyday, most of the time pouting up at her Potions Professor.
Smiling to herself, she thinks back to how Merlin had been portrayed in the Disney classic, she’ll have to ask what Merlin thought of it but it was surely one of Hermione’s favourites.
She sits up and peaks through her bed curtains, finding her room mates bed curtains still closed. Hermione wouldn’t be able to go back to bed, especially not now that her mind had fully woken up, eager to delve into another day. She hummed as she made her bed and gathered Crookshanks into her arms to go down into the common room, perhaps she could spend the day studying for her OWL’s and making herself available for any questions the younger years might have.
Of course, as was her life now, no plan she ever made survived her best friends. Ron and Harry lay tangled together at the foot of the stairs, obviously having tried and failed to enter the girls dormitories. They groaned, elbowing each other in their haste to get up only to result in a ridiculous cat fight. When clearing her throat failed to get their attention, she sent a small stinging hex to the pair, quick to pull up her shield when they tried to retaliate.
“Good morning.” She walked past them, further into the common room.
“Morning, Hermione.” They echoed, slumping either side of her on their favourite sofa.
“Couldn’t sleep either?” Harry asked, tiredly rubbing his face with his hands. “Yesterday barely feels real to me.”
“I kept thinking it was all just a bizarre dream.”
“Part of me wishes it is.” Ron confessed, his ears burning. “Just thinking about all the times I embarrassed my self in front of Merlin, makes me want to curl up and never get out of bed; I swore with his name for Merl- Magic’s sake!”
Suddenly Crookshanks jumped out of her arms and meowed loudly, sniffing at the portrait entrance and giving them impatient glares over her shoulder.
Harry huffed, “I reckon she wants us to follow her.”
Ron groaned, “just couldn’t get a normal cat could you, Hermione.”
Just as Crookshanks turned around to hiss at Ron, Hermione lightly slapped Ron’s arm and jumped to her feat, following her cat out the common room and down the hall. The boys quickly catching up to walk beside her though they grumbled.
This early in the morning most of the portraits were quiet, simply watching them as they passed. Harry raised his eyebrow from his spot close to the windows where he could see Snape and Merlin speed walking out of Hogwarts. Before he could vocalise his confusion a thought flashed through his mind, turning the tips of his ear ruby red, shuddering he caught up with his friends, pretending he saw nothing.
“Oh, hello Hermione, Ron, Harry.” They blinked at the soft figure of Luna Lovegood. “Are you going to the other Emrys?”
“The… other Emrys?” Ron questioned.
Luna nodded serenely, silently crouching to pet Crookshanks.
They shared a glance, “Do you know who Emrys is, Luna?” Hermione asked slowly.
“Which one?”
“Umm… our Emrys.” Harry faltered when she turned to look him in the eye, strangely sharp and serious.
She smiled, “One might say our Emrys is a mythical enigma reverberating legendary illimitable nexus.”
Hermione laughed and Luna echoed the sound, standing up and walking away with a wave.
“What. What did she just say?” Ron tilted his head.
“She said, Ronald, that Emrys is Merlin.”
Harry thought back to the words she said, widening his eyes before he too laughed, “I wonder what she meant about the other Emrys.”
Hermione pointed a finger to when Crookshanks was now sniffing at a nondescript door that hadn’t been there before, “I suspect we’ll find out.”
~~~~~~~
The room was filled with soft sounds of cutlery hitting plates as they slowly ate their breakfast, matching the pace of the Dark Lord.
“Lord Emrys, tell me,” The Dark Lord started, “How was it you and Severus met?”
From the corner of his eye, Merlin could easily understand Severus’ slight tilt of his head. “It must have been Samhain some years ago, I was on my way back home when I spotted Severus in a rare moment of weakness. Knowing what I know now, I am surprised I remember the event.”
The Dark Lord turned an arched eyebrow at Severus.
“Your first death dealt a harsh blow, my Lord.”
He hummed, “Not the death of that woman, then?”
Severus patted his lips and answered nonchalantly, “Such is the consequence of standing in your way, my Lord.” He sipped his glass of water, meeting the disgusted eyes of Lucius Malfoy who gently bumped his arm with Narcissa’s.
“Yes, I remember now. You’d hoped she would join us and perhaps she might have been welcomed, she was quite similar to Narcissa. A pity she tested my patience.”
“My Lord, if I may,” Merlin waited for the Dark Lord to incline his head, taking the attention away from the three tense figures. “Although Severus was clear and concise, I find myself wanting to hear of your ideals from yourself.”
As Merlin listened to Dark Lord explain his beliefs, ranging from pureblood supremacy to desire for immortality - which Merlin could clearly see was more fear of death, Merlin had to fight to keep himself from rolling his eyes. Understanding that, Merlin, with his years of experience against far powerful dark forces, could not fully comprehend what exactly kept Severus and the Malfoy’s frozen in their seats.
Just as the Dark Lord’s passionate speech came to an end, a particularly rat-like man squirrelled into the room. Comically freezing when he noticed Merlin’s presence.
Since the man obviously hadn’t been invited to the meeting, Merlin continued eating even as the ret of them stopped when the Dark Lord did. The man awkwardly shuffled closer to the Lord, meekly leaning in to whisper into his ear.
Merlin to a moment to ponder on the dynamic between the serpent Lord and rat fool; allowing himself to grin into his next bite.
“Lucius, Narcissa, Severus, I’m sure I can count on you to entertain our guest and see him out; I am needed elsewhere.”
The Dark lord’s footsteps loudly echoed as he walked away until they sat in silence, Pipsy popping in to clear his plate. Merlin continued eating peacefully as the attention turned to him.
“My Lord, please allow me to properly introduce myself.” The Lady spoke up.
Merlin arched his eyebrow and inclined his head.
“My name is Narcissa Malfoy née Black.”
Ahh, well. That made sense.
~~~~~~~
Harry peaked his head through the door, half expecting Merlin to jump out at him despite watching him and Snape go into the forest alone. He sighed in relief and further opened the door, allowing Ron and Hermione through and closing it behind him.
The room they found themselves in was as nondescript as the door. It was tiny and narrow, a dusty bed taking up most of the place. As they walked further into the room, the cracks of the door behind them shone gold.
Pursing his lips, Harry opened the door again to look at a slightly more modern looking, but still old-fashioned, potions lab. At the sight he nodded once, twice, three his arms in the air and shut the door again.
“We’ll burn the bridge when we get to it.” Harry deadpanned and joined his friends who had moved on to investigate the small window.
The view from the window was a peculiar one, showcasing a scene that brought out an uneasy feeling, something deep inside them growing melancholy at the unnaturally still and silent scene. The trio solemnly stared at the empty castle courtyard and the mediaeval town they could see in the distance.
Harry turned his eyes away sharply at the first sting of tears, blinking them away only to squint at the sight of a portrait. The portrait was a disappointing setting of a clearing in the forest with an old man, slowly tiptoeing into the forest.
“Hey! Excuse me, sir!” Harry called out, gaining the attention of his friends but not the old man. “Hey, you in the portrait. Yeah, you!”
The man stopped, still with his back facing them as he grumbled quietly, before sharply turning around and moving towards them determinedly, as if he had never tried to run away.
“Ahh!” He exclaimed. “Children! Children, children, children.”
Harry clears his throat.
“Good morning, sir.” Hermione said, “I hope you don’t mind us asking; Who are you?”
The old man rolled his eyes, “Tut, tut, tut, tut. Always the same question and trust me, the answer never changes; I am who I am and I am who I was and I am who I will always be!”
They blinked and then Ron snapped his fingers, “Other Emrys! Are you- are you Merlin’s father?”
The older man snarled, but not in time to hide a familiar - if much more daunting on an older man - eyebrow raise. “Who’s this Merlin you speak of?”
“No…” Hermione whispered, “No, you’re not Merlin’s father. You are Merlin.”
“What? What are you talking about, Hermione? Merlin is alive, not a portrait. We know he’s alive; I saw him!” Harry sputtered, but as he spoke he knew it to be true from the look on the old man’s face.
One thing that was incredibly obvious about Merlin from day one was that he couldn’t lie to save his life.
The old man - Merlin - clearly knew this too as he slumped slightly. “Congratulations!” He said snappily, pouting, “You’ve got a good brain on your shoulders, girl.”
“Hermione, sir.”
“Tell me, Hermione, most people do not see me for who I am.” He turned to Harry, “You mentioned you’ve seen me, boy?”
“Umm, Harry, sir. Er, yes. I saw you… go into the forest… with Snape.” Harry elected to ignore Ron’s strangely smug smirk.
“Who’s Snape?” They blinked up at the portrait with gaping mouths, strangely offended for their Professor.
“Who- Who’s Snape?” Ron said hotly, Hermione cutting him off before he could say anything else.
“I think we better start from the beginning, sir.”
When they finally finished regaling portrait Merlin the full story and answering all his questions, Merlin leaned back, shuffling his weight back and forth as he carded a hand through his beard.
“I see, I see, I see, I see.” He tapped his finger against his lips and nodded. “Can I trust the three of you to do a small favour for me.”
“Of course!” They explained, their excitement punctuated by Ron and Harry’s growling stomachs.
They turned sheepish as Merlin laughed at them, “Perhaps, after breakfast then.”
~~~~~~~
Severus observed the tense exchange between Narcissa and Merlin, a palpable chill tightening around his heart.
"A Black," he heard Merlin say, his tone frigid. Narcissa visibly recoiled, but Merlin's expression softened, “You fear me.”
"No!" she protested urgently, "We worship you.”
Merlin's response held an unsettling weight, "In some ways, that is better. In most ways, that is worse.”
“We- we owe you an apology, Lord Emrys!”
Severus narrowed his eyes at his friend, confused as never before has Narcissa ever acted quite like this. He subtly peaked to see Lucius’ reaction. Lucius looked as stone cold as he ever did, but Severus was one of few who could see beyond the surface and so noticed the same confusion he felt.
“Lady Malfoy, do you even have an idea of what you are apologising for?” Merlin said sadly.
"Something bad enough to lose the favour of Emrys," Narcissa admitted.
Merlin, abandoning formalities, put down his cutlery and clasped his fingers together, resting his elbows on the table, He rested his chin on his thumbs.
“I had never wanted children, when I met my first son.” He began, his voice laden with sorrow. “I had watched Arthur’s daughter and his grandson die; I had watched Camelot fall. I had run away to hide in a library… I had wanted to die when I could not.
“My son saved me, just as I saved my son. I never forced my name upon him. He proudly chose the name 'Black' for our dark past and 'Toujours Pur' for the life he aspired to live.
***
“How heart-breaking it was, then, when I come back to see his own Grandchildren having killed him in cold blood… all for some mystical power that might have passed onto them upon his death. I watched as they perverted my son’s teachings into something disgusting, raping their sisters and cousins in the name of purity.
***
"You never lost favour, Lady Malfoy, because I never had the chance to bestow it. Instead, for killing one with my favour, Magic cursed the Black family to never invoke the true name of Emrys again, ensuring madness for any who opposed the family motto.”
Narcissa Malfoy hung her head in silence.
Severus and Merlin quietly stood up, leaving the sombre Lady with the comfort of her Husband. With a twitch of his fingers, Harvey popped in beside Merlin, handing him a small, solid black card that merlin slid to her.
“Should you ever bleed on this, you will receive help, my Lady.” He said finally, and joined Severus to walk away from the room and manor, back to Hogwarts.