Le Bureau des Aurors
Chapter 5 : le Bureau des Aurors
Back to the end of August. Diana and Iago just left the Meadow to start their training at the French Auror institute, located in France's countryside. They meet new people and settle into their new routine.
“Whiskey Road. Appealing, right?” Iago grumbled as they were standing under the rain as house elves were discreetly unloading their suitcases in the dark night. The house they were standing in front of looked like a thousand years old.
“Don’t start” Diana nudged him in the ribs, too excited about finally being there.
They wasted no time going inside as they were already soaked by the heavy rain. A smell of old and smoke immediately hit Iago’s nostrils as they pushed the wooden door open; the entrance room was small, but big enough to hold a chimney, framed by a couch and a couple armchairs. Inside, a girl was already standing there, a big leather briefcase resting at her feet. She looked young, Diana noticed, probably around their own age.
She turned around when she heard them enter, and smiled at them.
“I supposed you’re the other two new recruits” The girl said. “Calliope Woods” She pointed at herself. “I’m to be in this year’s class as well.”
“They unlisted three of us?” Iago raised a brow at the new girl, closing the door behind him.
She hummed. “Yes. Pretty unheard of, right?”
Diana looked at the girl, having heard the girl’s family name wondering if she could be related to Lexa in any way. “Woods, you said?”
“It happens to be my name, yes” Calliope frowned, unsure as to why her family name would ring a bell for the newcomer.
“Any relative to Lexa Woods?”
“Ah, yes” Calliope nodded, understanding dawning on her face. “Distant relative of Alexandria. She attends Hogwarts. Is that where you went to school?”
“We’re from Beauxbâtons” Iago answered.
“But my cousin, who’s at Hogwarts, is friends with her” Diana added, throwing a silent reprobate look to Iago.
“I seet” Calliope then said, and Diana couldn’t tell if the girl was only being polite or if she actually cared.
“I’m Diana Viny” Diana then introduced herself. Then, pointing to Iago, “And that’s Iago De Beaufort.”
“Nice to meet you both” Calliope shook their hands, a light smile on her face. Diana couldn’t help but notice her dark green eyes, looking just like Lexa’s.
Then, a man – who had yet to introduce himself – stepped into the room, his eyes scanning their faces. In search of what, Diana couldn’t tell.
“Welcome to the Auror Institute” He said. “Your rooms are on the first floor. Girls, you’ll be rooming together. Young man, your room is at the end of the corridor. Your names are already on your doors. I’ll let you get settle; meet me downstairs in half-an-hour.”
The three of them got upstairs. The corridor was narrow and led to wooden doors, all in a different color, with nametags on it.
“That’s us” Calliope pointed to a black door. Diana looked up, reading the metallic plaque nailed down on it.
Diana and Calliope.
Left to their room, a red door had Iago’s name on it.
“Alright” Diana told him, “See you in a minute?”
Iago nodded, entering his room. Diana followed Calliope into their own, her eyes roaming her surroundings once they were inside. The bedroom was small; beds had been set on each side, separated by an empty library. Over their beds stood shelves that were already filled with their clothes. Finally, a small table and a chair completed the last of the room’s space.
“Well, at least it won’t take long to clean” Calliope chuckled. “I’ll take the one next to the windows, if you don’t mind?”
Diana gestured that it was ok and sat down on the other bed. The room reminded her of the little one she often shared at Iago’s house; small, but well organized.
It was such a weird feeling to start over in a new school, after so many years in Beauxbâtons where everything was familiar; in some ways, she felt like eleven again. She wondered how her siblings were doing, their school year having already started as well. Then, remembering who the other girl in the room was, her thoughts went to her cousin Clarke, starting her third year in Hogwarts alongside Lexa Woods, apparently Calliope’s cousin or something. Diana told herself that she would write to Clarke when she’d have a minute to tell her about it.
“Are you ready to go downstairs?” Calliope asked her, getting Diana out of her thoughts.
Diana nodded.
The girls went back down the stairs, waiting for their next instructions. Iago didn’t come down long after them.
“You’re all settled?” Iago asked Diana. The girl nodded, anxiously tugging at her sleeve. Iago noticed, gently putting his hand on top of Diana’s to make her stop.
If Calliope noticed, she didn’t show it.
The man that had greeted them earlier came into the room from one of the doors closest to the entrance door.
“Alright young people, bienvenue au Bureau des Aurors” He said in a perfect French. “Welcome to the Bureau of Aurors. Well, its academy, at least. Well done for getting a seat here.”
He looked at them, a hint of proudness in his eyes. “I mean, it’s not every year that the council deems that three students deserve to be here. But come on now, I’ll give you a tour of the Institute.”
He started to walk for one of the doors, then stopped and turned back towards them. “My name’s Louis, by the way. Pronounced loo-e, of course. I’m French.” He stopped again, thinking. “I mean, most of us are French here, obviously, but we speak English because we work with Aurors from all over the world. You three fluently speak both, correct?”
They nodded. Louis seemed to be satisfied with the answer.
“Perfect. Now, follow me.”
He led them to the room right next to the entrance door. “This is the study room” He explained, “here for you to do researches, study… Anything, really. Next door, a bathroom.”
He then went to the other side of the floor. “The kitchen, we all eat together – when we can, anyways. So, that’s the first floor. There’s a classroom downstairs and a meeting room. And then there’s two floors of bedrooms, housing students and graduated Aurors when visiting. This place also served as HQ to the whole organization, so you might come across of a lot of unknown people. Questions?”
Iago raised his hand; it made Louis chuckle.
“You’re not in school anymore, Iago” He said, his voice not unkind. “You are entering the most difficult process ever. You will be considered an adult here. Speak up.”
“How many of Aurors is staying here, on a regular basis?”
Louis shrugged. “It depends. You three will be spending your first three months here, and probably head for your first surveillance job before Christmas. Aurors will come and go to teach you. There is a total of 21 french-graduated Aurors. Plus the three of you, in three years. More or less.”
Diana raised her brows. “So they don’t live here?”
“Oh no” Louis shook his head, “Once you graduate, you leave the Institute and start your life as you wish. People come here only for work, afterwards. As I said, it’s HQ.”
He then looked at his watch. “Ok, your first class should start in a couple minutes. You will find all you need downstairs; books, notebooks, paper, pens… If you need something in particular, just ask” He stopped, magically making timetables appear. “This is for this week” He told them, handing them the papers. “First class usually at seven, last one ends at 5. Somewhere within the day, you’ll get an hour-ish of 1-on-1 training with another Auror. Or me. The rest of your time is for you to manage. Alright?”
They nodded, feeling like there were too many information at once to be able to remember it all. He then gestured for them to follow him outside, where he got his wand out of his pocket, waving it around in front of some library.
The library then moved, revealing a secret passage behind it. A ladder seemed to go down to some cave.
“Classrooms are in a bunker beneath our feet” Louis explained. “Thus we hid the muggle entrance. In case we’re attacked or something. But you’ll be able to apparate in it, as you’re now part of the Institute.”
They got down the ladder. It was surprisingly not dark and gloomy as Diana had expected a bunker to be.
“It served as a safe place, during the war against you-know-who. The infirmary is here” Louis pointed to one of the doors. “Meeting room’s there, but you’re not allowed in. Yet, at least.”
He led them to the third door. “You’ll spend a lot of time in here” He opened the door, revealing a big classroom. “Remember; this isn’t a competition about who’s smarter. You are a unit now; it means you have to grow together, as a unit. Get better as a team, help each other; because one day, your life – and others’ – will depend on it.”
He looked at his watch again. “Well she’ll be here any minute now.”
None of the kids knew who he was talking about, but none of them decided to ask.
“I’ll be in charge of your unit” Louis told them, the same proud smile back on his face. “Anything happens, anything you need? You come to me.”
He turned his heels to leave, but seemed to remember something. “I almost forgot. If you write to people outside the school, you cannot mention what you’re doing here, or learning, or where you’re going. Everything’s classified, and the letter will autodestruct before leaving this place. Alright?”
And in not even a second, he had apparated out of the room. Iago looked at Diana, unsure of what they were supposed to do. Diana shrugged, having no clue either; so they settled on the chairs around the big wooden table, standing in the middle of the room. They were facing a wooden desk with a chalkboard on the wall. On the other side of the room, the wall was covered with bookshelves. A few maps and prints were hanged up as well all around the room, providing support for teaching.
The door then opened as a woman entered the room.
“Hi there, welcome to Auror training!” She exclaimed, seemingly in a good mood and happy to be there. “I’m Tonks, from the British Auror Institute. I’ll be graduating this summer.”
Diana thought that the girl looked pretty but rather odd, with hair that seemed to be slightly changing colors with the room’s lighting. Or magic…?
“I’m in charge of your first lesson” Tonks said, throwing them each a copy of a small book. “We’ll start on worldwide magic ministries, their heads, their purpose and all the Aurors departments that come with it.”
And just like that, Auror Training began for the two cousins.