Chương 55: 55 The Meeting
The weekend came in a flash and Lucas was on his way to Hogsmead. He walked past the bustling atmosphere of the lively wizard town to the most haunted building in Great Britain.
But before he could come close to it he felt a foreign magic trying to probe his mind. It was a fairly obvious attempt, but enough to peak his interest.
He took the attack serious, and blocked the intrusion, while his domain swept the area for any sign of the source. It didn't take him long to spot the person responsible; a cloaked figure lurking in the shadows, his wand raised in his direction.
"I didn't expect such a warm welcome, Mr. Greengrass." Lucas said looking at the empty air next to the old man. No answer came, so he turned to him. "You are here to test me, aren't you?"
The cloaked figure remained silent and motionless.
"Why else would you stand right there, next to an invisible tent?"
The cloaked figure remained silent and motionless.
Lucas sighed, his patience wearing thin. "Very well then," he said, his voice tinged with resignation. "If you don't want to talk to me, then I will go back. Have a nice weekend."
As Lucas turned to leave, the cloaked figure finally moved, his voice low and gravelly. "Legilimens," he called out, his tone serious.
Lucas paused, glancing back over his shoulder and let the spell hit him square on his forehead. 'If that's how you want to play.'
----
[pov old man]
I stood there incredulously.
Nothing had happened.
I swear my spell hit him.
'Oh, there it is.'
The boy was sly. But I saw it.
The slight differences to reality. The miniscule discrepancies you would only find in a fabricated world. My spell did work and I was currently standing in his mind.
It was fascinating to say the least. He had perfectly copied everything up to the tiniest detail around us, from the feeling of the dirt under my feet to the smell of the air. Yet the landscape in the distance was a bit too blurry. The smoke out of the chinmeys was a tad bit too slow. The birds were chirping not as randomly as they were supposed to. It was these little things that gave it away. Too inconspicious even for the trained eye, but not for me. I had years of experience coupled with the fact that I had definitely hit him with my spell made it clear.
However, even with all the years on my back I failed to perceive the moment we switched. 'Impressive.'
"I did not expect you to notice it this fast." the boy said, with his irritating indifference. "But it doesn't matter now that you are here."
'Strange,' normally you want to avoid someone invading your mind at all cost, unless...
Unless you are a natural.
If that's the case then I am in big trouble.
A chill ran down my spine as that realisation hit me. 'Let's not antagonize him further.'
He regarded me with a cool detachment, his eyes piercing through the illusion of his creation. "You seem surprised," he remarked, his voice carrying an undercurrent of amusement.
I struggled to maintain my composure, the gravity of the situation weighing heavily upon me. "I... I didn't expect to encounter someone of your caliber," I admitted, my voice trembling slightly despite my efforts to remain composed. He had already started messing with me.
He chuckled softly, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. "And yet, here we are," he replied, his gaze never wavering from mine.
"Is this enough? Or do you actually want to get hurt?" He asked me.
I swallowed hard, my emotions slipping through my control like sand falling through your fingers. Although concerning, not what I had been tasked to find out. This could be all he is capable of, after all he is rather young and unknown.
"Unfortunately you have to humour this old man a bit more." I needed to press him further, Peneus needed to know.
The boy raised an eyebrow, his expression unreadable as he regarded me with a mix of curiosity and skepticism. "Humour you?" he echoed, his voice tinged with amusement. "Very well, then. What do you want to see?"
I took a deep breath, trying to gather my thoughts amidst the chaotic emotions swirling within me. "My mind," I stated firmly, my voice steadier than I felt. "Can you break into it?"
The boy's smirk widened into a grin, a glint of excitement sparking in his eyes.
With a wave of his hand, the surroundings shifted, the illusion of his creation fading away to reveal a blank expanse of darkness. It was disorienting, like standing on the edge of a precipice with nothing but emptiness stretching out before me.
It was the place I dared not venture into. The unknown darkness every practicer of the mind arts kept his distance from.
But then, faint outlines began to form in the darkness, like he had done this a million times. The fluidity and familiarity in his movements shocked me to the core.
At first lines, then shapes came to light, until eventually we stood in front of a massive and lush oak, swaying gently in a light spring breeze.
It was my mind.
'How? Did we move? Or did the world?' I turned around, but there was just the vast expance of nothingness. No signs of how we came here. 'Were we in my mind this whole time?'
The boy now beside me watched with a detached curiosity, his eyes gleaming with a strange intensity as he observed its branches reaching out like twisted fingers into the void.
"What are you doing?" I had never seen someone doing whatever he was doing.
He remained silent, his presence looming over my mind like a shadow. I couldn't shake the feeling that he was studying me, dissecting my every thought and emotion with an almost clinical detachment.
*Creak!*
"What do you see?" his voice finally cut through the silence, sending a shiver down my spine.
*Crack!*
Suddenly and without prior notice, the trunc of the tree split open vertically and out spilled the conversation I had with my nephew earlier.
####
"Peneus, are you sure about this?" My voice echoed through the darkness, the memory playing out before us.
Peneus Greengrass, the patriarch of the Greengrass family and a tall and stoic man, stood before me, his expression grave. "Yes, Uncle," he replied solemnly, his voice tinged with determination. "I am tired of watching my sweet angel suffer. He might be our best shot at finding a cure."
####
The memory stopped and the damage to the great oak repaired itself.
"I think this is enough." The boy said and we returned to reality.
I stumbled back, my mind reeling from the experience. The boy regarded me indifferently, his expression inscrutable as he waited for my response.
"Well?" he prompted, his voice echoing in the silence that hung between us.
I took a moment to collect myself, my thoughts racing as I tried to make sense of what I had just witnessed. "Your abilities... they are beyond anything I have ever seen," I admitted. "Come with me."
----
[normal pov]
The old man lifted up the entrance to the invisible tent, inside you could see a fully furnished home, which was bigger on the inside.
Lucas entered and was greeted by a man sitting comfortably in a luxurious chair in front of a desk and another normal empty chair opposite him.
"Parden the rude welcome, I had to make sure you were up to the task." Peneus apologised. "Please take a seat."
The chair automatically turned to Lucas, inviting him to sit down. Once seated he took in his surroundings, purposefully not speaking to the man in front of him. Mr. Greengrass patiently waited for him to finish, his eyes never leaving his guest's face.
"Don't worry, it wasn't as bad as I expected. But I do have a question, if you don't mind me asking." Lucas eventually said locking eyes.
"Not at all. I will do my best to answer." Peneus replied.
"How long has your uncle practiced Legilimency for?"
A small smile formed on the patriarch's face. "Not that long, he started after Voldemorts fall."
"Couldn't you have chosen a stronger one?" Lucas almost seemed sad.
"I could have, but what we are about to discuss shouldn't be heard by an outsider."
"Why now? Why have this meeting now?" he abruptly changed topics.
"A peculiar question. Well, it's rather easy. Because now you don't have a choice." Peneus said becoming serious.
The young Hufflepuff eyed him doubtfully. "What do you mean by that?"
"I don't doubt that you are aware that the ministry has come to know your advanced abilities. But I don't think you fully understand the gravity of your situation." Peneus leaned forward, his eyes boring into Lucas with an intensity that left no room for joking. "You see, Lucas. There was a fine balance of power between Lucius Malfoy who wanted to throw you into Azkaban the moment he learned about you and Dumbledore who said that as long as you were in Hogwarts he would be looking after you. It has remained in place since the end of the last school year, but now you did something you shouldn't have. My guess is you dabbled in Susan Bone's mind, because Amelia all of a sudden supported Lucius, leaving Dumbledore on the loosing side. Naturally as the strongest man in all of Britain he could overpower them, but I don't think he will do it for free."
Lucas listened carefully. It was true. He didn't know what was going on inside the ministry, but he was certain Dumbledore would never let them do anything to him. "Thank you for the information, but I have an arrangement with the headmaster. It would turn out detrimental for the both of us if I was removed from the school. So I don't think anything will happen anytime soon."
'I will be gone after this year anyway.'
"That might be true, however, there are ways to bypass even Dumbledore. Maybe not immediately, but there will be a day, when it will happen." Peneus continued, his voice low and grave. "Not to mention the other attack options open to someone like Lucius Malfoy."
"And you claim to be able to help me with that?" Lucas asked sceptically.
"Precicely. With my help the balance would be reinstated."
"And what do you get out of helping me?" Lucas questioned, his gaze steady as he studied Peneus's reaction.
He leaned back in his chair, a thoughtful expression crossing his features. "My interests align with yours, Mr. Foster," he replied cryptically. "Let's just say that your ability can be benefitial to the both of us."
Lucas narrowed his eyes, sensing that there was more to Peneus's motives than he was letting on. However, he didn't have much choice at the moment. He did not like to put it up to fate. If Peneus could indeed provide him with the leverage he needed to protect himself and his mother, then it was a risk worth hearing him out for. In the end he wasn't the biggest fan of pointless deaths.
"Very well," Lucas conceded, his tone cautious. "What do you propose?"
Peneus's lips curved into a satisfied smile, his eyes gleaming with ambition. "What I want you to do is share the knowledge you have and aquire with me. Especially curses. Of course you wouldn't work for free. I will pay you for every competent person you 'study' from."
"No." he simply answered. It was an awful deal. Practically the same as signing a loose slave contract. "This doesn't sound like a fair deal to me."
Peneus's smile didn't falter, his eyes narrowing in calculation. "Then what do you think would be fair?"
"First of all, you won't get everything I know, you can forget that. Secondly, I wouldn't hunt people down for you. And lastly, you would need to publicly announce that we are working together." Lucas countered.
The Greengrass patriarch regarded him with a raised eyebrow, considering Lucas's terms carefully. "You drive a hard bargain. The second and last point can be arranged, but I need you to agree to the first one. Is there anything else you want?"
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