(1938-12-31) Trusted Auror
Details for Trusted Auror
Summary: Early on the eve of the new year, Zack goes to Rhyeline after mulling over the things that Shelley told him. Rhyeline sends for her adopted brother to come and hear what has been happening in the hopes that he might be able to help.
Date: Tuesday, December 31st, 1938
Location: Berylwood
Related: Who Are You?
Characters
GrahamRhyelineZack

The final morning of the old year dawned cold and grey. Although most are taking the morning to sleep in late, the master of Berlywood has just left to attend to some urgent business down at the Ministry. The staff were not expecting any visitors, but when the butler opens the front door, he betrays none of his surprise. He observes Zack with impassive formality. "Good morning, sir?" he says, with the slight inflection that inquires as to his purpose there.

Zack's wearing the blue robes Rhyeline gave him for Christmas and, although they are perhaps the slightest bit ruffled, he seems quite dapper this morning. He stands on the front doorstep, looking rather harried as he waits for the door to open. "Oh," he says, blinking at the man who greets him. "Good morning. Yes, it is." He tries to peek past the butler to see if his friend is inside and only then seems to realize that the man expects more from him. "Oh, I want to see Rhyeline. She's my friend. I'm safe."

"I see. Very good, sir," says the butler, as he steps aside to allow Zack into the entrance hall. The chandelier overhead shines reflected in the gleaming black marble floors. "One moment, sir. If you would be so kind as to wait here, I will tell her you have come." Should Zack agree to wait in the entrance hall, the butler would head off deeper into the manor. A moment later he returns and gestures for Zack to follow. "This way, sir."

Rhyeline is waiting in the library with a cup of tea warming her hands. She's still in her nightdress, but a silk robe is tied around it to preserve her modesty. Curled up in a corner of the sofa, she looks over at Zack with quiet curiosity and a hint of concern. "Hello Zack… are- are you alright?" For once, there is no guard watching them once the butler withdraws.

"Oh, okay." Zack seems puzzled when he's asked to wait, but he does so, his eyes slightly wide as he looks around the magnificent entrance hall. Startled when the man returns, he tears his gaze away from the chandelier and peers at him. "You're very strange for a guard," he remarks as he follows the man through the manor. "I like you." When he walks into the library his attention is first drawn to the books, and he only notices Rhyeline when she speaks. "Oh, there you are. Hello. Yes, I'm fine. I have to talk to you, though. Because you might be in danger, and it's my fault."

The butler maintains a stoic demeanor as he withdraws, but allows himself a small frown once out of sight. Rhyeline bites her lower lip, before beckoning him close. "Come… come and- and sit with me… would you like some- some tea?" A bit of breakfast sits on the low coffee table. "If you'd like anything else, I can ask the house-elf to fetch it…"

Zack hesitates, but he walks over to sit with Rhyeline, though he seems tense, sitting straight-backed with his hands folded together on his lap. "Oh, yes. I'd like some tea. Not blue tea, though. Just ordinary tea. You have a house-elf? Those things are strange. I don't want anything else. Where is it?"

"Mmm… I'm not ever quite sure… but when I need something, he's there at once," murmurs Rhyeline as she leans forward to pour Zack a cup of his own. Silent, she watches him as she gently presses it into his hands. "Zack… I have guards always watching me… I am safe. Cassius is very careful to make sure of that. So don't be scared… what's happened?"

Zack stares at the cup Rhyeline puts in his hands as if unsure how it got there. He just holds it for a moment before sinking back into his seat and looking off across the room as he drinks. "Oh, yes. You have guards. Of course. But the Auror Shelley says you might be in danger. She says the people I worked for are Dark wizards and that you'd be in trouble for trying to help me. But she also wanted me to ask you to help me. It's very confusing."

Rhyeline's brows furrow a bit when he mentions Shelley. "I see… she told you such things? Why does she believe the ones you worked for are dark wizards?" she murmurs in a soft, gentle tone.

"Yes," Zack says. "And she's an Auror so she'd know. She was very nice to me last night. She wasn't rude or nosy like usual. She said she wanted to help and that she wants to keep people safe. Hmm? Oh, I don't know why she thinks they're Dark wizards. She said only bad people would want to develop spells like the one that backfired on me. She said they'd want to use it to steal things or kill people."

"Is that what /you/ think? There are lots of your own spells that could have both good and bad uses…" murmurs Rhyeline before taking a small sip of tea.

Zack frowns, unsure. "I don't know," he says. "They didn't seem bad when I worked for them. Piers is scary, but that's his job." He drinks his tea, thinking it over in his head. "Shelley is an Auror, though. She knows what Dark wizards do. I just wanted to find my lost notes so I could get back to work. But you're going to pay me to make good spells, so maybe I don't even need my old notes anymore. But I have to get them and give them back to my team. But Shelley says I mustn't let them have them, because they'll use them to do wrong. I don't know what to do." The more he talks, the more distressed he seems to become.

Rhyeline sets down her cup of tea and draws closer to put an arm around his shoulders. "Zack… Listen… She might be an auror… but do you remember Susan? The one who was so rude? She was magical law enforcement… but she's not a good one… because she was looking for trouble where there wasn't any. Remember that Tiberius didn't really try to poison me… it was just a joke… but she tried to do everything she could to get him in trouble as if he had…"

Zack blinks when Rhyeline puts an arm around his shoulders, not having noticed her moving closer. "The constable? Yes, she was horrible. But Shelley wasn't being rude, she was being nice. She said she just wants to help make sure I'm safe. This isn't a joke. What if they really are Dark wizards? What if I'm a Dark wizard too because I helped them?"

"You are /not/ a dark wizard," murmurs Rhyeline as she hugs him gently, as if trying to soothe a child frightened by nightmares. "Remember… Shelley wasn't so nice before, but suddenly she is. Sometimes, people pretend to be nice in order to get what they want. If the constable suddenly began to act nice in order to try and get Tiberius arrested, would that make her nice?"

Some of Zack's worry fades. If Rhyeline doesn't think he's one then it must be true. "Yes," he says, his brow furrowed. "I remember. I thought it was odd, but she seemed a lot nicer. I wanted to help her make sure we aren't in danger." He considers her question and then gives his head a short shake. "No. She'd be lying. Shelley wanted me to lie to my team. She said it's necessary. She wants to find out if they are Dark. Oh, and she wants to talk to you."

"I see… well… it's possible that her concern is genuine… but it also might be true that she is just hoping to find trouble where there isn't any… just like Constable Menzies… Susan." She adds the first name, knowing Zack is bad with names. "Graham is an auror I trust… Would you like me to send for him? We can find out what he thinks…"

"Yes," Zack says. "Maybe she is. I don't know. It was a bad idea to tell the Aurors anything. I shouldn't have done that." But he sits up when she mentions Graham. "Oh, yes, that's a good idea. He's nice. He'd know what to do. And he's your brother, so he'd want you to be safe too."

Rhyeline nods and gives Zack another gentle hug. "Alright… I'll ask the butler to send him a message… and then you and I can enjoy a bit of breakfast until he gets here, alright?" she murmurs with a warm, gentle smile. The little one is still in her nightdress, kept warm by a silk robe wrapped around her. She also asks the butler if he'd mind bringing them a plate of croissants. And thus, the pair enjoy the quiet of the library, enjoying the exquisite tea and food of Berylwood. The library itself is a magnificent collection of wizarding literature of all kind. Should Zack show interest, Rhyeline would encourage him to explore it while they wait.

Zack does indeed show interest in exploring the library, and the suggestion causes him to forget all about his current predicament for the moment. As they wait for Graham, he spends most of the time just walking around and peering at the books, now and then reaching out to just run his finger down their spines. He pauses only when the croissants arrive, and he eats one well away from the books before returning to them.

One thing can be counted upon when called by his adopted sister that he will pretty much just rush over no matter what was going on. It was a rough morning for the young auror and some of it likely still hangs on the auror, but all the same since his house guest departed he received an owl and quickly got ready and than headed out the door. Graham appears in an out of the way alley near his destination where he wont be scene and crosses the street. The young man doesn't pause this time at the gate going through and up to the door where he will knock or ring the doorbell or something like that.

The butler shows the auror into the library at once where Rhyeline greets him with the warmest little smile. Her dark gaze shines with appreciaton as she murmurs, "Hello, Graham… thank you for coming. You remember Zack, no?" Sitting curled up in the sofa near the fireplace, the little one indicates the young wizard with her.

Zack is back on the sofa when Graham arrives, another croissant in his hands. He meticulously picks it apart, eating each piece individually and leaving a great deal of crumbs on his lap. He looks up when the butler brings Graham into the library and lifts one hand in an uncertain wave. "Hello."

Graham follows the butler through the house he'd probably still get lost otherwise. He enters the library which is a good place for him to be afterall. He looks first over to Rhyeline and returns her smile easily some of the tension releasing she may notice it as she knows im far too well but he's trying to play it off all the same. "Good Morning Rhyeline." he responds looking to the other and nods "Of course I do it's good to see you again Zack."

"I'm sorry if I worried you, brother… but… I- I was hoping that- that you might help us… Do… do you know an auror called Shelley?" murmurs Rhyeline with a slight tilt of her head to the side.

"Yes," Zack says to Graham. "It's good to see you too." But he quiets down as Rhyeline speaks, and he gives her an uncertain look as though he's not sure what he's supposed to tell Graham exactly.

It's in the silence that he decides to move and take the chair near his sister sits on the sofa and he'll sit lightly upon it turning to look back as she speaks he nods to her. The head tilt gets smile though his eyes likely betray Graham would like to talk to her later. "Yes I do Shelley Prewett, though truth be told she still works at the MLE but more of a consultant now than active duty." he will say "Why do you ask?" he says curiously.

"Well… Zack, would you like to tell Graham about what's been happening? It might be best to tell it like a story… starting from what happened when you first met her…" murmurs Rhyeline looking over at Zack. The look in Graham's eyes wasn't lost on her, but with someone else here, she doesn't mention it. Except, when she peeks back over at Graham, he might glimpse that she knows something's wrong.

The silent communication between Graham and Rhyeline goes unnoticed by Zack, who frowns at the latter's request. "A story? Oh, okay. Um, I went to the Auror office to ask for help finding my lost notes. Because you said you'd help me." Zack mistook that offer as one extending from all Aurors. "But they kept asking me questions about the people I worked for before I went missing instead." He glances at Rhyeline, unsure if he's telling it right, but he continues anyway. "And then Shelley kept following me around and asking me questions. At the Leaky Cauldron, at a party I went to, and at the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade. She thinks the people I worked for are Dark wizards who want to use the spells I made to do bad things. What else do I tell him?" he abruptly asks Rhyeline.

Graham watches back and forth but listening to Rhyeline as she speaks about something happening involving apparently the other and this auror. He does look to he while he waits and smiles at that knowing looking he couldnt hide much from her it's certain, but he does look to the other waiting for the story. He follows the list of events nodding to show that he's listening to the story. "Hm, well, they should be willing to help you but the auror's office is often busy. I will still gladly do so." he ponders a moment "What were you talking about when the questions started?" he asks wondering if there was a trigger false as it may be.

Rhyeline offers Zack an encouraging smile, and murmurs, "I think you told the story well…" But then Graham puts forth a further question and she falls silent, letting her brother find out what more he needs.

Zack thinks for a moment. "Yes," he says. "I told them that my team wanted me to give the notes back to them. They were annoyed that I hadn't found them to return it after I went missing. And they were impatient. They wanted me to give them what I had, but I told them I had to find all of it first, to make sure I'm not missing anything. When I told the Aurors that they started asking questions about my team, but I just wanted my notes. But now they think the people I worked for are Dark wizards, so they want to deal with them instead."
The young man sits in silence though listening to both when they speak. He looks up looking to both in turn a moment. Graham does speak however "Hm I can see where without all the facts they would take your employer's instance on the finding the notes as trying to hide away secrets. Those I work with and sometimes myself are trained to think this way, but they should not be following you around town or anything. You said auror's as in more than one? Who else do you know? I can speak with them."

Rhyeline looks to Graham and murmurs in a rather quiet tone, "She reminds me a bit of Constable Menzies… trying to find trouble where there isn't any…" She glances to Zack. "If you were working to develop a spell that they were hoping to make money from, it makes sense that they'd want to keep their research secret so that no one tries to steal their ideas…" She looks to Graham. "Having secrets doesn't make someone a dark wizard…"

"There was another Auror called Cooper," Zack says. "I told her I was alive, and then I went to ask for help with my notes, but she's the one who wanted to look into my team. But Shelley was the one that followed me." He gives his head a single, firm nod at Rhyeline's words. "Yes. It does make sense. I'm allowed to talk about the spells I make on my own. They don't care about those. I'm just not supposed to talk about the team and the work I do for them. I have secrets. I'm not a Dark wizard."

Graham looks between the both and frowns a bit though he nods "Prewett's a good auror she was seriously injured on the job a while back." He says this trying to make a point that he knows the other but he does explain "No having secrets doesn't make you a dark wizard. Cooper's a friend of mine as well, I don't know why they were following you I can talk to them and advise that nothing dark is going on." he says to both "It doesn't excuse it mind you, but if you imagine dealing with darkwizards day in and out it can start to make you more suspicious of things." he explains both the others.

Rhyeline nods and murmurs, "Yes… it makes sense. But… it's not good when they make someone anxious, and persist when we have asked them to stop. So far there has been nothing to warrant such harrassment. Although-" The little one hesitates, peeking over at Zack. "Of course… if there /is/ something wrong… We can trust my brother to discover it." She glances to Graham with a soft, trusting smile.

"I'm not doing anything Dark," Zack says to Graham. "I don't know if what anyone else is doing is Dark. They're Aurors, though. So they would know. Yes," he adds to Rhyeline. "Graham can find out. But he should be careful about doing any unpleasant things to my team. Piers is a dangerous wizard. Oh, Graham, will you still help me find my notes?"

"I know, i'll talk to Shelley. There is no reason that she should be following you like that." Graham says looking at both a moment as they speak in turn about finding something going on. The auror turns first to Rhyeline smiling back to her easily before back "Of course i'll look into it, and I did promise to help with your notes and I will do so." he says reassuringly though he does chuckle "I don't normally do things which are unpleasant to others unless they deserve it I can promise that."

Rhyeline bites her lower lip when Zack mentions that Piers is a dangers wizard. She peeks over at Graham with a subtle hint of worry, but she knows her adopted brother is a professional auror and is sure to be careful. "Thank you, brother." And to Zack, she adds, "There… now you don't have to worry. You can concentrate on your work."

"Okay, good," Zack says at Graham's assurances. He smiles at Rhyeline. "Yes, I can. That's what I wanted to do the whole time." He looks quite relieved to have people he has confidence in helping him with his situation. "Oh, yes," he adds, glancing over at the young Auror. "Thank you, Graham."

Graham looks over to Rhyeline his smile is reassuring to her as he knows she worries about him often as much as he does for her. He will reach across and pat her lightly as well just incase it doesnt come across without his words. He does look back to Zack "Yes you will be able to work un-impeded which everyone should be able to do. Your welcome as well." he says to the man though he does ponder this wizard who is dangerous a moment.

Unless otherwise stated, the content of this page is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 License