Wolves • George Weasley

Chapter Six; A Scheme

Marvella hurried through the halls. She had an appointment with Dumbledore and Arnou and she was late. A note had appeared on her door when she woke in the morning saying:

Dearest Ms. Elwood,

I am aware of your fatigue after a busy day and accept that you also may be rather confused. I have taken it upon myself to move your meeting with myself and Mx. Rowan to tomorrow (Saturday the 1st of November) morning at 9am given you both seem to have missed the original date. Please be on time.

Signed,

Albus Dumbledore.

Well, Marvella was certainly not on time. She had woken at 8:56am exactly, and, given that Dumbledore's office was rather far from the common room, she was now rushing in hastily thrown on jeans and a sweater. Her footsteps echoed around the open space in the corridor. It was likely that most students were either taking advantage of their Saturday by sleeping or were eating breakfast in the Great Hall.

Marvella raced through the hallways until she reached the Gargoyle Corridor where Arnou had told her the headmaster's office was located. She skidded to a stop and panted the password to the Gargoyle in the circular cut-out in the corridor.

"Lemon drop."

The statue swivelled to reveal a staircase, which Marvella stepped onto as it began to rise. She caught her breath just in time to arrive in Dumbledore's Office. Apparently Arnou had already gotten there, as the Ravenclaw was standing at the front of a large desk, looking around curiously.

"When did you get here?"

"Before you, apparently," Arnou chided.

Marvella glared. "Before Dumbldore, too."

Her friend shrugged, raising their eyebrows. "He said 9am, and I was here on the dot. Anyways, why didn't you come yesterday?" They asked. Marvella sighed, entering the room. There were books piled on extra desks that she passed, and a few rumpled papers on the ground by her feet.

"Too tired. Forgot about it. You?"

"I was busy. I got distracted in the library."

Marvella narrowed her eyes slightly. It was unlike Arnou to forget about important events. "What were you reading about?"

Arnou glanced down quickly before looking up at Marvella again. "Oh- I was just studying and stuff. Nothing important."

Important enough for you to miss a meeting with the headmaster, though?

Marvella decided she'd have to look into it further at a later date, though, because Dumbledore appeared from a private room before she could respond. Both students immediately looked up as he strode over to his desk and sat. Marvella moved to stand next to Arnou in front of Dumbledore.

"Hello, Arnou, Marvella. I assume you are having a good Saturday?" Said the old wizard.

Marvella nodded while Arnou bowed their head. "Yes, Professor." It wasn't necessarily true, as Marvella had preferred to be able to sleep until noon and not run into anyone or get stuck in some awkward situation, but here she was, and she wasn't going to say that to Dumbledore's face.

"Lovely, lovely." There was a pause. Dumbledore spoke again in his airy voice. "Yes, well, I would think you are wondering why you are here, so we'll get right to the point, won't we?" When both students nodded courteously, he gestured to two fancy-looking chairs. "Please, sit."

"As you know, you have been asked to attend Hogwarts because the Battle Spirits and Wizarding World have been hostile for far too long. As I, Albus Dumbledore, was the one who provoked this hostility all those years ago at the end of the first Wizarding War, I feel that it is I who should take the responsibility of mending this relationship." He nodded to Marvella. "You are the daughter of Accalia, the alpha of your kind."