The Gathering: The New Order of Merlin Book 1

49. Old Religion

       "I'll tell you later," was all Jack said when Elsa asked him what he was talking about with McGonagall, so she glared at him the entire rest of the class, curiosity eating at her while the lesson stretched on. By the time the bell rang, they were both caught up with the and could perform all the spells, and she would not let him get away before he explained what he was up to.

He didn't tell her right away but dragged her with him for lunchtime to sit at the Gryffindor table with his roommates. Luna didn't know what was going on, but she tagged along as well like a starling following the rest of the flock wherever they went.

Jack dug into his food and said with a full mouth, "I'll let Merlin explain,"

Merlin, who had barely managed to sit, looked at Elsa and Luna, understandably confused. "What am I explaining?"

"The thing with the Old Religion," Jack said between bites. "Elsa wants to know."

Colin leaned forward attentively. Luna picked on some food with her hands.

"Oh, yes. You're right. She needs to know." Merlin took his time loading his plate and said casually, "Jack was in trouble with McGonagall and was afraid that he was doomed to fail the class."

"He can do the spells now though." Elsa faced her brother. "You're not in trouble anymore. You'll pass, I'm sure."

Merlin took a small bite and chewed it a bit before continuing, "Well, I don't know if you're aware, but he had a bad argument with her over the curriculum she teaches. She didn't agree with his belief that animals shouldn't be used in transfigurations, and neither of them will budge on their stance. You're with me so far?"

Elsa watched her brother, wondering why he never told her about the argument. Why was he confiding in this boy and not her?

Merlin continued, "So, I asked him some more questions about what else he believed in, and decided to help him." He gesticulated with his bologna sandwich and didn't notice that his meat plopped onto the table until he bit the meatless bread and grimaced in disappointment. As he reassembled his sandwich, he said, "To make the teachers respect his beliefs, we need to make them official. If he calls his beliefs a religion, they will have no choice but to take it seriously."

Elsa put her hand up, interrupting. "Wait, that's what you meant by Old Religion? Are you telling me you're making up a religion just so you can avoid doing a spell? That's too much, Jack. Even for you."

"But it's not made up!" Jack said. "Tell her, Merlin."

"I practice Old Religion," Merlin said and took a big bite of his sandwich, rendering himself unable to elaborate on that.

Elsa tapped her finger on the table as she looked between Merlin and Jack. Honestly, this Merlin boy was so strange, she wasn't surprised he held obscure beliefs. She addressed Jack at last, "Let me get this straight. You're going to pretend that you're adopting Merlin's religion just to get through one class? Jack, you can't be serious."

"Here's the thing, Elsa," Merlin butted in. "He's not changing any of his beliefs. Old Religion is the belief in the power of nature. Ancient Druids believed that nature deserved to be revered and protected, that all life was precious. That is what Jack believes as well." Jack nodded repeatedly to confirm, and Merlin added, "Jack has been practicing the values of Old Religion in its purest form, equivalent to the Druids' ideology, without knowing that he was. I am ready to back him up and take his stance regarding Transfiguration."

"And Potions," Jack added.

Merlin paused and shrugged. "We'll talk to McGonagall, and we'll probably have to talk to the Headmaster. Snape will be harder to handle but we can try. I don't know what the specific laws are, but I think that the school is required to accommodate our religious beliefs. I am confident that we will succeed in this. Now, the question is, what about you, Elsa?"

Elsa's eyes grew wide. "Me? You want me to practice your religion?"

"It's up to you. If you have no problems transfiguring animals, feel free to continue doing what you're doing. But if you want to join your brother, I think he would like that. I will gladly share what I know with whoever wants to learn."

"Will you guys have, like, masses and stuff?" Colin interrupted them. "I've never heard of this religion. I have soooo many questions."

"No, no masses. If we wanted to be very traditional, there are rituals and sacred places where Old Religion is at its strongest, where you can feel it in the air." He turned back to Elsa. "It's not a religion in the meaning of what people usually think when they hear the word. It's... I guess, in modern times it's seen as an old pagan belief. That doesn't make it any less true.

"There were times when all magic practiced in these lands was Old Religion magic. Times have changed. The way magic is used has changed. I'm one of the last people who practice the old ways and make the effort to maintain the balance. There is much to be gained from this belief, and I'm happy that Jack wants to learn. Does this sound like something you want to learn too, Elsa?"

Elsa kept sneaking glances between Jack and Merlin. Her brother was nodding at her eagerly. It'd be a lie to say she wasn't intrigued. "I suppose, I see where you're coming from and how we fit into it. But at the same time, I don't want to miss out on learning transfiguration spells."

"Elsa, think about it," Jack said. "Just how useful is it going to be to transform a rat into a teacup? Can you think of practical use for this? You won't be missing out all that much."

"It would come in useful in a room full of rats," Colin offered.

"Here's where I'm concerned," Elsa said, tapping a finger to her chin. "The spells we're learning now are small and maybe not so useful, but we need to learn the easy spells before we can get to the difficult magic. You saw how McGonagall can transform into a cat. Can you imagine if we could do something like that? We won't be able to learn it if we never transfigure animals."

"You want to be a cat?" Jack asked.

"It doesn't have to be a cat."

"You could turn yourself into a hugger. You'd be so cute."

"Argh. I don't want to be a hugger, Jack!"

"What's a hugger?" Merlin asked.

"I'll show you later," Jack answered with a wink.

Elsa crossed her arms over her chest and stared at him angrily. "Do you remember how we planned to stay low, to not draw attention to ourselves?"

Jack shrugged. "I think it's too late for that. We stand out no matter how hard we try."

"You're really doing this?"

"Yes."

"You really believe in this so strongly that you will go through all the trouble with the school and will even drag your friend through the same thing?"

"Yes. And... you?"

Elsa crossed her arms and bit her lip. She always thought religions were for humans who needed an explanation for magic. What was her brother thinking?

Jack sighed, looking disappointed. "I don't want you to feel like I'm forcing you into it. I want you to want it for yourself."

"You can think about it," Merlin said. "It's not a one-time offer."

"I don't know about you, Elsa," Colin spoke up, "but I am sold. Can I join too?"

"I would like to learn too," Luna said in a soft voice.

Elsa pouted and looked at them all. Now, that wasn't fair. She didn't want to be the only one left out of this. "What exactly are you planning to teach us?"

Merlin smiled. "If you've got the talent for it, I can teach you real magic."