The Life and Times of Arjulia Rigel

Arjulia went to school each year and sometimes spent her study periods playing chess with Gryffindor.

As she promised herself, she learned everything she could possibly gain knowledge. Only stories of Merlin and wizarding adventures were better than a new spellbook. However, it was rare she came by a new spellbook to read. New ones rarely arrived at the library. For the first few days of her first year, there were only fifty books in the library.

Now it was her seventh year and she didn't know what she wanted to do after she could live on her own after life at Hogwarts. One night, Arjulia took Gryffindor's rook and spoke:

"You know, I'm going to graduate soon and I don't think it would be fitting much longer for me to call you master Gryffindor or sir everyday..."

She looked up to see his reaction only to discover that he was buried in figuring out the chess board. His eyebrows, graying and bushy as ever, were scrunched in concentration; his fist against his mouth. He was thinking hard.

Arjulia believed he hadn't heard her and focused back on the game.

Suddenly he said, "I think now you may call me Godric. Pawn to H3. " He took her knight.

"Godric? Alright...Rook to B1. Checkmate."

Godric couldn't believe it. His eyebrows went heavenward. His fist, moved sideways, away from his face, revealing an open-mouth expression of shock.

"Why didn't I see that?"

"You're losing your sight," she replied.

"How was I supposed to foresee that?"

"Not that Sight, your eyesight..."

"Oh." He leaned back in his big chair.

"It's nice to see you," she planted a kiss on his forehead, picked up her text book and put her hand on the door latch.

"Arjulia..." he called.

"Yes, Godric?" She put her long hair behind her ear, looking at her father figure.

"I told you the secret of your past when you were 10 years old. Now I think it is time to tell you mine."

"What secrets, Godric?"

"Do you remember Salazar Slytherin? The other headmaster who was here before you came to school?"

"I do," she sat back down in her chair.

"One day before you started school, the other founders of the school and I had an argument with him. He wanted to keep students who didn't have magical parents out of Hogwarts."

"Like me? My mother wasn't a witch."

"Yes, like you. I knew you had magical talent. You needed to be educated on the gifts which you possess. Same goes for all the other children in the world just like you.

"Slytherin left the place immediately. He never wanted to have anything to do with this school ever. We left his house, as to carry on tradition. My hat knows who to put in which house.

"But this kind of argument is going to carry on through generations. His children and my children will be fighting about this for generations until one line is annihilated."

"That's terrible..." Arjulia breathed.

"I'm going to ask you to do something. It requires a near lifetime of service, even longer perhaps..."

"You want me to become your Medjai?" Arjulia knew that he was only asking her to do one thing. After all he'd given her, this was all she could do for him. Protect his heirs and children until those heirs of Slytherin were all dead. Simple enough.

Godric looked uncomfortable with this sentence being finished for him. "Yes, I didn't think you knew about Medjais..."

"I read every book in the library of Gryffindor Castle; I could hardly keep my hands off the one entitled, Magical Phenomenon."

"Oh."

"Godric, after everything you've given me: a home, a father figure, an education. I can't refuse."

"No, Arjulia, I want it to be your choice. I must not have a hand in your decision. Go to bed and think long and hard about, before I regret asking you."

She slept uneasily that night. She had dreams of the man who killed her parents. She saw their horrified faces upon seeing him. She saw herself talking with Godric beside the fireplace when she was a little girl; then, as if, a fast growing plant, she grew into an image of herself today. But it wouldn't stop, she kept growing older. She was an adult, looking like she was in her twenties but then stopped.

After what seemed like forever, seeing herself as an adult and never growing much older than that, the sunlight finally filled the room Godric was gone. Everything started glowing green and smoldered into dark dust around her.

Everything was dark, she could only feel feelings. She knew she was going to be sad, often times angry, but there was a tiny light somewhere far away... then hope.

Before sunrise, she ran up to Godric's room and pounded on the door.

Godric was wide awake and dressed. His fire was glowing and a decorated jeweled box was on his desk.

"Arjulia, I guess you decided on taking on his challenge... Come in..."

"I want others like me to be able to come here in peace. I want the wizarding to be at peace and I want you not to worry about your children of the future. That's why I'm doing this," she stated, upon entering the doorway, wearing her red robe.

"Merlin gave me this box when I told him I wanted to make you my Medjai. It contains this..." He opened the box carefully and took out four differently sized and colored stones. One was violet and transparent, one was gray and red, like a granite; the other two were the size of grapes, one turquoise, the other orange.

"You'll take these into that room there," he motioned to a door at the other end of his office. "It's a spell casting and ritual room. You'll sit on the floor and place these around you equally spaced. Then using this incantation," he held out a piece of parchment.

Arjulia looked at the paper, the words, "Excitum Medjai Intus."

"Then just relax and let the spell do its work. It was twinge a little bit, and you'll have bracelets around your wrists when you are finished." Godric wrapped loving arms around her a she embraced him back.

"Will I still remember who I am?"

"Of course, but you'll have powers and things beyond any story I've ever told you. I can't imagine what your life will be like once I'm gone."

"I know," she reassured. She took the stones in her hand and went into the room as she was told

Inside, the room was a bare, stone floor and a small window on the far side. Tapestries were hanging from the walls. The floor was cold, but she sat down anyway. She faced the lovely window as the sun could not yet be seen rising in the east.

She paused for a moment, looking at the birds flying by the window. These were the last precious moments she was going to have as a normal girl. From here on out she would age 400 times slower than any normal human being. She'd no longer need her wand. It would only he a piece of would to her; she'd only be able to use her hands for spells. She'd have these bracelets Godric described for the rest of her pilgrimage.

This was going to be a very long day.

She set the stones in place at each corner of where she was sitting and said the incantation:

Excitum Medjai Intus...

She closed her eyes and at first didn't feel anything, only a small shift in the air flow of the room, like someone slammed a door shut but there was no noise.

Excitum Medjai Intus... Excitum Medjai Intus...

Each rock of its respective color began to glow brilliantly from that color to a bright white. A beam of light shot heavenward from each one then the lines moved counter clockwise to form a cylinder of glittering light around Arjulia.

Excitum Medjai Intus...

Arjulia began to feel warm, like she was going to be ill. Her head felt light and her arms felt very heavy. Suddenly she weighed nothing, her knees were straightening and her feet felt nothing but the inside of her shoes.

She peeked open her eyes to she that she was floating with her back arched about two feet off the ground.

The cylinder of light formed words in ancient runes from the tiny, sparkling particles--circling around horizontally, remaining in perfect orbit of Arjulia.

Arjulia noticed they began to circle faster, then without warming, she felt a lot of pressure building in her chest. Her heart was going to burst!

She clutched to her sternum and gasped for air. She pulled in her knees and bent her head down to try to feel better. It wouldn't stop.

As if someone ripped them away from her, her wrists were pulled upward, above her head. She looked up and saw that all the runes were starting to gather around there. They spun father and faster until they formed two perfect cuffs around her wrists. Both gold and engraved in tiny runes, like those that had been floating around her.

The pressure stopped, but she had a headache.

The stones died to a soft glow, and all the runes were gone.

Arjulia lay on the cold floor, breathing heavily.

One millennia later...

"I now pronounce you wizard and wife," said the judge.

The small party of onlookers cheered and applauded while the newly wedded James and Lily Potter kissed for the first time as husband and wife.

The judge's chamber was a large room with a very ceiling. One of the rafters near the door on the other side of the room was the seat to a small figure crouching and shadows.

High above everyone's head, she grinned and whispered so quietly it was inaudible compared to the excitement below, "Congratulations James. May you live many years and never know your life's true purpose."