The Forgotten Song

Chapter Eight:
The Forgotten Song

"What kept you?" Ron asked Anna as she sprung out of the fireplace.
"I don't like floo travel," she muttered, shaking the soot from her hair.
"Wait a minute," Harry said, frowning. "You came here before Malfoy?"
"Yep."
"The bastard'll do a runner." He folded his arms. "Not that I care, I mean, good riddance and all, but Lupin will go crazy."
"He wont run," Anna told him with a knowing look. "He'll spend a while swearing and telling himself that he's going to run, then he'll realise that if he does, I'll hunt him down and kill him, and then he'll tell himself that's why he's coming, and then he'll pop out of that fireplace, whinging and pretending to be tough." She straightened her skirt and looked around. Her eyes lit up as they fell on Cairo. "Cai!" she squealed, dashing over and jumping into his arms.
"Annie," he grinned, holding her tight and twirling her around. "Why'd you go and abandon me, huh?"
"You abandoned me, you big puppy," she laughed as he put her down. "For a flirtly little bitch."
"She wasn't a bitch," Cairo said defensively.
"Look it up, Cai," she teased him. "A female dog is classed as a bitch."
"You Vampires," he shook his head. "You're just jealous of our-"
"Shaggy coats and yellow eyes?"
"Intellect and strength."
"Two times eight?"
"Wha-"
"Sixteen. I beat you in intellect and I could deck you any day," she said triumphantly.
Ron and Harry laughed as the fireplace suddenly erupted into green flame, and a very dirty Draco came stumbling out, brushing himself off and complaining loudly. "Fucking floo powder, can't you people afford anything better? Aren't you smart enough to apparate? I'm filthy, I'm hot and I don't even know where the hell I am, besides in some dank and dark little room with..." he looked at their little party. "A Vampire, a not yet out of the closet gay couple and... oh look, we've got another Werewolf. Can we just go see this God woman so that I can get the fuck out of here and have a bath?"
"Told you," Anna said to Harry.
"Shut up," he nudged her, rolling his eyes. "Both of you."
"I'm hungry," Ron complained loudly.
"So am I, but you don't see me chewing on anybody's neck," Anna grumped in a sudden mood swing. "Now can we please calm down and... I dunno, not do something for a while?"
"Bloody boring, don't you think?" Cai asked her.
"Hush, puppy." She waved a hand at him. "I'm meditating."
"On what?"
"If I concentrate hard enough, the redhead might possibly drop dead."
"Why me?" Ron asked, insulted.
"You're English," she said pointedly. "English boys taste like muffins."
"What about Malfoy?" Harry asked. "He's English."
"But he's not a boy," Ron quipped.
"Very funny," Draco said mildly.
"What are you lot arguing about now?" Lupin sighed as he and Bryan reappeared inside the doorway.
"Malfoy's gender," Harry said. "We're not sure exactly what it is."
"One of those androgenous fellows, are you?" Bryan asked him curiously.
"A what??"
"Leave him alone, Bryan," Lupin grinned. "Come on, children, we're going to see the Gods."
"Are the Wolves with us then?" Harry asked curiously.
"They've agreed to be on our side once the fighting starts, yes," he nodded.
"Oh goody," Anna clapped her hands together. "Now lets move along. I'm hungry and I want to go home."
"Where's this God place, then?" Bryan asked Lupin.
"No idea, actually. All we know is that it's where 'the sun always shines and the beer always flows.'"
"The beer always flows?" Bryan frowned. "Now where have I heard that before?"
"Probably in the dreams of anyone of Irish descent," Malfoy murmured.
"Ah, The Magical Sunlit Fountain," Bryan snapped his fingers.
"The what?" Malfoy asked incredulously.
"It's a pub," Bryan shrugged. "And on the sign it has this neon sun. Never goes out. And it's motto is 'where the beer always flows'. Not a bad pub, either."
"What a gay name," Ron raised his eyebrows.
"And how convienient that he knew where it was," Draco observed. "The journey just keeps moving along smoothly, doesn't it?"
"Cynic," Anna accused.
"Shall we floo, oh wise and powerful Wolf Man?" Draco asked Lupin, making a face at Anna.
"We floo."

***
"You fucking wanker!"
Harry ducked, startled, as a glass flew past his ear and shattered against the fireplace. "What'd I do?" he asked the others as he dusted himself off.
"It wasn't aimed at you," Ron informed him, his eyes glued to a voluptuous woman who stood at the bar screaming the roof down. A thin man cowered against the wall near them.
"All these years and you treat me like this?" she screamed at him. "You run off with her? You are lower than low!"
"Wow," Harry heard Anna mutter. "Lively."
"You're telling me," Draco said, raising his blonde eyebrows. "I never knew Gods were this much fun."
"These aren't the Gods," Lupin corrected him.
"So where are they?" Harry asked. "I mean, this place doesn't really look all that divine."
"You godamn coward! Harold, if I weren't working, I would wring your pathetic neck!"
"She seems to be doing a good job of it already," Draco murmured as another glass went flying.
Excuse me.
"Yeah, I'm just worried about what she's gonna throw when she runs out of those glasses," Ron said to him in a rare moment of amity.
Ex-cuuse me? Hello?
Harry raised his eyebrows and looked around, noticing that Lupin was doing likewise. "Oh," Anna said in surprise. "You guys can hear it too."
"Think we were special, did we?" Draco asked.
"No," she shrugged. "Just thought it was the voices again."
"The what?"
I'm running out of patience, here.
"Well then where the fuck are you?"
"And what are you, exactly?" Lupin asked.
Next to the stairs. You'll pick me out fairly easily.
Harry turned his eyes in the direction of the stairs. He saw two couples at a table, talking and laughing merrily, a fat man on the floor, snoring loudly, and a bouncing ball of green light.
"Ten bucks it's the fat guy," Anna whispered to Ron.
"No way mate, it's definitely the people at the table. All of them. Kinda one of those group mind things."
"Guess that leaves me with the green glowing thingo," Draco chipped in mounfully. "Not a hope, there."
Harry rolled his eyes at the overall annoyance of Mister Draco Malfoy just as Lupin sighed at their inability to take anything seriously.
You're all stupid, the voice said rudely. And you're annoying me.
"Join the club," Harry said loudly.
There was a pause. My name's Envy. I'm supposed to be taking you to my Mistress and the others.
"And where are they, exactly?" Lupin asked politely.
Upstairs, if you'd care to follow me.
The green light zipped up the stairs before they could reply.
"Hey," Draco said in mock suprise. "I actually won."
"Fluked it," Ron shrugged.
"Pure chance," Anna agreed.
Lupin put his hand on both Anna and Ron's shoulders and propelled them towards the stairs, leaving Draco trailing behind with a grin on his face.
***
'Upstairs' was a large circular room. The stone walls were completely covered with flowering vines, and was seemingly divided into five sections, as each portion of the wall had different coloured flowers growing on the vines. White, red, pink and even black, and then there was a section with no flowers at all - just the green vines. In the center of the room was a circular area of red carpet with five thrones set in the outside, facing in, each in the centre of the flowered sections. There was a person upon each chair, and Harry recognised the black cloaked figure of Koranu in front of a wall of black roses.
"Welcome to our little office," he said dryly. "Come over here. Don't worry, we don't bite..."
"... much," a cheeky female voice chimed in. "Come over here so I can get a look at you."
They walked over to the carpeted section, standing in the middle, not really knowing where to look. Harry gazed around at all the different people. There was Koranu on a black marble throne. Closest to him on the left was a stunningly beautiful woman with rich brown hair that seemed to float around in the air, as if she were under water. She sat on a simple wooden chair bound with ivy, and her long dress flowed around her like her hair, and was the same deep mossy green as her eyes. Beside her sat a woman on a white throne. She wore a long white dress, its sleeves falling down well over her hands and buttoned well up to her neck. A veil fell over her face from just under her sapphire blue eyes, and her blonde hair was bound in a severe plait that fell over her shoulder.
"Wow," he heard Anna mutter, and turned to see what she was looking at. It was a man, sitting to the left of the white woman. He had firey red hair that fell over his shoulders, caught at his temples with a golden circlet. He wore a shiny breastplate and a sword rested against the arm of his wooden throne, and he would have looked threatening if not for the curiosity in his amber eyes and his wide grin.
It was the last Goddess, however, sitting between Koranu and the warrior who interested Harry the most. Her hair long and wavy hair was of a deep Maroon, and her eyes a bright pink. A small smile played about her lips as she lounged in her canopied chair, her flimsy pink gown revealing much more than it covered.
"Put your eyes away, Harry," Anna muttered, still gawking at the warrior. "Hermione'll have a fit."
"Hermione's not here," Harry said absently, noticing that Ron was staring at her as well. He decided then that Draco must definitly be gay not to be admiring the woman, but on inspection he realised that Draco was looking at the woman in green in a way that almost bordered on worship.
"I know what you are thinking, boy," Harry heard a stern voice ring out. He looked and found the woman in white addressing Draco. "And such thoughts are sinful."
"I was just thinking that the way her hair floats around is cool," he defended himself.
"Lying is also a sin," she said severely.
"Look out, it's the thought police," Anna joked.
"And you," the woman directed her gaze at her. "Your race is a plague upon the earth, killing at will, destroying scared life. You should be eradicated."
"Ouch," Anna muttered as the pink lady laughed.
"Aki, you're just pissed 'cos your first assignment turned out wrong." She looked at Ron in a confidential manner and his knees almost buckled. "The Big Guy up there told her to make some Elves and she churned out Vampires instead. Shouldn't of given them fangs, sister dear."
"You're a disgrace to us, Kira," Aki said coldly. "Address me not."
Could we please get on? the woman in green asked softly, yet without moving her lips. We're setting a terrible example.
"Exactly," Koranu agreed. "Let's just make the introductions, then get down to business. Shall I do the honours?"
"It's so much more fun when you do, Kor," Kira smiled sweetly. "Ray just messes things up."
The warrior laughed as Koranu drew himself up and gestured to the woman in green. "This devastatingly beautiful woman, my noble friends, is Sharnii, Goddess of Nature. Our Vampires have already become aquainted with my dear, dear sister Aki, Goddess of Life and all things dull in the world..."
"Vampires?" Ron whispered to Harry. "Malfoy?"
"Get on with it, Koranu," Aki said flatly.
"Yes, sister dearest," Koranu said obligingly. "The long haired brute to her left is my brother, H'raykan, God of Power, War, and Pointy Things That Make You Go Squish..." H'raykan grinned as Koranu continued. "And this cheeky little girl here is Kira, Goddess of Love and Lust..."
"And sin," Aki interrupted.
"And has, again, gotten herself pregnant."
"Wow," Anna whistled. "For somebody who's pregnant, you look really good."
"It's the perks of being divine," the Goddess grinned. "You can hide things."
"Beats being a Vampire, I suppose," she shrugged, then turned to Aki with a cheeky grin. "But I suppose I should thank you for that, O Glorious Creator."
"Insolence," the rigid Goddess muttered.
"I get quirky when I'm thirsty," she shrugged.
Thirsty? Sharnii's gentle voice asked. You should have said so. With a soft greenish blur, an unconcious man suddenly appeared in the center of the circle, making them jump.
"Ugh, Sharns, he's bleeding all over the rug," Kira complained.
"Murder!" Aki gasped. "Sharnii, you would descend so low?"
"He'll be dead in a minute anyway," Koranu broke in, presumably using his knowledge on all things dead. "Car crash in New Zealand. Nasty roads, those. Swerved to avoid a sheep and rammed into a tree."
"I know what happened to him," Aki said coldly. "But he was to die naturally and this is murder."
No it isn't. It's saving Anna from having to kill somebody who would normally have lived until old age. This way is much more efficient.
Anna had, of course, completely ignored the conversation and tucked in as soon as the man had appeared. Harry and the others had averted their eyes, except for Draco, who Harry noticed staring at her with a revulsion that was mingled with a kind of curiousity.
"I don't mean to be rude," he heard Lupin saying. "But you called us here to listen to something."
"Yes," Koranu said as the bickering Gods fell silent. "We did."
"Do I really have to meditate all over again?" Kira asked in a baby voice.
"Yes," the death God said firmly. "You do."
"Yeah, I'd really like to go home sometime soon," Draco said, tearing his eyes away from Anna as she finished her meal. "No offence or anything, but I'm having trouble restraining myself from murdering every single human, Vampire, God and Werewolf in this room. And one of the Goddesses."
"Kinda makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, doesn't it?" Kira asked Sharnii from across the room. Sharnii merely smiled.
"Well," the pink Goddess sighed. "For the sake of the cute little blonde." She crossed her legs and closed her eyes, inhaling deeply. The light of the room deepened, and she faintly began to glow. Harry felt Anna rise behind him and Ron move closer on his left, but he couldn't move, couldn't tear his eyes away.
Finally, the Goddess began to speak.
From the land of the bards a light shall spring
And find his ally in the land of the King.
A baby born with love and care
Will have a power that's strong and rare
To drive back a lord of dark intent,
But will go to a family he ne'er was meant.
Four times he will face his darkest foe,
Yet the fifth event will end in woe
If he is not with the chosen three,
The Vampire, the Ally and lastly he
Of loyalty both strong and true, who
Is destined to make a choice that he will rue.
The event will pass in his seventeenth year
And may well be the last in his career
But know that whatever he does, for wrong or right,
Someone will lose their life within the fight.
The light suddenly came back as Kira opened her eyes. Everyone was silent for a minute until Ron broke the silence.
"What use is all that?"
"Pardon?" Koranu asked, slightly stunned.
"We already knew all of that," he rolled his eyes. "Harry gets born, fends off You-Know-Who, grows up and then kills him."
Draco and Anna exchanged a look as Harry sighed.
"Thankyou for your help," Lupin said politely to the assembled Gods. "It was appreciated."
"It was?"
Sharnii smiled at Lupin. The children are free to go. I believe that Anna or Harry will explain the rest to Ron?
Draco cracked a smile as Anna nodded. "I'll try."
Remus, if you could but stay a moment longer. We have a prophecy of a somewhat different nature that concerns you.
Lupin nodded. "Children, wait downstairs. I'll be down in a moment."
"Aye aye, Cap'n," Anna saluted him before linking arms with Ron and tugging him downstairs. Harry gave an absent wave to the Gods as he turned to follow, but as he did, he noticed Draco bowing deeply to Sharnii. She smiled at him and they stared at each other for a moment. He gave a smile so small that Harry thought that he may have imagined it, bowed again and turned. "What are you gawking at, Potter?" he asked as he walked past. Harry shook his head and followed.
***
"...So, what you're saying is that I'm the Ally?" Ron was asking Anna.
"No," she sighed. The two of them were seated at the table that had been occupied by the couples, and the barmaid seemed to have calmed down. "You are the loyal guy. You'll be the one that makes a really stupid choice that you regret..."
"Is that what that meant?" he frowned. "Why me?"
"'Cos you're stupid, Weasley," Draco said as he sat beside Anna.
"Yeah, well I didn't hear you mentioned in that stupid prophecy thing," Ron muttered as Harry plonked himself beside him.
"He was the Ally, you idiot," Anna sighed again. "Didn't you listen at all? Us three will be with Harry when he has to face Voldemort for the very last time - next year. You understand that, don't you?"
"Well why Malfoy?"
"Because," Draco shrugged. "I know more about the Dark Arts than all of you and that bushy-haired Mudblood combined."
Harry tensed up and shot him an evil look as he continued.
"But, the thing is, it never actually said that I'd be there with you. Most likely I'll be with Voldemort, happily throwing pointy things at you all."
"Then why did she call you the Ally?" Anna asked pointedly.
"She didn't say who's ally."
"She did so. At the start. 'He will find his ally in the land of the King.'That's England. You're English."
Draco was stumped for a moment. "Yeah, well. Whatever."
"Yeah, s'right," she said triumphantly as Lupin reappeared at the top of the stairs.
"Let's go home," he said, looking down at them, and for the first time of the journey, the kids were all in agreement.
***