With a dark wizard's rise to power, the International Confederation has assigned two aurors from the British Ministry to apprehend Gellert Grindelwald. The responsibility to protect the wizarding world and to stop an outbreak of war lay on their sho...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
Dread filled her body as she stood outside Flint's cell. Zoning out to whatever conversation Theseus and Mathéo were having, Ariadne couldn't help but let her mind wander. It was bound to happen, a distant memory of her past entering her present. A part of her felt weak, like she was reliving the suffering from her childhood. If seeing his face would break down so many walls, what else could happen if she spoke with him? Still it was inevitable.
Her specialty was interrogations. That's why she was able to hold her position in the auror office for so long. Her talent in legilimency made her useful. That's what she had to be right now: useful. She needed to extract information out of Flint so that they could find Grindelwald. That was her mission. That was her purpose. The slow creak of the cell door brought her out of her trance and she finally came back to reality.
Flint's head perked up at the noise, watching her with cold eyes as she took two steps forward. Light shone from a small bulb. The frigid dark room was identical to the one Eloise had been held in. Now that he stared at her, she could see the familiarity in his blue eyes. It took everything in her to not flinch as the door closed, locking the both of them inside.
They stared at each other as she sat in front of him. His hair was uneven, blonde roots pointing in places it shouldn't. His eyes carried more weight, a toll of the years that had passed. As she studied his body language, his reaction, she realised how much time had truly passed. They were now strangers to each other. She couldn't read his features anymore and he wouldn't know her fears. Still, she noticed the half-healed bruise on his jawline.
"Do you want to know its story?" She couldn't tell if he was mocking her or if he was genuinely being civil. His innocent tone carried a weight of nostalgia, a memory that they both shared. No one else knew of its importance and no one else knew the weight of his words.
"No. I know its story." Coming back from the holidays, they would share the unfairness of their bruises. The pain they had both endured that they thought they did not deserve. He was the only one that suffered the same hurt at the place labelled home.
"Do tell."
"How's your mum?"
He whistled, "Low blow."
"Why were you there yesterday morning?" She asked, words firmly in place. As he raised an eyebrow, the question that was itching in her brain fell out. "Why are you following him?"
"Grindelwald will win the war he will inevitably start," he reasoned, too calm for Ariadne's liking. "Those who follow him will be rewarded with glory."
"Is that what he's told you?"
"And what do you know of honour?" Flint retorted, his voice rising with each word. It was a reaction that made Ariadne remember his quick temper. The atmosphere was no longer restful but filled with hostility as they waited for the first person to break. "You were given everything. You never had anyone look at you like you were worthless."
"Did you forget everything I shared with you?"
"Your family name was well respected," he shot without missing a beat. She let his words sink in. Nott was a powerful name in the wizarding community. Almost everyone in London knew her last name and knew of the power she carried because of her birthright. Silas and Cressida Nott influenced society. They attended social events with grace and elegance that made others jealous. They were friends with the Blacks and powerful members of their community. That was the life that Ariadne had lived until she left.
Ariadne shook her head. "You're on a side that kills innocent lives. You are pulling wizards and witches away from unity and towards a society that will be fuelled by blood prejudice."
"Shall we take a look at the Ministry?" Flint wondered aloud. "Enforcing strict regulations and punishments will never achieve justice."
"Is that what you're looking for? Justice?"
"Grindelwald can accomplish what the Ministry cannot," Flint countered, his words sharp as the daggers he shot at Ariadne. "It's a shame you can't see that. You always had skills unmatched." The drawl in his tone wandered off, suggesting that there was more to say than what he revealed. She ignored the compliment he had struggled to let out.
"Spit it out," she demanded, arms crossing in front of her chest.
"He wants to meet you."
Ariadne swallowed, hiding her emotions behind a façade that protected her from Flint. "You're lying."
"Believe me my darling, I am not."
She stared at him, trying to find a reason to think otherwise but there was nothing. His stare pierced into her soul, trying to find the depths of it so that he could report back the fears he saw. "You're not leaving this cell," Ariadne affirmed, gripping her bicep harder, a means of grounding herself.
"Am I not?" He mocked
"No."
"What are you charging me with then?" he ridiculed, "You have no evidence."
"Trespassing."
"Trespassing?" He laughed and she finally had enough. Without another word, she got up and the guard from outside unlocked the door. Sparing him a glare, she conveyed every word she left unsaid, how she saw him as nothing but dirt under her boot. Having been on the receiving end of her scowls many times, he tilted his head to the side, lips turned into a smirk.
"Did you get anything?" Mathéo asked as another auror locked Flint's cell door. It jarred shut, reminding Ariadne of the barrier that stood between her and Flint.
"No, his mind is protected," she said shortly.
"Occlumency?"
"I'm afraid so."
[973 words]
a/n
introducing Michael Fjordbak as Edwin Flint!
he's going to play a very important role in Ariadne's flashbacks later on. please don't forget to vote and comment, I wanna hear your thoughts.
