Prophecy [Xiulan]

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March 1st, 2026

There were whispers that floated freely in conversations concerning the sudden appearance of the island of Yrisle. Hushed voices and confidential meetings about a warning having happened months prior to the island creeping out from its thick magic-bound fog. The decimation of the barrier surrounding Hy-Brasil scrapped any attempt at digging deeper into what any of this meant, as a sudden outburst of a mystical seer in the middle of the Ministry courtyard didn’t necessarily mean anything to the druidic people at the time. Even if it had been witnessed by representatives of the island, the cataclysmic event in October that sent animals fleeing and an onslaught of Ministry enforcers into her home had Fae completely engrossed with what was happening at the present. The same could be said when Yrisle did show up in January – seeing the fabled island for herself and stepping foot on it confirmed that this was not a place to be trifled with. The Council and the druid elders had spent time debating what the next course of action should be, and whether it was related to their problem with the barrier. Fae disagreed that the former was caused by the latter, though the fact that two unprecedented events occurred so closely together as they did definitely made it seem like fate was fighting against them.

With everything that had happened - from the appearance of Yrisle to Hogwarts requesting to continue with their folly of a field trip for their students - and loads of bureaucratic meetings and paperwork to be dealt with because the Ministry was absolutely overstepping onto the island, Fae eventually heard of the supposed prophecy that had happened seven months prior. It came as an off-handed comment at first from one of the druids that worked for the Ministry as an intermediary, the druid seemingly thinking that the High Druid had long since been privy to this information. Once she was given the full story, it felt like pieces of a puzzle fell into place effortlessly. The whispers that she could never fully catch had become full and made sense. The coming of Yrisle had been heralded and the Ministry completely ignored it. And if they didn’t, they used it as an excuse to push onto Hy-Brasil with all their might, when the island was at its most vulnerable.

This irked Fae enough that she decided to take matters into her own hands and reach out to the Seer herself, with assistance of her Ministry connections of course. Traveling to the mainland was typically a huge deal when concerning the Council, but her recent expedition to Yrisle on her own without an attaché of guardians seemed to have befuddled the elders enough to allow her to travel to London on her own as well. Shirking any security detail would have been hard there, but she had her points of contact and the Ministry if anything went poorly. While her general distrust of the overall government was steadily growing, the aurors and international law enforcement members she had met with over the last few months truly meant the best. Anastasia Karkaroff, one of the Interpol agents that had traveled with her to Yrisle, was one of those people, and Fae had reached out prior to her journey to confirm that the Seer she was looking for was indeed the real deal.

Getting to London was easy enough for her, though she remembered when she arrived that she was required to dress like the mainlander muggles did. Which meant wearing pants. Hy-Brasil’s climate was so perfectly curated and forecasted that she forgot at times that there were clothes other than the fey-like dresses she had worn her entire life. Even when traveling to the Ministry she wasn’t required to change out of her High Druid garb. Meeting with a private citizen in muggle territory was though, and her druid contact helped her get situated before leading her to the Seer’s address. Fae had sent a letter ahead indicated that she would like to speak to the woman, though hadn’t given any indication on who she was aside from the fact that she was interested in the incident that occurred on the fourth of August the previous year at the Ministry of Magic. She gently knocked on the door and waited patiently in her muggle disguise.

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

Hearing from a stranger who wanted to know more about the fact that she had collapsed into a trance at the Ministry months before was unexpected, but there wasn't much about the past couple of months that had been particularly "normal" for Xiulan. With so many onlookers in the Atrium at the time, she realized that she probably should have expected it. Few people encountered anyone with a true Inner Eye in their lifetimes, though Xiulan didn't really feel that the novelty of it gave the world a free pass to treat her as a spectacle. In the absence of any sort of Ministry letterhead, Xiulan was skeptical about so much as responding to the letter that had been sent to her. What more was there to say, other than that the prophecy was kept at the Ministry and that it was in the hands of the Department of Mysteries now?

In order to avoid seeming unnecessarily rude, though, Xiulan invited the stranger to her flat, taking additional pains to ensure that she looked presentable and that nothing of any real value to her was out in the open in case the letter was some sort of a setup. As long as she didn't seem paranoid about it, Xiulan tried to tell herself, it would be fine. Besides, living in a Muggle building was a slight deterrent for anyone who wished to cause her any harm. She didn't exactly interact with her neighbors, but it helped to ensure her safety when anything too extraordinary would require the intervention of Obliviators, at a minimum.

She was perhaps overly prepared for the knock at her door, her outfit chosen specifically to keep her wand hidden within close reach on the inside of her blazer. While her wandless magic wasn't poor, she didn't want to be without it. When she walked to the door and answered it, though, she wasn't sure that the person who had come was the stranger she was expecting. She looked like every Muggle off the street, Xiulan thought, and wondered if perhaps the younger woman simply had approached the wrong door. "I'm sorry," Xiulan paused, looking her over, "but are you… Fae?"

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[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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In a different life where she wasn’t High Druid of Hy-Brasil, responsible for the entirety of her people and home, and tasked as holder of Merlin’s staff, she figured this would maybe seem more normal than it actually was. Whatever deity in the Otherworld had it out for her or was currently testing her, they really wanted to stack the odds against her as much as possible. Traveling like this outside of official business was so out of the ordinary that it worried her about her own capabilities and faith, as it was clear that things weren’t nearly as black and white as they had been made out to be when she was growing up. Her own naivety, or even blindness to it all if she really wanted to be critical of herself, had been ripped away in an instant over the last few months. This was the ugly truth of her relationship with the Ministry and the natural world, and someone somewhere had really angered the old gods on one of their ends and she felt responsible for fixing it.

The door opened and a woman that Fae assumed must be Julia, the person she had contacted and the one who had the vision, stood on the other side asking if she was indeed Fae. “I am,” she responded, standing up a little straighter than she had been and pulling the staff closer to her body. It had been leaning up against the wall, out of sight in the off-chance she had knocked on the wrong door. Trying to explain the gnarled shape of Merlin’s staff to a muggle would be difficult, as it didn’t exactly have the appearance of a normal walking stick. Probably because it was almost taller than she was. “Am I correct to assume that you are Julia?” Fae said back, though was positive that she was right unless the Seer had an assistant.

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

The woman whom Xiulan presumed was Fae took hold of a staff of some sort, bringing it into view then. It was clearly a magical object—either one with some deal of power or crafted to look like it—in spite of the rest of her appearance, and the confirmation that she was Fae came as less of a surprise at that point. Likewise, Fae asked if she was Julia.

"Yes, I'm Julia Zhou," Xiulan confirmed, wondering what in the world Fae was doing with such a massive staff when there was such a significant chance of running into Muggles. It wasn't something that would be easy to explain, she felt, but at least that wasn't her problem. If that came as a breach of magical secrecy, it wasn't on her, after all. Still, hoping to minimize any damage, Xiulan stepped back from the door, holding it open. "Please," she spoke to Fae, "come in." Getting the staff out of sight, too, was probably ideal. For what relatively little she had seen of the magical side of Britain, Xiulan had never once come across anything like it, but she didn't think that that was particularly commonplace regardless.

Out of habit, Xiulan checked to ensure that everything unrelated to her work as a fortune-teller was out of sight—and therefore out of mind once the door had closed after Fae. Eyes still focused on the giant staff, she gestured in the direction of the table in the center of the room and the chairs on either side of it. "If you'd like to sit…" she offered, not really knowing where to begin their conversation. She and Fae had already communicated via letter, but Xiulan also didn't want to put herself in the position of baring all in front of a stranger.

fae iona cloudbreaker

[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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Fae was welcomed inside, and followed her host’s instructions. The flat itself wasn’t nearly as tight feeling as some of the mainlander abodes that she had ventured into every so often during her visits. She still disliked the cramped way that they lived all on top of each other like this. The only way she could equate it to anything in her life on Hy-Brasil was if a whole family had houses built into the side of a large tree, one on top of the next. In that fashion, she was able to picture it. Compared to her own home though, everything seemed to be tastefully arranged. All of her belongings (which were tangible things that she could use on a daily basis, with very few keepsakes), were stacked in locations of efficiency. Mainlanders seemed to go more for comfort, as she was continuously finding out with each trip she went on.

Taking the chair that was offered to her, she gently laid the staff across her lap. She had caught Julia’s glance at it when she had been outside. It was definitely out of the ordinary from what she had seen of the mainlander habits. Wands were easier to use and more obscure, obviously. Merlin’s staff had its own benefits though, as she had found out over the last half a year. “I did not fully explain in my letters about why I am really here,” Fae admitted to the woman. “I am interested in the vision you had last August, because it pertains to my people in a manner of utmost concern.” She realized then that she had never actually introduced herself past her name. That had been done so because of the Council’s reluctance to have her outright give away who she was and why she was interested.

“Are you familiar with the island of Hy-Brasil, home to the druids?” she asked Julia. “I am their High Druid, Fae Cloudbreaker. This island your vision foretold of, the one that appeared three months ago, has been passed down through our people as a tale for centuries. I need to know everything you saw in your vision, if that is not too much to ask of you.” Her grip tightened on the staff as she spoke. She wanted to be able to compare her own experience on Yrisle to that of this Seer. If what had been foretold was simply the coming of the island, then the world had been stripped of this warning because no one had approached Julia in time. To be completely honest, she wasn’t sure there was even a way to stop the island. The coincidence of Hy-Brasil’s barrier and the arrival of Yrisle wasn’t lost on her though…

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

Fae did seat herself at the table, though Xiulan couldn't help noticing that she kept the staff that she was carrying horizontally across her lap, rather than leaving it to lean up against something. Xiulan, who ensured that the door was locked again before she sat down opposite Fae, supposed that she must have wanted it within close reach. It was also remarkable to her how composed Fae seemed to be, though it wasn't something that Xiulan felt comfortable commenting on aloud. There was something different about Fae that, in spite of her appearance, reminded Xiulan of many of her usual clients. At the same time, unlike many of them, Fae didn't look to be putting on airs.

"I did not fully explain in my letters about why I am really here," Fae said. There was something about the manner in which she spoke that struck Xiulan as being slightly unnatural. For someone who seemed to be relatively young, her manner was formal. That wasn't to say that a young person couldn't be poised, but Xiulan's intrigue grew. "I am interested in the vision you had last August," Fae elaborated, "because it pertains to my people in a manner of utmost concern."

Her people? Xiulan didn't think that Fae sounded exceptionally foreign, though maybe her own foreignness had something to do with that perception. She didn't fully understand what Fae meant by what she had said at first, until her mind was pulled back to the young Druid woman who had approached her back in August at the Ministry of Magic after she had collapsed in the Atrium. Fae must have been one of them, too, she considered.

Fae then asked her about her familiarity with Hy-Brasil, the home of the Druids. Xiulan prepared to shake her head. She knew little about the place beyond its existence and hardly considered herself well-versed in anything to do with Druids or their culture. As it turned out, though, she didn't need to feign any expertise, as Fae's next words to her were, "I am their High Druid, Fae Cloudbreaker."

Xiulan realized that that explained Fae's peculiarities—and likely the fact that she was carrying a giant staff. Nodding slightly to acknowledge that she understood what she was being told, she listened as Fae continued to speak to her.

"This island your vision foretold of, the one that appeared three months ago, has been passed down through our people as a tale for centuries." Xiulan knew that there was some history behind it, based on the reaction from the Druid woman at the Ministry and then again from the speculation in the Daily Prophet, but it was strange to hear it from the lips of the High Druid herself. Fae didn't say more about the tales, though she appeared to become much more tense. "I need to know everything you saw in your vision," she stated, "if that is not too much to ask of you."

Once again at a loss for where to begin, Xiulan inhaled and exhaled softly. "Your Highness…" she started, faltering a little bit because she didn't know the proper way in which to address the High Druid and didn't want to offend her. "My sincerest apologies, but I don't know if my prophecy will be of any help." It was being kept in the Department of Mysteries, as was required. She appreciated that Fae had come all the way from Hy-Brasil to London to meet with her and felt terrible at the thought of sending her back empty-handed, but what was there for her to say?

"My recollection of my prophecies isn't always clear. When I enter a trance," she informed Fae, "my reaction is… extreme." She couldn't promise that focusing on the prophecy wouldn't trigger something within her Inner Eye and needed Fae to be aware of that, particularly considering that Fae already appeared to be less than relaxed.

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[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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Mainlanders were peculiar. Those within the Ministry that she normally dealt with were well acquainted with her position and the fact that she didn’t require formalities at all. On Hy-Brasil she was simply another druid. She just so happened to have been chosen to lead the Council as well. Those that she typically didn’t interact, the non-government workers or the regular mainlanders all reacted differently to her. Julia calling her ‘Your Highness’ felt antiquated and extremely formal. If she had wanted to give off that image, she probably could have worn her formal garb and waltzed in with accompanying guards. That would have given off a proper regal image that the mainlanders were used to. It wasn’t the woman’s fault though, she wasn’t aware of how druids addressed the High Druid or members of the Council. “Fae is fine. I find that formalities like that lead to unwelcome power dynamics, of which I am not a fan of. Your Minister, on the other hand, seems to like them.” Or deathly silent as of late. That was of no matter to her though; she had Hy-Brasil to protect and this trip of hers was part of that. The Ministry could thank her after she debunked the mystery of Yrisle.

Julia went on to explain that she didn’t know how helpful her prophecy would be, as she wasn’t usually able to remember them in the same manner that they had appeared. That made things slightly more difficult. “If it is unsafe to do so, then I would prefer that you do not put yourself through it just for my sake…” she trailed off. If the prophecy was simply a warning of the island, then there wasn’t much more she could gleam from that. Fae was more interested in if there were subtle details about locations on the island that could give her an idea of how to make it disappear again. There was nothing within the druidic texts or stories that really gave a hint on what they were to do if Yrisle appeared again.

“Was it saved with a memory extraction spell?” Fae inquired, knowing that those were occasionally used by Council members or druids that had moments of clarity regarding their purposes for the island. She had never personally used it outside of learning it, preferring to keep everything nice and tidy within her head as it was.

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

Xiulan had never had a problem with maintaining a certain level of formality in her interactions with others, so it was surprising to her that the High Druid insisted on remaining on a first-name basis. She would have expected things to be slightly different, but she knew that she was also basing her assumptions on what would have happened with the Ministry or other officials. It made it easier on her, though. She could do her work without having to check that she wasn't following any particular standard of behavior other than how she behaved ordinarily. (Still, how she behaved ordinarily was more formal than most.)

Hearing the High Druid—or Fae, rather—refer to Viktor Krum as "her" Minister was strange for Xiulan to hear. She didn't care to cross the British Ministry and had nothing against the government (other than finding Krum to be slightly ineffectual), but she wasn't British, at the end of the day. To be frank, she didn't know if Fae would have called herself "British", necessarily, but that was beside the point of her being there, and Xiulan simply nodded as Fae spoke. They weren't there to discuss politics, after all.

Even as she explained that her Inner Eye, despite its strength, had its limitations, Fae sounded more understanding than Xiulan anticipated. "If it is unsafe to do so," she told her, "then I would prefer that you do not put yourself through it just for my sake…"

Just as Xiulan was prepared to explain that she appreciated Fae's concern, Fae asked her a question. "Was it saved with a memory extraction spell?"

Slowly, Xiulan shook her head. "No," she answered simply. It hadn't been extracted from her memory… yet. "But…" She paused then, pulling her wand from inside her blazer and summoning a small, nondescript stone basin to the table. It came to rest in the space between her and Fae, and Xiulan paused again before moving her wand to her temple. She pulled her wand away slowly, the silvery strand of a memory coming along with it. Fluidly, Xiulan then deposited the memory into the Pensieve.

"I can't guarantee that this will be as clear and complete as you hope, Fae," Xiulan cautioned her. She was having to draw upon her memory of what had happened in the Atrium at the Ministry, in large part, and had no way of knowing without looking through the memory if it would contain the prophecy itself as she had experienced it or only the wording of it. "I've… never used this for my Inner Eye before," she admitted, "but I have collected as much as I can of what happened in the Atrium that day."

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[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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While Fae did have other business to attend to in London due to scheduling her trip around this meeting, it was starting to seem like she was hitting a bit of a wall. As with many avenues of research she had pursued over the last two months when it came to Yrisle, there wasn’t much information out there aside from the tales told by druids. Spooky stories and fables to keep children in line. Even her own historians had very little, and her trip there had only proved that the island contained such a large abundance of magic that not even her metamorphmagus powers could handle it correctly. She feared going back a second time, unsure of what an island that breathed magic currents of that scale would do if it sensed her a second time. Fae felt like she threatened it by stepping foot on its shores. Maybe that was because of where she came from or that she was chosen as the High Druid by the old gods, which directly conflicted with the existence and banishment of Yrisle. Or maybe it was having possession of the staff. She doubted Merlin ever encountered the island personally, but as a warlock he held power far greater than any modern witch or wizard. There were so many possibilities, and she had been hoping this prophecy would at least scratch a few of them off her list.

Sitting silently in her chair and thinking about what her next step would be, Julia summoned a large stone object towards the table. Hy-Brasil had a Pensieve of sorts, though it differed greatly in shape and form, and was barely brought out for use since they didn’t tend to dive into matters of memory all too often. She watched her host point her wand at her temple and start to extract the memory, dropping it into the bowl when it was fully removed from her head. “I understand. Do we both enter, or would you rather I watch alone?” she asked as she stood up from her chair and leaned over the table, staring deep into the milky cosmic water that sat in the basin. Fae was unsure if Julia wanted to direct what things may be missing by being in the memory as well, or stay out of it completely due to not knowing what could happen.

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

As inclined as she was not to enter into her memory and live it over again from an observer's perspective, Xiulan knew that it would be better if both she and Fae entered into it at the same time. Nothing had been modified intentionally, though Xiulan felt some discomfort at permitting Fae—High Druid or not—to have access to it without her guidance, in a way. There were likely to be elements of the memory that were unknown even to her, given that she had entered into a trance in the middle of it.

"I would prefer that we both enter it," Xiulan voiced, looking down at the shimmering substance of the memory that was swirling around inside the Pensieve and then back at Fae. Not sure how else to coordinate it, Xiulan suggested, "On three?"

---

The memory picked up from the point at which Xiulan arrived in the Atrium. It was apparent that she was unwell, though Xiulan, looking on, was surprised by how well she had managed to maintain her composure. Despite the summer day, countless Ministry employees moved through the Atrium as she walked, her legs threatening to give out with every step she took in her stiletto heels.

Xiulan had no recollection of attempting to catch herself as she fell to the floor but now could see plainly that she had. That hadn't changed a thing, though. As expected, she had fallen to the floor. Some of the others in the Atrium struggled to know what to do as her eyes rolled back into her head. It must have been a sight for them, Xiulan thought, to watch her convulse as she had.

The voice that came from her was not her own, and it startled Xiulan to hear the past version of herself speaking in such a way.

"White, willow, will you see?
Touch, turn, south you be.
Different, same, children's play
Blow at death to make it home
Giggle, groan, we stand alone
Hover, hey, please let us stay!
Stand, fall, feathers at the call
Breathe the stone, don't feel alone…"

As she spoke, a young, thin redheaded woman was clearly visible, and Xiulan knew her to be the same girl who had approached her to check that what she had spoken was, in fact, a prophecy. Sure enough, Xiulan watched the redhead pace back and forth, finding it too eerie to watch herself regaining consciousness as she emerged from her trance. It had been bad enough that she had drawn a crowd originally, though it was better that it had happened at the Ministry, she supposed, than anywhere else.

In time, the past version of herself became aware of where she was once more, the redhead girl kneeling down beside her and checking that she was a Seer because, as she had put it, it was "very important to know" if it had been a prophecy that she had made.

The importance of making a prophecy hadn't been lost on Xiulan, even at the time, though she could hardly stand to watch her own discomfort played out before her. In hindsight, she understood the young woman's insistence, but that made it no easier to relive as she had insisted that the young woman not bother her.

---

It was at that point that the memory faded. The actual vision as seen by her Inner Eye had not come with it, but Fae at least knew how the prophecy had been worded exactly. Xiulan, who hadn't had the opportunity to examine it, either, was surprised by it, too, especially because it didn't relate neatly to the fog and the statue that she had seen.

Returning to the present moment, Xiulan looked across the table at Fae. She said nothing to her at first, wanting to give the High Druid time to process what she had been able to witness only from above.

fae iona cloudbreaker

[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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Experiencing a Pensieve was not something that had been on Fae’s lists of things to do in London during this trip, but here she was. There were entire branches of magic that the druidic people didn’t utilize, dark magic being an obvious on the banned list, and other kinds that were only required for specific reasons. This was one of them. Watching Julia hover over her own bowl of soupy memories was eerie, and Fae followed suit, lowering her face into the bowl on three. The feeling of detachment from her corporeal being was instant, the memory of the trance, as Julia had experienced it, formed before her.

---

Even though she knew no harm could come to her whilst in the memory, Fae purposely stepped off to the side at first, choosing to watch the events occur from a distance and away from the ghostly recollections that weren’t of any significance to her. Watching Julia from a few months prior wobble on her feet before falling to the ground made her realize how violent something like this actually was. She had only ever known of divination practitioners to be able to grab glimpses of what was to come, not physically experience. That was apparently the difference between someone that held a true Inner Eye and one that simply operated at a lower level of magic.

As the crowd formed around the collapsed woman, Fae moved in, standing almost above her so that she could see every detail and hear everything going on. A few of the wispy evocations passed through her (or she through them?) and the unsettling chill that ran through her was enough to make her not want to do it again.

The voice that came out of Julia as her fit turned into prophetic trance made the druid step back slightly. Even with their brief conversation so far, that seemed so drastically different from the woman that it was noticeable. Fae listened intently to the words being spoken, though none of them made any sense to her as of yet. To her side, a redheaded woman stepped through the crowd, and Fae recognized her as Virvatuli, the druid girl that sometimes functioned as a liaison in the Ministry, though not so much as of late. She hadn’t been aware that the girl had been present for the event, and it left her confused as she watched Julia be helped by her and then questioned about a prophecy being made. While no druid served her, that should have been information of utmost importance to be passed on to her, and as far as Fae was aware, the two of them had first met following the disappearance of Hy-Brasil’s barrier two months later. Would that not have been the perfect time tell her? Instead it had taken nearly eight months for that news to make it back to her. She wasn’t sure if she was supposed to be concerned about that or if the girl simply didn’t know what she had walked into at the time. Then again, there was nothing directly linking the words of the prophecy to Yrisle or the druids, and mere coincidence was possible here.

---

With the memory fading, Fae pulled her face out of the Pensieve, her lungs filling with air as she took a strained breath now that she was free of the pool. Julia was already staring silently across the table at her. “I imagine there was a vision that accompanied it?” she asked, though knew something like that might actually be impossible to achieve with the Pensieve and memory diving. “The words…I hesitate to call it a poem, but it certainly sounds like something of druidic origin. Maybe. I will need to confer with some of the elders and allow them to ruminate on it, as my knowledge does lack in certain areas of our older customs still.” As she looked down at the staff, which was still laying across her lap, she realized that her knuckles were white from gripping it, probably having done so whilst inside the Pensieve. “That girl that tried to help you at the end, she is a druid. Not from Hy-Brasil, but another village. She seemed to have picked up on the unnaturalness of your words. I wish she would have spoken to me about it when we first met,” Fae explained to Julia. “I would have reached out to you much earlier, and maybe we could have solved this months ago.”

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[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

Fae gasped for air as she emerged from the Pensieve. "I imagine there was a vision that accompanied it?" she asked of the part of what had been audible to them in the memory. Xiulan nodded but waited as Fae continued. "The words…" she went on, "I hesitate to call it a poem, but it certainly sounds like something of druidic origin." Fae stated that much and then almost went back on that thought. "Maybe," she said. "I will need to confer with some of the elders and allow them to ruminate on it, as my knowledge does lack in certain areas of our older customs still."

The appearance and accent of the young woman who had approached her at the Ministry, by process of elimination, had to signal that she was a Druid, as Fae confirmed to her. Although it was surprising that there were more Druids than only those residing on Hy-Brasil, it made sense that there existed other settlements of them. Fae also mentioned that she had met with the redhead, but it was something that she hadn't mentioned to her then. "I would have reached out to you much earlier, and maybe we could have solved this months ago."

Months before it ever became an issue, they could have had answers. Xiulan, knowing that it was out of any one person's control, wasn't angry with Fae or with the redheaded Druid from the Atrium, but it frustrated her. The dangers of the island were becoming more and more apparent, due in large part to her meeting with Aurelia Flint. If the pain and suffering that Aurelia had already experienced, if her having to travel back to that awful place in search of the fog to regain her body, could have been prevented… It was all too much.

"I've already been approached by someone else," Xiulan stated. "There's a woman who traveled to that island and returned in the wrong body," she shared. If, by some miracle, Aurelia survived, she would have to forgive her for explaining her predicament to the High Druid. "Her name is Aurelia Flint," Xiulan added, "though even the Healers at St. Mungo's refused to believe her." They had treated Aurelia precisely as Xiulan had always feared she would be treated because of her Inner Eye. "Even her family believe she's dead, but I have every reason to believe her story." It was a challenge on multiple levels, and Xiulan wasn't sure how easy it would be for Aurelia if she were to come back alive and in her own body. Having been presumed dead once probably wouldn't make it simple.

"In my vision," Xiulan elaborated, "there was a fog… Like the weather…" It wasn't, in other words, some sort of "brain fog". It was a real, nearly tangible thing. "Aurelia mentioned it, too. And it doesn't seem to be a normal fog…" Xiulan then noted for Fae, but her tone had changed somewhat. Knowing what she knew, it was hard to remain as put-together, and Xiulan averted her gaze from Fae's direction for a moment. In spite of her efforts, her voice was strained. "She… made the decision to return to the island, to retrace her steps and recover her own body," she told her, breathing in. "If all went well, she's there right now. As we speak." Hopefully, Xiulan thought, she hadn't just doomed Aurelia by mentioning it. "Whatever this is, it's stranger than any magic I've touched… and far more dangerous."

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[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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There did to seem to be a visual component to the prophecy, and Fae listened intently as Julia explained it to her, albeit in a way that included a story about another woman that was semi-involved with Yrisle. As the story went, the woman supposedly became someone else, and everyone refused to believe that she was who she said she was. Even the hospital. Fae frowned at this, though it also didn’t surprise her at all. The magic of the Wyrd was on a scale that even she couldn’t comprehend, nor did she really wish to when it came down to it. Trying to piecemeal together its erratic and overpowering nature when she visited was impossible at the time, and the only way she would go back was if there was a permanent solution to getting rid of the island once and for all. The fact that a poor woman was subjected to the fate of Yrisle’s magic was horrid, though she was still alive to a degree.

Julia went on to explain that the Flint woman had mentioned a fog, which corroborated what little she remembered from her vision. Fae had yet to hear of there being something as ominous as this, but if that was involved, it was certainly worth following up on if she had a chance. “I have been,” Fae stated quietly. “It is not a place to trifle with, nor a place that those incapable of comprehending its power should ever step foot on. While this Miss Flint that you mentioned is surely foolish, I also cannot blame her for trying to get back what is rightfully hers.” Fae trailed off into thought again about the fog. It would make sense if the island, while rejecting her druidic nature, was trying to keep her away from delving further into its secrets. A place of wonder, mystery, and unnamable horrors like Yrisle was surely home to many secrets. “While I did not see this fog, I believe there are others, like this woman, that could help explain it better. Should she return, of course. In the meantime, I would like to extend you an offer to visit Hy-Brasil, so that you may discuss all of this with the elders.”

xiulan zhou ● 373 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0

[xiulan zhou]

March 1, 2026

In response, Fae told her quietly that she, too, had been to the island. "It is not a place to trifle with," she warned, "nor a place that those incapable of comprehending its power should ever step foot on." Though Xiulan wasn't sure that she agreed that Aurelia Flint was foolish, necessarily, going to a place no one had thoroughly explored wasn't at the top of her own to-do list.

"While I did not see this fog, I believe there are others, like this woman, that could help explain it better," Fae added. "Should she return, of course." That was the key, wasn't it? If Aurelia made it back, especially in her own body, that would help to corroborate the dangers that they knew existed. If she went back and didn't return as herself physically, though, Aurelia was sure to face even more skepticism.

"In the meantime, I would like to extend you an offer to visit Hy-Brasil," Fae went on, "so that you may discuss all of this with the elders."

Xiulan didn't know how to explain to the High Druid that, as much as she appreciated her hospitality and though she had nothing against Hy-Brasil or the Druids, she couldn't bear the thought of leaving her flat most of the time. The rational part of her brain told her that she would be alright there because it was, at least, an island full of magical beings and that she would be protected there as Fae's guest. Leaving for Hy-Brasil seemed positively unthinkable, though. She could count on her fingers how many times she had been outside of her flat in recent memory, even just to go into Diagon Alley. In comparison, Hy-Brasil might as well have been on the other side of the world. She would need to find someone to watch her phoenix, Zhurong, while she was away, ensure that her flat was being watched…

She didn't dare to voice her concerns to Fae, however. It meant having to suffer in silence, but it would allow her to save face. She would find some way to make it work, Xiulan told herself, even if the thought nauseated her.

"Thank you. It would be my pleasure," Xiulan answered politely, trying to remember that this was as uncomfortable for Fae as it was for her. Even Fae's lack of elaboration about what her own experience on the island had been like told Xiulan that it hadn't been pleasant. "Is there anything else I can do for you?" she offered Fae, hoping to minimize any discomfort that the High Druid was feeling because of their topic of conversation. "Can I get you something to drink?"

fae iona cloudbreaker

[fae iona cloudbreaker]

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Fae often forgot that mainlanders were vastly different than the druids, specifically when it came to travel. There were plenty of druids that enjoyed exploring the world, and while she had hoped to do so once upon a time, the majority of the colony preferred to stay where they were. While the last few months had been busy for her, this trip included, it was far from the norm. She was confused at first why it was taking Julia so long to make her decision, as she believed mainlanders to be explorers by nature. They were very rarely restricted when it came to travel (in her eyes) and there had been very few instances where someone actively told her that they didn't want to go to Hy-Brasil. She found home to be paradise compared to the smog filled concrete cities that she was forced to inhabit whenever she came to London. The only apprehension she could truly see from someone visiting was if they were terrified of dragons, but the ones of Hy-Brasil did a good job of keeping to themselves when they had been around. The barrier disappearing changed that of course.

Ultimately, Julia agreed to go. Fae bowed her head in thanks, before mulling over the question of whether or not there was anything else Julia could help her with. There was one thing...it sat across her lap and had become such a fixture in her life over the last six months that often times she forgot that she had a mission to complete with it. "I am fine, thank you," she answered swiftly to the offer of a drink, before continuing, "Though, if it is possible to gain a reading from an object, I wonder if you could maybe assist in this problem as well." Lifting Merlin's staff up from her lap, she laid it across the table. Julia would be the first mainlander to learn of the staff's existence, and she hesitated slightly when setting it down. "This staff is of utmost importance to the barrier that once protected Hy-Brasil...if you are able to glean any knowledge from it, that would benefit us greatly." It felt strange talking about the staff in that manner, though that was what it had been. While a powerful conduit for magic, it didn't belong in her possession. It's place was the cave where it had been displaced.

xiulan zhou ● 397 ● Song by Artist

MADE BY VEL OF GS + ADOX 2.0