Albus Potter, Friends and Foes

Ch 22 The Centaurs of Switzerland

Sunday morning after church Sibylla Papadopoulos, the young prophetess, approached Albus, Cleo, Rose, Scorpius, Jesus and Ginny Wang. "The centaurs would like to meet with you six," she told them. "Dress in shorts, sturdy shoes, and meet me at door B at the lowest level of the castle in an hour. Please let your parents know you will be with me."

Sibylla looked at Frerin and Dis, the Elves that usually shadowed Albus and Cleopatra and served as bodyguards. "Frerin and Dis may stay close until I tell them to wait. When we meet with the centaurs they can be close, but not in the meeting."

An hour later the six Magi met at a small door that led from the bottom floor of the castle to the green valley. There were no homes of Magi in the valley, although there were farms. Many of the greenhouses that raised crops were in the hills above the valley, as were some orchards. Maybe twenty percent of the valley was farmed, and the rest was parkland or wild. Even the barns for cattle and farm equipment seemed to have been in caves or hollowed out areas in the mountains.

The day was warm, and no one minded wearing shorts. They walked about half an hour, and then Sibylla had them sit down on some park benches that were arranged in a circle. She started, "There are only twelve herds of centaurs. They all communicate by something that looks like a portal, an open doorway that leads from where one herd is to another herd. These portals are closely guarded, as are many areas that the centaurs inhabit. Apollo, who Albus and Cleo know, is here, having come through one of the portals.

"The centaurs are, as you know, prophets. They have been sundered from almost all Magi, although the heirs of the prophetess's of Delphi have maintained contact with them. Our contact has been awkward and intermittent. From our prayers and insight, of both the Magi and the centaurs, it seems that we need to work together again, to the benefit of both.

"As many of you know, prophecy is often stronger in the female. Centaur mares are even shier than the centaur stallions. One of the reasons is clothing. I do not know the whole history, but Magi have used the fact that they are clothed and centaurs are not to indicate that the Magi were the dominate, and that centaurs were just little more than animals, pets. The obvious solution would be for centaurs to wear clothes, but as herd animals and how they were created, that is a hard thing for them to accept.

"Albus and Cleo, and I, have successfully met with the centaurs by going naked above the waist. That is not an issue with wizards, but it can be very embarrassing for witches."

Sibylla looked at the three witches. Cleo quite obviously did not have any problem with going naked above the waist. She may not have felt she was particularly pretty, but she celebrated all her femininity, and had no problem showing it. Rose and Ginny were obviously worried.

"If you want to come with us to see the centaurs, especially the mares, it is time to strip to the waist," Sibylla told the others, as she took off her lightweight blouse and bra. Cleo did the same, and used her wand to support her substantial superstructure.

Rose took off the strappy top she was wearing, shrunk it, and put it in a pocket of her shorts, where it disappeared. She looked over to Ginny, who did the same. Rose took a deep breath, and turned her back to the others. She took off her bra, and put the bra in the same pocket, before turning shyly around. It wasn't really any different that the beach in France where ... except it was different. Especially with Scorpius there it was ... that was the problem.

Ginny looked at the three other witches, and decided it they could, she could as well. She didn't turn around; she just took off her bra and put it in a pocket.

Sibylla told the Elves, "We need to go a little further, alone. Please stay here. If Albus or Cleo call for you please come, but otherwise please stay here."