Part 9: A lesson in runes
The lads enjoyed slacking off at the western stairs of the seventh floor after Ancient Runes class the following day. They had Transfiguration next, and the classroom was just a few ominous corridors away.
"I am in so much pain from all the splits" James complained, stretching his legs out before him. "Areas you can't imagine, said I counterproductively"
"Not such a cake ride after all?" said Sirius.
"I never thought it would be"
"Can you bring me the crayon please? Can you bring me the crayon please?"
It appeared as though Remus had lost his accent the moment it had outlived its use and it was now back to circle just about every area of the world except for Wales.
"The rain in Spain stays mainly in the-"
"Hello ladies" said James.
Remus dropped his accent rehearsals in a flash.
"How did that boat thing go?" Cas asked, squeezing herself between James and Sirius although there was no room.
"Fine" Sirius got out a drawing pad and drew a bit. "Now, how did you draw that wind rune? A circle, two lines juxtaposed like so… Wasn't there something else?"
The clock on the wall replied first, but not with anything informative.
"There's the squiggle between the lines" Lily thus replied, when nobody else beat her to it.
"A squiggle, you say… Like that?" Sirius drew a squiggle and held up the drawing pad.
"Not quite-"
"Why don't I draw it for you?" Remus tried to take the drawing pad from Sirius, but unsuccessfully.
"You got the squiggle wrong too, remember?"
"At first! Give it!"
"No, I want Evans to show me!"
"I don't get it" said Mac, looking up from her homework. "Drawing runes is really difficult. Especially on a pebble with a fine needle. I just keep pricking my finger"
"It's all about angle" said Lily.
"But the symbols, 'though. It's not enough to memorize them, because you have to alter them depending on the grammar"
"Yeah, it's super hard! Here, will you draw it please?" Sirius passed the drawing pad to Lily.
"Ok, but I will need a crayon"
As if luck would have it, Sirius was fiddling with a rune crayon. A crayon and a tape recorder.
"Can you bring me the crayon?" Lily asked.
But Sirius seemed to find his shoes a lot more interesting.
"Please?"
"Oh, sure!"
And the crayon was brought. And the rune was drawn.
"When you draw rune symbol must always be a verb. So when you want wind, you have to draw the symbol for the Runic word for 'to make wind', and not just the word for 'wind'. The appendix has a very extensive list of prefixes and suffixes. It's all there" said Lily and returned the drawing pad along with the crayon.
"Why, thank you for the drawing and the lesson"
"You're welcome"
Transfiguration turned out to be as boring as predicted. The class was completely theoretical and involved no turning funny things into other funny things. Today they were all instructed to read the chapter about liquid transfiguration.
"Of course you could have done it before class" said McGonagall. "Except when I tell you to read something for class, half of you don't bother!"
Remus hand shot in the air.
"I've read the whole book twice can I do something else?"
"No. Reading it again shouldn't take you very long"
Seeing as they didn't need to stay in the classroom to read, some students elected to find more private locations, almost rendering the classroom completely deserted when McGonagall thought she ought as well go to her office and correct some exams. And have some wine with that. Put on some Joni Mitchell, even.
Remus closed the book the instant she had left.
"Can you bring me the crayon please-"
Sirius sent the tape recorder across the desk.
"My accent was actually perfect last night" Remus shoved the tape recorder away from him.
"Not everybody can recognize a terrible accent when they hear one"
James took the tape recorder and played it. Can you bring me the crayon please?
"I'm making a remix" he said.
"Oh! Oh!" Sirius' hand shot in the air. "Make it funky! Disco violins and everything! Sample some Boney M!"
"She's crazy like a fool" James sang, and then played the tape. Can you bring me the crayon please?
Sirius took the tape.
"Ba de ya! "
Can you bring me the crayon please?
"Ba de ya!"
"What's in store next for the happy couple, anyway?" James asked.
"It's the strangest thing" said Sirius. "They are completely obsessed with Siobhan"
"Wasn't that what you were going for?"
"I wasn't going for anything more than marrying a pureblood for money. What do I care what they actually think of her? But as it turns out, they think she is pretty awesome"
"So, it's just an added bonus then?"
"My parents don't like people. They don't like each other, they don't like their kids, and they don't even like their friends. They hate everybody! Except for Siobhan and her liquid crystal blood"
"Is that an actual thing, though? I mean, I've heard stories"
Sirius shrugged. "I have no idea. But they think Siobhan has it, and I guess that's why they worship the ground she walks on. They want to meet her parents, too. Well, not really, but they say they do because it's the custom thing to say or something. They want to be polite. Polite! Can you believe it?"
"I told them" said Remus. "that Siobhans' parents object to the engagement because they think his side is too French and they think that the French are the scum of the earth and ought to be scalded to death in a giant human bouillabaisse. But I just got invited to a garden party"
"For the record, we're not that French" Sirius muttered.
"Siobhan thinks so"
"Yeah, well, tell Siobhan that we haven't been French for over a hundred years and it's only on my Fathers' side, so…"
"The Gwynfryns have never been French. They're like natives or something. And if you're so un-French, how come you have a French motto? Siobhan wonders"
"It's fancy- sounding. And old. And what about the Gwynfryn motto: Sanguis purior ulla est tua? How is Latin any less foreign?"
"That wasn't Siobhans' fault. I just don't know any Celtic"
"Mon aeroglisseur est plein du le anguilles" said James randomly.
"Your hovercraft is full of the eels?" Sirius asked.
"Wow, you really are French!"
"I'm not, I've just been tutored in it"
James got up, grabbing the tape.
"I think I'll go and faire un le boeuf"
"Now you're just doing it in purpose"
"Doing what, Frenchy?"
"I'm not French! Fuck you both!" Sirius stormed out of the classroom angrily.
