10. In Some Degree Beneficial
"They are kind—they are the most excellent creatures in the world; but, unfortunately, they are prejudiced against me. I have good dispositions; my life has been hitherto harmless and in some degree beneficial; but a fatal prejudice clouds their eyes..."
-Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
Scorpius' senses gradually cleared as he and Viola descended the stairs to the dungeon, and by the time they reached the hidden entrance to the common room he understood what had happened. It was quite truly a Mer whistle, possessing exactly the kind of power that he wanted to study, though obviously in a weaker form than the music that could lure sailors overboard or kill lethifins.
He stopped in front of the wall before opening it. "We'll meet on the Hogsmeade trip then, in December?"
"Aye."
"We can talk about how sea gold works...merpeople must get confused often, if their affections change every time someone plays their instrument."
"Oh..." Her face reddened a bit, realizing that he was aware of what had happened. "I think it works differently underwater."
"Really, how?" Scorpius queried.
"I do nay ken. My dad may understand it better. You do nay need to, um, buy dinner for me..."
Scorpius knew that Grandmother Malfoy would consider it terribly improper to rescind an invitation once it had been made (though she never would have extended such courtesies to someone like Viola Seonnay). He politely said, "I already offered. I'll invite some other friends too, and Sebastian could come."
"'Tis fair."
o.o.o.o
Scorpius, Al, and Rose were busy every day. Al had made several more attempts at transforming into his animagus form. He was getting quicker at turning into the owl, and acting calmer as the owl, but still needed Scorpius and Rose to return him back into himself. They found that when he had his wand on him, he transformed more easily but was harder to rein in, so he set it aside when they practiced. They also set the sky to bright daylight, so the nocturnal owl would be less eager to fly.
Al was also still working with his cauldron of sand, setting the skyscape over the Chamber of Discoveries to specific times and weather patterns as he stirred ingredients into it or spoke spells over it.
Scorpius sat in on Emilia's History of Magic class completely un-noticed by Professor Binns. Emilia's own note-taking was ineffective, although she was certainly trying. She would listen to a phrase Binns said and write it down, but while she wrote she would miss the next several sentences of his lecture. She would then look up and listen to the next phrase to copy, so she ended up with fragmented phrases and words that were not necessarily the main points of the lesson. And then, halfway through class, she (along with most of her classmates) would fall asleep. Scorpius had begun writing simplified notes for her, and even drawing some quick pictures to illustrate historical events. Then, in the afternoon he would talk through them with Emilia in the Slytherin common room. The other first years sometimes listened in.
Time was of such scarcity that Scorpius and Rose met in the library in the morning before Transfiguration class one day to talk about Malfoy Manor.
"It's perfectly balanced. That's clear from dimensions on the the map. Every wall has a corresponding wall that is its negative reciprocal." said Rose.
"Negative reciprocals—two values, the slopes, that multiply together to equal negative one," Scorpius recalled.
"Mm hmm. It's one of the dominant features of the architecture here, though I still need to look at the shapes of doorways, positions of windows, building materials, and of course, the runes."
"I'll find an un-suspicious way of asking my mum to send pictures. She can easily take them and develop them herself, being a photographer." Scorpius offered. "I did get her owl yesterday with a copy of the pedigree chart."
Scorpius unrolled the parchment and showed Rose a chart of his Malfoy ancestors, many names in small calligraphy, connected in one long line.
"Isn't it odd that they usually had just one boy? A long time ago they used to also have a daughter or two, but in the 1600s they stopped, and have just had one child since."
"That was about the time when witches started gaining equal inheritance rights in Britain," Rose said, examining the chart.
"Yes. In the case of Castor, after he died of a childhood illness his parents had another boy. So there was still just one heir."
"That would keep the fortune from being split. They never had to give any other inheritance..."
Scorpius nodded. "Only one reciprocal—I mean recipient."
"Reciprocal?" Rose teased, "are you a negative reciprocal or a positive one?"
"Either way, I'm the only one. No competition for the Malfoy gold, but being an only child is boring sometimes."
"I can imagine so...—Oh, we ought to start walking to Transfiguration—You really plan to break this enchantment, then?"
Scorpius gave Rose the pedigree and stood up. "Yes. The more I think about it, the more I want to get out of it."
They exited the library, and were met in the corridor by Mr. Weasley and Kreah.
"Hi Dad, hi Kreah!" said Rose.
Mr. Weasley pointedly ignored Scorpius. "I thought I might find you in the library, Rose. I didn't see you at breakfast."
"We ate early so we could come work on Arithmancy. Now we're going to Transfiguration. Are you going back to the house today?"
"Yes."
"Have you enjoyed spending the week in the castle?" Rose asked Kreah.
"Yes, they let me help with the laundry! I wanted to help cook, but I've had to go out to work at the Ministry."
Mr. Weasley said, "Rose, when you are in Hogsmeade next, I need you and Al to help with something. Will you meet us at the joke shop?"
"Yes, what do you need help with?"
Kreah began to answer, "we want to cast more defensive—"
"Shh. We will explain when we see you there." Mr. Weasley's gaze flicked to Scorpius briefly, "be careful, please, Rose."
"I'm sure I will be fine, Dad."
He hugged her and left.
"If I didn't know better, I might think your father doesn't like me." Scorpius forced a laugh.
Rose sighed. "Sorry. If I talk to him, he probably wouldn't mind having you come help us. It sounds as if they are casting more defensive shields around the joke shop and/or house. You're just as skilled at that kind of magic as Al or I."
"Thanks, but I'm planning to go to the Three Broomsticks with the Seonnays." Seeing Rose's skeptical expression and remembering the way he had lied to try to dodge Harry Potter's invitation, Scorpius added, "Really. I think they can help with my Mer gold music project." He didn't explain how he had been swayed to make the invitation to Viola.
"I see. Good."
In Transfiguration, they parted to sit by their respective house-mates, but the seat next to Scorpius remained empty.
Scorpius whispered to a couple of the other Slytherin girls, "Where's Zivian?"
"In the Hospital Wing."
"Why?"
They shrugged.
o.o.o.o
Nervous energy radiated around the Arithmancy classroom on the afternoon when the seventh years were to present their ideas for their N.E.W.T. projects. Scorpius had stayed up late several nights in a row trying to organize information on Mer instruments, the alchemy of gold, the physics of sound, and the power of emotion to repel dark creatures. At that moment, he felt sure that it was all nonsense and would never work. Fortunately, he knew how to act confident for an audience.
Professor Weasley called her N.E.W.T. students up alphabetically, which put Rose last. This was a relief for Scorpius, who wouldn't have wanted to be evaluated on his presentation after Professor Weasley knew what Rose had chosen to do.
Allegri and Dippet were both planning to craft new spells—Allegri's a complex, pointless jinx to switch the outer textures of two objects, and Dippet's a bewitchment to make a quill "read" script and copy it in perfect calligraphy. Weasley gave them each a few comments and suggestions after they presented.
"Mr. Malfoy, please." Weasley announced, and Scorpius stood.
Scorpius cleared his throat. "Few witches or wizards would not agree that dementors are the most horrifying and dangerous creatures in existence. They destroy happiness wherever they go—and sometimes permanently, through their kiss. The only known way to fight them is with the Patronus charm, which many of us find difficult. I, myself, can't do it...at least I haven't yet," he amended, seeing Albus shake his head in protest. "I believe there may be an alternative way to repel dementors, and I believe it is worth trying to develop it."
The faces around the classroom looked doubtful, but intrigued.
"Lethifolds, as you know, are related to Dementors and are also repelled with the Patronus charm. There is a marine species related to lethifolds, called lethifins. Merpeople kill them using music from golden instruments. Witches and wizards have never written any eyewitness accounts of this; according to Viola Seonnay (the daughter of the Ministry's Liaison to Atlantic Merpeople) it happens deep under the ocean. It is well documented that merpeople use music to stir emotion, even above water..."
Scorpius spoke for a time about Mer instruments and referred to the folk poem about the golden fiddle. Then he talked about the conductive, powerful properties of gold, digging in to some of the alchemy that he would need to use in his project. He discussed how he would use calculeux to design the shape of the instrument and etch it with runes to make it propel music in magic form. Then he started talking about music and forgot to be nervous, letting his enthusiasm show.
"In this book, Producing Your Protector, Shacklebolt defines a Patronus as 'a radiant force that projects emotions without draining them from the person creating it.' That is exactly, exactly, what music is as well: sound waves that radiate outward, in patterns that produce emotion in the listeners. A whole auditorium of people can soak in that emotion without draining anything from the soloist on stage. In order to work against Dementors, I hypothesize that music only needs to be put in the right magical format."
Scorpius looked around. Everyone was paying avid attention. They're buying it, he thought proudly.
"So, I need to analyze the physics of sound waves. I will write to my piano teacher to ask for muggle books on the subject.
"Another step I plan to take is visiting the Seonnays' home on the coast and, hopefully, communicating with some merpeople and seeing their instruments. I have ordered a velometer—I'll use it to measure the power emitted by instruments.
"I will eventually need a live creature to test on. Dementors and lethifolds are classified as untradeable for good reason, but lethifins are not classified...er...yet. I plan to purchase a lethifin, through the Seonnays, and store it safely at my home for experimentation. Since it will be water-bound, there isn't danger of it escaping its tank or doing any damage." Scorpius glanced at Professor Weasley, hoping she wouldn't consider this plan dodgy. She simply nodded.
"In conclusion, I think this is an important possibility, and by studying sound, alchemy, and arithmancy, I plan to design an instrument that will repel, or even kill, dementors above water the way merpeople kill lethifins underwater."
Scorpius waited for a response.
"Your idea is very, very interesting Mr. Malfoy. I think there is a good chance that it won't work at all, but as you say, it is worth investigating. If you don't create a working method by exam time, I think the evaluators will still respect a dedicated attempt. For the sake of the exam, focus on your calculeux. For the sake of actually accomplishing something, do try to visit the merpeople. Ask Professor Longbottom about gillyweed. And make sure that you give them credit—you are merely adapting their method, using muggle physics no less. Tell that to the witches and wizards who praise you—if it works, that is. Next up: Mr. Poe."
Scorpius sat down in a daze. It had actually gone well!
Professor Weasley approved of most of the other students' projects, except for Narayanan's, which was to simplify the grammatica and make a faster incantation for "petrificus totalus." Weasley said it had been attempted often in the past and all but proven impossible.
When Al stood in front, he took a wallet out of his pocket. Without a word he opened a fold in it, and then another fold and another, until he had unrolled a whole strip of leather that hung from above his head, to the floor. Al took hold of the middle of it, and pulled—out of thin air—a door.
"Do you know where this door leads?" He asked.
He paused, and then grinned. "Nowhere." He opened the door to show the chalkboard behind it.
"Nowhere at all, yet. It's relatively easy to create space within an object that is bigger than the object itself, using the Expansion Charm while stabilizing the outer container," Al said, "but I plan to test the limits of this method and calculate the biggest possible space that can be held inside a folded wallet. My estimate so far is that it can be bigger than this classroom, but perhaps not as expansive as the Great Hall."
Scorpius read between the lines—this was to be Al's new chamber of discoveries when he left Hogwarts, all packed into a wallet that could be easily carried by owl.
"I also need to lay a gravitational foundation for the space within that is independent of the motion of the wallet. The inner space will stay still, even if the door is sideways or in motion while being opened. This will require a flexible point of connection between the inside and the outside, that doesn't distort people or objects as they pass through it..."
Al drew a few diagrams on the board that probably only he, Rose, and Professor Weasley understood. The vital point was that he still had work to do to make his design functional.
"Good, Albus," Weasley said. "This sounds—"
"Oh, and I also plan to fold some extra time into it." Al said off-handedly.
"What?"
"Just a simple two-to-one ratio. If I spend two hours inside, only one hour will have passed when I come out."
Weasley looked skeptical. "How will you do that without Sand of Time?"
"I have permission from my old boss at the Department of Mysteries to brew a little of my own Sand of Time."
"I don't doubt that you could, but it takes a full year—a leap year—which you do not have before the N.E.W.T. exams."
"I have ways around that."
Weasley stared at her nephew. "I understand why Ginny worries about you. Sit down before the rest of us get dizzy. Miss Weasley, please."
At the front of the classroom, Rose looked all the way back at Scorpius and smiled before she started.
"I had a difficult time finding a project that was interesting, challenging, and meaningful. Scorpius had two projects, though, one of which he asked for help with. I am analyzing the architecture of Malfoy Manor."
The other students stirred, and turned to look at Scorpius. He nodded, and took a chance by adding, "...so that we can break the enchantment."
Professor Weasley had not turned to look at Scorpius, but had set down her quill and was looking at Rose. Scorpius couldn't see the expression on her face and he didn't want to.
Rose continued. She commented briefly on the history of the manor, mentioned some Arithmancers who had previously tried to imitate the design, and hypothesized that they must not have been able to examine all of the runes and details inside. She described the methods she planned to use to discover the full format of the enchantment.
"Once I understand the enchantment, I will design a method of breaking it, and the written design will be what I show the N.E.W.T. evaluators, before we actually change the manor. I will have to choose whether to break the enchantment subtractively—to erase key runes, or additively—to off-set it by adding to the runes or to the structure. Whatever we do will have to be either hidden, or explained to Scorpius' family as an improvement. They know very little about this enchantment, but they haven't agreed to let it be broken, so...don't discuss this with anyone outside our class please. I know all of you, and I trust that you wouldn't have any reason to spread secrets. Breaking the enchantment that brings the Malfoys wealth will not only even everyone's chances for prosperity, but will also liberate the Malfoys from living under magical manipulation."
As soon as Rose was finished speaking, Professor Weasley said, "I have several questions about your proposal, Rose, but I will talk with you after class."
Weasley took the floor in front of her class. "We have fifteen minutes before class ends, which is perfect for a bit of review. This week we have learned about the Fibonacci sequence and the golden ratio. Let's have one of you draw a spiral on the board using golden rectangles..." Her eyes settled on Scorpius and narrowed. She held a piece of chalk out, "Mr. Malfoy, will you explain it to the class?"
"Yes, Professor."
Scorpius took the chalk and hesitated, deciding how to start. He drew two small squares.
"The sides of these two squares all have a length of one," he said, and wrote, '1,1,' at the top of the board.
"Together they create a rectangle, with a ratio of two to one, long side to short side," he said, and wrote, 'ratio: 2' at the side of the board.
"Then on the long side we add a bigger square, this time with side length 2. The ratio is now three over two, or 1.5. We keep adding bigger squares, around in a spiral; the next square will have a side length of three; the next, five; the next, eight; the next, thirteen."
The list at the top of the board now read, '1,1,2,3,5,8,13.' Scorpius pointed to it and said, "this is the beginning of the Fibonacci Sequence.
"The ratio of the long side to the short side of the rectangle is now thirteen over eight, or..." Scorpius wrote the fraction on the board, tapped it with his wand, and the chalk numbers transformed to '1.625.'
"The longer we keep going, the closer the ratio will get to the golden ratio, which is 1.618...et cetera." He looked at Professor Weasley. "Should I keep going?"
"What effect does a spiral have on magical energies?" she asked him.
"It pulls them in."
"Exactly. Well done," she said firmly, "you are quite capable at Arithmancy, Mr. Malfoy. Class dismissed."
Students gathered up their things and filed out. Albus said, "I need to run downstairs. See you later."
Rose and Scorpius stood in front of Professor Weasley's desk. Her expression was controlled, but Scorpius could sense her displeasure. "As I said, Mr. Malfoy, you are a capable Arithmancy student. I see no reason why you should need help studying the architecture of your manor."
"I...I'm not very confident about doing it myself Professor. I would be grateful for Rose's help."
"Of your two projects, I would think it logical if you did the more personal one yourself."
"In that case, Professor, I should design the golden instrument. Music is more personal to me than the manor."
Weasley scowled. "Is it. So, how is Emilia doing?"
"She's doing well."
"Good. Have a good afternoon, Mr. Malfoy."
Scorpius left, but after walking a few yards down the corridor his curiosity got the better of him and he snuck back.
Pressing his ear to the wall next to the door, he could hear Professor Weasley's voice saying, "...dangerous, violent, and their dislike for Weasleys in particular runs deep. They might be getting old, and they haven't made any public attacks or threats for years, but walking right in to their own home would not be wise. Not under any circumstances."
"If they are not at home..."
"They could return unexpectedly. They could have set curses or ways to alert against intruders. It's an ancient, dark, proud pure-blood fortress. Scorpius may not know everything."
"We're both good at Defence Against the Dark Arts."
"That doesn't mean you ought to take unnecessary risks! You're of age, Rose, and I won't stop you from going where you choose, but I will come with you—or ask Harry to—"
"No. I don't need that...I'll have Scorpius, and...and oh! They have a house elf."
To Scorpius' surprise, Professor Weasley sounded almost pleased when she said, "Patto, of course, I suppose that's a little better, then."
"You know him?" Rose asked.
"He was the first elf to take advantage of the House Elf Voluntary Liberation Act. He came to the Ministry, and we compelled the Yaxley family to free him. I discouraged him from accepting work with the Malfoys, but he said that he liked their house. Aside from Dobby himself, Patto was the most independently-minded elf I've met."
"Well, he will be there. So you won't mind me going, right?"
"I will certainly still worry. Maybe you could borrow the invisibility cloak."
"I'll be fine, Mum, and I would rather not tell Uncle Harry and everyone...they'll try to stop me."
"Naturally. Your safety while visiting Malfoy Manor is not my only concern, though. Rose, why do you care so much about it?"
"It's a fascinating puzzle. Also, the enchantment is not fair to the Malfoys or to everyone else," Rose answered.
"Hmm," Her mother said, "Scorpius Malfoy seems much nicer than his parents."
"He tries."
"And yet, I am still not one hundred percent sure that I approve of him. You will be spending a great deal of time with him if you take on this project."
"As a collaborator on the project, and as a friend, he's trustworthy. He wants my help breaking the enchantment, and his reasons truly are good. He...He's always been clever, and recently he has acted more mature and even surprisingly kind sometimes. He and I respect each other enough to work together on this."
There was a long pause, and Rose spoke again, "It wouldn't be right to turn him down just because he's a Malfoy, would it?"
"I know I encouraged you to be kind to him when you came to Hogwarts, but marriage is more serious than being accepting and friendly. As much as I think he deserves a fair chance, I do not like the thought of sharing my grandchildren with the Malfoys."
"Marriage? Grandchildren?" Rose protested. "I'm not thinking about marriage. We're just discussing my project: the architecture of Malfoy Manor. Not..."
"The boy you spend all your time with with might become the man you marry, and then you will have to live with his flaws...and his family... Of course, love and loyalty are beautiful things, but—"
"Mum," Rose interrupted, "I am not in love with Scorpius and I am not going to be. I promise, we will just be doing Arithmancy."
Scorpius quietly retreated.
o.o.o.o
The grey-suited goblin gave Rose a stiff little bow, which she returned. It nodded to Albus and Scorpius, and Scorpius followed Rose's example by returning the gesture.
Rose said, "Good afternoon, Lendgane. Thank you for coming."
"I had business in Hogsmeade, so it wasn't a major inconvenience," responded Lendgane grudgingly. He looked at his pocket-watch. "Are all of your young friends going to be late?"
"I hope not," she answered.
December had brought with it cold weather, Christmas decorations, a break from Quidditch, and another of Professor Weasley's life skills classes for Emilia. This time it was on personal finance, and Rose had invited one of her goblin acquaintances to teach it.
During the next fifteen minutes students filed into the room, and then Professor Weasley began.
"Welcome. We have an excellent opportunity to learn from a guest today, Lendgane, who works with the curse-breakers for Gringotts. Managing your money is an essential skill, and he has—"
She was interrupted by Lendgane, who pointed his long finger back at a couple of Hufflepuffs. "What are you whispering, you there? Tell us."
Alberta Peasgood's eyes went wide. "Oh nothing, sir goblin...um...just, we were wondering why money is so important. They say, 'the love of money is the root of all evil,' and nobody can take it with them when they die..."
Lendgane glared.
Professor Weasley cleared her throat. "May I?" After Lendgane nodded, she said, "We may not take money with us into death, but what do we take with us? It is hard to know, but ghosts have themselves, that is, their character and their knowledge. I believe we can also continue good relationships when we move On. Money management is a key to developing character and working in relationships. Organization, self-discipline, foresight, generosity, cooperation, industry, reliability, are just some of many qualities we can build in ourselves through finance. So, give Lendgane your attention please."
Scorpius was struck. He had expected this to be a boring lesson, not a philosophical eye-opener. He had thought of money simply as a tool for getting things, for taking advantage of people or for helping people, but had never considered it a means of defining his own character.
The goblin stepped forward. "We goblins don't think the love of money is evil," he said with a slight sneer, "and we can practically measure the wisdom of a human by the history of their Gringotts vault. We have an old saying: 'A wizard who governs his finances is as wise as a goblin. A wizard who is governed by his finances is as uncivilized as a centaur and as enslaved as an elf.' That applies to rich and humble alike," he said, and his sneer seemed to rest on Scorpius for a moment.
Behind them, Roxanne Weasley snorted. "Uncivilized?" she whispered to Hugo.
The lesson continued, and although Lendgane acted condescending, his advice was helpful.
o.o.o.o
As the snow deepened around the Hogwarts grounds, Scorpius studied and took exams. As Emilia and her friends caroled all around the Slytherin Dungeon, Scorpius began reading the books from his piano teacher that Antares had collected from the muggle post. As icicles formed outside the windows, he showed Rose pictures of Malfoy Manor that his mother had taken, and everyone looked forward to one more Hogsmeade trip before the Christmas holiday.