Chapter 26 exams….and New Marauders
Ernie MacMillan started showing the strain of the rapidly approaching OWLs by interrogating everyone on how many hours revision they were putting in a day, explaining proudly that he averaged eight hours.
Krait regarded him solemnly, shifted Lilith round on her hip, and took his temperature with a hand to the head.
"Without question" she said crisply "A case of staleness…you'll fail, MacMillan, from trying too hard….revision is like food – enough is as good as a feast, too much is worse than none at all. Take my advice and take more time off."
Ernie was somewhat miffed by this advice; but it made all those listening feel better!
Krait also aided and abetted Hermione in confiscating all the black market aids to concentration, mental agility and the like, especially Harold Dingle's alleged powdered dragon claw which Hermione found to be no more than powdered Doxy droppings
"And none of the rest any better" she said grimly.
"Quite" corroborated Krait. "When you bear in mind that most of the people selling stuff do NOT have an Outstanding OWL themselves in potions, how likely do you think it is that their supposed remedies can do any good, even if they weren't seriously against the rules, which they are?"
It was the revelation of the true nature of the powdered dragon claw which had more effect than any moral homilies however.
-/-
The first exam was theory of Charms on Monday morning. The Gryffindors studied assiduously all Sunday afternoon and Krait and Draco went for a long walk taking Lilith and Salazar to play with and charming inanimate objects absently as they went and defining what charm they had used.
Draco and Krait had the most enjoyable afternoon.
-/-
The examiners arrived at supper time. Krait recognised the tiny figure of Professor Marchbanks; the witch had examined her for her Transfigurations the year before and had complimented her on having wand work she had not seen since she had examined young Dumbledore in his OWLs. It was to be expected that some exam students might show signs of nerves; even hysteria; but that random pupils and one of the examiners should burst into tears was rather unprecedented.
Severus extracted a piece of leaf from his salad, looked at it with distaste and roared,
"Don't eat the salad!"
"Glumbumble juice for the sufferers, Severus?" said McGonagall calmly.
"Indeed…"
Soon all were calm again; and Dumbledore rose.
"Would those who spiced the salad with alihotsy care to explain their actions?"
Three red-faced Hufflepuff boys rose; one of them acted as spokesman.
"Sir, we wanted to do something to rival the New Marauders" he said. "It was jolly funny, too…"
"Indeed…I hope you enjoy as much writing me a detailed essay on all the effects of alihotsy, including its efficacious ones, and the antidote" said Dumbledore. "Who may I ask are the New Marauders?"
Abrax, Kinat, Romulus, Hawke and Bil got to their feet.
"Sir, it's us, and whilst there are loads of opportunities for mischief for visiting dignitaries, it would be the same as interfering with exam students themselves….and that would be unfair and dishonourable" said Abrax. "We act as you can see in a spirit of interhouse cooperation….am I digging myself a hole?"
"Somewhat" said Dumbledore. "On your honour, you've not been a part of anything like this?"
Abrax shook his head.
"No sir! But there'll be ample opportunities to use the ideas we had on Uncle Lucius and the other governors… they're a lot more creative than poisoning half the school indiscriminately."
Several examiners hid laughter; and Dumbledore tried to look stern.
"Mr Malfoy, I really do not want to hear about it" he said.
-/-
It was an uncomfortable evening with everyone concentrating on last minute revision; and Krait decided she was not going to be drawn into the last minute revision nor to go to bed early only to lie thinking about it. Last year she had had nothing to lose; this year was her actual OWL year and her last chance to do well. Accordingly she took herself down to Severus' room and slowly started undressing.
Krait had a relaxed and happy evening and slept well in the circle of her husband's arms. She got up breezily, saw to Lilith's and Salazar's needs and took herself to breakfast in a sunny mood.
Her mood probably did more to demoralise the majority of the Slytherin Fifth formers than anything else. Pansy Parkinson turned green and bolted to throw up; even Draco looked nervous and he knew he was well rehearsed. After breakfast the fifth and seventh formers milled around whilst the Great Hall was transformed from a dining area into an exam room, with dozens of single tables facing the staff end where Professor McGonagall faced the students. They seated themselves nervously; and when all were quiet McGonagall gave them leave to begin.
The first question was easy, about the incantation and wand movement of wingardium leviosa; later on were questions about cheering charms, concerning which Krait had had a long and interesting debate with Professor Flitwick in her first few weeks at Hogwarts while she was catching up. She wrote steadily and fluently, marvelling that everyone around her seemed to be working so feverishly and sighing frequently. It was all quite logical after all.
Hermione was holding forth about cheering charms when they came out….judging by what she said Krait wondered if she might not lose marks for irrelevance; the counter charm for hiccoughs was not, to Krait's mind, a valid cheering charm but more by nature a medical charm. She agreed with Ron who choked off Hermione's proposed lengthy post mortem. Krait grinned at Draco and asked him if he fancied a game of gobstones before lunch.
"Don't mind if I do" said Draco, trying not to let his voice shake.
"Honestly!" said Hermione "Aren't you the least bit interested in comparing notes?"
"Nope!" said Krait. "What's done is done….what's the point in extra agony? I want to relax before the practical."
-/-
After lunch – for which the four tables had been restored – the candidates waited in an antechamber waiting to be called alphabetically for the practical. Krait had as soon retained the name Day for that, as being in quicker; but was philosophical. She taught Draco and Neville catscradle while others waiting muttered incantations to themselves. Hermione went first of their group with Anthony Goldstein, Gregory Goyle and Daphne Greengrass, a cousin of Abigail and Emmeline and no friend of Krait's. Students who had been were of course sent out another way.
Krait and Draco were in the same group of course, and were wished good luck by Professor Flitwick. The testing did not seem to take the same length of time for each student – or maybe some examiners were slower than others – and some of the L's were still there, including Neville. He was busy changing a rat orange with an aplomb he would never have had a year before and Krait hoped fervently that that was what was supposed to be happening to the rodent. She took her place with an elderly bald professor named as Professor Tofty; Draco had Professor Marchbanks who was free fractionally before, he being ahead of her alphabetically by initial. Krait smiled approval on Neville as he left and beamed at Professor Tofty.
"Excellent" he said in a quavery voice "No need for nerves young lady…I should like you to make this eggcup do cartwheels for me…"
Krait had practised hard at all kinds of locomotor charms since her initial embarrassment over the pineapple; and the eggcup cartwheeled with aplomb and panache, and Krait cut off suddenly the circus music she had absently introduced because it had seemed appropriate, blushing violently.
"No need to worry, my dear, most entertaining…." Tofty wheezed. "This wine glass needs levitating…"
With Harry's encouragement the Muggle Studies Hobby Group had practised the Levitation charm as an offensive charm, Harry having had experience of dropping a club on the head of a troll by the use of the charm. Krait had no trouble, and demonstrated too that she could tilt the glass to pour liquid from it if so required. Tofty seemed pleased and scribbled a note at her improvisation. She switched colour on a rat, changed the size of a dinner plate and successfully stilled dancing teacups. Then she was dismissed, and saw Harry waiting to take her place. She gave him a grin and a 'thumb's up' before walking out.
Neville was bubbling.
"I did it all….I did it well!" he said happily. "I'm sure I passed…I even got the teacups to lie down eventually. I did them one at a time…do you think I'll lose marks?"
Krait shook her head.
"I guess you might get extra for doing them all at once but you can't lose marks if you did what you were supposed to" she said, deciding it would only depress him if she mentioned that she had stacked hers neatly.
"Mine all stopped together" said Hermione smugly.
"But you're good at charms" said Neville. "I bet Krait stacked hers. She's got a fetish for tidiness"
Krait went pink and grinned.
"Blast, I never thought of that!" exclaimed Hermione in high Dudgeon and buried herself in a book on transfiguration. Neville looked at Krait and winked deliberately. She grinned back. Neville had come a long way to be able to tease Hermione like that!
Krait was free on Tuesday, having already passed her Transfiguration OWL with flying colours the year before. Professor Marchbanks had come to ask her how come she was splitting her OWLs; and Krait explained again how she had only started Hogwarts two years before.
"Why, my dear, your performance last year was outstanding indeed!" declared the small witch. "I recall you got E in Defence and in Arithmancy…there's nothing to stop you sitting the exams again and seeing if you could improve….I'll clear it with the board."
"What if I do worse because I give a NEWT level answer, which is what I'm studying?" asked Krait.
"Tush, dear, it's just building on what you know…you fell down in your theory of Dark Arts as I recall, had sketchy knowledge on a couple of subjects – and hardly surprising at that!"
Krait found herself agreeing!
-/-
Herbology was on Wednesday; Krait heard Harry suppress a yelp as his Fanged Geranium bit him. Krait glared at hers. The theory had been easy – especially as she had studied it with relation to potion making – and she had no real trouble with the practical. One of the theory questions had been in relation to the differences between Flitterbloom and Devils' Snare; and Krait did not think any of the Blood Group had any excuse for falling down on that one!
Once again Krait found herself being examined for Defence against the Dark Arts. She felt she was lucky in the questions; they covered subjects she knew well. As for the practical, Professor Tofty wheezed
"We have seen Miss Malfoy perform before….surely we don't need to take her time again?"
"I have improved, sir" said Krait.
"Improved beyond laughing dementors to death, hmm?"
Krait grinned.
"I'm smoother now, sir, and my Patronus is more certain."
"You can produce a Patronus? Corporeal?"
"Yes sir" said Krait surprised. "That's how it's supposed to be, isn't it? My cousin can too, and Potter, and Longbottom…"
"Call Mr Longbottom back" said Tofty to McGonagall. "Dear dear, how did you neglect to tell us this Sirius?"
Sirius shrugged.
"I didn't think the paper called for a Patronus" he said. "If I'd known it meant bonus marks, I'd have provided you with a list."
"Do so now, if you please!" quavered Tofty. "Miss Malfoy, your Counter jinxes and defensive spells please, first…"
Krait performed all that was asked of her with speed and efficiency; and had her boggart back in its cupboard before Sister Agatha had even begun to sneer, handspringing and showing off scarlet bloomers with 'I love Voldemort' embroidered on them, a touch Krait couldn't resist. Tofty looked quizzical but applauded her efforts.
Sirius handed Tofty a list; and Krait was asked to stand by the door where she was joined by Hermione and Neville and Cho and a few others.
Once the last examinee had gone through – it was Ron, as usual, muttering that if only his parents had taken his mother's maiden name life would have been easier – they were asked, one at a time, to produce a patronus.
Not all the muggle studies hobby group could produce a corporeal patronus; but all made a decent effort, and the silver stag Harry produced received spontaneous applause, as did Krait's King Richard.
"Excellent" said Sirius to them, following them out. "It never occurred to me that they were giving bonus points…I wonder if it was something to do with the Ministry having wanted you to learn theory only?"
Harry grinned.
"I guess we just did ourselves no harm with that…"
"I'm not going to complain that it will reflect well on me too if you get a crop of Outstandings…" Sirius said.
-/-
Hermione sat Ancient Runes on Friday; and was bad tempered over getting the translation of one muddled. Krait was glad to be in a different house; really Hermione could be so unrestful! She decided not to mention that she found it imcomprehensible that anyone should muddle Ehwaz and Eihwaz since the first looked like an M signifying two horses, that was parnership, mobility and strength and the second was a straight stick with a turn at each end signifying Yew with strength, dependability and protection, that had attracted Krait and pleased her that her father, whose wand was yew, had no idea how to use runes to improve his wandwork as any idiot ought to be able to pick up. Her father actually symbolised the Merkstave or negative aspect of the rune - destruction, dissatisfaction and weakness. Krait reflected that perhaps she should actually learn more about runes to see if there was anything in that to help with his defeat; as she knew, she reflected, almost nothing about runes.
Krait tended to forget how much extraneous knowledge she picked up reading Severus' learned magazines.
Krait took her day off to be with the little ones; the seventh years had Potions, so Severus was stalking around near the potions dungeon cursing gently. The fifth had their Potion exam on Monday, so Krait had another day off. She wished the others the best; and Severus fixed them with a steely eye and begged them not to let him down.
Hermione was still snappish and lashed out verbally at Parvati Patil when she said there were only four exams left, reminding the girl that she herself had Arithmancy, the hardest of all.
Krait laid a hand on Hermione's arm.
"If you didn't think you could do it, you shouldn't have elected it" she said quietly. "But you are. Now deep breaths, Hermione, you sound snappish and indeed Snape-ish in the extreme and of the old order."
Hermione opened her mouth to snap and shut it again. She rarely came out on top of a verbal skirmish with Krait.
"I must do well!" she wailed. "I'm the first witch in my family!"
"So your parents have nothing to compare you to" said Krait. "Do you feel you're carrying the honour of the muggleborn here?"
Hermione flushed and nodded.
Krait gave her a hug.
"There are other muggleborn; some good, some only adequate. Don't let showing up my father get in your way of having a life…be as good as you can be, but don't lose sleep or personality over exams. Especially as the NEWTs are what count for jobs anyway."
"The grades we get count for what NEWTS we can take" said Hermione sulkily.
"Yeah…but if you have an aberration in an exam, most of the staff are reasonable and prepared to negotiate." Krait pointed out. "Don't blow your results by worrying so much….you'll lose time and marks writing crap that's irrelevant just trying not to leave stuff out…."
"Do you think I did that in charms?"
"No idea….but your practical will have been outstanding, and that counts more than the written paper" said Krait soothingly and mendaciously. "Chill out, sister mine….I love you too well to let you get Peevish, it'll make you look like Umbridge."
Hermione stared at her in outrage then laughed. The laughter was a trifle hysterical; but it restored Hermione to a better humour.
-/-
The care of Magical Creatures exam was easy enough; the paper set was easy and the practical involved the sorting of Knarls from hedgehogs, the handling of Bowtruckles, cleaning a Fire Crab and demonstrating the knowledge of choosing the correct diet for a sick unicorn. Hagrid, watching anxiously from his hut, beamed as Krait performed all the tasks meticulously.
-/-
Krait did not study astronomy; she had decided from the outset that she could look up any information pertaining thereunto in an almanac if it became necessary and had elected to spend the time for those classes studying other subjects. She did however enter Divination because she thought it would be a laugh, and made up the most ludicrous rubbish for her written exam. The practical involved peering into a crystal ball; and Krait took a decision. She informed Madam Marchbanks that she saw a tall skeletal figure emerging from a cauldron with a snake issuing from its skull-like face.
Madam Marchbanks paled.
"Can – can you tell me any more?" she asked.
"He is death and he craves blood" said Krait softly. "they come to flock around him like carrion…to kiss his feet and worship in foul travesty of kingship…death comes in a green light."
Madam Marchbanks was much shaken.
"Perhaps we should try the tea leaves…."
Krait peered at the leaves. Subtly she shifted them and placed the pattern she wanted – a skull with a snake issuing from the mouth.
"I think it's not good" said Krait dryly. "Morsmorde is no very auspicious sign to turn up in a teacup…."
Madam Marchbanks gave her a quick look.
"You recognise what it is then?" she asked. Krait could have kicked herself.
"The first thing I learned in the Wizarding world was that the Dark Mark had been sent up at the Quidditch world cup" she retrieved herself. "I, being nosy, asked what that meant…"
"Let's move to the palm reading" Madam Marchbanks hurried on.
Krait had not the faintest idea about palmistry.
"Uh…." She said "I guess the best I can do here is that later you're going to wash up…."
Madam Marchbanks gave her a Look.
-/-
Harry and Ron were cheerfully comparing notes about how badly they were going to fail, Madam Spikenard not having arrived in time to instil in them any great love of the subject, let alone knowledge.
"What 'bout you, Krait, mate?" asked Ron, breaking off from explaining how he had described in detail an ugly man with a wart on his nose, only to discover it was the examiner's reflection.
Krait grinned grimly and told them what she had done. Harry gasped.
"That's risky…." He said.
"The Ministry isn't warning people….maybe we ought to" said Krait. "I can claim not to remember my exam at all…in fact I shall."
Indeed when Professor Spikenard asked her rather ironically how it went. Krait put on her best innocent expression and declared
"I – I really couldn't tell you, Professor, it's all a bit of a blurr…"
"Hmmm" said Professor Spikenard. "You walk a dangerous path, young lady….all of your blood do…well, be assured I will keep aware and tell you if I get any feelings you should know about."
"Well!" said Krait as she left. "I could almost believe in her."
"She singled out the first year blood group the first lesson they had" Neville told her "Abrax told me….said they walked a dangerous path and wished them luck."
"Now THAT's a real Divination teacher" Krait approved.
"She was an insurance predictor in her husband's firm before she was widowed" volunteered Neville. "You have to have a better than sixty-per-cent accuracy for that sort of job."
-/-
Krait's final exam was her re-sit of Arithmancy with Hermione; she enjoyed the paper. Hermione frowned a lot and scribbled relentlessly; but that was Hermione. Krait felt confident that she had done well and said so.
Hermione wanted a post mortem as usual; and with a sigh, Krait gave in to her friend. She came to the conclusion quite quickly that either both of them had done quite well or else had lost the plot entirely and said so to Hermione. Hermione groaned.
"We can't have lost the plot….can we?" she said in a small, un-Hermione like voice.
"Nope" said Krait. "Therefore we both did good. You lot have History of Magic left, don't you?"
"Yes and a good chance of a decent mark with Professor Lector in charge" said Hermione briskly. "He has an interesting discursive style, and I like the way he makes us debate things….I'm not too sure about his methods of letting first years re-enact goblin battles, but I suppose if it helps them remember…."
"If I were teaching Abrax, Bil and co I'd want some method of using up their excess energy" chuckled Krait.
-/-
It was during the History of Magic exam that Ginny called on her blood for help.