Chapter 11- Gone Wisdom

It took a long time for James' curse to subside. But in the end, Albus did managed to evenly lie on the floor, his breath finally returning to him. He slowly got up, the punch, combined with the lack of oxygen, making his head spin. Before turning away, he bent down and collected his wand, that was casually thrown on the floor. As he did, another laughter escaped his lips, only now he wasn't sure whether it was him or the curse. In a dark way, he couldn't ignore the comedy of the situation- the truth literally hit him in his face.

Albus woefully chuckled again, this time from his own volition. Then he wiped his eyes, straightened his clothes, and returned to his dormitory, pretending that nothing happened. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Scorpius was still there, holding onto the broom in disbelief, frozen in bewilderment. "Don't thank me, just go outside and try it", he told him when he weakly began mumbling gratitude, " I'll stay here to rest, I'm too tired anyway". "I really do not know how to thank you enough", the pale kid eventually agreed, heading out, "And they don't know what they're talking about", he added.

The need to ask what he meant was spared as Oliver asked aloud "What will you give me if I pretend to be your friend?". Scorpius cheeks went pink, incomprehensible stutter escaping his mouth. Every other day this statement would have surely angered Albus, but now it was just another slight pinch in his heart. Instead, he laughed loudly, "apparently my brother wasn't the only one to hit his head", he pretended the words don't hurt him. "Go, he's just jealous", he told Scorpius, who meekly thanked him again and quickly fled the tense situation.

"Well done", Tucker wicked smiled sharpened his already hawkish face. He sat next to the fuming Irish kid, chocolate frog cards in both their hands, "buying people, are we?", he asked. Albus was drained, both emotionally and physically, so instead of responding he turned to his corner and yanked the curtains around him, returning to the silence he was so fond of.

"Keep hiding, you coward", Oliver shouted, "Enjoy the little time you have left at Hogwarts, squib!". Albus froze in place, it was the second time in less than an hour in which someone had called him that. For a second, he wondered if he should go out and face him, the word keeps echoing in his head. But what's the point? He threw the wand aside. After all, a squib fighting two wizards was equal to a mouse fighting an elephant.

He instead spotted Umbra, sitting on the porthole above his bed, and searched for the reason of her obvious dissatisfaction. For a blissful moment, he forgot about everything as he watched the small shrimp, the size of his little finger, behind the glass, so close in sight yet so far in reach at the same time. It must have been a magical creature, he thought as the kitten chirped in frustration next to him, scratching the glass. With body black as charcoal and blood-red pliers, busy hitting an oyster non-stop, at such a speed that the water around it began to boil.

It reminded him of boxing gloves and the image of James came to him. In a fit of rage, he closed the drape abruptly, to the discontent of the kitten. "Go away", he removed her from the window, and she made her way out with poise, tail raised, barely visible in the new darkness.

Afterwards, sluggishly resting on his bed, he tried reading his new old 'Hogwarts: A History' book in the dim lamp light to pass the time, but his thoughts constantly wandered away. He couldn't even get past the first few pages, describing how the school's location was chosen as a memorial for all the wizards perished there. His head began to ache where James punched him, this topic certainly did not improve his mood. He placed the bookmark where he left off, silencing its cackling figure, who slyly curled its pointy white beard.

Laying in his gloomy section, he found solace in the isolation. Despite the early hour, drowsiness began taking over him and he gladly obliged to the inclination, finding an excuse to divert his thoughts. He eventually fell asleep, but now the strange tree has been replaced by a murky and wet space. Whispers calling his name, bony arms sent his way…

He opened his eyes, only to find real darkness in front of him. Feeling smothered, he got up, almost falling over as the world spun around. The tiredness with James' painful reminder still affected him. But the urge to get out of this suffocating place outweighed anything else. He quickly put on one of the robes that had been thrown by his bedside, feeling the magical bottle that Fred had given him pressed against his thigh.

Covertly making his way through the curtains, he almost shrieked when Umbra indigo eyes unexpectedly shined at him from the shadows. Calming himself down, he promptly ascended the stairs to the common room before she'll make a noise. It was empty, the few coals in the fireplace barely illuminating the square area. Meanwhile the wall displaying the lake stood as a black vacuum, sucking all the light into it. "Where his majesty thinks he's going?", Severus Snape's picture sarcastically asked him, making him jump for the second time.

"Leave me alone", Albus shouted, rushing outside, leaving the taunting portrait behind, even inanimate objects agitated him now. A cold fell on him in the damp corridor, yet Albus, who didn't take a lamp with him, still preferred it over the previous stuffiness. And so, scrabbling in the dark, he began to make his way up, putting an ear out to any professor or prefect who might be patrolling around at those hours. But no one seemed to bother going underground, and so, shivering from the night's cold, he managed to reach the main hall, albeit after a considerable time, without any interruption.

A pearly light came from above and Albus rushed to hide behind the statue of Altum Mites. It was the Ravenclaw's ghost, also known as the Gray Lady, hovering about four meters above ground, her hair waving behind her as she penetrated the opposite wall. Less than a minute later, the Bloody Baron, the Slytherin's ghost, drifted in the same direction, his heavy chains trailing him.

He was in danger of being caught, and, knowing he couldn't afford himself anymore trouble he considered returning to the common room. But the feeling of suffocation still disturbed him, instead, he came up with another solution. Making sure there is no one around, he made his way behind the main staircase, immediately pressing the shiny white marble knight's left eye and continuing down the narrow corridor behind it.

As expected, it was empty at this hour, and in a sense of relief Albus straightened up and leisurely began to examine the space. Though there weren't any lamps in the area he could still see the room accessories under the starlight coming from the tall windows, even if with some difficulty. Walking about, he observed the rusty training instruments, which was not surprising given the humidity in the air, though he didn't understand why there was no anti-rust magic enacted.

Finally, he completed the round and reached to the main attraction of the room. Unlike the rest of the equipment, the pool seemed clean and well maintained, most likely the original thing this place was intended for. It was square, with statues in each of its vertices, each representing one of the four houses. There was a ruby lion, an emerald snake, a sapphire eagle and a yellow diamond badger- fresh water springing from their mouths into the pool, causing small ripples across its surface.

The pool itself was solid marble, white as bone, and even in the night light Albus could see the golden reflection of the school emblem at its bottom. The whole structure radiated with pale glow, visible even without the starlight. He circled it a few more times before finely bending and dipping his hand in the water. They were cold, but not intolerable. As in a reflex, he took off his robes, exposing his slim body to the chilly night, and then, without any more unnecessary decorum, jumped into the water.

All the air escaped his lungs, it seemed to be much colder than just a minute ago. Plus, the water were deeper than expected, so much so, that the bottom wasn't even close to his feet. He swallowed large amount of them out of surprise, and then, waving his hands wildly, he shuffled to the edge of the pool. Coughing, he struggled to get out (there was no exit ladder), but finally managed to do so, his heart beating fast as a bird trapped in a cage, the cold cutting him like sharp knives. He experienced a lot of things at that moment, but sleepiness was certainly not one of them.

Albus didn't know why, but his desire to swim had yet to subside. He took a deep breath and this time slid inside gently, the water again freezing him to the bone. To warm up, he tried swimming to the other side, but what seemed to be a short distance while walking around now stretched endlessly. And until he finally managed to reach the opposite edge (only 50 meters away) in irritating slowness, he was already out of breath, all his muscles screaming in pain.

He managed to repeat it for four times, and then, knowing that he would probably drown if he continued, he finally got out. Shaking like a leaf, he wore his warm robes, and went to lay down on one of the dirty benches, his legs barely carrying him. He found tranquility in the spaciousness while the power returned to his body, up until the point when the sun began rising.

All this time his brain was, for the first time since the beginning of the year, clear out from any thought. The gentle rays piercing his eyes were his sign to leave, but before that, his body still sore, he examined the room one last time. Now, in the soft light, the pool lost some of its grace- though still beautiful, the previous grandeur was missing.

He was unable to advance even five steps outside of the narrow hallway when nearly headless Nick appeared from one of the walls, making Albus' heart skip a bit for the third time that day. "I didn't break any rules", he immediately claimed, holding a hand to his heart, wondering how much more of those surprises he will be able to endure. But the ghost didn't seem to care about it, "Did you happen to see the fat friar?", he asked distracted.

"Not since the beginning of the year", Albus replied with relief, "though I saw the bloody baron and the gray lady". " Usually, they are the ones who disappear for times, but not the friar, it's not like him", Nick shook his head in a way that almost caused it to roll off his neck. "Maybe he's taking some time for himself?", Albus wondered as they reached the main hall. "Ghosts don't tend to change customs", he straightened it, almost unseen in the morning light.

"Albus!", the angry call came from the hallway leading downwards, "What are you doing here?", Brennan approached him. He was visibly tired, the bags under his eyes pronounced than ever, giving his face somewhat of a gray appearance. "What's the problem? its already morning", Albus defended himself, he never saw the prefect so livid.

"Bollocks, 10 points from Slytherin", he shut down any further discussion, "now come with me to the common room, I don't trust you'll do it Yourself". "But…","…and if I'll ever catch you outside the common room again during curfew, I'll report it to our head house", Brennan continued, cutting him off. "Have a good day", the ghost gloomily said as he was taken away.

Only later that day, when Albus learned about the brawl results from Violet, did he understand the reason for the anger. As it turned out, it least a tenth of the school students took part in it, and even Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs got involved, though not to the same extent.

Oscar Dawlish, for example, got hit by an unremovable paint bomb (Weasley courtesy, of course), and even a week later his face was still orange, making him look like an old lion with his colorless hair. And Ramona Williams, the squat puff student who commentated the game was found confused near the kitchens, covered in soup, though in the end Peeves was the one who proudly took personal responsibility for this.

Of those caught participating in the scuffle, 50 points were deducted each, with members of the quidditch teams given even more additional penalties. And so it happened that the day after almost no emeralds or rubies were left in the Slytherin and Gryffindor containers, the biggest drop of points in the school's history. It caused the gap following the Slytherin win to all but disappear. "I even heard Professor Doyle yelling at Bren, telling him he need to keep guard better next tine", Violet added quietly, "so it must be really serious".

The atmosphere at Hogwarts changed since that day. Everyone started walking in pairs or threes, but it still didn't help, and despite the many warnings and heavy punishments, small clashes frequently kept reoccurring. Students, mostly from Gryffindor and Slytherin, often found themselves hanging in the air from one leg, struck with bat-bogey hexes or shouting in pain when their textbooks begun biting their fingers.

Even the prefects weren't protected- two days later Alaina Farley have been seen running away from dinner crying, covering her face, which was full of ugly purple pimples, with her heavy blond hair. In fact, the only one that seemed to have fun was Peeves, who threw around pyrotechnics with such frequency it became somewhat of a background noise. Freddy declared he didn't provide any of them but was still severely punished as no one believed him.

Albus himself, however, was apathetic to those events. He began waking up early in the morning to swim in the pool, even going to the library to learn some new techniques. Due to this he earned some fleeing clearness of mind after his restless nights, but also, as a result, spent the rest of the day tired and slow. As he saw it, there was no point for him investing energy in the classrooms if his school days were few anyway.

At the same time, he didn't have any connection with the students of other houses, only keeping basic courtesy with his family members whenever he saw them. He also avoided the frequent meeting invitations from Hagrid and Longbottom, knowing that they can do nothing as long as it wasn't mandatory. His brother, on the other hand, was the complete opposite, ignoring him as if he didn't exist, something, that although annoying, was a pretty welcome change.

In fact, the only ones with whom he passed the time were the half of the Slythrins of his year who didn't despise him, mainly Scorpius and Violet. But a firm jealousy towards both began sneaking in his heart, causing him to drift away even from them, diminishing his already small acquaintance group.

As it turned up, each, in their own fields, begun proving their incredible abilities. Scorpius excelled in potions, spells, and especially herbology- to such extent that Professor Longbottom treated him more as an intern than a student. And Violet, was shown to be immensely powerful, something that was especially evident in the defense against the dark arts classes, so much so that the students from Slytherin stopped wondering whether her father was a wizard or not.

Even McGonagall's warnings during their weekly meetings fell on deaf ears. He attended classes and completed all the necessary schoolwork (even if not very well), which only left her the option to reprimand him for not investing more energy, but without the ability to punish him for something specific.

He sidestepped the conversation whenever she asked him about his correspondence with his parents, not telling her how he threw each and every letter he received from home into the fire. It caused him to stress about the looming Christmas vacation, pondering whether he should just stay at school alone over going home to face them.

But, as always, when something is dreaded it arrives faster and Albus found himself on the Tuesday before the first semester break in the transfiguration class, the last one for the day. The students learned long ago that as long as they didn't disturb the professor during his lectures, he didn't care whether they truly did listen to him or not. So at least half of them just waited impatiently for the bell, to finally be able to pack their belongings for the train ride the morning after.

Therefore, Albus, who read 'Hogwarts: A History' during the class didn't understand why he was the only one to be singled out in the end. As everybody cleared out, he followed the professor, Scorpius and Violet worried looks at his back. They walked in silence and finely arrived at his office, that was located off the first-floor hallway, to the right of a staircase ascending to the serpentine corridor on the third one. It was small and stuffy, containing only one wooden table and one wooden chair, both uncomfortable looking. At the back was an open door, behind it a small and neatly arranged bed, equally inhospitable.

"Sit", the professor ordered, his S ringing in the air long after he closed his mouth, summoning another wooden chair with his wand. He himself sat down in front of Albus, crossing his long fingers and staring right at him. Albus became quite good at dodging others looks, but now, he was in trouble. Everything was completely empty- the table, the room area and even the walls themselves, which were made of thick stone bricks, reminding him of his father private office. Finally, he had no choice but to look up at the professor, his face lines still appearing somewhat blurred, he noticed, as if through murky water.

"Are you aware about the talks of your removal from school, boy?", Albus guessed it would happen eventually, but hearing this still made him feel like a frozen blade pierced his heart. "I guess you know now", the professor said mockingly, studying his face, not seeming to care even slightly about his emotions, "They seem to believe you are not magical enough", he continued, "The question is why?". "Probably because I'm a squib", Albus replied, his voice reflecting his defeated spirit.

"I didn't find you as stupid", the professor stared ahead without batting an eye, fixed, "maybe I was wrong, although it's not something that happens often". He finished the sentence and continued to stare, and Albus realized he was waiting for an answer. "Even if I'm not a squib, it doesn't really matter if I can't consciously use my wand. Professor McGonagall told me that…".

"Professor McGonagall is a fool who doesn't understand magic", the professor burst out impatiently, for the first-time showing cracks in his indifference, "magic is more than just silly wand waving". Albus forgot about his misery, the rude remark catching him completely off guard.

"You see, magic...", the professor continued as if he said nothing out of the ordinary, "…existed long before the invention of wands, most of it in ways not yet known". He snapped his fingers and an intense blue fire flared from them, so hot that Albus had to lean backwards.

He began to converse with a fervor that Albus had never seen in his monotonous lessons, his voice whistling between the bare walls. "The invention of the wand made magic easier, controllable, free from sacrifice... But over time its true power has been forgotten, no… erased by cowards...", the fire spread from his fingertips to all his hand, now bright as red-hot metal, reflected in his eyes. Now, Albus had to drag his chair backwards to escape the heat.

The friction noise brought the professor back to reality, the fire disappearing from his thin hand as he immediately returned to his usual tone of speech as if nothing happened. "Why don't you start trying with this?", with his other hand, he waved his wand again, summoning a small yellow candle onto the table. "It's called elf wax, with a minimal need of oxygen, even this quantity should provide light for a month, ". He slanted his smooth face for a brief and a cheerful yellow flame appeared, "Try turning it on as well".

"Mr. Doyle?", turning his head, Albus found Brennan at the entrance, a worried look on his tired face. "Go, take it with you", the professor pointed at the candle. Before exiting Albus build up the courage and was about to ask him why he helped him with the subject. "You remind me of my former student", the dark man said when he finely turned, before even uttering a single word, "Now go". Albus didn't push further and left, hand waving to the prefect, who winked back at him in somewhat of a forced way, his face rigid.

He blinked several times and then began making his way back to the dormitory. He looked down at the candle grabbed in his hand, trying to figure out what just happened, so engrossed in his thoughts that his foot got caught in the vanishing step on the way to the ground floor. "Merlin's beard", he cursed under his breath, his face getting hot under the laughter of some Hufflepuff students in the area. He must have looked like a fool- skipping over those become so routine that most students did not even waste a second thought about it.

He managed to do the rest of the way without additional accidents and closed himself off in his quarter. As the other students talked about their vacation plans Albus snapped his fingers in various ways, trying to snuff out the fire, but alas, nothing worked. It bothered him, the professor seemed to be so proud of his abilities, to such an extent that he mocked the headmistress aloud, but as in his classes, he didn't even bother to explain how it should have been done.

Maybe he was wrong, Albus thought to himself. Perhaps he just didn't have enough magic in his blood, not completely lacking to be considered a squib, but also not enough to be considered a wizard. He laid down on his bed and brought his fingers closer to the luminous fire, it wasn't hot enough to cause a burn, but it still produced an unpleasant sensation. His mind wandered to his impending meeting with his family and a feeling of suffocation arose in him, causing the fire to flicker for a moment.

He sat up quickly, the candle almost flying from his hands out of excitement. He concentrated on the flame and tried again to evoke the feeling of suffocation. It seemed that the light flickered again a little, though now he wasn't so sure about it. "Al?", Scorpius voice came through the drapes, distracting him, "want to hang out outside with me and Vi? Fly a little bit? We didn't have an opportunity to do so for a while".

"Maybe it's going to be the last chance if the squib doesn't come back", Oliver's voice came. "Yes, I'm coming", the Irish kid convinced him more than Scorpius did, and he placed the candle in his dresser for later assessment, hiding its light. He urgently needed some distraction.

He, Scorpius and Violet took turns on the Cleensweep thirteen broom and two other old school brooms, passing a ball between them. Scorpius still had a hard time accepting the fact that the gift he received from Albus was truly his, sending questioning glimpses at him every time he rode it.

They did it for four hours until finely giving up and returning to the castle far after sunset, all spent. The fact that Violet was better than Albus and he in turn was better than Scorpius didn't bother any of them. It was, Albus thought as he ate with an appetite competing with that of the pale boy, very liberating.

Despite his fatigue, his sleep that night was still light, yet again waking up long before the rest. He rose from his bed and put his robes on in the dark, moving through the motions with body memory. Before going out he remembered the small candle, deciding to take it with him, assuming it would be easier to work with no one around to distract him. He needed a few moments to get used to the darkness after the sudden candlelight blinded him, and then made his way up.

He followed a regular plan of action to make sure his expeditions weren't discovered. Making sure the common room was empty, scanning Snape's portrait (it preferred to spend its time in the headmistress' office) to verify it was indeed vacant and then putting an ear to any disturbances as he tiptoed along the narrow corridors, the silence of the night helping him discover if anyone was near him.

The regular training, along with the techniques he learned, already allowed him to double the distance he was capable of. And after, serenely resting on the ragged bench, he decided to focus on the elf wax. The flame was close to his face, shaking a bit, only he wasn't sure if it was due to his effort or because of his heavy breathing. He concentrated on the feeling of asphyxiation once more and excitedly watched as it quivered, now he was sure of it.

But, as he quickly discovered, extinguishing it was a much more difficult task than the swimming beforehand. The sun came out, only this time he didn't leave with its arrival. The space instilled in him a different mood, one that didn't allow him to give up, and, trying to combine feelings of dampness to the flame, he continued concentrating on it for hours, his eyes watery from the constant brightness, beads of sweat forming on his face. It worked, even if slowly, and Albus watched with satisfaction as the flame became smaller and smaller, until finally, it disappeared.

He gasped heavily, feeling as if he had finished a long run, watching the smoke rising with a feeling of transcendence. It reminded him of the train soot, and he jumped to his feet as if receiving an electric shock. Checking his watch, he calmed himself down, finding that he had another hour left. Instead, he decided to check the hatch, something he failed to do during the last few weeks.

He went out and made his way carefully, avoiding any foreign eyes. When finally reaching there, he remembered why he had avoided the place, even feeling light throbbing in his temple where he got punched. He shook his head and again tried to find secret buttons in the area, but as usual, experienced absolute disappointment. This infuriated him, until finely succeeding in something he had to get here only to fail again. He kicked the wall in frustration.

Pain was now added to his anger as it felt like his pinky was broken. "Merlin's beard", he cursed, bouncing on one leg. There was a thin whispery sound and as Albus looked up he saw the greenish light reflected on the metal shield of the twelve headed snake. Strange cacophony, frightening and fascinating at the same time, like some sort of a jarring singing, ringed faintly in his ears.

He froze in place, his pain waning away. He continued staring at the shield, the heads depicted on it seeming to move in the shimmering glow. The thin noise was heard again and the light, along with the weird sound, disappeared. He carefully turned, again facing the simple, unassuming wall. "Merlin", he whispered, and the square hatch opened again, revealing the rough-hewn passage behind, green, mixed with the weird noise, resonating between its wet black stone.