SHARING THE SUNLIGHT WITH THE FREE - THE DAWN
Chapter Twelve
They went straight to Professor Ravenclaw's office when they reached Hogwarts. Professor Ravenclaw, Aurelia knew, could make everything all right. She would be able to address the situation logically.
She did not fail her. After the initial shock, Professor Ravenclaw immediately set to questioning Ethel. What was her name? ('Ethel Logan, Miss.') How old was she? ('Twenny, Miss.') Had she done magic before? ('No, Miss, they never let us, Miss') How did she feel about attending Hogwarts? ('Oh, if I could, Miss!')
'Well?' demanded Aurelia, after Professor Ravenclaw concluded the interview.
'I shall have to talk to Godric about this,' said Professor Ravenclaw, staring at Ethel intently. Ethel looked dismayed. Biting her lip, the girl stared back bravely into Professor Ravenclaw's eyes.
'Please, let me stay. I do not wish to return to - to -'
Aurelia, however, being used to years of Professor Ravenclaw's cryptic talk, had understood Professor Ravenclaw's meaning. She put a comforting hand on Ethel's shoulder.
'She only means that Professor Gryffindor might want you in his House,' she assured. 'Is that not right, Professor?'
'Yes, Aurelia. I apologise, Miss Logan. I realise my speech is, at times, misleading. You will have to come with me, and we shall find Professor Gryffindor together. No, Aurelia -' this to Aurelia who had made to follow them '- stay here, please. I would like to speak to you when I return.'
Glumly, Aurelia remained behind. She had no doubt about what Professor Ravenclaw wanted to talk about. Sure enough, fifteen minutes later, the professor returned, alone.
'You will be pleased to know that Miss Logan is now part of Gryffindor House,' said Professor Ravenclaw upon returning. 'Well, once we four Professors have cleared the official administration work, anyway.' She sighed heavily. 'Salazar will be a problem - and so may the Bannings. And I believe that you have something to say about them?'
Aurelia kept silent, staring into the flames dancing in Professor Ravenclaw's fireplace.
'Aurelia,' said Professor Ravenclaw gently. 'There is a reason why you are here instead of with Kièran and his family.'
'They hate me,' Aurelia said finally. 'They hate me for what I am. I told them and immediately they just.' her voice trailed off bitterly.
'Aurelia -'
'Even Kière!' she burst out. 'Kière was ashamed of what I am too. He did not want his parents to know - and I thought he did not believe in this prejudice!'
'Aurelia, this is going to be difficult for you to accept.' Professor Ravenclaw raised her voice slightly. 'But be reasonable. Some people are not going to change their mindsets. There will always be people like Kière's parents that are obsessed with bloodline. Accept that, and ignore them -'
'They wrote to you, did they not?' accused Aurelia suddenly. 'And you wrote back.'
'I did,' said Professor Ravenclaw evenly.
'They wanted to know if I was Muggle-born.' It was a statement. Aurelia was sure they had.
'Yes.'
'You must have told them I was not! So you believe there is something shameful about me too?' Aurelia's voice rose steadily.
'Calm yourself, Aurelia! No, I did not lie. I merely stated that you were an accomplished and talented young witch whose company they should be pleased to enjoy. The matter of blood is trivial. It seems that you, too, are putting too much emphasis on it at the moment.'
'There is!' Aurelia rose and bolted out of the room. Professor Ravenclaw sighed heavily, but wisely chose to let the girl alone for the moment.
Outside, Aurelia headed straight for the Astronomy Tower. It was freezing there, being mid-winter, but she cared not.
She had wanted Professor Ravenclaw to reassure her. Comfort her, as though she was a young child once again. She wanted someone to tell her that her Muggle heritage was no shame. But in her heart, she knew it was true.
The witch hunter. Burnt at the stake.
Shuddering, she repressed the memories. But they lingered, and served only to prove a point. Perhaps everyone was right. Muggles were evil, indeed. And she, borne of Muggles, was tainted with their blood.
~
Ethel was approved by all four Professors (though grudgingly, by Professor Slytherin), and became a welcomed member of Professor Gryffindor's House. The Professors had agreed to spend the Christmas break tutoring her, to bring her up to first-year standard, at least. Any twenty-year-old should have been embarrassed by the prospect of attending classes with students half their age, but Ethel, delighted at a chance to learn magic, and never complained.
Aurelia envied Ethel. The older girl never seemed to worry about her 'tainted blood' anymore, and threw herself wholeheartedly into her studies. She eagerly and bravely accepted the unexpected changes in her life. She was also busy, from morning to night, with assignments that the Professors had set her. Adding in the fact that the girls were in different Houses, it was not surprising that they rarely had the chance to chat.
Aurelia wished that she, too, was busy. The holiday seemed to stretch endlessly before her, with nothing more to do besides think. She had finished her work, and probably could not have done any, even if she had not. She was stuck in the quagmire of perpetual depression.
Worse still, she was plagued by nightmares. They involved Muggles - cruel, taunting Muggles. Always she was tied to the stake, the witch hunter advancing with the fiery stick in hand. The world went up in flames, and the last thing she saw before awakening were the dark, haunted eyes of a young man. They were familiar eyes, but she could not place them. She awoke with an overwhelming of sadness and loss.
~
Christmas was coming. In the Hall, an enormous tree had been erected. On Christmas morning, all those remaining in the castle - mostly the Muggle- borns - would celebrate together, in the Hall. Aurelia did not feel much like celebrating, but wisely kept her peace.
Ethel was a different matter. She could not stop chattering about it. This was the first Christmas that the girl would be spending with friends, and she could not thank Aurelia enough. The constant chatter would probably have been irritating, had Aurelia not been relieved to have it as a distraction from her darker thoughts. She had told no one about her nightmares, not even Professor Ravenclaw. The truth was, she was ashamed of her outburst that day in Professor Ravenclaw's office, but it did not change the way she felt.
Her logical mind told her that there should be no distinction between pure- bloods and Muggle-borns, but something else in her argued. She was tired of this contradiction in her brain. She wanted to return to a time when blood did not matter. When she and Kière had talked and laughed without a care except their schoolwork. Although she would never admit it, she missed him.
How could she have burst out like that - rash, quick to jump to conclusions.how she must have let Professor Ravenclaw down - she was supposed to think logically, stay calm and cool.yet she had lost her head. And lost a friend.
Therefore, it was with a heavy heart that she fell asleep on Christmas Eve.
~
'The witch must die.' The crowd jeered at her, as she was bound tightly to the stake. She wanted to scream, but she had no voice left.
She was being engulfed in flame. But they were not hot.
Cold. Freezing cold. Cold like she had never known before. She could barely breathe - the chill was cramping her lungs.
A wave of despair washed upon her. She could hear the jeers of the crowd, and the witch-hunter's evil cackle.
'Burn, witch, burn!' they were chanting. 'Burn the evil witch!'
But she was not burning.
'Mudblood,' hissed the witch-hunter suddenly.
She was going to freeze. The cold was burning her up.
A hooded figure stood before her, hissing. Scaly arms shot out of its robes and grabbed her face. Slowly, it lowered its face to hers and removed its hood.
A girl was screaming, somewhere far away.
She was falling.falling.
~
She awoke with a jerk. The room was all misty and out of focus. She sat up tentatively - something was calling her. A faraway voice.
'Come,' it said. Without a second thought, she complied. Her feet knew the way. They carried her out of the dormitory, through the common room, down the dark corridors automatically. It felt like walking through a cloud - she was floating on air.
She did not know how long she walked. Her feet only halted before a door, beyond which she could hear two irate voices. Unhesitatingly, she reached out her hand and pushed open the door. In she stepped.
Two masked wizards were arguing. She was unnoticed.as though she was invisible.or was she?
'T'is not so easy to keep the creature under control,' whined one wizard. 'Especially as I cannot speak pars -'
'I do not want your excuses,' snapped the other. 'The fact remains that it got loose and wreaked havoc. However, your mistake may still prove useful. Merlin is dead and now I remain the only one with the knowledge.'
'The knowledge?'
The wizard did not answer. He turned to her - he had noticed, after all.
'Why not join us, my dear?'
'Who is this?' demanded the other sulkily.
'Ah, Herpo,' said the wizard silkily. 'Please meet my new assistant. She will be extremely important to my work, with her powers.'
Herpo snorted. 'A mere girl! Powers? Do you plan to have her charm the -'
'Hold your peace, Herpo! Yes. I admit - a child. Worse still, Mudblood filth.' He snarled at her, and she recoiled in fear. Why could she not run? Her legs were rooted to the ground.
'But,' he continued, 'a very valuable Mudblood child, if you will believe. This one here is a Seer. And no less than Merlin has proclaimed her powers stronger than his one.'
She had to go, now. Why was she fixed in place? Her heart was panicking, fluttering away in her chest, but for some unimaginable reason, her mind was calm.
'You appear skeptical, Herpo. Well, I do not care. I need not your opinion nor your consent. I only want my Basilisk. The sooner the better. Things will be going fast from now. Go, now.'
Herpo stalked out, muttering under his breath. The authoritative wizard now turned his attention to her.
'Ah.my dear Mudblood.' he began.
'Who are you?' she forced her voice to ask, with great effort.
There was a pause. The wizard was staring at her, she could tell, even though his mask remained in place. He seemed.surprised.although she couldn't be sure.
'Who I am matters not,' he said finally. 'But who you are does. You will do great things. Great things for Wizardkind. Ah yes - you shall help write history!'
Great things.
And she knew no more.
Chapter Twelve
They went straight to Professor Ravenclaw's office when they reached Hogwarts. Professor Ravenclaw, Aurelia knew, could make everything all right. She would be able to address the situation logically.
She did not fail her. After the initial shock, Professor Ravenclaw immediately set to questioning Ethel. What was her name? ('Ethel Logan, Miss.') How old was she? ('Twenny, Miss.') Had she done magic before? ('No, Miss, they never let us, Miss') How did she feel about attending Hogwarts? ('Oh, if I could, Miss!')
'Well?' demanded Aurelia, after Professor Ravenclaw concluded the interview.
'I shall have to talk to Godric about this,' said Professor Ravenclaw, staring at Ethel intently. Ethel looked dismayed. Biting her lip, the girl stared back bravely into Professor Ravenclaw's eyes.
'Please, let me stay. I do not wish to return to - to -'
Aurelia, however, being used to years of Professor Ravenclaw's cryptic talk, had understood Professor Ravenclaw's meaning. She put a comforting hand on Ethel's shoulder.
'She only means that Professor Gryffindor might want you in his House,' she assured. 'Is that not right, Professor?'
'Yes, Aurelia. I apologise, Miss Logan. I realise my speech is, at times, misleading. You will have to come with me, and we shall find Professor Gryffindor together. No, Aurelia -' this to Aurelia who had made to follow them '- stay here, please. I would like to speak to you when I return.'
Glumly, Aurelia remained behind. She had no doubt about what Professor Ravenclaw wanted to talk about. Sure enough, fifteen minutes later, the professor returned, alone.
'You will be pleased to know that Miss Logan is now part of Gryffindor House,' said Professor Ravenclaw upon returning. 'Well, once we four Professors have cleared the official administration work, anyway.' She sighed heavily. 'Salazar will be a problem - and so may the Bannings. And I believe that you have something to say about them?'
Aurelia kept silent, staring into the flames dancing in Professor Ravenclaw's fireplace.
'Aurelia,' said Professor Ravenclaw gently. 'There is a reason why you are here instead of with Kièran and his family.'
'They hate me,' Aurelia said finally. 'They hate me for what I am. I told them and immediately they just.' her voice trailed off bitterly.
'Aurelia -'
'Even Kière!' she burst out. 'Kière was ashamed of what I am too. He did not want his parents to know - and I thought he did not believe in this prejudice!'
'Aurelia, this is going to be difficult for you to accept.' Professor Ravenclaw raised her voice slightly. 'But be reasonable. Some people are not going to change their mindsets. There will always be people like Kière's parents that are obsessed with bloodline. Accept that, and ignore them -'
'They wrote to you, did they not?' accused Aurelia suddenly. 'And you wrote back.'
'I did,' said Professor Ravenclaw evenly.
'They wanted to know if I was Muggle-born.' It was a statement. Aurelia was sure they had.
'Yes.'
'You must have told them I was not! So you believe there is something shameful about me too?' Aurelia's voice rose steadily.
'Calm yourself, Aurelia! No, I did not lie. I merely stated that you were an accomplished and talented young witch whose company they should be pleased to enjoy. The matter of blood is trivial. It seems that you, too, are putting too much emphasis on it at the moment.'
'There is!' Aurelia rose and bolted out of the room. Professor Ravenclaw sighed heavily, but wisely chose to let the girl alone for the moment.
Outside, Aurelia headed straight for the Astronomy Tower. It was freezing there, being mid-winter, but she cared not.
She had wanted Professor Ravenclaw to reassure her. Comfort her, as though she was a young child once again. She wanted someone to tell her that her Muggle heritage was no shame. But in her heart, she knew it was true.
The witch hunter. Burnt at the stake.
Shuddering, she repressed the memories. But they lingered, and served only to prove a point. Perhaps everyone was right. Muggles were evil, indeed. And she, borne of Muggles, was tainted with their blood.
~
Ethel was approved by all four Professors (though grudgingly, by Professor Slytherin), and became a welcomed member of Professor Gryffindor's House. The Professors had agreed to spend the Christmas break tutoring her, to bring her up to first-year standard, at least. Any twenty-year-old should have been embarrassed by the prospect of attending classes with students half their age, but Ethel, delighted at a chance to learn magic, and never complained.
Aurelia envied Ethel. The older girl never seemed to worry about her 'tainted blood' anymore, and threw herself wholeheartedly into her studies. She eagerly and bravely accepted the unexpected changes in her life. She was also busy, from morning to night, with assignments that the Professors had set her. Adding in the fact that the girls were in different Houses, it was not surprising that they rarely had the chance to chat.
Aurelia wished that she, too, was busy. The holiday seemed to stretch endlessly before her, with nothing more to do besides think. She had finished her work, and probably could not have done any, even if she had not. She was stuck in the quagmire of perpetual depression.
Worse still, she was plagued by nightmares. They involved Muggles - cruel, taunting Muggles. Always she was tied to the stake, the witch hunter advancing with the fiery stick in hand. The world went up in flames, and the last thing she saw before awakening were the dark, haunted eyes of a young man. They were familiar eyes, but she could not place them. She awoke with an overwhelming of sadness and loss.
~
Christmas was coming. In the Hall, an enormous tree had been erected. On Christmas morning, all those remaining in the castle - mostly the Muggle- borns - would celebrate together, in the Hall. Aurelia did not feel much like celebrating, but wisely kept her peace.
Ethel was a different matter. She could not stop chattering about it. This was the first Christmas that the girl would be spending with friends, and she could not thank Aurelia enough. The constant chatter would probably have been irritating, had Aurelia not been relieved to have it as a distraction from her darker thoughts. She had told no one about her nightmares, not even Professor Ravenclaw. The truth was, she was ashamed of her outburst that day in Professor Ravenclaw's office, but it did not change the way she felt.
Her logical mind told her that there should be no distinction between pure- bloods and Muggle-borns, but something else in her argued. She was tired of this contradiction in her brain. She wanted to return to a time when blood did not matter. When she and Kière had talked and laughed without a care except their schoolwork. Although she would never admit it, she missed him.
How could she have burst out like that - rash, quick to jump to conclusions.how she must have let Professor Ravenclaw down - she was supposed to think logically, stay calm and cool.yet she had lost her head. And lost a friend.
Therefore, it was with a heavy heart that she fell asleep on Christmas Eve.
~
'The witch must die.' The crowd jeered at her, as she was bound tightly to the stake. She wanted to scream, but she had no voice left.
She was being engulfed in flame. But they were not hot.
Cold. Freezing cold. Cold like she had never known before. She could barely breathe - the chill was cramping her lungs.
A wave of despair washed upon her. She could hear the jeers of the crowd, and the witch-hunter's evil cackle.
'Burn, witch, burn!' they were chanting. 'Burn the evil witch!'
But she was not burning.
'Mudblood,' hissed the witch-hunter suddenly.
She was going to freeze. The cold was burning her up.
A hooded figure stood before her, hissing. Scaly arms shot out of its robes and grabbed her face. Slowly, it lowered its face to hers and removed its hood.
A girl was screaming, somewhere far away.
She was falling.falling.
~
She awoke with a jerk. The room was all misty and out of focus. She sat up tentatively - something was calling her. A faraway voice.
'Come,' it said. Without a second thought, she complied. Her feet knew the way. They carried her out of the dormitory, through the common room, down the dark corridors automatically. It felt like walking through a cloud - she was floating on air.
She did not know how long she walked. Her feet only halted before a door, beyond which she could hear two irate voices. Unhesitatingly, she reached out her hand and pushed open the door. In she stepped.
Two masked wizards were arguing. She was unnoticed.as though she was invisible.or was she?
'T'is not so easy to keep the creature under control,' whined one wizard. 'Especially as I cannot speak pars -'
'I do not want your excuses,' snapped the other. 'The fact remains that it got loose and wreaked havoc. However, your mistake may still prove useful. Merlin is dead and now I remain the only one with the knowledge.'
'The knowledge?'
The wizard did not answer. He turned to her - he had noticed, after all.
'Why not join us, my dear?'
'Who is this?' demanded the other sulkily.
'Ah, Herpo,' said the wizard silkily. 'Please meet my new assistant. She will be extremely important to my work, with her powers.'
Herpo snorted. 'A mere girl! Powers? Do you plan to have her charm the -'
'Hold your peace, Herpo! Yes. I admit - a child. Worse still, Mudblood filth.' He snarled at her, and she recoiled in fear. Why could she not run? Her legs were rooted to the ground.
'But,' he continued, 'a very valuable Mudblood child, if you will believe. This one here is a Seer. And no less than Merlin has proclaimed her powers stronger than his one.'
She had to go, now. Why was she fixed in place? Her heart was panicking, fluttering away in her chest, but for some unimaginable reason, her mind was calm.
'You appear skeptical, Herpo. Well, I do not care. I need not your opinion nor your consent. I only want my Basilisk. The sooner the better. Things will be going fast from now. Go, now.'
Herpo stalked out, muttering under his breath. The authoritative wizard now turned his attention to her.
'Ah.my dear Mudblood.' he began.
'Who are you?' she forced her voice to ask, with great effort.
There was a pause. The wizard was staring at her, she could tell, even though his mask remained in place. He seemed.surprised.although she couldn't be sure.
'Who I am matters not,' he said finally. 'But who you are does. You will do great things. Great things for Wizardkind. Ah yes - you shall help write history!'
Great things.
And she knew no more.