Chapter #4 – Rauthuell's Knowledge

An elated grin crossed Tom's face. "Of course I want to go see him."

"Alright then." Gregos stood but the oldest of the group, the one that had grown up with Grindelwald, caught his arm. "Vhot?"

"You know dat Rauthuell doesn't like you."

"So?"

"So?! Are you sure it is vise to take young Riddle to see him?"

"He vos part of the Elite Seiben, Josef. He vould vont to see Tom at least, vouldn't he?"

Josef tilted his head in a sort of nod. "Dat is true."

"Und he vouldn't attack anyvay. He only threatens."

"Be it on your head if anyding happens, dough." Soren smiled as they made to leave the tavern. "But you are right. He hasn't killed or maimed anyone lately."

The young man swallowed hard. "Killed? Maimed?"

"Ja. He used to haff a bad temper." Gregos began leading him from the tavern. "After vhot happened to Grindelvald, though, he seems to haff calmed down considerably, but he's also keeping to himself more than usual."

Tom blinked as he stepped out into the bright morning sunlight. "So why doesn't he like you?"

"Ve…uh…vell, ve had a small incident vhen I…er…"

"You stole something of his, didn't you," Tom asked with a smirk.

"It vos only some herbs. Und he lives in the middle of the forest. How vos I to know that I vos on his property?"

"And what is the Elite Seiben?"

"Ah, ja, I keep forgetting you don't know about some things. Vell, they vere a group started by Grindelvald, but now all but two of them are dead or powerless. There vere seven of them, including Grindelvald. They vere all friends from Durmstrang. Originally they vent about trying to purify to vizarding race in northern Europe, but they vere faced with many difficulties. Two vere killed the first year. Those that remained fought against the admittance of Mudbloods into some of the more prominent schools of vitchcraft in Europe, but it did not vork vell. In the end, Grindelvald vent about carrying out his plan to force the prohibition of Mudbloods in our schools. But he did not succeed there either. Now all but Rauthuell are gone. But at least ve all know Durmstrang is safe. A new headmaster vos appointed two years ago und he's not going to admit any Mudbloods to his school."

"Grindelwald was quite adamant against Mudbloods then?"

"He vos against all those vith non-pure blood."

Tom froze. Grindelwald had been against halfbloods too? Then why had he been so keen to teach him? He had told the Dark wizard a couple of times about his being a halfblood. Granted, he had also told him of the situation he had grown up in, and how much he hated Muggles. Had Grindelwald liked him that much that he could overlook Tom's impurity? Or could it have simply been the fact that he had told Grindelwald about who his ancestor was? Did he perhaps have a respect for Salazar Slytherin? Or was it something else? He would probably never know, though he wished he could find out somehow.

"Tom!" Lena came running over to him. It seemed strange for her not to have a bag of goods swinging from her arm. "Where are you going? Have you finished talking with them already?"

"I am taking him to see Rauthuell."

The young witch looked at Gregos slightly shocked. "Rauthuell? Rauthuell Geist?"

"You know him then?"

"He's a friend of my father's. I didn't know he lived in town. I'd have gone to see him."

"He doesn't live in town. He lives out in the forest vhere he can be alone."

"Ah, I see." Lena smiled at Tom hopefully. "Could I go with you? I rarely get to see him and I really rather like him."

"You can come if you want to," Gregos said.

Still smiling, she turned towards the shop she had just left and waved to the Macnairs. "I'll see you later this evening."

"Very vell, Miss Vestbrook," called Mrs. Macnair, waving back.

Lena seemed in the highest of spirits she had been in since graduation. She took Tom's arm and walked with them, a smile on her face. Tom watched her, slightly fascinated by the way she was acting. Was this really just because they were going to see this Rauthuell?

"What's so great about this Rauthuell that you want to see him so badly?"

There was a sly, knowing smile on her face. "You'll see."

As the three of them ventured out into the forest towards the house that Rauthuell lived in, Gregos told them about certain things about the forest and the area. He explained about the giants that lived in the area, suggesting they stay away from them as that they were rather violent and nearly invulnerable to magic. He warned them to stay clear of a certain hillock, where resided a large group of huldrafolk, nasty creatures that cursed any human that ventured too close to their home. He also mentioned some nokkes that had come into the area a few years previous from Sweden that had caused many wizards to become lost seeking out the source of the lovely song they produced.

After about an hour of walking, they could see a house emerge from the thick of trees. Tom could understand why Gregos had not known where Rauthuell's property ended and the forest began for there was no wall around the stone building. A stream of smoke was rising steadily from the chimney. For the most part, it looked rather inviting with its rather warm look to it, but Gregos was trembling just a bit.

"Vell, this is it, then."

Determinedly, he walked towards the front door but it opened before he reached it. He froze three feet from the door, staring at it. Tom stopped behind him, Lena still hold his arm. She seemed more excited than puzzled though. The three of them looked at the doorway for a while, not moving.

"If you are going to come in, come in! I am not going to leave it open all day!"

The voice only held a hint of Germanic accent, and it actually surprised Tom that the man spoke in English. Most of the time he had heard people speaking in German or Danish unless it was for him to hear specifically. Did this person know that two of the people there did not know much of either language?

Shaking slightly, Gregos stepped over the threshold with Tom and Lena close behind him. When Tom entered, his senses were completely overwhelmed. Different colors were everywhere, coming from book covers, jars of potions ingredients, and magical devices. The scent of hundreds of herbs engulfed him, making him go into a slight sneezing fit. Devices were whirring and clicking all around. The very air held a strange, vibrating quality to it. All in all, it was perfect to make one of his horrible headaches start to develop. But his determination to meet Rauthuell would defeat any pain at the moment.

Lena too was rather overwhelmed by the room, but it was mainly from the heavy perfume from the herbs and oil. She was feeling horribly lightheaded, but she, like Tom, wanted to see Rauthuell more than anything. She would not let a little thing like feeling a little queasy stop her from seeing him.

"So what is it this time, Gregos?" The man speaking was half hidden behind an elaborate set of glass beakers, vials, and spiraling tubes. His hair was horribly greasy, which made it look black, though Tom was sure that was not its true color. His dark brown eyes were narrowed, concentrating on the mixture he was making. "And who are these Brits you have brought with you?"

"Vell, um, I haff brought young Tom Riddle to see…"

"I remember him from Korbin's party last Yuletide." He added a drop of green liquid to the vial he was holding, not looking away from it. "What is he here for?"

"Vell, you know he vos supposed to be Grindelvald's apprentice…"

"Perhaps." He watched the pale yellow liquid in the vial turn garnet. "Why is he here? I am not Grindelwald."

"Ve vere thinking…"

The wizard turned to them, his eyes blazing. "You were thinking, Gregos? That is certainly a first."

The wizard that had brought Tom was taken aback. "I…vell, I…"

Rauthuell's eyes fell over Lena and he set down the vial, emerging from behind the table with his elaborate potions equipment on it. His black robes looked heavily worn and stained, with even a few holes it seemed, possibly from acids and poisons. "Miss Westbrook, my dear, how are you?"

"I am well," she said a little timidly.

The Dark wizard took her hands, kissing them both, his face beaming. "As radiant in the summer as in the winter. My word, what a woman you have become."

Lena blushed nearly as red as the mixture he had just made. "Why thank you."

Tom, on the other hand, was going red for another reason. He did not like being ignored or being treated like he was unworthy of anything. He was just as worthy as Lena to have attention given him, if not more so in this situation.

"This young man here," he glanced at Tom then focused his attention fully back onto her, "he is your lover, correct?"

The young woman suddenly realized how Tom had to be feeling when she glanced at his red face, and she really wanted to give the attention she was getting to him. He was the real reason they were there after all. "In a way, yes, he is."

"And do you think him worthy to be an apprentice to the last of the Elite Sieben?"

"I don't see why not. He was to be Grindelwald's pupil…after all."

"Hmm." The man turned to Tom, studying him more closely. "That is true. And he always spoke so highly of you. Gave you a copy of his grimoire, didn't he. That's a rare treat."

"Yes, and I found it quite interesting. The things that he taught me by giving that to me were quite the gift."

"But he is with us no more, all because of one of your teachers from that school you came from that is overrun with Mudbloods."

"A problem I will hopefully diminish in the future," Tom said, a slightly evil smirk on his face.

"Oh, and you think that you will be the one to cleanse your school, hm?"

"I do hope that it shall be. I know of no one else that plans to do so."

Rauthuell had a smile cross his face. There was something in his dark brown eyes that suddenly seemed to brighten to Tom. "Grindelwald was so right about you. You would have been a great member of our group, had you been with us at Durmstrang all those years ago. Because of that, and because Grindelwald would have wanted me to, I will teach you, young Mr. Riddle."

The headache that had been developing from the heavily perfumed air suddenly vanished in the rush of joy that flooded him. "Thank you!"

"There is no thanks needed, but I insist you being your lessons immediately. I expect hard work out of you." He headed back to the potion he had been working on. "There is room in the loft for you and Miss Westbrook to stay. I would suggest you retrieving anything you need from town and returning here as soon as you can."

It took no time for Tom and Lena to return to the tavern and collect their things. Lena had to run and tell the Macnairs that she would not be accompanying them any more, and to thank them for their bringing them there. Tom sat down to have one last conversation with Soren's group, which was still sitting downstairs at the tavern. After about an hour, he headed back to Rauthuell's home, ready to begin his learning.

Tom had thought, that after seeing Rauthuell working with potions, that his new teacher would be increasing his knowledge of such mixtures, but he could not be more incorrect. Rauthuell was actually a master at transfiguration. This did not bode well with Tom at first, having the memory of Dumbledore still fresh in his mind, but his new teacher was far from being what Dumbledore had been.

Aside from being an eagle animagus, which took a great talent at transfiguration in the first place, Rauthuell was also great at other human transformations, which was the main thing he was going to be teaching Tom, and which would take a long time to learn properly. Tom knew that these lessons would prove useful, and he was actually enjoying practicing transfiguration for once.

Lessons went nearly all day, giving Tom little time to study any other type of magic. But finally getting some excellent practice in with transfiguration, actually learning things that were useful for a change, was well worth not doing anything else. He started making excellent progress in the first few months, which only made Rauthuell push him harder.

And with all the lessons and the often times very stuffy rooms filled with the scents of brewing potions, Tom's headaches came back full force. He had managed to not have any while he was at Lena's home, but he really had not been doing much when he had been there. Most of the time he just had to grit his teeth and continue with the lesson Rauthuell was giving him, for once his teacher started a lesson, he did not give Tom a break except to relieve himself.

The only time Tom got any breaks was when his teacher went to the village, though Tom usually went with him. He would often return to the tavern to talk to Soren and Gregos about the latest news or revisit the old topics. They would especially discuss the "rights" of purebloods and how all over the world it seemed that Mudbloods were taking over. He often met new people, people that Tom thought were even more heavily into the Dark Arts than the men he sat around the table with so often. Sometimes Rauthuell would join in these conversations, but it was far more common for him to go to purchase the things he needed then come to fetch Tom when he had finished.

One topic they only mentioned a few times, and that sprang up just over a month after Tom arrived there, was the end of the Muggle's war in the East with the help of some horrible creation of theirs that leveled two cities and killed tens of thousands. It was apparently called an "atomic bomb" but few wizards understood much about it. One of Tom's companions, Josef, said that it was only proof of Muggles' need for control, for their "science" was getting too much out of hand. One of the times this was discussed, Tom's mind wandered into how he could be the one that controlled the Muggles, but it was pretty much a fleeting thought.

Overall, the time he would have been spending with Grindelwald was still being very well used. Slowly the first year of his learning under Rauthuell drifted by, and he had learned things that he would have never have learned from Dumbledore's classes, things that only those that did not fear using more "questionable" methods of magic would do. His teacher was rather impressed with his desire to learn these things, and gladly taught him everything he knew. But Rauthuell knew that his knowledge of such things was only so extensive and there would be a time when his teaching this wonderful pupil would have to end. Until then, though, he would not let Tom rest a single day, for he had a growing desire to make Tom into another Grindelwald so the magical world would finally be cleansed.

*********

To my reviewers –

Aurdomiel, Ravenstar – what was it with the whole purse thing? Lena's a horrible shopaholic! So, to prove to Tom that she wasn't going to spend any money, she gave him her purse so she had no money on her…and I offered you that compromise the first day we had the argument over James, my dear, and you shunted me…:-P You ramble too much…and I did update on a Tuesday, just not LAST Tuesday…:-P :-P

Liv – no, as I said last chapter, I couldn't get all I wanted to get covered done in 10 chapters…heck, I don't even have Tom leaving Europe until after chapter 10 and he does a LOT of traveling around, you know…and I should be posting once a week until I get finished with writing all of this part…I do always like to have lots of chapters written to fall back on if I get writer's block and I'm currently working jointly on chapters 16 and 17…so if I do start posting more than one chapter a week, it's because I've gotten finished with the second part (or am nearly done)…

lord archimonde – more Icelandic, eh? Tried to translate it again and failed miserably again…*sigh*…oh well…and if this chapter wasn't long enough for you, then I'll be shocked…this is the longest chapter I've gotten written so far I believe and this is over 5 pages (2500 words) long…

Lady Mandara Snake - ^_^ glad you're liking it so much, hope you continue to enjoy…

(insert name here) – still anonymous, eh? You'd like to read the one shot? Okay…I might put it up, though it needs a bit of reworking now that I have other ideas for my story too, so I'll get to editing that and try to get it up next week the same time I update this story…I'll be sure to tell you the title and all when it's up. Magic is not really "good" or "bad", per say…though certain ones, like the Killing Curse {and curses typically in general} are bad…it is more the intent behind it…the energy is neutral until you use it…but, magic is magic, that's one of the things Tom learns later on. And, like you said about Dumbledore, yes, that much perfection would have to be an act…I think there's something Darker about him that he's not letting on to very much (i.e. – the twinkle in his eye over Voldemort's return and his "persuading" Kreacher {the way Rowling said that just doesn't set well with me and made me start thinking more about him in general})…and as for reconciling the two "parts" of Albus? Well, you'll just have to keep reading to find out because that's part of the later plot development…^_~

RivanKnight – "so that's the reason"??? *blinks* Um, never mind…and, yes, things ARE looking up for Tom for the moment…but things can't always be peachy…things start changing a bit in the upcoming chapters…