Guys... Your responses to last chapter got me so psyched up, truly. Thank you for the feedback! (And I mean you who followed and favorited as well, its nice to know you want to see this story unfolding as much as I do)
AlsethGosia, how in denial do you think Bellatrix is going to get? hahah Her reaction during class will be a closely guarded secret - you'll see why though ;) - She certainly will have a new theory about her professor. I think I'll make a game out of how many mirabolant theories she can come up with until the end of the fic. Oh, I'm glad to know that my vision of Andie made sense to you, it's something that may sound clichée, but I've seen how it can afect relationships and I thought that it could apply to her background. Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I don't really have a schedule, sorry about that. I hope you don't mind being hit out of the blue with a chapter! I hope you enjoy this one as well XD
Wrt-Elo, Thank you! I wrote and re-wrote that so many times I'm glad to know it worked! Here is another chapter with another lesson... Not as elaborate, but I'm hoping it will give the same feels.
Ducky831, here it is! Bella's reaction will be... You'll see, won't you? hahah Thank you for the kind review.
Guest, Yeah, sucks to be Andie. :/ Let's hope she manages to convince Bella that she's being unreasonable!
Chapter XII - Know thy enemy.
...Okay... What the fuck?!
Bellatrix stared at the common room's entrance, waiting to see if Andie was going to turn around and grab the plate she left at least.
She didn't.
And she sat staring at the place her sister just walked through with a stricken expression on her face. Why did she get so offended?!
If Andie forgot what their father taught them years ago, that's just because she didn't revisit at a later date. Bellatrix forgets things all the time too, which is why she keeps revising. I'm constantly teaching her things... Now suddenly the mudblood is the one who's the best teacher ever?
A low whistle made her look behind, then immediately groan. The idiot smiling at her smugly spurred her into action. One wordless diffindo in Rodolphus' direction was all the warning she would give to leave her alone.
She got up, vanished both hers and Andie's plate laying in the coffee table, grabbed her things and made her way out. She wasn't in the mood to waste her precious time and brain cells to come up with new offences for that idiot. His smile giving way to a painful expression as the spell hit the waist of his pants, cutting a bit more than fabric, should be enough to quench her building frustration.
It's not like I wanted to offend her! So why must my words hurt without the intention to? Her fast pace matched her emotions running rampant. That's why magic is the only thing that makes sense in the world. No intent, no harm done.
A small part of her also resented her sister for assuming the worst. As if Bella didn't help her whenever she asked. That wouldn't have happened if she took my words for what they were instead of finding hidden meanings in them.
There was a familiar pressure between her eyes that made her feel angry at herself.
- Oh, so you're going to cry now? Of course, you're going to cry, you're a girl! Such a weakling thing to do, that's your emotional response to everything. You can't help it. Cry, you weak little thing. Cry. That's right, you weak girl.
- Oh... Am I upsetting you? You don't like being called weak? But you're showing weakness. Your enemies won't take pity on you if they know that you're affected by them...
- Occlude, my warrior. Show me that you can fight your weak body responses. I don't want to see you crying ever again, do you understand? You have to be strong.
With a deep breath, she pushed the hurt she felt to a dark, untouched corner of her mind. Never to be addressed again.
If I say that the mudblood is a waste of space, it does not reflect your capabilities! She wished she had thought of saying that. Andie doesn't understand that their father does what he does to push them to be the best! He wouldn't be a good father if he didn't believe in their potential to overcome challenges and become the greatest witches they could be. If only she wasn't so damn insecure, she'd understand that!
That's why their father drills them all the time. It's not manipulation! Andie's trust issue impairs her progress with his training. But Bella knows, if her sister just accepted the guidance instead of fighting his instructions all the way through, she'd be as strong and remarkable as herself. We are superior beings; insecurity is a weakness reserved for people who don't have our great power. We should prey on it! Not fall victim to it.
Her feet were taking the familiar path to the library. Folks were smart to stay away from her line of sight as she breezed past them, they know she wouldn't hesitate to jinx a fool who dared step in her way.
- Every time you succeed, you honor the blood running through your veins. Do not fail. You were born to excel.
If her sisters were being so self-absorbed it was no use trying to go after them. Let Narcisa waste her time with Malfoy, let Andromeda feel sorry for herself, she had more important things to do. Like preparing for NEWTS. Eleven fucking NEWTS.
If she knew that she'd end up married anyway, there was no way she'd take more than six. That extra pressure made her regret the decision to take so many courses.
- Perfect! That's the Black blood in you, my warrior!
...Alright, she'd only drop Divinations and Care of magical creatures.
Those two were just for show and freeing her schedule from having to do homework for those classes would have given her more time to focus on more important things. Hindsight is such a bitch.
It was just day two, but she already felt exhausted. Homework was threatening to pile up on her, and that's because she was doing everything as soon as it was delivered. Imagine if I were a lazy idiot like Rodolphus who left things for last minute?
Waking up five in the morning every day to revise what she learned, do the homework she didn't manage the day before, and read ahead - if there was time left before she missed breakfast entirely - was going to be a tiresome routine.
Her lovely husband-to-be wouldn't last a day in her position.
Turns out that her fast pace also helped to burn the rest of her frustration and clear her thoughts. Once she finally sat down on the table, closest to the restricted section of the library, Bellatrix could think past the haze of anger that clouded her mind.
Now she looked back at the whole argument with Andie and realized that she shouldn't judge too harshly. After all, even with her father's warnings and against her own better judgement, she almost fell for the mudblood's act.
It is a very good one, in fact. She could almost admire - if she didn't utterly despise it - the amount of effort that must go into pretending to be powerful. She must be exhausted at the end of the day, pulling wandless magic like that. And to do that every day, that's what Bellatrix calls dedication. She had to relent, there was no way to blame Andie for believing her, no.
- This is our power. The mudbloods and blood diluted Half-Bastards can never compare to us, remind them of that...
But she could resent the spy that dared yield magic 'effortlessly', speaking with confidence and such a commanding attitude, as if she was entitled to it. That lesser being, so beneath us, acting as if she is a pure-blooded witch. Fooling my insecure little sister into believing that mudbloods are anywhere near us in power and potential. She could be competent, but it still didn't make her powerful.
Bellatrix had to find a way to unmask that spy, show her for the great charlatan she is. Unfortunately, until she came up with a good plan, Andie would just have to wait and see. No one can push past their limits for too long. All Bellatrix had to do was to stay alert, to catch all the inconsistencies in her act.
She pulled out three parchments, one for taking notes, one to organize her thoughts and write down what she understood, and another for the finished work. Maybe I should apologize... She put the inkwell in a position where her arm wouldn't accidentally spill over. Sure, it was Andie who got it all wrong, but that's her insecurity speaking. I know she didn't mean to hurt me, either. She rolled the quill between her fingers, as she pondered what could have made her sister react the way she did. I don't know what in my words made her feel as though I was offending her... It's like the distrust she feels towards father fell on me too. I don't like that at all...
Bellatrix shook her head to send all her thoughts away, she would have to worry about it all later, since there's a lot to do at that moment.
Thankfully, on Wednesdays, she had Ancient Runes before lunch, and Arithmancy after. Which was just what she needed to keep her brain awake. This year they were learning the advanced matter of mixing Arithmancy with Charms to dissect, understand the meaning, and create some runes, or counter existing ones. It kickstarted her interest to dive further into her studies, with better focus.
Arithmancy was one of her favourite subjects at Hogwarts, especially when she managed to get the calculation right, it made her feel like a genius. Mix that with charms, and you get Bellatrix completely invested in the subject.
It was easier to dedicate herself to the things she loved, so it didn't feel like a drag to answer, 'what's the importance of correct rune interpretation'?
Well... Grabbing her parchment dedicated to organizing thoughts, she wrote what she already knew in it.
- If a wizard, who build a cold blasting trap rune (that happens to use the same numbers, letters, and traces as the paralysis one) disguise its intended function with another rune that masks the effects of the trap - intricately intertwined in a way that there's no way to disable the mask without activating the trap - They will render revealing spells to show the intent of the rune useless. The person who depends on revealing spells will be stuck, because without the how, there's no counter.
- The correct interpretation of runes equals understanding the intent.
- In a situation like that, it is important to make the right calculations, because the same numbers, letters, and traces could represent dozens of other spells. However, even if the elements used are the same, there's always a difference in the result that must be taken into account. Knowing the meaning of the different results is what will save the life of the one trying to counter it, since it reveals intent even if the revealing charm fails to show the purpose of it. A good curse-breaker is specialized in this, they won't depend on revealing spells to recognize the effects of the curse.
Later she'd have time to organize it and write a more refined answer. Right now, she had to properly learn how to actually recognize different results reached with same elements. No rune is the same, the slightest details made all the difference, and that's something she found extremely exciting!
If only I didn't have D.A.D.A. homework... It was the only assignment she didn't deem worthy of doing immediately after she received, considering how easy it was, but now she regrets not having all the time she wanted to just dive into Ancient Runes. If I knew that her class would be so useless, I'd have dropped the matter as well.
She glared at the disgusting D.A.D.A. book she'd have to consult later to see if she remembered correctly the curses and counters listed in it, or if she was adding from the curses she knew. To think that a charlatan postured like she is in any way more knowledgeable than Bellatrix herself...
Ancient Runes. I still have some minutes left to take some notes... The book is waiting for me right there. A very nice diagram to pull apart, and put together again, calculations to be made, spells to be put to paper... Bellatrix stored away every thought unrelated to what she was calling to the forefront of her mind, focusing intently on her objectives.
Such a useful tool, Occlusion.
Once she opened her eyes again, the book was the only thing she could see, and think about. The distinct lack of distracting emotions cleared her mind to absorb the knowledge she needed.
The rest of her lunch break was spent doing homework with a focus that could make a monk envious.
Arithmancy served to lift Bellatrix' spirits once more. Nothing like being ahead of the class to make her feel like the superior witch she is. She didn't even have homework to do because she finished it during class.
Not even a cocky mudblood would manage to bring her mood down. But I could do without having to stare at her in the last class of the day. She rolled her eyes, doing her best to ignore the professor that raised head to check who entered the room. Again.
Does anyone besides me spend their breaks inside classrooms? Really? I'd like to meet them.
She felt those eyes following her as she prepared to take her seat. What are you looking at? I'll deliver my homework when the rest of the fools arrive.
Bellatrix could feel something, as she sat down. It wasn't the intensity of that stare, although it was slightly disconcerting. No, it wasn't that.
She yawned, and as soon as she felt like she was too exhausted to function, she got up. There was a trace of magic in her chair. She's sure of it. This feeling of being drained is not natural... Pointing her wand at the chair, she murmured softly the revealing incantation.
Is that... runework for a drowsy spell? Really? She looked up and glared at the professor, who had the gall to smile at her. A happy grin that had no place being directed at Bellatrix as if they knew one another.
Without looking at the chair again, she wordlessly cast a finite, and sat on it. This was a stare down she intended to win again. She made sure to have a very serious expression on her face, trying to discourage that sunshine and rainbows attitude.
So, she'd get the students too tired to pay attention. Is this another part of her plan to get into their minds? Bellatrix tried to ignore the part of her that insisted in being impressed by it. No, It's not clever. It's not impressive.
...It's just my favourite aspect of rune works.
That mudblood broke down a spell to its numerology meaning and applied in that rune through arithmancy. Bloody brilliant. She conceded, grinding her teeth. Hating the fact that this charlatan was showing more magical prowess than her. I'm just learning about it, and she already created a rune of her own! I can't believe I'm behind a mudblood in knowledge...
No. It can't have been her. Dumbledore must have created, she just applied... That's it.
"Ten Points to Slytherin. Good work with the curse revealing spell! Don't warn the others, though. It's a test of Constant Vigilance." She winked and smiled sideways in that 'I have an inner joke' manner it did bothersome things to Bellatrix' chest.
Of course, you'll be dishing out points. Your class is so ridiculously basi- She cut herself off, when Andie's hurt expression came to mind.
Looking away and promptly ignoring that ridiculous professor, she pulled out her book on Arithmancy to read ahead, doing her best to ignore the guilt building in her chest. It's not my fault Andie is so sensitive.
The professor didn't speak again. It accentuated the blissful silence Bellatrix loved so much, but somehow it made her presence even more pronounced. Bellatrix had the feeling that it would be easier to ignore her if she was trying to make conversation. She rolled her eyes. Ms. Mud is so effortlessly annoying! How is that even possible?
Her eyes left the first page of chapter three, to sneak a peek. Hating how the first thing she noticed was that the serious expression on her face was striking. I could almost take her seriously if she looked like that instead of a grinning fool.
She looked down again, trying to ignore the curiosity that kept prompting her to look up again. I won't look up. Who cares what she is doing?
Professor Grey was writing down in a muggle notebook. With that muggle pen. Fiddling with the pen's cap on her left hand. The small black piece of plastic rotating around her fingers was strangely hypnotizing... Seriously? Would it hurt to use a parchment? A proper quill? I know muggleborns are inept at wizarding things, but she is on a whole other level...
When the professor got up to face the board, Bellatrix' eyes followed the movement. The woman held the chalk between her index and middle finger, tapping distractedly against her thumb, which was just behind her back... I'm looking for wandless magic... Wandless. Magic. When she started to write on the board by hand, the smirk on her face was reflexive. Too tired to cast spells, Muddie?
The smiled died down when Ms. Mud's free hand went to rest on her back pocket, and her eyes followed the motion. I'm going to kill Rodolphus...
Know your enemy
Precaution: Never take action before knowing what to expect, be one step ahead of your foes.
Self-awareness: Your worst enemy can be yourself.
Continuous Improvement: They will always find new ways to kill you. Never assume you're at your best, never stop training. There's always room for improvement.
Hermione stepped away from the board and stared at it for a moment. She ran the lesson through her mind and tried to imagine what would be the most confusing concept, staring at the letters as if they would give her an insight of her students' reactions. She went back to playing with the chalk, mindlessly.
"Precaution... That's even more obvious than protego is important." Bellatrix said humorously.
Hermione refused to fall to the bait. She smiled to herself, knowing the purpose of the lesson, and why she had to approach those topics. "I am teaching Gryffindors, aren't I?" I'm proud of our bravery, but damn if we aren't reckless.
When she turned around, she was surprised by the smile on the other girl's face. "You're right, how could I forget? Acting first, dying second, and thinking after is kind of their thing."
It was a real wonder, to stare into those half-lidded eyes and see the clear amusement lacking evil intent. Amused and non-malicious Bellatrix was another sight Hermione thought she'd never get to see directed at her.
"Feeling better?" She asked, testing her luck to see if the girl would actually open up to her.
But it seemed as though Hermione asked the wrong question, because the young witch frowned, then she cleared her face of all emotions. A nod was all the answer she received in response. Oh... she's occluding! She already does that?! ...Wait, is that healthy?
A small alarm bell went on Hermione's head as she realized that no, shoving your negative feelings away in an untouched, unreachable box was not the way to deal with it. Didn't the person who taught her occlusion warn her about the dangers of detaching oneself too much from their own emotions?! Whatever it was that made her look so distressed earlier could be triggered by the most random of things, and all the memories she is trying to keep away could come back to haunt her ten times worse...
"Alright... You just... looked really conflicted over there." I wonder what that was about... She usually looks so smug when she wins house-points.
Another nod was all the answer she got, before the girl turned her attention to her book again.
Talk is over, it seems. Hermione sighed and went back to her seat. She had to discuss this with Dumbledore some other time. Now wasn't the time to worry. 1:55 p.m. blinked in front of her, then immediately disappeared with a wave of her hand above the numbers.
I should focus on my things too...
She had a new sort-of-apprentice that needed a lesson plan ready.
- Patronus Practice.
- Wordless incantation.
- Wandwork: The shorter version of the elaborated movements of some spells.
- Chain sequences.
She was excited by the prospect of having an apprentice of her own. No one had ever approached her for that sort of thing.
But then again, she used to be a muggle-studies professor. People usually forgot about her whole transfiguration apprenticeship with Minerva, and unofficial charms apprenticeship with Fillius. For them, she was the perfect example that it was possible to prepare for a life outside the wizarding world if they wanted to.
And, really, why would anyone ask her to teach them anything magical when there were those briliand minds alive to go after? Why did Andie choose me?
Muggleborns only sought her advice about going to university in the muggle world. She gave instructions to follow up on that, set up studying schedules and showed how to use the room of requirements to provide all the material they needed for their studies.
Her cheating with the time-turner was unknown, and since none of them would ever attempt to do two things at the same time, there was no need to discourage those who wanted to 'follow her footsteps'.
The new perspectives they would get with that experience would be enough to bring a fresh view to their stagnated world. She could picture the great changes these professionals would bring to the wizarding world when they came back. Like cogs turning to make the very dusted machine run once more, she believed they would eventually shape this amazing world to what it was supposed to be.
Even some 'pureblood' children seemed curious about it, they didn't follow through due to their deep fear of the muggle world, but it made her hope that they'd be the ones who would push to have access to the same things the muggleborns did. Bring up the importance of more fields of work and research in the wizarding world. She was an optimistic.
Once upon a time, she thought that there was no greater feeling than that: Playing a part in the slow changes their society would go through.
She underestimated her ego, though.
Because it felt amazing to have someone look up to her due to her magical abilities. Fruit of so many years of dedication and hard work...
I have an apprentice... Andromeda Black. My apprentice. This feels surreal...
Looking up to check on the girl's sister, she took notice of her emotionless face. This forced neutrality just seemed... wrong. Occluded, her expression was almost as if she was hypnotized by the book. Her eyes didn't have the sharpness that showed her mind in the works. It lacked the passion Hermione associated with the witch.
She shook her head and looked down, not wanting to get caught staring. Instead, she focused on her task at hand.
Andie had a certain fire in her eyes that led Hermione to believe that there was something deeper in her request to have extra classes. That girl has something to prove... Hermione only wondered if it was always like this, or if her presence here changed things.
As much as Hermione wanted to, she couldn't ask for a person to jump before they learned how to walk. Andie barely began learning about wordless incantations, so she couldn't get ahead of herself and pull the girl down the path of working purely with the raw power of magic. Does Bellatrix already know this kind of things? She looked up briefly, evaluating the girl. Her emotionless face managed to disturb Hermione even more than her maniacal, murderous look.
As if a thought would conjure up that future version of the young witch, Hermione shuddered and looked away. Whatever I do, I have to keep her away from Voldemort.
She went back to making projections about when she would be able to touch the subject of overruling some wand movements with raw willpower and intent. Maybe in a year? It depends on how well she takes to more wordless incantation, and how fast she strengthens her willpower. It made for quicker spellcasting, if dozens of spells could be made with the same wand movement.
It could take her even less than a year. Maybe it was Hermione's excitement speaking, but she couldn't wait to finally share with someone else what she has been practicing nowadays. Someone who isn't Dumbledore, who already knows these things, or the elves who found her weird for trying it out – despite being incredibly helpful with their tips.
So, she'd never get to see what changes the future she left behind would go through, nor what her ambitious students would do with their newfound knowledge and what they'd bring to the magical world... But she'd get to pass all her magical knowledge on to someone. And this is a past that needed changes... If anything, at least Andie will be able to teach Ted to defend himself better.
Hearing the tell-tale of students arriving, she accio-ed her wand and hit the first students that stepped through the door with a wordless expeliarmus "What did I say about having your wands at the ready as soon as you enter my class?"
Yudi Roshimata and Camila Campbell stood in the doorway looking at the professor in shock, and embarrassment. She sent their wands back and motioned them towards their chair. "Come on, stay alert." She very specifically didn't tell them to sit.
...And yet, they did.
She'd do that to Bellatrix, but she hadn't decided if it was fair to start with the attacks if it was supposed to be a break between classes. The battle hadn't technically begun. And there was the fact that the girl noticed something wrong with her chair before she passed out. Hermione decided to consider that enough of a test to be put through before classes, and enough of a win for the girl.
A sort of line was formed at the door. People already knew what to expect, and Hermione did her best to try and test their defence. "Nice work, Mr. Timerpen! Strong protego, wordlessly too! Ten points to Ravenclaw."
He fist-pumped the air on his way in, she sent a leglock in his direction before he had his back fully turned, making him fall forwards with the momentum. "Why did you celebrate, Mr. Timerpen? The battle is not over, you're still in my classroom. Pay attention." He winced and cast the finite on himself to get up and walk towards his table. "Enemies don't play fair, don't look at me like that."
One by one, the students entering the classroom defended her volley of spells. The ones who had weak protegos, she made a point of hitting them twice to see if they'd defend themselves better or be hit. Those who lost their wands received the same instruction she gave to the first duo that entered the class.
She watched with interest Yudi and Camila struggling against the curse she put in their chair. Will they figure it out? They were almost falling asleep, startling themselves with the weight of their heads falling forwards. She shook her head when people around took notice of their weird behaviour, but still sat down without checking for curses around.
She just wanted them to notice what was wrong.
She altered the spell version of drowsiness and applied to runework to make it easy for them to counter. A simple finite would do, as it was normally done if hit directly with the real spell, but none of them seemed to realize that there was something wrong with their seats.
She sighed in disappointment but decided to give them more time to figure it out. She had some minutes to spare.
She slapped her hands loudly, startling the duo who sat first and were falling asleep every second, and calling to attention all the others who were starting to get the same drowsy effects but weren't exhausted enough.
"You look half-dead, people. What's going on?" She asked as if she didn't know exactly what was afflicting them. She walked towards the 'Gryffindor side' and paused across from a very pale looking Molly. "Ms. Prewett, you're looking ill... Do you want to go to the infirmary?"
She bent down a little to look directly into the redhead's eyes. Her future 'ex-mother-in-law' shook her head lazily, with her eyes completely out of focus, she was clearly struggling already to stay awake. "Just... a bit tired..."
"Hmm..." Hermione let her be, walking by her students seeing the different stages of exhaustion on their faces.
The more tired a person is, the quicker the 'curse' makes the intended effect. Which is why she wouldn't start with her lecture. Now she wanted to remind them of the Constant Vigilance aspect of her lessons, they had to understand that danger came from all sides, and that when she said that the classroom was a battlefield, she meant it. When they entered this room, she wanted them to be completely aware and act as if they were entering a very cursed place, ready to be ambushed at any moment.
"Come on people, react. What is it? Too much homework?"
Bellatrix' snort made Hermione smile, feeling like small progress was being made. She couldn't help but spare a glance at the girl - to see the humorous glint in her eyes - while she walked towards Rodolphus, who had his eyebrows almost hitting his hairline in his effort to keep his eyes open. Even then, he kept blinking long and hard. "I know for a fact that Quidditch try-outs haven't happened yet. Why so tired, Rodolphus?" Bellatrix sat right behind him, for the first time it was the young witch who flashed her a knowing smile she found it impossible not to retribute, before returning her focus to the boy struggling against exhaustion.
He took a deep breath and looked at her with a zombified version of his usual charming side smile. "Just..." He quit trying to speak, as if it took him too much energy to even open his mouth. Then he frowned, as if realizing that something was indeed wrong.
She snorted and shook her head "Think, captain. Why are you so tired?"
Francine frowned beside him as well. Their minds were working. Good.
A loud thud made everyone look in the direction of the first duo that entered the classroom. Yudi's head hit the desk, Camila was much too tired to react, she laid a hand on his back, but soon fell beside him with another thud.
"Yudi!" "Camila!" Liam and Molly called their friends, Hermione disarmed and pushed them back on their chairs.
Whispers ensued, but due to their exhaustion, it didn't get very loud.
They looked at Hermione, expecting her to act, clearly worried about their classmate's condition, but when she simply looked at the unconscious duo with mild interest, sending a silent finite to each of their chairs, the remaining students started to get up. Each person who got out of their seat with clear intent to help the duo, were immediately hit by a weak knock back jinx, and expeliarmus. Much like she did to Molly and Liam. If you want to get up, is has to be because you know that there's something wrong with your chair.
She levitated the wands towards her desk, without looking back.
"Why so tired, guys?" She taunted, then sneered at them in a perfect imitation of the terrifying snatchers she had to face in her youth. Just like Harry told her he traumatized his Aurors. She wanted them to realize what was wrong. They had to realize that this tiredness wasn't normal.
Harsh as it was, she was trying to infuse the seriousness of their situation in their minds. They should remember this. The helplessness. She was their enemy, and they entered the classroom unsuspecting of foul play. She didn't expect them all to check before sitting, but she truly believed that after she brought to attention the fact that everyone looked tired at the very same time, they'd come to realize that there was something going on in the classroom. Come on guys, come on...
"Stupefy!" A weak attempt at taking her down came from Francine. Hermione deflected with no effort.
"I liked the initiative." She disarmed the girl, and made her wand fly itself towards her desk to join the others. "So... Any idea what got into all of you?" She stared at Francine for a while, to see if the girl had the answer she wanted. When she did nothing but stare at her lost wand, she turned around to go back to the front of the room.
As she passed by Molly, the girl fell face first on the table. Hermione silently undid the curse on her chair, so she could recover.
"Accio wand!" Francine's wand flew from the table Hermione's and into her hands.
Hermione's eyebrows shot up, and she smiled at the wandless casting that came from the tired Slytherin. She could very well knock her out, but she wanted to see if Francine realized what was wrong. "Finite incantatem!"
It was cute how she first directed the spell towards Rodolphus before doing so for herself. "Nice..." Francine let out a huge sigh of relief, no doubt from the small break from the spell, but soon fell forwards, promptly passing out on the table. If she didn't get away from the source of her exhaustion, that brief respite was useless. Once more, Hermione found herself countering the rune she created. "Nice try."
Rodolphus shook the girl beside him, if it wasn't for her even breathing, he'd think she was dead. "What's going... on?"
"Did you do your homework?"
"Stupefy!"
"Expeliarmus!"
"Depulso!"
Hermione didn't even blink. She batted the curses, away, disarmed them, and sent them a weak knock back spell to get them to sit down again. She was about to wrap it up, and she didn't want the three musketeers that tried to hit her, to realize by luck what she wanted them to know by now. They slumped on the chair, as their wands joined the others on the table.
With her arms crossed, she paid attention to their reactions. She sighed in disapointment when they did nothing but try to accio their wands back... The ones who were still armed, didn't try to help the others. This should be a collective effort as well; she didn't say it was forbidden. They shouldn't assume it is so. A Slytherin of all people tried to help her friend with finite... It was the wrong help, but still the thought was there.
"Ms. Black, you seem to be the only one who isn't affected by whatever got to these guys today. Care to explain why?"
She couldn't spend the whole 40 minutes on this. She is sure that ten minutes already passed, and she had to move on with it. I wanted just one more student to realize the point of the lesson... I warned them about this!
"You airheads forgot to check for curses on the chair." Bellatrix said nonchalantly. "The instruction of wand movement and incantation on the end of the chapter was easy enough that even a first-year would learn if they tried it. I don't know how you managed to do the assignment and completely overlook that information."
Hermione wasn't happy about how Bellatrix put it; It wasn't like they should learn by themselves what she promised to teach this class... It was not the point of this whole 'exercise'. Hermione just wanted them to realize that they were being cursed and cast finite. They practiced that last class, and she warned them about constant vigilance... She sighed and gave the wands back to the students left awake. "Alright, get up now. I'll teach you the revealing spell-" Before she could do that, or even wake up the unconscious students for this part of the lesson, every single person in the room got up and did the revealing spell without further instructions. So they knew how to do it...
Hermione paused beside each unconscious student, checking to see if her curse drained too much... hit them with renervate, and an energy boost to get them well enough to pay attention. They seemed disoriented, obviously trying to understand why they had lost consciousness.
"If this was real life, you'd all be dead. I very specifically told you last class that I wanted you to treat this classroom like a battlefield. Why did you enter, and sit on your chairs without even suspecting foul play on my part?"
"You just gave us homework on counter curses! You said that you were going to teach the revealing spell today!" Molly exclaimed, looking like a younger version of when she was vexed by some of the twins' pranks. It hit Hermione with a wave of nostalgia that almost made her smile.
Almost.
"Yes, tell that to your enemies. They will wait for you to learn how to counter them before sending curses at you."
She got red in the face and glared at Hermione as if it was offensive to test them in such manner.
"I didn't ask you to reveal the curse." She looked up to address the whole room. "What I wanted from you today was to put to practice what we trained yesterday for forty minutes. I wanted you to suspect foul play and cast finite on your chairs. That was it." The ones who looked infuriated were losing their anger, Ms. Bones seemed disappointed in herself, so Hermione decided to lift their spirits a bit "Just pay attention, alright? This will be common occurrence. This classroom is my zone, I expect you all to enter it like you're invading the home of a dark witch. Got it?" Amelia smiled at her, at least amused by the idea.
She walked to the centre of the room and smiled directly at Francine "Nice fight you put up there. I was wondering, why cast the finite on yourself instead on the chair? I thought for a moment that you had figured out."
"I felt my energy draining unnaturally, I thought that you had sent a curse at us when we had our backs turned."
"Like I did to Mr. Timerpen..."
Francine nodded "Yes..."
"Alright, that was a good line of thought. And a wandless accio while completely exhausted! I'm impressed, Ms. Canyon. Did I give you points for that?"
Said girl laughed, looking very proud of herself "No, Professor. I don't think you did."
"Alright, five points to Slytherin then. That was a good show." Groans came from the Gryffindor side of the room.
"We hit you too!" Ryan Abott – one of the three musketeers that tried to hit her – protested.
"And you had no idea what was going on, did you?" She was extremely amused by their petulant reaction. "Francine had a theory that taking down the caster, she'd take down the curse. It was the wrong idea you followed through without questioning. And I'm giving her points now because of the wandless accio, not because of her initiative. That was a good show." She nodded towards the Half-Blood again in acknowledgement, receiving another bright smile in response.
"Alright class. This was a practical example of what not to do when you're going to face an enemy." With a wave of her hand, the chalk resting on the blackboard flew to underline Precaution:
Remembering what Bellatrix had to say about the topic earlier, she directed an amused smile in her direction, only to feel a pang of disappointment when she was greeted with her occluded expression. Why does she keep doing this?
Hermione's smile slowly slid from her face, but not completely, she glanced at the rest of the class with what remained of it. "I gave you clear instructions of what to expect in my class, what will you do from now on?"
"Prepare." Some students chorused; Hermione's smile came back when she heard Rodolphus' voice amongst the participating students.
"That's right. Precaution is about learning the most you can about your enemy whenever possible. If you know who you're going to be facing... Take time to learn their weakness. Study your foe as if they are an exam you want to ace. You will not go after a werewolf during full moon in a ballgown to face him directly, you know what I mean?" Precaution really was a very obvious, and tedious thing to remind people about. To keep their attention, she had to get them interested in some way, the mental picture she provided was not only to amuse, but to get them engrossed in what she was saying. She smiled when it worked as she intended.
Students laughed and kept up with stupid situations of their own "Face a dementor in a swimsuit!" "Go after a murderous vampire while bleeding!"
She let them have their fun for a minute before she brought back the focus of the class "Entering unknown rooms without using revealing spells, going after dark witches and wizards without knowing what crimes they are known for, with no way of knowing what curses they use most" They sobered up, assimilating what she was saying. "You see, what you did today was reckless. Especially after I told you specifically that I am your enemy."
To prove her point and keep them in their toes, she launched a spell towards Rodolphus – who once more was distracting Francine with his whispered conversation – and smiled in appreciation when his friend protected him with a shield of her own. "Nice. This is another important point. I never told you that you can't work together to protect one another, and you assumed that it was so, why is that?" They seemed more excited now, if they could protect one another, then they didn't have to raise protego themselves before taking notes. She saw the realization hit them as they started covering one another to copy what was on board.
She tested their protection with a spell or another, nodding in approval at their joined efforts. Bellatrix watched her closely, resentment clear in her face. At least she isn't occluding anymore.
"I need you to keep that in mind. I. am. Your. enemy. Got it?" They nodded at her, some looked serious and entered the role of aurors facing a dangerous foe, while others started discussing in hushed whispers.
One, two, three, four, five expeliarmus left her wand as she quickly targeted those who stopped facing her to talk to one another. "Mr. Sgryfer, Mr. Abbot..." Rodolphus, Liam, and Sebastian were protected by the friends they were talking to, which made Hermione turn her attention fully towards these two who were both distracted and didn't have reaction time to defend themselves. "What did I just say?"
Excited whispers came from the green side of the room again. There's only so much she could take before she lost her temper. She sent a wordless depulso so strong it sent Francine stumbling back and losing her protection. A silencio and an expeliarmus hit the girl who kept enabling Rodolphus annoying behaviour, and a petrificus totallus to freeze Rodolphus while she also disabled him.
"I won't be giving these back until the end of the class. You better count on Bellatrix good disposition to protect the both of you, because you're going to be my targets until the end of today's lesson." She glared at them, showing her complete displeasure of having students fooling around in a moment when she expected them to take her words seriously.
Judging by Bellatrix' malicious smirk, they wouldn't recover their wands anytime soon.
Perfect.
"What precautions should you take before, and after entering this classroom? What should you expect? That's what I want you to think, and act accordingly from now on." She took a deep breath and cooled down, looking at the students who were paying close attention, waiting to see if any of them had any questions. "Alright?"
Nods, and a few affirmatives came from them, which prompted her to get on with the lesson. She ler her wand in her desk again, to give them a false sense of security, and waved her hand backwards to command the chalk.
It flew towards Self-awareness, underlining it, from the corner of her eye she saw Bellatrix' clear her face of all emotions again. Disappointing as it was, she couldn't keep dwelling on that girl's weird behaviour. Right now, what Hermione wanted most was for her to remember this next instruction "That said, there's something else you need to have in mind." She kept her eyes locked on that impassive girl "A good control of your own emotions and reactions can save your life as much as being aware of your foe's movement." She wanted Bellatrix to understand. She cannot count on the clarity occlusion provides for focus to keep her emotions in check during battle. Occlusion can't be used simultaneously while fighting, because to cast spells, a person needs to feel, and occlusion directly interferes with that. Bellatrix had to learn how to deal with her emotions... Your life depends on this... I don't want you dying on my side.
But this lecture wasn't just for her, she looked towards the other students, and paced slowly from one side of the room to the other while she spoke "If a taunt can get you distracted, and reckless... You're dead. If you're overconfident, and constantly underestimate your opponents... a well-timed counterattack can take you by surprise. You'll die. You want to have the upper hand, always. That means resisting the psychologic warfare. It means being humble enough to never consider your enemies uncapable of defeating you. Know yourself as well as you know your enemy, that's of great importance."
She gave them time to take notes, once more putting to test the raised protegos, proud of how most students paired up to cover for one another.
Bellatrix clearly didn't need help, but the fact that she refused to help two exposed housemates left Francine and Rodolphus in a position where they could not take the time to write anything. Alecto barely managed to cover them when a spell flew in their direction, which in the end it did nothing but affect her own progress. She quit trying to watch over them and focus on her own parchment. Hermione was not about to go easy, I hope they learn a lesson, she thought as she hit both with petrificus totallus again, before directing her attention towards the other two disarmed students, Ryan Abbot and Fred Sgryfer.
Those two had full support and weren't even close to being hit. "Ten points to Gryffindor and Ravenclaw." She rewarded the initiative Liam and Dorian had, keeping watch as if this was their job. They sat close to the far back, which gave them a good vantage point to protect everyone in front of them, and they watched her like real guards, not one of her actions went unnoticed. The Gryffindor side of the room was well guarded. That's what I like to see. But if the others start getting comfortable, I'll have to take these two down...
"Last but not least..." the chalk went towards the last topic, to do its job "Continuous Improvement. That's a given, isn't it? Will you wait for your enemy to catch up to you, or will you keep training?"
"Keep training" Some answered, and she nodded in agreement
"That's right. It goes hand in hand with precaution. Never assume you're strong enough, that you're ready, and that there's nothing more you can learn. Even if you don't plan to be an Auror, don't allow yourselves to stagnate." She stared at Amelia Bones. A glimpse of the fair, strong, and determined woman Hermione met in the future showed in that girl's expression. People like you change the world. She held that stare with the same determination lining her face "If your enemy happens to be a system that favours corruption instead of competence, it's still a choice of whether you accommodate and feed it, or use of knowledge, good strategy, and well-formed alliances to fight and defeat it. Continuous improvement is not only about battle situations. Injustice festers upon inaction, society could do with continuous improvements."
Amelia nodded sagely, she understood intimately what Hermione was talking about, as well as plenty future-aurors who most likely knew what was going on at the ministry at that moment.
"I consider these the most important pillars of survival." She listed everything she covered with them until that moment:
Constant vigilance – Precaution – Self-awareness – Continuous improvement.
"It goes on a circle, if constant vigilance becomes second nature, the unexpected becomes expected, and preparing for it is simply precaution. If you're aware of your weaknesses and continuously seek to improve, you're taking precautions against unknown enemies that could use it against you."
"Any doubts?"
I KNEW IT. Bellatrix had been looking at her whole act from the wrong angle, but she was always right. That woman was a spy. She just wasn't a mudblood pretending to be powerful, she was a pureblood pretending to be a mudblood. All to spread Dumbledore's idea that blood has no difference... That everyone is equal.
There's no way she is a mudblood. There is no way for a mudblood to cast that many spells, and work with wandless magic without seeming to break a sweat... There's no equality between us. Purebloods are superior!
"Got it, Professor!" Roldolphus exclaimed with a big smile, and two thumbs up.
For fucks sake! Can't he pay attention for once? She is showing what she came for! She just blatantly attacked the wizengamot! She fucking wants us to believe that the mudblood ex-Minister was anything but an incompetent puppet who was there to push Dumbledore's 'equality' agenda!
She wants us to believe mudbloods and Half-bloods are equal.
At that rate, her sister who was already a muggle-lover would start believing in equality as well! Her sister would be a victim of brainwashing influences!
Fucking puppet! Blood traitor! Who is this woman?!