Just a warning of gratuitous coarse language later in the chapter and even more gratuitous film quoting
Chapter 11
David was in charge of the Yule decorations for the Ball as well as more generally; and wondered if it was unworthy to want to stun the foreigners, especially the Durmstrang crowd with their excellence. He recalled the French team had boasted in the last task of having wood nymphs as part of their decorations that sang to the students as they ate; one must assume therefore that wood nymphs were subject to the same kinds of vanities as fairies, who loved being used as decorations. Fairies would be a good start; and he roped in the young marauders to find plenty and asked Romulus to train them, as he had trained the ones to tease the Malfoy twins, to spell out words of good will in their dances. This pleased the Young Marauders mightily as a change from the daily round that wasn't even forbidden.
"Though I have to say it's almost immoral" said Kinat as they trudged through the snow looking for fairy nesting places to bribe them with warmth, honey, mead and adulation.
"Why? Fairies enjoy it" said Hawke.
"Doing something officially sanctioned, I meant" said Kinat "We're the Marauders; doing something fun that we've actually been asked to do by our revered head boy is almost immoral in its very lawfulness."
There was a long silence while the rest digested that statement.
"He has a point" said Romulus.
"Of course; it's rude to point and no-one's ruder than Kinat" said Abraxus.
"I think" said Hawke "It's not immoral to do something that's officially sanctioned so long as it's fun too. Especially at our advanced age."
With that piece of sophistry they felt much better.
David asked permission to go into Glasgow; and proceeded to buy muggle Christmas decorations as the start of his display. Several dozen cans of spray snow later, and plastic icicles he felt ready for the transfiguration that would bring them close to the real thing but with a non-melting charm to hold them looking pristine. Bells to decorate Christmas trees with he enchanted to play tinkling Christmas music, asking Jade to help to intertwine harmonies; and then he asked Seagh to add to the effect with fey glamour that those of the blood group would see through after using Severus' true seeing lotion; but the visitors certainly would not. Seagh grinned happily, delighted to be called upon to use his own special skills; and the great Hall became a snowy glade with deer passing shyly through the edges and the occasional glimpse of a fey hunt passing in the distance.
"Magnificent" said David.
"Weel, it wouldnae hae been sae guid wi'oot yer snow-scene tae build on" said Seagh, flushing with pleasure nonetheless. "Glamour needs SOMETHING tae hang it on; and it was really awfu' easy wi' the impression ye were already creating. Can I suggest ye mak' the icicles play tunes too like a glockenspiel?"
"Good point" said Jade "I can handle that, David, if you like; will you have Seagh here as a fey piper to bring in the roast?"
"Yes" said David "I've a picture in mind, by Janet and Anne Grahame-Johnson, muggle artists…"
"I know the picture" said Jade "It's in one of my books…he's much like our Seagh to look at, with wild white-blonde locks, a tam-o-shanter and artistically ragged with bare feet. You so will look fey in that, Seaghsron Snape!"
Seagh grinned.
He had taken easily to the pipes and really enjoyed the thought of piping in the roast to amaze the foreign students.
"Dancing aboon the floor?" he asked.
"Damn right if you can do it" said David.
Seagh began to jig; and jigged up, as though up an invisible ramp.
"It's a fey thing" he said.
"Make it so" said David.
"Aye-aye captain" murmured Jade ironically.
The French were particularly impressed, exclaiming in delight at the snow-scene indoors – with no impairment to the ambient temperature – and the tinkling, ringing tunes, and the fairies dancing.
"Exquisite!" proclaimed Madame Maxime "You 'ave a better relationsheep wiz your local fey zan some, zen Dumblydore?"
"Oh our fey know what they may do and what they may not" said Dumbledore "And some are friendly enough. David has done an excellent job!"
"I had help sir; the Marauders and Jade and Seagh Snape mucked in too" said David "And juniors ran errands and carried greenery with a will. Even Peeves held things from time to time and didn't drop any curses on them – I did check" he added.
Durmstrang showed less appreciation of the decorations; but various illegal uses of legilimensy had the new Marauders reporting gleefully to David that they were seriously rattled by that level and complexity of ongoing illusion.
The introduction of the roast by a fey piper, dancing as he played several feet above the ground caused several visitors to drop their cups of butterbeer. The haunting strains of 'Walking in the air' came from the boy's Gaelic pipes, subtly different in tone to the more familiar Scots bagpipe; and from one of the chanters issued an unearthly sounding disembodied voice singing the words.
Those who had heard Krait Malfoy sing the Corrs song she had chosen at the long ago talent concert when Convolvumort made his first appearance recognised her voice; and stopped talking to listen. Krait's voice was richer now than it had been then, trained by using it in chanting rituals, using her diaphragm as opera singers do too for the greater control and richer timbre.
The hall was in silence as the song and its accompanying pipes soared as the wild boy danced on, spiralling in his dance up to the ceiling; and on the last note vanishing utterly several seconds before the music faded.
The French began a crashing applause to which the British youngsters joined in.
"I forgot how damn good her voice is" said Willow, tears streaming down her face with sheer emotion.
"The kid did a damn good show too" said Hawke "That was beautiful playing; he's worked hard – here he is, Seagh my lad, you played your almond rocks off there, we're all bloody proud of you!" Seagh had changed quickly back into uniform and with his locks tamed looked more a young Malfoy than a wild fey child.
"Mah WHAT?"
"Almond rocks – socks"
"I wis aye barefoot" said Seagh.
"An expression of appreciation" said Hawke "Saying you played like you never played before….HOW they peered to see how you managed to jig as though on solid ground!"
"Och, tae me it's a' the same; ah have tae work harder fer the bitty part o' me that's human but it's nae trrouble" said Seagh. He had vanished into the other place that he called 'fadeplace' and listened to the shocked comments of how it was achieved by, particulalrly, the German staff. He was mightily pleased with himself; and his fellow Slytherin were too, especially when Dumbledore murmured,
"Fifty points to Slytherin for all their help to make this gathering so spectacular!"
The two champions from the other schools converged on David to ask if he had opened the next clue yet.
"Well it wasn't much of a challenge, was it?" said David "Once one realised the pattern the dots required it was easy."
Alain blinked.
"I finally figured it out yesterday" he said. "'Ow did you manage to do it so queekly?"
Karl was looking horrified; and David guessed he had not managed to open his yet.
The Head boy shrugged.
"Well, the only thing it could be was a Wenlock series" he said "Once the shape started changing I knew I was right. It is all right to talk about that, isn't it? So long as we don't discuss what tactics we're going to use for each of the parts of the challenge."
Alain shrugged.
"Once ze secret of 'ow to open it is known it is no secret; and zen, as you say, it ees down to individual choice of 'ow one 'andles each element" he said. "'Oo is your dearest?"
"My girlfriend Ellie I should think" said David. "Yours?"
"My girlfriend also – she was one 'oo applied" he indicated a pretty French girl. "Rosette and I know each ozzer long time. And 'oo is dearest to our German competitor?"
He made the word 'German' sound like an insult.
"My kid sister" said Karl quietly "She's all the family I have."
Alain looked at him anew.
"Per'aps you are not as bad as some" he said thoughtfully "You fear for 'er, yes?"
"I….do not that thought want to be putting in words" said Karl.
Alain nodded.
"Eh bien" he said
"It's an opportunity" said David softly.
Karl stared at him; then grinned a fierce grin.
"I will nothing know" he said firmly.
David nodded.
"Best not to."
David spoke to the new marauders later about spiriting away Karl's little sister.
"Not a problem" said Abraxus "And all the while, you're alibi'd."
"You on the inside; us on the outside" said Hawke.
"Only way it can work" said Kinat in his best Lee VanCleef voice.
David laughed.
"Sometimes I wish we'd never introduced films to the MSHG he said "You're all dreadful."
"But we can have obscure conversations that wizards won't pick up on by using oblique references" said Hawke "As good in its way as Parseltongue!"
"That is a point" admitted David. It was actually a very good point!
The ball might have gone more smoothly had not Baddock and Pritchard spent the first part jiggling about as if they had St Vitus' dance; and in the end Severus told them to go to their dormitory if they couldn't manage not to wriggle like doxies on heat.
"Our clothes have been cursed to itch sir!" complained Baddock.
"Then go somewhere I don't have to see you and take them off" said Severus "And send them to the house elves for washing too with a note pinned on to check for curses if you're not competent of dealing with such yourself!"
That was an unfair comment and he knew it; since he strongly suspected itching powder, and did not want to know the culprits since he strongly suspected one of them was Jade.
In which assumption the Head of Slytherin House was only partially correct; Jade had known about the great itching jape but had not actually taken part in it. It was a plan entirely of the Dell-Tuthill gang, as the group was beginning to be known, the powder purchased through the muggle parcel post in discreet quantities by Mary-Anne, Callum, Alice, Tamsin Clintock and the two Tuthills; and applied to the underwear of the biggest bullies in the school by Cynner, Melody and Lionel Dell, being the Slytherin of the group. Tim Barnett complained of being left out; and Jade and Seagh had been roped in to help smuggle him to a place to overlook the ball, covered by Glamour, to photograph the futile struggles of the itching bullies.
He used a whole film and went gleefully to develop them in wizarding chemicals – with Ross and Callum to help him – in their full moving glory. He ran off enough copies for all his group and posted enlargements gleefully around the school.
It was a most excellent coup!
Baddock and Pritchard did not think so however; and threats were issued that when whoever had done this was caught it would be the worse for them.
Since the young Snapes could be relied on not to split, and the gang hung close they did not anticipate anyone being caught; as the Slytherin members asked friends to hold THEIR copies until they could take them home! Even if the two bullies searched most assiduously they would find nothing in House Slytherin to indict any of the culprits!
David did not care; he enjoyed dancing with his dear Ellie as often as he could between having to be polite to others, especially visitors.
He pointedly did NOT invite the girl Irmtraut to dance – he knew she would refuse to even touch a mudblood anyway – and asked Madam Maxime instead.
The huge woman was remarkably light on her feet and David enjoyed the dance more than he had expected.
He did not however invite Madame Bacsó to dance.
He asked Minerva McGonagall instead and asked the band for a reel.
"Cheeky wee naif that ye are" said Minerva, twinkling.
"It's one of my more endearing features, Minerva" said David, bowing floridly.
"Aye, and doubly cheeky tae use ma name" she said.
"Ah, but how can I dance so well with my house head if I cannot flirt with her a little?" said David. "I have to keep Ellie on her toes by making her jealous."
"Huh, and it's glad I am I ken fine that you're joking" said Minerva. "You've no' turned out sae bad, David mah laddie; no' sae bad at a'."
The end of term was a relief for David, even with two self-imposed tasks within it, seeking the wizards who had killed Araminta Jones and rescuing a Gryffon.
For the first he was going with a small team; Sirius was to lead it, leaving Severus time to be with a still easily-tired Krait; Leticia Jones insisted on being along, Willow would never let her Padfoot go without her, Neville and Sephara had both volunteered. Erich was also coming, partly because he knew the language and had its idiom instinctively; and mostly because he too wanted to strike at Odessa. He was, he said seriously, representing the Snapes since Willow was more mentally Madam Padfoot in some ways. Ellie wanted to go with David.
"Well we shan't have to pick a fight anyway if you do come" said Sirius "THEY'll pick out you're half goblin even if nobody else even notices or gives a damn."
"That's a compliment from Padfoot" translated Willow "Tact isn't his long suit."
Ellie laughed.
"Oh I think we've all been blooded long enough for me to know what Padfoot means" she said "And he's right. What I need to ask is, does that mean you all want me out so you can pick the time and place of sorting them out?"
"Bollocks to that" said Sirius "Let's go in, see who objects to you and blow them apart!"
"It has a certain naïve charm" murmured Willow in a Severus-sort of voice. Sirius poked her; and she sat on his knee.
"Got a better idea?" he said.
"Let the best duellists among us accept challenges that THEY think will be weighted and THEN blow them the fuck up in detail" she said "Less messy than all out brawling in a Beer Keller."
"Well…maybe" said Sirius "But we may not have that option; they may just attack out of hand you know."
"We could TRY for some finesse first though dear" said Willow "I know you Gryffs think with your bollocks but can we try a Slytherin cerebral way first? And also set up a magical circle before we even go in that's a race line not an age line, so if they try to escape they get blown back in for us to deal with…"
"Now that, I like a lot" Sirius said, grinning "It keeps Erich in as well of course, but…."
"I wasn't planning on leaving until we had finished anyway" said Erich "And then the circle you will in any case cancel."
The Beer Keller in Berlin was a dingy looking place enchanted with muggle repelling spells like the Leaky Cauldron that most muggles did not even see it. They quietly and without fuss set up a circle right round it, round the whole city block in fact to make sure it was contiguous and to make matters certain with a known and easy ritual set an age line that would keep them in as well until dispelled since the age they set was one hundred and fifty.
"Which jolly well ought to catch everyone" said David.
"And if we do get stuck and can't dispell it, the elf style apparation ought to get us out" said Neville cheerfully.
"We set it up; of course we can dispell it" said Sirius, firmly. "Right, are we going on in?"
They walked into the bar.
It occurred to David that if any of the other new marauders had been there, they would probably have been accompanied by the chink of illusory spurs.
He had caught Kinat practising twirling him wand on getting it out an before putting away like a western gunfighter with a six-shooter; and Romulus had bought a dark green poncho.
"All we need is Hawke saying 'prepare three coffins…my mistake, make that four" he muttered to Ellie.
Ellie giggled.
"Yes, but from anybody but the Bloodgroup that would be a cliché" she said. "We're going to kill them; and that's what we're here for. Because we can't let them get away with killing our own. It's revenge, it's uncivilised and we still have to do it."
Several pairs of unfriendly eyes gazed on the newcomers.
"Listen boy, d'you realise that that female you're with is part goblin?" said a big blonde man.
"Well actually yes" said David "Do you realise that I find a comment like that rather offensive?"
"Britisher" said the big man "so your blood status is also in question no doubt?"
"Oh there's no question about MY blood status" said David. "I'm a mudblood and proud of it. You want to make something of that, or will you just sit there smelling of stale sour cabbage and looking ugly?"
They wanted to pick a fight after all.
Willow was muttering something about Gryffindors.
"I call you out for that and for being an offensive abomination; and in that I honour you above your filthy blood status" growled the man.
"Fine; have you a piste?" asked David.
"Out back"
The piste was in the back of the Keller, through a massive iron bound door and was probably in wizarding space. David mounted through the protective line that prevented spells either affecting onlookers or onlookers casting into the duelling area. He felt a tingle in his blood; and knew how the duels were fixed. Any without near pure status were attacked by the piste itself with an energy draining spell. He drew on the group; and the spell itself wavered, its programming unsure how to classify his blood status.
He faced his opponent.
"Be just like Devil's canyon back home" called Ellie softly; and David grinned.
He missed having Draco around quoting Star Wars in and out of context.
The big bloodsnob fired off his first spell; or tried to. David blocked it before he had got as far as 'Cru….'
"Make a habit of using the cruciatus curse on mudbloods do you?" asked David pleasantly "You might have met a friend of mine, Araminta Jones."
"Oh yes, that's who the other one looks like; I remember her. Wriggled VERY nicely. I'll see if her sister does when I've killed you, puppy."
"Woof. Woof, woof. That's my other dog impression" said David, silently and with scarce a flip of his wand casting the tarantallegra curse. It made people angry as well as being funny.
The big wizard took a moment to dispell his frantically dancing legs and shouted
"imped…."
David blocked it again before it came out. Was this wizard so reliant on the advantage of the energy sap that he had become slow and careless? He would surely speed up soon, seeing that he had to do so, for he was as much danger as most third years!
As much danger as most blooded third years, the thought came clearly to his mind. The wizard was horrified that David was blocking before he even got the words out; and yet to the senior members of the MSHG that was an easy matter, this man's thoughts easy to read even without being a great legilimens. To David, occlumensy was just something one did, and learned a little legilimensy on the side. It never occurred to him that occlumensy was considered a difficult skill, studied by few and perfected by less.
The German wizard kept throwing spells – or trying to – and David kept blocking. He cast annoyance level spells back; the bat-bogey hex, the slug-vomiting hex and the jelly-leg jinx.
The man was good enough to negate each quickly; but not quick enough to get protective spells up before a wordlessly casting young wizard to whom a wand was a minor adjunct not always to be used had made them take effect.
David was laughing.
He was suddenly aware of it, that scornful, mocking laughter that had a component of tightly controlled anger was pouring out of his mouth. He controlled it; good, it was no curse, just his own body's reaction.
And then he saw in his opponent's mind the formation of the only way he could think of to stop this irritating laughing mudblood.
And with a twitch of his wand in a circle and thought of the word 'speculum' David had a mirror in place as the man screamed desperately
"Avada Kedavra!"
And then he died in a flash of green light as the reflection of his own killing curse hit him.
He looked remarkably surprised.
"Kill them!" screamed another wizard; and David, knowing that surprise was everything here, promptly went dog and leaped at the leader's throat.
He was worried about Miss Jones.
He did not have to be.
Leticia shouted
"Here's MY magic wand – and this is for my sister!" and started blazing with the broom handle Mauser she had produced from inside her cloak.
It was an efficient enough weapon in an enclosed space at close quarters; though David winced as a shot grazed his cheek and he wished she was a better shot.
The leader hardly needed shooting, after all; he was having difficulty breathing, let alone casting spells without a throat and his carotid arteries draining away in a rust flavoured and scented stream.
David the dog hastily turned back into David the wizard.
The others had mopped up the opposition and Willow was quietly casting a stupefy spell on an overwrought Leticia who was still pulling the trigger uselessly on an empty magazine and sobbing wildly.
It would be cathartic to her once she had had a good cry back home; but now she was a bit of a liability.
Undertrained, thought David.
And in some ways we're almost overtrained, his thoughts added.
Good.
If we are to run against ODESSA we need to be. Soon my thoughts will slow to normal and I will feel again and not be a killing machine. Do I want to spend my life doing this?
He answered himself, yes I do because maybe then my children – Ellie's children – may not have to. But we will still train them to be able to in the hopes they never have to.
It was over; they were coming down, and Neville was automatically casting Accio on bullets and cartridge cases. This section was all in wizarding space; the beer keller was muggle resistant, nor problem from the efficient muggle German police, in this part of Berlin only one step away from the infamous and now defunct stazi. The ODESSA equivalent of the Gestapo then? They would find one with his throat ripped out – make that two, he thought, noting that Sirius had copied him – one killed with his own wand and eight others. Two shot; but would they recognise that? Even if they did, bullets were anonymous – if the scene was sanitised. Erich had scorned to use his wand and had broken the neck of one; the other five had died at the hands of his friends' wands.
"We should have brought odd spare wands we collected from deatheaters" he said.
"Huh, they'll not get much" said Willow "Neville and I used the full body bind on four of them and slit their throats; and Sephara and Ellie hit the last one over the head with bottles. If he lives I'll be surprised but I don't like to kill an unconscious man."
"Let me dear" said Sirius, holding out his hand for her wicked little scout knife.
Willow looked away. Sometimes she was so hard outside one forgot she could be so gentle at times.
"You're right, by the way, Fido" said Sirius "And my bad as team leader; we SHOULD have brought spare wands. Fortunately everyone seemed to realise it at once and we used alternate measures. Anything more we need to do here?"
"You've bled from a diffindo type spell, Willow's nose is bleeding; get that stopped then move into the bar. We need to clean up all the blood and make sure there's none to use as ritual….and in case they've got forensic wand tracers I'm going to use the muggle method" said David, producing a bottle of bleach from his capacious cloak pocket. "It denatures blood; I defy them to pick up on THAT. And then to all intents and purposes, this nasty group will have been killed by muggles. And they won't know who to blame."
"They might attack their muggle neighbours of course" said Sirius.
"They'll have a legilimens in first to find out who and how" said David "And find they know nothing about it. Hello, is that the barkeep?"
The barkeeper was in a huddle on the floor moaning faintly.
"Hit the age line" said Willow "I know what that feels like; even when it's only one of one's own missiles tossed out."
"Kill me, please kill me!" howled the unfortunate man "When they find me I'll be tortured!"
"We'll take you out of here if you like" said Erich "I know a place you will be safe."
"Nowhere is truly safe from them" moaned the man. "Where?"
"Well now, if you don't know before you're there, no-one can pick up your thoughts in transit can they?" said Sirius. ssss"Where were you thinking?"ssss he asked Erich in Parseltongue.
ssss"Near my father's castle…there are lowborn wizards who will protect him who hated my father"ssss Erich replied.
They cancelled the ritual line; and permitted the frightened wizard to pack a few necessities. Then they apparated smoothly to a pre-arranged spot, and Sirius performed rituals there and around to dampen their geomantic trail. Then Erich was in charge and guided them to a small wizarding village.
"Most of you should stay here in the hills" he said "David, will you come?"
David nodded; and Erich led the way, their captive stumbling after him.
David had noted that under guise of concern, Willow had gazed in his eyes and had given a small nod to the rest of them. He was not about to betray them – willingly. Under the cruciatus curse was another matter; but if he was safe hopefully that situation would not arise,
Erich knocked on a door; and a witch cautiously opened it.
"Tante Turfridis, guten tag!" he said.
"Who calls me Aunt? My sister's son is dead as she is!" said the witch coldly.
"Who told you that? After HE murdered Mama I found a way to run away from Durmstrang. I've been in Britain" said Erich. "Use legilimensy to check."
"I'm no legilimens!"
"Oh. Aren't all grown ups?" said Erich, fazed.
David laughed.
"Erich, we know some pretty amazing grown ups; your adoptive dad is pretty special! Madam, do you follow the news in Britain? Of the killing of Voldemort?"
"It is hard to miss something that big."
"Then you will know that those of Harry Potter's school friends and adult protectors who stood beside him had performed a ritual that bounced the killing curse; that marked us all like Harry. Does that give us some bona fides? This man is a fugitive and we have come to ask shelter for him that he not be miserable in a foreign country."
She looked at his scar; and Erich's.
"You look like my sister….let me use my wand, cut your palm, boy"
Erich did so without hesitation; and she pointed her wand at it. Then she threw her arms round Erich's neck.
"My nephew, my nephew, forgive me for doubting you, you are grown so big and strong, so handsome! Do you too need shelter?"
"No, Aunt Turfridis, David and I must get back to our group; it was a matter on honour to deal with a group of murderers. This man is a terrified innocent, a barkeeper; he has been legilimensed to check he has no evil intent. Will you care for him?"
"We can find him somewhere to stay and a job to do, Ja, Erich. And you will come again? Just to see me?"
"I will, my aunt; and then I will tell you more and perhaps bring some of my new family" said Erich. "But we must leave now!" and he and David walked back to where the others were waiting.
"I suppose it is reasonable that I have grown up enough that my aunt did not immediately recognise me" Erich explained in answer to an interrogative eyebrow raise from Sirius "But all is all right now."
And then they were going home.
Killing became more routine; but thinking about it never became easier. And THAT was what set them apart from the dark wizards and evil muggles, thought David.