Chapter 2
The post graduate students would arrive at Prince Peak some days ahead of the other students, to permit them to settle in and shake down; those that were not already in residence. This year that was only Terence Goodchild, who had elected to stay in the school working with his brother; Terence wanted to emulate Godfrey in teaching music in magic and was too enjoying the better relationship he had with his younger brother; and the reaction of the Goodchild parents and Terence's twin Chloe to Godfrey's fame as a performer made returning home uncomfortable. Terence knew neither he nor his twin would never be of the calibre of his more talented brother and had written frankly home to this effect; and had received an acrimonious letter back from Chloe. Chloe refused to accept that Godfrey had been given a musical scholarship by Lucius Malfoy for his sheer ability after their parents had refused to pay for their younger son to 'muck about' with music; and declared that a scholarship brat could never have had the level of teaching they had received for having private tuition. Terence sighed for the loss of a relationship with his twin – that had always been tinged with rivalry anyway – and shrugged to have a really good friendship growing with his talented little brother. And the praise of stern Severus Snape for having the greatness of spirit to accept the talent of Godfrey. Terence would teach with Seagh, Victor and the others, taking on junior chanting leaving the seniors to Seagh, who would also be Headmaster, as well as teaching the rudiments of music to all and taking on any worth developing further.
Terence would know one of the other post NEWT students in Elsie Blackwood who was studying, among other things, higher ritual and advanced transfiguration. Elsie was interested in the nature of matter and energy and was studying muggle physics and chemistry too with a view to expand her horizons. Severus actually had a doctorate in Chemistry; having studied on his own time and variously taking degree, masters and doctorate, only confunding the university authorities into believing that he had been a student; and having scrupulously paid the tuition fees. Taking the examinations and writing the research theses had been for his own satisfaction to prove that he really did understand what he was talking about; it was a hobby. But then Severus Snape WAS brilliant. Krait had studied Physics to a similar level but unlike Severus, who still needed to prove himself sometimes, had not felt a need to take any exams. Her doctorate was purely obtained by confundment. Elsie was an academic high flyer who was on a different plane to any other likely post graduate students; as Terence admitted freely, whilst having the satisfaction that Elsie was capable of explaining all the theory of music in magic but could not play an instrument to save her life. She was a very fine chanter however; and they would work together studying that further.
Elsie turned up early because she was so keen to get back to school and had a few arithmantic points she wanted to thrash out with Krait and Hermione; in which she was partially doomed to disappointment since the Ronald Weasleys were returning at the same time as the rest of the Post Graduates were supposed to arrive. She buttonholed Lilith Snape instead since it was fairly certain that Lilith would have an even better idea of what Elsie was talking about than most adults; and a discussion on energy levels ensued that only got interrupted when Severus collected Lilith firmly for the trip to Diagon Alley.
oOoOo
The other post NEWT students had arrived meanwhile; Severus wanted to settle them in before making the two-day trip to Diagon Alley. Two were cronies of Jade and bloodkin; so they were readily welcomed. Princess Zhanargul Nurtazin of Kazakhstan wanted a few more tools to protect the small but fiercely independent wizarding community of her own country and to set up something akin to the English Auror office; and Takeo Namudzu wanted to start a school in Japan catering to muggleborn and goblins, oni as he called them; and wanted to learn teaching techniques and see how the celebrated Professor Snape ran his school. He had deposited his protégé on Jade for the year on the way, a muggleborn girl who was, he hoped, to be one of his teachers when she had completed her education. He wanted to take Chanting further than he had been able to in the short time he had been learning and also to study ritual with a view to the setting up of wards when he had his own school. He and Zhanargul had much to discuss with Elsie; especially as she was their blood sister too.
There were two others who arrived; Lizena gan Otuel was a French goblin nurse, sent by the Healer father of Solange Lebatons to learn medical chanting. She would learn enough in a year to make a real difference to her performance; and M. Lebatons had also asked that she be given a sufficient course of transfigurations and charms to qualify for full healer training if she was able to cope. Lizena was a cheerful little person, admitting cheerfully to incorrigible curiosity about everything and with an imaginative outlook that had prompted her to volunteer for this course in the first place – M. Lebatons was paying out of his own pocket – and ready to do all she could to raise the status of goblins in her own country as well as to learn all she could to make her a better nurse.
Last was a German called Ernst Langweilig who had left Durmstrang some years before and who wanted to pursue research into geomancy, having encountered it working in the German Ministry and finding the amount taught there rather hit and miss and wanting to know more. He was an amiable individual, happy to accept that birth was less important than ability, whilst suffering slight culture shock to meet a goblin in post graduate studies. Naughty Krait described him as a 'bit Hufflepuffish' since he was both amiable and yet a crashing bore and put Krait at least severely in mind of Ernie MacMillan. Well it took all sorts; and he would have nothing to complain about in the amount he learned. And he seemed at least clever enough to cope with the Arithmancy of the more advanced geomantic equations!
Terence Goodchild grinned at Severus and said that as he wanted to teach it behoved him to take the poor sap under his wing as he could see Takeo was about to murder him; and Severus sighed in deep relief and gave Terence heartfelt thanks for his kindness. Takeo after all looked on Geomancy – of which he and Zhanargul hoped to pick up some knowledge – as a means to deliver a task force to an enemy; or disrupt the travel arrangements of the enemy. The two young Durmstrangers were, after all, veterans of battle against Zhanargul's dark wizard uncle and the group he put together from those who regretted the fall of Odessa. Ernst Langweilig had been one of those pupils who had survived Durmstrang and had been glad to leave.
They were all however settled in, and their syllabuses variously negotiated with those of Severus' staff who would be leading them in study; the main reason for having them come early, as well as to meet each other. Discussion in that first week seemed often to give new and exciting direction to sometimes vague ideas of study paths; and Severus considered it an essential part of personal development for his senior students.
It may be said that Elsie's discussions lost all the rest very quickly as she was used to discussing esoteric magic with the staff already; and Takeo laughed and said that perhaps she should catch some of them up to Prince Peak NEWT standard before they moved further.
"I was ill a long time and did an awful lot of reading" said Elsie, whose hobby was also chemistry based and involved comparing and contrasting muggle and wizarding methods with compost and soil types. "I am accounted a swot even here."
"Well we should be glad of that!" laughed Zhanargul. "Those of us with only three ZH's or even only five like Takeo feel a little depressed by the achievements of you clever types!"
This actually kept Ernst shocked into silence in that Zhanargul used the word 'only'; and as Takeo nodded he indeed had so large a number as five; Ernst had thought he was doing well to take two ZH's at 'O'.
"You and me better keep quiet" murmured Terence to him "These types really ARE out of our league!"
Ernst nodded hasty agreement; and was glad he was not the only one to have less qualifications; especially as Zhanargul had asked Elsie how many NEWTs she had and Elsie had admitted to eight though one was only at 'E' grade.
"I have no qualifications save those internal qualifications as a nurse; but I hope to rectify that" said Lizena "Because it is wonderful to have that opportunity nowadays."
"And we're all behind you and ready to muck in and help you any way we can" said Elsie.
That she switched effortlessly between English, German and French was another marvel for Ernst since her use of German was perfectly colloquial – if tinged with an Austrian accent – not the slightly stilted language as was obtained by learning magically. It was true; Prince Peak really WAS the world's centre of academic excellence!
And once they had all shaken down, Severus left them to it to do the yearly shop for his children.
oOoOo
It may be said that Severus had a shock in Diagon Alley when Lucius presented him with a child called Lucy, who was an obvious Prince child; apparently electricity had blocked the blood ritual he had performed to find all of Crassus Prince's children and the child had been conceived when her mother had an affair and she was – not unnaturally – looked upon with some despite by the man whose name was on her birth certificate. That he knocked her around was however inexcusable.
"Mmmm" said Severus. "Well young lady, I'd better be your uncle Severus for now and if you don't want to live with your mother, one more reprobate in the family won't make a whole lot of difference. I have enough room for you" he added kindly in explanation "Both in my London house and in Austria where we spend a lot of time. I'll see her parents, Lucius; it's my awful uncle and my responsibility."
"Cutting it fine; you have to get ready to be off to Prince Peak for Monday" said Lucius.
"So I shall see them tomorrow" said Severus. "I know the type of her nominal father; he won't go to the police right away because they might ask awkward questions about why his daughter might run away, and that might get Social Services involved. Which will be something to threaten him with if need be. I'll get a document drawn up for him to sign abrogating any rights over her. And a bribe to 'cover the last ten years feeding and clothing another man's child'. Stick and carrot, Lucius. I can do it quite as well as you."
"Naturally; I taught you how" said Lucius. Severus laughed.
"And it comes naturally to Krait as a Malfoy born so I watched her and learned too" he said. "Don't worry, Lucy; we'll sort out things to make sure you get to go to school, even if I have to use spells to make your mother and her husband forget you ever existed."
"That might be rather good" said Lucy "But I do love mum, kind of, and I guess I even love dad – when he's not drunk and when he's not pissed with me."
"He'll be a lot less pissed with you when he knows you're the ward of a wealthy family who can do him good and whom he can touch for a loan from time to time that nobody duns him for when he doesn't pay it back" said Severus cynically. "Oh I can find it in me to pity the man; I know Lucius doesn't but if he's inarticulate and perhaps brighter than a lot of his workmates and afraid to show it because learning is sissy and he didn't get many qualifications because the muggle state education is crap then I can understand temper. My own father was the same; and though I hated him for a while I've got over it."
"He'd pay back any loan sir – Uncle Severus" said Lucy earnestly "He's no sponger."
Severus smiled.
"Then I wronged him, and I apologise; and I'm sure we'll be able to come to an arrangement without having to resort to magic" he said. "And your mother will be able to visit you when you're in London. I'll invite them to lunch tomorrow."
"Mum's at the Kennel until eleven" said Lucy.
"Ah; then I can convince your er dad to sign you away while she's out; and then let her know that you're safe" said Severus "I imagine that however well she loves you, boarding school WOULD stop you being a bone of contention in the marriage?"
"I guess so" said Lucy.
Drogo voiced his opinion on any man who would knock any child around; Lucy seemed to have made friends with the three Malfoy children already. Severus paused only to tease Lucius about the likelihood of the fifth Madam Malfoy that his quick eyes had picked out and wished Richard onto Lucius for the shopping – Lilith and Mimi, Tarquin and Sevvy had gone off on their own with their friends – and went to sort out the paperwork to have Lucy made his ward and a bank account for her. She was owed compensation from the family for being abandoned by her real father. He decided to pretend NOT to see Gaspard Shingleton, the inventor of the self-stirring cauldron; now was not a time to get into an altercation. Besides, Richard seemed to be doing a perfectly good job of irritating the nasty little man.
oOoOo
The interview with Mr Summerfield, Lucy's nominal father, went very well; largely because Severus decided not to use finesse but to intimidate the man thoroughly and imply that he had sent leg-breakers to see his uncle Crassus. As Summerfield opened the meeting by going for Severus, assuming him to be Crassus, Severus beat him up very comprehensively, and was glad of the excuse to do so, before explaining just who he was and why he was there. Summerfield signed away all rights to Lucy without a murmur but accepted Severus' insistence that the child's mother should have some contact.
Mrs Summerfield was just overjoyed that her daughter was to have a chance at a posh school and be away from her husband; they had an older daughter too and she seemed incapable of leaving her husband for the younger girl's sake. Crassus Prince always picked the vulnerable, Severus reflected; the only one with spirit, Willow's mother, he had murdered.
He would further depress any pretensions of the Summerfields by having them to dinner, to check that Lucy was in good hands, supposedly; and to give her a chance to see her father in a situation in which her new guardians were in charge so she need not fear. And to see her mother on more neutral territory. He did NOT tell them about magic; they did not have a need to know.
Already subdued, Lucy's parents were even more intimidated both at the house of obviously wealthy people in an exclusive part of London and at the concept that the typical Prince child would expect to take ten or eleven 'O' levels – Severus translating OWLs into muggle qualifications – and five or more 'A' levels. As Lucius was staying over to take all the children to the train and had set out to be overwhelming, the Summerfields were not about to make waves. Severus happened to drop into conversation that Lucius was reckoned about the fifteenth richest man in the world – muggle as well as wizarding – and Summerfield asked Lucius outright.
"Oh around about" he said "I don't pretend to be in the same league as people like Bill Gates or sundry Saudi princes. I have a lot of holdings in a number of fields; which is just as well as I have an inordinately large amount of children who can take on the various aspects of my properties when I get too old to find them exciting any more. Money's only a way of keeping score outside of having enough to live in comfort and interest oneself in various social projects. Like paying for several scholarships to the school Severus runs for gifted children; and Lucy may end up transferred there if she's musical or artistic. Unless she chooses to stay with the friends she's already made. Severus won't have his own children in his own school without good reason; but she isn't so there's no problem."
"I bet he doesn't have any discipline problems" said Mr Summerfield, giving Severus a wary look.
"Not hardly" said Lucius. "Always been a strict disciplinarian has Severus; and the best person in the world to go to in a crisis. And as he doesn't HAVE to work, he teaches as a vocation; so he's actually rather good at it."
"And if it's all the same to anyone" said Lucy firmly "I'd like to stay with my friends."
"And so you shall my dear" said Severus "And off to school tomorrow!"
Off to school for Lucy and Richard; and back to school for Severus, apporting in to await the school train from Zurich!
oOoOo
The residents of the castle on the horn travelled to Zurich to have the fun of the train trip with their friends; George Ingate was a prefect in his own right now as well as head of games proper, not just head of quiddpolo and a prefect of courtesy. Little Vya was not a prefect; but she was as delighted as George to see that their friends Fred and Flo Visick sported prefect badges too! The twins had their younger brother along; and as Lawrence had never been expected to come to school until Severus had healed his extremely badly twisted back he was bubbling.
"We spent some time in the new hospital" said Flo "Now dad has taken over there; it's well cool. The whole thing is purpose built with heaps of equipment. It's a teaching hospital too with dedicated classrooms for the senior healers to teach trainee healers; those who haven't got enough qualifications will be attending classes at Schloss Adler, and the would-be nurses studying enough to get a DOE, or what they call a ZAP there. There's some nice kids we met too."
"And our Lawrie managed to actually distinguish himself by finding out that one of THEIR new boys had been born slow so Jade could pep up his brain a little" said Fred, proudly, dropping an arm about his brother's shoulder.
"Aw, it seemed sort of obvious" said Lawrence self deprecatingly, flushing. "I shouldn't mind being a marauder though" he added.
"Well the way I understand it is you put together a group of like-minded weevils and wait to be invited by having shown you're worthy" said George "I never had an urge to maraud; I'll fight evil wizards who attack but I don't want to go looking for trouble. And that's what Marauders are about. None of us Ingates has ever felt QUITE like a marauder; and I know Fred and Flo felt the same."
"We didn't QUITE feel right as he says" said Flo "But I guess if Lawrence wants to go for it, he's had a childhood he never thought he would until Professor Snape healed him; so he has more to give back."
"And they have fun too" said Lawrence.
"Lord yes" said George "Well you'll have the youngest Hallow-Hellibore boy in your year; and unless he's a dweeb and totally unlike his brothers I should think he'll be up for it. I can't believe I just encouraged that."
"You'll get over it" said Flo.
Also resident were Motti Kalinka and Hiob Breuer who were quickly introduced to Lawrence.
"And I shouldn't mind Marauding too like my older sisters" said Hiob. "My older brother doesn't maraud but I mean to. You see my best friend Richard is going to Maraud in Hogwarts in England."
"Well that's two of us" said Lawrence in satisfaction. "Why is your friend going to Hogwarts not here with you?"
"Because his dad is the headmaster of Prince Peak and he doesn't feel it right that his children should be trammelled in their mischief by having a dad AND mums over them as teachers" said Hiob "Professor Snape has three wives; and having a dad as headmaster is bad enough but having three mums teaching or being on the staff – Sirri is the Castle Chatelaine – would be worse."
"Crumbs yes!" said Lawrence with feeling; he loved his parents but having them teaching him would be rough!
oOoOo
Fulke Blackwood, Elsie's cousin, was next; now in the third he was escorting his little sister Cleone, who was to start this year.
"Hold on a tick, will you Fulke?" said George "We've an expected new one in your year, a Weasley of all things who's been at Hellibore's; his parents are transferring him and his kid brother starts in the first."
"Lumme, poor sap" said Fulke "If he's been at Hellibore's he'll need almost as much catching up as if he's been playing with himself at home."
"Don't be unkind" said Flo mildly "If he needs catching up, I'm sure you oiks in the third are capable of helping him."
"And by the hair, this is he, or rather this is they" said Fred.
"William and Lawrence Weasley" said the older of the two red heads.
"Right, William, this is Fulke Blackwood who has as nasty a tongue as any Snape but is a decent enough oik for all that" said Flo "Lawrence? Not another one! Well, here's Fulke's sister Cleone and the other Lawrence in the year which is my kid brother, Mottie Kalinka is a FREE elf, don't forget it, and that's Hiob Breuer. Shift through the wall you lot and you weevils try not to smell."
"That's prefect speak for putting us in our places as the youngest in the school who should try not to draw attention to ourselves" explained Hiob as he drew the other two through.
"Wow, we really are chuffed to see goblins like you and even elves walk tall and act like people!" said Lawrence Weasley.
"That was almost offensive, Weasley" said Hiob "As if you thought we weren't people."
Lawrence flushed.
"It wasn't meant that way" he said.
"We take no offence" squeaked Motti "How come you're not at Hogwarts? I thought all Weasleys went to Hogwarts."
"Our branch doesn't" said Lawrence "I dunno why not; it's not like my mum isn't a Hogwarts family. I s'pose dad thought there's already so many Weasleys at Hogwarts we'd have a better chance at a separate identity or something. HE went to Hellibore's and so did his dad, but all our Barnett cousins go to Hogwarts. Only as William and me managed to pass to come here, dad and mum said we might as well be at a school where brains count and wealth doesn't."
"Clear as mud!" laughed Hiob "What are we going to do about having two Lawrences?"
"Visick arrived first; call him Law and Weasley Rence" suggested Motti.
"Great; it's sorted" said Hiob.
The two Lawrences looked at each other and shrugged.
One obtained nicknames at school any way; and they might have been worse.
oOoOo
A blonde boy tumbled through the wall with a small girl by the hand.
"Hi weevils, I'm Chrysander Hallow Hellibore and I hear there are some people who want to Maraud and I'm not about to be left out, and this is Eva Schiff whose sister marauds too like my brothers."
"Lumme, where does he get the breath from to deliver all that in one go?" said Law.
"I expect his brothers have taught him chanting" said Hiob.
"What a monicker!" said Rence.
"The whole family have monickers" said Hiob "That's why his brothers are known as AHHa and BaHH. What are you going to be, old boy, CuHH?"
Chrysander Hallow Hellibore grinned.
"CuHH it shall be" he said. "My brothers" as AHHa and BaHH roiled past with members of their own respective sets and AHHa with a prefect badge on that others of his own age were teasing him about.
"We appear to be the only two girls so far" said Eva to Cleone "I haven't decided yet if I want to maraud; have you?"
"I'm not even sure what they're talking about" said Cleone.
Eva settled down to explain what marauders stood for. Cleone was half attracted, half shocked.
"I do get into trouble awfully easily" she said "Even without looking for it; but I promised I'd try not to. Standing up to bullies sounds fine though; are there many here?"
"I don't think so" said Eva "But there are bullies everywhere, not just school you know; in workplaces and in ministries and those who want to push schoolkids about. My biological father is a bully; he forced himself on loads of women and that's why there's quite a lot of us. My mum is a pensioner of my sister and her husband, because Franziska is legitimate and our father is now in Nurmengard because he was with a group who went to try to kill the goblins at the free school at Schloss Adler. I want to fight people like him, though I'm not sure I'm a total marauder."
"Oh dear!" said Cleone "That's not an awfully adequate thing to say, is it? But I mean….. how horrid for you to be illegitimate and have a rotter for a father!"
"Well the closest I ever came to him was when he was attacking the school; Fran's teaching in the orphanage there and I live there" said Eva "My mum was a serving maid in his house and she got sacked when he got her with child; I grew up in a pretty horrid place until Franziska found out about us and took us away. So I sort of feel I ought to be wanting to be a marauder."
"I say!" said Hiob "I couldn't help overhearing – you don't have to be a marauder to support the ideals if you feel a bit unsure; because you can always change your mind and ask to come in later if you think you feel more like it."
Eva and Cleone exchanged looks.
"I would rather support" said Cleone
"Me too really" said Eva.
"I want to maraud properly!" said a third little girl who had just come through "I'm Grace Hubble and my sister is in AHHa's class and I say who are the marauders here?"
"That's me, Law and Rence and CuHH" said Hiob. "Motti feels more like supporting than being too. We're expecting three more weevils so I guess five of us will be a decent sort of number."
Flo had to be impressed by how little Rose's trunk was exploding; but then she noticed that Rose had arrived with her friend Hanna-leena so presumably the Finnish girl had sorted Rose out.
The next child arrived in short order, a little boy called Claude, the brother of Solange Lebatons; and Law greeted him, having a healer for a father in common. Claude was a solemn child with intelligent eyes; and he declined to Maraud, gravitating towards Motti.
The final two to arrive were brought through by Flo.
"These are Otylia Winkela and Boleslav Winkel and they're twins but Slavic languages change the surname by sex" she explained "They are Polish and are known to one of Jade Snape's friends, who's teaching in Durmstrang right now but he suggested they might get a wider education."
"Herr Gierek is a clever man" said Boleslav "He thinks if we get a wide and English education we can take wider ideas back to Poland. He purposes to free all the house elves in Europe one day and we shall fight for his ideals."
"Which means those who can will be loud about it whilst the rest of us get on and do the sensible sort of things like stop them from wholesale giving out of hats to elves who are afraid to be free" said Otylia. "Though we are very glad to see that it is true that in English schools there is no visible difference bar the height between races."
"Well I guess we shall have to tell you about marauding" said Hiob.
"Oh but we know about marauding!" said Boleslav "Herr Gierek has explained it to us most carefully; and this we wish to endeavour."
"And I shall try to stop my brother getting into too much unnecessary trouble" said Otylia "Because there are always ways and ways to tackle a problem and charging in wand blazing is not always the best one."
"Sometimes it's the only way" said Hiob.
Otylia considered.
"In which case, there is usually a choice of spells and the way you use them to optimise charging in" she said.
"Actually, I think she's probably right" said CuHH. "And having the more down to earth people to stop mad crusaders is a good idea; look how much trouble Voldemort would have been able to cause without Hermione Granger and Krait Malfoy, 'cos I've heard some of the stories."
"Me too" said Hiob. "All right Otylia but if you lecture, prepare to be groaned at."
"I shall endeavour not to lecture but only sensible things to say" said Otylia "If you groan at me then I shall be having to think I am being the what you say, prig, and will have to consider if I am wrong or if you are a little bit insane."
"You have to be a little bit insane to be a marauder in the first place" grinned Hiob. "Well, shall we banish the non marauders and share life histories?"
"I please should like to share my life history with the marauders so you know what can happen" said Eva "But it can wait. I am happy now and settled."
"Muggle Studies Hobby Group" said CuHH and Hiob simultaneously.
oOoOo
"I have to say" said Flo as they passed the huddle of would-be marauders "It gets a bit much when the majority of the class happens to be marauding."
"It is a bit much" said Fred. "I say, is that Grace Hubble? I thought she was in with the marauders. Here, young Grace, why are you wandering about on the platform looking forlorn and not in with your fellows?"
"Excuse please?" said the child in French.
Flo switched effortlessly.
"Enfin, your accent is not that of an English child; are you then not Grace Hubble?"
"No, Madame; I am Lisette Dufours and a lady called me Grace and told me, I think, for I know some English, that I was naughty and took me by the arm and hurried me through the wall – alors, THROUGH it – and here I am and I so not understand and I would please like to return to my maman for we are shopping in Zurich before I was grabbed."
"Eh bien, I shall find your mother" said Flo "Ask the train to hold, Fred; if they can't I guess I can catch a muggle train to Innsbruck and a local one to the village."
Fred nodded and hared off to the front of the train; and Flo took Lisette firmly by the hand and headed for the wall.
"Do we just walk through it again?" asked Lisette "I was a little nervous because of the odd looking people and being caught in a bubble of nowhere."
"Why, it is not a bubble of nowhere" said Flo "It's a holographic projection because we have had trouble with a few hooligans from a rough school. It stops people interfering. See, nothing at all to walking through it" she added, thanking her stars that they had a competent muggle studies teacher who told them about things like holograms as suggestions towards the time when they could confund people. Flo was not seventeen yet; and she knew that she must not use a wand. But with a bit of down to earth chatter about things the child would accept, hopefully nobody would need to.
They came upon the child's frantic mother; and Flo dropped a little curtsey.
"Alors, what a mix up, Madame!" she cried "Your little Lisette is the very image, the IMAGE of one of the new girls who starts at my school; who have a sweet mother who is of the dreamiest; and can she recall what clothes her Grace started the day in? But no! She knows her girls are dreamy also and sees what she thinks is her younger daughter and takes her firmly to our train which is at a private platform; and so we have two little girls who are of an appearance! I assure you, the coincidence I have never seen before; I pray you will forgive Mme Hubble for her mistake and that you will forgive too the school that we almost had an extra passenger to Austria!"
"AUSTRIA? Zut alors!" cried the mother. "Ah, Lisette, did I not tell you not to let go of my hand? My thanks to you for returning my daughter. You are not Swiss?"
"No madame, I am English" said Flo "We have a school in the Alps for the academically, musically and artistically talented and those who suffer much from Asthma. You will excuse; I do not want to lose my train and go the long way."
She bolted back to the platform and leaped on as the goblin guard heaved her up and waved his green flag.
"Just in time Fraulein Visick" he said "We've a window to miss a muggle train on the public line; any longer and we'd have had to go."
Flo nodded.
"That's why I said to go when you needed to" she said "Mind I'm glad not to have to go the muggle route. Thanks for the heave!" and she made her way to the front where the prefects gathered and regaled them with it.
"Clever idea to remember holograms!" said Rory. "Well we may as well cast our votes now."
Flo nodded, still a little out of breath.
It was going to be hard to pick a head boy or girl; Rory and Randolph were from the Muggle Marauders but the four marauders were very much sufficient unto themselves and did not really take a lead in the school other than by example. Mungo was sensible though he had only been there one year; Pru was sensible too, but not especially what you thought of when you wanted someone to take charge. Leneli would never make a leader; Professor Snape had surely only included her because she had some initiative and might rise to the challenge and none of the rest of that year would. The upper sixth were, after all, the last year that had begun with the four girls who had started the school as Cackle's academy, now down to Pru and the scatty Muriel; the four Muggle Marauders had kept to themselves because the girls were not really very promising; and Leneli had arrived with a chip on her shoulder. Friede was a sweet person but had enough on her plate keeping up – being brain damaged – to worry about even being a prefect; and Marius, who like Mungo and Friede had started last year was also concentrating on his school work since his previous school had been limited. Rory? He was kind to the younger ones but when his garden was uppermost in his mind everything else was out of the window; and Randolph the same about his art. Pru backed out of decisions. Flo shrugged to herself and wrote Mungo Fraser's name on the paper as being the best of a rather responsibility-shy bunch. Mungo was self effacing and would not thank her for it but he at least could rise to the challenge!