Chapter 7
Friday brought Arithmancy, Jade's allies in this class Lazlo and Voldodya; the second of whom was usually there in spirit as well as in body for Arithmancy Lazlo laughingly said. Clovis Gierek was the only enemy; the other two were neutrals, Antonina and Seppi.
Frau Magdalene Meyer was a precise, neat woman who had eyes like gimlets and a classroom manner like an interrogation officer. Jade likened her to Hermione Granger with a period and toothache.
As Jade was exceptionally good at Arithmancy she hardly had to even bother to think for the lesson; it came easily. Especially as this was second time round. She had to learn some slight variations in notation in the German fashion; but that was easy enough.
And she had completed their homework assignment whilst Frau Meyer was still giving it out.
Jade spent Friday afternoon undertaking the stiff translation the class had been set for Ancient Runes and rewrote her potions essay since she had come up with a better way of explaining the evils of Amortentia and its ilk. Jade was like that sometimes.
They had designated Friday evening as chanting class, and it was to be held in the potions dungeon and attendance quite voluntary.
Jade was quite stunned to find almost the entire of the ECC had turned up.
Rebet looked horrified.
Jade banged on the front desk.
They rose.
"Ah….please be seated" said Jade "This is an informal class; unless Professor Rebet would like us to rise for him, I think we should designate it a time of mutual equal respect, do you agree sir?" she glanced at him.
He shrugged.
"Why not? I respect your skills but I refuse to rise for a stripling. Are you planning on teaching all this lot?"
"If they want to learn; some may find it too hard to keep up with the demands and drop out; no shame in that" said Jade "If you only pick up the basics it will stand you in good stead to take it up again in later life. I'm going to briefly lecture about the nature of chanting; then we're going to go through a series of pointless-seeming voice exercises which will, I assure you, mean that your later performance is superior; and I am going to teach you to breathe. Breath is important. A breath in the wrong place can mean the difference between you curing a cursed wound or making your patient's toenails drop off. Now, of all the magical arts chanting is most akin to potioneering; where the effect is built up little by little. But it is then delivered all in one go. Consider paintings; you can add the colour in one big blob or you can build up layer upon layer with each layer subtly changed by what is beneath it. You have to have some idea how each of those layers will ultimately affect the top colour which is subtle, varied and perfect. Thus is a chant as compared to a charm or even, in many cases, an enchantment. Many enchantments lie between chants and charms; in requiring the subtlety of the minor chanting that one does to tie them in. Those of you who study enchantments will find some parallels at least in the preliminary classes; those of you who study Ancient Runes will soon start to understand how much more powerful your subject suddenly became. A chant may strip away a curse layer by layer with a delicacy of touch that does not set off any subsequent traps within it, or it may change a man utterly, irrevocably into something else by the very ritual changing of his true name. Mostly it is used to heal such ills as are too delicate in nature to use a direct transfiguration upon, where medical magics of a conventional type are too brute force, where the operation is such that by comparison to the subtle, slow, inexorably gentle nature of the chant, using a wand and transfiguration is like removing a hangnail by hitting your finger with a hammer. Layer by layer a problem is dealt with; and even so, layer by layer an effect may be laid down, that can then only be stripped away in like manner. A curse laid by chant requires a chanter who is more competent than the original to unravel it; a sort of chanting Golapott's third law to those of you doing ZH level Potions. This may be simulated by a TEAM of ritual chanters; for in a ritual chant the effect may be massively increased. Especially if a basic chant is set up and held by the majority whilst one or more who have more virtuosity add counterpoint and er, twiddley bits. A technical term for twiddley bits" she added, and waited for the chuckles to die away.
"Harmonic variations" said Volodya.
"Y…yes; and no" said Jade "Sometimes its verbal variations. Sometimes it is merely in the refinement of the rhythm. With the skilled and instinctive chanter they will not be able to tell you what it is; but they will feel the situation they are dealing with and know what to do from moment to moment. This is especially true of curses; some curses fight back. I'd be interested to try destroying a horcrux by chanting…. No O my best beloveds, if you don't know what a horcrux is I'm not about to tell you; you're all too sweet and innocent. I bet even Schrempf doesn't know" she added. "Anyway, what we'll concentrate on first is the sort of level of chant you could do by other means; just because you can't brew Felix Felicis if you've never practised techniques on swelling solution. And now the bit you don't want to do because it is going to hurt; breathing. Stand. You can't do the exercises seated."
She worked them hard teaching them to breathe from their diaphragm; and all were aching when she called a halt.
"Well done; and your homework is to practice that for three minutes every day" she said "I won't punish you if you don't; but your body will next time."
"Please Fraulein Von Strang" said Xanthippe "Will you show us something startling by chanting?"
Jade grinned.
"That is almost an invitation to cause mayhem to you my innocent babe….very well. Lazlo, bring me that chalice; everyone get out your silver knives and slit a finger or palm and let a few drops drip into the chalice. Then you know what it is; and I shall undertake a transfiguration of some considerable complexity."
The majority were prepared to do so; a few refused, giggling in embarrassment as much as with tension.
Jade began a low, sing-song chant. Her breath control was exquisite; and apparent. The chant became song; and only Traudl and Bertel had any idea what language it was in as Jade had resorted to Finnish.
She finished on a high, pure note, above the register of any of the untrained voices there save some of the younger boys; and she held it longer than they could have believed possible, and yet it ended cleanly and did not peter out.
"Breath control; vital" said Jade "I sing or use flute because it works for me. Professor Snape, who is a light baritone when he's in the mood and claims he can't hold a tune in a cauldron when he isn't, prefers to chant. His chanting voice is harsh. This does not matter. The medium is less important than the pattern. Professor Rebet, would you care to use the Revellaspell on the substance in the chalice?"
Rebet came forward, did a bit of a double take as he glanced in and whipped his wand out quickly.
"It – it is UNICORN blood" he said, awed.
"The rest of you may file past and observe" said Jade "Some of the only legally obtained unicorn blood in the world; and then I recommend that Professor Rebet decant it and lock it up safely. Sir, you should write out a document which we will all sign as to the origin of this."
Rebet nodded.
"Yes; yes I could be convicted otherwise for even owning it!" he said "I will paste the document on the bottle I use. It is extraordinary! I should have said it was impossible had I not seen it….extraordinary!"
"Startling enough for you, young Eulenspeigel?" asked Jade.
Xanthippe nodded fervently.
"Oh yes! Thank you!" she said.
They would meet weekly; and if some had wavered for the pain the first lesson had cost them the staggering effects of what a mistress of the art could do cured most of those waverers!
"Nefrita von Strang thinks she's so wonderful; she ought to be brought down a peg or two" the voice sounded hollowly in the 'other hearing' place of Jade's head opened by the egophonic spell. The voice was that of Claudette Reynoult.
Jade, in the library, checked cautiously to see if anyone was overlooking her and slid into feyspace to look for Claudette. She was researching for the term project Professor Rebet had set the Potions class, to produce a potion of their choice from original research and Jade had, rather ambitiously, decided to see if she could re-create Circe's potion that turned men into swine. She was also reading Amaracus Marjoram, whose book 'Herbology for Potioneers' was a standard but who had written a small pamphlet also called 'the search for Moly – as used by Odysseus' since Hermes was supposed to have given the hero a herb called Moly that protected him from being turned into a swine.
Jade had scrawled in her notes 'and if you ask me one need search no further than mandrake'. She resented leaving her researches; and dropped an absent revulsion charm on her place to avoid having anyone tamper with her work.
Claudette was not hard to find, she and her ally of choice Calvina Leckkessel were in the grounds taking advantage of a fine day and the ability to be away from places others could lurk so they might plot in peace. They were not alive to the concept of lurking in feyspace.
Calvina was moaning that Nefrita was too dangerous an enemy to tackle.
"NOT if we fit her up with a teacher" said Claudette. "It's easy; we go to the potions room and knock something over, and leave her handkerchief there; my brother knows her fags, if he volunteers to help them carry something for her he can do that easily."
Calvina brightened.
"THAT sounds feasible" she said "So shall we do it tonight?"
"No; the girls in her dorm will vouch for her" said Claudette "We'll do it when swotty Nefrita is alone in the library. She's booked in to look at books in the restricted section this afternoon."
"How do you know?"
"Because she told her first form brats that she'd take them for a walk when she was done and my brother overheard. She's not going on any walk; because we trash the dungeon then tell Professor Rebet we heard a noise in there. Guiscard's getting a hanky for me right now."
Jade smiled grimly.
That required an alibi; and the alibi would be best for being Professor Rebet himself.
She ate her lunch unconcerned, vaguely registering the mention of her name by Guiscard Reynoult even as she vaguely registered her fags chattering about their chores for her. Which were. It has to be said, quite minimal; they were more likely to get homework help and advice than to have to run errands from Jade who was more than capable of shifting for herself.
Then she went to the staffroom and asked to speak to professor Rebet.
If the dour potions professor could be said to have any favourite – or perhaps one he mistrusted less than the others – it was Jade, or rather Nefrita Von Strang.
"Sir" said Jade "It's not totally relevant to the researches for my term project but it is connected and I wondered if I could discuss it with you."
"That depends what the 'it' might be that we're discussing" said Rebet.
"Odysseus" said Jade "And Circe; you recall that in legend he ate a herb that prevented him from being turned into a swine by the witch's potion?"
"Yes; I've always thought it dubious" said Rebet "That there should be a single herb with so profound an effect unprepared."
"What if it were not a herb but a draught made from a herb and the legend lost a sentence or two or Homer took a shortcut and it was mandragora potion?" said Jade "If it were taken within two hours of being given the other potion, would it not therefore still be acting as a counteractant?"
"Well now, I'm not sure of that… what sources were you using?"
"I had several lined up in the restricted section to examine this afternoon but I wanted to ask you if you thought I was barking up the wrong tree first…. Can I possibly prevail on you to come and have a quick look with me? It's not relevant to the homework, I just thought it was interesting…."
"Yes, quite; following up any interesting fact is always good" approved Rebet, who could no more have resisted checking out a new concept in potioneering than could Severus.
Many of the learned treatises on Circe proclaimed didactically that there was no such thing as a potion involved, that she had obviously used transfigurational skills and the so-called herb was merely a sop to Odysseus who was protected with some kind of shield charm by the wizard he believed to be a god.
"Which to my mind is so much monkey-dung" said Jade "Since she was famed for her knowledge of poisonous herbs and potions. I'm researching a reproduction of her potion to prove it for the homework assignment; but we know full well that Mandragora restores anything to its true form even people petrified by a basilisk; and Snape made a version that forces werewolves and animagi to change too. So why not take an antidote first as a prophylactic?"
"That does indeed hold sense; an antidote taken within a short period before a poison or potion will act to counteract it. It is such a shame that we must rely on the writings of muggles for this period! Literacy among even the Magical community seems to have declined at this point; there are a few passages in Linear B…wait, there are some copies of some indeterminate passages in Linear B that refer to Circe; I don't read it very well, I studied Ancient Runes but…." He went into the back of the library, ferreting around on the dusty shelves of the less well used texts for ancient runes.
"It's not required study….. do you read it?"
"Approximately" said Jade "Not tremendously well; I shall have to brush up. Thank you sir! I did not know those texts existed. I only hope it's not a letter to Circe's laundress" she added ruefully.
He laughed.
"I believe it is a letter from Circe herself or an attendant writing on her behalf to a wizard at Knossos" he said.
"Then the first thing to do is to make a copy of these texts for my own reference and then to go mug up on Linear B" said Jade.
"Well, well, let me know how you get on" said Rebet. "I'll leave you to it."
He had just got back to the staff room in time for two excited girls to tell him they had just come from the potions dungeon where they had heard a crash of broken glass and felt that they should report this immediately.
Rebet sighed that his peaceful afternoon was no longer such and led the way to the dungeon at the run.
They had knocked over crystallised violet leaves preserved in syrup for cough medicines; and the mess was incredible.
Rebet swore in Ukrainian – fortunately, as neither girl spoke it – and promised revenge on whoever had done this.
"Look, there's a handkerchief; whose can that be?" said Claudette, picking it up. The monogram NVS was clear enough. She gave a simulated gasp of surprise. "Why it's Nefrita Von Strang's!" she said.
Rebet examined it.
"Well I wonder how that got here" he said.
"Sir, I don't like to bear tales" said Calvina "But the Von Strang girl boasts rather and thinks a lot of herself; do you suppose she might have been assuming that rules don't apply to her and came in here without permission to do something for herself?"
Rebet regarded her thoughtfully.
"Somehow I don't see Fraulein on Strang being quite so careless as that; nor so irresponsible as to not clear up. Besides I believe you said that you came to me straight after you heard this crash?"
"Yes professor" said Claudette.
"Well then, Fraulein Von Strang is cleared utterly; since she could scarcely have got from the library to the potions dungeon in time to make a crash that had you two intercepting me at the staff room" he said.
"Sir, she may have declared her intent to work in the library but suppose she lied?" tried Calvina.
Rebet's eyes glittered nastily.
"And are you supposing also that that I lie for having been with her in the library helping her find an obscure reference?" he said.
Claudette went pale.
"Oh!" she said "Then – then it appears she may have lost her handkerchief at another time!"
"Or through another agency than loss" said Rebet, clapping his hands. An elf appeared.
"Master?" it squeaked.
"Find out which elf handed laundry back to fags for Fraulein Von Strang and find out which fag it was" said Rebet.
"You think one of her fags was stealing potion ingredients for her sir?" Claudette brightened. Surely the elves could not tell one fag from another?
The elf returned quickly and bowed.
"The laundry was supposed to be collected by Herr Langbessen but it was instead taken by Herr Reynoult" he squeaked.
Rebet regarded the little creature.
"Then pray go to Herr Reynoult and require him to attend upon me here" he said.
The elf clicked its fingers again and disapparated away.
Shortly thereafter Guiscard Reynoult slunk into the dungeon looking terrified.
"For whom do you fag?" demanded Rebet.
"For my sister er, and I do some jobs for Fraulein Von Strang" he added hurriedly.
"Liar" said Rebet. "Tell me the truth of the history of the errant handkerchief and I shall not have you expelled. You have more to lose than your sister."
Guiscard crumbled; and he told all. He was by no means so fond of his sister that he would risk being expelled for her; and truth to tell was a rather weak character into the bargain.
Rebet smiled a soft, unpleasant smile.
"Very well, Herr Reynoult; you may go" he said. "Now, Frauleins….."
The lower sixth girls, being unable to furnish Professor Rebet with a satisfactory explanation for their desire to get another girl into trouble with him found themselves in rather deeper trouble themselves. Spite and its manifestations were nothing new in Durmstrang, and being, as Professor Rebet said, as adolescent a manifestation as spots and boils they might help juice bubotubers to make the acne curing cream.
They had pustulent hands for a considerable period since Professor Rebet was not content to let them off with one session of detention.
And the next time Jade heard her false name mentioned forcefully it was by Herwald Langbessen and she caught enough of the words to realise that he was firmly explaining to the two girls that if they blamed Nefrita Von Strang for their getting caught, they, her fags, would jolly well give them something to suffer over. The next brief burst was Herwald saying that Nefrita Von Strang had taught them the shield charm against people who cast forbidden curses so there.
Already the ECC was working excellently; the kids felt they could work together against any bully; and had the loyalty to put themselves out for her, bless them! And the morning drills of the shield charm had been well worth it.
Jade however moseyed out to find Claudette.
The fags had just gone their merry way.
"My spies tell me" said Jade pleasantly "That you tried to cast the cruciatus curse on one of my fags for some reason."
"Yes, what of it?" said Claudette "The brat was insolent. He blocked it anyhow which shouldn't be allowed in a child that age."
"Well you see I don't think that casting it at a child that age should be allowed" said Jade. "So, I want to let you see something."
She made a pass in front of Claudette's face.
The girl took a step back with a scream of horror.
"NO! Take it away!" she squealed.
Jade waved a hand and Claudette glared at her, white faced.
"Now you know what you will see every time you cast the cruciatus curse" said Jade. "I've tied it in to your consciousness that when you cast the cruciatus curse, and for as long as you hold it, that will be your companion."
"I don't believe you!" said Claudette in horror "It's impossible!"
Jade laughed.
"Keep believing that if you wish you simpleton. Nothing is impossible; if you know how to do it. I AM the quidsats haddarach second reserve. But you'll find out."
It was like implanting a compulsion; implanting the memory of the illusion triggered by the word 'crucio'. Jade thought it tremendously simple; and by far and away the easiest way of stopping people using the cruciatus curse. She must do it again, she reflected. On the likes of De Witt and Nachtigall; which should at least keep them from being too much trouble to other people, for neither was imaginative enough to come up with a way around it.
It was a full week round before Agata Bacsó invited Nefrita Von Strang to Kaffee und Kuchen after school; and Jade went happily. Madam Bacsó was scarcely likely to make a small intimate coffee party with her if she planned on rejecting Jade's suggestions outright.
Bacsó did not beat about the bush.
"I have thought on your proposals and find them good" she said, looking Jade in the face and utterly unaware that the third greatest legilimens in the world was checking her every motive and verifying her words. She went on, "What plans had you for ODESSA , my dear?"
"I rather thought, Agata – as we are colleagues I hope you don't mind the liberty? – that we should play it a little by ear while we find out what we can" said Jade. She had leaned over to touch Madam Bacsó earnestly on the arm to enhance a feeling of intimacy. Doubtless stories of her capabilities were filtering back to the woman by now; and she was one who had the sense to realise that she would rather be on the side of such an asset not against her. She went on, "Gerhardt is in rather a nasty position; he has had so many defeats that he dare not risk another. Yet he dare not either risk doing absolutely nothing and looking pusillanimous. I suspect he will consolidate his hold in the Slavic countries; I overheard Snape's people saying he had used as tools a group called the Vory. I researched this; and found it to be a muggle organised crime group. I think he will use them as Gellert Grindelwald used the muggle Nazis in the nineteen thirties and forties. Muggle history is often very revealing; there are points at which one pauses and checks and finds that there were ambitious and powerful wizards involved in pulling strings; never so successfully, I grant, as with ODESSA 's usurping of the muggle organisation of the same name; but the evidence is there. And often caused some problems to our world also for the pains of such interfering types. That however is by-the-by; other than that it will cause some headaches in the Russian sphere of influence. My researches turned up something that I think will pass by the ordered and essentially German brain of Gerhardt – that the Vory are not a monolithic organisation bent on the same goal or owing loyalty to any one leader. They are vicious, violent and jealous, each regional family – they have families which can grow by adoption like the similar but less homicidal Mafia of Italy – having its own goals, and though they may work together and have an overall interfamilial code they are as likely to slit each other's throats over rivalry as to work together. Gerhardt will not, I think, be able to comprehend of them NOT working together if he has ordered them to; he does not understand the hot blood of the Russian who lives on emotion and cares not about what is 'in ordnung' and what is not. You as a Hungarian, and I as English, are able to stand aside from both ways and observe objectively; and we complement each other because your blood is hotter than mine and so between us we should reach total comprehension of these players. I believe also he will wish to consolidate his position in the German Ministry; who are, it seems, in as great a state of denial as the English ministry were over Voldemort's return. The sports Minister said, as I recall, 'ODESSA is a figment of the imagination'. Whether he has learned to believe that or whether he spouted the line that he was supposed to I cannot guess. They will only sit up and take notice therefore if Gerhardt can be pushed into doing something drastic and public and declaring himself; and to do that he will need to feel both powerful and yet in need of making a move to convince his people. If I can get close to him, this is what I hope to push him into doing; to commit and to commit publicly enough so that he cannot draw back. I am a wolf animagus; he is known to use werewolves. But werewolves in wolf form are tricky to handle. NOT however if following a wolf animagus; it is known that animagi of any type can influence werewolves; witness the case of Professor Snape's school chum who was joined and protected by his closest friends in animal form. And how much more powerful would a wolf animagus be? If I can get command of the werewolves and hint at an out and out attack on the ministry using them, he can then expect to have the resources of Germany behind him, not merely of his well-wishers. And I suspect he has lost many of those, through spending them against the English schools and by those who have been appalled at his inefficiency and have withdrawn support. As I fancy you have; for how can one support a megalomaniac with delusions of adequacy and achievements of disaster?"
"Quite so" said Agata Bacsó "My dear Nefrita it is a workable plan; simple and yet flexible. The only drawback is that you would have to cultivate Hedda Schrempf."
"I have every expectation that Fraulein Schrecklickeit has already whined to her controller and we shall doubtless receive a visit from your so excellent school governor Herzog Von Frettchen" said Jade, unable to resist calling Schrempf 'Miss Totally Destroyed'. "The Prince's spymaster is an efficient enough man by all accounts; were he in charge not Gerhardt it would be a very different matter. It may be worth attempting to subvert him; it may be better to merely kill him. For now he is useful to me; and I shall be cultivating his nephew in the fourth who I believe is the man's heir also. We shall see how I proceed with the Duke as to whether or not I feel a need to help him to immortality" she smiled brightly.
Agata Bacsó shuddered. This was a terrible girl! She had all the ability of the English allied with a cold-blooded ruthlessness that was admirable, and yet frightening! The more so because there was none of the enjoyment that Schrempf displayed in the pain, discomfort or death of others. She would kill Von Frettchen if he were in her way with no more emotion or compunction than if he were a rat!
Jade saw the play of emotions and was pleased at the way she had portrayed herself.
As it happened, if Von Frettchen was a threat she would indeed kill him, without hesitation; for the safety of her parents and siblings and the other children. But not without compunction.
"You spoke of having to make concessions to goblins; what did you mean? How far do you propose we go?" asked Bacsó.
Jade shrugged.
"It seems to me that having the support of the goblins would be valuable" she said "And the way to do that is to make sure they see US as those who have given them more than they have ever dreamed possible. I suspect that many goblins live in poverty; those of us with independent wealth can purchase factories and pay them well, gaining a good reputation. It worked for Lucius after all; even if he DOES do it out of conviction not expediency. That gives us a group who would, if need be, fight for us; and die for us. Hearts and minds. Then when we get to the point that we can dictate policy we come into line with Switzerland and France; that goblins who can prove qualifications may carry a wand. It's a gesture. A few may manage to scrape together enough to pay to go to Prince Peak or Beauxbatons but it will only be the few. And THEY will be the intellectuals; who will feel superior to the others; and on whose superiority we may work. It will come about that there will be an effective aristocracy amongst goblins; and the educated ones will keep the rest in their place. We shall not have to."
"Brilliant" said Bacsó in admiration.
Jade heaved a silent sigh of relief. Talking that specious argument as fast as possible was always the weak point. Once the first concessions were in place at least, further ones could be subsequently introduced.
"Where is the greatest concentration of Goblins in Germany, do you know Agata?" she asked.
"Munich I should think" said Agata Bacsó. "Where Anett Breuer comes from; she was taking an interest in goblins, I thought it unwholesome; though as Von Frettchen has an interest in her…. I do not know what she thinks, that one, or intends. She is teaching this year, of all places, at your old school; I believe Von Frettchen urged her to spy for him."
Jade laughed.
"I don't know what he expects her to find; save what we all already know, that Snape is one tough cookie and trains all of us up to be good. He welcomes werewolves; and cures them with his injected serum, that he developed for his friend. It's why he has the Nachtigall family; who may be implying that Freidolf Nachtigall was falsely accused of being a werewolf, but anyone who's in the know at all – which in a small school is anyone who cares to take an interest – is aware he used to be a werewolf together with his wife and younger children and ….got cured." Saying he used to be a werewolf but was all right NOOOOW did not work in German and Jade eschewed the flippancy. "And if we seem to be coming into line with the English way, we can ask for aid – like anti-lycanthropy serum. If I can gain control of the werewolves and cure them, not only does it neutralise the threat of them as werewolves, we also have some very grateful people. It is, after all, an affliction; not a race. And that should NOT be subject to discrimination. Werewolves are to be pitied. And killed if they won't accept pity" she added thoughtfully. "For those who embrace the abomination willingly are plainly insane and should be put down like mad dogs."
It was quite fun playing utterly ruthless; and fun to make Bacsó squirm.
Things were going very well indeed.