Chapter 13
Lilith and Sextus were back in school after the weekend; and the only indication that Lilith had been more disturbed than perhaps she cared to admit was when she snapped at her friends for walking on eggs around her, declaring that she was not a ruddy invalid and did not need treating like one.
"In a way yes you are so can it" said Gennar forcefully "You may not be physically hurt but I know damn well that trauma takes more than a few days tea and sympathy to get over. I was orphaned and we had to move remember; not on the same scale as being sent to the evanesco place but it took a helluva while to adjust to it so stop being a poor prune. We're your bloodsibs, your group; let us in Halfpint. We are here to love you and let you weep on if necessary so you can be strong at the rest of the world."
"Sorry" said Lilith in a small voice.
Venus and Jayashree exchanged a glance; that DID show up how shaken their tiny friend was!
"We wrote down everything we observed about the place" said Sextus "Because that helped; and Lilith's looking on it as a thaumoturgic expedition of vital research importance."
"It's easier to contemplate like that" said Lilith. "The pain was only pain but…. But I was scared I'd die of being eaten by fungus and would never be able to get back because it hurt too much to be able to make arithmantic calculations about how to apparate. And then Sec turned up in a suit of protection and cuddled me and then I knew it would be all right" she said. "Then I could be stronger and stop panicking and take more notice. He was tremendously brave."
"You're my girl" said Sextus.
"He's also harder than any of the rest of us and had the best chance of pulling it off alive" said Gennar. "Though any one of us would have gone if we'd been asked."
"I guess daddy knows I have a special bond with Sec" said Lilith. "But the chant to wrap him up is of paramount importance for when I go on purpose."
"Lilith! Surely not!" said Kazrael "It would be too terrifying!"
Lilith squeezed her friend's hand.
"Yes; and that's why I have to go again" she said "So I can get over how terrifying it was without protection and sort my head out. Daddy wasn't ready to listen when I put it to him; sometimes grownups get too emotional to think straight. But we'll need a decent number of chanters to do it."
"You'll be bloody lucky to talk anyone into it" said Sextus "I keep telling her this. And I don't think we should risk it without a significant number of grownups; I wish you oiks would back me."
"We do" said Gennar "We want to help you Lilith but I think we need your dad to anchor. Tell you what, we'll all write to him and explain that as your peer group we think the only way you'll get rid of the nightmares is by facing the fear and dispelling it by going and returning. Suit you?"
Lilith nodded.
"Thanks Gennar; I AM having nightmares only I've been blocking because stupid like I thought they might stop daddy letting me do it. But I want them to stop and the only way to remove a fear is by facing it. I don't want to have a boggart. I'm used to just hissing at them and making them go away."
She was variously patted.
oOoOo
Severus' indecision could be felt by the group for several days; then they were blood-pulsed to go to the Marauder room whence he had apparated; and he spoke harshly.
"I don't want to do this, Lilith; but I had rather do it myself than have you try on your own with half trained children as your only anchors. You will take my orders absolutely in this."
"Yes daddy" said Lilith.
"Can I go with her sir?" asked Sextus.
"No" said Lilith "I need to do it alone; it doesn't need but half a minute, dad."
Severus nodded; and set the children in a circle, chanting to set up the same protective shell about Lilith as he had set about Sextus, tying the strands that wove it to himself. Father and daughter exchanged a glance; and Lilith nodded her readiness. Severus cast the vanishing spell; gritted his teeth; and waited for a long count of thirty, wand on the strands in case of an untoward need to return her.
And then he was chanting her back, pulling on the strands, and Lilith tumbled into the centre of the small circle.
Severus checked the protective shell for invading organisms, nodded in satisfaction, and dispelled it.
"Are you all right?" he asked roughly.
Lilith nodded.
"Thank you daddy" she hugged him fiercely "It – it's not NICE there but I could concentrate without being gnawed on by rapacious fungi. Now I understand the place better I shan't be scared again because I think I know more counters to the fungi even without a shell because I've watched them. They can be controlled by simple mind control spells like animals I think to be persuaded not to come. Revulsion charms; I've studied them with Flitters. So I don't have to get in a flat spin over anyone doing it to me in, say, a duel. I didn't think very straight when SHE sent me there so the fungi had a chance; I lost my cool. I know that's pretty reprehensible" she added.
"Hardly, in a child your age; even in a child the age of your friends" growled Severus.
"Well I kind of expect to be in total self control all the time; so I suppose it's a learning experience that there ARE things that can rattle me" said Lilith. "Anyway, you CAN use repelling charms like I said, and that means you can be safe long enough to find the link; and I think it's possible to apport directly to a blood kin you're close to; will you send me down again so I can try, daddy? Because it should be tested."
"No" said Severus shortly "I'LL go. You're a good enough chanter to retrieve me if need be; and I'll test your theory about repelling charms too."
"Not without a linkage just in case sir" said Sextus firmly "I'm not prepared to let Lilith lose her daddy knowing what might be happening to him. And please, the shell of protection would be better for her peace of mind too; you can still use repelling spells."
Severus looked at him a long moment; and laid a hand on his shoulder with a nod.
"Right you are old man" he said.
They practised weaving the shell and its attachments; then Sextus raised his wand and cast the spell. Lilith was to be the blood-bond to whom Severus returned and it was felt that therefore Sextus should hold the other strands. Severus disappeared and the threads as before disappeared into nothing.
oOoOo
Severus reappeared in front of Lilith with a loud CRAC! noise and nodded approval.
"Your deductions were all valid" he said "They backed off for the repulsion and I could feel all my kindred. And you and Sextus are very brave; it really is a very nasty place. I'm not at all surprised you could not think straight. The strangeness of the way things look and the way the atmosphere swims in drunken illusions is not conducive to pure thought either."
"Did the rubbish make the fungi or do they just eat it?" asked Sextus.
"That's a bit of a chicken and egg question" said Severus
"Well that one isn't difficult" said Lilith "The egg came first and it was dinosaurs and Archaeopteryx before it was a chicken. I reckon the fungus must have been there first at least in a proto-form because if it had gone with the first banished wizardly rubbish it would be recognisable and it isn't. And we've only been banishing rubbish for what, no more then forty thousand years, not enough for that massive an amount of evolution surely?"
"Point taken and I guess that you're generous in your guess of the maximum time" said Severus "There's only a need to get rid of rubbish when you have a stable and settled population; back then every evidence suggests at least a hunter-gatherer existence, probably entirely nomadic following game. I'd say no more than ten thousand years and however short the generations that's not really enough for household mould to get aggressive and semi-sentient."
Lilith nodded.
Making an academic study of it made it so much easier to deal with!
"Thanks daddy" she said.
"You are welcome, pumpkin; now the lot of you skedaddle back to bed" he glared around the little group in his best headmaster glare.
They giggled; the girls kissed him and the boys shook his hand and they departed back to bed.
oOoOo
"Look here, Baddock, are you likely to be doing any kind of special family Christmas stuff?" asked Zajala.
"Not really" said Nigel Baddock "We're not terribly family like, even at Christmas."
"Oh that's sorted then" said Zajala "You and your kid sister may as well come back to Malfoy Manor over Yule; we have an awfully jolly time and dad loves having a full house."
"Why? I mean why are you asking me?" said Nigel suspiciously.
Zajala shrugged.
"You've worked awfully hard since Severus sorted your head out; and it seemed like a good idea at the time to actually get to know you – a little belated I guess – inside the crap your head was making you think" she said. "You kinda needed time to come to terms with it but there's no reason we shouldn't actually get on more friendly terms, especially as Clymene's in with the Marauders. Who I expect will mostly blow in at some point over the holiday; Severus and dad are awf'ly close and most of the Snapes are Marauders."
"You're not though." It was a statement not a question.
"Never appealed to me; like the song says, I'm a material girl. You can take me to the ball too if you like, unless dancing with a goblin will cause rucktions with your family."
"It's none of their business. Are you suggesting we walk out together?"
"Dunno. Probably not; I rather fancy I have my eye on someone who was in Gorbrin's class; but you don't actually have a girlfriend and I don't actually have a boyfriend so we might as well go together as Bella's taking Stripes Khan this year."
Bella had gone with Nigel the previous year because he had worked so hard on improving himself; and he had appreciated it.
"I suppose as he's leaving anyway he doesn't much care about people making waves about him marrying a pupil" he said "And it's not as though she wasn't over seventeen I guess. Why 'Stripes'?"
"Oh because he's a rakshasa of course" said Zajala "It's why Bella has such a thing about tigers; and is a tiger animagus. And I say I do have an almost ulterior motive for asking you."
"I might have known; do I get to know?"
"Oh I don't consider it a secret" said Zajala. "I'm FRIENDS with Danzo; but he's trying to make it a boyfriend thing and actually I don't think he's old enough mentally to be anyone's boyfriend, however much I like him; and I don't want to send the wrong message by going with him."
"Oh!" said Nigel "Well I guess I don't mind that sort of ulterior motive; if it was to make him jealous I'd kind of resent that."
"Oh that's not a nice thing to do to a partner" said Zajala "I mean, Griselen and Genavka pulled that with Phil and Tony last year by going with the Corbin twins, but the Corbin twins only wanted a matched set to escape from those dippy Huffer girls so it wasn't the same as using someone really was it, because it was a case of mutual benefit."
Nigel considered.
"I guess" he said cautiously "I still have some trouble with understanding why people do things and what's on and what isn't. I mean apart from the obvious things like not casting the vanishing spell on people."
Zajala shuddered.
"I was really scared they'd not get her back" she said.
"Where did they all come from? I didn't even recognise half of them; and you can't apparate inside Hogwarts; and Clymene apparated in too with heaps of other kids!" said Nigel.
"It's to do with blood magic" Zajala shrugged "It started over protecting Harry Potter and Lilith was born joined in. Those who choose to protect get to be blood joined; Clymene's one of them. Like I said, it's not my thing, though I respect them like hell. What one feels all feels, though I think it's not always at full tilt because you wouldn't want the kids to feel you having sex I guess. I dunno for certain; but I know that it's the only way they managed to save Lilith's life and prevent Fawcett from actually being a murderess. I'm glad she's gone though; it's a lot less contentious now."
"I'll say" agreed Nigel with feeling "I was always jolly glad not to be a Raver."
"Amen to that!" said Zajala.
oOoOo
Danzo was hurt when Zajala turned him down, saying she already had a partner; he had started to fall into the idea that as the only female full-blood goblin in his year, Zajala would probably go along with going out with him, especially as his sister was friendly with her step sister Erica.
"Who are you going with then; Korban? Not Kaur surely?" he demanded belligerently. "Roger?" he suggested the half elf who was in height very similar to the goblin youngsters. Kaur, half goblin half elf, was the shortest youth in the form.
"None of them" said Zajala. "Why don't you invite Emma Clitheroe? She's a decent sort."
"Well I shall then" said Danzo. Emma was an austere little body having been in a Catholic boarding school until rescued into her proper milieu by David Fraser when he was head boy though she had not at that point been old enough for Hogwarts. The muggleborn girl had no side at all and actually rather admired Danzo for his rebellious streak; her own rebellion being quieter and more by way of stubbornness.
oOoOo
Storm and Zephyra found themselves invited by Cecil Burke and Pericles Bullivant, who were close friends and who tended to knock around a lot at Malfoy Manor in various holidays. They were good fun so the cousins agreed; though Zephyra said,
"Though to be fair I don't think either of us is actually looking for romance yet."
"That's all right; neither are we" said Cecil. "We just like the idea of being seen with the loveliest girls in the year on our arms."
"He's good, isn't he?" said Storm.
"Moderately" said Zephyra "If they can turn pretty compliments that actually sound as though they mean it shall we agree?"
"Oh I think so" said Storm.
Pericles grinned.
"We just like being in with the Malfoys" he quipped "And you two are close to Narcissa."
"And your sister isn't close to Vladimir?" said Storm cynically.
"IS she?" said Pericles "But she was at school with his daughter!"
"That's why he's trying to pretend she isn't pursuing him" said Zephyra.
"Oh well" said Pericles "Next time I see him I'll ask when he's going to make an honest woman of m'sister; THAT ought to make him realise she really does want him and bring him up to scratch. Reckon I'd better write to her first though and check she DOES want him mind" he added "Or she might give me a thick ear."
"You do that old man" said Cecil "I'd NEVER dare interfere in MY sister's love life without her permission."
As Cecil's sister Dympna, or Dimsie as she preferred to be called, was only a year older than Crocosmia Bullivant the age gap was similar enough for there to be a lot of masculine sympathy over sisters between the boys!
oOoOo
As it happened, Crocosmia wrote back to her brother that his intervention would be rather welcome as she KNEW Vladimir was not indifferent to her but was trying to be a gentleman to avoid spoiling a friendship between Julia and Crocosmia; which as Julia knew all about her friend's attachment to her father and approved was daft. Crocosmia wrote that she had not realised that Pericles had noticed and was mature enough to realise the undercurrents and thanked him for his brotherly concern; and Pericles was wise enough not to admit that he had needed to have the situation pointed out to him.
And Vladimir might have been raised as a muggle but he was an acknowledged brother of Lucius; and that would please their parents too. And would have done so if Vladimir had been eighty-six not forty-six.
Malfoys never showed their age anyway; Pericles reflected that you couldn't begin to guess how old Lucius was; and Vladimir was something like a decade younger than Lucius after all!
oOoOo
The various Marauders in the school were too busy on The Biggest Con Ever to consider any more mundane japes; so as Seth for the Weird Marauders said, it was just as well they had already pulled THEIR effort for the term and the rest of the year was just going to have to be boring in terms of being jape-free because for Marauders duty came before entertaining mere schoolchildren.
David, present at this particular planning meeting, managed not to laugh because Seth said it with total sincerity.
"I think it's cool" said Nathan "Because it means those of us who are too old to pull kids' japes get a chance to be part of a jape so stupendously huge it rocks anything before or since; though I guess Maud might not have come up with it if Lilith and co hadn't pulled their Riddle riddle stunt."
"It did give me the idea" said Maud. "And I can suggest it because I know I CAN hand over the execution of it to those of you who actually DO know something about runes and shit, and I say, I had another idea."
"Crumbs, our Maud, what are you running on, high octane chocolate with supercharged acid drops?" said Bella.
Maud grinned.
"It is a bit excessive, isn't it? It's acute missing-my-Fabianitis"
"Lumme" said Isabel "If it's catching as acute missing-my-Chaditis and so on I shouldn't think the wizarding world will stand it."
"I'm too ruddy busy designing hieroglyphs for it to get too many bright ideas" said Mimi. "What is it Maud? Or have you forgotten while we burble?"
"No I haven't" said Maud. "What I was thinking was that we might need to give some clues to finding keys based on astronomy and there's been the precession of the equinoxes and stuff; which is Fido's province."
"I'm not that ruddy good" said David ruefully "But I know a man with an orrery that is" he added. "Severus has a very nice orrery and I'm sure he'd let me play with it and help with my calculations. Bella WHAT are you giggling about?"
"Just hoping that if Severus has orrery it isn't catching" said Bella.
David gave her the two fingered cuff.
oOoOo
The first years had no interest whatsoever in the tribulations of partner hunting for the ball; they suffered the indignity of dancing once a week with the stolid incomprehension over the tortures grown ups see fit to inflict on children for their own good that they also reserved for being made to eat cabbage or sprouts entirely unaware that being used to dancing would one day make their own first Yule Ball less of an ordeal than it still was for the older pupils. Of more moment was the changearound of the subsidiary classes.
The Hunting Marauders were to be introduced to History, Divination, Care of Magical Beasts – not differentiated into domestic and otherwise at this level – Astronomy, Geomancy and Ancient Runes.
Hints of what Richard's siblings were up to certainly raised expectations of Ancient Runes and the class were disappointed not to be learning Hieroglyphs right away – Greek was considered quite complex enough for them to start with – but buckled down with philosophy. Many of them would be negotiating to fit in studies that were technically in opposition of course; but the Headmaster and staff were anticipating that. One did not expect to have Snapes and Malfoys in the school without some degree of excess academic zeal.
Varjak had no intention of studying divination – unless he was revealed as talented – when he could study metalwork; however poor he might find himself at working with metal, it could be overcome. And as he showed no talent in divination he was glad. Nor did Habbuk; but Habbuk was busy declaring that Divination was a sight less scary and taxing than metalwork so divination was for him even if he had no talent. It may be said that none of them found any talent in forseeing the future and in attempting to divine chocolate frogs Glasbhinn managed to find only earthworms. She was busy arguing the opportunity to study both history AND Arithmancy; as was Richard who excelled at both subjects. Outside their immediate set Ramsey Corbin also wanted to take both; as well as his desire to take both care of beasts and Herbology and too Mabelinn Black-Weasley, heartened by others wanting to combine, also expressed an interest in taking both History and Arithmancy since there were few enough subjects that she WAS good at that she wanted to take those at which she had some chance of doing well and though History was her first choice, Arithmancy had come fairly easily to her too. With a class of four interested, Professor Lector was happy to accommodate a second class during a different period or one evening; and there was never going to be any trouble over Hagrid fitting in Richard and the four of Penny's set – Darius letting himself be talked into doing Herbology as well – to make up an extra care of beasts class over tea and cakes. And though Ramsey was doing two extra classes his grades were universally good and he should have no trouble with them.
Richard Snape was also agitating to do Geomancy as well as Enchanting; and David told him that he could jolly well do that in odd moments with himself and Padfoot, which being a Snape should not present any difficulties. Richard had grinned cheerfully and agreed.
He had probably, like Lilith, covered most of the first two years at least of the majority of subjects anyway and was wont to have Minerva sighing over careless talk in the Snape home by bandying about such NEWT level concepts as 'Assimilative Correlation' as well.
And Madam Spikenard was pleased that the split of the class meant that she was tending to get those who were interested in or good at her subject rather than those considering it a soft option since the dippier girls did see the fascination in making themselves jewellery in metalcrafting even if the idea of casting scared them. Which had been the general idea when David had chosen those subjects in opposition. And there were nine who were acceptably good at the subject, one who was good and another four who positively shone and certainly looked to be likely to have abilities high enough to be insurance diviners. And none of these were those who shone in Metalwork – four brilliant and two very good in an otherwise very average mass – so there was no conflict of interest there.
David wondered whether he might have to alter around the opposed subjects; but shrugged to himself. This year there were a significant minority of Arithmancers who were also Historians; next year there might be a large number of enchanters who also desired to be Geomancers or Astronomers who wanted to study Comparative Magic. The key was to be flexible and to encourage flexibility in the staff.
He had his senior staff and Tony Queach in to tea to ask them how they felt the combined classes with junior staff to help out were going.
"No problem for me, Headmaster" said Minerva "Lynx is verra guid at seeing wha' there might be trouble and misunderstanding and going tae those sufferin' problems."
"Hawke the same in Potions" reported Connie. "I don't much like having such huge numbers in the dungeon and I shall be glad to stream them; you'll be having the four major classes sorted so junior potions top stream is at the same time as Junior transfigurations lower stream say, so both streams don't occupy the same classroom together, where specialist equipment was required?"
"No, actually I'm having a second dungeon outfitted" said David "And when the lower forms are not using it I thought that NEWT level students in twos or more might do their own brewing. The equipment is waiting to come in after term ends so you and Hawke may arrange things to your satisfaction. The dungeons are underused. I don't want to split the two streams in time as well as place; it gives ME too many headaches."
"Well if they're to have a second dungeon that's fair enough" said Connie.
"I have no problems with Adela's aid" squeaked Flitwick "As you know I do like to spend most of the first term covering theory anyhow. Which lends itself better to the larger class. I've introduced more practicals purely for the fact that streaming must be done on a mix of practical ability and academic grasp of the subject."
"Wido knows his way around fighting the Dark Arts; and around asking the kids leading question" said Remus. "I think it's going very well; like Filius I'm making sure to have more practical applications than I might have otherwise done and for the same reason but I don't think it harms them to get to grips with reality from the word go."
"Tony?" David asked his Chanting Professor.
"I have to say it's handy having someone else who can carry a tune" said Tony "Not that we do much singing work but they need to know it's possible, and sometimes it helps the timing. Vespasian is prepared to take on those who want to continue with chanting but need a bit more coaching; you were permitting them to give up chanting at Yule along with other electives, weren't you?"
"I was, yes" said David "Though I like them to have as wide a range of subjects as possible to choose electives from when they reach the third. After all, if they take only the four core subjects and the six semi-electives they'll only have ten to choose from for OWL and really, ten subjects for OWL is an average sort of number anyway, Minerva why are you laughing at me?"
"David" said Minerva with some asperity "Ye do tend tae forrget that ye associate wi' rather rrrarefied beings like the Snapes and Hermione Granger. The average is eight; we encourage our students to take nine."
"I stand corrected" said David. "And I make no doubt that people like Richard Snape, who plans to take fourteen subjects for the next two years and will then no doubt drop two or maybe three of them for OWL will manage; Snapes do."
"Weel, Richard will aye look upon baith the study beasts and of plants from a potioneer's eye" said Minerva.
"He has his father's touch" said Connie "When I can stop him actually teaching those of his satellites as need an extra hand in things; the boy is determined to get all his friends firmly in the top stream."
David grinned.
"Well he gets THAT from his mother" he said. "Krait was always one to try to sort people out. Is he likely to succeed?"
"Oh I have no doubt of it" said Connie. "Especially as I am absolutely certain he takes them off somewhere to practice. We could easily make three streams if it came to that; the good, the adequate and the dire."
David reflected that it was as well that he had separated the senior staff from the junior or Hawke would have been making some quip about the good, the bad and the ugly. He wondered absently if Hawke still had the poncho and the Stetson he had been wont to wear on missions.
More than likely.
The Junior staff were eager to take on their lower streams; and in Adela's and Wido's case a little nervous too. Vespasian was to be just coaching those who were keen but less able so there was less pressure on him; as all in his class wanted to be there.
"I'm used to teaching those of little ability among those in the Umbrous Lane complex" said Hawke "And Lynx has helped out enough to see how dire some of them can get. A lot of the families there just don't have much in the way of magic which is why they've ended up in so poor a surroundings anyway; though fortuitous marriages can throw up the truly brilliant once in a while. And without being racist, outside of their own brand of magic in branches of Arithmancy or practical skills like enchanting and metalwork, a lot of goblins don't actually have a whole lot of pure magical talent. At least, not those who've fetched up amongst the poorest. Of course once you ARE poor it's hard to rise if you DO have more ability than your forebears; which is where we in the free school come in. But poverty also depresses the intellect, though Lucius and his efforts have improved matters quite a lot; and as yet, most of our kids – the Umbrous Lane kids I should say, they ain't mine any more – don't actually stay after taking a DOE. Most stay to sixteen, take a DOE and perhaps a couple of OWLs and that's it. Sad; but at least it gives them a chance in life. And I guess I see my job here as getting the kids to at least a DOE level pass by the time they take OWLs now it's been placed as part of the system to permit them to; and to try to push them as far as an 'A' grade in the OWL if I can. I like working with the kids who need me; I think it drives Con up the wall as much as it would Severus, who prefers to solve the social problems kids have."
Lynx giggled. But then Lynx usually punctuated any comment she made or was about to make with giggle so David tried not to be prejudiced. She was a clever girl after all but just enjoyed life rather effervescently.
"We shall have a few bloopers I'm sure" she said "Transfiguration being one of those subjects prone to rather amusing side effects; and Merlin Knows we have a few dire ones! Tiarella Yaxley managed to transfigure not a matchstick into a needle but her fingernails into matchsticks; and hasn't succeeded since in turning anything into anything except a lot of heavy weather and sighing poor brat. And Pascoe Broadmoor, who plays quidditch like a demon, managed to arrange his matches into hieroglyphs and hollered about the rising sun taking refuge in the two kingdoms which as I never even took runes to OWL had me flummoxed and Minerva muttering darkly about people having visions on their own time."
"Poor Minerva" said David "You do have to remember, Lynx, she had to put up with Powerless Polly-put-the-kettle-on; Sybil Trelawny you know."
"Yes I heard about her" said Lynx with a giggle "Oh, but Minerva's face was a study! I sketched what Pascoe had managed and passed it on to Mimi; that was right wasn't it?"
"Yes; and it tallies with everything else we know" said David. "Poor kid; I'd hate to be a true seer."
"Well at least he remembered it; went fiery red, apologised, and asked if he had really just spouted all that crap. Minerva actually let him off without a murmur over that description for his embarrassment over seering – do I mean seering? If I don't I do now and it's a new word – and told him kindly not to worry about it but to talk to Richard about it if it ever happened again. And I say, is Vespasian going to teach music in magic to OWL for the odd one or two who want to learn like you're teaching Quidditch as an elective from the third?"
"Vespasian?" asked David "You're only really here for the year so I don't know that it's fair on you – or the kids."
Vespasian flushed.
"I could always come in once a week after my year if there are any keen ones; split teaching them with Tony" he said "Tony's very musical too so I guess we could negotiate over the few that need it."
"Good; talk to him and see if Heath Barbary wants to do an intensive over the next two years; he's in the fourth" said David "And Phil Graves for that matter and Lilith Snape."
Vespasian nodded.
"I'll do that" he said. "Work in the ministry isn't so arduous that I can't make time to give weekly lessons. Heath has a younger sister doesn't he?"
"Yes; she might be willing but she has a bit of an attitude problem" said David "Offer it by all means but feel free to sling her out if she's in any way obstreperous. And if I were you I'd have her in with the class of older ones – for YOUR protection – just set easier work. I'll ask Severus to send me a copy of the text book pre-publishing."
"Cheers" said Vespasian.
"Adela? Enjoying it?" David asked the junior charms mistress. Adela went pink.
"Oh yes!" she said "It's very rewarding helping those who need it; though I have to say there are very few who are POOR at charms."
"It goes like that" said David "Some years the whole class can't make a locomotor charm work to save their lives and yet turn their matchsticks into threaded needles in sets; or they all manage charms and blow up the potions dungeon. It's a peculiar but frequently observed phenomenon."
"We haven't anyone dire at Defence either" said Wido "Just a few who struggle a little. Well unless you count Lysander Weasley who when in doubt identifies any dark creature he's asked to describe as 'something nasty from some other country probably' and who has a vague idea that dark magic may encompass the bat-bogey hex. At least, when writing a list of dark jinxes he included that for want of knowing anything nastier."
"I suppose it's to his credit that he does NOT know anything nastier" sighed David. "MSHG?"
"Yes; and he needs it" said Wido. "Can I have another cup of tea please?"
David grinned; he could not resist.
"You can and what is more you may" he said.
"Pedantic bastard; easy to see Severus Snape had the raising of YOU!" said Wido amicably.